Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1902-08-02

THE SENIOR WASHINGTON BESTOWED UPON
HIS OFFSPRING A TOY HATCHET.
store for the mailbag he loftily inform
ed the crowd of lounGcrs that Ridge
vale was preparing an intellectual treat
that would cause such a commonplace
thing as Il circus parade to resemble a
stranded minstrel troupe counting the
ties toward home.
The secret WAS pretty we'll kept. but
toward the end all Harrison knew that
Gregory Kinsman. the schoolmaStcr,
had written Il little play TO be perform,
ed in the schoolhouse yard. George
IIaSkins, Scth's youngest son. was to
impcrsonate the Father of His Country,
while Dan Smith was to be the elder
Washington.
For this reason they were not SurpriS'
ed on the morning of the 22d when they
troopcd into the schoolhouSc yard to
find the benches and some extra chairs
arranged in rows in front of the build
ing At the farther end the snow had
been ShOvclcd from the frozen earth,
forming sort Of stage. branches of
cut cvcrgreens masked the bare brown
ltllCt Doil'lS, anu III NV S''llltNl lNsli
center of the cleared rcctangle a single
small evergreen was firmly planted.
Around the lower part of the tree
band of bark, wired on. showed where
the shrub had been nearly chopped
through. 1t had been demonstrated
when the boys were over in IIaskinS'
lot for the evcrSreens that. with the toy
hatchet furnished young Iaskins. the
demolition of the tree would require
something like an hour and half.
This would have greatly retarded the
crispncss of the performance. y piece
of white cloth fastened on the side far
thest from the audience showed the
little fellow where to make the initial
attack.
Most Of the Ridgevale people had al
ready gathered in the inclosure when
the guests from Harrison began to ar.
rive. But seats had been saved for the
visitors. When the last sleighload had
driven up. Kinsman. who was called
professor" in RidGevale and plain
Greg" over in Harrison, opened the
proceedings with an Grafton which had
originally appeared as an editorial in
a New York paper two years before.
Silas Hopkins followed with an extern
porancOus address punctuated by ser"
and "as | was saying" The First
Reader class sang an ode to Washing
ton composed by Kinsman and set to
the tune of bringing In the Sheaves."
Ella Garrison, who was known to fame
as a child elOcutionist, recited poem
On Washington from Spellman's Fourth
Reader. There was quartet by the
choir of the First NJ. Il. church. and
then the stage was cleared for the
event of the afternoon.
Around the corner of the woodshed
strOlled Master Ilaskins in a gorgeous
Continental costume. A bag wig of
cotton batting was surmonted by his
Sunday hat of Hack felt. carefully pin
ned into an imitation of cooked head
gear, while he wore the patent leather
pumps that the previous June had been
the admiration of all on the occasion
of the annual school commencement
and exhibition"
Fully conscious of his importance as
historical parsonage. Master George
strutted forward ana In childish
treble informed the audience that this
was his birthday and that great JOY
had been brought to his heart through
the bestowal of many gifts. His joy
was not in that he valued the intrinsic