The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1904-03-25
Marx llanna's First Campaign.
BY SAMANTHA wmPPLE sHouP.

There are teachers and teachers, or
rather, there are teachers'and drill mas
tiers. Under the drill master, plodding
mediocrity, with good verbal memory,
winds all the honors; originality of
thought is an offense; independence of
character and force of personality. an
insult, and genius itself a thing to be re-
garded with suspicion.
In the Prospect street school in Cleve-
land, in 1851, there was principal of
the pronounced drill master type.
Mind what l have to say and learn it
as the book gives it, was his ultimatum
his ideal of the proper method to train
character and mind.
But one day there came into the Pros
pect street school very young man,
''lithe and tall and SLENDER" black-hair-
ed and gray-eyed with face at once
strong and sympathetic. This was En-
erson e. White, since one of the most
famous teachers of the country, but then
at the outset of his career. The Pros
pect street school was to be divided, and
Mr.. White was to take charge of the
new school on Clinton street as soon as
its building should be finished.
Mr.. X. courteously invited Mr.. White
to take charge of the class then in recita-
tion-a class in the ever-memorable Col
burns Mental Arithmetic"
1.-THE pupils have their numbers; read
problem and call on some number for
the solution" he said.
Mr.. White took the book, read out a
problem, and called on No. 8 to solve it.
"Oh," said Mr.. X, in disgust, don't
call on her; she never can do anything"
Mr.. White glanced along the line, and
at once identified No. S-the sensitive,
shrinking face dropping in an agony of
shame and misery. He grasped the
situation at once. II will read it
again." he said, gently, so that you
may be sure you understand it," He
read it, slowly and clearly, then walked
down the line of pupils and stood by No.
s, so that he was between her and Mr..
X, the sight of whom he perceived, fill
ed her with confusion and terror.
Now you can do it," he said, reas-
suringly and to her own delighted as
constituent little No. s, who had never
had the courage to speak an audible
word to Mr.. X, spoke up distinctly and
went through the solution without a
hitch.
'"The child came home from school
that day perfectly TRANSPORTED, said
her mother. II could not believe my
eyes when looked at her."
Presently the Clifton street building
was finished, and Mr.. White came into
the Prospect street school, and read out
the names of the pupils who, by the di-
vision of the district, were assigned to
him. Happy No. 8 was among them,
and several other girls who have since
become distinguished women, while the
boys included Marcus Hanna, also Syl-
vester Everett, Albert Tuttle, two dis
tinguished citizens of Cleveland, and in
the lower class, John d. Rockefeller and
A. l. Bartholomew of Iowa.
One would suppose even a drill master
might haye discerned some signs of
ability in that collection of young peo-
pie; but Mr.. X. perhaps vexed at their
evident pleasure, made. the ungracious
remark, as he surveyed the line of
pupils:
Il don't begrudge you the lot; there
isn't a scholar among them"
To the utter amazement and the con-
sternation of the school, timid, silent
No. turned in blaze of Indignation
and cried:
''How dare you say such a thing? We
will be twenty per cent ahead of your
school in two years! Mark itl' and
walked out of the door.
The gauntlet had been fairly thrown
at Mr.. x. 8 feet, and the Clinton street
school were determined to make good
the challenge or perish in the attempt.
Perhaps they would have succeeded in
any case; but considering the material
of which most boys and girls are made,
it iswery doubtful whether their indig-
nation would have held them to the
mark for two years of strenuous work if
the born leader and organizer had not
been ON the spot.
Marcus Hanna did not content himself
with learning his own lessons. 1t was
no individual triumph but class VIC
tory that was needed, and that could
only be won by concerted effort. For
six months, by his arrangement and un-
der his leadership, the class met out of
school hours to drill each other in their
lessons and strengthen the defenses.
Emerson White did all that any teacher
could to help and direct, but it was
Marcus Hanna that kept the class all at
work. There was prize for drawing.
Marcus agreed with certain number of
of the class to go out early in the
morning and sketch from ma
ture. AS surely as morning came