The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-08-08

the invariable signal which recalled us from our
sports
To my young readers, would say, donot fancy
that our school-room was anything like yours,
with your convenient desks, year shaded win
dows, your globes cabinets, and outline maps
Ours was large, square room, lighted by ak or
eight windows, through which, during the long
summer hours, came food Of light and heat 50
intense as to dazzle the eyes and .bewilder the
brain of the strongest. Around three sides of the
room ran rude desks to which were attached
rough, narrow planks for benches, and inside of
these wSe row Of similar benches for the small
err scholars. These were without any support for
the back and all of them so high that not more
than one pair of feet out of dozen could by any
means oontrive TO touch the floor. The last side,
with the exception Of the space taken up for the
door, was occupied by the great fireplace, which
yawned from the door post to the opposite wall.
In these utilitarian days, when
"Msa scarcely know how beautiful fire is"
such fires as we used to have are rarity No
wonder that the great wooden beam which served
for a mantel- piece took fire almost every day,
even though the inventor of friction matches, on
whose unfortunate head the old people Of our viii
lage lay the blame of all the fires which have
desolsted city and country for several years, was
rs 20, born n. -, ,,.,,.u ,.,,.,,,, ~,
never be forgotten. The heart of the sailor turns
back to them, as he PAGES the deck through the
weary night-watohes, with the rain and sleet
driving in his face, while the biting north
wind covers his long locks and shaggy pea-jacket
with gittering icicles; and brightly do they
CLEAN and glow in the restless dreams of more
than one famished, benumbed gold-seeker, as he
sinks down to his last sleep amid the SHOWS Of
the Rocky Mountains
OF maps, we had none | doubt whether such
an article ever saw the inside of the Red school,
house, and the Japanese might have been next
door neighbors to us, for aught we knew or cared
The labors of Lindley Murray, Horne Tooke,
Webster, Ashe, Grecnleaf, and Brown, were con-
sidered as entirely supererogatory by both teach
ers and parents Indeed, so strong was this preju-
dice against grammar, that when il was intro
duced into our schools, some years later, the
teachers seldom made any application Of its rules
We were taught TO- repeat it by rote, and In this
way studied grammar for several years, and
could repeat the whole, from Etymology to Syn
tax, without being able to construe correctly a
single sentence In the same manner we studied
Orthography and Prosody, as laid down in the
early editions Of Webster's Spelling book. |
doubt whether any children were ever more ia
mliar with that same Spelling book than were
we not only with the photography Of our les
sons, but the number Of words in a column, the
number of leaves In the book, the leading word
on each page, every typographical error, to say
nothing Of the hours we spent in studying the
beauties Of those specimens of art that illustra-
ted the fables counting the apples on the tree in
the fable Of "The Old Man and Rude Boy,o OF
the exact number Of flies composing the swarm
that tormented the poor /" Fox in the Bramble'
In reading spelling, and arithmetic, we were, to
a certain degree, more carefully drilled, and a
hal >,
and pupils pride on the day of examination.
Thus, with the occasional diversion of I" Choos.
ing Sides" in spelling, and grand pitched battle
with snow-balls between our boys and their rivals
Of the White school, we passed the winter In
the summer, when the large boys were busy in
the fields writing and arithmetic were both laid
aside, and in their place we had patchwork with
all its endless variations, marking embroidery
stitching, and plain sewing. For the qualifca.
tions of our teacher in the last, can we'll vouch
for have a very distinct recollection Of her CON-
polling me to rip the wristband three times from
the first shirt sleeve | ever made, because, for.
sooth, did not catch every gather.
Ii Is Of this teacher, or mistress, for the term
was peculiarly appropriate in those days. wish
to speak. | have unused much upon her charac-
ter and she ever seems to have been of those unto
whom it is appointed to be "made perfect through
suffering Her whole life was combat
struggle with physical weakness and pain. Hour
after hour have seen her walk the school-room
with rapid, uneven steps, her long, thin fingers
clenched together her pale lips parted, while the
great drops Of perspration started on her brow,
yet not word or murmur ever escaped her; and
when the paroxysm was past, her voice was low
and gentle as the south wind after storm. Her
TALL spare figure, and thin, pale face, bore unmis-
takeable traces Of this warfare but there was a
t:-Lk T. L. Io~lx IL a.,I
luminous, as that Of the fixed stars, which spake
Of conquest, and hope centered in Him "in
whom there is no variableness nor shadow of
turning
Husbandless and chldless, possessing suffi-
cheney of this worlds goods, ii was matter of
surprise to many, that che did not seek that life
of ease which her delicate health seemed to re-
quire. But she feared the epnui and selfshness
of life of idleness she felt intuitively that
"Somethine the heart must have to cherish;
Mast love and joy and sorrow learn ~
that no woman can be happy without some occu-
PATTON some interest in life; therefore she took
charge of the village school for many pleasant
summer.
The children became her children in their
progress, pleasures, troubles and difficulties she
rejoiced or sorrowed and II she could not teach
the 9higher branches no one better possessed
the secret of inculcatipg in the minds OF the
children habits of strict honesty, reverence to-
ward God and our elders, Kindness and forbear-
ance toward each other, and courtesy toward all
men.
She was fond of poetry, especially devotional
poetry, and rhymed herself with great facility.
Her appreciation of our conduct was generally ex-
pressed in rhyme, on small square pieces Of paper,
ornamented with various devices in red and green
ink. But the highest proof Of her approval, the
one priced most, was permission to take small
book which she kept laid away, choicely, in her
desk, containing poems for children, by Mrs
Barbsuld, Jane Taylor and others and to 20 forth
an hour or 30, with q companion Of my own choos-
ing, and lie in the deep shadow Of the thick
leavcd trees, or perchance sit perched up In the
old apple-tree, while we committed one or more TO
memory TO be recited on our return to the school
room Another method Of manifesting her APP
probation was TO send us forth in parties of three
and four, to commit TO memory the inscriptions
on the stones In the adjacent grsve-ysrds On
pleasant summer afternoon, when the sun began
to sink behind the mountain and the shadows 10
lepgthep the passing traveller might have seen
half dozen little girls, wandering cautiously
among the sunken graves or seated amid the tai
grass at the foot Of some old slab Of red sandstone
tracing the lugubrious inscription with their tiny
fingers.
A friend, to whom related this peculiar trait
In my early edsoAtion the other day, iaughingiy
remarked-
And to these youthful Medtstions among the
Tombs may be traced your present literary tastes
suppossr
Doubtless they were not without an influence
upon as, Tor remember soma curious thoughts
and spsculstioas passed through my head as sat
there, such - would not have been likely 10
have spoken Of 70 any one, certainly not to any
older than myself
We always commenced our morning exercises
BY repeating poem called "Dsily Duty and
closed at noon with another entitled Hosannah.n
do not remember much Of either, bat do re-
member how hungry used 70 b. before We got