The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1907-09-19
opcn ie'ds AGAIN. a

could remember. A brother and a
sister Our next largest brother at
home was quite here in the eyes of
all the younger children, they think
ing his Judgment was perfectly cor
rect and that they we're safe in doing
almost anything he proposed. He
was about FIVE years older than l
Thinking but little of maternal
anxiety, this brother would often take
his AK when we would 60 out into this
mighty forest and in imitation os our
stalwart father, whom he had so often
seen go into this wood and welding
dextrously his AK, would bring this
mighty oar, the Monarch of the forest
crashing down at his feet. So brother
would also ply his AK with all his
strength upon little sapling until
he became quite an expert chopper,
and we children would think him
almost man, (which of course he
also thought as the little trees came
toppling down to our great delight.
But very soon this grand fun was not
sufficient, so he studied out something
that he thought would be nicer and
more exciting, which was, for one of
us our ger BOYS or girls to Cling
tightly to the trunk away up at the
ton ard to fall with II when it fell.
We readily agreed to his PROPOSE
tion, and 1t did prove for awhile to be
delightful sport, for the branches
would spring as they touched the
ground and would So ease the fall as
to prevent 1t hurting us; and the
sensation was delightful as the tall
sapling was passing down to the earth
But we were not long in huding out
that we bad better have let well
enough alone,n and had been satisfied
with cutting down and seeing the
trees fall, and that none, ESPECIALLY
children), should "play with edged
tools :" for one day as was perched
Ia the tree, it came down in such
manner as to badly sprain my wrist
which for some time at least put an
end to that dangerous sport. But all
through my earliest youth, as well as
my ripper years, have loved the shade
of the forest. Oh, how we children
did enjoy climbing and sitting on
some of the loftiest boughs of tall
saplings, and while rocked by the
wind, revel in the view presented, far
aud wide below, of undulating fields
of grain and green meadows decked
with flowers, whose perfume was
waited to us on the wings of the
winds, which carried at the same
time to our ears the songs of the
birds. The soul is to be pitied that
would not be charmed by such de-
lights, both during childhood and in
maturer age.
Since the enthusiasm of childhood
has passed away with the years,
have found out that, that magnificent
forest really had limit. Oh, the
beautiful and wondrous enthusiasm
of childhood
Pages could be written Of the pleas
ing recollections of my early child
hood which might interest young boys
and girls of town but as they are
somewhat the same as are common to
young children in the country to-day
these "reminiscences will be confined
to those peculiar to the time all over
the country when ! was young, for
they are written as much for High
land County children as town children.
My first recollection of going to
school was when was about fve years
of age. 1t ives common then to have
what was called subscription school
In the Spring, after the public schools
we're closed, to which the younger
children we're sent, and could not we'll
bear the exposure of going SO far to
the winter schools. I can remember |
when 1t was the custom for teachers
to board around among the parents of
the scholars, staying a week at a
place free of charge, and we all,
think, parents as we'll as children
enjoyed having them do this for
genuine hospitality was one of the
many virtues of the early settlers of
our country. My parents had not as
plenty of the luxuries of life as most |
people in their station enjoy now, but |
they had an abundant supply of the
necessaries and we're pleased to enter
tain any of their friends. Our
teachers would have compared very
favorably with those of to-day in as
they were required to teach.
In such communities as ours was,
by the time / was twelve years old, no
one need apply who was not consid-
cred to be capable of teaching SPELL