Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1886-05-14
A SCHOOL STRIKE"
BOB BURDETTE 10 REMINDED OF ONE
IHAI OONuRREn LIN LIE Ohn Aon

These strikes by tne school children are
nothing new. But they don't develop
and bring out and down the strong hand
OF the ruling power as they used to.
Among the sunny memories of my own
school days, there glows, bright and soft
as summer sunset, the picture of the
great strike at Humans in Peoria. away
back in 1893. Humans was the greatest
school in the West. The dear old man
was superintendent of public instruction.
board of education, school trustee. coun-
ty superintendent, principal. assistant
and jantor. He had pleasant smile. "A
firm temper and a slate frame. He also
carried about his person grip that would
make blacksmith's wise crawl into the
scrap heap and hide itself. We used TO
have general exercises Friday afternoons
at which we were wont to recite in vo-
ciferous concert the multiplication tables.
the States and capitals. and such thrilling
and rhetorical exercises as evil YOU
"dk or rtde|' and ''1'hey tell as to be
MODERATE, but they, THEY-are torevelin-
pro FU-sion! 1t was thrilling. But af-
Ter we had learned all these chants "bv
heart and could chant them off with our
eyes shut, "Old Human" introduced an
innovation-"speakin' pieces" Upon
that we struck. We endured it three
weeks and then we determined to boycott
the whole business. All the boys went
into it. Bill Smith and Hub futile. Bob
Gregg, Ed Easton, Steve Bum. Bill Ro-
decker, Hen keener and all the big BOYS.
TOO. The first boy called on to ''speak"
was to announce the strike, and as my
name came pretty well up in the alpha
bet, stood good chance of being lead
er, distinction for which | was not at
all ambitious. being of tender years and
of ruddy cOuntenance and sensitive
feeling. But boy named Allen. who
was called ahead of me flunked and said
MS piece, "Hohenlinden." although we
made such suggestive gestures at him
that he forgot half of it and broke down
and cried. When was called refused
to speak. Being pressed for reason, |
said i'll falterng accents, that ''there
wasn't going to be no more speakin."
When the old man, with unfeigned sur
prise, asked me who said so, | said ''all
of US did" Then he said there would be
IA little more speakin before the close
of the session, and so he led me out upon
the rostrum. Then and there. with feel
lngS which | now shudder to recall. | did
my first song and dance act. had often
before performed my solitary cachuca to
the lascvious pleasing of "Old Hin
man slate frame, but never had ac-
companied myself with words. Boy-like
| had selected for my piece poem ex-
pressive of those peaceful virtues most
heartily despised, so that my perform
ance. at the Inauguration of the strike.
ran somewhat like this
"Oh, not for me (whackN is the rolling
(whackN drum,
or the lwhack, whack) trumpet. wild
(whackN appeal. Boo hoo.
Or the cry Boo hoo OF (whack) war when the
(whack) toe is come,
Or the (owD brightly ,whackl flashing
steel" (whack, whack)
| cannot convey to the most vivid i'm
agination the gestures which accompan-
led the seven stanzas of this beautiful
poem. Suffice it to say that they kept
pace with the old mans peculiar system
of punctuation until at last, overcome
with conflicting emotions, went sobbing
to my seat and wondered why an inScrut-
able providence had given to the rhino-
cerous the hide that the eternal fitness of
things had evidently prepared for the
school boy.
But forgot my own sorrows and dried
my tears. in the enjoyment of the play,
as my compatriots developed it. Mr..
Human, who had been unusually gentle
and self-restrained with me, lost his tenn
per with the boy who followed me and
there was a sound of reyelry for the next
hour. He shook boys until their teeth
ratified so you couldn't hear them cry; he
hit Mickey Mccain. the tough boy, one
whack with skate strap and Mickey ran
out and rolled in the snow TO cool off: he
hit Jake Bailey across the thighs with the
couldn't howl-he just opened his mouth
and gasped and forgot his own name; he
pushed Bill Haskell into a seat and the
bench broke; he shook Dan Stevens so
that his feet didn't touch the floor for five
minutes; he ran across the room and
reached out for Lem EIarkins and Lem
had tit before the old man touched him:
he whipped the two knowltons with both
hands at the same time. and the Gibbon
family. five boys and Il big girl. he hit all
at once with the girls skipping rope and
they raised such united wall the clock
stopped; he kept the atmosphere of that
old school-room full of dust. and lint
weeping wailing and crashing of teeth,
until his old arms ached and all hearts
wearied of the inhuman strife and wicked
contention. and then he stood up before