Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1897-10-14

Perils OF Education.

Perils or Education.
"Speakin' bout eddecashun, - said
the old mountaineer, as Free Press
writer sat on log at his door smok.
ing pipe, "speaking bout this we're
eddecashun that yo' git outer skules
and books and papers, L never could
abide it,"
{" Most people believe in educa.
tion," l replied.
&C Let 'em believe. That very biz.
ness of book-larnin' is the cause of
my hevin' second wife, this ole
shakelty cabin, am of my son Tom
bein' the Lord knows whar :"
wall, hain't no objeckshuns to
tellin' it, and mebbe it'll prove q
warnin' to yo' not to try to be too
powerful smart. Yo' see, had a
son Tom, and he was 50 cute that
everybody said ! orter send him
down to Knoxville to be cddccated.
L was jest fule 'nuff to do it, and
things turned out as might hev bin
expected !"
Did he go to the bad ?"
"No, not that, but he sent the rest
thar bout two Vars he Gums home
one day on visit. We was livin'
three miles up the road then. had
mighty good log house jest at the
foot of what we call Coon mountain.
Way up on the top of tho mountain
was thumpin' big rock, standin'
thar all alone by itself. Tom had
seed that lrOck dozen times before
this day Pm Speakin' of, but wasn't
idiot 'nutf to meddIe with il. Wall,
when he cum home he begun to talk
about material science, material phi
losophy, fulcrums. levers and ali
sich, and bimeby he said he was ed
decated 'nuff to tip that big rock
over. Sez | to him, sez !, Tom,
don't be CROWN over your old dad.
Eddecashun can't tip over rocks no
mo- than it kin raise CON stalks
twenty feet high.'"
But it can," said, as he shook
his head and sighed heavily.
Yes, | found out that she could.
Tom he talked till he got me riled
up, and | jest told him that if he
could tip that rock over with his own
hands I'd gin him a mewl colt. He
grins and chuckleS and SAYS he'll
'stonish me, and Pm free to say that
he did. The Onery critter totod his
1ulcrums and levers and material phi
losophy up the mountain and went
to work on that rock. Ono arter-
noon, when I was hoein' com and
cussin' the poor quality of the silp,
sunthin' happened"
1.-The rock moved, | presume p"
"She did, stranger-she did! Ma
teral philosophy was too much fur
her, and she rolled over and took a
start. She was jest in line with the
house, but we hadn't thought o. that.
l heard noise like the heels of ten
thousand nevis kickin' on barn
door to once, and / looked up to see
that ole tifty-toner a-comin'. The
ole woman was in the cabin a-singin'
Happy Day. and patchin' my trous.
ers, and she didn't hear me holler.-|
The rock made bee-line fur the
cabin, smashin' and craShin' and
maxim the airth tremble, and when
she struck it was like the fall OF fifty
big trees to once"
And your wife"
" Never ever found piece of her
Everything was carried across the
road into n ravine fifty feet deep, and
l could never be exactly Sartin of the
spot whar the cabin stood"
" And what became of Tom ?"
Run away, and I'vc never sot
eyes on him sence. Dasn' face me
arter that, | reckon, though | got
over my madness arter a bit. | had
to build this yer cabin, git spiced to
that ar woman inside and lose my
only son, all on account Of what they
calls eddecashun, and yo' can't won
der Pm agin it. Yes, Pm powerful
down on eddecashun. Stranger, be
yo' one Of them dedicated critters ?u
I" / can't say am"
"Then it's all right, and you kin
heV the best bed in the house and
roast chicken fur breakfast! If yo'
was dedicated, however, I'd be bound
to say you'd better hitch up and
move on"