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THE 
 
 FEONTIEE SCHOOLIASTEE: 
 
 THB 
 
 AUTOBIOGEAPHY OF A TEACHEfi, 
 
 AX ACCOUNT NOT ONLY OP EXPEIIIENCES IN THE SCHOOL 
 
 ROOM BUT LN AGRICULTURAL, POLITICAL, 
 
 AND MILITARY LIFE. 
 
 TOGKTHBn WITH 
 
 AN ESSAY 
 
 OH THB 
 
 MANAGEMENT OF OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS. 
 
 BY C. THOMAS. 
 
 MONTREAL: 
 
 PRINTED BY JOHN LOVELL & SON. 
 
 1880. 
 
wnFi 
 
 Entered according to Act of rarllameut of Canada, In'.the year one thousand 
 eight hundred and eighty, by Cybiis TnoMAe, in the Office of the Minister 
 of Agriculture and Statistics, at Ottaw-i 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 The fact that I had published two local histories which had 
 received the compliment useful, more freely with eacli 
 succeeding year, inspire i me with the hope that I might 
 meet the same success in a different field of literature- 
 hence, the publication of The Frontieh Schoolmabter. 
 
 An experience of twelve years in the school-room havina 
 shown me a deplorable lack of interest in schools on thl 
 part of the public-a great want of moral support to leach- 
 ers,-I could think of no better subjects than these, about 
 which to employ my humble pen. But, in order to lead the 
 reader to the common-place and uninteresting subject of 
 school teaching, it was necessary to enliven the journey by 
 the narration of incidents unconnected with the school-room 
 It was with a hope, too, that some of these incidents mi^ht 
 not be without their useful lesson that they were intro- 
 duced. 
 
 The experienced voter will doubtless recognize familiar 
 scenes lu the picture of the political campaign, and the youn. 
 man who is a " hanger-on " at the door of some Government 
 
IV 
 
 Introduction. 
 
 official, waiting for an "appointment," instead of seizing 
 manfully on present opportunities to earn a livelihood, may, 
 possibly, read in the experience of the hero of this tale, his 
 own disappointment and humiliation. 
 
 Many of the incidents herein described are facts related 
 with little embellishment, and if the descriptions sometimes 
 border on caricature, it is for the sake of pointing a moral 
 the more forcibly. 
 
 Should it be thought that I have dwelt at too much 
 length on the details of teaching, related unimportant 
 incidents, let me say in reply that I believe incidents which 
 affect the happiness of our teachers, and consequently the 
 great interests of education, can scarcely with justice be 
 pronounced too trivial for narration. 
 
 The village school described midway of the work may be 
 regarded a representative one ; its character and management 
 showing much too perfectly the condition of a gi'eat many 
 schools in our own Province at the present time. The 
 fault is not in our School Inspectors, as some have insin- 
 uated ; it lies wholly in the people ; in their deplorable 
 apathy towards all schools ; in their ambition to accumu- 
 late wealth ; in short, to bequeath to their children an 
 inheritance of broad acres and fine herds rather than one of 
 cultured minds. Could the District of each School Inspec- 
 tor be so limited that his visits to schools could be made 
 much longer and far more frequent, I doubt not that his 
 ability to do good would be greatly enhanced. 
 
Introduction. 
 
 The custom of boarding around which is slowly going 
 out of existence is still tenaciously adhered to in very many 
 localities. 
 
 For the amusement of those who ,have never had any 
 experience in thib novel way of boarding, I have shown 
 without exaggeration the discomforts that teachers not un- 
 freouently experience where this custom still exists. 
 
 In conclusion, I would say that if this story of characters 
 and events in the humble walks of life contributes in a 
 slight degree towards awakening deeper interest in our 
 schools, and thus conduces to their improvement — if it 
 secures for the industrious, care-worn teacher, deserving 
 sympathy from his patrons, or affords to himself any in- 
 formation or encouragement in the discharge of his duties, 
 it will faithfully execute its mission — The Frontier 
 Schoolmaster will answer the liighest hope of 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 I'AOK 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 My aversion to teaching — I am exhorted to teach, but refuse — I 
 repent, and engag'e to teach during the winter — My schoolhouse 
 — Boarding around (J 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Scenes in school — Complaints of patrons — I receive a letter from a 
 school committee — I quit the school 28 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 I return home — I am set to v?ork, and display great industry — 
 Attend school again 48 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 I am at home again — The farm — I go to farming once more — A 
 trip to the Mountain — I get lost — A romance 54 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Want of employment — I go to Albany — Am disappointed — Return 
 to Canada — Engage to teach a winter school — IXisappointed 
 again — A letter describing life in a convent 65 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 I enter a Custom House — Receive a commission — A smuggler— A 
 chase and capture — Another smuggler captured 74 
 
viii Contents. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A return from tlio Convent — A visit to Maplr Highland — A gentle- 
 man fanner — A politician, who preochcH one thing and pract'oes 
 another — Hin offer to me — New ambition 89 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 A ride to Hilton — A political meeting — Electioneering — A return 
 to the Ciihtoni Uouue 120 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 I receive money with which I am to relieve the neceRHities of rate- 
 payerH — A chat concerning politics — A visit to Maple Highland 
 — An engagonont 121 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Electioneering — The nomination — A disgraceful scene — ^Tho elec- 
 tion 127 
 
 CFIAPTER XI. 
 
 Want of employment again~I visit Montreal — The politician 
 declines to fulfil his promise to me — A visit to CarroUton — Sugar 
 parties — I hire money for the purpose of prosecuting my 
 studies lUf) 
 
 CHAPTER Xir. 
 
 A change of business — An Educational Institution — My fellow 
 Students — I form a friendship with a young Scotchman, and 
 conceive a strong dislike for the son of a Slave-holder — A 
 quarrel which ends in a fight 154 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Ai> account of my work in the Seminary— My friend goes to engage 
 a school and takes me with him — A school manager— A bargain 
 — My frioad hires oui^^ 1^*^ 
 
Co7itentfi. 
 
 ix 
 
 rAOK 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Mack rejarrets hiH bargain, but sticks to it— A letter containing ai; 
 amusing account of his experience in teaching — CopieH of 
 lettei-H ho rt'cciveH from hiw pntronB— His second letter, in which 
 ho gives a little experience in " boarding around." 184 
 
 CHAITEU XV. 
 
 A fugitive slave, his hiswry and peculiarities— Ho undortakos a 
 theological disuu.ssion— An attempt to kidnap him— A ight and 
 
 rescue. 
 
 108 
 
 CIIAPTP]R XVI. 
 
 Mistaken notions of economy— 111 health— A charge of incon- 
 stancy— An iucreaHo of debt— 111 health continues— Unpleasant 
 forebodings— I leave the Seminary and return home 218 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 My walk in the old footpath— Familiar objects— Prince, the house 
 dog— My joy at reaching home— The sympathy of friondH— I 
 visit Maple Highland— An unwelcome visitor— A frightful 
 dream— Jealousy— I inform Ruth of my indebtedness to my 
 nval— A discussion respecting teachers and diplomas 224 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 A determination to secure health— A gymnasium— Over-exertion 
 —Disappointment and despair— The wise dealings of Provi- 
 dence with me— MyJIrapid recovery— Engagement once moreiu 
 business 
 
 242 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 A representative school building-School work-Disorderly pupils 
 —A suspension— An indignant mother's letter and my reply- 
 Two truants-Punishment— Another angry parent-A partv at 
 which my school and myself afford subjects for gossip. . . . ' 247 
 
Contents. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 CHAPTER XX; 
 
 Disastrous cTects produced on my school by evening parties — Inef- 
 fectual attempts to suppress them — Objections to Rhetoricpl 
 excrciHes — I am compelled to abandon them — The difficulty of 
 collecting tuition — Uncle Jack Jones — He objects to the high 
 salaries of teachers , 281 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 An unexpected letter — Utter despondency — I receive comfort from 
 another letti r — My pecuniaiy circumstances — I apply for the 
 winter school at Bloomingdale— Hypocrisy — '^' -3 school com- 
 mittee — I am hii jd to teach again — My success iuring the fall. 294 
 
 CHAPTER XXIJ. 
 
 My vacation — I ask to have my curiosity, gratified, and discover a wolf 
 in sheep's clothing — A noble friend — My disgust with mankind 
 — A surprise, in the shape of a valuable preseni— My winter 
 school 30() 
 
 CHAPTER XXI.I. 
 
 A visit from my creditor — I give new notes in exchange for t je old 
 — A desire to go West— I commence the study of law — I give it 
 up, and return to teaching — I decide to try farming, but making 
 too many improvements I am obliged '■o abandon it, and engage 
 once moie in teaching 333 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 A leap over three years —A history of their events — My marriage 
 — Our baby — We lose our all by fire — My experience as book 
 agent 340 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 My wife and I teach in Shirley — A demand again from my creditor 
 —Inability to comply with it— The civil war— My syrapatiues 
 
Contents. 
 
 XI 
 
 PAGE 
 
 anddeaire to enlist -A recruiting officer-I feel compelled to 
 enter the army-A sad night-Further proof of ray creditor's 
 desire to ruin me-T enlist, and thereby obtain means to release 
 myself from his clutches-My joy at the event-The pai-ting 357 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Ijoinmyregiment-I meet two of my former pupils-My home 
 sickness-Our winter quarters near Brandy Station-A betrayal 
 and the punishment of the betrayer-A fight_I hear of my old 
 colored friend, Tim, and am pleased to do him a favor 
 
 more. 
 
 once 
 
 CHAPTER XXVir. 
 
 Battle of the Wilderness-Spottsylvania-Tom O'Callaghan, my 
 fnend,isshob, and I avenge his death-His friend LgJs 
 ^lef-The severe fighting-We receive our mail, and I get a 
 letter from Ruth-Battle of Cold Harbor-We are ordered to 
 Harpers Ferry-Monocacy-The Shenandoah Valley-John 
 Brown-Our return to Washingten-My confinement in hospi- • 
 tal-My recovery-My old acquaintance Baxter turns up un- 
 expectedly, in humble circumstances-I return home. . ..!.... 'm 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 Farming again— Sad affliction. 
 
 396 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 My early preparation for teaching-The little it availed mo-Indi- 
 viduals who think themselves qualified to teach- 
 
 ings—Salaries of teachers . 
 
 -School build- 
 
 101 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 ^Tupl!fr '': '•^r^'^* ^'^^^^ «^ teacher.-Want o 
 support to our teachers 
 
 f moral 
 
 415 
 
Xll 
 
 Contents. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 A joyful Burprise— My old friend McKenzie turns up after a sepa- 
 ration from me of several years — A letter in which he recounts 
 his wanderings and trials 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 Another letter in which Mack concludes his narrative 
 
 444 
 
 CHAPTER XXXITI. 
 
 Mack's change of fortune— He secures me a situation— Unhappy 
 prospect of another separation from my family — An unexpect 
 ed letter — The death of Niel— A Burprising change of fortune 
 by which I am at last releaaed from the necessity of teaching 
 — My removal to New York 456 
 
THE 
 
 FRONTIER SCHOOLMASTER. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Aly aversion to teaching-! am e.xl.orted to teach, but refus.-I 
 re^nt and engage to teach during the wi„ter-My «choolhou.e 
 — Doard I ng around. 
 
 I WAS seventeen. Two of my friends, young men not 
 older than myself, had recently engaged to teach school, 
 and had advised me to take up the same husiness awhile 
 in order to obtain means towards defraying my expenses 
 in climbing the Hill of Learning, but such was my dislike 
 for the work that I had resolved never to attempt it 
 
 Two things had given rise to this aversion • first I 
 .■emembered distinctly the annoyances to waich 1 had se'^n 
 teachers exposed from the thoughtlessness or mischievous 
 proclivities of their pupils. 
 
 Second, T had decided to study law, and, with a boy's 
 want of reflection and judgment, I looke.l upon teacnina 
 as a vocation so inferior to that of a lawyer's that I wat 
 imwilhng to use it even as a stepping-stone to something 
 higher. " 
 
 B 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 At this time I was attending a high school in the village 
 of Mayfair, situated among the hills of Xorthern Vermont, 
 six miles distant from Foreston, in Canada, Avh^ro my 
 parents resided. I was boarding with my half-sister, who 
 had married a lawyer of good standing, and the popularity 
 he enjoyed among the citizens of Mayfair, the ease with 
 which he made money, as well as the advice he from time 
 to time vouchsafed me, led me to aspire to the ease and 
 dignity of his profession. My sister, too, proud no doubt 
 of her husband, as all good women are, and desiring to see 
 her brother take the same social position, had fanned my 
 aml)ition and flattered my vanity until my aspirations had 
 led me to place far too low an estimate on the (^rdinary 
 occupations of life. In short, I was one of those visionary 
 head-strong boys, bent on accomplishing some great thing, 
 without having any just comprehension of the means by 
 which it was to be achieved. 
 
 I had no money, no wealtliy friends to assist me, and, 
 though T had decided on a college course, I have since 
 fully realized that I had no well-defined way marked out 
 for obtaining the money necessary for completing my 
 education. 
 
 My father was the proprietor of a small farm in Foreston, 
 and, though I was his only child, his income was not 
 sufiicient to provide nie with the funds requisite to gratify 
 my ambition. 
 
 ' It was my custom during the two years I was at school 
 at Mayfair to go home once in two or three weeks to spend 
 a Sabbath, and to enjoy the luxuries of the farm with which, 
 on these occasions, my mother always regaled me. 
 
 It was one Saturday night, in the fall of 1853, that I 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 by 
 
 sat in the presence of my parents, reading. For nearly an 
 
 hour quiet had reigned in the family circle. My father 
 
 finally broke the silence, and put an end to my reading, by 
 
 the following question : 
 
 " Frank, what are you going to do when you are done 
 
 going to school ? " 
 
 " 1 am going to college," I re[)lied. 
 
 Five minutes of silence ensued. I was not anxious to 
 break it, for, having long known my father's desire to have 
 me engage in business of some kind that would ])rocure 
 me a livelihood, I feared the unpleasant announcement 
 that he wished me to commence it at once. I was not 
 disapi)4)inted. 
 
 " How are you going to pay your expenses at college ? " 
 he next asked. 
 
 This was a poser. Up to this time, I had hoped that he 
 might feel able to assist me somewiiat in ray design, but 
 I did not like to say so. After some hesitation, 1 replied : 
 
 " Other young men with little means go through college, 
 and I don't see why 1 cannot do the same." 
 
 " Yes," he said, " but they are youn<:j men who are will- 
 ing to help themselves. They do anything they can find 
 to do to earn money ; but, Frank, you have never yet 
 earned a dollar," and he bent his eyes on me, and spoke 
 with an emphasis that made me feel like another Prodigal 
 As I made no reply he resumed : 
 
 " I've been thinking, Frank, that the best thing you 
 can do is take a school this winter." 
 
 " 1 shall not teach a district school," I quickly replied 
 with some ohow of indignation. 
 
 " Well," he rejoined, " if you are not willing to do some- 
 
8 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 thing to help yoursoif you can't expect me to do much 
 more for you. I've kept you dressed up and at school, 
 now, for two years, summer and winter, and, if you are not 
 of a mind to teach a few months, you must ^'^w your 
 expenses at Mayfair if you go to school this winter." 
 
 " I don't think Frank is strong enough to teach," 
 anxiously inter}»()sed my mother. 
 
 It was to her that I was chiefly indebted for the com- 
 parative ease I had always enjoyed. I was a youth of 
 rather delicate constitution, and she had always mani- 
 fested considerable anxiety lest I should over-exert myself 
 in attending to such farm labors as devolved upon me to 
 perform ; consequently, I had endured but little yf the 
 hardships which the neighboring farmers' boys had to 
 undergo. 
 
 She had always insisted, too, that my wishes with regard 
 to dress should be fully gratified, so that my expenses 
 while at school really amounted to a considerable sum for 
 a man of small means to meet. 
 
 My father was equally pleased to indulge me, whenever 
 he thought it wise to do so, but he was of a more 
 practical turn, and wished to teach me self-reliance, indus- 
 try, and all the other virtues which equip a young man 
 properly for the battle of life. The little property that he 
 possessed he had acquired by the strictest industry and 
 economy, hence, he had no sympathy for the young man 
 who shrank from hardships, or the one who, with everything 
 in his favor, had made shipwreck of his possessions. 
 
 My mother was a widow residing in New York at the 
 time he married her, and, after the marriage, he remained in 
 that city until I was seven years of age, when he was in- 
 
 I 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 duced, by the cheapness of land in Canada, to remove hither. 
 To the remark of my mother, as narrated above, he 
 simply ejaculated : 
 
 " I'll risk him." 
 
 This closed the discussion, and soon after this I retired 
 to my chamber to meditate, but not to sleep till after the 
 clock had struck one. 
 
 I pondered the situation, realized the impossibility of 
 carrying out my schemes without mouey, and so sur- 
 rendered myself to circumstances, and decided to try my 
 success at school teaching. 
 
 I did not so much fear my ability to impart instruction 
 to pupils as I distrusted my temper under tryin,Lj circum- 
 stances. I was impetuous, very sensitive, and I hardly 
 felt equal to the task of preserving ray equanimity and 
 exuberant spirits in the face of the fault-findings of 
 patrons, and insolence of disorderly pupils, to which I knew 
 teachers were almost invariably subjected. But there was 
 no alternative, so I felt constrained to submit. 
 
 The following Monday I was again at school in May- 
 fair. In the evening I chanced to meet a man named 
 Barnum in the post-office, who was pointed out to me as 
 the chairman of a school committee in a district in Mead- 
 ville, ten mih^s from Mayfair. I timidly, and with many 
 misgivings, addressed him. He had seen me, he said, in 
 the village at our Lyceums, school examinations, etc., 
 and believed from what he had seen and heard of me that 
 I was a " chap " that could teach a good school, if I was 
 a " mind tew." I was somewhat encouraged, still I 
 feared that he expected too much of me. He was a 
 wealthy but illiterate farmer, and penurious withal, so 
 
10 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 that the main object with liim seemed to be to secure my 
 services at the lowest ])ussible price. After a loii<,' ])arley 
 the bargain was closed, and I had engaged to teach for 
 three months, build my own fires and " board around" for 
 the sum of $11 per month. I knew the customs of 
 teachers well, so the information that I was to " board 
 around " among my pupils did not surprise me, yet it 
 seemed the most trying part of the laoora I had agreed to 
 undertake. 
 
