The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1865-04-06
oLDEN TsmEs.
NO. V.

W ms DhdCUq JIDfSe - H0V me
Scholars sfndy and sag their LEARNS
--Norel use Of Hop p0teS-Opinion
Of old fotks about Ardhaetic-Re-
becca rho &hored boy hoU to form
LetterS-4Nr. Hddebraadfs School,
H0Ic tie Boys Barred lin Out -HoU
the Muster treated them to p. Brdady
When l was a boy school matters
were quito different from what they
are now. No school examiners, no
public school funds, or school houses.
Most generally some old vacated cabin
or old house with q mud and stick
chimney at one end, served as q school
house. The lirst scIeol that l attended
was in cooper shop. Here L learned
my alphabet. L remember well when
came up to tho master with my
primmcr in my hanS lie pointed to
the first letter and said, "Well, Henry,
what do you call that" Il don't
hHoG, " was my reply. 1t may be in
tercsting to some to give further de-
scription of this school. As cur pa
rents were poor they could not well
afford to hire q l9hool teacher. Old
Mr.. Stouder, who was cooper by
trade, made proposition that he was
wiling to "keep school, while working
at his trade, and charge only nom
inal sum for his services lie occupied
the centre of the log cabin shop, scat
ed on his shaving horse, while we boys
and girls were seated along the wall,
and were called up in turn to "sdy our
lessons" sometimes stumbling over
slaves, shavings and hoop poles. Then
there was music in our school both by
master and scholars. Sometimes the
: teacher would make considerable
noise for school room, by driving on
hoops. But what was still moro mu-
steal, the scholars had "to study loVd. u
| Such yelling, and this often joined
, with that Of the coopcr's hammer, was
9 wonderful. Interesting, however, as
this was, at first, it did not always
/ last; for children would get weary a:
| Of any other amusement, so very fre
e quently the noise would slack, when
as matter of course, the old Virginis
: teacher would como to the conclusion
| that we were not engaged in oul
= studies. In order then to start W
. again, he would pick up a hoop pol'
9 laying by his side and raise it up an(
4 draw it along over the joicc above
c and with all his might bring it OF
G the floor with an exclamation, "ChiH
a lens, for goodness sake, larn." Thi
> would generally have the effect o
! starting up loud noise again.
a With Ill this disorder, it must b
# said the children had disposition t.
e learn to read and write. AS for arith
9 metic, this was only intended for bi:
:. boys. Many parents in those day
|, said it is Of no use for "gdls to learn t
c cipher." l heard one man say, who
j. when he heard his son wanted to learl
the tailor trade, he said it was of n
,s use for his son to take slate to schoo
i Many of the children, too, could no
rs attend school regularly, even the shor
Y period Of three months in u winter
n but had to help thrash that is, rid
d the horses. Two winters after this
IS began to try to write, This was
g, new and difficult branch for mo t.
n learn at first. l was very anxious T.
learn--in fact, there was nothing tha
craved more than TO learn to write
asked Jacob IIively one day, (wh
was an older scholar and farther ad
vanced in pcnmanship than | was)
how many sheets of paper he though
u | must write over before could writ
=. as well as he could. lie said, 40, yor
,s will write as well us l do by the tim
you fill such q copy book as mine.
- This was encouraging to me for
~ wanted to learn to write.
10 A plank laid on two big woodel
y pins drove into tho logs, hole beini
~ first bored with two inch anger, con
= stituted our writing desks. One da,
. Rebecca Wright, one of the scholars
IS who was already a tolerablc goo
at scribe, looked at my scribbling, an
1T said, "Honry, let me take hold OF you
10 hand and help you form your letters.
le 1t was not long before could writ
ne as we'll as she could. Rebecca, (noN
ut Mrs. Koontz), is still living on th
N same farm where she then resided.
NJ | will relate one moro inciden
n which transpired in my log cabi
g school days. Mr.. Hldebrandt, (after
IN wards proprietor of Baltimore), taugh
70 school one winter in Mr.. Hivelys oil
u, log cabin. This is q time long to b
h, remembered. 1t was tho custom i
G. those days very frequently to "6d
IS oat the master on Christmas or Ne'
or Years. The scholars had it undcr cor
n, temptation for several weeks to "pe
Mt out the Master" but then we wer
+ afraid TO let it out on account OF hi
70 son Henry, who was also scholar
We thought he might tell on us bcfor
the time. So on New Years day W
y all went out into the orchard to pla
%, ball. Hero wo said, "Henry, suppos
n we "bar out the master; what DO yo