Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1891-03-13
THE WEEKS EXCITEMENT.
A DAsTARD's ATTACK
On a Dead Mans Memory and on the Fair
Name Of Brattleboro and her Schools.


Name Of Brattleboro and her Schools.
BRArrLEBoRo, VT March g. 1891
Defiance ~ authority IS rife among the boys Of
the High school here The principal Is unable to
maintain discipline, the subordinate teachers
cannot help him. and the school committee ap-
pear 10 be- disposed 10 allow events to work them
selves out according TO DESTINY without devising
means Of renedying the existing order Of things
The condition Of affairs in the school is that "
almost utter disregard Of authority and abandon
ment Of the teachers to abuse II has been going
on for some time and 1t is generally believed that
the crisis must come. and very soon
The boys have been grossly insulent TO Miss Ma
son, one Of the teachers, beautiful girl accom-
plished and refined In her room the most disor-
derry acts have been committed
Mr. McIachlin. the present principal. is a
Young man In every way strictly honorable hut.
for some reason. the people Of the town as well
as his punils. have conceived a strong dislike for
him. He is suspicious Of the bad boys and often
anticipates their schemes. which is much to their
displeasurp. He has expelled several boys. among
whom was the son Of one u the teachers She
feels hitter toward him. aud by no means makes
his path an easy one He is a very earnest con.
scenuOus worker. and tries hard TO bring the
school up 10 a high standard.
The committee have restricted the principals
power, and now. In case Of discipline he Is not
permitted 10 infiict corporal punishment nor TO
call FOR public apology, nor TO eNpel under any
The boys all know the extent Of
hT. Mclachlns power and Of course, take ad-
vantage o. him
There is positively no support to b. had by the
teachers from the principal His power has been
80 restricted that he can do no more than say:
Take your cases Of INSTRUMENTATION 10 the com
mttee"
The chairman If the committee a few DAYS ago
was In the building. when, In descending the
stairs. he caught sight Of Miss Masun's class
through a window at the landing. which over
looked ne chemical laboratory They, not know
ing that he was watching them. did THEN worst
The next morning the members Of the class
were summoned to meet the board Miss Mason
was called out. The committee told her she must
not notice little things, and must pass over much
They forbade her to carry her troubles to the
principal, aud advised her to hold counsel with
one Of the other teachers, and. II matters did not
admit Of Compromis- - refer to the com
mittee
The confusion In Miss Masons room has h,.,.n
such that often the teacher was unable % hear
her class recite The boys would run around the
room, dance sing, and on one occasion they went
81 far as TO wrestle and knock boy down Il is
not two or three who do the mischief II Is the
whole class. on several occasions Miss Mason
has sent the boys 10 the principal He has talked
U them and pointed out the error Of their ways
They have promised To- do better They dad
worss. however
After this had been repeated with no good r,
suits he s-nt them To the committee They r--
turned aud began to do worse than ever h,.forr.
One Of the teachers had long talk with the
principal recrntly In which he acknowledged
that he felt himself utterly helpless
boy IN this teachers class had lpet.n causing
much disturbance by talking in an undertone. a
thing most difficult to detect Mr. McIachlin
told the teacher to keep sharp watch upon him
pne DAY She caught him making the noise and
kept him after school She told him the noise
disturbed her much, and he must give II up. He
was very earnest In his reply that be did not do
H. and said she might ask the boys around HIM.
she answered that she would not do that, and
she would not doubt him until she had reasun.
She never heard the sound afterward. hut It was
continued tue same when Mr.. MacIAchln was iu
charge iu the room
one day MIR Mcfachlin detained this hov from
the line. To reprtmand him for being out Of step
Report says that be called the boy tough '
day or two later, at recess il was discovered
that Mr.. Mclachlin's silk hat had been cut
They left the brim in the wardrobe. The crown
they perched upon post IN the corridor. here
all might ser IL. That is the kind at boys the
principal has To deal with. Nothing j. likely to
b. done To- ferret out the culprit In this cas- The
principal told one Of the teachers that II the com
mltte were willing that he should receive the in
The members Of the school committee ARE
Messrs. Henry y Hotun. +. " Stoddard and
; l.. Phalen. Although requested 10 do 50, they
nave thus far declined 10 make any specific state
uent regarding the allegations made above The
main points were submitted To them for confirm
alton or denial but they only said that the
b. ga the main grossly Incorrect hence they
'did not chooSe 10 enter into any discussion re-
garding thoss matters They minated how
ever, that they might make reply later.
