The Ouachita telegraph., 1878-04-26
A CuLLED DEBATING SOCIETY.
lHarpet'v Drawer.J

rHarpet'y DrAwer.J
The ssCoiored Debating Society," of
Mount Vernon, Ohio, must have some
very interesting meetings this winter.
Your correspondent, happening to pass
through Mount Vernon, about Christ
mas, was invited by friend to accom-
pany him to one Of the stdebates."
Your correspondent went. The object
of the argument on that particular
evening was the settlement at once and
forever Of the question, (Which am
de mightiest, de pen or de swoard."
Mr.. Laukins said about as follows {:
tsMf. Chairman, what's de use oh a
swoard unless you's gwyne to waar ?
Who's hyar dat's gwyne to WAR? /
isn't, Mr.. Morehouse isn't, Mrs. More
house isn't, Mr.. NewsOme isn't; I'll
bet no feller wot speaks on de swoard
Den what's de use oh de sWOard I
don't tink dere's much show for argu-
ment In de matter"
Mr.. :Lewman said: "What's de use
OBJ de pen less you knows how to
write? How's dat? OATS what I
wants to know. Look at dc cbillun
oh Isr'l-wasn't but one man in de
hole crowd gwyne up from Egyp' to
de promis' lam Good write, an he didn't
write much. "A voice in the audience,
Wrote de ten commandments, any
how, you bet' Cheers from the pen
side.1 Wrote 'em wrote 'em? Not
much guess not, not on stone, honesty.
Might p'raps cut 'em wide chisel.
Broke 'em all, anyhow, fore he got
down de hill. Den when he cut a new
set, de chillun oh Isr'l broke 'em all
again. Say he did write 'em, what
good was It 4? So his pen no count
nohow. No, saar. De swoard's what
fotched 'em into de promis' LAM, saar.
Why, saar, it's ridiculous. Tink, saar,
oh David a-cuttin on Golian's head
wild a pen, saar! De ideer's altogedder
too 'posterous, saar. De swoard, saar,
de swoard mus, mus win de argument,
saar."
DIR. Crane said: 81 tink Mr.. Lew
man a leetle too fas.' He's a speakin'
oh de times in de dim pas when de
mind OBJ man was crude, an de ham
Oh man was in de ruff state, an not
tone down to de refinement OBJ cibilized
times. Dey wasn't educated up to de
use oh de pen. DER hams was only
as de modern poet says, our swoards
rust In deir cubbards, an peas, sweet
peas, cover de lam AM what has
wrote all dis change? De pen. Do
take swoard now to get me peck
Of sweet taters, n pair OBJ chickens,
pair Of shoes? No, saar. 1 jess take
my pen an write q order fer 'em. Do
I want money!? don't get it by de
edge OBJ de swoard writes a check.
want suit OBJ clothes, for instance
a stroke OBJ de pen, de mighty pen, de
clothes Is on de way. It's DONE" ,5.
Mr.. Newsome said: "Wid all due
'spect to de learned gemman dat's jus'
spoke, we mus all agree dat for smoov
ing tings off am a-levelin' tings downs,
dere's noting equels de swoard."
Mr.. Hunnicut said: 81 agrees en-
tirely wild Mr.. Newsome, am in an
swer to what DIR. Crane says, I would
Jess ask what's de use OBJ drawin'
check unless you's got money in de
bank, or a-drawin de order on de store
unless de store truss you? S'pose de
store do truss, ain't it easier to sem a
boy as to write a order? If you got no
| boy handy, telegraf. No use for pen
not a bit. Who ebber heard Of Mr..
Hills pen? Nobody, saar. But his
swoard, saar-de swoard of ole Bunker
Hill, saar-is known to ebbery chile
in de Ian. If it madden bin for de
swoard Oh ole Bunker Hill, saar, wizard
we niggers be tonight, saar? whaar,
saar? Not hyar, saar. In Georgia,
saar, or wuss, saar. No culled man,
saar, should ebber go back, saar, on
de swoard, saar." '...'
Mr.. Hunnicut's remarks seemed to
carry II good deal of weight with the
audience. After speeches by number
Of others, the subject was handed over
to "the committee" who carried it
out and sssot on it, In due time they
returned with the following de-
ciSiOn -.... ...
tDe committee decide dat de swoartl
has de most pints an de best backin',
and dat de pen is de most beneficial,
an dat de whole ting is about STAN
off,"
We venture to say the following
calculation will astonish the agricultu.
raj natives:
The comparative time lost in turn
ing ut the ends of long and short fur
rows, in plOwing long or short fields,
may be seen from the following calcu-
lation With Il length of furrow meas
uring 23O feet, and Il breadth Of 10 in
ches, in Il days work OF ten hours, the
time lost by team in turning would
equal five hours and eleven minutes,
while but four hours and forty-nine
minutes would be devoted 0 plowing :;
with a length of furrow of 449 feet, two
y