New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-05-17
DADDY DINKLE'S WARDS.

This notice appeared in the Mayvillt
I,,de1 one day, ever 80 many years ago:
"Rev. Gustavus Dinklebach proposes t.
open in Mayville, January /, private
school for boys. Particular attention giver
to the classics and mathematics. Boys anC
Young men will receive a careful and thor
Ough training preparatory to entering col
lege. Rev Mr.. Dinklebach respectfully
sOlicits the patronage OF the citizeng Of
Aayvlle and vicinity
In other words il was an Old-fashiOned
boys academy which Rev. Gustavus Din
kiebach Opened" An old, old fashioned
boys academy, now all out OF date, and
laughed to-scorn by your new-fangled fel
lows who turn up their noses at Platos dia-
lognes in the original and claim that the
only present and future hope tor the world
ls that 1t shall be evolved" out of the pat
tern of the crook Of Herbert Spencer's little
finger.
Rev Gustavus Dinklebach wasn't that
sort, bless his sweet, simple old heart He
read his Bible and the Greek tragedies,
and believed the salvation Of the world
depended on the golden rule and hic haeo,
aOc. His religion and his learning were 50
mixed up tina he could hardly tell which
was which at last, and he somehow got it
into his queer old brain that one who was
familiar with Greek and Hebrew and Latin
lore, by that simple fact perforce was made
u gentlemen, and that it was hencefOrth in
cumbent on him to walk through the world
as an example TO modern degeneracy, low
ing his neighbor as himself, being honest
gentle hammered, kindly and dignifed
Rev. Dinklebach YVES all that himself
sand he knew no more of the ways of the
wicked world than if he had been spotted
kitten chasing a spool of thread. He could
read the Clouds OF Aristophanes in Greek
like novel, but he couldn't drive nail to
h,,1 %
, learned, highly recommended man, with q
tender heart, big bald head. the soul of
little child, and but two pairs of stockings
10 his name.
Mayville took him under its wing. He
s'opened' his boys academy and presided
over it for twenty-five years. 1t grew and
tourished apace, and nobody in Mayvlle
cheated Rev. Dinklebach out Of all the
money he got. 1t just happened so, as ex
actly the opposite had happened to him
every place he had been before. To this
day many and many a broad-shouldered,
bearded man, with his own locks even be-
ginning to frost little, pauses a minute
from the clashing din of the wide world,
while he calls to mind the green days at
Mayville, and remembers Daddy Dinkle
and amO, aD'Gs, dmat, with smile, tear
and blessing.
Good friends. one and all, here's to the
memory of the days of our youth, which
come but once Young friends, make the
most Of your youth, for it is glorious, and
il comes but once.
Rev. Gustavus Dinklebach was an old
bachelor, who loved little children. He
called himself dreary old bachelor, and
part OF his valedictory to his biggest boys
were always this:
MY dear young friends, don't you be an
old bachelor"
Il don't know how it was, but before
Rev. Gustavus Dinklebach had been in
Mayville a year every body fell into the
habit of calling him Daddy Dinkle, and
that although he was an old bachelor
They called him that to his face after
awhile and I'm sure they meant no dis
respect for every body had a sort of rever
ence for him, so good and SO dignitied he
was, and so learned withal. They may
have called him Daddy Dinkle on account
OF his voice, l don't know. He always
spoke IN kind Of soft, droning monotone,
which wasn't bit tiresome to listen to, /
assure you upon my honor, but was very
soothing ana comforting, and I've noticed
IN this world that men who speak in that
sort of humdrum are always apt to be nick
named Daddy this or that. But | saw
don't know why it is.
When he first went TO Mayville, Daddy
Dinkle took up his lodging with comely
Young. English woman who had a biz.
stupid husband and frlsky little American
born baby girl three months old, not vet
named, on account of difference of opin-
ION between its father and mother The
mother wanted TO name her daughter Fran.
ces Mary; the father, on the other hand,
insisted that the child should be called
Hannah. Both agreed TO leave the question
to Daddy Dnkle for arbitration, and DADDY
Dinkle named the bright little thing Theo-
dora-giit Of God.
During the year, the comedy young Eng
lish woman's husband died. Daddy Dinkle
still lived in the house of the widow. A
few months after the widow herself died,
and left Daddy Dinkle alone in the house
with little baby. With her dying breath
she had committed the child to his care, and
he had promised that never while he lived
should the baby girl be homeless or friend