 It was a bitter cold Monday morning following that time- 
 honored New England festival, Thanksgiving, that I left 
 the village of Meadville and trudged on foot almost 
 disheartened over the frosty snow to the scene of my future 
 la))ors. I shall never forget the appearance of the school- 
 house as it first struck me on that memorable morning. 
 It was not unique, for the schoolhouses of northern New 
 England and a greater part of Canada in those days wore 
 the same forbidding aspect ; and it is to be regretted that 
 a (quarter of a century has not made the change in these 
 educational institutions which the progi'ess of wealth and 
 intelligence demands. It was an old wooden building 
 without paint or cornice. Many of the clapboards had 
 started from their places, and frequent loud cracks occa- 
 sioned by the assaults of Jack Frost upon this cheerless 
 structure made me shiver for the urchins who should seek 
 instruction within its walls. 
 
 The interior was still less inviting. Three rows of 
 desks on either side of the room, elevated one above the 
 other, offered accommodations to the pupils ; while my 
 own, raised nearly half way to the ceiling, occupied the 
 farther end of the room facing the door. The house was 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 11 
 
 extremely musty and dirty, and the desks were disfigured 
 with ink and with all the unsightly notches and carvings 
 which a boy with a jack-knife is capable of executing. 
 The only thing that cheered me was the sight of a huge 
 stoVe located nearly in the centre of the room. Though 
 cracked and exceedingly rusty, it suggested the idea of 
 warmth. With this stove, I thought, and plenty of good 
 wood, I can bid defiance to old Boreas even in this crannied 
 schoolhouse. I had forgotten that schoolhouses in this 
 section were always sujiplied with green wood fresh from 
 the forest, and that during the first hour or two of school in 
 the morning the pupils were always supjiosed to stand five 
 dee]) around the stove, while the teacher, from courtesy and 
 kindness to them, must shiver in the background. 
 
 After taking a solemn survey of the building, and 
 deciphering the names of " John and Betsey," and " Bill 
 and Melinda," coupled together on the walls in the rud ist 
 chirography, I bethought me of the article in my agre - 
 ment with the committee which required me to build the 
 fires. There was no woodshed, and the only thing that 
 held out to me the hope of fuel were several small hum- 
 mocks of snow near the door, which looked as if they might 
 be sticks of wood left there at the close of the last summer's 
 school. 
 
 Inspection showed that my conjecture was right, and 
 after assaulting these with a long wooden poker which I 
 had found by the stove, and with sundry kicks which 
 threatened the destruction of my nicely fitting boots, I 
 succeeded in bringing several of them to a resurrection. 
 
 My next difficulty was the want of an axe and suitable 
 kindling. There was a ho ise about a quarter of a mile 
 
12 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 distant, and to this in no very pleasant humor I repaired. 
 A heavily whiskered man in his shirt sleeves appeared 
 at the door and listened to my solicitations, 
 
 " (), you're the new schoolmaster," he said, eyeing nm in 
 a most intjuisitive manner. "Wall, come in, set down 
 and I'll see if I can find something to start yor fire with- 
 I told Barnum that I'd draw some wood to the school- 
 house last Saturday, but I swan one of my oxen was took 
 lame, and 1 didn't have time to look up lanother team ; but 
 I'm gwine into the woods to cut and draw some right oft'. 
 I'll have enough thar for yer afore night." 
 
 I stepped into the house and took a seat before the fire- 
 place. Three or four ragged urchins retreated to a remote 
 corner of the ajtartment as I entered, where they watched 
 me with impertinent curiosity, and indulged in occasional 
 whisperings and gigglings. 
 
 The man, whose name was Johnson, introduced me to 
 his wife as the new schoolmaster, and then retiring in 
 pursuit of kindling left me to listen to her account of the 
 " shiftlessness " of the "folks" in " providin " wood for 
 that schoolhouse. 
 
 "True as you're settin thar," she exclaimed, waxing 
 eloquent on the subject, " my man had to furnish half the 
 wood for that schoolhouse last winter, and we haint only 
 four young ones to send, when thar's Tom Simpson that 
 sends seven, and he never drawed a stick of wood all 
 winter." 
 
 I sympathized with her in her indignation, and described 
 the state of things as I had found it at the schoolhouse 
 that njorning. 
 
 " Yer orter tore a clapboard off from the backside of the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 18 
 
 schoolhouse for kindlin'," exclaimed a precocious boy in 
 the corner, addressing himself to me. •' That's the way the 
 boys do when we find tlie fire's gittin' low," 
 
 Subsequently, T discovered that that j)art of the scliool- 
 room where my desk was located seemed much colder than 
 the other parts, and on seeking the cause, found that the 
 r ar of the building was almost entirely denudeil of clap- 
 boards — a verification of the ])oy's statement that they 
 had been used to resuscitate the expiring embers. 
 
 " That's smart, Bill," instantly reiterated the mcjther. 
 "Tear the schoolhouse to pieces to kindle the fire! At 
 that rate we'll have to build another house 'fore long, and 
 then we'll have more taxes to pay. Taxes is eatin' us up 
 now. School teacher's wages is so high that it takes all 
 we can rake and scr.i])e to pay 'em. I hope that old 
 schoolhouse will last anyway till my young ones are 
 eddicated." 
 
 Bill saved me the trouble of replying by the following 
 rejoinder : 
 
 " I don't care, it's a tarnal cold house, and I wish 'twas 
 tore down now. Why, sclioolmaster, one day last winter 
 the water pail froze up tighter'n a drum, and .I«.>rusha 
 Cross froze both her ears, right thar in the schoolhouse, 
 when the stove was red hot." 
 
 I shuddered, and was indulging in sundry forebodings of 
 the future when Johnson entered with an armful of kind- 
 lings which he transferred to my own arms, and tlien pre- 
 sented me an axe, which he said he would lend me till 
 school closed to split my kindlings with, and " to chop with 
 a little when necessary. ' Although tlie utensil bore the 
 appearance of having been used to chop bones ever since 
 
14 
 
 The Frontier SchoolmuHter. 
 
 the landinj,' of the Tilgrims, I thanked him cordiiilly for 
 the f^cMierous lonn, und at once took leave. Jle accom- 
 panied me to the door to close it, and did not allow me to 
 depart without volunteering this consolatory remark : 
 
 " You're a light chap to manage our big boys here. I 
 shall expect to hear afore Saturday night that they've 
 pitched yer out of the winder or shoved yer up the 
 chimney." 
 
 I was not a little vain of my prowess and agility, but 
 at that moment I was so vexed with the prospect before 
 me that I most cordially hoped his exjjectations would be 
 realized. Any humiliation I thought w^ould be preferable 
 to that of teaching three months in that place. I think 
 the man must have understood something of my state of 
 feeling when I replied in a most emphatic manner, 
 
 " I hope you will ! " 
 
 It was nine o'clock ere I had succeeded in kindling a fire, 
 and then the wet, frost-covered wood burned with a slow- 
 ness which promised but little comfort to the inmates of 
 the schoolroom that day ; but in a short time Johnson 
 arrived with a small load of wood, which he said he hr,d 
 taken from his woodshed, and with the aid of this, the 
 house, before noon, had become endurable. 
 
 By ten, about forty pupils had assembled, and I found 
 that this was my average number during my stay here. 
 They were of all ages from six to twenty, presenting various 
 degrees of intelligence and styles of dress. A few were 
 just beginning to read, while many had made some ad- 
 vancement in arithmetic, geography and grammar, and two 
 even studied algebra. Most of them looked neat, though 
 with a few exceptions they were clad in homespun gar- 
 
TJie Frontier Sohoohnaster. 
 
 15 
 
 monts ; the j^irl.s in dresses of wiiio-co' ,yva\, striped or drab 
 woolli'iiH, mid tlic boys in gray or striped woollen frocks iind 
 trousers. The younger boys with niilitiiry jirecision all 
 thrust their mittens for safe kuej)ing beneath the broad 
 belts which secured their fnxiks at the waist. 
 
 My first work after the pupils had coUectMl and I had 
 taken their names was to win their esteem by what I con- 
 sidered an appro))riate speech of twenty minutes length. 
 They listened with good attention, and T believed I had 
 nuide a hap])y imja'ession. 1 might still enjoy this consol- 
 ing thought, had I not overheard Jerusha (.ross that even- 
 ing desci-ibing my oratorical effort as a "lot of high tlowin' 
 stuff" none of the scholars could understand. 
 
 I forgot my woes in a measure in organizing the classes 
 and in striving to get the school into working order, so 
 that noon arrived before I was aware of it. I had not 
 thought of dinner till school was excused and the pupils 
 apj)eared before me, eagerly devouring the contents of their 
 dinner baskets. I then began to realize that I was in the 
 enjoyment of a good appetite, and remembered that I had 
 taken a scanty and very early breakfast. I sat in my desk 
 regarding the situation when a very stout girl, with red face, 
 ap])roached me, carrying in one hand a basket, into which 
 the other was thrust, evidently in quest of jtrovisions. 
 
 "I s'j)ose you'd like some dinner, wouldn't yer, School- 
 master ? " she asked with a bewitching smile, at the same 
 time bringing forth three large doughnuts from the basket 
 and placing them on the desk before me. 
 
 I had hardly time to smile and thank her, when she rein- 
 forced this supply with two slices of brown bread and butter. 
 
 I had already learned that the girl's name was Jerusha 
 
16 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Cross, and as she walked away from the desk I remen.bered 
 her as the one whose ears had been frozen in the school 
 house during the preceding winter. A glance at these 
 auricular organs sufficed to show that there was much pro- 
 bability in the boy's story, for they were of enormous size 
 and stood out from her head like v/ings from a building. 
 
 I had always had an antipathy to doughnuts, but J knew 
 when I decided to teacli that I must overcome my natural 
 dislike to them, as they had always been regarded in New 
 England as a kind of food specially adaptf^d to the stomachs 
 of school teachers ; whether because they were not expen- 
 sive, or because they were believed to be conducive to 
 intellectual vigor, I have never been able to learn. I was 
 not long, however, in dispatching those placed before me, 
 neither the bread and butter, and I then sat waiting fo!" the 
 next ten minutes to expire when another girl with a fair, 
 modest face approached the desk and deposited a good-sized 
 api>le before me. Without giving me time to thank her 
 she rushed away, blushing, to the group of boys and girls 
 standing near the stove. 
 
 Her action had been observed by some of them, and at 
 once a vociferous shout was raised. 
 
 " Nancy's sparkin' the Schoolmaster ! Nancy's sparkin' 
 the Schoolmaster ! " 
 
 The expression was instantly caught up and repeated by 
 at least a score of voices, and it was not until I had 
 fiercely pounded the desk with a ruler 'and commanded 
 silence that the din subsided. Th,j pour girl at the finst 
 commencement of the jeering stole away to a back seat in 
 the farther corner, rested her head on a desk and com- 
 menced crying. 1 was indignant at this first exhibition of 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster 
 
 17 
 
 girls 
 
 com- 
 ,ion of 
 
 my pupils' rudeness, and to assure them that I appreciated 
 the ])resent, I at once ate it. 
 
 Several days elapsed before the pupils ceased to tease 
 Nancy, slyly, about the schoolmaster, and she seemed to 
 think she had committed such a bold and unfeminine act» 
 that for more than a week she never gave me a chance to 
 speak to her outside of school hours. I lost no opportunity, 
 however, of addressing her kindly, and of encouraging her 
 in her studies, and I believe that she was one of the 
 several pupils who when I left the school regarded me 
 with grateful feelings. ' 
 
 The afternoon wore away quickly and quite pleasantly, 
 30 that 1 began to hope I might go tiirough the school 
 with much less discomfort than 1 iiad anticipated. At 
 four o'clock, 1 excused my j>upils, put on my overcoat, and 
 was beginning to wonder where 1 was tirst to find " board 
 and lodging," when Jerusha Cross again came up to me 
 with the following question : 
 
 " You'll go home with me I guess to-night, won't yer, 
 Schoolmaster ? " 
 
 " To board ? " I asked, undecided as to what reply 1 
 should make. 
 
 " Yes," she replied. " Ma said she'd like to have yer 
 lioard at our house this week, 'cause we're rather short out 
 for beds, and Uncle John's folks are comin' from Massachu- 
 setts to see us next week. We killed hogs yesterday to 
 be ready for yer." 
 
 " How many did you kill ? " T asked with all the gravity 
 I could assume. 
 
 " Three," she replied, and her eyes glistened with pride 
 at the opportunity given her lo proclaim the abundance 
 in her mother's larder. 
 
18 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " No, Jerush," exclaimed her brother Sam, a boy of 
 thirteen, standing near, who was evidently an admirer of 
 precision in narration, there warn't three hogs. We only 
 killed the old sow and two pigs," 
 
 " Well, what's the difference, I'd like to know ? " indig- 
 nantly retorted the sister. " The pigs was most full 
 gi'own." 
 
 "A pig ain't a hog, anyway,'' obstinately persisted 
 Sam. 
 
 I interrupted the controversy by assuring them tliat, in 
 either case, I thought the supply would be sufficient for 
 the time I remained with them. 
 
 " Yer don't expect to ^at a hog and two figs in six 
 days, do yer ? " asked the boy in amazement. " Yer know 
 yer can't board but two days for a scholar in this deestrict, 
 and there's only three on us." 
 
 " In that case, I said, I think a pig will be sufficient." 
 
 The boy appearing satisfied with this moderate demand 
 on their winter's store we left the schoolroom, and slowly 
 wended our way to their house. Jerusha walked beside 
 me, and her two brothers followed close behind. The girl 
 was very loquacious, and as we reached the road at once 
 opened conversation as follows : 
 
 " Haven't yer never kept school before ? " 
 
 " No," I said. 
 
 " Well, I should think it would ?eem kinder queer to 
 
 yer." 
 
 I admitted that it did. 
 
 " I don't think I should like to keep school. Ma has 
 always been telling she's going to send me ter the village 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 19 
 
 tew school a couple of teims, and then try and ;,'it the 
 school for me up in the Sanborn neighborhood." 
 
 " I think that is a good idea," I replied. * 
 
 *' You'd make a great school teacher, Jerush," exclaimed 
 Sam. ■' Ma tried last fall ter have yertell how much two 
 bushels and a-half of beans would come tew at ninety 
 cents a bushel and yer couldn't dew it. I'd like ter see yer 
 keep school up in the Sanborn neighborhood ; the scholars 
 would ride yer on a rail 'fore you'd ben there a week." 
 
 " Shet yer head ! " indignantly ejaculated Jcrusha, 
 interrupting him. 
 
 But the boy didn't " shut his head, " and continued : 
 " 'Twas only summer 'fore last the scholars up in that 
 deestrict emptied the water pail down the schoolmarm's 
 back, and last winter they took the schowlmaster out and 
 stood him on his head in a snow drift." 
 
 Jerusha made no rejily to this revelation of her brother, 
 but after a few minutes said : 
 
 " You'll have more scholars next wjek, schoolmaster ; 
 there's a French family that lives up by our house and 
 they've got lots of young ones they're going to send if 
 they can git any thing for em to wear on their feet; 
 they're all barefoot now." 
 
 " The young ones can all talk English but six," 
 chimed in Thomas, the younger brother ten years of age. 
 " How many are there ? " I asked. 
 " Seven," he replied with the greatest seriousness. 
 Another short period of silence ensued which was also 
 broken by Jerusha. 
 
 "Don't yer think," said she, "some folks are awful 
 nasty?" 
 
20 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 After some effort to suppress my risibility I replied, 
 " I have no doubt that there are such folks, but I am not 
 acquainted with many." 
 
 " Well, I ain't either, but I know Dumas' folks is nasty 
 enough ; they eat dogs and cats and skunks and wood- 
 chucks and every thing else they can git." 
 
 " They're cussed thiefs too ; " said Sam. 
 
 "Yes," resumed Jerusha, "last summer, ma missed a 
 whole bag full of dried apples and we knew they took 'em." 
 
 " We wouldn't though," said Sam, " if they had'nt like 
 ter hev busted all the young ones from eatin 'em ; l)ut I 
 didn't care so much about that '"s I did their killin and 
 eatin our old cat. We knew they did that, 'cause thar 
 was a peddler stopped at our house with a lot of skins, 
 and he showed us a catskin he'd just bot of Dumas for 
 six cents. Ma said she thought that was rather cheap, for 
 pa never sold one when he was alive for less'n twelve, 
 and so I made up my mind I'd jest take a squint at it, and 
 I knew right off 'twas our old cat's hide, for he had a black 
 spot on each side and rings round his tail." 
 
 " Ma," pursued Jerusha, " would hev had 'em took up 
 last summer, but she thought if she did, jest as like as not 
 they'd j)izen one of the cows or burn up the barn." 
 
 The "onversation concerning this unfortunate French 
 family continued without interruption till we arrived at 
 the domicile of the Widow Cross, which was a mile distant 
 from the schoolhouse. It was a commodious log dwelling 
 with a large frame barn in the rear which bespoke pros- 
 perity. A little farther on was another log house which 
 Sam pointed out as the abode of the incorrigible Dumas 
 family. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster . 
 
 21 
 
 A small black dog greeted us as we turned into the 
 door-yard, with numberles? sharp yelps and growls, and as 
 a supplement to this penbrmance, he fastened his teeth to 
 one leg of my pants. The boys came to the rescue in time 
 to save me from being devoured, and as Sam bore him off 
 in his arras he informed me that Trip was a good dog, but 
 that he was " allers cross to beggars when they come 
 round the house." 
 
 The widow, who was a tall, masculine-looking woman, 
 not above forty-five, gave me a hearty welcome, and at 
 once invited me to take a seat at the table on which the 
 supper was already placed. There was a bountiful supply 
 of food in the shape of potatoes, pork sirloin, fried, corn 
 and wheaten bread, a small morntain of doughnuts and a 
 heavily laden plate of buckwheat pancakes, well buttered 
 and supplied with maple sugar. Before such a repast my 
 unpleasant reflections once more forsook me, and I listened 
 with interest to the amusing remarks both of the widow 
 and her children. 
 
 " I spose," said she, after we were fairly seated, " you 
 never kept school afore." 
 
 " No," I said, " this is my first experience in the busi- 
 nesp " 
 
 "Well its payin business," she said; "I wish my boys 
 was big enough and had eddication to teach. How much 
 dew you git a month ? " 
 " Eleven dollars," I replied. 
 
 " Leven dollars ! well that's good wages Times aint 
 much now as they used ter be when I went ter school." 
 
 " Was it in this place," I inij[uired, " where you went to 
 school ? " 
 
22 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Yes," she said ; " the old log school-house stood right 
 where ourn does now. Teachers thought they was gittin 
 good pay in them days if they got eight dollars a month 
 and chopped their own wood. They took their ])ay too in 
 sich stuff as they could git. They ginerall};' paid em in 
 corn and buckwheat ; sometimes, like enuff, tliey'd git a little 
 wheat, but thar wa'nt much of that raised in them times." 
 
