The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-09-26

much as Longchamps' "grandfather of
| pious memory" had been peasant in the
| district of BeauVais. Neither did the
| boys sister escape much better. We read
IN the Pastor Letters" of Elizabeth Pas
Ton marriageably young lady, having
since Easter the most part been beaten
once in the week or twice, and sometimes
twice in a day, and her head broken in
two or three places; while lady Jane
Grey told her tutor Ascham that she was
so sharplie tainted, so cruellie threaten
ed, yea, presentlie with pinches. nippers
ana bob3eS so without measure
misordered" by her parents that she
thought herself in hell After this, the
schoolboy who had 1.-The cheek" to tell his
master as an excuse for being late that his
mother had sent him to milk the ducks
mad certainly very little to complain Of
Probably the Oldest English schools were
the London schools described by Fitz-
stephen, who wrote in 117l. He gives in
teresting details of the lighter moments
of school-time. We hear of scholars who
on certain privileged occasions, attacked
their shoolmasters lin epigrams, or other
compositions in numbers" using "all that
low ribaldry we read Of in the ancients, ;"
though, one is glad to hear without men
tloning names" In addition to these ele-
giant exercises they had the more robust
sports of their time. On Shrove-Tues-
day each boy brought his hghting-cock to
school, and they had cock-dghts all the
morning in the school-room, and after
dinner, played football in the fields of the
suburbs. Every Sunday in Lent there
was a sham fight, some of the boys being
mounted, the rest on foot. At Easter they
played at the water quintain while on
summer holidays they practised at arch
cry, leaping, wrestling, and stone-throw-
ing and in winter slid skated, and went
to bull-baits and hog fights. No doubt
however, the London schools had their
severer side, and The life was not quite
such a round of dissipation as il reads.
TWO centuries later we dnd Lydeate, the
poet giving account of his own doings-or
rather misdoings-at the Monastic school
at Bury St. Edmunds According to these
confessions, Master Lydgate would seem
to have been a sorry lad" He went to
school, he tells, mot for to lerne," but 40
jangle and jape." He told lies. poked
fun a his master, stole apples and grapes,
and liked it better than saying mathis
came to dinner with unwashed paws, and,
in fact, had little to learn from the wick
edest Of modern schooboys like whom he
"stood in awe to be scooryd" with the
birch-and probably was. Later still,
came the grammar schools, an account of
a days routine at which should be inter-
esting as showing something of what was
expected from the schoolboy of the fif-
teenth century. The days work began
al 6, when Latin prep" was done until Z
and then "class work. until 9. After this
came breakfast for which was allowed "a
quarter of an hour, at least, or more" and
then work was recontiuued until II, to be-
gin again at one. Afternoon school last
ed till or $3.50. and then, after a quarter
of an hours rest, till $50. Every week
a part of ana afternoon was set aside for
recreation, and was. indeed, the germ
from which has grown the more liberal
half holidays" of our own day. The
medieval half-holday was appointed at
the masters discretion. either the Thurs
day after the usual custom, or according
to the best opportunity of the place"
In addition to the regular tasks deport-
ment seems to have been much insisted
upon in medieval times, and the school
boys etiquette is the subject of several
quaint little books. In 1857 Master f. Sea-
ger published his Schoole Of Vertue and
Book of Good Nourture for Children and
Youth to learn theyr dutie by, from which
it appears that the schoolboy of that day
was expected to make his own bed before
he came down stairs. He then washed his
hands, combed his hair, brushed his cap
and put it on, tied on his shirt collar, put
on his clothes and fastened his girdle. rub
bed his trousers, cleaned his shoes wash
ed his teeth, cleaned his ears. pared his
nails, and wiped his nose upon a napkin
before he took PEN ink and paper and
started for school. At least, all these
things were necessary according to the
School of Virtue. Also Master Seager
adjures him to walk home orderly two by
two and not all together like swarming
bees; and, moreover, not to whoop and
halo as foxhunters do. A counsel of per-
lection almost equally hard to follow Is
laid down by the aforesaid Symons, who
seems to have kRown his schoolboy.
"Chyld" (he writes "cIem thou not ouer
hous ne vale,
For no frute, byrdde (bird) ne bale;
And, chyld, cast no stonys ouer men hows,
Ne cast no stonys at no glas wndowys."
Admirable advice, even If not couched in
what a pedantic modern age has learned
to call good grammar Master Symons
too, has a pretty, II primitive, wit. One
of his Inducements to the child to learn
runs:
For owre byschop is an old man
Another for thou most lerne fast
If thou wilt be byschop when he is
past"
This Is certainly taking long views. In
a letter dated 1878, and written by William |
PASTOR an Etonan, to his brother John
in London, we get a life-like glimpse Of |
Elton school-life in that century. William
begins by thanking his brother for tipping |
him a rose-noble, and then goes on to re-
mind him that he owes Dos for his ''con1-
mons" Also he would like "a hose cloth. |
one for the holy days Of some color. and |
another for working days chow coarse So |
ever II be maketh no natter, and a |
and two shirts and a pair of
slippers" and might he come up to Lon |
don for "a day or two this term-time" to |
sport" Most fathers will recognize I'M |
somewhat tod -.
letter Of the eternal schooboy
ID. N. Richardson of Davenport has |
made a handsome present to the state of |