Talk:Thomas Lynde/@comment-26583486-20150707121950/@comment-4934571-20150707180237

I'm sure many people understand it the way you described. It was unclear to me too, but I've searched for the answer.

Here's what Rachel says in Chapter 9: "But if you'll take my advice—which I suppose you won't do, although I've brought up ten children and buried two—you'll do that 'talking to' you mention with a fair-sized birch switch." Well, English is not my first language, but from what I understand, Rachel brought up 10 and buried 2. It's clear – 10 of her children survived infancy/childhood and became adults. Therefore 12.

And Marilla supports this theory in Chapter 15: "I'll just talk it over with Rachel. She's sent ten children to school and she ought to know something about it." Well, 10 children were healthy enough and didn't die before they could attend school. Yes, they could've died during their school years, but in the 1850s, your child would likely die before his/her third birthday. There are cases like Kenneth West, who was crushed by a wagon, but that was an accident. Rachel's kids died when they were very young.