The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1889-02-22
THE STRIKE AT SCHOOL;


rhe Scholars Starred the Movement, bat II
D!da't Work.
These strikes by the school children
are nothing now. But they dom de-
velop and bring out and down the
strong hand of the ruling power us
they used to. Among the sunny
memories of my school days, glows,
bright and soft as IL summer sunset,
the picture of the great strike Mt
Humans, in Peoria. away back in
1853. Humans was the greatest
school in the west. The dear old
man was superintendent ofpublic in
struction, board of education, school
trustee, county superintendent. prin-
cipal, assistant and janitor. He had
pleasant smile, a firm temper
and slate frame. He also carried
about his person II grip that would
make a blacksmith's wise crawl into
the scrap heap and hide itself.
We used to have general exercises
Friday afternoons, at which We wcro
wont to recite, in vociferous concert,
tho multiplication table, the
states and capitals, and such
thrilling rhetorical exercises us,
"Will you WALK? orRIDE?" and "They
tell us to be MODERATE, hut THEY,
THEi-are to revel in pro-Fu-sionr'
1t was thrilling. But utter we had
learned all these chants "by heart"
and could chant them off with our
eyes shut, cold Human" introduced
nm innovation-"speakin' pieces"
Upon that we struck. We endured
it three weeks, and then we deter
mined to boycott the whole business.
All the boys went intoit. Bill Smith
and Hub Tuttle, Bob Gregg, Ed
Easton, Steve Dunn, Bill Rodecker,
Hen keener, and all big boys, too.
The first boy called on to "speak"
was to announce the strike. As my
name came pretty well up the alpha
bet, stood IL good chance of being
IL leader. a distinction for which Twas
not at all ambitious, being OF tender
years and of a ruddy countenance
and sensitive feeling. But u hoy
named Allen who was called
ahead of ME, funked, and said his
piece, "Hohenlinden," although we
made such suggestive ges lures to him
that he forgot half Of it and broke
down and cried. When l was called
| refused to speak. Being pressed for
a reason, l sail, in f,,ltcring accents,
that "tllere wasn't going to be no
more speaking" When the old man
with unfeigned surprise asked me who
said so, l said call of us did," Then
he said there would be "a little more
speakin" before the close of the SEES
sion, and 40 he led me out of the r0s.
trum. Then and there, with feelings
which now slludler to recall, I did
my first song and dance act, had
often beforeperformed solitary ca
chuca to the lnscivious pleasing OF
cold Humans" slate frame, but
never had l accompanied myself
with words. Boy-lilie. ! had select
ell for my piece II poem expressive
of those peaceful virtues / most
heartily despised, SO that my per-
Torrance ut the Inauguration of the
strike ran somewhat like this:
oh, not for me (whack!) is the rolling
(whackD drum,
Or the (whnck. whack!) trumpet's wild
(whackD appeal. (Boo-hoo!j
Or the cry (hoo-hoo!) Of twhnckD war when
(whnckD foe il coming,
Or the (owD brightly (wlluck.) flashing
steel (whack, whacki)
/ cannot convey to the most vivid
Imagination the gestures which nc.
companied the seven stanz;ls of this
beautiful poem. Suffice it to say
that they kept pace with the old
mans peculiar system of punctu,.-
ton, until at last, overcome with
conflicting emotions. l went sobbing
to my seat and wondered why an in.
scrutahle Providence had given to
the rhinoceros the hide that the
eternal fitness of things had evident
ly prepared for the schoolboy.
But forgot my own SORROWS and
dried my tears in the enjoyment of
the play, as my compatriots develop
cd it. Mr.. Human. who had been
usually gentle and self restrained
with Inc, lost his temper with the
boy who followed me, and there was
a sound of revelry for the next hour.
He shook boys until their teeth rat
tied SO you couldn't hear them cry;
he hit Mickey McCann, the tough
boy, one whack with u skate strap
and Mickey ran out and rolled in the
snow to cool off: he hit Jake Bailey
across the thighs with the slate
frame, and it hurt so that Jake
couldn't howl-he Just opened his
mouth and forgot his own name. He
pushed Bill Haskell into q seat and
the bench broke; he shook Dan Stevens
so that his feet didn't touch the floor
for five minutes; he ran across the
room and reached out Tor Lem Harkins
and Lem had a fit before the old man
touched him; he whipped the two
knowltons with both hands ut the
same time, and the Gibbon family
five boys and IL big girl-he hit all at
once with the girls skipping rope,
and they raised such a united wall
the clock stopped He kept the at
mosphere of that old schoolroom
full of dust and lint, weeping, wailing
and gnashing of teeth until his old
arms aclled and all hearts wenried OF
the inhuman strife and wicked con-
tention, and then he stood up be-
fore us in q sickening tangle Of strap
and cane, and slate frame, rattan
and skipping rope, and asked, in
clear, triumphant tones:
"Who says there isn't going to I've
any more speakin?"
And the boys OF that school rose
upas one being and shrieked in tones
Of anguish:
"Nobody"-R. J. Burdette.