St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1909-02-27
MISS PERKINS SIDE OF
SCHOOL AFFAIRS.
(Contlnued from zee ones

become convinced that some parenGa
authority was to shorten their sen
tence and not what | had promised
In fact, I was told this by one, t
which / replied you will, if | sta.
!. here, for you haven't improved an
/ believe | am managing the sixtl
grade, at present"
Now, as before mentioned, thi
epistIe arrived the like of which
! had never seen before but which
stated my power was at end, hel
daughter would not stay in thu
month, and many similar phrases
never having heard Of or read sucl
things in all the six years of my pre-.
vious teaching career, didn't know
what it all meant; / only knew that
wasn't going to change my methods
or morals because one person wrote
me a note saying my tyranny was
over, etc. In my ignorane and wish
ing to become enlightened, I sent for
Mr.. Prescott, saying as | handed him
the note something that amounted to
this:-H this was what | was sup
posed to put up with here, / would
rather leave than read such literature
and have my actions so misconstrued
and misinterpreted by those who
should always be a teachers allies,
the parents of her pupils. / had pre-
yious to this received a few other
notes relative to different school mat
ters but this was the climax. How
ever, let me say, all these notes or
messages come from the same three
or four parties-parents of pupils who
allow their children many privileges
at home which any real, live up to
date, conscientious teacher cannot.
grant them at school.
Mr.. Prescott read the note; I gave
him the details of the cause as stated
above, when he only replied take it
to the superintendent Thinking I
ought to act on his advice, T did SO.
again relating the particulars. The
superintendent remarked, E month
was rather long," but in short he
stated, Nothing would ever come of
it and for me just to ignore it, al
though right there, I said rather than
have any trouble about it or change
one iota | would prefer to leave. One
witness can bear me out in this: but,
again blindly obedient and having all
faith in those whose position / have
always, in every other parish, where
I've worked been led to believe en-
title a teacher to advice and assis-
tance, I ignored it as complete as |
would have done,if acting on my own
advice as in previous minor cases.
The three or four that with me had
puzzled over the mysteries Of this in
teresting missiVe and had wondered
whether I was to be sand bagged or
caused to resign as I have in prefer
ence to being a slave teacher had a
most hearty laugh over our making
Of a mountain out Of a mole hill.
Wednesday the tenth, three of my
little girls, including the one in ques-
ton, tried to see what they could do
and yet escape alive. Feeling sorry
for the children, as / always do at
such times, / decided to once more
try to appeal to that which is noblest
in us all, a consciousness of right
for the sake of right. After the others
we're gone, I kept, at least, ten for
various reasons and gave them all
sorts of work to do, hoping to make
them more careful in the future, for
my ideals as is every teachers to pet
on without any punishment but we
all realize, force and right rule the
the world, force till right is ready.
This particular child wrote two hun
dred and fifty lines for misbehaYior IN
general, although, not being a st.
Landry teacher any more, my vera
city on this point has been questioned
and she is supposed to have written
about twice that many for raising
her hand, once. Such a tyrant Of a
teacher as could do the latter, ought
in my opinion, be put out Of business,
why the state is being done on injus-
tice to let her leave here alive.
But go to the pupils of my grade
and ask the most majority-can | not
say everyone, for surely all can
acknowledge again what they once
did-Was ever any body during my
punished in any way for
his hand? All the three, and
one in particular, who had been
unusually agreeable all though the
interview, left in 8 thoroughly good
promising to bury the
Ratchet" etc. ! was at my boarding
house at five fifteen and unusually
with the turn affairs had
The next day, about 11:45, the
mother of this particular girl entered
my class room. After trying to treat
me in a most unladylike manner before
my pupils, she was finally induced by
Mr. Prescott to meet me alone, as I'll
vas perfectly willing to hear all the
complaints, and think parents should,
when any misunderstanding arise,
;ome to the teachers, but in the