Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1889-12-20

words. l renamed standing, lean
ing against my bench, my heart
swelling with shame, without dar-
ing to raise my head. | heard Nj.
Hammel, who spoke to me, say
81 will not scold you, my little
Frantz; you are punished enough.
| know how it Is. Every day one
says to himself: Bah ! | have
plenty Of time. will learn to-
morrow and you see what happens!
"Ah! that has been the great
misfortune OF our Alsace, always
putting of Its instruction until to-
morrow. Now these people have
the right to say to us: How is 1t,
you pretend to be French, and
neither know how to speak nor to
write your lsnguagep In any case,
my poor Frantz, it is not you alone
who is guilty; we all have much
for which to reproach ourselves.
"Iour parents have not cared
enough about your studies. They
preferred to send you to work IN
the fields or factories that they
might have little more money.
And I, have | nothing for which to
reproach myself Have Inot often
sent you to water my flowers in
stead Of studyingi And when |
wished to 60 trout fishing have ]
not given you holiday ~
Then, from one thing to another,
NJ. HAmmel began to speak Of the
French language, saying it was the
most beautiful in the world, the
most clear, the most solid, that we
must keep it among rs and never
forget il, because when people
have fallen into captivity, so long
AS they retain their own language
1t IS as if they held the key OF their
prison. Then he took a grammar
and read us the lesson. 1t was
astonishing how understood it.
All he read seemed to ne clear and
easy. believe, indeed, had never
listened so closely, and that he had
never used so much patience IN ms
explanations. One wOuld have
said that before going away the
poor man wished to give Us all his
knowledge, and make it enter our
heads at a single blow.
The lesson finished, we passed
to the writing; for that NJ. llamei
had prepared some entirely new
copies. These we're written in
bold, round hand. The words were
France, Alsace, France, Alsace.-
These we're like little flags that
fioated around the class hanging
from the iron rods OF our desks.
How each one applied himself and
how still it was One heard only
the scratching of the pens on the
paper. Once some May bugs flew
into the room; no one paid any at.
tentlon to them, nOc even the very
Youngest, who traced their little
| lines with as much heart and con.
science as if they wrote France also.
Upon the schOOlhouse roof some
pigeons cooed gently, and ! said
to myself in hearing them 81
wonder if these, too, will be obliged,
to sing in German y
From time to time as ! raised
my eyes from my page | saw NJ.
Hamel immOvable IN his chair and
looking at the objects around him
as if be wished to carry away IN
his mind all this little school room,
Just think, for forty years he had
! been there IN the same place with
his little kingdom in front Of him
as now, only the desks are now
! polished, rubbed by usage. The
walnut trees had grown, the vine
he himself had planted garlanded
the window and climbed over tC
the roof. How heart breaking il
must be for that poor man to leave
all these things, aud to his sister
who went and came to the room
above, packing their trunks, fol
they must start the next day tC
leave the country forever.
, All the same he had the courage
T to hear his classes even to the end
After the writing we had our his
, tory class, and the little ones saDl
their Ba, BE, Ri, DO, Blu, farthe
r down at the end Of the bail ole
, Hansen put on his spectacles and
holding his spelling book with boil
| hands, spelled the letters with them
! lOne could see that he, too, appIeC
3 himself, and his voice troubled
{ with emotion; it was so drOll Il
? hear him that we wished to laugh
r and cry. All! I will always re
I | ,,o,o Ior fbof laaf class.