Woodville Republican. (Woodville, Miss.) 185?-current, 1889-02-23

Which Outlets the Murmurlngs
OF the MostuskeptIcal.
One evening, as 1 arrived at one of
the mountain hamlets, / found the in
habitants in state OF what might he
called proud excitement" A district
school had been opened that day, and
roll-call had shown thirteen children
present. A few OF the old people were
distrustful OF the results, and one old
woman came very near sticking her
snuf-stick into my eye as she flourish
ed it around and said;
Il never did snuggle to this skule
bizness nohow. l can't read nor write.
but If thar is any woman in this coun-
ty who is a better woman than me let
her step out! / kin shute gun, han
die a hoe or axe, make the best soft
soap, cure bile, cook a chicken or
skin BAR, and I'd like to know what
else a human female ar expected to
dom
This speech Hoored the meeting for a
few minutes, but at length grizzly old
mountaineer replied:
''But we've got to hev eddecashun,
Sallie. It takes eddecashun to keep
post-office and store. If the postmas-
ter didn't hev eddecashun how'd he
know when letter cum for youP How'd
the storekeeper fgger up?"
Ob Z, o,N,,i,,lrlivf ,,,ffrbt ko edIaoakz,1 -
she graciously admitted-"t them as
amt of no earthly good fur other work,
but this eddecatin' every body is
dangerous Sam'l and do believe it's
agin the Lords wishes. Eddecashun
makes rascals. Look at Long Davis.
If he hadn't bin eddecated would he
hev sot fire to that saw-mill? Look at
Morgan's gal, Jenny If she hadn't been
eddecated would she hev run of with
that ar chap from KentuckyP"
"Thar's heap o sense in what the
ole woman says" added one of the men,
''but / go in fur eddecashun-mO' or
less. We've got 10 have it or we can't
do bizness. II I'd had an eddecashun
when / cut them ar seven cords oi
wood fur bod Havens at sixty cents a
cord | wouldn't hev bin fuled into talkin'
q gallon o. lasses and half pound oil
tea and wipin out my claims. Consarn
his old pictur', but I'll kill mewl fur
him if he don't even up!'
What dye think, strangerP" asked
one of the women of me.
Education won't hurt your children
any, ma'am."
won't it MAKE 'em lazy nor sassyr
II don't think So"
won't they try to boss the old
folks, and want brOadcloath and silk?'
"They shouldn't"
"Well, dunno-I dunno. Seems tC
me like flyin' in the face of Providence
but mebbe it will come out all right
wash my hands of it, anyhow. If bad
ness Gums of it nobody must blame
me. You all remember that was agir
it
After supper, the man who had beer
responsible for all the excitement, asked
me to take walk with him. When We
were half mile from the hamlet h'
filed his pipe, st down, smoked fol
FIVE minutes without a word, and ther
quietly asked:
"Hev you ever been to skulee"
s'Yes."
"Hurt ye anyP"
"No."
"Do ye gOodT
''Yes"
"Will it hurt any Of usP"
"No. It's the best move you evei
made"
"Honest Injunp"
"Yes, keep that school going If yos
have to live on roots. No man has 1
chance in this world unless he has edu
cation"
'.Jist as l told 'em, but they wouldn''
listen. viii ye cum up TO the skule
house to-morrerP'
"Yes."
Sand ye won't go back on yeI
opinionP"
mo"
"Put it tharr' he said as he reaches
out his big, rough hand. ~ kindel
felt was right all the time, but the!
was all agin me. >
Next forenoon I went over to th'
school-house. II was a little room il
the rear OF building which answered.
for blacksmith and wagon and coope
shop. Every body else also went over
and when we all got in there was NJ
room for any body to sit down. Tn
teacher was young woman VIII
had never attended any thing highe
han a district school, and outfit con
listed Of blackboard. one spelling