The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1886-12-08
Beginning the Country School.

Beginning the Country School.
School begins tomorrow. Not here,
but down in Maine, in New Hampshire
and away up in Vermont. There is a
little square piece of paper tackled on
the old school-house door. 1t is signed
by the agent and it reads: "The winter
term of school in this district will begin
on the first Monday after Thanksgiv-
ing" There is the school in the Pin
hook district. The new teacher, they
say, is a college student. He never
taught before. " He's little bit of
man." says the agents oldest boy. CT
guess he's good teacher. He asked
rue how much / weighed" A week
ago the teacher sat in his shabby room
in the college dormitory. 1t had grown
so dark that he could not see to study,
and he lay back in his one easy-chair
and gazed at the three glowing squares
in the door of his little sheet iron stove.
81 wonder how | shall get along.
Thirty dollars a month and board will
be great help. l hope the big boys
aren't such rascals as | used to be-"
Tomorrow every boy in the district
will be at the school-house before eight
O'Clock. Mother puts up the dinner in
tin pail-two pieces of bread and but
ter, two boiled eggs, piece of ginger
bread, four cookies and two Baldwin
apples. The boy gets his books out
from the corner cupboard, where he
flung them when the summer school
ended. On one side of the slate there
is long sum in "partial payments"
and on the other picture of house,
with smoke coming out of the chimney.
He packs his books-frst the slate, then
the geography, then the writing-book,
then the reader and the arithmetic side
by side, then the spelling book and then
the little Testament. He adjusts the
whole skilfully under his arm. " Now,
mother, Pm all ready" grabs his din
ner pail and goes out of the yard with
whoop and yell to another boy who
has just come in sight around the turn.
AT the school-house the big boys are on
hand early. They ratified window till
the stick that fastened the lower sash
fell in upon the floor. Then they
clambered in and secured their seats
according to boys law by putting their
books in the chosen desk. They built
a roaring fire in the old box stove that
stood on three legs and brick. They
drew pictures on the blackboard, and =,
climbing up through the scuttle in the
entry way, explored the mysteries of
overhead" Meanwhile from up the
road and down the road the boys and
girls are coming, each little neighbour
hood at time. The girls throng around
the locked door; the boys play tag and
go sliding on the ice at the side of
the road. 1t is almost nine o'clock.
"There's the new teacher" "There
he comesl" ''That's him" Every
nerve quivering with apprehension
| the teacher turns in from the road
towards the school-house door. 1t
seems to him the most critical moment
of his life. Good-morning, teacher"
the girls say, almost in concert. "Good-
morning, girls" he answers, family
Then unlocking the door, he goes in
and all the girls and boys come swarm
ing after. He hangs his overcoat and
hat on a nail at the side of the window,
takes up the little bell, and, going to
the door, tinkles it in the frosty air
Only the two big boys come lettering
in, for every one else was already
seated. 1t is still in the room, and
forty pairs of round eyes are fixed on
the teachers face. He takes up his
Testament nervously. "We will read
the first chapter of st. Luke; the boy
in the corner may begin. The chapter
is read; then, with bowed heads, the
teacher and scholars together repeat
the Lords Prayer. The teacher brings
out his blank book and pencil, and g,
calling the scholars to him, one at a
time, takes down the names and ages
of all, from " Peter Brown, eighteen
years DID," to Alithe Margaretta
Thanderthon, five 'ears old lath Au-
gutht." The young teacher begins to
regain his self-possession. He asks for
the different textbooks and assigns the
lessons for the day. He finds out how
far over in the book each class in
arithmetic has been; and every boy is
fearful lest he put them back thirty or
forty pages and make them "review."
Every one wants to commence where
he left off and 90 right ahead. Then
study begins. BY recess every scholar
in school has his mind made up whether
or not he likes the teacher Little indi-
cations that no grown-up person would
observe make his disposition as plain as
day to the minds of the children. They
know whether or not he is fretful, quick
tempered, sharp-tongued and over
bearing. No mans true character can
elude the perception of a child. So
goes the forenoon, and the afternoon
follows it. The sun is getting low.
The younger scholars have put away
their books, and wait patiently while
the sixth reader class stand in row
and spell. Then the door is opened
and all go storming out and away. 1t
has been so still at home all day that
mother is glad when her boy clatters
his dinner pail on the kitchen table,
tells how he likes his teacher and goes
out to the wood-pile to bring in the
nights wood. Boston Record.
Do not use laudanum for your baby
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