Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1908-05-14
Oxford in the Long Ago.

MIS-. Edr2Onie Carter nov OK 81. (
Louis. to Mrs. Nick Pegues OF
Oxfort. IS such a good picture
of life in the early days Of curl
town that We obtained Psrmis.
sion to publish i.
Nj DEAR OLD CHUw.
~ feel ike enc VINO tread. 1.Ozs
Some banquet hall is,ert-d,
Whose lights are gone whose gar
lands dead,
And all but ne departed"
! cannot tell you how sad |
have been ever since I saw in the
EAGLE the death OF ny earliest
schOolmate ard Iife- Icing dear
friend. Sarah Carother=, the pa
per said she was - years old,
instead she was So. We were
very near the same age and
when We met in Oxford several
years ago We wondered which
would be called IN cross the dark
river first. She, Mary Nelson
and their sisters. Joe Barr. Anna
and RebeCca. one brother Boil
var, with three or four other girls
with myself. we're the first schol-
ars think that ever entered a
school in Oxford. Our school
house was one room log cabin.
! can't say whether the chimney
was brick OF sticks and mortar.
believe the latter however. and il
stood somewhere near the lot you
now live on. the exact spot | can
not now recall. Our teachers
were Mr.. and Mrs. McCallum. /
We al carried our dinners and
each one a bottle Of good old
fashioned butlermiik, and cspeci-
ally remember the many fights
that We girls used 10 have with {
Bolivar Bowen because he would
try tn drink our butternilx. he
was 50 full Of pranks and fun.
Well, after awhile we tired OF our
unslghtly school house and all of I
u, | mean the early Oxonians,
decided We would build a brick
college. 50 that was the Begin !
ming Of the Oxford Female Coll
lege. We built u large recitation
room up stairs and hall and /.
TWO rooms down stairs and it was
many, many years before an
annex was sdied. Our first
teacher was Miss Payne, an able I
teacher. a stiff. prim old maid
with high temper. She led Us a 4
dance and We paid her back in
her own coin. She had a harder
time with Mary Nelson than with 4
the rest. Mary was open and
above board and dened Miss
Payne, while Sarah and | hat
more policy and deception. But 2
our school was growing rapidlv
and We early Oxford people want
ed man al the front to give u
prestige, 50 we dismissed Miss
Payne and elected a Preshyte-
rian minister, Mr.. Weatherby.
He had several splendid teach
ers TO assist him, a Miss Landon.
Miss Frazer, and others | can't
recall. Three Of the trustees r.
rided in Oxford. Col. John d. /
Martin lived where Mrs. BAILEY
now lives; old Squire Bowen, as
We used to call him, owned the
Lester place and Mr.. Chism lived
somewhere near my old home.
near Lulie Chambers. Mr..
Weatherby bought the Neil +
son lot and fixed it up for a
boarding house for US girls. nv
family had moved TO the country
down on the river. Mrs. Wealth
erby presided over the boarding
house and we had girls there from /
College Hill, all around the coun-
try, and some from Holly Springs
and also lower counties In thelI
state, and then it wac | became /
acquainted with Ann White. mer-
~ Ann Pegues she wa. then. 4
have written all this Just t. show
fou how long Sarah and | have
been friends, We were always
together and if it will not bore
you | will talk OF dear old sarah
more. We now scattered out
from our old Oxford school
Sarah and Mary, | think. went To- ,
columbia, Tenn. while went IA
lrot- Gabey 5 school in Memphis.
" hen | returned home | received
; letter from Sarah telling me 10
;ome up right away as she was
gong To marry Gen. Edwin Talia-
erro and wanted me as first
bridesmaid. He was a splendid .
ooNIns man At that time and was
'ractieing law in partnership .
Nth Judge Howry, a widower
fifth NJ children. knew his
lrst vile well they lived on the !
OF where the Falkner house now ,
'tands. Gen. Taliaferro sold that
md bought the place where Ed.
Nelson now lives. 1t had a ricnt
,ood house on it and they want Z
o housekeeping. Now are YOU ,
90 tired or shall l keep on and
ell you OF the wedding, If YOU
ay 60 on, I'll begin again. Well
ne wedding day arrived. the ,
Wedding supper table looked very
'retty with flowers, and remsn-
'er lady teacher painted pretty ,
osebuds and other flowers on =,
ONE OF the iced cakes.
Well, the minister had arrived
nd the parlor filled with invited
'uests, the groom and his attend
nts came 10 To be with the bride I
nd her maids, We were TALKING
bout how We would enter wba1