Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1886-10-15
IN THE LONG AGO.
Picture OF q Great School-Strike In g
Peoria Academy In 1893.

These strikes by the schoo'-children
are nothing new. But they don't de-
velop 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 q summer sunset, the
picture of the great strike at Humans,
in Peoria, away back in 1853. Humans
was the greatest school In the West.
The dear old man was superintendent
of publ, instruction, board of educa-
ton, school trustee, county superin-
tendent. principal, assistant and jani-
tor. He had a pleasant smile, firm
temper, and 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 vociferous concert the multi
plication tables, the States and CAPT
tails, and such thrilling rhetorical exer-
oises as "Will you walk? or rides" and
"They tell Us to be Moper-
ate. but they. THEY - torevelinpro
FU-sion! It was thrilling. But
after We had learned all these
chants "by heart" and could chant
them of with our eyes shut, "Old Hin
man" 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 =. Bill Smith and Hub futile,
Rob Gregg. Ed. Easton, Steve Bum,
Elm Rndeckar, Hen Keener and eli
the big boys, too. The first boy called
on to "speak" was to announce the
strike. and as my nsme came pretty
well up in the alphabet, stood good
chance of being leader, a distinction
for which ! was not at all ambitious,
being of tender years and of a ruddy
countenance and sensitive feelings.
But . boy named Allen, who was called
ahead Of me, funked and said his 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, l
said, in falte-ing accents, that ''thers
wasn't goin' to be no moro speakin."
When the old man, with unfeigned sur
! prise, asked me who said so, Isaid "all
of us did," Then he said there would
be "a little moro speakin'" before the
close of the session, and so he led me
out upon tho rostrum. Then and there,
with feelings which I now shudder to
recall. l did my first song and dance
act. had often before performed my
solitary cachuca to the lascivious pleas
ing of "Old Humans" slate frame, but
never had l accompanied myself with
words. Boy like, had selected for
my piece poem expressive of those
peaceful virtues l most heartily de-
spised, so that my performance, at the
, Inauguration of the strike, ran some
, what like this:
o. not for me twhack3 is the rolling (whack
,, -" t WIN TH appeal Boo hooi WIN
; Or tho cry boo hood of twhack) war whsr
the lwhack) foe 10 come,
!, (whack, uhaok).
I can not convey to the most vivic
imagination the gestures which accom-
panied the seven stanzas of this beauti
full poem. Suffice it to say that they
!, kept pace with the old mans peculiar
system Of punctuation. until at last
= overcon. with conflicting emotions,
went sobbing to my seat and wondered
why an inscrutable Providence hac
given to the rhinoceros the hide thai
tho eternal fitness of things had evil
IDENTIFY prepared for the school-boy.
But l forrot my own sorrows and
dried my tears, in the enjoyment o.
the play, as my compatriots developed
it. Mr.. Human, who had been un
usually gentle and self-restrained with
me, lest his temper with the boy who
followed me, and there was = sound Of
revelry for the next hour. He shool
boys until their teeth ratified SO yor
couldn't hear them cry; he hit Mickey
Mccain, the tough boy, one whacl
with skate-strap and Mickey ran GU
and rolled in the snow to cool off; h
hit Jake Bailey across the thighs will
the slate frame and it hurt 80 that Jak
couldn't howl-he just opened hi
mouth and gasped and forgot hi
own name; he pushed Bill Haskel
into a seat and the bench broke; h
shook Dan Stevens % that his fee
didn't touch the floor for Ave minutes
he ran across the room and reache
out for Lem Harkins. and Lem had
III DoIoIe Cno Ola HAL Iouonou uiIni ii
whipped the two Knowltons with bot
hands at the same time. and the Glib
bon family, five boys and big girl, h
hit all at once with girls skippin
rope and they raised such . unite
wall the clock stopped; he kept the a
mosphere of that old school room fu
of dust and splinters and lint, weeping
= wailing snd crashing Of teeth, unit
his old arms ached and all heart
wearied of the inhuman strife an
wicked contention. and then he stoo
up before US, IN sickening tangle {
strap and cane and slate frame, rata
and skipping rope, and asked. in clea
triumphant tones:
"WHo says there isn't going to
any more speakin'p"
And the boys of that school rose u