 With accounts like this of olden times — the hardships 
 which the early settlers endured in clearing their lands of 
 the primeval forest, the attacks of wild beasts upon their 
 cattle and sheep, did the widow entertain me during the 
 time we were at supper and while she and her daughter 
 cleared the table and washed the dishes. Later in the 
 evening, as we sat around the comfortable fire blazing in 
 the fire-place, Sam, after having examined my watch and 
 chain carefully, and inquired their price, remarked : 
 
 " Them's a nice pair of boots you've got on, school- 
 master. What can you git sich a pair for ? " 
 
 I gave him the exact price. 
 
 " Yer pa," said Mrs. Cross to Sam, " had a ])air of tl:in 
 boots a good deal like them when he was married, and they 
 lasted him 'leven years." 
 
 " Do you spose you can make them last you as long as 
 that ?" inquired Sam. ..t ■ 
 
 . I thought it very doubtiul, - 
 
 After a few more observations respecting the inferior 
 quality of boots and shoes manufactured " now-a-days," the 
 widow said : 
 
 " I spose you are used ter sleepin alone." 
 
 With some anxiety, not knowing what was to be the 
 next thing, I replied in the affirmative. 
 
 
:m 
 
 be the 
 
 I 
 
 '* 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 23 
 
 i 
 
 4 
 
 .5? 
 
 I 
 
 " I shall 1)0. obleeged to have you sloop with my two 
 boys," she said, " as I'm short ont for beds." 
 
 I began to wonder where " Uncle John's fcjlks " were to 
 sleej) when they came. 
 
 •'I guess you'll git along well enough," said Sam, " if 
 Tom don't git ter snorin. If he does you'll think the Ole 
 Harry's got yer. I have ter git up every night or tew and 
 choke him, ter make him stop it." 
 
 I concealed my vexation, and replied that I thought we 
 would have no troulde aboat the matter. To study or 
 read much while " boarding around " was an impossibility, 
 but it seemed more than 1 nad bargained for to have the 
 : company of any one thrust upon me in my sleeping apart- 
 ment. r»ut again I resolved to surrender myself to cir- 
 - cumstances with becoming gi-ace, if possible, and so I 
 followed the boys to an adjoining apartrnt^it which was 
 designated as the " square room." There were a few chairs 
 in it and a small stand by the bedside, on which Sam de- 
 posited the iron candlestick with its tallow candle. The 
 boys immediately undressed and generously squeezed thenj- 
 selves together at one side of the bed, that I might have 
 ample room on the other. I did not feel inclined to sleep, 
 and pulling a newspaper from my pocket sat down and 
 began to read. 
 
 The temperature of the room, however, did not suffer 
 me to continue this long, and I extinguished the light and 
 joined my bedfellows, now locked in the embrace of sleep. 
 The widow kindly opened the door a little distance after 
 I had retired, to admit warmth from the kitchen. I c(mld 
 not sleep but turned from side to side and harassed my- 
 self with unpleasant thoughts of my position and dark 
 
24 
 
 T}i£, Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 pictures of the future, \intil I had worked myself into a 
 fever of excitement ; in short, I was in a rage. Tom began 
 to snore ; this annoyed me, and, in a fit of desperation, I 
 jumped from my couch, ht the candle, and sat down with- 
 out dressing me, on the edge of the bed. I had no motive in 
 doing this, but was prompted, doubtless, like all excited 
 persons, by a desire to do something, witliout knowing 
 exactly what. But the current of my thoughts was soon 
 changed. ]No sooner had I placed myself in this position 
 than the detestable cur which had before attacked me, hear- 
 ing a noise, came through the door and seeing me sitting 
 on the bed in my night-shirt with disheveled hair, approached 
 me, slowly, with surly gi'owls. I remembered whpt had 
 been said of his aversion to beggars, and the conviction 
 that I was one made his indignities all the more insulting. 
 An angry man sometimes finds relief by venting his spite 
 even upon an inanimate object, and I found consolation in 
 turning the tide of my wrathful feelings against the dog 
 before me. He was in close proximity to me, and evident- 
 ly intended to commence his work of destruction by bury- 
 ing his teeth in my bare feet. I seized one of my boots 
 by the top and swinging it furiously, brought the heel 
 down with full force on his head. The work was done. 
 He dropped immediately, turned on his side, quivered a 
 moment and then was still. The widow's favorite Trip, 
 the pet of the household, was dead. My wrath had fled. I 
 was alarmed, nay terribly frightened ; I felt that, hence- 
 forth, I would be associated in the estimation of the family 
 and all their friends with the Frenchman, the thief, who 
 had killed their cat and stolen their dried apples. What 
 was I to do ? Perhaps I could persuade them that the dog 
 had died a natural death. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaf^ter. 
 
 25 
 
 But of what disease did lie die ? They might have a 
 post-mortem examination, and I thought 1 must certainly 
 ascribe his death to some disease of which they knew but 
 little. I had noticed a last year's medical almanac hang- 
 ing up in the room, when I entered, and in my alarm I 
 quickly sought this, in the vain hope of finding in the 
 category of diseases something to which I could reasonably 
 ascribe the death of poor Trip. I ran nervously over the 
 pages and found liver complaint, consumption, bronchitis, 
 dyspepsia, diphtheria, diarrhcea, cholera infantum and 
 swelled neck. If I could now only find sivelled hea<l, I 
 thought, I would have no difficulty in persuading the 
 widow that that was the disease which brought the dear 
 pet to his untimely end. But I looked in vain ; and 
 ti'^ally threw down the almanac in despair, deciding to 
 attribute his demise to hydrophobia. His symptoms had 
 not been very marked, but I could with truthfulness assert 
 that when 1 first came to the house that evening I thought 
 the dog was mad, and it would be an easy matter, no 
 doubt, to convince the family that this was a peculiar form 
 of the disease, but rarely known. Hydrophobia, then, was 
 to be the cause of Trip's death, and this decision being 
 made, suivering more with fear than cold, I crept into bed. 
 I was not satisfied, however, with my fabrication : it did 
 not seem quite reasonable ; the dog's head might awaken 
 suspicion of " foul play,'' and then my connection with the 
 affair would be discovered. I projected other plans, and 
 finally hit on the following : I would get up very early in 
 the morning before the family was awake, take the dog to a 
 neighboring wood and bury him in the snow. The boys 
 were sleeping soundly, the widow and her daughter were 
 
1 
 
 26 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 asleep in the attic, and knew nothing of what ha<l ocnnirred, 
 and my plan seemed quite feasible. They would miss the 
 dog, but would probably attribute his disappearance either 
 to the enmity or hunger of the Dumas family. Consoled 
 by this reflection, Tom having ceased snoring, I dro])ped 
 asleep. 
 
 A rap at the door and tlie announcement that breakfast 
 wad. ready was the first thing that roused me to conscious- 
 ness. I turned over and found that the boys were gone. 
 They had got up go quietly that they had not awakened 
 me. The thought of tlie last occurrence of the ])revious 
 evening then came over me and nearly sto])ped the ])ulsa- 
 tions of my heart. I raised my head, looked for the dog 
 und he too was gone. They know it all, I thought, and 
 I felt that my only way was to claim that I killed him in 
 self defence. I arose, dressed, and went nervously and 
 with flushed face to the kitchen. As 1 opened the door, 
 the first object that met my astonished sight was the 
 identical dog that I had killed — Trip. He saw me at the 
 same moment and instantly his caudal a[)[)endage dropped, 
 a cowardly expression came over his ugly visage, and he 
 quickly sought refuge beneath a chair in a corner of the 
 room, from which ju-.-e he peered out at me with a look of 
 mingled detestation and terror. I had scarcely time to 
 say "good morning" to the family when Sam exclaimed, 
 
 "What the Ole Harry's the matter with Trip? He 
 acts as if he thought you was a catamount, Schoolmaster." 
 
 I only colored more deeply at tliis remark without mak- 
 ing any reply ; but I was soon satisfied that none of the 
 family knew of my rencounter with the dog in which he 
 had only been stunned. During the rest of the time that 
 
The Frontier Schoolnmster 
 
 27 
 
 I boarded with the widow, Trip treated me with profound 
 respect. l*.seMom caught sight of him except as he viewed 
 me from behind some object, and then there was always 
 an expression of curiosity in liis look, as if wondering 
 how long I would permit him to remain on " the shores 
 of time." 
 
CHAPTER II. ' 
 
 Scenes in achool— Complaints of patrons — I receive a letter from a 
 school committee — I quit the school. 
 
 The second day of my stay in the district passed without 
 the occurrence of any interesting or amusing incident. 
 There were two or three loads of green wood at the door 
 of the school house, a portion of which was chopped into 
 stove wood, but the greater part consisted of large logs. I 
 concluded to save what remained of the dry wood, which 
 had been drawn the previous day, for kindling ; and in this 
 way I succeeded in getting the house tolerably comfortable 
 every morning before the time school was to commence. 
 
 Although fatigued with my day's labor at night, I de- 
 cided to visit an uncle who resided at the village. I was 
 thoroughly homesick, and it seemed as if I had been absent 
 from home a month. I spent the evening with the Prin- 
 cipal of the Academy, a gentleman belonging to the senior 
 class of Dartmouth. 
 
 He had taught at Mayfair six months of the previous 
 year, and was now at Meadville for the purpose of earning 
 means to enable him to complete his college course. He 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 29 
 
 laughed heartily at my experience as pedagogue, and gavti 
 me an interesting account of his own e<irly ex})erience at 
 teaching. He thought rae fortunate in having two boys 
 for bedfellows, aifirming that while teaching once in North- 
 ern New Hampshire, when about my own age, he boarded 
 at a place where he was obliged to sleep in an old-fushioned 
 bunk, and on waking in the night invariably found that 
 his couch was shared by three hounds. 
 
 His advice did me good. He i>«rsuaded me that by 
 remaining in the school I would fcii' .;i;theu my stul)ility 
 of purpose and win a reputation for accomplishing what- 
 ever I had undertaken. By " roughing it " for a few 
 months, and ctming in contact with different peojjle, I 
 would treasure up many incidents and gain knowledge of 
 human nature which would afford me amusement and pro- 
 fit the rest of my life. His logic was not to be disputed, 
 and I went to my school the next morning with a lighter 
 heart and a more determined spirit. 
 
 A week passed, and though I spent three nights of that 
 time in the village at my uncle's, I was always at my 
 schoolhouse in the morning in time to attend to my duties. 
 My dinner was brought regularly by the Cross children, and 
 after the first day it always consisted wholly of doughnuts. 
 Thus far, I had had but little trouble from disobedience. 
 On two or three occasions, I had f(;lt obliged to shake a 
 couple of mischievously-inclined urchins, but I had in no 
 instance discovered anything that could be regarded as a 
 wilful determination to disobey me. While I sought 
 earnestly to have the pupils advance in their studies, 1 
 also spared no pains to gain their good- will, and I felt that 
 I was successful. The larger boys at noon were often 
 inclined to address me with a familiarity that was some- 
 
30 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 what distasteful, and indulge in jokes at my expense that 
 were hardly respectful, considering my position ; but I had 
 made up my mind to humor their rustic tastes, and thus 
 avoided a collision and won their esteem. 
 
 Jerusha Cross was the only one of the girls who gave 
 me much annoyance. She was habitually idle, seldom' 
 answered a question correctly, and my reproofs caused her 
 to dislike me. 
 
 The first Sabbath after I began to teach I spent at home 
 in Foreston. I was carried back to my school the next 
 morning, but, owing to the distance and the bad roads, as 
 there had been a heavy snow storm, it was some minutes 
 past nine when I reached the schoolhouse. The last of 
 the dry wood had been burned the Saturday previous, 
 and there were but a few sticks of green wooa remaining. 
 The boys, according to their custom in such cases, had 
 torn three clapboards from the building, and with this 
 kindled a fire. I scolded them for the act, saying it was 
 the duty of the committee to see that we were supplied 
 with good wood, and in case we were not, instead of demo- 
 lishing the schoolhouse for fuel, we should go home and 
 wait till wood was furnished. 
 
 The wood was soon consumed, and before noon we were 
 suffering from cold. 
 
 None of the larger boys seemed inclined to chop, and 
 though I had sent a boy early to inform one of the com- 
 mittee of our necessity, no relief came. 
 
 At noon, I dismissed my pupils pnd went myself to the 
 vilL'iLre. I had had no dinner sent to me that day, from 
 which circumstance I concluded that my term of boarding 
 with the widow had expired. 
 
 That evening I chanced to meet that member of the 
 
'« 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 31 
 
 committee to whom I had in the morning sent the message. 
 I spoke with him, but he was decidedly crusty. Before we 
 separated he said : 
 
 " We never had a schoohnaster afore but what could chop 
 a littiC wood if necessary." 
 
 " I am not very good at chopping," I replied. 
 
 "Well," he said, "'twouldn't have took yer long; yer 
 could have chopped enough at noon ter last half a day, and 
 had time ter eat yer dinner tew if yer aint no great 
 chopper." 
 
 " I had no ax fit to chop with," I replied. 
 
 " Why didn't yer send to one oi the neighbors and borry 
 one ? A man aint fit tew keep school that can't chop wood 
 enough ter last half a day." 
 
 I left him after receiving this information, resolved that 
 I wonld not chop wood, and thinking that such a school 
 manager had as much to learn concerning his duties as I 
 had respecting mine. 
 
 From that time forward we never had any dry wood, but, 
 by covering the embers well with ashes every night, I had 
 suiheient fire in the morning to enable me to get along with 
 such wood as we had. 
 
 T next went to board with a sociable, good-hearted old 
 farmer, who sent three boys to school, two of them older 
 than myself. I had good fare ; plenty of nice apples and 
 new cider, and was permitted to enjoy the luxury of sleep- 
 ing alone. The only thing in which I desired a change was in 
 the (quality of my dinner — doughimts sti^l being i-egarded by 
 my boaiHling mistress as indispensable for tiiis midday meal. 
 
 I began to get interested in my school. I had inspired 
 the majority of my scholars with an andntioii to have good 
 lessons, and, on the whole, they seemed to be doing well. 
 
I. 
 
 32 
 
 The Frontier Schoohnaster. 
 
 There were many possessed of bright intellects, and they 
 required no gi-eat amount of encouragement and training to 
 bring them up to the standard of cultured men and women. 
 The thing in which they seemed the most deficient was in 
 a knowledge of the art of spelling, nearly all being most 
 lamentaV)ly ignorant of this important branch. My second 
 spelling-class consisted of about a dozen members, mostly 
 boys, and the difficulty I experienced in teaching them 
 orthography had caused me to regard this as the n )st 
 stupid class I had in school. 
 
 One day during my second week, there, this class stood 
 before me, and I pronounced from Town's Speller and 
 Definer the word sauce. The boy whose turn it was 
 spelled. 
 
 "S-C-0-. 
 
 "Next," I said, looking at him reproachfully. 
 
 After a little deliberation his neighbor spelled, 
 
 "S-c-o-c-e." 
 
 I looked at him more sternly than at the first, and again 
 said, "Next." . , > , 
 
 The thiru commenced, . ;■ 
 
 "S-c-o-s." 
 
 " What ridiculous spelling ! " I exclaimed. " The next 
 try it." 
 
 The fourth boy with considerable show of trepidation 
 slowly spelled thus : 
 
 "S-o-c-e." 
 
 I was becoming gren ' amused, but suppressing my 
 inclination to laugh, I said with an air of impatience, 
 
 " If thero is any one in this class that knows how to 
 spell this word correctly, let him raise his hand." 
 
 Instantly the hand of Josiah Snodgrass went up. He 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 33 
 
 was a tall boy of sixteen whose unkempt locks of yellow 
 hair rested on his coat collar. 
 
 " Now, Josiah," I said, " are you sure that you can spell 
 this word ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," he promptly answered. 
 
 "Well, proceed then;" and he proceeded in this man- 
 ner: 
 
 "S-o-s." 
 
 For '.i moment I was silent, in which time Josiah cast 
 a triumphant look at the boys in class above him, as if to 
 see whether they were conscious of his superior scholarship, 
 and then I burst into a fit of laughter in which all, except 
 Josiah, joined me. He turned red and white by tur-.s, and, 
 as soon as the tumult had subsided, exclaimed : 
 
 "I never went to a teacher afore what made fun of his 
 scholars." 
 
 This provoked a more hearty laugh from the whole school, 
 but I soon restored order, and then tried to appease the 
 wrath of Josiah by assuring him that I was not making 
 fun of him, but laughing at the absurd way in which they 
 had all spelled such a common word. I then gave the class 
 a sharp lecture for neglecting to learn the lesson, and dis- 
 missed them with the injunction that the same lesson must 
 be committed for the afternoon. The affair soon seemed to 
 be forgotten by all except Josiah, who went to his seat to 
 sulk, but not to study. Observing his manner, I remem- 
 bered that his father— a man with a face about as intelligent 
 as that of a Polynesian idol— had called some days previous, 
 to speak with me about his son. He complained that for- 
 mer teachers had indulged : i altogether too much partiality, 
 consequently, Josiah had been abuseil, many of the scholars 
 having been allowed to "poke fun" at him. 
 
34 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Two days after the incident in class, related above, had 
 occurred, a boy came in and announced that Barnum was 
 at the door and wished to see me. I went out and found 
 him sitting in his sleigh. He at once made known the ob- 
 ject of his visit as follows : 
 
 " I've come ter see yer 'bout some complaints that have 
 been made ag'inst the school." ^j,. 
 
 " What are they ?" I asked, considerably excited. 
 
 " Wall," he said, " Snodgrass was up last night, and he 
 complained that yer make fun of yer scholars, so they don't 
 like ter go to school t'yer." _ ,,>, , ; ,,^,, 
 
 I indignantly denied this accusation, then, remembering 
 the incident in the spelling class when Josiah Snodgrass ac- 
 cused me of making fun of him I narrated it in detail, not 
 doubting that Barnum, too, would be amused at the way in 
 wdiich they had spelled the word sauce. He only disgorged 
 a quantity of tobacco juice from his mouth, and without 
 even smiling, said : 
 
 " Wall 1 never should hev thought of lafin at that. I 
 spose the boys war kinder fraid on yer the reason they 
 didn't spell che woai. Yer spell it s-a-u-s, don't yer ?" 
 
 I found it very ditticult to suppress a laugh, but succeed- 
 ed, and soberly said: ■ , ,, ;; , .^ :, : 
 
 "No, it is spelled, s-a-u-c-e." .. . > 
 
 He looked at me, as if reflecting, and then asked : 
 
 " Be yer sure its spelled so in the book ?" ,. 
 
 I replied in the affirmative. 
 
 " Let's see ^^er book," he said, still doubtful of my know- 
 ledge of orthography. 
 
 I went in, procured a spelling book, and then returned 
 and pointed the word out to him. 
 
