Here's what made it peculiar:
* Legal exemption: Bob Ewell, as the head of the family, was legally allowed to pull his children out of school to work in the fields. However, it was widely understood that this was a loophole exploited by the Ewells.
* Actual attendance: While claiming their children were working, the Ewell children, especially Mayella, were rarely seen working. Instead, they spent their time wandering around town and causing trouble.
* Lack of education: The Ewells' lack of education was a reflection of their social status and their indifference to the importance of education.
* Social implications: The Ewells' blatant disregard for the law and education further reinforced the existing social divide between the white working class and the white elite in Maycomb.
It's important to note that this peculiar aspect of the Ewells' life was a deliberate choice by Harper Lee to highlight the social inequalities and the lack of equal opportunity in the American South during the Jim Crow era.