The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1923-09-19

II IluuiItbI, e Wei ullESlldl-
ingly released Newton, and furiously
delivered a blow meant for Jim's Jaw,
which miscarried by a foot. In reply,
Jim countered with an awkward
swinging uppercut. 1t landed fairly on
the point Of the jaw. The chauffeur
staggered and slowly toppled over into
the soft earth which had caused so
much of the rumpus.
"Oh, cut it out" said a fat mar In
the rear of the car. who had hither-
to manifested small interest in any
thing save Ponto. Get In, and let's
be on our way!"
Colonel Woodruff, waving toward
him in his runabout, held up by the
traffic blockade, asked what was going
on here, and the chauffeur, rising
groggily, climbed into the car; and the
meeting dissolved.
Good work, jim" said Cornelius
Bonner. II didn't think twas in vel"
ITS beastly," said Jim, reddening.
81 didn't know, ether
Colonel Woodruff looked at his
hired man sharply, gave him some in
structions for the next day and drove
on. The road gang dispersed for the
afternoon. Newton Bronson carefully
secreted the magic muZZle, and
chuckled at what had been perhaps
the most picturesquely successful bit
of deyiltry in his varied record. Jim
Irwin put out his team, got his supper
and went to the meeting of the school
board.
The deadlocked members of the
board had been so long at loggerheads
that their relations had swayed back
to something like amity. Jim had
scarcely entered when Con Bonner ad-
dressed the chair.
"Mr. President" said he, 1--WE have
wild US t'night, a young man who nades
no Introduction to al audience in this
place, Mr.. Jim Irwin. He thinks we're
bullheaded mules, and that all the
schools are bad. At the proper time 1
shall move that we hire him FIR teach
err; and pindlng that motion, l move
that he be given the floor. we've all
heared of Mr.. Twins ability as a
white hope, and l know he'll be lis
tened to wild respect"
Much laughter from the board and
the spectators, as Jim arose. He
looked upon it as ridicule of himself,
while Con Bonner regarded 1t as a
tribute to his successful speech.
Mr.. President and Gentlemen of
fbn ICnrlB D enfl J;n, GsTso, Mt a,nfpn
to tell you anything that you don't
know about yourselves. You are SIM
ply making a farce of the matter of
hiring a teacher for this school. You
know, and l know, that even If your
silly deadlock is broken by employing
a new candidate, the school will be
the same old story. 1t will still be the
school it was when / came into it a
little ragged boy"-here Jim's voice
grew a little husky-"and when l left
it, a bigger boy, but still as ragged as
ever"
There was a slight sensation in the
audience, as if, as Con Bonner said
about the knock-down, they hadn't
thought Jim Irwin could do it.
well" said Con, you've done well
to hold your own"
I'm all the years l attended this
school," Jim went on, Il never did a
bit of work in school which was
economically useful. No other pupil
ever did any real work of the sort
farmers boys and girls should do. We
aaniA1 oif- cahna1C- and thu cohno1e
W. copied are poor schools. We made
bad copies of them, too. If any of you
three men were making a fight for
what the Country Life commission
called a new kind of rural school, I'd
say fight. But you aren't. You're just
making individual fights for your IA
vorite teachers"
Jim Irwin made a somewhat lengthy
speech after the awkwardness wore
off. He adjured Bronson, Bonner and
Peterson. to study his plan of a new
kind of country sohOOl-in which the
work of the school should be CORE
lated with the life of the home and
the farm-a school which would be
in the highest degree cultural by be-
ing consciously useful and obviously
practical.
Sharp spats of applause from the
useless hands of Newton Bronson
gave the final touch of absurdity to d
situation which Jim had felt TO be
ridiculous all through. Had 1t not
been for Jennie Woodruff's "Humph 7"
ctt,~ip. him hnl ~ not kaAn Fa- th1
absurd notion that perhaps, after they
had heard his speech, they would
place him In charge of the school, and
that he might be able to do something
really important in it, he would not
have been there. AS he sat down, he
knew himself a dreamer. The nodding
board of directors, the secretary,
actually snoring, the bored audience
restored the field-hand to a sense of
his proper place.
1--WE have had the privilege of lis
t'nin'," said Con Bonner, rising, ito a
great speech, Mr.. Prisidint. Maxim a
good spache is one thing, and teach
ing a good school is another, but in or
der TO bring this matter before the
board, l nominate Mr.. James Z. Irwin,
the Boy Orator of the Woodruff dis
trict, and the new white hope, FIR the
job of teacher of this school, and L
move that when he shall have received
a majority of the votes of this board,
the secretary and prisidint be in
sthructed to enter into a contract with
him FIR tho pOmin' Vpuro