 " Wall," he said, after resting his eyes on it at least three 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 35 
 
 minutes, " 'tis spelt so thar, but books change so we shan't 
 any on us know how <^^r spell in a few years. In the 
 book I studied when I went ter school the word v/as spelt 
 s-a-u-s. But that aint of no conse([ueuce anyway, only 
 you should'nt laf at anything when yer keepin school. 
 You're a young man jest commencin business in the 
 world, and I kinder advise yer for yer own good. But 
 thar's some other things the deestrict is findin fault about. 
 They say you're lettin the scholars tear the clap-boards off 
 from the schoolhouse and cut the desks ter pieces with their 
 knives." 
 
 I was highly indignant. I denied, positively, having done 
 anything of the kind, and described the condition of the 
 house as I first saw it. To my knowledge, not a boy had 
 defaced it with a knife since I had been teaching ; and I 
 assured him that on only one occaf^ion had they torn boards 
 from the house for kindling wood ; and that 1 had reproved 
 them sharply for the act. 
 
 "Wull,"-lie said, "yer orter jest sent out for two or three 
 good blue beeches, as soon as yer found out they took the 
 clapboards and made em took off their coats, and gin em an 
 all-killin whalin." 
 
 " In my opinion," Mr. Barnum, I said, " your course is not 
 the wisest, and, had the committee of this district always 
 discharged their duty properly, and jjrovided wood, I doubt 
 whether any clapboards wr>^ild have been torn from tlie 
 house." 
 
 " Thar was wood enough here t'other day," he said, " when 
 they took the clapboards." 
 
 "Yes, Mr. Barnum, but it was not fitted for the stove." 
 
 "Wall yer orter seen that 'twas chopped," he said. "We 
 
36 
 
 The Frontier 8 ■ jlmaster. 
 
 allers expect a teacher to chop a little hisself if t^iar's 
 any wood ter chop when he runs short." 
 
 I i'ilt that forbearance was fast ceasing to be a virtue, for 
 he seemed determined to find fault with me. 
 
 " My business here, Mr. Barnum," I said, " is not to chop 
 w^ood whenever the committee neglect to supply us, nor do 
 I think that I should incur the blame for what the pupils 
 have done in former years. It is your duty to know the 
 condition of the schoolhouse, and to visit the school from 
 time to time to ascertain whether I am managing it proper- 
 ly or not. It is not just that you should base your opinion 
 of my fitness for the place on the report of some unreason- 
 able and ignorant boy or girl." 
 
 Barnum was evidently displeased, but after a moment's 
 silence he replied : 
 
 " I spose 'twould be well enough for some on us to come 
 inter the school once in a while, but it's a thing we've never 
 done afore. Fact is, I'm darned sorry I took the office of 
 committee, and specially of chairman. I didn't want it, 
 but they kinder forced it onter me ; and now I'm in, I'm 
 gwine ter dew the best I can fer the deestrict. I've hired 
 you and gin yer a good price, and I don't want yer to dew 
 anything that'll give the deestrict a chance ter find fault 
 with me." ' ■ 
 
 I assured him that I would make every effort to dis- 
 charge my duties faithfully and honorably, and expressed 
 the belief that no reasonable or sensible person would cen- 
 sure him for any action of mine. This closed the conver- 
 sation, and he departed. . 
 
 At the commencement of the third week I went to 
 board at a place which was distant about a mile and a half 
 
IVie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 87 
 
 from the schoolhouse. Here a young man shared my bed, and 
 we slept in an upper room, remote fron; fire, where the 
 snow sifted through the crevices in the roof, so that it 
 sometimes covered the bed to the depth of an inch. Un- 
 used to such exposure, I caught a severe cold, from which 
 I suffered for several weeks. My fare at this place was 
 good, but doughnuts were still provided for my dinner. 
 
 An incident occurred this week which afforded a momen- 
 tary relief to the monotony of teacliing, and added another 
 to the list of complaints which Barnum was treasi'.ring up 
 against me. 
 
 There was a boy in the school, fifteen years of age, 
 named Thomas O'Callaghan. He had never been used to 
 kind treatment and the comforts of life, consequently, was 
 ill-tempered and rough in his manner. 
 
 Finding him engaged in mischief one day, I ordered him 
 to come to my desk. He seemed reluctant to obey, and, 
 rising in his seat, insolently declared that he would not 
 come. I quickly walked up to him, seized him by the col- 
 lar, at the back of the neck, with the intention of bringing 
 him out with a sudden jerk. He wore an old blue jacket, 
 which hung loosely about him, and which evidently had 
 been nade for his father, or for some person much larger 
 than himself. To my astonishment, Tom never moved with 
 the jerk I gave, but his jacket and the upper part of his 
 shirt, if he wore one, instantly came over his head, and he 
 stood before the school, stripped to the waist, as if about to 
 take a dive in the waters of some sylvan stream. A roar 
 of laughter burst at once, from every quarter of the house. 
 Tom's face turned scarlet, so did mine. Once more I 
 repressed an inclination to laugh, and quickly seizing the 
 
38 
 
 The frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 jacket by the lower j, . rt, generously jerked it back over his 
 head. Tom was subdued. I even began to i)ity liim. He 
 did not wait for me to command him a second time, but, 
 went to my desk, and, after receiving as severe a reprimand 
 as I felt like administering, took his seat and devoted him- 
 self to his book. 
 
 The next morning, about ten o'clock, there was a loud 
 rap at the door, and before any one could answer the sum- 
 mons, the door burst open, and in stepped a six-foot, broad- 
 sliouldered Irishman, gloriously drunk. It was Jerry 
 O'Callaghan, Tom's father. He had in his hand a long 
 birchen ox- whip with which he was driving a yoke of oxen 
 to the village, and on arriving at the school-house had en- 
 tered for the purpose of expressing his dissatisfaction at the 
 way in which, on the previous day, I had treated his boy, 
 Tom. An audible titter saluted him as he came in ; but 
 taking no notice of this he walked straight onward to with- 
 in a few feet of where I was standing and suddenly stopped. 
 Poising his unsteady head for a moment, as if to get a good 
 look at me, he exclaimed : 
 
 " And ye're the schoolmasther ? " 
 
 I was amused, but his muscular frame inspiring me with 
 a degree of uneasiness as to what the result of his visit 
 might be, I answered most respectfully, and with a faint 
 attempt at a smile, 
 
 " Yes, sir." 
 
 " Bedad ye're the granest lookin divil that I've seen since 
 I came to this counthry." 
 
 I was undecided as to the best course to pursue. To order 
 him to leave the house, feeling as I did my inability to en- 
 force the order without assistance, I believed would be foUy^ 
 
 „..„SSf 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 39 
 
 The lart,'(^ l"»ys, doubtless, would assist nie, but then to 
 make the school-room the scene of a disgraceful Hght was 
 a thing to be avoided, if possible. 
 
 I scanned his face and becoming satisfied that he was not 
 naturally, vicious I determined to keep cool and flatter his 
 vanity, in liopes of winning his friendship. The pupils were 
 enjoying the ludicrous scene immensely, and no doubt 
 secretly desired its prolongation. 
 
 As soon as I had sufficiently recovered from my aston- 
 ishment I replied to his remark as follows : 
 
 "It is hardly fair for you, Mr. O'Callaghan, to make sj)ort 
 of a man's face because he does not happen to have one that 
 looks as well as your own." 
 
 " Faith ye're right thin ; ye'll niver see the day that ye'H 
 have the honest and intilligent face of Jerry O'Callaghan- 
 Shure they'd niver be makin a tachir of the likes o' ye in 
 ould Ireland." 
 
 " I believe," I said, " that they have good teachers in 
 Ireland." 
 
 " Good taichers, is it ? Bedad sir, they're jintlemin. Ye 
 might travel from Cork to Balleymooney, and divil the 
 schoolmasther 'ud ye find that 'ud be guilty of tearin a boy's 
 shirt." 
 
 During this short eulogy on Irish school-masters, Jerry's 
 face flushed with anger; he dropped his ox- whip on the 
 floor, clinched his fists, and stood trembling with eagerness for 
 an affray. Before I had thought of a reply he continued, 
 " Was'nt it yersilf jist that tore the shirt yistherday off from 
 me poor boy Tom and lift him for an hour undrissed and 
 naked to be laughed at by the boys and girruls." 
 
 " I assure you, Mr. O'Callaghan," I said, " that I had no 
 
4U 
 
 The Frontier Sclioolmaster. 
 
 intention of tearing your boy's shirt. It v as merely an 
 accident, for which I am very sorry." 
 
 He paid no attention to my defence, but looking towards 
 his boy, said, 
 
 "Tom, ye brute ye, come out here and pull off yer coat to 
 show the masther how yer poor old mither had to sit up last 
 night to mind the shirt he tore off yer back." 
 
 Tom did not stir, but with a most sheepish air looked 
 steadfastly on his book. Seeing his reluctance, liis father 
 again exclaimed, " Tom would ye be disobeyin yer father 
 now ? Be jabers if ye don't come out here and pull oft' yer coat 
 I'll l)reak the hid of ye." 
 
 Tom knew too well the meaning of that threat to hesitate 
 longer, and, with an expression of countenance in which 
 shame and rage commingled, he came out and proceeded to 
 take off" his jacket. 
 
 Pitying the poor fellow, I said, " Mr O'Callaghan, I hope 
 you will not compel Thomas to take off" his coat. I have no 
 doubt that I tore his shirt badly, but I assure you that 1 
 shall be most happy to pay you for any damage I may have 
 done his clothes." 
 
 " Is it pay ye mane ? divil a cint ud I be takin. Its only 
 that he may see how me poor Nance had to sit up last night 
 to put a big patch on the boy's shirt that I'd be makin him 
 pull oft' his coat. Off wid yer coat, Tom." 
 
 Obedient to this mandate Tom divested himself of the 
 jacket, and revealed a tattered nether garment of coarse, 
 faded linen, across the back of which was a broad patch of 
 the same material, new and unbleached. 
 
 " Did ye iver see the likes o' that now, man ? " said Jerry, 
 ; addressing himself to me, and pointing to the patch. " There's 
 
The Fnmtier Schoolmaster. 
 
 41 
 
 not a woman in this counthry that can i)atch like Nance ; 
 but vas'nt it a shame for ye to be makin the poor woman 
 sit up all night to be mendin a hole like that ? " 
 
 " I am very sorry that I gave Mrs. O'Callaghan so much 
 trouble, " I said, " and hereafter I hope that I may be able 
 to imitate the custom of your teachers in Ireland that we may 
 have a good school." 
 
 "D'ye know how schoolmasthers corrict their boys in 
 Ireland ? " he asked. 
 
 " I believe I have heard," I answered. 
 
 A new thought seemed at that moment to have struck 
 him, and glancing at the boys his eye rested on the form of 
 William .Sargent. He was the largest and best-dressed boy 
 in school, studied algebra, was proud, and withal quite a 
 gallant umongst the girls of that locality. He sat on a 
 back seat, and had been the most amused spectator of any 
 in the schoolroom. , 
 
 " Come down here. Bill," said Jerry, " that I may show 
 the schoolmasther how they flog the boys in Ireland." 
 
 Bill laughed and said, , ,, 
 
 " I guess not." 
 
 " Won't ye now ? " said Jerry. " Come down now or I'll 
 litch ye." 
 
 Bill only laughed ; but Jerry making a few long strides 
 across the floor and up the alley, seized the yonng man by 
 the collar and one arm and landed him, after nearly making 
 him turn a somersault, in the middle of the floor. 
 
 Bill's face by this time was livid with fear and rage, but 
 probably thinking that "discretion is the better part of 
 valor" he said nothing. Jerry was soon at his side, and 
 again taking him by the arm turned him around so that his 
 face fronted my desk, and then ordered him to stand still. 
 
42 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Get on his back now, Tom," he said addressing liis own 
 boy. 
 
 The order not knng instantly obeyed, Jerry seized him 
 by the collar and the broad part of liis ])ant3 and placed him 
 on Hill's bad: ; ho pulled forward his legs, one on each side 
 of Sargent's body, j)laced Sargent's ar.us around them, and 
 issued an order to the effect that Tom should be held tight- 
 
 Thus far I had not even imagined that he intended to 
 inflict actual punishment on any one to illustrate to me the 
 method of flogging jtupils in Ireland, and my surprise was 
 great when, after having i>laced his boy in the position de- 
 scribed above, he picked U}) his ox-whip and ([uickly dealt 
 him a heavy blow across the back. Tom was not the only 
 sufferer, for the end of the flexible birch hail raised an ugly 
 ridge on the arm of poor Sargent. Tom screeclurl, Bill 
 littered an appalling, " oh ! " and Jerry grinned. Instantly 
 the boy was dropped, and Bill turning round hurled a most 
 furious r'">rm of vituperation and invectives at Jerry in 
 which ' die" and " drimkard," were the mildest expres- 
 sions, o erry's attention was first turned to his boy. 
 
 " Hist," he said, " dont be blubbering like a babby, Tom ; 
 show the schoolmaster that ye're an Irishman and don't mind 
 a little batin ; " and then he stepped towards Sargent who beat 
 a precipitate retreat toward the poker. As he seized it, 
 however, Jerry seized him and at once bore him towards the 
 door. His appearance as he took his unwilling departure 
 may be briefly described thus : his face was turned towards 
 Jerry, whose carroty hair he was desi)erately clutching with 
 both hands. His left leg was fast in the arm of Jerry, while 
 his right made frantic but ineffectual efforts to kick him in 
 the back. Jerry's broad grin made it seem improbable that 
 
The Frontier Sclioolmaster. 
 
 43 
 
 he intended doinj,' Surj^'ent any serious harm, and, as it was 
 a relief to have him leave the house, I thought it best not to 
 interfere. He opened the door with little dithculty and 
 marching straight onward to his team, he placed Sargent 
 astride of one of his oxen where he compelled him to sit by 
 holding one of his legs. The scholars had made a rush for 
 the door to see what was to be done finally with Sargent, 
 and now stood laughing at his ridiculous situation. iJerry 
 turning his head and seeing me at the door exclaimed : 
 " Schoolmasther, come and hold this gintleman by the leg till 
 I place one of the girruls on the other baste, and bedad I'll 
 give *em a nice ride to the village." 
 
 The girls retreated pell-mell to their seats ; Sargent man- 
 aged to release his leg from Jerry's gi'asp at the moment the 
 latter's attention was diverted, and slii)ping off on the other 
 side of the ox he made rapid footsteps homeward, stopping, 
 however, at a short disttmce to express a wish that all Irish- 
 men, and O'Callaghau in particular, might be driven from 
 the country to a place the exact location of which has not 
 been determined. 
 
 It was now my turn to run the risk of offending the 
 inebriate. I felt that I had allowed him to continue his 
 performances too long while indulging the hope that I 
 could get rid of him without serious trouble ; but he must 
 be checked, at once, and my first effort must be to prevent 
 his entering the school-house. He started towards the door, 
 immediately after Sargent escaped, no doubt with the inten- 
 tion of giving us further instruction about schools in Ireland, 
 but I ordered the boys to take their seats, and then closing 
 the door remained outside, hoping that I might persuade him 
 to leave. ,.; , 
 
44 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Mr. O'Callaghan," I said, " you have shown me how you 
 think boys should be corrected ; I suppose you are now going 
 to the village." 
 
 " Indade, I am sir, soon," he said, " but haven't ye more 
 boys ye'd like to have corricted ? " 
 
 "Not today, sir, I am much obliged to you," 
 
 " Ye're a jintleman, Mr. Styles, only don't be tearin the 
 boys' 8hirt,s, and if any iv thim dont behave, sind for me and 
 bedad, sir, I'll break their backs shure." 
 
 " Thank you," I said, " I must go now, as I have lessons 
 to hear. Good bye, Mr. O'Callaghan," and I extended my hand 
 which he grasped warmly. 
 
 " Good bye, schoolmasther, and long life to ye, and may 
 God bliss ye." » 
 
 I then returned to my labors, and he departed. Jerry's 
 lesson in flogging proved ? more expensive one than he fan- 
 cied. He was the next day arrested on the complaint of 
 Wm. Sargent, sen., who expressed a strong objection to his 
 son's being used to illustrate how things are dune in Ireland, 
 and fined ten dollars and costs. Not having any such sum 
 at his disposal he was sent to the county jail for thirty days. 
 
 The distance that I had to walk Lo my boarding place, 
 and the uncomfortable room in which I was obliged to sleep 
 while there, caused me to visit the village more fretjuently 
 than ever. I sometimes mei there some of my schoolmates, 
 was often invited to evening parties, and the pleasure that 
 1 thus experienced contrasted strongly with the loneliness 
 that I felt in the district where I was teaching. On two or 
 three occasions, having slept late in the morning, I denied 
 myself the comfort of a breakfast, in order that I might 
 reach my school house in time to make a fire and be ready 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 45 
 
 more 
 
 for the work of the day ; but, unfortunately, twice I was 
 too late to kindle the fire, and tliis work was performed by 
 the pupils. The last time that this occurred was on the 
 day which completed the fi^st month of my engagement. 
 It was nine o'clock when I arrived and the pupils had nearly 
 all assembled. I proceeded with my work as usual, igno- 
 rant of the fact that there had been any particular faidt 
 found on account of my tardiness, until noon, when one of 
 the older boys came up to my desk and confidentially 
 informed me of what had transpired there in the morning 
 before my arrival. I learned that Barnum came there quite 
 early with two children, and found that there was no fire. 
 Instead of making one, however, he waited until many of 
 the pupils had come in to harangue them about the laziness 
 and inefficiency of their teacher. Jerusha Cross, who was 
 also there early, was the only one of the pupils who joined 
 him in his tirade agamst me. Among other things that he 
 said, and the inquiries that he made, he asked the following : 
 
 " What does he go down ter the village so much for ? 
 Why don't he stay here in the deestrict where he belongs ? " 
 
 One of the boys jocosely answered : 
 
 "He probably goes to see his girl." 
 
 " Girl," sneeringly exclaimed Jerusha, " I wish he'd 
 spark his 'tarnal head off ! This makes twice I've come here 
 when thar want no fire. I like ter Croze my ears agin this 
 morning afore the fire was built." 
 
 Her brother Sam excited a laugh which dampened her 
 enthusiasm, by the following ungenerous remark : 
 
 " Nobody 'd known it, Jerush, unless yer told 'em, if yer 
 had froze off' 'bout four inches on em." 
 
 After various remarks Barnum declared his intention of 
 
46 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 visiting the other two members of the committee at once, 
 to see '»vhat they thought about calling a school meeting to 
 investigate my conduct, and gave it as his opinion that I 
 should be turned out. He left a few minutes before my 
 arrival, and doubtless spent the morning in visiting different 
 parties to awaken prejudices against me. 
 
