The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1865-10-26

@
Spelling Schools.
Have you forgotten them? When, from
all the region about, they gathered into the
log school-house, with its huge fireplace,
that yawned like the main entrance of Ay-
ernus. How the sleigh bells, the old FASH
loned bells, big in the middle of the string,
ana growing small by degrees and beau
tifully less, towards the broad brass buck
ile-chimed i'm every direction long before
hight-the gathering Of the class. There
came one to school, the Master'-give him
capital NJ, for he is entitled to it--Master
and all bundled into one huge, red double
double sleigh, strewn with an abundance
OF straw, and tucked up like n Christmas
pie, with half score of buffalo robes
There was half a dozen cutters each with a
young man and maiden. they two and no
more. And there again pair of Jumpers.
mounting great outlandish looking bin,
fIeaped mp, pressed down and running over,
|Scripturemeasure. switlna small collection
~ ked nm route fro,s. n
uozen MONIES. and all as merry as Kittens
In q basket Of weol. And the bright ewes.
ripe, red lips that one caught glimpse of
beneaththOse pink lined quilted hoods, and
the silvery laugh that escaped the muftiers
and fur tippets they wore tlien-who do .s
not remenlberf Who can ever forget them,
The schoOl-house, destined to be the arena
Of the conflict. has been swept and gar
nished; bon 'Ffs of evergreen adorn the
smoke-stainedl and battered walls. Pellets
of ''hewed paper have all been swept from
the ceiling, and two pals of water have
been brought from the spring, and set on a
bench In the entry. with an immemoral
tin cup-awise provision, indeed, for warm
is the spelling-room!
The boys have famed and replenished
the fire, till the old chimney fairly jars
with tn" flames, and the sparks fly out Of
the top like furnace, the orifamme of the
battle. ' 80
The two Mast ars' are there; the two
schools are there, and such hum. and
snch a moving to and froi viii they
swarm?
with cmpnasis. What the roll of the drum
is to armies. that rule IT, to this whisper
Ing, laughing young company.
The ehn'lengers are arranged on one side
of the house; the challenged on the other
Back seats. middle seate. low, front seats.
all filed. Some of the fathers and grand.
fathers, who could, no doubt, upon occa-
sion,
Shoulder the eru'ch . nd show how fields are Won.
occupy the bench orhonor near the desk.
Now the preliminarics; the rsputed best
speller on each side chooses Susan Brown,
Out comes a little round eyed creature.
biushing like peony. Such little thing,
and chosen first. 81
Moses Jones p Out comes Moses. an
awkward fellow, with shock of red hair.
shockingly harvested, surnounting his
broad brow The girls laugh at him but
what he doesn't know in the 'Elcmentary'
isn't worth knowing.
-~@Sorfv- rs-.a-.-t-aasa- 9ro,,,
as "A bride, and takes her place next the |
caller. She's a pretty girl, but sorry
pclier. Don't you hear the whispers
sweetheart John is the leader, and bat
tie lost with Jane at his side, would be
sweeter than a victory won without her.
And SO they go 'calling gnames,' until five
or six champions stand forth ready To- do
battle, and the contest is fairly begun.
Down goes one after another, as words of
three syllablcs are followed by those of
four, and these again bywords ofa similar
pronune iation and Specification, until Mo-
ses and Susan remain.
The spellug book has been exhausted,
vet there they stand. Dictionaries are
turned over, memories are ransacked for
words Of iearssd Ten 9Th and laundering sound"
until, by and by, Moses comes down like
a tree. and Susan futters there still, like
little leaf aIoft. that the forest and the fall
and have forgotten.
Polysyllables follow. and by and by Su-
san hesitates just breath or two, and
twenty tongues are working their way
through the labyrinth of letters in twink
ling. Little Susan sinks into the chink left
for her on the crowded seat, and there is a
lull i'm the battle. @
Then they all stand i'm solid phaianx by
schools, and the struggle is to spell each
other down. And down they go like
leaves lii winter weather, and the victory
is declared for our district, and the school
is dismissed.
Then comes the hurrying and bounding,
the Whispering and glancirg, the pairing
off aud tumbling in. There are hearts
that futter and hearts that ache; 'mittens'
that cannot be Worn, hopes that are not re-
allied, and fond looks that are not returned.
There is a jingling among the bells at the
door, one after another Of the sleighs dash
up. receive their nestling freight and are
gone. ssy4Eef
Our master covers the fire, and puffs
out the candles, don't you remember how
he used 70 pinch the smoking wick with
forefinger and thumb, and then thrust each
helpless luminary head first nthe socketi)
and we wait for him.
The bells ring faintly in the woods, over
the hills, in the valley. They are gone
The school is dark and tenantless, and we
are alone with the night.
Merry, care-free company! Some OF
them are sorrowing, some are dead, and
all we fear, are changed! SPELL! All
the spell that has come over that crowd
of young dreamers-over you, over us
will it ever be dissolved in the white ra-
diance of eternity?'
| One of the New York Custom House
officershave up his place, "Wednesday, and
asked Collector King to give it to n one
urnad soldiar. and anotl,er resiuuad n nj