The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1896-01-24
"rremendius Heavy Thoughts"

OuS clear frosty mOrnlu IaSG week i
saw Billy Strickland, tho onlyest son of
Dunk and his wife, pass by on his way
to school, and that is how it come to
pass that 1 am thinkin these tremendous
heavy thoughts. / took good notice of
that boy as no ambled along the big
road, and right then and there couldn't
keep from thinkin of how Dunk and his
wife have worked and worried, and
starved and stinted, and saved and
scratched and scraped up a little money
in orderment TO blow it in on that sim
lin-headed boy at school. You mought
think-and the Stricklands would be
dead certain to say-that it was none of
my internal business. But that wouldn't
keep me from seein Billy on his way to
school, and the sight of that boy is
what makes me tell you what do con-
cernin the great and CROWN question of
schools and books and book learnin.
Understand me now-I don't mean to
say that Billy Strickland amt worth
his room in the world or his weight in
sap sawdust. In his own pecurious way
Billy is rale smart boy. He amt the
least wise lazy, and when it comes to
maxim pillow stocks and OK yOkes and ak
handles and the like of that, he could
beat me out of sight and give me three
in the game. And indurin crop time
Billy will put as much fresh dirt behind
him in day as any boy of his age in
the settlement. OF course he wouldn't
be thoroughbred American boy if he
didn't love to swap knives and play
marbles for keeps, and go huntin and
fshin considerable between drinks, as
it were. And yet he will turn off
boys full share of odds and ends and
jobs on the farm.
But when it comes to tendin school,
and diggin the learnin out of books
and pacllin it away under his hat-well,
Billy Strickland he jest naturally amt
there. In the beginnin he don't want
to learn. He knows gracious plenty
now. And he couldn't learn very much
If he wanted book learnin so bad till he
could taste it, The good Lord didn't
FIX up no place for Billy to pack away
book learnin and he couldn't tote it in
his pocket. More than that, the boy
can't see where he will ever need any
thing of the sort in his business If a
boy loves books, and She good things he
can git out OF books, the more he learns
and knows the better it will be for him,
providin he is trained up in the way he
was cut out to 60. If a boy raley wants
to climb up the hill of knowledge you
couldn't build brick wall around him
ten feet thick and milo high and keep
him down. But il you have got to run
the boy down, and throw him and buck
him and gag him, and lam and cram
book learnin into him inch by inch, it
is plum waste of time and trouble and
money.
II it ever comes to pass that 1 mought
have boy like Billy Strickland L never
will be fool enough to blow in much of
his time and my money on the school
question. Seems to me like it would be
a whole lot more better-better for me
and better for him-to go forth and step
of forty acres of land, and buy him
good mule and give him a new ak and
turn him loose and tell him to pitch in.
That would please Billy Strickland all
over, and he would take to it like hog
to her wallow He could run a shebang
like that without any book learnin to
speak of, and that is about the onlyest
layout that will ever fit Billy's hand.