Passaic City record., 1891-09-05

from hickory sapling. Marching def
antly into the old schoolhouse, this
teacher had given the desk several re-
sounding whacks with the rod, and had
said:
'sNow that's what you'll all get if YOU
don't mind your books and be good! No
whispering, no sticking pins into each
other, nothing but to study and behave
yourselves! Mind that, or you'll get this
rod on your backsp
A new order of things seemed to be
coming in with the new schoolhouse and
this trim, gentle voiced young teacher.
az know his game," said Bryan Thayer
to several of the large boys during the
first recess. "He's going to try the soft
soldering game on us"
.sHis nice little meachin', cityfied
ways may work with the girls and the
small boys, but they won't go down with
me, said Nat Brace. sit takes muscle
to fetch me to terms"
sMusclel" said Phineas Joyce, deri-
sively. "All the muscle he's got wouldn't
hurt fly"
"Well, he'd better get some up before
the first snow comes, or some of the ten
year-old boys will wash his face for him, "
said Nat.
eyes, and you might get your own
face washed about that time, Nat Brace, y
said Sally Redding. "You boys will see
what you'll get yet. He isn't afraid of
you, and l know it. Anyway, you ought
to be ashamed of yourself if you go to
making trouble after the gentlemanly
way he's treated us, and when we have
such lovely new schoolhouse. ."
A shout of derision greeted this
speech.
"I'll tell you what Pm going to do,
boys" said Nat Brace; "I'm going to
find out what he's good for. I'll haul
out my jackknife and go to whittlin' the
new desk right in school, and see what
he doesr
Ten minutes after the school was
called to order, Mr.. Dick, who was sit
ting at his desk with first reader class
before him, tapped the floor lightly with
his foot and said, pleasantly:
"This won't do, this won't do at ALL"
Whiting these new desksl That can
not be permitted. What's your name,
sir2"
His hand was extended toward Nat
Brace. There was no anger in his tones.
NAT Bracel" the boy called out dog
gedly.
The teacher stopped at Mats desk, and
held out his hand.
"Well. Nat," he said, ''you mar give
me your knife for the present, and you
may pay the school committee for the
damage you have done to the property
of the district"
Never in all his unruly, rebellious
career had Nat Brace been approached in
this cool manner. Never had teacher
taken up one of Mats gauntlets with
smile, and no trace of furious anger; and
Mr.. Dicks smile won from Nat half
dazed, half-ashamed sort of an obedience
before the boy really knew that he was
obeying.
The large boys attended school irreg-
ularly at first. Farm duties kept them
at home; but by the first of December
all had begun to come every day.
By this time Mr.. Dick had won the
respect and even the affection of the
other pupils. 1t had also been proved
that Mr.. Redding's theory was not
groundless. Visitors to the school not
only remarked the neat appearance of
the room, the desks and pupils, but per-
ceived decided improvement in the
children's manners.
There was hardly sign of rebellion
on the part of the pupils until Phineas
Joyce, Nat Brace, Bryan Thayer and
Hiram Beal began to attend regularly.
These four large boys had had the unen-
viable honor of barring out, ducking and
in other ways defying and maltreating
half of the teachers who had tried to
teach the Rose Lane school during the
past four years.
These four boys walked to school to-
gether one frosty morning in November.
They intended to go to school regularly
now, and it was the first day they had
all been in attendance.
luey IelI tndt IL was HCJln1 time TO
''let little Miss Nancy know who was
boss"
Various methods of imparting this in
formation to Mr.. Dick were disc used.
Just as they came to Lowrie's Pond, Nat
Brace struck the palms of his hands to-
gether, and said, gleefully:
81 have it, boys; let's give him a
ducking! The waters ice-cold now,
and I tell you it would take the starch
right out of him to souse him under
few times"
"Yes, and it'd stop all this talk about
their having got a teacher at last who
could keep us in tow" said Hiram Beal.
"I'm in for the ducking."
swell, I guess l am, too" said Phin
Joyce; "only thought we'd kind O. cut
up few of our little didos first, and sort
O. rasp him up fore we barred him out
or ducked him, or tried anything like
that"
ooh, let's do it to-day!" cried Nat
Brace. ''Strike while the irons hot, t,says
l."