Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-05-11
Bullying.


The chapter OF bullying among BOYS
IS one on which man enters with ne.
luctance. Boys are, on the whole,
such good fellows. and so full of fine,
unsophisticated qualities. that the ma
ture mind would gladly turn away 'its
eyes from bcholding their iniquities.
Even n cruel bully does not inevitably
and invariably develop into bad man.
lie Is, let us hope, only passing through
thesavage stage, in winch the torture
OF prisoners is a recognized institution.
lie has, perhaps, too little Imagination
TO understand the pain he CAUSES. Very
often bullying is not physically cruel.
but only perverted sort of humor,
such as Kingsley. in "Hypatia. rec
ognized among his favorite Goths.
remember a feeble. foolish boy al
school feeble he certainly was. and
was thought foOlish) who became the
subject OF much humorous bullying.
I His companions used to tie thin
thread round his ear. and attach this
J 10 bar AT such . height that he could
| only 'ayOid breaking It by standing on
tip-toe. But he was told that he must
not break the thread. To aYo;d in.
5fripging this commandments, he nut
I himself to considerable Inconvenience
md afforded much fenjoyment TO the
/ spectators. / According to most aIi-
thOrities, bullying is no longer what il
was. Men df mhldle Aer, rather early
middle ago, remember the two follow
ing species Of bullying TO which they
were subjected, ind which, perhaps.
are obsolescent: Tall stools were piled
i III in IL 81
seated on the top, near the ROOF
Of the room. The other savages
brought him down from this bad
eminence by hurting other stools at
those which supported him. Or the
victim was made TO place his hands
against the door, with the fingers out
stretched, while the young tormentors
played ut the Chinese knife trick. They
threw knives, that is to say, at the door
! between the apertures of the fingers,
and, as a rule, they hit the fingers and
not the door. These diversions I know
to be correctly reported. hut the fol-
lowing pretty story is. perhaps, amyth.
At one of the most famous public
schools, n praepOSter, or monitor, OF
sixth-for1n boy having authority, heard
piStol-shot in the room abovehis own.
lie went up and found big boy and o
little boy. They denied HIRING any
pistol The monitor returned to his
studies, again was sure he heard Z, shot,
went up. and found the little boy lead.
The big boy had been playing thu
William Tell trick with him, and had
hit his head instead ofthe apple. THAT
is the legend, Whether it he true OF
false. all boys will agrne that the little
victims could not have escaped by com
plaining to the monitor. No. Death
before dishonor. This is an extreme
example, and really the tale seems one
of those best told to galhut but pro
verbally copliding branch Of 4. her Maj
esiy's service. But the side not SC
seamy Of this picture of school life is
The extraordinary poYen of honor
among boys OF course the laws OF
the secret society might well terrify o
pueril tnfofmgr4 But the sentiment Cd
honor is even more strong than fear,
and-will probably 0utlast the very. dis
a2teeahle .eircnmstances in which il
was deFeloped.-C 0rRhiH Maguzi,ae- !