The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1889-06-21
miscellaneous.
FIRETOwN's NEW SCHOOL HOUSE


FIRETOWN'S NEW SCHOOL HOUSE
Firetown isn't what you'd call fashion
able place nor the people havn't all of then
a real high eddication but they've got com
mon sense, and if do say it that shouldn't
they've always treated my husband jeremiah
in very honorary manner. He'd be enont
of the Grand Jurors time an time again, an
belonged to the Board OF Relief two year.
a-goin' an once THAT was in 1850 he wa.
run for Legislature. When they 'lected hin
dekin, ten J ears ago, thought that wns tho
last title he'd ever get but it did seem as i
the people in our deesric hadn't had chances
enough TO show how they thought of him
an so this year he was voted in school com.
mittee. My Jeremiah amt Il vain man
With all his faults, don't believe he's one
single vain hair in his head. OF course, il
being an office that come to him of its own
accord (he slaid home from school meein
that night on account of the rheumatiz), il
made HIM feel good deal more important
than ii he'd run after it but in day or two
he got used to the honor the same as he'd got
used TO the others, an didn't act any differ
ent to his friends because Of it.
1t was MIR. Stokes that put the idea of a
new sChool-house in Jeremiah's head. Not
that twas the first time it had been talked of:
why, full twenty years ago the question was
started, and 1t made such IA disturbance that
the north end of the deestriCt, who want
ed new one, want on speaking terms with
the south, who didn't, for more than six
weeks. But when the vote went 16 to IL for
repairing, both sides quoted down an since
then there hadn't been another word said
about new sChool-hOuse till the time I'm
4, tall Taft
bein a young man, an already having two
children (he practices law in the city but his
folks live in Firetown) made him think of it.
| Anyway he came over to our house one night
and said, at would be criminal carelessness
letting those children 60 to school in that
rickety building any longer there ought to
be new one built right away" jeremiah
was clear took back at first, aud declared
there wasn't time before the fall term com
menced. But Stokes argued there was, if
only they could be brought TO agree at the
first mectin'. He is pretty convincin' in his
conversation, and the upshot of it was, Jere-
miah came round to his way of thinkin'.
Well, the school meetin' was set for the
first of the month, and when it got about
my sakes how the folks did talk Presi-
dental lection want anything to it, nor
whether or not the ministers wife had been
complaint to the other church of the way
we treated her {; and at Mis- Simon's quilting
party the new school house was most the
only thing they said a word about. believe
in women being interested in outside things
myself; but when | went over to Mis-
Brown'sl 10 getmy recipe for sponge cake she'd
borrowed and she said "she was so busy pre-
pairing paper bout the school house for the
Ladies Literary Circle that she'd have to
ask me to wait till next week. did think
that was carrying it a leelle too far. Maybe
| was harsh in my judgment, and twas
thought best to bring the trouble nearer
home, for it want long after that be-
gun to notice my jeremiah was gettin'
excited too. He hadn't been so very anxiou
for new one in the first place, but the more
folks talked against it, the more set he was
for it. An one night he came home an says
TO me, "Jcrushy," says he, "if could give
$75 and have that school house built, I'd do
il in n minute" Ordinarily jeremiah is a
leetle inclined to be near, an ! felt, when he
said that, he must be deeply moved
1don't know but 'twould seem strange to
some people, and such thing hasn't happen
ed in Firelown before since the remembrance
of any one but all we women went to that
school meetin'. l proposed it. | didn't
think twas proper for me to be the only one
an felt I'd ought to 20 to look after my
|
and generally very honest but when
thodght of the excitement lie was labOrin
under | wanted to see with my own eyes that
he didn't put two votes into the hat, or use
undue persuasion, OF anything OF that sort
| SO proposed it to the other women, and we
| all went. They sat together on the long
bench, but some one handed me chair, and
placed it where | could catch Jeremah's
eye 1t he got to doing anything rash. Il
s'pose they thought twas proper t. give me
the honorary p lace, seem / was wife of the
commiltQe). Old Mr.. Lawson made the first
speech. He amt what you would call n
fluent speaker, but he'd got what he wanted
to say written down, an managed to get
through with it somehow. All about taxes
it was; how for years they'd ben lhreatenin'
to ruin landowners, an how much higher
new scho0-house would make them. 1--WE
don't need Il new one" he finished with
mot any more than we need duncing hall,
or Tree library, or-Or two heads no not
half as much A new head might be an adj
vantage to some folks" IAN here he looked
at Jeremiah) they'd stand chance OF get
tina few braine long with it,"
He sat down and then Stokes got up to an
swer him. Maybe some of you have heard
Stokes speak an know how it is. He didn't
read what he had to say, an bunder through
thought his mouth was coated inside W it'll
wax, the words slipped out so easy. And the
way he said them! Why, I'd been partial to
having new school house from the beginn in
but before he got through talking it seemed
to me that every person who voted against it
ought to be f1ayed, an'--No, | don't mean
that but did feel as if they'd ought TO be
put in lunatic asylum. 1t stirred me up SO
much forgot was in meetin, where women
should be seen an not heard and the min
ute he stopped rushed over to him. "Its
every word gospel truth" says l, IAN your
wife amt bit prouder Of you to-day than l
am" "Jerushy H'iexclaimed Jeremiah. The
other men were talking about their votes and
didn't notice, an twas only school meetin',
so don't know as twill be counted lin
By-an- by the voting commenced. didn't
breathe twice while the hat was going round
and do sometimes think that if I'd seen
Jeremiah try to put In two slips I'd have
looked the other way an let him done II
But he ddn offer to Ordinarily my husband.
aint the excitable one in our family, and the
votes turned out a tie.
"Therell have to be new ballot TAKEN
said the chairman and Stokes got up to be-
gin another argument.
1t didn't seem to me could live all that
anxiety over again. Jeremiah" said, 'I'm
going home" An before he could answer
yes or no was out of doors. We don't live
far from the schoo-house, an every step of
the way was thinking bout that tie knew
the other side wouldn't give in at the next
ballot; twas too late for new meetin' an
after that speech of Stokes it did seem a clio
that them children should have to stay in
that buildin' through the winter. The more
/ thought of it, the worse felt believe / |
cried leetle, an before / could get anyways
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