The letter printed above appeared in the
Boston Herald on Tuesday, arriving IN
Brattleboro at 1870 in the morning We
omit from it one paragraph only, which re-
fers to the late lamented b F. Bingham
the "Old SchOolmaster, in terms too gross
aud slanderous for publication in Bratte-
horo paper The reference was to Mr.
Bingham's alleged habits, charging them to
-. . a .,F I'll
the bald declaration that he left behind
him "a set of most unprincipled boys II
a stroke of lightning had fallen in Main
street at broad MONDAY the effect would
not have been more startling Almost
sooner than the fact can be stated the bust
ness street was aroused, the faces of men.
young and old who had known, loved and
revered b. f. Bingham, blanched with sup
pressed emotion, and long before the mid
day meal had been eaten the story of this
wicked asperslon on IA dead mans memory
had been told in every household
At first this was the only thought and it
overpowered every other, but gradually it
began to be realized that the fair name and
reputation of Brattleboro had been black
ened, and that the good repute of an army
of men and women, young and old, gradu-
ates Of the Brattleboro High school, had
been foully slandered, for on every such
graduate this imputation rests
As soon as self-pOssession began - be re
covered there was gathering and consult
alton of the alumni, and on every lip was
the denunciation of this attack on the Old
Schoolmaster, who could no longer speak
for himself, and determination 10 RENE
dy by every possible means this shameless
attack. The outcome was hastily pre-
pared statement, signed by nearly hun
dred Of Mr.. Bingham's old pupils, which
was sent 10 the Boston Herald. as is else
where stated.
The memory goes back to a day in June.
1889, when a deep and solemn hush fell
upon this whole community with the an
nouncement that the Old Schoolmaster was
dead. Three days after the whole town as
sembled as one TO pay last tribute to his
memory, aud such a scene was presented
as may never again be seen in Brattleboro,
when procession Of 900 old pupis-many
of them parents of children who had come
in turn under his tutorship-followed with
reverent step and bowed head the form
they loved so well to its last resting place
in the silent city on the hill.
By way Of further comment it is only
necessary to reproduce this paragraph from
the funeral address of Rev. G. .. Dav,
universally considered at the time as emf
nently Just and discriminating Referring
to the general influence of Mr. Bingham
on the life and character of his pupils, Mr..
Day said
II take the word Of his pupils for il The re-
suit was striking record Of lives rendered safe
a mourning body Of alumni today, a confession
from all OF constant and unfegned respect felt
toward him. and the avOWal that all the main in,
nf halF tea RhRF n. as I'd mil
and womanliness; that boys were made manly.
yes aud the girls womanly; and il is something
to say as to the influence over girls, that for p
years, as class after class came under the strong
personal magnetism of Mr.. Bingham, they grew
yearly, so far as he could help them, more and
more in all maidenly dignity and character His
pupils felt that he was loyal 10 them. their good
name, prospects, highest interests Hence they
loved him and 20 on to love him, and rise up here
TO testify 10 his honor, aud to assert that they
better men and women than they would have
is here in Brattleboro 10 a remarkable degree
freedom from vice and disorder, a high aypra e,
intelligence, prevailing wholesOmeness and Wig
or of life. You feel all must feel, that Il is and
must be largely due 10 the man who has had his
hand ON your homes for twenty years, and
who has been main fundamentally in giving
Homanliness and grace 10 the girls and courage
and selfdiscipine 10 the boys
Truer and juster words were never said,
and the lapse of time only confirms this
estimate.
To the slanderer of dead mans memo
ry we simply commend these stanzas from
Burns
Address to the Unco Guild.
Who made the heart, It's he alone
Decidedly can try us
He knows each chOrd-its various tone,
Each spring-its various bias;
Then at the balance let's be mute,
We never can adjust II;
What's done we partly may compute,
But know not what's resisted,
Next 70 the attack on Mr.. Bingham 5
memory is the feeling in regard to the libel
which this letter casts upon Brattleboro a S
a town, and upon every graduate of the
Hiph school The insult Is naraonal %