Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1883-09-06
THE SLIM TEACHER
What Game Of Conspiracy to Break o.
School.

II was given out in church Sunday
that school would open Monday morn
ing. After the evening service the boys
got together and talked il over. and de-
cided to give the new teacher just
week. 1t had heen thawing for day
or two, and the boys were tired Of skat
ing, SO they thought they could afford to
spend week in educating themselves
in how to break up a school. That
evening we were duly elected a member
of the class of hard citizens, and we
were to open the ball and do something
bad, get the teacher to lick us, and then
the boys were to jump in and help.
Monday morning the school commenc-
ed, and the teacher proved to be sick
Unlocking, slim sort of fellow, timid,
nervous man, with hand and face like
a girl. Every time he looked at one OF
the boys there seemed to be an express
sion on his face as though he would say,
III hope you will be good" When he
had anything to say to the scholars he
said please, and gave other evidences OF
being pretty soft,w all thought. That
morning the weather changed, and it
froze hard, and at recess the boys got
together and said we would wind up
the school before noon and 60 out onthe
ice.
1t was our turn to be bad, and it conf
menced right off The big boys had to
carry in the wood and lay it quietly by
the stove. We took in an arnful and
dropped it on the floor so that it shook
the building and loosened the stovepipe.
The pipe came out of the chimney and
filled the room with smoke, but it was
put back, and the slim teacher only rep
rimanded us, and said that it must not
occur again. We just ached to 60 after
some more wood, but there was no op-
| portunity. Pretty soon the teacher said
we might go and get pail of water,
and while at the well we decided to
stumble on entering the school-room,
and spill the water all over the floor,
and thus give the sickly-looking teach
er a chance to show what he was made
of. The teacher was near the stove,
and we stumbled, and the water went
all over everything, wetting his boots
and making him pretty mad. In pick
ing him up we hadn't noticed that his
eyes were as black as Goals, and that he
seemed to be about eight feet high, but
as he looked at us we could see it plain
ly. He seemed to read our thoughts
and knew that it was done on purpose,
and we have always thought he hearC
the boys talking it over at recess. Any
way, he jumped clear across the room
grabbed us by the neck, and sat u
down in the water; then he lifted us W
and shook us so our teeth ratified, ther
he seemed to grab us all over and jus
maui us.
We got chance once or twice to lool
around to the back seats, as he was re
volving us around on our own axis, t
see if the other boys were coming to hell
us put him out doors, but they were tn
most studious lot of boys we ever saw
They had their heads down in thei
books, and their lips were moving in 81
lent prayer. After the teacher had mop
ped the floor with us, he took usby the
slack of the pants, just as dog woulC
carry duck, and went to his desk an
, got big hickory ruler, and proceede
! to dry our pants. Well, twas the mean
! est way to dry pants that ever was, an
!, while it dried them well enough, it lei
t great ridges inside of them that made
corrugated chair necessity. The boy
did not fulfill thcirpart of the eprogramm
; and when the teacher got through dry
8 ing our pants and said, please retur
to your seat" we felt as though his pt
# likeness was perfect sham. We locke
n at the boJs as we went to our seat, bt
7, they never looked up. We have wi
y messed contested seats in the Legislatul
since, but never saw one that was as e.
citing as that one in the old white scho'
IS house at the foot of the hill. The teacl
'e er never spoke during the proceeding
It and when it was over he looked eve
lee le paler and more sickly than when be hs
- one hand in the hair that once gre
t where We are now bald, while the 9th
d y was at work in the vineyard. But nol
e. of the boys seemed to care to pitch I
to q sick man. and he taught school tv
terms and never had to whip anoth
0. boy. That was the last school we ev
- broke up. The slim, sickly teacher
an old man now, living quietly in tt
State with children as old as we are, al
we occasionally see him and ask him
he remembers how we broke up t
4. school, He is feeble now, and wal