 The information thus given me gave me great discomfort. 
 I was altogether too sensitive to treat these fault-findings 
 with the indifference and contempt they deserved, conse- 
 quently, I went mechanically through the labors of the 
 afternoon, thinking all the while what, under the circum- 
 stances, I should do. That I had been guilty of neglect of 
 duty two or three times in not building a fire in season, I 
 was willing to admit ; but I felt that this was the only 
 fault which they could with reason or justice find against 
 me. I had labored faithfully in school, the pupils were 
 advancing in their studies, the majority of them were 
 attached to me, and it was obvious to me that I had been 
 more successful than I had anticipated in the beginning, 
 and more successful than even experienced teachers fre- 
 quently are. To call a school meeting, then, to discuss the 
 propriety of dispensing v/ith my services, I regarded as an 
 insult which ray spirit was ill prepared to brook, and I 
 resolved to quit the school without delay. 
 
 Late in the afternoon a boy handed me the following 
 notice, wliich he said had been given him at the door by 
 Barnum. ' * 
 
 " Mr. Stiles, Sir, we air goin' to hav a school meatin' at the 
 schoolhous to morrer nite. The comitey think you orter be 
 turned out For thes reasons : -1 
 
 furst, you Refus ter chop wod. . _ , , . 
 
TJie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 4.7 
 
 secon', you let the boyvS tare bords ofi' Fromm the hous 
 and whital the benchas. • 
 
 thurd, you git mad at the scollars and tair their clos. 
 
 forth, you doant bild fires in The mornin.' 
 
 fif, you doant sta at yer bordin phases nites. we air sory 
 mr. Stiles for you air a young Man and we wod like ter see 
 you git Along wel in the Wurld, but foaks in the Deastrik 
 think you air stuk up and wunt Bord with them. 
 
 by Order of the Comitey, 
 
 Z. S. BARNUM. 
 
 That night at four o'clock I went to my boarding j)lace, 
 took my valise, and without saying a word to any person 
 relative to my intentions I turned my footsteps towards 
 the village ^^■ith happier feelings than I had enjoyed for a 
 month previous. I cast one look back as I left tlie borders 
 of the district, and mentally bade the schoolhouse, Barnum 
 and his colleagues in office a reverential farewell. 
 
 I enjoyed the happy thought that I would never again 
 teach school. The future, however, proved this to be an 
 erroneous conclusion, but it was the last of my experience 
 in " boarding around." 
 
 I never learned who kindled the fire at the school-house 
 on the following morning, l)ut I was informed tliat only 
 two men besides Barnum appeared at the " school meatin." 
 One was Snodgrass and the other was Johnson, the man 
 who loaned iie the axe and supplied me with kindling- 
 wood the muining that I commenced teaching. The latter 
 came for tlie purpose of telling Barnum in public what he 
 thought of his efficiency as a school committee, and sum- 
 med it up brietly by declaring him " the biggest fjol " they 
 had ever elected. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 I return liotne — I am net to work, and display groat industry — Attend 
 ecliool again . -. . ,. ^. ■>)..• 
 
 The next morning I went by stage to Foreston. I had 
 anticipated jiaternal displeasure at the course 1 had taken, 
 but my thin appearance and bad cough were in my favor, 
 so that there was little said when I reached home except 
 by my mother, who declared that she knew perfectly well 
 when I commenced teaching that I would not, on account 
 of my ill-health, be able to complete my tp^-m of engage- 
 ment. My father suggested that I had better remain at 
 home a few days until I had recovered in a measure from 
 my cold, and then, if the majority in the place where I had 
 been teaching were in favor of my returning to teach the 
 remaining two months, I should do so. I met the proposal 
 with indignation, and denounced it in terms that, I fear 
 were wanting in filial reverence. I said that nothing would 
 induce me to enter any school-house again as a teacher, 
 much less the one where I had received such indignities ; 
 and I pulled Barnum's unique notice from my pocket and 
 read it to him a second time. - a 
 
 He certainly was not well pleased, and probably thought 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 49 
 
 me unreasonable and stubborn, still be said nothing. The 
 next day he drove to Meadville to hear, I presume, the 
 opinion which people entertained of my school, and of my 
 course in leaving it so abruptly, but I never asked liim. 
 
 For some days I did nothing in the way of manual labor 
 except to assist about the chores, and I spent the remainder 
 of the time chiefly in reading. On the following Saturday 
 my father informed me that he had engaged three wood- 
 choppers to work for him during the ensuing week, for the 
 purpose of getting his year's stock of wood, and he exj)res- 
 sed a wish that I would drive the horses and help load and 
 unload the \/ood. I was not quite pleased with this ar- 
 rangement, but believing that he intended by putting me 
 to some labor to make me regi'et that I was not teaching, 
 and at the same time awaken repentance in me for disre- 
 garding his wishes, I determined that he should be disap- 
 pomted. I affected to endorse his plan most heartily. I 
 entered at once into a calculation of the number of loads I 
 could draw in a week, which was about ten more than the 
 most able-bodied laborer would have thought of drawing. 
 He smiled incredulously, but said nothing, I have since 
 thought that my enthusiasm must have astonished him, for 
 until that time I had never displayed much ambition at 
 that sort of work. ', ' ^: i ( i 
 
 Monday morning came, and with it came the wood-chop- 
 pers. I was up before day-break, fed the horses, and as 
 soon as the first tree was felled and cut up I was on the 
 spot with the team ready to draw it. During the entire 
 week I displayed the same industry, neither evincing any 
 sign of fatigue nor expressing a wish to change my employ- 
 ment. 
 
 My father ]<ept the men for three weeks, and I drew all 
 
50 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 the wood they chopped. The wood pile for height and size 
 rivalled the pyramid of Cheops. We must have had a four 
 years' stock, but, when my father was about paying the men, 
 I coolly argued that he shoidd keep them for another fort- 
 night, as it was quite probable we might burn what I had 
 already drawn before the next winter. He gave me a 
 searching look, as if to ascertain whether I was really a 
 lunatic, and then in no pleasant tone said : 
 
 " 1 don't think I shall have the horses killed this winter." 
 
 I regarded his determination as (pute reasonable, for 
 since I began to draM-^ wood they must have lost at least 
 two hundred pounds avoirdupois. 
 
 I went to bed that Saturday night nearly worn out with 
 my hard labor, but I enjoyed the consolation that I had not 
 yet been persuaded into a wish that I might teach school. 
 
 The next week I did but little labor. I needed rest, and 
 enjoyed it greatly. I had recovered from my cough, un- 
 der my mother's careful nursing, and having gained a good 
 appetite from my active out-door exercise, I relished the 
 delicacies which she provided for my benefit. There was 
 only one article of diet which I objected to having placed 
 on the table, and that was doughnuts. I had had them 
 for dinner every day while I was teaching, and as soon as 
 I returned home I obtained a promise from her that there 
 should lie none placed on the table for two months, and the 
 promise was faithfully kept. 
 
 Towards the end of the week my father presented me 
 with a new ax, carefully sharpened, and expressed a hope 
 that as 1 had had time to rest I -would begin to use it on 
 the following week with some effect on the wood pile at the 
 door. At first I did not manifest a great degree of ])lea- 
 sure at the present, for I presumed that his design was to 
 
 
''ISI 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 51 
 
 I me 
 
 hope 
 it on 
 it the 
 ])lea- 
 '^as to 
 
 fit me thoroughly for the husiness of chopping, in order 
 that I might give my employers hetter satisfaction tlian I 
 did at Meadville, should he prevail on me to undertake the 
 management of another district school. But a little refiec- 
 tion made it seem more probable that he intended to create 
 in me so strong a dislike for such labor that I would 
 soon regard school-teaching as a j>leasure in com])arison to 
 it. If the latter was his object, I determined that he should 
 again be disappointed, and, accordingly, I began to admire 
 the implement of labor he had given me, and expatiate on 
 the amount of work which, with its aid, I would accom- 
 plish. I estimated that in six weeks I could fit tliat enor- 
 mous \n\e of wood for the stove, when, in all probability, it 
 would have taken an experienced and hardy chopper as 
 m.any months to do it. He only smiled, and gave a ginint 
 expressive of his contempt for my feeble judgment. 
 
 Monday morning, in the forcible language of Bunyan, I 
 addressed myself to that wood pile with unwonted zeal. I 
 chopped without intermission, except to take my meals, till 
 dark. The next morning I was tired and sore, and, though 
 I made no complaint, nor expressed a wish to desist from 
 my labor, I decided to work in future less violently, and to 
 rest two or three hours each day, giving this interval to 
 reading. By judiciously pursuing this couree, in a fort- 
 night's time I had gained strength wonderfully. My hands 
 first blistered, and then calloused ; my muscles became 
 hard, and the amount of wood that I chopped in a day was 
 a subject of comment among all the farmers' sons in that 
 vicinity. But I was not contented with my occupation. 
 Thoughts of a collegiate education, of a profession, and how 
 they were to be obtained, constantly engaged my mind, and 
 caused me to feel but little interest in the labor I was per- 
 
. juaiAXiBl^im 
 
 52 
 
 Tfce Frontier Sehouhnaster. 
 
 forming ; still, I said nothing respecting my desires or plans, 
 and no one knew from my expressions or manner that I was 
 discontented with my lot, or that I liad any intenti(jn of 
 following other business than wood chopping during the rest 
 of my life. I was thus employed for a month, when, on 
 driving to the village of Mayfair, one evening, and meeting 
 one of my old friends and class-mates, he informed me that 
 he was intending to start in a few days for the village of 
 Shirley, about thirty miles distant, on Lake Champlain, for 
 the purpose of attending school, and expressed a hearty 
 wish that I would accompany him. 
 
 I was seized with a strong desire to do so, not only from 
 an inclination to get fitted soon for college, but from fear that 
 he would outstrip me in my studies, as we had always 
 been rival candidates for academic honors, and had long 
 allotted on entering college together. He had the advan- 
 tage of me, however, from the fact that his ambition was not 
 restrained by lack of means, as his father was a wealthy 
 cattle tlealer and speculator. 
 
 I first broached the subject of attending scho(jl again to 
 my mother, as she was always my intercessor for favors from 
 the paternal dde of the house. She expressed a willingness 
 to gratify my wishes, but at the same time gave me little hope 
 of success from her intercession. Her first effort in my behalf 
 was met with a rebuff, as we had anticipated, bnt in a day or 
 two he began to speak more fa^^orably of my design, and by 
 the time another equal period of time had expired he had 
 consented that I should be a student for a tt;rm of eleven 
 weeks at Shirley. According to his custom, at such times, 
 his first act, on consenting to grant me this boon, M'as to give 
 me a lecture, in which he expatiated on the sacrifice that he 
 was making, dwelt on the necessity of my making a proper 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 53 
 
 use of my time, exhorted me to be careful of my expeudi- 
 tures, and, lastly, tried to impress upon me the necessity of 
 doing something to earn money myself before I could expect 
 any further assistance from him. I felt that this last infor- 
 mation meant teaching school again, but grateful for his 
 kindness, I listened resj)ectfully to his counsel, and promised 
 that I would observe his wishes. 
 
 In assisting to procure my outfit for school I borrowed a 
 few dollars of a friend in Mayfair, and gave liim an order on 
 Barnum for whatever sum he was disposed to pay me for 
 my month's services, knowing that he would be likely to 
 quibble on the ground that I had not fulfilled the terms of 
 my contract. The friend wrote me in a few weeks saying 
 that he had received nine dollars on the order, Barnum 
 refusing to pay the other two dollars, because, as he said, I 
 had left the school without reason. I considered myself 
 fortunate in getting the sum that I did, and regarded Bar- 
 num's excuse for keeping the balance, after sending me the 
 notice that he did, quite characteristic of the man. , 
 
 My hard physical labor at home had strengthened me, so 
 that I was well prepared for mental labor at Shirley. The 
 Principal of the Academy was an able and energetic graduate 
 of Dartmouth, who has since risen to the position of Presi- 
 dent of one of the New England Colleges. 
 
 He seemed to like his vocation, and under his tutorship 
 I made good progress, both in the classics and in mathematics. 
 
 £ 
 
uliia 
 
 :.:.!ti' 
 
 t ■ . ! v'' .-■:■ 
 
 ;.'■!■'■■'' f 
 
 ..( i", 
 
 CHAPTER IV. ' ' 
 
 lain at lioino ngnln— Tlie farm— T go to farming once more — A trip 
 to the Mountain — I get lout — A romance. 
 
 It was near the last of June that I was again on the farm 
 in Foreston. Nature was cliid in her l^est, and haj)py from 
 the success thr.t had attended me during my absence, I gave 
 myself up to the full enjoyment of all the pleasur?^ that can 
 be realized at that season by a lover of nature in a rural 
 home. 
 
 The farm, with two others of equal size adjoining it, was 
 shut out from the main road, which ran through Foreston, 
 by a belt of woods, aud it was encompassed on the other sides 
 by forests, whicli stretched away in the distance with various 
 degrees of undulation. Close by, to the eastward, lay a 
 beautiful cultivated valley, about two miles in width, run- 
 ning north and south the whole length of the township, and 
 beyond this rose a continuation of the Green Mountain 
 Chain, whose wooded slope had been invaded by the axe of 
 the settler in only a few isolated spots, and whose crest 
 loomed up against the sky in alternate ridges, bluffs, and 
 rounded peaks. It was a high upland farm, and afforded an 
 extensive view, not only of the nearer landscape, but of hill- 
 
The Fro7itier Schoolmaster. 
 
 55 
 
 side farms and mountain heights far to the southward in 
 Vermont. It was indeed a secluded and, to me, a beautiful 
 
 spot. 
 
 This had lieon my home since early boyhood, and here I 
 had learned to commune with nature in her varied forms. 
 I was devotedly fond of hunting, and before attaining my 
 fifteenth year 1 had become acquainted, in my sporting lam- 
 bles, with every brooklet, rock, morass and lonely nook 
 within a radius of several milos. 1 also had my favorite 
 woodland bowers, where 1 read and stuiiied, and the hugc^ 
 boulder in the recesses of the forest is now in imagination 
 before me, on whose summit I used to sit and study or 
 recite the declamation intended for school in the ensuing 
 week. 
 
 I had ncv»!r been absent from home so long as T was while 
 at Shirley, and, on returning, I visited all my old familiar 
 retreats, viewed the farm and crops, and inventoried the 
 stouk and fowls with great delight. Though disliking some 
 kinds of farm work, I took much pleasure in others, es])o- 
 cially in raising and caring for stock and cultivating crops ; 
 and on my return, I immediately went to work with an 
 industry which gave both pleasure and profit to my father. 
 
 To my gratification, he had recently purchased a new 
 buggy and silver mounted harness, and as he had three fine 
 young horses, I felt that I was well prepared to enjoy my- 
 self during my stay at home. After working till fatigued, 
 I often found rest and recreation by taking a drive, towards 
 evening, to Mayfair, or to one of the two villages existing 
 in Foreston. 
 
 , , The farm work which usually precedes haying having been 
 completed, and nothing appearing to demand my services at 
 home, I determined one morning to spend the day in visiting 
 
56 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Spruce Knob, the liif^hest elevation in the township, and 
 which formed a part of the mountain chain to which 1 have 
 above alluded. The summit was about five miles distant, 
 and though there was no path, and the climbing was in many 
 places difficult, I had reached the highest point by ten o'clock. 
 As it was covered with a stunted growth of spruce, the only 
 way in which I could obtain a good view was by climbing 
 a tree, and then the view became extensive and grand beyond 
 description. 
 
 The uncomfortable position, however, that I occupied, soon 
 rendered ray descent to the ground necessary, and after 
 eating my lunch I was prepared to return. I had brought 
 my rifle with me, hoping that a chance to shoot game of some 
 kind might relieve the monotony of my journey, but no 
 animate object, save a few small birds, had thus far attracted 
 my attention, and, as I neared the mountain crest, not even 
 these disturbed the solitude. 
 
 I had travelled some distance on my return, when I came 
 to a rocky bluff which gave me a view of a valley below. 
 Strange farms and a stream of much larger size than the 
 one I had crossed in the morning appeared in the distance. 
 Where was I ? I was bewildered. I sat down and took a 
 careful survey of the scene before me, and tried to make 
 things assume a natural aspect, but in vain ; it was evident 
 that I had lost my course, and had been descending the side 
 (»f the mountain opposite that from which I had come up 
 The valley was that part of the township known as Glen- 
 field and on reaching it I would be ten miles from home. 
 My best way then, instead of trying to retrace my steps 
 and run the risk of again losing my course, was to travel 
 on. keeping near the mountain crest until I came to the 
 Toad which led across the mountain to Glenfield. With 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 57 
 
 this intention I resumed my toilsome journey through 
 tangled brushwood and over fallen trees until near three 
 o'clock, when I reached the liighway. I was much encour- 
 aged, but, a heavy shower being near at hand, my first 
 thoughts were of some place of shelter. A short walk 
 brought me to the summit of the mountain where, in an 
 open space on my left, stood a schoolhouse, in which I 
 decided to remain until the shower had j)assed. It was 
 evident that a school was in session, and I was pleased 
 with the opportunity thus presented me of inspecting its 
 character, as 1 had not been inside a district schoolhouse 
 since 1 left the one in Meadville. Depositing my rifle in 
 the small woodshed at the rear of the building, I came back 
 and rapped at the door, whicli was opened by the teacher, 
 a young lady about eighteen years of age. A look of 
 surprise first greeted me, which soon gave place to a slight 
 blush and a smile of recognition. She then cordially 
 extended her hand with the salutation: ' 
 
 " How do you do, Mr. Styles ? " 
 
 I was puzzled, surprised, nay astonished. I had not 
 imagined that I would find a teacher here whom 1 knew, 
 and to be addressed thus familiarly was to me for a mo- 
 ment an unaccountable occurrence. Observing my puzzled 
 look as I gave my hand she said, smiliag, 
 
 " Don't you know me ? " 
 
 " Miss Edgarton," 1 said, beginning to recognize her, yet 
 hardly certain that I was right. 
 
 " Yes," she replied. " Will you walk in ? " 
 
 I accepted the invitation, remarking as I did so — 
 
 "It is a long time. Miss Edgarton, since I have seen 
 you." 
 
 " Yes," she said, " nearly six years." 
 
58 
 
 The Frontier Schoohnaater, 
 
 t : i: 
 
 She offered me a chair, but, as it was the only one the 
 room afforded, I declined it and took a vacant seat behind 
 a desk. '■. .. ,. .. -■■ t.- 1'-... . .., - • 
 
 " I am sur; rised," she said, " to see you in this place. I 
 hope you did not come to inspect my school." 
 
 " Not wholly for that purpose," I replied. " T came in 
 to avoid the storm, but I also had some curiosity to see the 
 school." 
 
 " You taught yourself last winter, I believe," she said. 
 
 " I only tried to teach," I replied. 
 
 " You taught for a longer time than I supposed you 
 would," she said laughing. "I knew that unless you had 
 changed greatly since 1 attended school with you, you would 
 not like the business of teaching." 
 
 "I am surprised at your memory, Miss Edgarton," I 
 replied, "and still more that you should have known 
 anything of what I was doing." , ; . 
 
