Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1897-11-27

NhAl LII ! W lAhE fOls HEhl
leys for three red tickets, and some trifle
or other for couple of blue ones. He
waylaid other boys as they came, and
went on buying tickets of various colors
10 or 10 minutes longer. He entered
the church now with a swarm Of clean
and noisy boys and girls, proceeded to
his seat and started a quarrel with the
first boy that came handy. The teacher,
grave, elderly man, interfered; then
turned fis back a moment and Tom
pulled g 8 hair in the next bench
and was ..Dsorbed in his book when the
boy turned around, stuck pin in an
other boy, presently, in order to hear
him say "Ouch!' and got new repri-
mand from his teacher. Toms whole
class were of a pattern-restless, noisy
and troublesome. When they came to
recite their lessons, not one of them
knew his verses perfectly, but had to be
prompted all along. However. they
worried through, and each got his re-
ward in small blue tickets, each with a
passage of Scripture ON it. Each
blue ticket was pay for two verses
VI tiiO 1CSltdS1Ou 4Cu Uluo tlGhelS
equaled a red one and could be ex-
changed for it. Ten red tickets equal
ed yellow one. For ten yellow tickets
the superintendent gave very plainly
bound Bible, worth 40 cents in those
easy times, to the pupil. How many of
my readers would have the industry and
application to memorize 1000 verses,
even for Dore Bible? And yet Mary
had acquired two Bibles in this way
it was the patient work of two years
and boy of German parentage had won
four or five. He once recited 5000
verses without stopping, but the strain
upon his mental faculties was too great,
and he was little better than an idiot
from that day forth, grievous misfor-
tune for the school, for on great occa-
slons before company the superintend-
ent, as Tom expressed it, had always
made this boy come out and "spread
himself" Only the older pupils man
aged to keep their tickets and stick to
their tedious work long enough to get a
Bible, and so the delivery Of one of
these prizes was a rare, noteworthy cir
cumstance. The successful pupil was so
great and conspicuous for that day that
on the very spot every scholars heart
was fired with a fresh ambition that
often lasted couple of weeks 1t is pos
sible that Toms mental stomach had
never really hungered for one of those
prizes, but unquestionably his entire be-
ing had for many day longed for the
glory and eclat that came with it.
In duo course the superintendent
stood up in front of the pulpit, with a
closed hymnbook in his hand and his
forefinger inserted between its leaves
and commanded attention. When Sun
day school superintendent makes his
customary little speech, hymnbook in
the hand is as necessary as the inevi-
table sheet of music in the hand of a
singer who stands forward OH the plat
form and sings solo at concert,
though why is a mystery, for neither
the hymnbook nor the sheet of music is
ever referred to by the sufferer. The su-
perintendent was slim creature of 35
with a sandy goatee and short sandy
hair. He wore stiff standing collar
whose upper edge almost reached his
ears. and whose sharp points curved for
ward abreast the corners of his mouth
fence that compelled straight look
out ahead and a turning of the whole
body when side view was required.
His chin was propped on a spreading
cravat, which was as broad and as long
as bank note and had fringed ends.
His boot toes were turned sharply up,
in the fashion of the day, like sleigh
runners, an effect patiently and labori-