The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-06-26
PRINCIPAL LINDSLEY'S "REMINISCENCES

Tells How He Came to Take Charge
of the School-Children
Sing and Recite.
After forty,six years of faithful service
as principal of old No. / School, Principal
Lindsey and the corps of teach
ers left that school yesterday
afternoon never more to hold ses-
sions in the old building. TIL last
day there was observed with appropriate
exercises. The principal with the help
of the scholars and teachers, has packed
all the books and stationery in boxes
ready to be delivered to the old City
Hall on Newark avenue, which is being
converted into a temporary school house
for the children of No. l. The work is
being pushed rapidly, and it is expected
to be finished in about a month.
AS yesterday was the last lay in the
CID school house a special programme,
consisting of songs and recitations was
given. The platform and all other avail
able space was utilized in making room
for the mothers and sisters of the
scholars who came to enjoy the exercises.
After a few remarks by the principal the
following excellent programme was
given
Song, My Country" school; recitation,
us Not Fin Feathers That Make Fin
birds,' Laura Ruggles; piano duet, Mo-
Fart, Misses Louise Daily and Lulu
Rohlfs; song, LET the Hills and Wales
Resound ), schooI. reei+a+ion .pir,an.;sa !,
pss.S, scnooi' reeitaelon, riverside,
bertha Dockham; song, THE Happy
Peasants school: recitation. .prhe
Storning of stormv po;n+ ), uorrn s.r
nseh; song, The Chimes of Trinity"
school; recitation, MY Schoolroom..
Grace Tweedv. SONG ..No4 . cn.rrou,
Fallatb ;, $500. q sPaiio~
After Recess" James Alexander; song,
THE Church Across tba u7.1n sahaaI.
recitation .Disoon+a.+a 800
song sVacation Jnn.vns, sdLhlaaaalle Scnlleker'
.sSiinmer Eonn;a T. p, seaooi; lecltatlon,
Fair lana Earnuo eiusteiIi song. our
"Vacafinn :, EIssiia 4, sSiiool. reclIatlon.
Faces scbo ~ rnait ! song, Dream
DaVS' Fs sonooif lecltation' The Last
.Hsnnv Daus ;; NJ ~ d vocal SOLO,
Affar +bis mrSS way =; Surrle.
Mr. TJlamnr hlliIen nf' 4ba 49, . pSen sIysn'
cAtion y 1Anel oi the BOARD OF Edu-
he seid i ,ha d priel address' IN which
that the old scbon1bnnse "as VERY sorry
he torn down and nonoI,5ad = ~
the children some exceIIent sdv3eyo 5n ~ ! =
gard ia their st,,d5as re-
PRINCIPAL I.indsleu tban snoke
81 first began NV ,uorlr aS : ~ az =,
1S40-' Here he sska1 TIC sah So -
long he had been Connected With schooi
work. and they nromntIv reniiad H.
seven wears. sSrhe Iift1e tourr Of Ea ~
N. Y.,6 he resumed! swas the first nffsSca
l taught in. and we had 10 walk nine
miles to the schooihouse W
~
those country taxyns 10 teach he urent
to live with fbe diffarent far,;,ias IN ~
villages. as was the cllston in tbose
days, staying a week or two at each
There is nothing more detri,nenfsI 10
mans health" he said. .than To travel
around from house to house and narfaka
of the different styles Of cooking. And
some of the beds / had to sleep in YOU
you did get in YOU would sink ont of
sight. I remember on another OCCASION.
although it is over fifty years ago, when
l was stopping at a house I'm in New
York State, I was put on the top floor
to sleep. The bed was made on the
floor, under the caves of the house. 1
slept pretty soundly that night, being
veryltired, but on awakening in the morn
ing | found that about two feet of snow,
which had drifted in during the night.
was over me, with the exception of my
head.
ABOUT 1901! think 1t was, the trustees,
Tor they did not have n Board of
Education in those days, came to me n
asked me to teach in this city. At first
was reluctant to go knowing my wife
did not care about living in Jersey City.
but after considering the invitation /
thought 1t was the best thing to do, and
so | accepted. This is the school / was
assigned to e 1t was not up to my
expectations, and to say | was disappoint-
ed would be putting it mildly. Two little
rooms in the rear of the building and
one up in the front here, and the rest
was all n large room. One big desk
that stretched across the room, was ali
the desk room we then had, and the
seats were of iron with small iron backs.
we had two big stoves in the large class
room and the Boys used to go down stairs
and / doubt if any of you Boys would
care about doing that. Why before i
came here to teach. when 1 had charge
of a small school in New York State I
,lsed TO chop wood. make fires sween
the floor and the windows. and did If mn
fiji tha time T came 70 his citv When
+ asLed tha tr,1staas n furnish mo viii
carnat 10 oovaT the hare nla4forTn hara
Nh ona ~ +Ea men remarLad +ha4 ~.
naap1aH nTouia he wan+ing ia,,ngas for 81 ~
pc - wouio oe lit 0unses = tue
hel5 ! paldan!y sl1ss = lel 10y
TINS OLD scnQol. sald the venerable
principal. ana aonl doupt put tnat most
OF You nave heard them, but l VIII tell
you OF something that occurred way back
in 1851. ! was sitting on this platform one
afternoon, when l noticed two girls tand-
ing at the window back there" and here
Mr.. Lindsey pointed to the rear of the
room. apparently looking out the win