 " O, I remember very distinctly the events of that winter 
 when we attended the same school," she said, with a pecu- 
 liar smile, " and 1 have often heard of you since." 
 
 " Indeed," I said, " I have not been fortunate enough to 
 hear of you often. I learned on two occasions, long after 
 we separated, that you were teaching ; and two years ago I 
 heard that you were attending school in Massachusetts, but 
 I have heard nothing respecting you since." 
 
 " Yes," she replied, " since I saw you I have attended 
 school three winters in Canada, one year in Massachusetts, 
 and have taught school three summers." . 
 
 . " You must like teaching," I said. 
 
 " I do not positively dislike it," she replied, " if I have 
 a school of intelligent pupils in a good community." , . > 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 59 
 
 have 
 
 "Have you ever had any such good luck as that in 
 teaching," I asked. ^ • i^ , .. '^ ' 
 
 " yes," she said, laughing, " I am often (juite pleasantly 
 situated while teaching." ' 
 
 " How do you happen to he in this place," I inquired. 
 
 "Simply, because I did not decide to teach until after 
 all the other schools were engage*'. I find the people here 
 kind, l)ut I am verv lonesomr." 
 
 After a fcM' more re:' :i' concerning teaching, she 
 handed me a book, saying i,he knew I could employ 
 myself more pleasantly i- reading than in listening to 
 her uninteresting classes; and then she excused herseK 
 to resume the dities of her school. I did not read, 
 however, but listened to the simple recitations of the pupils 
 and noted the different degrees of intelligence that they 
 displayed. But I would not leave the reader to infer that 
 the teacher engaged no part of my attention. I was pleased 
 to renew her acquaintance; and as she sat in her chair 
 hearing recitations, or moved about the room assisting the 
 pupils in their studies, and kindly but firmly commanded 
 attention to them, her manner, features and figure all came 
 under my observation. 
 
 She was a trifle below medium height, with form neither 
 slight nor too cumbrous. She had dark hair, hazel eyes, 
 and her features, though not chiselled on the model of Cir- 
 cassian beauty, evinced much force of character. She was 
 not handsome, yet there was an intelligence and frankness 
 in her expression which, combined with her genial manner, 
 at once commanded confidence and respect. 
 
 The circumstances under which I had formed her ac- 
 quaintance were these : — 
 
 One winter, at the time 1 was twelve years of age, I was 
 
60 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 attending district scliool in the neighborhood where I resided. 
 The teacher was a lady experienced in her vocation, possess- 
 ing good acquirements, and one who exacted industry, 
 respect and good order from her pupils. But she was 
 unappreciated by them, and, consequently, by their parents. 
 Through faults, wholly my own, I was never on good terms 
 with her, and to avoid a well-merited punishment which she 
 intended to inflict, I absconded from school. Before my 
 father knew anything of the circumstances, I petitioned him 
 for the privilege of attending school in an adjacent district, 
 representing that the teacher, who was a gentleman, was a 
 thorough scholar and a most efficient instructor ; both of 
 which things were true. The petition was granted, but to 
 my dismay the rules which had been so obnoxious to me in 
 the school from which I had run away were in existence in 
 the other, and were enforced with an inflexible will and 
 superior strength. Under such circumstances it benoved 
 me to forego the indulgence of my mischievous habits and 
 attend to my books. I found here quite a number of boys 
 and girls well advanced in their studies, and among them 
 was Ruth EdgartoD, who was boarding at one of her relatives 
 in this district for the purpose of attending the winter school. 
 I soon formed her acquaintance, and as there was a degree 
 of congeniality in our tastes, in the course of a few weeks 
 one of those strong attachments which frequently are f( i mad 
 at school had sprung up between us. She was my superior 
 in scholarship, which fact tended to exc 'e my envy, but 
 which on the whole operated much to m advantage, for, 
 ashamed of my inferiority in this respect, I < 'voted myself 
 to my studies with unwonted energy, determined that I 
 would not remain long in the background. 
 
 In another respect, too, she exercised a salutary influence 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 61 
 
 over me. Conducting herself at all times with womanly 
 modesty and dignity, she had won the approbation of the 
 teacher, and pride soon inspired me with a desire to avoid 
 in her presence his reproofs. More than once, however, my 
 propensity for fun came near securing me a flogging, but 
 either for want of suflicient proof of my rascality, or from 
 partiality towards me, of which I sometimes thought him 
 guilty, I was spared this humiliation. 
 
 Inquiring into the history of Ruth, I learned that she was 
 a native of Foreston, but her father and mother having died 
 before she had attained the age of nine, she had gone to 
 reside with an uncle who lived but a few miles distant in 
 an adjoining township. Here she had been more especially 
 under the tutelage of a maiden aunt, a woman of education 
 and refinement, and exceedingly Puritanic in her notions of 
 propriety. Ruth was a great reader, and, like myself at 
 that time, had a decided preference for romance. During 
 that winter we read several of Captain Maryatt's, and 
 Cooper's novels, and the Scottish Chiefs ; the latter pos- 
 sessing for both of us the most absorbing intereat. 
 
 At the close of school we separated without knowing any- 
 thing of each other's feelings save what we were able to 
 divine ; but I think it may be correctly inferred that I was 
 enamoured. I earnestly desired to visit her, but diffidence 
 and fear of ridicule restrained me, and so, during the months 
 of the following summer which I spent at home, I pro- 
 jected many plans to be put into execution when I was 
 older ; and with these Ruth was always intimately asso- 
 ciated. 1 went more regularly to church than ever before, 
 knowing that her uncle, occasionally in former years, had 
 attended divine service in Foreston ; and I cherished a hope 
 
 .i/tl;W,\.^.M- 
 
62 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 that he might in future do so, and perchance bring his niece 
 with him ; but my hope was vain, and so we did not meet. 
 
 As time wore on, my attachment decreased in fervor; 
 other subjects engrossed my thoughts, and before two years 
 had expired, I had lost all interest in this romantic episode 
 in my history. As stated above, on two or three occasions 
 I had heard of the whereabouts of Miss Edgarton since we 
 attended school together, but until we unexpectedly met at 
 her school, I had not seen her. ^ ^ 
 
 As I conversed with her on this occasion, my thoughcs 
 continually reverted to the incidents in our former acquaint- 
 ance, and as I saw her now before me only a trifle taller, 
 and with face more mature, I confess that an interest in her 
 began to awaken within me, and I wondered that I had not 
 more speedily recognized her. 
 
 The rain having ceased, she excused her pupils a little 
 before the usual time, as I presumed to resume her chat 
 with me. She was curious to know what had led me alone 
 and on foot so far from home, and on telling her of my visit 
 to Spruce Knob, and of my mishap in losing my way, she 
 said, 
 
 " You are as full of romance, I see, as you were in your 
 boyhood. There are not many nien that would enjoy a 
 trip to the mountain alone." - - 
 
 " You forget," I replied, " that I am still in my boy- 
 hood." .., . . . . . . ■ ', ...■-•■ 
 
 " Indeed," she responded, taking a survey of my figure, 
 •' I think you are a tall young man." ,, 
 
 After a few more unimportant remarks, I asked her where 
 she was boarding, and learned that the house was a mile 
 distant, and that I would have to pass it in returning home. 
 
 1 proposed tha' we should take the walk together, to 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 which she gladly assented. I then went for my rifle, seeing 
 which she smiled and said she would accept me as her 
 guard of honor. We walked slowly, and never perha])S was 
 time more fully occupied with conversation than it was on 
 that occasion. At my request she gave me much of her 
 history since we separated, and the remaining time was 
 employed with reminiscences of that memorable winter. 
 
 Before I was at all aware of it, we had ariived at her 
 boarding place. On bidding her adieu she expressed a hope 
 that it would not be six years again before we would 
 meet, and I w\t,s thus encouraged to suggest a ride on a 
 certain evening of the following week. The suggestion 
 meeting her hearty approval, I departed, unconscious of 
 fatigue, and was ooon absorbed in the most pleasant thoughts 
 of that day's adventures. I reached home just at dark, to 
 the relief of my family, who were beginning to feel a degree 
 of uneasiness at my prolonged absence, knowing as they 
 did the liability of my getting lost in that mountain wilder- 
 ness. -. " " ''^ \ '" " ^' 
 
 Pursuant to my appointment, I was at the school-house 
 of Miss Edgarton at four o'clock on the evening proposed. 
 She gave me a cordial reception, and I doubted not that, 
 owing to her secluded situation, with the want of congenial 
 society, she was glad to have me visit her. 
 
 We rode down the mountain to Glenfield amid picturesque 
 scenery, tlience, along a, beautiful river over rich interval 
 farms, talking incessantly all the while ; the scenery and 
 books affording us sufficient topics. I was surprised at the 
 knowledge with which her mind was stored. She seemed to 
 have devoured all the authors, and spoke of many of whom 
 I knew comparatively nothing. Biography, history, travels, 
 romance and poetry had all evidently employed her leisure 
 
64 
 
 The Frontier ScJwolmaster. 
 
 hours during the six years that had separated us, and though 
 I had regarded myself as quite a reader, her superiority in 
 this respect made me resolve that I would devote myself to 
 reading with much more than my former assiduity. 
 
 It was dark when we returned, and she gave me an invi- 
 tation to remain and take tea with her, but I declined, 
 intimating, however, at the same time my readiness to take 
 her to her home at any time she might wish to visit it. 
 She expressed herself as highly pleased with the offer, say- 
 ing that her Sabbaths and holidays seemed very long when 
 she spent them in the district, as she usually did, on account 
 of her inability to visit her home as often as she wished. 
 It was then arranged that I should take her home a week 
 from the ensuing Saturday, as on the evening previous to 
 that she was to excuse her school for a vacation of two 
 weeks. 
 
 During the remainder of the summer I saw Miss Edgar- 
 ton, or Ruth as I soon began to call her, nuite often. Her 
 uncle resided about five miles westward from my own 
 residence, on a large, well-cultivated farm, which, from its 
 elevated position, had long been known as Maple Highland. 
 It lay at the base of a mountain, of conical shape, which 
 rose up in solitary grandeur like a pyramid, from a com- 
 paratively level section of country while on the other sides 
 it was bounded by gentle wooded hills, which, with the 
 Valleys between, formed many pretty bowers and cosy dells. 
 These we often visited together, and meeting thus, amid 
 such romantic surroundings, with youth and hope singing 
 their melodies in our hearts, the reader will not wonder that 
 our interest in each other grew strong and deepened as 
 tinie rolled on. i; •• i- >- -+^-.. v .-.-. =- ...^ . . - ^. , 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 Want of employment— I go to Albany— Am disappointed— Return to 
 Canada— Engage to teach a winter school— Disappointed again — 
 A letter describing life in a convent. 
 
 The summer wore away, and as the autumnal months 
 advanced thoughts of how I was to employ myself during 
 the winter constantly perplexed me. My brother-in-law 
 urged me to enter his office, at once, as a law student; my 
 father suggested school-teaching, but, as I felt that I was 
 not ready to do the former, and determined that if possible 
 I would not again try the latter business, I was forced to 
 look about for other employment. 
 
 I had relations in Albany, N.Y., and the thought occur- 
 ring to me that by visiting that city I might possibly obtain 
 a situation of some sort which would afford me an opportu- 
 nity to pursue my studies at an evening school, I proposed 
 the plan to my father, and after much hesitation and many 
 objections he reluctantly acceded to my proposal. 
 
 I was unused to city life, and had but a faint conception 
 of the numbers of men, young and old, in worse circum- 
 stances than myself, who flocked to the large towns and 
 cities, and laid wa't with untiring watchfulness for every 
 
 i 
 
66 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 place of profit — places, too, which often were of a low and 
 'unpleasant character, and afforded to the occupant but a 
 scanty sustenance. Mine was the experience of thousands 
 of young men from the rural districts who seek em})loynient 
 in the city without the prestige of wealth or of influential 
 friends. For nearly two months I tried, effectually, to 
 secure a situation. I became familiar with all the streets, 
 and learned all the places of business in that antiquated 
 Dutch city, in my ettbrts to obtain eni})loyment, but in 
 vain. I watched the advertisements in all the papers, and 
 no sooner tlid I find one that held out, to me a ray of hope 
 than. I was on the spot and humbly offered my services ; 
 but, invariably, the place had cither been given to another 
 before my arrival, or else I was required to invest money 
 and run tlie risk of its being a profitable investment. I 
 was humbled ; I felt tliat I had made a foolish mistake in 
 not accepting such a situation as I might have obtained at 
 home, and so, sadder and wiser, I took the train one morn- 
 ing ioY the land of my adoptifju. 
 
 It was near the middle of December when I returned, 
 and the schools were mostly engaged, but fortunately for me 
 a teacher was wanted in the district where I resided, and 
 the very evening that I reached home one of the school 
 managers came in and offered me the situation. I was ready 
 to accept it on any terms, but determined to do the best I 
 could with him, I expressed no desire to teach, unless I 
 could enjoy the privilege of boarding, permanently, at one 
 place. --',-, 
 
 This was an innovation for which he was unprepared, and 
 he considered himself obliged to confer with others concern- 
 ing the matter before he could accede to my proposal. Had 
 it not been for my desire to employ my evenings in study, 
 
 tSP 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 67 
 
 I would have had no gi'eat objection to "boarding around" 
 in that district, as tlie inlial)itant8 were all in coniforUible 
 circumstances, lived in good houses, and always provided 
 for the comfort of their teachers. I believed, however, that 
 I could carry my point, and so I permitted him to depart 
 with the understanding that he was to let me know his 
 decision at the end of two days. At the expiration of that 
 time he returned with the information that my terms were 
 acceptet', and 1 was forthwith engaged for four months at 
 twenty dollars per month. I was to commence my laboi*s 
 on the following Monday, and though the walk to my school 
 was a long one I decided to board at home. - >^ ^y *: m ; 
 The day following my engagement I drove to Maple 
 Highland, indulging in pleasant antici])ation3 of meeting 
 Kuth and rather pleased withal, that circumstances had 
 combined to place me so near her home during the winter 
 I had corresponded with her while I was absent, and the 
 last letter I received from her conveyed to me the in- 
 formation that she would not teach that winter, but would 
 remain at home. My disappointment then may be more 
 easily imagined than described, when I learned from her 
 family that she had left a few days before for Montreal, 
 where she intended to spend several months or a year per- 
 haps in a convent, for the puii)ose of perfecting her know- 
 ledge of French. I could scarcely conceal my vexation. 
 Why, I thought, did she not let me know of her intention 
 that I might have seen her once, at least, before her de- 
 parture ? For the moment I forgot that she did not know 
 as yet of my return, and that she was not at all certain that 
 I intended to return, for chagi'in at my ill-success, while in 
 Albany, had prevented my saying much to her in my last 
 letter respecting my intentions. Further explanations dis- 
 
 
n 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 sipated my unreasonable vexation, but did ncjt in t)ie least 
 diminish my disap])ointment, v 
 
 I knew that she had long intended to complete her study 
 of the French lanj^uage, of which she already possessed some 
 knowledge, and it seemed that an opportunity had recently 
 presented itself which she saw fit to embrace. An uncle of 
 hers from Massachusetts had visited them, bringing with 
 him his daughter, a little younger than Ruth, whom he was 
 intending to leave at a convent in Montreal for the purpose 
 of study. Fearing that she would be lonely there among 
 strangers, he insisted that Ruth should accompany her, 
 and as an inducement offered to defray her expenses, — an 
 offer that she could not wisely refuse. 
 
 I returned home in a disconsolate frame of mind. I had 
 anticipated much pleasure from visiting her duiing the 
 winter, in fact, I felt that this would be abcnit the only 
 relief from the monotony and loneliness of my winter's 
 work, and now that this solace was denied me I contem- 
 plated my labors with sad, solitary feelings. But I was 
 beginning to learn that it is wise to submit to disap- 
 pointments with patience ; and summoning to my aid all 
 the resolution that I possessed, I believe that I soon yielded 
 to the circumstances with becoming grace. 
 
 I commenced my work the following week under favor- 
 able auspices. Having been a pupil at the same school up 
 to a period of four years anterior to the time that I was 
 inaugurated as teacher in it, I knew all my pupils except a 
 few of the younger ones. My popularity' with my school- 
 mates in former times seemed not to have been forgotten, 
 and many of th3 older boys and girls who left the school 
 about the same time I did to engage more constantly in 
 their labors at home, were induced at the prospect of my 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 69 
 
 teaching,' to attend school again that winter. Only one dis- 
 senting voice was raised at my enj/agcnicnt. 
 
 This was that of a woman who indulged in the prophe- 
 tic de(;]aration that, owing to my " <iuick temper," I would 
 "kill all the scholars before spring." The se([ucl, however, 
 did not show the fulfilment of this prophecy. I labored 
 diligently to instruct my pupils, they became attached to 
 me, and as I met with no annoyances I sof)n experienced 
 a dr^^i'ee of contentment and pleasure in the situation. 
 
 I believe that this was the only school I have ever 
 taught where the satisfaction that I gave could be declared 
 perfect. I employed my leisure hours in study, and the 
 four months that I taught proved to me a period of 
 mental as well as of pecuniary profit. But the business 
 of teaching seemed to be then, as it has been ever since, ill 
 fitted to my temperament. Like nearly all similar insti- 
 tutions in this country, the school-house had no proper 
 means of ventilation ; it alternated between extremes of 
 temperature, in consequence of which I frequently caught 
 cold. Before half the term had expired my appetite was 
 impaired, I grew dyspeptic, nervous and thin, so that I 
 was cordially glad when my school closed. Previous to 
 that event, the school manager who hired me endeavored 
 to obtain a promise that I would teach the school on the 
 following winter, at a liberal increase of wages, but I gave 
 the promise that I would do so oidy in the event of my not 
 finding more congenial employment. 
 
 Not long after I commenced teaching, a letter, post- 
 marked " Montreal," reached me, which I nervously opened 
 and read as follows : 
 
I 
 
 70 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Montreal, 2l8t Pec, 1854. 
 Dkar Frank, 
 
 Ymi may he nsstircd tliiit I was not a 
 
 lirtN^ surprised, last t)i«^ht, whon I learned from a letter 
 which I receive<l from home that you have returned, and 
 aire noM' teaching in your own district in Foreston. I 
 trust it is needless for me to say that my surprise was 
 mingled with vexation that I did not know your intention 
 before banishing myself from home for the winter. 
 
 T had no doubt you would secure a good situation in 
 Albany, notwithstanding the discouragements that attend- 
 ed your first efforts, and that a long time must elapse 
 before T would have the pleasure of seeing you again. 
 Indeed, in the fits of despondency which T believe are 
 peculiarly my own, I had often persuaded myself that with 
 your social nature, and fondness for adventure, you would 
 soon become attached to the gaiety and excitement of 
 city life, find more congenial society than in your country 
 home, and thus forget the friends of your boyhood. 
 Thoughts like these, together with the prospect of little to 
 engage either my mind or hands during the long months 
 of a Canadian winter, did much toward leading rae to decide 
 on accompanying my cousin to this place. 
 
