“The professor's office had drawers in which books and other professional objects were stored. The children observed Nig very busy there one morning before school, as they occasionally returned from their play outside. The master came: called the children to order; I opened a drawer to take out an occasional book; when it came out, it poured out a volume of smoke. "Fire! Fire!" he shouted at the top of his voice. By the time he was familiar enough with the particular smell, to know that it had been imposed on him. The scholars burst out laughing at the terror of the dupe who, disconcerted by this unnecessary fright, did not make a very strict investigation, and Nig once more escaped punishment. She had provided herself with cigars, and, pulling and pulling on the slot in the drawer, filled it with smoke, then closed it tightly to deceive the professor and amuse the schoolchildren. The interim terms were filled with a variety of new and special duties. At home, no matter how strong the heat was when she was sent out to rake hay or tend the flock to pasture, she was never allowed to protect her skin from the sun. She wasn't much darker than Mary now; what a calamity it would be one day to hear of this contrast. Mrs. Bellmont was determined that the sun should have all the power to darken the shade which nature had first bestowed upon it as best suited. First Impressions The first thing I noticed about his time there was the acceptance Nig seemed to find among his new classmates. When she arrived at school, she was not well liked, and because of Mary, she was quickly ostracized. “School opening day has arrived. Frado walked far behind Mary, who was ashamed to be seen "walking with a negro." As soon as a...... middle of paper ......ue then how is it possible that Mary's skin color is actually darker than Nig's? No matter how much time Mary spends in the sun, if she is white, her skin can never be as dark as Nig's, who is known for having black skin. For something like this to happen, Mary would also have to be biracial and her skin would have to be as dark as Nig's. Because of these factors, I can assume that Mary is in fact biracial and the child of Mrs. Bellmont and a black former slave. It is shown in the book's glossary that such things, as expected, were taboo and looked down upon. Many mothers would never say who the father of their biracial child was. “Wilson highlights the skin color policy whereby slave and legitimate children of the same family looked alike, while white women would prefer not to have the family resemblance that is being discussed..”