Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1908-03-18

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corning the life Of our greatest Ameri-
can. / guess they take to it naturally.
Anything about Lincoln or Old Glory
seems q make them lively and eager.
On Friday, February 81, there were
exercises al the Marquette school in
memory of both Washington and Lin
coin. We who were there first Wis
tied the primary room, first grade, In
charge of Miss Graham. Miss Ora
ham can improyise a patriotic pro
gram in her school on half minutes
notice. In order that we might see
such exercises as she has now and
then, she called on several of the little
tots to give short recitations about
the flag, and about Lincoln and Wash
ington. When called upon, each lit
tie one would march to the front, face
the school and then tell his part as if
he loved to do it, and it was an honor
TO be allowed to do so. One little boy
told the story, in his own language,
of Barbara Frietchie, and hen half a
dozen of the boys formed in line at
the back of the room to represent the
southern soldiers wheL-
Up the street came the rebel tread,
Stonewall Jackson riding ahead.
Several pupils stood near the teach
ers desk to represent the houses
along the street in Fredericktown,
and behind the desk a little Miss
stood holding forth a flag. When the
soldiers came marching up, their
leader, having discovered the flag, or
dered his men to halt and fire. Still
the little lady acting the part of Bar
bara waved her flag saying
Shoot if you must this old gray head,
But spare your country's flag"
Then the boy leader, with Stone
wallis gallantry, cried out
Who touches \ hair of yon gray
head
Dies like a dog! March on!'
And then that southern armv
marched away, leaving Dame Bar
bara still waving the stars and
stripes. All of which, by law of the
child mind has more of a tendency
than we can understand to make those
little folks feel that there is some
thing wonderful and grand about our
flag" And so there is.
Every child IN Miss Graham's room
has a flag of his own He keeps it at
home except when there is use for it
at school and then he brings it as
he would his choicest treasure. When
we went there the flags we're stand
ing together at one side of the room
When the exercises were to begiE,
Miss Graham laid them carefully on
the floor SO that every child could
come and pick out his own. As they
tip-toed around the little banners,
Miss G warned them, Don't step on
them. children. Don't step on one of
them, for your life" And they took
very good care not to do so.
After seeing Miss Graham's way of
doing things we went to the room of
the sixth grade where three grades
we're to hold exercises together with
Miss Mann in charge. We found sew
erai ladies of the community present
as interested school visitors. The
exercises consisted of the singing of
patriotic songs, recitations, compost
tons and little plays based upon in
teresting incidents in American his
tory. Those taking part in these
plays were dressed in costumes of the
time, and they did their parts very
well, indeed, and to the great amuse-
ment of the audience. There was so
much in the program that have not
time to speak of it more in detail,
Everything connected with it was of
such a nature that when we Grand
Army men went away we said over
and over again how much good the
school ma ans are doing in the way Of
calling into life and carefully cultivat-
ing the growth of a spirit Of patriot
ism in the little citizens under them
in school.
On the 9th of February, Longfel-
lows birthday, the schools in the 9th
ward. the Longfellow school, united