 Do not imagine, however, that I was prompted wholly 
 by despair, or even loneliness, for I knew it to be a most 
 excellent opportunity to continue my French and music. 
 My uncle, too, was so anxious to interpose my staidness 
 and orthodox theology between his only daughter and all 
 Komish proselytizing — of which I think he was needlessly 
 fearful — that I could not well refuse him ; especially, as he 
 offered to pay all the school bills. 
 
 I am sure you will like to hear what our life here is 
 
The Frontier Schoolmftster. 
 
 71 
 
 like. First, allow nio to assure you that it is very plea- 
 sant. When I came I must admit, prcjudif^ecl as T had 
 Ijeen by reading and hearing of the wickedness of the 
 Romish Cliurch, 1 felt a sort of dread of — I knew not what. 
 1 shall never forget the first night spent here ; the wind 
 howled and shrieked around the dormer-windows, which are 
 on both sides of the long dormitory where the girls with their 
 attendant guardian nuns sleep. I couhl easily imagine 
 the shrieks and groans to l)e those of heretics writhing in 
 the torments cahuly ordered and witntissc^d by the dial)oli- 
 cal members of some Komish Ini|uisition holding a session 
 somewhere on the premises. My cousin was nearly frantic 
 with nervoiis apprehension that niglit. Added to the 
 shrieking of the wind, there was something so weird in the 
 appearance of the immense dimly lighted room with its 
 rows of ghostly looking little beds. Indeed, I could scarce- 
 ly persuade her to remain during the first week we were 
 here. Accustomed, as she has been, to the almost unre- 
 strained freedom of the American school girl, the dullness 
 and monotony of convent life was too great a contrast to 
 be borne with equanimity. Since the arrival of several 
 American girls, however, she has become not only recon- 
 ciled, but apparently quite happy. 
 
 We have Professors for music, German and Italian ; the 
 other teachers are all professed nuns. 
 
 " Ma tante " St. Euphrasie, who has our French class, 
 is a bustling little old lady ; her spectacles and feeble voice 
 being the only indications of age, and her foce is as smooth 
 and fair as an infant's. She often approaches me, and lay- 
 ing her shapely white hand on my shoulder, says, " Ma 
 ch^re Demoiselle Ezhairton," I am certainly very grate- 
 ful for the kindness she shows me. 
 
 B 
 
72 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 <ii 
 
 l'[ 
 
 I 
 
 A description of our work for one da}- will suffice, for in 
 this respect all the days are alike. We rise at 6 o'clock, 
 and go to the chapel for early mass or prayers, where we 
 remain until the breakfast bell rings. From the refectory 
 we go to the class-rooms, where we remain until dinner, 
 which is served at twelve. In the afternoon we have two 
 hours of study, lunch, another hour of study, tea, recrea- 
 tion until nine o'clock, then prayers. An irreverent 
 American girl blessed with the unappeasable school-girl 
 appetite says, " We ought to be good, we get so much 
 prayer and fasting." 
 
 I like these low- voiced, fair-faced nuns ; they seem 
 worthy to wear the mantle of those noble French women 
 who, braving alike the dangers of an ocean voyage, the 
 rigors of an almost Arctic climate, the thousand discom- 
 forts of colonial life, come to christianize and civilize their 
 dusky sisters of a savage and often hostile race. 
 
 The aim of the Convent School seems, first, to make 
 their pupils Christians — not of -. ur pattern certainly — 
 still Christians — and then ladies in the best sense of that 
 misused word. 
 
 The nuns are so graceful, courteous and dignified, it is 
 no small pleasure to come in daily contact with them ; the 
 virtues of the foundress remain with her successors. 
 
 But to change the subject, I sincerely hope that you 
 may be successful in your labors, and that you will be 
 sufficiently interested in them to escape the loneliness 
 which you felt last winter. 
 
 Were I at home, I should cherish a hope, though fostered 
 by conceit it might be, that an occasional visit to Maple 
 Highland would afford a pleasant relief to the dreariness of 
 your stay at Foreston ; but as it is, I trust that the work 
 
The Frontier Sclwolmaster. 
 
 73 
 
 of furnishing me with frequent accounts of your doings and 
 with all the local news may serve nearly the same 
 purpose. 
 
 Your sincere friend, 
 
 EuTH Edgauton. 
 
 It is needless perhaps to say that I was not backward 
 in accepting the invitation to write, so cordially given. 
 My letters were both frequent and long, and the entertain- 
 ing replies which they elicited certainly afforded a pleasure 
 which nothing save a personal visit with their authoress 
 could surpass. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 1 enter a Custom House — Receive a commissioi — A pniuggler — A 
 chase and capture — Another smuggler captured. 
 
 I HAVE alluded t. a snail village in the southern part of 
 Foreston. It perhaps scarcely deserved the appellatiop, 
 foi besides a mill, a mechanic's shop, a store and post 
 office, it comprised not more than a half dozen dwellings ; 
 but two or three years previous to the opening of my story, 
 when the post office was established, it was dignified with 
 the name Arklow. 
 
 At a little distance north of the village, embowered in 
 evergreens and shrubbery, stood the neat residence of Dr. 
 Sutherland, an English gentleman who besides being a 
 physician held the various offices of collector of customs, 
 postmaster and magistrate. He had held the oihce of col- 
 lector of customs at this place for several years, during 
 which time he had become popular in the practice of his 
 medical profession. 
 
 Early in the spring, soou after my school had closed, I 
 chanced to call at the post office when the Doctor proposed 
 to me that I should enter liis office as clerk. He informed 
 me that he had for some time felt the necessity of procuring 
 
 
The Frontier Schoohnaster. 
 
 75 
 
 assistance, and that he knew of no one whose services he 
 would more gladly accept than my own, 
 
 I was a little siirj)rised, from the fact that I had never 
 felt particularly well ac({uainted with him ; in truth, as he 
 appeared to me somewhat stern in liis manner, and was 
 looked upon by the peo})le of that section as quite an aristo- 
 crat, I had always regarded him witli respectful deference, 
 aud had never conversed with him except on a few occa- 
 sions when he opened the conversation himself. It might 
 have been my reserve aud the respect I had shown him 
 which won his favor. Be this as it may, however, I was 
 flattered with his offer, but, as the salary was small, I 
 hesitated in accepting it. He urged, assuring me that 
 I would have but little to do, and consequently would find 
 much time to study ; offered me free access to his library, 
 the use of a horse and carriage, and lastly assured me that 
 he would immediately apply for a commission for me as 
 preventive officer, which when obtained would empower 
 me to seize contraband goods. The particular benefit 
 resulting to me from these seizures would be that a share 
 of the proceeds arising from the sale of the goods would 
 be my own. The offer was one which in my circumstances 
 I could not afford to treat lightly, and so my objections 
 were soon laid aside. 
 
 Scarcely a month had passed after I entered the Doctor's 
 office, before I was duly appointed preventive officer, and 
 was thus in a position to win no little notoriety in my 
 efforts to prevent infractions of the llevenue laws of the 
 country. The office was, and is still, unj)opular. Aery 
 few who have held it have ever been accorded the resjiect, 
 much less the friendship, of their neighbors. Yet, it can- 
 not be denied that this unpopularity has always resulted 
 
76 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 s t 
 
 from meddling olficiousness and accpiisitiveness on tlie palt 
 of the officers themselves. It \\as not my desire to render 
 myself odious to the farmers and mechanics around me, 
 consecjuently, in accejjting the office, I resolved that I would 
 remain in ignorance, as far as possible, of the small amount 
 of smuggling which the^e persons did in providing their 
 families with the necessaries of life. It was only to pro- 
 fessional smugglers, or those who boldly violated the law 
 lor the purpose of great profit, that I decided to give any 
 attention ; and, though this course would lessen my chances 
 of making money, it would certainly preserve me from the 
 hatred and contempt of my fellows. 
 
 Many weeks passed away, and no opportunity v. as given 
 me for exercising the prerogative of my office. The duties 
 of my clerkship were few and easy. So that I had ample 
 time for other labors and for freipient social chats with the 
 Doctor, whose affability was always displayed whenever he 
 was permitted to remain at home of an evening. 
 
 The first incident aftbrding relief to this monotonous life 
 occurred about two months after I had received my com- 
 mission. 
 
 It was a bright, moonlight night, and the Doctor was 
 absent from home. I had gone to my room, and was pre- 
 paring to retire to rest, when, chancing to look out to the 
 yard below, in front of the office, I beheld the figure of a 
 man, stealthily approaching and casting frequent glances 
 towards my window. My first thought was of burglars. Im- 
 mediately extinguishing the light, I drew the curtains near 
 together, leaving, however, space enough to enable me to 
 observe his movements. 
 
 After standing a few m.oments, apparently listening, as 
 if to satisfy himself that all the inmates of the house were 
 
 4 •■ 
 
The Frontier Schoohnaster. 
 
 77 
 
 on the ptilt 
 re to render 
 around me, 
 hat I would 
 nail amount 
 aiding their 
 )nly to pro- 
 ted the law 
 to give any 
 my chances 
 me from the 
 
 ;y V. as given 
 
 The duties 
 
 had ample 
 
 ats with the 
 
 tvhenever he 
 
 cr. 
 
 lotonous life 
 3d my corn- 
 Doctor was 
 nd was pre- 
 c out to the 
 i figure of a 
 lent glances 
 irglars. Im- 
 urtains near 
 lable me to 
 
 listening, as 
 house were 
 
 at rest, he cautiously retraced his steps and entered the 
 highway, which was a few rods distant. Disarmed by his 
 departure of all fears of attempts at burglary, I went to 
 bed. Scarcely twenty minutes had elapsed ere my 
 attention was attracted by the rumbling of wheels which 
 were slowly passing in the road. The incident itself would 
 have been regarded as unimportant, had I not noticed that, 
 after passing the house some little distance, the speed of 
 the vehicle was considerably increased ; indeed, it was soon 
 obvious that it was being driven at a rapid rate. Coupling 
 this circumstance with the fact that a man had, but a few 
 moments previous, secretly reconnoitred the premises of 
 the Custom House, I was certain that some one was smug- 
 gling. Tt was quite probable that he had kept his team in 
 a valley below the house, and, after assuring himself that 
 he could pass the Custom House without danger of dis- 
 covery, had driven on. 
 
 I arose, dressed myself, went to the barn, saddled a horse 
 and started in pursuit. Although he must ha^^e had the 
 start of me by two miles, or more, I had no doubt that I 
 would soon overtake him ; but to my surprise I gaUoped on 
 three, four and five miles until I arrived at the village of 
 Foreston, without seeing anything of the team I was pur- 
 suing. I stopped at the two hotels of the village, and made 
 enquiries, but no person had arrived, nor had anyone 
 noticed a team passing. Being personally acquainted with 
 the parties of whom I sought information, I had no suspicion 
 of being deceived, hence, I was led to the conclusion that the 
 smuggler must either have taken one of the roads branching oft' 
 from the main road, or else he had put up at some one of 
 the farm-houses which I had passed. In the former case his 
 chance of eh»ding me was good, in the latter, if I started out 
 
78 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 oarly in the morning he would very likely be discovered, 
 '^flying on the latter thought, I rode leisurely back to my 
 quarters, peering carefully into all the sheds that I passed. 
 
 In the morning, as soon as I was certain of finding the 
 farmers up and about their chores, I was again in the saddle, 
 determined to spare neither time nor labor in bringing this 
 offender to justice. After riding nearly three mUes, I 
 commenced my entiuiries, and learned from two or three 
 individuals, whom I met, and at two or three different farm- 
 houses, that a team had passed, ra])idly, about the hour that I 
 designated on the preceding evening. One man averred 
 that he saw it, but, strange to say, it was near the village, 
 and the time about two hours later than that mentioned 
 by tlie others. 
 
 Tliis led me to the belief that the smuggler must have 
 been concealed somewhere on the road for awhile, and had 
 resumed his journey after my return. This belief was 
 strengthened at the first hotel, to which I arrived in the 
 V Uige, as I was there iuSorifif-'d ijiat a team, driven rapidly, 
 had passed about an hquf ff,ff^p fffl/ /^/iparture the night 
 previous. 
 
 Thus encouraged, I spurred on ; and thinking that, afi i.r 
 the cauti(jn he had displayed, he would not l)e likely to si^p 
 near Foreston, I njde directly to a thriving village, fifteen 
 mUes north of Arklow. I drew up at an hoteL and m a 
 few mo/nenfs iiflerwaid, stepping out to the bttra w giv« the 
 hostler HOiuh ditffulioJiB which I had forgotten, I f(*und a :uau 
 i^iUl'li, surrounded by eeveral others to whom he was eiiueav- 
 orilig to sell a harness. He had six of tiatim, -uiver 
 mounted, in an express waggon, l^eside which he was stand- 
 ing, and I felt sure that he was the man of whom 1 was 
 in pursuit. My arrival was scarcely noticed, and I found 
 
 iiMriaMaMl 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 70 
 
 little difficulty in interrogating the hostler, unobserved, from 
 whom 1 learned that the harness peddlar had arrived at 
 the hotel that morning, from the south, some time before 
 daylight. , 
 
 After receiving this information T joined the gi'oup of men 
 and listened to the vender as he expatiated on the superior 
 quality of his goods, and anxiously urged the man, with 
 whom he was talking, to purchase. The seller was a tall, 
 spare New Englander, with red hair and whiskers, and a 
 most unprepossessing face, and his remarks were frei^uently 
 interspersed with oaths and coarse jests. Stepping up to 
 his waggon, to examine his harness, I soon engaged him in 
 conversation, in the course of whicli 1 carelessly asked him 
 •w^wsie the articles were manufactured. He seemed prepared 
 for tbe question, and gave me the name of a remote town 
 in Canada.. 
 
 " IndeHiii," I said, " I was not aware that they make such 
 harnesses as these in that place. By whom were they man- 
 ufactured ? " 
 
 " I made 'em," he replied. " My name is Towner." 
 
 " Ifeve you been in that place long ? " 1 asked. 
 
 " Five or six years," he replied, eyeing me with consider- 
 able curiosity. 
 
 "You must carry on quite a business there," I said. 
 " Do you em])loy many men ? " 
 
 " Three or four," he answered, grutHy, 
 
 " Well, since you are a manufacturer in that town, and 
 doing so much business, I can find your name in E — s' 
 Grazetteer, which was published last year." 
 
 " 1 ^pose so," he said, trying to appear indifferent ; " I 
 don't know whether my name is thar or not." 
 
 I then left him, and, stepping into the hotel, enquired for 
 
80 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 a copy of the "Gazetteer," to which I lad aUiuled. It 
 was handed nie, and I immediately searched the list of names 
 in the town to which Towner said he l)elonged, without 
 findinj^ liis own. Returning to tlie barn, I said : 
 
 *' I don't tind your name in the * Gazetteer,' Mr. Towner." 
 
 "Wall," he rejdied, somewhat angrily, "you took a good 
 deal of pains ; what did you want to find it for ? " 
 
 " O," I said, "if I should buy a harness of you, T would 
 like to know all I can about the manufacturer. I might 
 wish to recommend some friend in want of a harness to you." 
 
 " Wall," he said, " you canask anyone that lives in my 
 section about me. But if you want ter buy a harness, 
 young man, I'm jest the chap that ken sell yer one, cheap.'' 
 
 " To tell you the truth, Mr. Towner," I said, " I have 
 some suspicion that your harnesses were manufactured in. 
 the States. Now, if I buy one, will you give me a written 
 guarantee that it was made in Canada, so that I shall have 
 no fears of its being seized by the revenue officers ? " 
 
 " Wall, it seems to me that you air pertickler, but, 
 
 of course, I kin dew it." 
 
 " I shall require you to make oath to your statements if 
 I buy one, Mr. Towner, and then I shall take immediate 
 steps to learn all I can about your manufactory." 
 
 " Wall, if it's gwine to be so much trouble tew yer, I 
 don't think you'd better buy one." 
 
 The man, by this time, began to show considerable un- 
 easiness,, and the bystanders, to whom I was an entire 
 stranger, were regarding me with much curiosity. 
 
 "Without wasting any more time in parley, Mr. Towner," 
 I said, " I must tell you that I tliinlt t^us is smuggled 
 property." 
 
Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 81 
 
 " You've got a good deal of brass for a young cliap," he 
 said. " Who in thunder air you ? " 
 
 " I am a revenue officer," I replied, " and as such, I shall 
 seize tliis property at once, unless you show to nie tliat 1 am 
 wrong in my suspicions." 
 
 He turned white, and after looking at me for a moment, 
 in silence, seemed suddenly to regain his self-possession, 
 and broke into a hoarse laugh. 
 
 " Wall, young man, you seem tew be pretty sharp," he 
 said ; "tew tell the truth, these harnesses was made in the 
 States, l)ut the duty is paid on 'em. You see, I knew you 
 Canada chaps hate us Yankees so, that you'd buy a good 
 deal (j licker if I could make you believe they was made 
 on this side of the line." 
 
 "Indeed, Mr. Towner, you have made a very frank 
 admission ; but since you have paid the duty, of course you 
 have a permit with you." 
 
 " Yes, I've got one," he said, seeming to have lost his 
 inclination to dispose of his goods, as he began to tie up 
 the harness which he had been displaying. 
 
 " Will you have the kindness to let me see it ? " T asked. 
 
 " 0, yes, of course," he said, taking out his pocket-book 
 and beginning to fumble amongst his papers. 
 
 After spending at least ten minutes in this search, he 
 took out his memorandum book, and gave that a careful 
 examination. This being replaced, he thrust his hands 
 nervously, first into his breeches-pocket, then into his vest, 
 and, finally, into the different pockets of his coat, after 
 which he exclaimed, with a bewildered look, " I swear, I 
 guess I've lost it." 
 
 " I am sorry," I said, " but of wliom did you obtain your 
 permit ? " 
 
. .,.*^-.-/«4*(^-*l*^'-' 
 
 82 
 
 Tfie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 "Dr. Siitlieihuiil," he replied, "at Arklow." 
 
 " Wlien (lid he give it to you ? " I asked. 
 
 " Last iiij^ht," he aiiHvvorcd, " when 1 come aloug." 
 
 "I am sorry to tell you, Mr, Towner," 1 said, "Dr. 
 Sutherland was not in his otlice yesterday. I was there 
 all day, and you entered no goods there." 
 
 " Yes, hut 1 met the Doctor on the road. Hold on ! I re- 
 collect now. 1 put the permit in my valise, and I left 
 that abotit three miles back iie.'e, where l ^ topped this 
 morning. If you'll jest ride back there with me, I'll ahow 
 yer the permit all right." 
 
