Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1854-03-18
THE SPELLING SCHOOL.

Spelling SchoolsS Have you forgotten them p
When, from all the region round about, they gath
cred into the old log school house, with its huge
fireplace, that yawncd like the main entrance to
Aycrnus. How the sleigh-bells, the old-iashioned
bells, big in the middle Of the string growing
"small by degrees and beautifully less " towards
the broad brass buckle-chimed, in every direc-
tion long before night-the gathering Of the clans.
There came one school, the Master give him
capital NJ for he is entitled to it-Master and all,
bundled into one huge, red, double sleigh, strewn
with an abundance of straw, and tucked up like
Christmas pic, with half score of buffalo robes
There half dozen I" cutters" each with its young
man and maiden, they two and no more. And
there, again, pair of Jumpers, mounting great
outlandish looking bin, heaped up, pressed down
and running over Scripture measure, with small
collections of humanity, picked up en- route, from
great many homes, and all us merry as kittens in
basket of wool. And the bright eyes, the ripe red
lips, that one caught glimpse Of, beneath those
pink-lncd, quilted hoods, and the svery laughs
that escaped from the wooden mufHcrs and fur tip
pets they wore then-who does not remember p
who can ever forget them?
The school house has been swept aud garnished;
boughs of evergreen adorn the smoke-stained and
battered walls. The little pellets Of chewed paper
have been oil swept down from the ceiling, and two
pals of water have Seen brought from the spring,
and set on the bench in the entry, with the imme-
moral tin-cup-a wise provision indeed for warm
work is that spelling
The "big boys" have famed and replenished
the fire, till the old chimney fairly jars with the
roaring flames, and the sparks fly out Of the top,
like furnace-the orihamme Of the battle.
| The two Masters" are there; the two schools
are there and such hum, and such n moving to
and fro Will they swarm?
! The oaken ferule comes down upon the desk with
emphasis. What the roll Of the drum is to armies,
that the ruler" is to this whispering, laughing,
troop.
The challenged are ranged on one side of the
house; the chalengers upon the other. Back
seats, middle seats low, front seats, all filed
Some of the fathers, and grandiathers, who could,
no doubt, upon occasion,
Shoulder the eTuch, and show how fields won,"
occupy the bench of honor near the desk.
Now for the preliminaries: the rcputed best
speller on each side chooses" "Susan Brown!'
Out comes q round-eyed little creature, blushing
like peony. Who'd have thought itY Such a
little thing, and chosen first
Moses Jones" Out comes Moses, an awkward
fellow, with shock of red hair shockingly har-
vested, surmounting his broad brow. The girls
laugh at him, but what he doesn't know in tn FL
ementary," isn't worth knowing.
"Jane Murray Ont trips Jane, huttered as n
BRIDE and takes her place next to the caller. She
a pretty girl, but sorry speller. Don't you hear
the whispers round the house? "Why, that's
Johns sweetheart" John is the leader, and a
battle lost with Jane by his side, would be sweeter
than victory won, without her.
/ And so they 60 on calling Names" until five or
six champions stand forth ready to do battle, and
tho contest is fairly begun.
! Down goes one after another, as words Of three
syllables are followed by those Of four and these
again, by words Of similar pronunciations and di-
vers Specifications, until only Moses and Susan
remain.
The spelling-book has been exhausted, yet there
they stand. Dictionaries are turned over-memo-
rics are ransacked, for
"words of learned length and laundering sound"
until, by and by, Moses comes down like tree,
and Susan 1utters there STILL like leaf aloft that
the frost and the fall have forgotten.
Polysyllable follows polysyllable, and by and by
Susan hestates breath or two, and twenty tongues
are working their way through the labyrinth OF
letters in twinkling. Little Susan sinks into the
chink left for her on the crowded seat, and there
is lnll in the battle.
Then, they all stand in solid phalanx by schools,
and the struggle is, to spell each other down. And
down they 60, like leaves in winter, and the vic
tory is declared for Our district and the school is
dismissed"
Then comes the hurrying and bundng the
whispering and glancng, and pairing off and
tumblingn There hearts that Autter not hearts
that ache; 'mittens," that are and are not worn,
secret hopes that not realised, and fond looks
that are not returned There is jingling among
the bells at the door after another the sleighs
dash up, receive their nesting freight, and are
gone.
O,r Master covers the FIRE, and snufs out the
candles--dont you remember how dantily he used
to pinch the smoking wicks, with forehnger and
thumb, and then thrust each hapless luminary,
head first into the tin socket?-and we wait for
him.
The bells ring family in the woods over the hill,
in the valley. They are gone. The school house
is dark and tenantless, and We are alone with the
night.
Merry, care-free companyl Some of them are
sorrowing, some are dead, and all, | fear, are
changed. SPELL! All the "spelP' that has come
over that crowd of young dreamers--oyer you,
over me-will il ever ever be dissOlvedi In ''the
white radiance of Eternity yP-7aylor's January
and June"
Col. SNowDEN, Director of the United States
Mint, thinks there is enough gold in the country
TO justify the suppression Of bank notes of less
amount than twenty dollars. TO effect which he
adyces resort 10 Gallatins plan of laying stamp
duty upon small notes, sufficient to prevent their
issue