The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1886-09-15

IOr TINS purpose.
"What is your name and age?" she
asked him.
'I'se named Mahaly's Cupid"
.What is your last Nance
Cupid" he replied, confidently.
mo, that is your first name.
"You means Mahaly, den, don't |
you. ladyp She's my mother. amt
got no mo name dan dat. l Ibis at
Mars Jim's, an dey calls me Mahaly's
Cupid"
She wrote that down. "How old are
you?"
dunno, lady. ! disremembers."
"Are you ten?"
Il reckon | is. was right smart
big when de wah WAR done broke. l
members when ole Uncle Nick died.
Nanny says dat was in de wah. He
die OBJ dropsy on de chist, an | run an
burn up my little chist what | brought
nv cloes in from Firginny, cause |
didn't want to git de .dropsy an die on
it,
"Never mind, Cupid. You can 60
back to your seat"
The next who came to the desk wss
one of the fancy-headed girls. She
gave her name as CHERRY Pyle"
"Che,ry PER- repeated Miss Bond.
incredulously."
"Cherry Pyle"
"How old are your"
Cherry. hesitated. "Miss Hannah
she say I is eight, but nanny say l
amt but seven"
christmas Jones" came next, then
well-mannered lad of about fourteen,
who was intelligent in all his answers.
and said his name was "Chiet Justice
Marshall" eat least that's the name
father gave me, teacher He was from
Richmond. and used to live with the
Chief-Justice folks. But they call me
Marsh for short live over at Mr.
Fields"
Greta found that, as rule, the chill
dren took the surnames of the fami-
lies to whom their parents had former
ly belonged. A ragged and dirty little
urchin came up presently, and gave
his name as 'Syphax Cunningham"
and his age as nine. She could see that
for some reason the other scholars
looked down upon this boy. 1t was
plain that they did not regard him as
''first-class," but this only caused her
to feel deeper interest in him. There
was a "ChlOe," "Phebe," a "Til-
lab" "a '.Viney" and Lilly Dale;" a
''Patience," a "Phyllis," penny"
"Nero" and "Julius Cesar" also
a flames Buchanan" After she had
finished entering their names, she took
up the First Reader" and turned to
one of the easiest pieces.
"Stand up in row, children" she
said, land I'll hear you all read
At this at least half of them said they
could not read. She began with Chloe.
The lesson began with the text "A
lamp unto thy feet.
IA l-a-m-dr' Chloe cried out. in a
sonorous voice.
mo, don't call that letter d"
"Well, den, it's b."
"No, it is not a b."
'.Den it's g."
The teacher shook her head.
"Ef it Amt q, knows it's p,"
said Chloe, lighting up again. "Dem
letters certainly does bodder me, some
o. dem handles a-sottin up, an some
O. dem a-sottin down.
Cherry Pyle next took the book.
While she was spelling out the words
monOtonously. Tillah, farther down in
the class, let fall the book she had in
her hand. and her head bobbed over to
| one side She WAS aSlepD
Heads up!' ordered the teacher.
"Attentionr' q.
Here Christmas Jones, her brother.
broke out. .'Tillah alters do 90 to
sleep, 'cep' when she's playin'
Nanny can't glib her candle to hold
widout she drap it to de flo, an most
set de house atire."
As the days became weeks, she found
that it was difficult to make the chill
dren feel that the purpose of the school
was study and not play; further than
this, they could not remember any
thing from one day to another. An
other problem confoundcd her, and
that was how to fill up the number OF
hours she was required to spend with
: them. At last she took a new depart.
ure. She dropped books for one.hali
the day, and taught her pupils through
the medium of their senses. She gave
each one a garden patch to cultivate
She told them stories, and encouraged
them to ask her questions about any
thing they did not understand. Then
she brought large doll of her own tc
school, with what scraps of cloth sht
could find, the gayer the better, anG
taught the girls how to cut and make
clothes for it, offering the doll and hel
, trousseau as reward to the bes
scholar at the end of the term. Chloe
afterwards won this prize, for wher
: she once grasped those handles to the
DIS and BIS, p S and as, they turned ;
crank in her brain that never stopped
again. e. ErE
One day Christmas came to her will
grievous complaint against Syphax.
"He done stole my snack, teacher.
"What makes you think so, Christ
masp Take care how you accuse hin
; of such dreadful thing"
al hab cheese an sicafree fricasSeed
chicken for my snack, an he smell oil
cheese; he didn't have nothin' but hoe
cake for his snack, cause l seen hin
when he open de paper You us' lool
in his basket
Syphax denied the charge, but tn
! circumstantial evidence was so stron!
D against him that Greta requested hin
g to remain after school.
"Syphax," she began solemnly, whel
they were alone after the other schol
airs had gone, don't you know God i
looking at you when you steal an,