Waterbury evening Democrat., 1892-04-29
scHooLHooKs SIXTY YEARS Aco

| scHCOLHCCKs SIXTY YEARS ACC How Boys Were Taught to Hate Eax1nnd
 and to Like France.
 The schoolboy who was fortunate enough to be subject to the pedagogism of the 'sthirties'' had lot to contend with which the happy youth of these later days can never realize. Subject to men who, though perhaps learned, had no particular vocation or training for the fine art as it is now understood, all differences of opinion between pupil and teacher as to the meaning of the aorist or of the value of an equation was cut short by a logging; and parents, who had themselves been brought up in the same way, were inclined to judge of the excellence of the school by the vigor with which the birch was applied. In those days we had geographies without proper maps, arithmetics and algebras without word of explanation or induction, and Lindley Murray's rules were shibboleth. For history we had list of the kings of England and France, and for our own country cer- tain works published in New England, giving the youthful mind to understand that the United States consisted of the Is some outlying territory; while such inn portant historical events were imparted to us as the 'Deerfeld Massacre" with cuts; "The Landing of the Pilgrims, !" also with cuts, and the story of the Charter Oak.
 These were memorable things in our , history, and well to be informed about, but we have since thought that there were other matters about which boys ought to have been informed after they had learned all about the preponderat- ing territory of New England. In the same way we were ledSto believe that we could not have any war except with Great Britain, and when the Mexican war occurred, in the days of ou1' own adolescence, it was a surprise to youths who had always imagined we must fight men in red coats, instead of others in dark green.
 These reflections were caused by read ing an article of Gen. Buffers, in the New England Magazine. The general has been one of the best abused of liv- ing men, but he does know some things in spite of that. He says: q had as deep-seated a prejudice against Brit ish red coat as our turkey gobbler ex- hibited to red petticoat when he drove my sister into the house. Thus was taught that the highest achievement in life was to get behind stone wall and shoot Britisher, and longed for the time when J should grow up to do it. So thoroughly was this drilled into me- that in after life it was a matter of req soning on my part whether should treat an Englishman decently.
 'The difference between this feeling; and that which I had toward the. Frenchman, who fought us with the In dians, and who helped the savages to, scalp us, was that the French were poor fellows who did not know any better; and besides, the French had helped usi in the revolution against the British, so that we would forgive. them, but the Britishers, never!'
 When the present writer was sta tioned at the naval academy, few years after the war closed, Buffers name was held in poor account by many of the towAspeople, who, like most peo- pie who do least in war, are apt to remain most unreconcilable. When the place was seized by the northern troops, because access to Washington was cut off by the regular route, the Gone horse" railroad was partially disabled by disarranging the machinery of the one or two locomotives which the road possessed. Upon g. call for mechanics to repair the damage number stepped from the ranks of Massachusetts regi- ment, and things were soon right again.
 Annapolis is a presq'ile with rather narrow neck, and as there was no know ing what might happen in these days, in even "Ann Arundel" Butler deter mined to throw up works across the narrow part, which would enable him to resist any coup de main. For the labor concerned, it is stated, he exer- cised the right of general in place held under martial law and summoned all able-bodied men to work on the in trenchments. The work was done-for no fooling was permitted; but in five years after the war was over it was inn possible to find man who would admit that he had worked at the intrench- ments.-United Service.