Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1911-02-09
ECHOES FROM OUT THE PAST.
Mr. French StTOther Writes Interestingly of
His Recollection of BOyhOOd Days
Eighb-fTe Years Ago.
Mr.. EDITOR:-

Mr.. EDIToR:-
L thank you for the privilege of usirg
your columns in detailing to nv loved
ones mementoes of my early life, and
L hope that in doing this many of your
aged readers will be forcibly reminded
of their own lives and that your more
youthful readers will realize the great
advantages they now enjoy-advantages
so far superior to what their grand
parents had.
When was boy we had no paper
published in the county, no banks at our
county seat, no large handsome church
es, no magnificent school buildings.
Few families had a carriage. A piano
was curiosity. Almost every family
went to church on horseback or in a
wagon. The grandest sight to a bow
was six-horse team, each horse orna-
mented about the head and shoulders
with bells. The next in grandeur was
stage, drawn by four beautiful horses
and the driver announcing his coming
with bugle. Many. many boy would
leave his plow and hasten to the public
road to see the six-horse belled team
or the stage, and determine if he lived
to be man he would be a stage driver
and If he ever got rich he would have a
belled team.
How different Is everything now.
Every family takes and epioys the
county paper. Almost every family has
carriage and also a piano and many,
not satisfied with carriage, are buying
automobiles. In some sections of the
country almost every family has tele-
phone. The boys are sent to college as
are also the girls. I have in all seven
nieces and cousins. Six of the seven
are either teaching or preparing to
teach. The seventh has to take care of
aged parents. Two of these girls were
educated or are being educated in Bos-
ton. Two of the six are making over
one hundred dollars per month and the
others not so much, but their salaries
are being increased. All these girls
have nice homes, but are ambitious.
Truly our girls are our jewels, the hope
OF our country. They are excelling the
boys in everything.
Almost all the country schools are
taught by ladies, many of whom are
ideal, self-sacrifcing young women who
are not spending their money in buying
fine hats, but are supplying the wants
OF their aged parents.
nrOrnirant looko-
seat says l will live to be 12O years old.
l am going to divide my life into peri
ods OF ten years each and give you in
nine letters the events of each ten years.
making ninety years in all, leaving the
last thirty for one of my loved ones to
fill up.
My father was known in Culpepper
county and afterwards in Missouri as
Captain French Strother. If he had an
enemy it was unknown to his family.
If he ever owed a dollar which he did
not pay, this also was unknown to anv
of his ten children. When he became
heavily in debt he had to sell his negroes
me nd not own any colored people, or
his farm. When demonstrated with for
not saying more than he did say to a
man who came to purchase the farm.
my father said: 81 would not deceive
man for the value of my farm" NV
salnted mother was an heiress and nv
father the son Of wealthy man. NY
mother never went to an old field school.
but was educated at DIR. Hills famous
winchester Boarding School. Nv faith
er was the best educated man in North
Cuipepper, now Rappahannock. Thew
were Presbyterians and believed in edu-
cation and their descendants are also
Presbyterians. The first ten wears of
my school life was at the rural old field
schools. The teachers walked the floor
with a long hickory switch in one hand
and a book in the other. They generally
ignored the languages and higher matb- |
ematics. When in my thirteenth wear
L went to preparatory school for the |
University of Virginia and continued at
this school for three years. A boy or
girl now ten years old is as well adj |
vanced as boys who were regarded the
most advanced in the old field schools.
Teachers were not examined as to their
proficiency. This was fortunate for
them; indeed, there were few who could
examine them and few who could stand
an examination. The schools almost
universally were taught by men. All
the books that the children needed for
years were a b,ue-back spelling book
and New York reader, No. 1 or 2.
Pixies arithmetic. A slate and pencil
after few years were added; and final
y the finished scholar studied geopra-
ply and grammar. No teacher then