Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1862-02-14
THE CHARITY sCHOOL-THE
LECTURE.

1t is now twenty years since num-
Der Of Ladies, belonging to the different re-
ligious congregations in this place, associated
themselves to establish the Charity School.
Its object was to look up from the wharves,
bye streets and obscure places of the village.
the helpless, ragged, and often.imes worse
than deserted children, whose habits and as
sociations would be quite sure to keep them
out of the regularly established district
schools of the place aud 10 continue them
in exposure to all the evils of idleness, neg
lect and petty crine,-to gather these into |
school unde, the charge Of female teacher |
who would bring all the tact OF good COM
mon sense, all the klndliness of female SYM
patby and all the earnestness and self denial
of christian benevolencs to encourage these |
neglected ores to attend the school, to in |
struct them in the elements of knowledge, |
to teach them habits of cleanliness and order, |
and to bring them under good moral inau-
ences, by all of which they would gradually
be placed on the upward instead Of the
downward road. twas great enterprise
for the means to support it must come enc
tirely from the charity Of the benevolent
and it was started as an experiment.
Those who made the attempt were seconded
in different degrees by many who bad seen
plainly enough the evils they we're striving
to remedy, but saw not how they could be
cured The enterprise thus began 20 years ago,
has gone on unmerruptedy till this time
Every season, in some form. usually by
means OF personal pressrfG,iors of the sub
ject by the Ladies to the people OF the village,
the means have been gathered 10 continue
the " Charity School" another garland
every year has added to the accumulation Of
good done By il. 1t is to be noticed tia, not
only has the support Of tie teachers. and
! tie ordinary expenses Of keeping up the
school been matter Of free gift to sll who
have frequented 1t, but the expense Of books,
and oitentimes that Of necessary clothing TO
half naked ones who have been brought into
It, been superadded. To sustain all this has
required a considerable annual outlay Of
money. Ii has also made large draft on the
strength and time Of the benevolent ladies
OF the place:who have hal charge Of the work.
not only to gather the means for its support,
but 10 look up the needy subjects Of it, TO
visit the sick, TO encourage the disheartened
and sometimes almost despairing mother to
get her children out to school. Yet for all
this labor OF love those engaged in the work
have had their reward in the good influences
which they have seen dow from it.
Many have been rescued from an almost
hopeless career of iGleness aud vice-many
have gradually found their way from the
- Charity School t. a regular attendance =.
the district school. and - on to useful p A.
lions in s)ciety-nay more. it would be, ca,
80 name those now in honorable pos .tist. in
professional life, and serving their country
worthily at home or IN the f.ld. who bIes.
tie Charity school, for the god wLyct
/. did TO them in their childhood.
/ But twenty Yeas make great cI4snt.es. No
a few of those who from year to year contrib.
uted literally FOR the Charity School" have
deceased, or removed, and ~ the auctuation.
Of society their places have hardly vet been
made gooc. Last year the outbreak of the
rebellion So affected the public mind that
the contributions gathered were very scanty
so much 50 that it Is with difficulty that
the school mas been sustained till this time.
and means tor the coming spring term are
wholly wsating-to say nothing of pro-
vision far the next year. The Ladies in
charge have been compelled seriously to
raise tb g question: " Must rot We of no
eess'y suspend the school altogether or
fjr an indefinite time - Yet when
the c3useq FENCES of such an act came
up fairly before them. the conclusion wa.
that that should not be done III one more
effort had been made to raise means for its
continuance. The Lecture by Prof HUNGER
EoRD Tuesday evening, generously Of
f'red BY him Tor that purpose, hes
don' something to promote tha; impgr-
t.ni oajs-t. The course Of scientific lectures
de.iTercd by tina; gentleman, at Union Hall,
Several wears since, VIII be rm,mbered by
many Of our citizens. The present lecture.
vas listened to By al attentive and
/ apQTeeiat:ve audience-hir as to numbers,
: tut not halt So large az the character Of the
lecture and the cause iJE which it was given,
merIiad. We have not sraco for an epitome
Of the lecture bu; lis object Was to Illus
trate the fact that man as a rational being
! as vel! as il lis mere animal nature, is in
elise relations with the entire material
world around him-thst by study of it the !
sentiment of the beautiful, the true and the
systematic, airs awakened AID cultivated |
that the more he explores the mysteries Of |
nature, the deeper must be his humility.
and his reverence for God the author of all.
The lecture abounded in beautiful and sue.
gestive remarks. was listened to with great
interest aud realized nearly $50 for its OBJ
ject.
a RICHMOND SIoEr.-Dr George Gross.
who has just been released from imprison.
ment at Richmond, furnishes the Philadel-
phia Press an account of his experience of
prison life at the South. lie tells, anonr
other thinre tha F,fT,vrir., d. go. r . |