"...the old years, the green years, might leap..."
Explanation:
This personification is significant because it offers a way for the reader to, in a way, connect with what is being described; in this case, time travel. The use of a word that would typically be ascribed to a human being onto the intangible years promotes vivid imagery.
Douglas wouldn't want fot the boys who taught him how to read to get in trouble on his behalf. He was afraid that they would be repremended or punished for having taught him how to read.
