Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1882-03-25
A LETTER TO THE CHILDREN
FROM Mr.. DUCK WALL.
Union THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY
HAMPDEN SIDNEY. VIRGINIA, :
MARCH Is. 1882

MARCH Is, 1882 J
Eds. independent
IL may be that my little friends in
Berkeley and Morgan would be in
trrysted In some Of the incidents
connected with our sunday-school
work among the col0red people, The
students 6ave organized a number
Of suet schools al through the sur.
rounding coMtry, some Of them
several miles from the seminary All
OF these are more or less prosperous,
and are appreciated and well attend
cd d, FIRE. children, and tn some cases
by the grown people But | will
couGue my account more particu-
larly to tie school in which am az
my knowledge of Che others is very
general
Wc hoid cur school IN a Baptist
church which is owned by the col
oged people, and III which tree
school is also caught by a competent
coioled teacher. 1t is situated
FATHER more than half mile from
our seminary. One OF the students
acts as assistant superintendent and
conducts the school, with the assist.
ace oi corps of teachers, composed
OF three ladies, four students and
the c0lored school teacher. Now
the funny part IS our superintend-
emit. His name is Ned, and he is the
Same colored man who waits on us
at the seminary. He has never been
IN the school but once. and then lie
gave the children a most excellent
and earnest lecture against stealing,
bee use few hSm mn books were lost
during the summer vacation. We
have about seventy five scholars on
urroll, and the average attendance
Is almost as large as in our Mar
tinsburg schools, Notwithstanding
the terribly bad roads, the scanty
clothing Of many of the children,
and The distance at which they live,
III some cases several miles Tie
respect and attention which they al
ways pay their teachers is really re-
markable; and the general good
order is rot exceeded, if indeed it is
equaled, by that of any Sunday
Schou4 with which ! am acquainted.
The amount of information and in
telligeuce exhibited 10y some of them
is very much greater than had an
ticipated. There is one very inter
esting illustration OF this in my own
class, which is composed of thirty
boys, varying IN age from six To
sixteen years. One of them. James
Whitney, vino is between nine and
ten years of age, has just recited To
me an entire cattchlsm, containing
one hundred and fOrty-five ques-
tions, and including the ten COM
mandments. Al this he learned 10y
e himself in about one month. HIS
mother can read, but he learned 10
read at the free school | mentioned
L wonder If there are not some boys
and girls in Rerkeley aud Morgan
counties, nearly ten years old, who
don't know the ten commandments
How many do you suppose | viii be
able to iiud when | come home this
summer
But L mus til you how some of
these COlored people live. | went To
see 4 sick scholar one day, and |
found him living in log cabin,
daubed with clay. There was no
window, except small wooden door
used as such, which of course had to
be slut When 1t WAS cold, and that
lett the Dom very dark. The earth
was the only floor, and the bed was
place box, d off III one corner with
boards. The strangest part to me
Was the chimney. 1t WAS built of
poles piled up like "a cOrn-cOb pen,
AID daubed between with clay.
suppose the only reason il don't burn
down is because 1t i very large, and
then the Fireplace o almost little
room, and is usually partly filled
with ashes. This is the kind of
home that many of these poor people
hive IN; although some of them, of
course, are much more comfortably
GXed. Now il is a fact, That chill
dren who are thus miserably cared
for, aud who, in addition, are only
half FED and clothed, are not only
going TO school but they are learn
6hg. And ] fear some of my little
friends at home would have cause to
blush If they were called on 10 recite
their lessons with them.
Under the law, as it now is, these
coiOret people are placed on N
equality with us. What will our
plight be if they prove themselves
our superiors in education ? If they
study aad we don't; ii they make use
Cd their free schools and we neglect
them. This is far from being q