New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1850-11-14
FIRST WINTER AT sCao0I,

SIMMER but the sct9c t4HSttii hte -'''sst"
him vas A fearful lo.,kine ios oi toWns and ie75',
irgy HAD NOT lsar,l oar Ben tell Of the diretal
putisf glsI;a ot The Winter school ol t9e ti"s
ma h,r3 bI,eA and 6ias v Tn twenty strokes,
and pot To be cosed or q ortnlgu. ltoth soreness
Did net fhe minister sud the scaoolmhslet OF the
preceding ~ inter visit toSetheS az our ''oss' 90
evening. and did | no. think the schoolmaster lar
the more awful man ot the two The mlnlsVes
took me In his lap. gave me kiss and tod NE
about his own little Charley a. home, ~hom
must cone and see; and he set me do"n VITA
the impression that he was not nall so tetno'e as
had thought him. But the scnoo.maSter coAie-
sceuded to no words with NE. be WAS IS SIN
and uastooping as the long kitchen fire shovel,
and as solemn OF face a cloudy fast-day. III
fling incident happened which increased my dread,
and darkened my remembrance of aim by another
shade. l had syy crept to the table on winch
stood the hats OF visitors, and IN childish curl
osity had first got hold OF a glove, then letter,
which rep0sed ID tile crown OF the nagIstesi0i
head covering The owners eye caught me at
the mischief. and he gave me look and shake
Of his upper extremity, full OF LIE; it alone or
! will fog you in their meaning, that was
struck motioness for az hour with fright aud had
hard work to dam up, with all the strength q my
quivering lips, choking baby cry. Ihence'ofth
sChoOmasterS 20 my tlnlld heart were Oh 'ilI lIen
the most to be dreaded.
The winter at length came, and the afst day OF
the school was liked aud made known, ana the
longedf for morning finally arrived. w lth hoWnS
vet fearing heart, | was led by Ben to school
But nv fears respecting the teacher We're not
realised that winter He had nothing particular
w remarkable about him to my little mind. He
had his hands too full of the great things OF the
great scholars TO take much notice OF me, except
ing to hear me read nay Abs four times day.
This exercise he went through like a great ma
chine and like little one; so monotonous was
The humdrum and regular the recurrence OF 49, c5
Id, 0b ub, &c. from day TO day, and week to week
To recur to the metaphor OF q ladder by which
proeress IN learning is often Illustrated was
all summer on the lowest round, as 1t were, lifting
first one foot and then the other still putting it
down in the same place, without going any high
err; and all winter, while at school, was yea
rily tap,tapping it on the second step with the
additional drawback of not having Mary Smiths
sweet manners to win me up to the stand help
me cheertully through the task, and set me down
again, pleased with her if with nothing else
There was one circumstance, however, in the
daily routine which matter OF some little
excitement and pleasure. was put into class.
Truly my httleness, feelingly, ii not actually and
yisibly, enlarged Itself when ! was called out
with Sam Allen Henry Green, and Susan Clark
to take our stand on the floor as the sixth class
| marched up with the tread Of soldier and
thinks l. 4" w no has better right to be at the
head than myself" so the head | took, as still
and straight as a cob Ny voice, too if it lost
none of its treble, was pitched key louder, as
al a6, rang through the realm. And when we
had finished, | looked up among the large scho
are as strutted TO my seat, with the thought, ."
almost az big as you now, pulling out my
tiny soul. Now, moreover, held the book inmy
own hand and keptthe place with my own finger,
instead Of standing like very little boy, with my
hands at my side following with my eye the
point OF the mistress scissors.
There was one terror at this winter school
which must not omit in this chronicle OF my
childhood 1t arose from the circumstance OF
meeting SO many faces which ! had never seen
before, or at least had never seen crowded to-
gether in one body. All the great boys and girls,
who had been kept at home during the Summer
now left axes and shovels, needles and spinning
wheels, and poured into the Winter school
There they sat side by side, head after head, row
above row. For this did not care; but every
time the master spoke to me for any little INSIDE
lneanOr, it seemed as II all turned their eyes on
nv timid self, and felt petrited by the gaze.
But this simultaneous and concentrated eye,shot
was the most distressing when happened late,
and was obliged to go in after the school were all
seated in front of nv advance. Those forty
should say eighty eyes for most OF them had two
apiece0 CHANGING up from their books as ! opened
the door, were as much OF terror to me as 80
many deadly gun-muzzles would be to raw
military recruit | tottered into the room and
oward my seat with palsylng dlsmay, as II
very one was diutHS al III iAiJ
The severest duty | was ever called upon to
perform was sitting on that little front seat, at
nv first winter school My lesson IN the Abs
onveyed no ideas, ex cited no interest, and OF
ouree occupied but very little otmy time. There
vas nothing before me which to lean my head,
n lay by arms, bat my own knees. could not
lie down to browse as in summer, Tor want OF room
n the crowded seat. How my limbs ached Tor
he freedom aud activity of play 1t sometimes
eemed as if drubbing from the master, OF
lex across the school house, would have been
leasant relief
But these bonds upon my limbs were not all
had trials BY FIRE in addition. Every cold after
con. the old fire place wide and deep kept
roaring furnace of flame, for the benefit OF blue
oses chattering laws and aching toes, IN the |
more distant regions The end Of my seat, just |
pposte the chimney, was oozy with melted
itch, and sometimes almost smoked with com
,uston. Judge then, OF what living flesh mad 10 I
,ear. 1t was toll to exist truly ate the bread
It instruction. or rather nibbled Mt the crust OF IT,
n the sweat eli my face.
ROW THEY USED TO SPELL
There the class have read but they have some (
hing else to do before they take their sea is
Shut Your books" says he who has been hearing
hem read. What makes this row OF little conn-
enances brighten up SO suddenly, especially tue
upper end OF il What wooden faces ana lead zen
ives, two minutes ago! The reading y" '' @S
hing to them-thoSe stltct 81 I'o t,rI,ed in be-
n perrv's Spellng-bo0k which are tucAeI : -, N
,acn ;ha fables 1t is all dull rs n.y. n9ost
hose Ife.loving boys and 8lriS. ,IoSes But
lrowsed while they stood up n III luz are going to
hey are tuiy ~ tself is the driest exercise to
pel Eat tins TINS ,be driest to perform OF the whole
prepare 10y an Ibid cares no more in his heart
ound Inc ,o e",,I Of yowes and consonants
bout ' dnrg5h"sragby of words than he does how
n tn9 cbjps io one above another at the school
many ;g,7t bs yVT n thpr
oa af the head or foot of his class whether the
eoney bangles from big own neck or another s.
his is the secret Of the interest in spelling EN-
lation is awakened, ambition reused. There IS
omething ike the tug of strength in the wrestle,
omething of the alienation OF hope and fear IN
game OF chance. There has been special
for the trial. Observe this class any
ay, hall ar hour before they are called up 70
cad What fitting from top to bottom OF the
- e -. 80 lintrar OF Lgs and