The Pascagoula democrat-star., 1900-09-07
Lhelemurrat-Star
GEN. GORDoN'S BOYHOOD
LIFE IN GEORGIA IN THE OLD DAYS
"BEFo' DE'WAH."

Youths Companion.
My birthplace was my fathers plan
tstion, in Upsnav county, Ga, on the
banks Of the Flint river, and there
my early boyhbod was passed in the
days before thc%ar, when there were
no railroads, no telegraphs. no daily
uewspapers, and few mails in that pnr'
tion of thccountry.. The cost of the
spostagc On letter WAS five or ten
cents, according to its size and the
distance IL was to go. The mails were
carried in wcll-settled districts on
horseback, and between important
towns In stage coaches. AS the
caches, drawn by teams of four
horses, with bugles sounding their
approach, swept along the roads, they
aroused in the country people more
interest than would now be excited
by the finest train Of Pullman cars.
The drivers, mounted on lofty seats,
were the envy OF aspiring boys.
The building Of the first school that l
attended stood in IA woodland not far
from the main highway. 1t was built
Of hcwn logs, hut was well finished in
side and out. At each end Of the
room there was an Immense chimney.
and in Those broad fircplaces during
tho winter months great log fires were
kept burning. The logs for this pur-
pose were cut and brought in by dc.
tails of the larger boys.
The schOolmaster was an Irshman
named Doster, with ruddy complex.
Ion, clcan.Shaven face, and hair as
black as a raven. He was man of
medium size, but when engaged in his
favOritc amusement OF tlOgging he
seemed t. grow to huge proportions.
His scat was near the center OF the
room, and he kept eager watch over
the whole OF It. The larger students
were seated at desks arranged about
the center The small boys sat on a
bench which extended from one end of
the room to the other.
At specified hours all the boys were
required to spend certain length OF
time in writing with pen and ink. The
pen was a goose quill, converted into
proper shape by Doster's sharp pen.
knife. During the time given to writ
Ing lessons we little penmen turned
our faces to the wall in order to use a
sl0ping desk which was attached there.
Thus our backs we're turned towards
the teacher.
Instead of requiring us to write
words and sentences, Doster compelled
US to fashion dshhooks, tongs, scis-
sors and other objects OF utility. The
master moved quietly behind this hong
line OF youngsters and peeped over
their shoulders. II he discovered a
boy forming his tlshhOoks upside down
or making some other mistake, he
would storm at him from behind.
"What are you doing?" or course the
culprit's pen and the pens of half a doz.
en- other startled boys shot across the
paper, blurring, splOtching and spoil
inv the whole page. This nervous
ness and waste OF paper furnished
Doster with the opportunity for teach.
ing greater skill, self-poise and econo-
my BY the rod.
On the plantations Of that day there |
was no machinery for compressing
cotton into bales. The long bag was
hung under platform with "A large
round hole in the floor. through which |
the lint cotton was thrown by hand |
into the swinging bag below. The
packing was done by the most faith
ful and sLalwart negro on the place,
WIN stood inside the bag and tramped
the cotton with his feet as it came
down. and then pounded it with an
iron har.
The packer on my fathers planta-
tion was the negro foreman, known
only as "Captain"-a very impressive
parsonage. tall and straight, with side
whiskers and OF austere bearing. He
seemed to 'bosS" not only the negroes,
but everybody and everything on the
plantation. He would come out OF
this packing process covered from
head to foot with thin coating of
lint cation, looking like Il man OF snow
with Il black face. His habit was to
get rid OF that fine fleecy lint by burn.
ing II of. Applied near his ankles,
the flames ran over him in a second,
cleaning of the lint with no percepti.
bic damage To his clothing.
When | was about six years old |
was standing by the fire when Captain |
came out Of the cottOn bag covered |
with an unusual amount OF lint. and |
ordered me. Touch me of nOww |
Obeycd. The blaze swept over him.
cleaning off the lint from foot to head |
-and the sidewhiskers, ton! This
cured him 0f that habit.
Several years after this my father
removed To north Georgia. Although
plantation life there differed some.
what from peculiar to the cotton belt.
there were the same patriarchial and
kindly relations Of the white master
To his black slaves. the same free in.
tcrcourse between the white and black
o'ys on the plantation. The young
white masters felt themselves respon.
St0Il FIR thu v,rt,t as,e ;.,v, ,r st..,.