Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1873-11-28

Il shall hereafter conduct my
school on an entirely new system"
said Mr.. S. sIt sban't have rod
in it. l shall make my boys love
mc-respect my kind Intentions
bow to reason, and obey for their
own good"
"What do you charge year?"
asked Mrs. G.
"Two hundred dollars; and each
boy to bring a silver spoon, two
suits of clothes, and two pairs of
Shirts" said Mr.. S.
"1've been thinking" said Mrs.
G., "whether my son Jim is not old
enough to be put under your care" "
"What is his age?" asked Mr.. S.
"Ten, last June"
"Certainly," said Mr.. S., "I'll
take him with pleasure.
81 must tell you, frankly, that
have had trouble with him."
"I'll take him, madam" said Mr..
Strap.
"He's very Wild"
"No matter, madam" reiterated
Mr.. S., with smile Of sclf-confl-
dence, CPL take him."
Giles boy Of good parts, but
he's beyond my management" said
Mrs. G.
81 think l understand his case,
madam" said Mr.. Strap, smiling
again.
Sand you never flog?"
"Never, madam. When shall he
Gomez"
"When you please"
"Send him tomorrow"
81 will"
"And come you and see him this
day four weeks
The next day Master James Cos
ling, with two suits of clothes, \
silver spoon, and two pairs of shirts,
arrived at Mr.. Straps boarding
school in the country, not far from
the town where he had hitherto re-
sided. He was little, red-headed
boy, with short, sandy hair, stand
ing straight out like a shoe brush
a forehead half an inch high-a lit
tie pug nosc-an enormous mouth
no eyebrows-and a pair of small
eyes, which looked green in the
morning and red at night. -Four of
his front teeth had been knocked
out by fighting. He bit his nails
half way down, SO that you could
not look at them without setting
your teeth OH edge. His hands
were covered with warts, and he
had shriil, cracked voice. Jim
was a sad fellow; and one would
think, from the number of whip
pings he had received, must have
led but sad life. 1t appeared,
however, that he had accommoda-
ted himself to the situation, and
that he lived amid his multifarious
faggcllations almost unhurt, like
salamander in the fire. He had
been literally whipped through life,
and had become hardened to it, soul
and body, as a camel's knees are to
the sand; and, though he screamed
and kicked from mere habit, you
might see him two minutes after
one of these skin-haying operations
with a smile of unclouded comfort
on his face, or careless mirth, eat
ing a piece of bread and butter, or
playing marbles or humble -the-peg
with the first scaramouch he met.
He had been inured-poor fellow
to all the forms and varieties of
beating. Now it was sudden whack
on the ear, now a dozen slaps on
the palm of the hand with ruler
now smarting rap on the knuckles
how a cuff, and now kick. These
were mere child's play to those reg
ular executions which varied the
monotony Of every three or four
days, when "coat and vest off
stand erect, STRIP and the birch was
laid on till the arm that welded it
paused from fatigue. At these
times his cries were wont to be linn
tied only by the quantity Of his
breath and the power of his lungs;
and the unfortunate boy would
shrek and roar until the neighbors,
disturbed, would shake their heads
obviously, and tell each other it
was that Mrs. Gosling licking poor
little Jim. Such was the lad sent
by the over-wearied mother to Mr..
Strap-no more, if the truth must
be told, to get rid of heavy trouble
than from curiosity to see what Jim
would do in school where they
never whipped.
On arriving at the school Jim
was let loose among the rest of the
boys to play. He got into game
of marbles, but his antagonists soon
perceived that he cheated and turn
ed him out. He then took to top,
but the "fcllows" found that he had
brought into the arena great, long
pegged thing, that cut their hand
some tops all to pieces. No reader
that has ever been boy, need be
told that this play consists in one
top being spun in a circle, while
the rest are spun down at it-some-
times splitting the mark in two.
Jim's top, with his accurate aim,
split two or three, and the boys pro-
tested against such unequal chances.
One of the boys said it was like the
horse crying "Every one for him
sclfw when he danced among the
chickens. BY and by he was taken
into game of ball; but, in five
minutes, y POUND stone, instead of a
ball, was flung with such violence
at one Of the small boys, as to knock
him down and to intlict upon him
a severe confusion. Jim protested
it was a mistake. Mr.. Strap rea-
soned with HIM. He begged par
don, and was forgiven.
The next morning the rope of the
swing broke, while a person who
was swinging fell, to the imminent
danger Of his life. 1t was found
that it had been cut two-thirds
through. In the afternoon pair
Of globes were scratched to pieces
with a nail or knife; and when the
usher went to ring the bell for bed,
that necessary instrument was no