The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1889-12-26
a
NEW FIRM.


was city Of refuge for criminals. and,
though they warred and preyed upon
one another with entire lawlessness, they
combined as a unit to protect any one
among them from the processes OF the
law. Aside from the criminals the pop
ulation consisted almost entirely, if not
quite so, of the poverty stricken, for
dire poverty and desperate crime then,
as very often in history, went hand in
hand.
The children, who were coaxed one by
one into the mission schoolroom, were
a crowd of little savages. Their 'ignor-
ance was something amazing. 1t was
not very uncommon to find among them
bows and girls .of>S or Z years old who
did not know their full names, but who
stoutly declared that Sally" OF Bill
was the only name they had, and once
or twice children were found who actu-
ally did not know whether they had ever
had fathers and mothers. Some had no
homes. God only knows how they kept
alive, for they slept in holes and corners,
and fed like vagrant cats and dogs on
whatever they could beg, find or steal.
impossible? Certainly it is, but 1t IS
true, nevertheless.
Among the widest and shyest OF all
who came in was a boy who was the
originator of at least one famous joke,
though without intention. The teacher
asked him his name and he said it was
George. Being asked what his last name
was he said that was his last name.
But you must have another name,
urged the teacher. "Is it George Smith,
or George johnson, or George What:'
Nope" he said, shortly. "'Taint
George What, nor George Nothin', its
George. hain't got no oder name"
But the joke came when the teacher,
wishing to know whether he had learned
anything at all, asked him. ''Do you
know who made yol::"
At the same instant boy behind him
stuck a pin Into George. Such tricks
were very common among the little saw
ages, but it did not hurt any the less be
cause twas not unusual. George jumped
from his seat and shouted at the top of
his voice ''Goddemitey."
"Well, that's right" said the teacher,
who had not noticed the trick. but
don't shout So" the story was told
afterwards. with enlargements, until it
became chestnut" many years ago.
It was long time-some months-be-
fore the teachers could learn much about
the boy, for he was distrustful to the
last degree. He kicked the Rev. Mr..
Van Meter on the shins very violently,
and twisted himself away like an eel
when that gentleman, according to: his
habit, laid his hand afectionately on the
bows shoulder. George thought he was
going to be beaten, and took his usual
precaution of eluding the preliminary
hold. He had, it seemed, never known
what it was to have any body take hold
of him in kindness, and was no more to
be handled than young bird OF squir-
rel. There was hardly anything, in fact,
that he did know, as the good mission
people reckoned knowledge. He knew
how to swear huently, as his acci-
dentally correct answer as to his
Maker indicated, but he did not
know, and it was a long time be-
fore he could be made to understand,
that swearing was wrong. In fact, he
did not know what wrong was. So far
as his experience of life went, every
body did precisely what seemed at the
moment desirable to do, unless pre-
vented by superior physical force, or by
bodily fear. Stealing was to him per-
fectly legitimate mode of acquiring any
thing that he might happen to want,
and the only reason why it should be
done secretly was that too much osten-
tation about the act was apt to provoke
interference on the part Of the owner,
who might and probably would want
the article himself. Lying was simply
the easiest way Of concealing anything
that he did not care to reveal, and the
only inkling ne had Of the objectionable
character Of the act was that anybody
to whom he told lie would beat him
savagelv if he did not lie cleverly
enough to escape detection. AS to the
Sabbath, the first knowledge he had of
the difference between one day and an
other came from his noticing that once
in a while these people who had whole
clothes on and who spoke gently came
into the neighborhood and opened the
little mission room and tried to get the
children TO 60 into it.
George was among those who were
coaxetl in with much difficulty, but after
going once he went regularly. The room
was clean and pleasant, and as the au-
tumn days came on there was stove
put in and 4 fire made it warm. That
was a novelty to him-1eing allowed to
sit urdisturbed in a warm room. The
story the good teacher obtained from
him after winning his confidence was
appalling by its very absence Of detail;
but it was only one of many like stories,
and she could do very little to alleviate
the misery that was all arouiH her.
George lived with woman whom he
had been taught to call Aunt Sally.
Whether she was his aunt, who his