Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1884-04-10
GOVT WITH THE BOYS"


1t is seldom that school-master has
hand to hand encounter with p pu-
pill; yet, in the backwoods / have known
such thing to take place. Ionce was
one of party of five who undertook
to thrash our schoOl-master, who was
terribly severe man. He gave me the
worst thrashing I ever received, and to
this day | don't know what it was for.
However, a thrashing never went amiss
with me ut that time. [ always de-
served it, and this one / merely placed
to account, knowing there was still
large balance coming to me. But as |
was saying five of us agreed to climb
on the teacher at a lonesome place
about half q mile from the school where
he couldn't cry for help. We climbed.
But alas! at was not the teacher who
had to cry for help. He thrashed all
five of US. He had got so accustomed
to thrashing boys that he seemed to do
it quite from the force of habit.
The school-boy of my day was born
fighter. Every new boy had to fight
his way to his place among the boys.
/ have fought, when / went to q new
school as a pupil, with good-natured
fellows who happened to be the cham
pions, who had not the slightest i'll
will towards me, nor l to them. But
School etiquette demanded that we
should fight, and we did. don't sup
pose this occurs to any extent in town
schools, but, no doubt, it does in the
country, where hollow behind the
schoOl-house or q piece of woods down
the road offers q secure fighting ground.
Little the teacher will know of these
combats if there is a stream near by
where the victor and vanquished can
wash their bloody noses, as an East
Londoner would say. / was always q
coward, and never took kindly to those
fellows whose fist was ever ready for
a knock-down blow" The boys of that
far off time had no idea of the rules of
the ring. They fought in a savage,
rough and tumble way, and when one
got the other down it was considered
no dishonor to pound away at him till
he cried enough. 4" At this CRY the
boys generally pulled the upper savage
off if he didn't quit
One day tramp circus man taught
me some valuable wrestling tricks. My
favorite was hip-lOck, which inva-
riably brought to earth the opposite
party. The beauty of it was that when
once you raised your opponent off his
feet YOU could lay him out in almost
any style you chose. He was perfect
" helpless, despite his struggles, the
moment YOU got him in the air, and
then it was delightful after literally
keeping him in suspense to lay him
flat on the ground in any particular
style that fancy suggested. This point
however, was not lasting, for the boys
after tumbling to it in various atti-
tudes generally 'tumbled to it, as the
slang phrase has it, and then its use
fulness was at an end. Still it was al
ways wonderful accomplishment in
new school and on several occasions,
although / was n terrible coward, l
gained victory over my opponent by
clinching and hip-locking him and then
pummeling him in such rapid success
sion that the fight was over before he
thought it had begun.
| taught q wild school in q back
woods district one winter when, phys
ically, | was scarcely able to teach. /
had had severe illness and was back
ut my desk again before [ had fully re-
covered my strength. [ have often
been panied to observe that the aver
age boy has little consideration for
the weak, and my school seemed to
think that because WASN'T able to give
them their regular rations of birch they
might do pretty much as they pleased
and they did. One day [ felt that
my control of the school was gone.
The noise that was unable to quell
kind of dazed me, as / sat there feel
ing completely i'll and helpless. | felt
that ! had better resign and get into
saw-miI or boiler-maker' shop, or
some such occupation, that was quieter
and more soothing than the one / was
in. All at once the noise ceased and
on looking up [ saw that Bill Trim
mons, the biggest and worst boy in
school, was sitting on desk with his
feet on the seat he ought to have sat
on. This was a direct defiance of au-
thority that could not be ignored. Bill
was the only son of his father. and Old
Man Trimmins had no more control
over him than I had. Bill could have
thrashed me quite easily, and I knew
it.
William, [ said, somewhat weari-
", 'would you oblige me by sitting
down on the seat.
Thank YOU" said Bill, I'm quite
comfortable where [ am"
There was litter around the room
at this remark, which was doubtless
considered the very choicest of wit.
William" 1 said, l will have to
punish you if you don't take your seat
as you ought"
He grinned at this absurdity and
said:
''Well, I guess you'll never have a
better chance"
walked to where he sat in his ele-
waited seat.
''Hold out your hand
He laughed.
1 struck him smart rap over the
knuckles with the ruler. This so en-
ragged him that he threw down his slate,