Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1875-02-26
THE PEANUTVILLE LYCEUM.
Unlocked for Success-Law and Order
Triumphant.

very thoughtful, but for once I &C
knowledge l was caught mapping
The idea of a lyceum never occurred
to me until saw it advanced in the
BULLETIN. But then Immediately
acted upon it. l left my work and
went to see Dan Gross, Kph Putnam,
Sile Kennedy, and a dozen more of
the intelligent young men of the
place, and read your editorial to them.
They fell in with the idea, and no.
tee was prepared and handed to the
minister to read on Sunday, request
ing all parties interested in intellect
ual Improvement to meet at the
school house in Peanutvillc on next
Wednesday evening, to organize
debating club.
Wednesday evening came, and
with it came very large crowd to
the school house-a regular JAM
There were the McKillipses, and
Martins, and Lufkins, from Mink
Hill, and the very first families from
Squashtown, including the 10 Davis
es, and the Downers, and, in fact,
nearly everybody that lived within
a radius of ten miles. At precisely
quarter to seven O'Clock, my sonor-
Gus voice was heard. calling the
meeting to order. In feeling and
eloquent address, | set forth the OBJ
ject of the gathering. A committee
or one, consisting of Ben amin Frank
lin former editor of the Peanutville
Juceniie) was appointed to report
constitution and bylaws. He retir-
ed behind the stove, and, in jiffy,
whisked out of his rear pocket roll
of legal cap, upon which was writ
ten, as l verify believe, the most per-
feet system of laws ever seen on
earth for the government of lyce-
UNI. Besides providing for the cleo
ton OF officers, and defining their du-
ties, and detailing the rights and OBJ
legations of members, it is provided
in Art. IA, Sec. /: That the govern
ment of this lyceum shall be Rcpub-
lican forever--that it shall be a white
mans government-that the civil
and political rights of all men snail
be equal, without regard to color or
previous condition, and that negroes,
mulattoes, quadroons, and octaroons,
shall be allowed to speak but not to
vote or hold office above fireman.
SEC 2 There shall be no nepo-
tism.
SEC. 3. There shall be no increase
of salary forever, neither Credit Mo-
bilier, nor embezzlement, nor corrup-
ton, but all persons in Office shall
perform the duties thereof with con-
scientious fidelity to the law of God,
and the best interests of this club.
SEC. 4. Neither religion, politics,
temperance, tobacco, capital punish
ment, total depravity, secret socie-
ties, nor any other question upon
which there is an honest difference
of opinion among members shall be
discussed.
The report was adopted amid great
enthusiasm, and Noah Piper was
elected president and Il. Frelinghy-
son Shucks, 0he poet), vice president
and Benjamin Franklin, Secretary
The president then appointed his two
twin daughters, Angelina and Sera-
pima Piper committee on questions.
The selection was eminently suitable,
but that pestilent Stephen McKillops
thought he discovered a chance for
notoricty, and sprang to his feet and
suggested that the appointment
smacked Of nepotism, in violation of
Sec. 2, Art. IA, of our laws. But
Stephen counted without his host,
for the learned president, casting up
on him a look that shrunk him into
nonentity, SAID in his blanaest tone:
cit becomes my duty to inform the
member from Mink Hill that he en-
tirely misapprehends the import of
the term 'Nepotism.' In the French
language all nouns are either mascu-
line or feminine. 'Ncpotism' Is a
French noun in the masculine gen
der. In borrowing the word we
must take all its qualities with it
gender and all-and being mascu-
line noun it cannot apply to the
appointment of females. The
chair hopes that Mink Hill will
now allow business to proceed"
"Bullyw cried Philander Brown, who
is counting one of the twins. Mink
Hill subsidized and business went on.
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