 " Your story, Mr. Towner," I said, " is simply ab.surd. 
 Dr. Sutherland could not have given you a permit on the 
 road had you met him. Besides, he was not in the direc- 
 tion in which you came yesterday. But, to show you all 
 fairness, you can leave your wagg(jn and goods here, and I 
 will give you two hours in which to get your valise." 
 
 "All right," he said, then turning to the hostler, added; 
 " You'll see to this load," and at once stalked out. 
 
 Fully assured that he intended to get away with his 
 goods and return to the States, I saw the necessity of 
 watching him. Securing a small upper room in the hotel, 
 from which I had a fair view of the barn, I sat down by 
 the window and began to read. I noticed, on sitting down, 
 that the barn doors were already closed, and there appeared 
 to be no one around. Half ai. hour afterwards, the doors 
 suddenly swung open, and a rough looking young fellow 
 appeared in Towner's waggon just in the act of driving out. 
 To rush down was the work of a moment, and I seized the 
 horse by the bits ere he was half way across the yard. 
 
 •' Where are you going with this team ? " I fiercely de- 
 manded. 
 
The Frontier Srhoolmofiter. 
 
 83 
 
 " Dr. 
 there 
 
 "I'm f^wine ter drive it down here a piece, for tuiothur 
 man," tlie fellow answered, confusedly. 
 
 "You'll olilif^e mo hy {^ettinj,' out of that waggon," I said. 
 " r seize this team for an infracti(m of the Revenue laws of 
 tiiis (iountry, and unless you wish to get yourself into 
 serious trouble, you'll have nothing to do with it." 
 
 The fellow sullenly .^'it out of the waggon, and gave me 
 the reins, ui)on which 1 turned the horse about and dr(.ve 
 into the barn. Ten minutes afterwards, Towner appeared 
 on the scene. He had lost his self-possession, and was 
 greatly agitated. 
 
 As two or three men, besides the hostler, were now pre- 
 sent, Towner called me aside, and thus addressed me : 
 
 "See here, young man, you've got me. You're sharp, 
 no mistake ; but, now, if you'll let me get out of this 
 cx)untry with this team, I'll give yer fifty dollars." 
 
 " Not if you M ere to give me five hundred," I replied. 
 
 " Say one hundred," he urged. 
 
 " I shall do nothing of the kind," I replied. 
 
 He then assumed a threatening tone. 
 
 " Perhaps," he said, " you don't know who you've got tew 
 deal witli." 
 
 " I thiT)'C," I replied, "that I've had a good opportunity 
 to know something of you," 
 
 " Not so much as you will know," he said, with an oath, 
 as he turned and left the barn. 
 
 The landlord being jn-esent, I asked possession of his 
 barn for an hour, which being granted, I locked it, ke])t the 
 key, and then waited a short time for dinner. After this, 
 engaging a man to ride my own horse, I seated myself in 
 the smuggler's waggon, and drove back to Arklow. 
 
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 23 WEST MAIN STREET 
 
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 (716) 872-4503 
 
V. . > ' r:- 
 
84 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Pursuant to the requirements of the law, tlie property 
 seized was sold in a few day a,t vendue, the jjroceeds 
 amounting to three liuudred and fifty dollars. 
 
 Towner was one of the bidders, but it was not struck off 
 to him. 1 had learned, previous to this, that ha had fre- 
 quently visited other par's of the Province, to dispose of 
 smuggled property, and up to this time had been very 
 succ3ssful. The harnesses which he had with him on this 
 occasion he had obtained on credit from a certain firm in 
 Vermont, but whether lie ever paid for them is still to 
 me unknown. 
 
 It will suffice to say that this seizure, besides resulting 
 in some pecuniary profit to nie, gave me a little local fame, 
 and obtained for me the thanks of the head officials of the 
 Customs Department, 
 
 About a month after the occurrence of this incident, as 
 I was, one day, sitting alone in the office, a stranger, past 
 middle age, drove up to tlu; door, and, dismounting, entered. 
 After making many inquiries, relative to the duty on dif- 
 ferent articles, he finally wished to know the duty on boots 
 and shoes. I informed him t)\at there was an ad valorem 
 duty of fifteen per cent, on these articles. lie expressed 
 some surprise and regrets that it was so high, saying that 
 he had a lot in Mayfair, which he had brought from the 
 South, for the purpose of selling them in Canada. He 
 seemed to be deliberating for some time, and, then, expressed 
 his determina,tion to sell his goods in Vermont rather than 
 import them under so high a tariff. This information given, 
 he drove away. 
 
 Towards evening of the next day, he returned, having in 
 his waggon a small box of boots and shoes on which he 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 85 
 
 wished to pjty the duty ; saying that if he found he could 
 sell these to advantage, he might bring over all that he had. 
 I gave him a permit, but lie seemed in no haste to leave, 
 and sat for a long time in the otHce, engaging me iii conver- 
 sation. As night approached, and he still remained, I began 
 to wonder, and, observing him more closely, I thought he 
 seemed nervous and ill at ease. The suspicion flashed across 
 me that he was detaining me for some purpose, and I knew 
 of no object he could have in doing this, unless his stock of 
 goods was being smuggled into the country by some other 
 route. Three miles west of the road on which the Custom 
 House stooa ran another nearly parallel to it, and leading 
 through a section but thinly populated, and in many places 
 through stiips of woods. Another road starting from May- 
 fair intersected this at nearly right angles, some distance 
 south of Arklow, thus aifordiag smugglers a very convenient 
 way of avoiding the Custom House. It had l)een my 
 practice, since I had been in the office, to ride freiiuently 
 over to this road, especially in the evening, to find, per- 
 chance, some (jne seeking p.otit by transgressing the law ; 
 but up to this time 1 had been unsuccessful. The singular 
 manner of the person in the office led me to the determin- 
 ation to visit this road at once, and stepping out of the back 
 door 1 went to the Doctor's gardener, who lived but a few rods 
 distant, and requested him to remain in the office during my 
 absence. He complied, and a few minutes later I was 
 galloping rapidly away. I tirst went southward until I had 
 come to the road branching off' towards Mayfair, but meeting 
 no one, X wheeled and galloped northward. 1 had ridden 
 perhaps three ^niles in this direction, when 1 thought I heard 
 
86 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 II • 
 
 the rumbling of wheels ahead of me. Halting to listen, 
 although it was now quite d^rk, I descried some object 
 moving just a little in advance of me. Starting on again I 
 immediately came up with a two-horse waggon heavily 
 laden with boxes. Hiding alongside, I accosted the driver 
 with a friendly 
 
 " Good evening, sir." 
 
 " How are yer ? " was the reply. 
 
 " You seem to have a heavy load," I said. 
 
 " Yes, heavy enough," was the gruff answer. 
 
 " 1 suppose you have nothing dutiable in your load." 
 
 " No, I guess not," he said, and after a moment's pause 
 asked, " why ? what if I have ? " 
 
 " nothing, I said, only if yuu have, since you have 
 passed tlie Custom House, and are evidently smuggling, 1 
 shall seize your team and load." 
 
 " Dew yer think so ? " he insolently asked. 
 
 ' I know so," I replied. '' Will you have the kindness 
 to stop your horses ? " 
 
 A sharp crack of the whip, and a loud " Get up, thar," 
 addressed to his horses, was the only notice that was taken 
 of my request. 
 
 Obedient to his command, the horses started oft' on a trot. 
 Knowing from the language and manner of the man that 
 he was a brutal fellow, ignorant of the law and regardless 
 of the conse(iuences of transgressing it, I had little doubt 
 that he intended resistance, and I determined to bring 
 matters to a crisis at once. •,-■;■» 
 
 '?tiding up close to the horses, I seized one by the bits, 
 and immediately sliding from my saddle, I reined them to the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 87 
 
 bits, 
 the 
 
 side of the road. Tlie driver swore, and ordered me to let go 
 the reins, but finding that his order was disobeyed he jumped 
 from the waggon, and, stepping forward, struck at me fiercely 
 with tlie butt of his heavy whip. The darkness was not so 
 intense as to prevent my getting a glimpse of the descending . 
 whalebone, and, dodging it, the blow was received by my 
 horse across his nec'i. He immediately sprang, and pulling 
 away from me, started on a gallop homeward. My assailant, 
 who had been nearly knocked over by the horse in his 
 escape, now rushed towards m^ again to renew the assault. I 
 had drawn my revolver, and before he had time to strike 
 again I dealt him a blow on the temple with the butt of 
 the weapon. He fell insensible to the ground, and instantly 
 mounting his waggon, I drove on a few paces to a conve- 
 nient place for turning round, and then urged the horses 
 into a brisk trot for the Custom House. 
 
 Half a mile below, I stopped at the house of a French- 
 man, and, giving him a dollar, obtained a promise that he 
 would go immediately and care for the man whom I had 
 left by the roadside. On riding back, two hours afterward, 
 to learn the result of the Frenchman's mission, he informed 
 me that he met the smuggler, before he reached the spot I 
 had designated, walking back towards Mayfair. 
 
 It turned out as I had anticipated. The team and load, 
 which consisted of several cases of boots and shoes, belonged 
 to the man who had visited the Custom House. He had 
 engaged a low fellow, in Mayfair, for five dollars, to deliver 
 his goods at a certain house on the Canadian side of the line, 
 from which he was about three miles distant when I overtook 
 him. The owner of the goods, himself, had undertaken to so 
 
lii 
 
 88 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 entertain me at the office, that I would not be likely to 
 leave it till after the man he had hired had fulfilled his 
 contract. 
 
 The sequel of this incident was that he obtained his 
 property, on the day of sale, by the payment of six hundred 
 dollars. < 
 
CHAPTEK VII. 
 
 A return from the Convent— A visit to Maple Highland- A gentleman 
 fanner — A politician, who preaches one thing and practices 
 another— His offer to me— New ambition. 
 
 Weeks rolled by, and the leaves of the forest were assum- 
 ing their autumnal tint, when I received a letter from Ruth, 
 informing me that she would be at home in the following 
 week. I had not seen her for a year, and it was with no 
 small degree of pleasure that I drove, one afternoon, when 
 I supposed she was at home, to Maple Highland. 
 
 A cordial greeting awaited me, thougn something of that 
 reserve and embarrassment was felt which often characterizes 
 the meeting of young friends after a long separation. The 
 confinement of Convent life, together with close appUcation 
 to her studies, had v/ithdrawn the usual bloom of health 
 from her cheek, which could only be replaced by more 
 active life and country air. 
 
 Shortly after my arrival, Mr. Edgarton, Ruth's uncle, 
 accompanied by a well-dressed portly gentleman, entered the 
 parlor. The latter was introduced to me as Mr. Niel. I 
 was somewhat curious to know the character and history of 
 the er, and what relation he sustained to the family 
 
 I 
 
90 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 in which he appeared to be visiting, and my curiosity in- 
 creased gi'adiially, as I cliatted witli him \\\w\\ the various 
 topics of the day, on all oi" which he seemed to be well posted. 
 Although possessing a good degree of general intelligence, 
 he was not schohirly, and a slight degree of rusticity of 
 manner, and his bronzed complexion, led me to the conclu- 
 sion that he might be a well-to-do farmer. His side 
 whiskers and hair were sufficiently sprinkled with grey to 
 indicate that he was approximating to forty, and I naturally 
 inferred that he might possibly be a pater familias ; but the 
 interest that he seemed to take in Ruth, and the scrutiny 
 with which he observed her actions, still further increased 
 my curiosity, and I adroitly managed to elicit from him the 
 fact that he was unmarried. The blight feeUng of uneasi- 
 ness, which this information caused me, was in no degree 
 diminished, by the fact that he still remained in the parlor 
 after Mr. Edgarton had retired. The presence of a third party 
 being somewhat embarrassing, to me, at least, I pvoposed a 
 ride to Ruth. I fancied that I discerned a very little 
 hesitation and confusion, on her part, at my proposal, but 
 be that as it may, if there were any such indications of 
 uneasiness they instantly disappeared; and after asking 
 Mr. Niel, with grace and dignity, to excuse her, she pro- 
 ceeded to her apartment to array herself for the ride. 
 
 The effect of my invitation to her displayed itself much 
 • more plainly in the visage and manner of my companion. 
 His small grey eyes assumed an unwonted lustre, his florid 
 ' face took on a redder hue, and the taciturnity into which he 
 seemed suddenly to have fallen, showed that he felt little 
 interest in the matter to which I was calling his attention. 
 Still he was gentlemanly, dignified, and when Ruth again 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 91 
 
 appeared, and we were about setting off, he cheerfully and 
 cordially wished us a pleasant ride. 
 
 The eagerness with which I sought to know soinetnino- 
 respecting this stranger, as soon as we were fairly seated in 
 the wagg(jn, I think must have surprised Kuth, if it did not 
 amuse her ; but without the portrayal of any emotion, she 
 gratified my curiosity. 
 
 Mr. Niel was a bachelor-farmer of good repute and 
 consideraljle property, residinj^ in the township of CarroUton 
 about twenty miles distant. He had long been acquainted 
 with the Edgartons, and in former years, had sometimes 
 visited Maple Highland. , . 
 
 He was a near neighbor of another of Ruth's uncL;s, who 
 lived in the same township, and she had occasionally met him 
 when she had been there on visits. In returning from the 
 Convent, she had tarried with her cousins in CarroUton two 
 or three days, and happening, wlule there, to meet Mr. Niel 
 at an evening party, he expressed a desire to see her family, 
 and offered to take her home on the succeeding dtv. 
 Eegarding him. as an old friend of the family, she accepted 
 the offer, and was accordingly driven to Maple Highland in 
 a fine carriage, drawn by a handsome spar of bays, the day 
 before I visited her. 
 
 " Is he never going to marry ? " I asked, with all the 
 nonchalance I could assume. 
 
 •' 0, no, I think not," she said. " He was once engaged 
 to a girl, when he was quite young, but she died, and he 
 seems never to have shown any inclination to marry since." 
 
 I felt slightly relieved, but wishing to know more, I said, 
 after a moment's silence — 
 
 " He is rich, I suppose." 
 
 " Not rich, in the general acceptation of the term," she said, 
 
92 
 
 The Frontier Sclwolmaster. 
 
 1 
 
 " but in very gf)0(l circumstances. He lives in a very pretty 
 house, witli an hu^'lishrnan and his wile for servants, and, 
 besides hxikinj? after his stock, he spends much time in 
 ex]»erimentiii«i; witli crops and in reading and studying 
 works on agriculture." 
 
 " A sort of (jentleman-f&Tiner," 1 suggested. 
 
 " Yes," she said, " 1 think that is a good description of 
 his occupation." 
 
 The sui)ject now changed, though I could not refrain 
 from thinking of my new acquaintance during the intervals 
 of silence, and wondering whether he had really given up 
 all thoughts of marriage. 1 c(uild readily imagine that, 
 even with liis advancing years, he might prove a dangerous 
 rival to a much younger man in poorer circumstances ; for 
 a pretty house with servants, a fine farm, stock, a carriage 
 and horses, are things not usually overlooked by a girl in 
 selecting her future ho)'\e, and especially by her jjarents or 
 guardians. 
 
 Tea awaited us on our return, and it seemed to me that 
 Mr. Niel, while at the table, put forth a special elfort to render 
 himself agreeable. He talked to me incessantly ; asked a 
 great many (questions relative to Custom House business, 
 said much respecting the legal profession, towards which, 
 he said he had lieard I was directing my thoughts, and 
 wound up with a very lucid and interesting dissertation on 
 agriculture. Before I left, he gave me a pressing invitation 
 to come and spend a week or two with him at his home, 
 which I promised to do as soon as time and opportunity 
 would permit. In truth, he had so impressed me witli an 
 idea of his ability and importance that I believe I felt a 
 slight degree of jealousy on de])arting, knowing tliat he was 
 still to remain a guest of the Edgartons. I could not forbear 
 
.Ae Frovtier Schoobnader. 
 
 93 
 
 wonderiiif^, in no very pleasant frame of mind, liow long lie 
 would ])rolong his stay, and what degi'ee of friendship 
 existed between him and Mr. Ktlgarton. But, my thoughts 
 revelling to Kuth, 1 felt that I really had no cause for 
 distrust. Slie knew nothing of deceit, and 1 saw her then, 
 more clearly than I had ever before seen her, a ])aragon of 
 constancy — the embodiment of all that is noble in woman. 
 1 had never, formally, proposed to her the uniting of her for- 
 tunes with my own, from the fact that I wished to acc6mj)lish 
 much befcn-e 1 could feel that I was in a position to otter her a 
 pleasant home. I felt that such an event could only occur 
 at some distant day ; but 1 believed she fully understood 
 me, knew my intentions, and I scarcely doubted that she 
 would await my })leasure with true wonuinly devotion. 
 
 On reaching home that evening I found the Doctor's 
 family in something of a bustle over the arrival of Mr. 
 Baxter, a lawyer from Montreal, who had recently appeared 
 as a candidate for the office of representative of our county 
 in the Provincial I'arliament. It is to be hoped that, at no 
 distant day, the student of history will smile at that feature 
 of Canadian politics which permitted a stranger to represent, 
 in the b gislative halls, a section of country of which he knew 
 but little, and for the interest of which he, doubtless, cared 
 still less : but the custom at that tii^^e had but few opponents 
 and even at the present it is so far complied v/ith as to 
 reflect discredit on the intelligence and indepe'iJence of 
 Canadian voters. " Men, not measures," seemed to be the 
 predominant idea engrafted in the minds of the yeomanry 
 when called upon to exercise the right of suffrage, and 
 frequently, a man, unqualified morally for discharging the 
 duties of a high and responsible office, had only to disburse 
 lavishly the sums which his political friends had furnished 
 
 • 
 
94 
 
 The Frontier Schooluiaaier, 
 
 ■'I 
 
 i 
 
 liiiu, and Lu jiiomise impossible local improvements and 
 imjmiluiblt uiid impossible reforms, to secure his election, 
 lidxter was a man of this stamp. A demagogue, ready ou 
 the one hand to kneel with oriental devotion at the shrine 
 of aristocrti.cy, or, for personal gain, to truckle with the 
 meanness of a sycophant for the patronage of democracy. 
 McClintock county seemed to oiler a fair field for the grati- 
 fication of his ambition. His friends informed him how 
 easily it had fallen a prey to their wiles in former cam))aign3, 
 and j)ersuaded him that he had only to visit the county a 
 few times, throw out a few hundred dollars and make 
 generous promises, to obtain a triumj)hant entrance into the 
 parliamentary chand)ers. Such was the man, and such the 
 aus])ices under which he api)eared, when he came out to 
 ingratiate himself with unsusi)ecting and unsophisticated 
 rate-payers. 
 
 The JJoctor gave me an introduction to him, and, though 
 pleased with the honor, I felt something of the embarrass- 
 ment peculiar to young and inexperienced persons when in 
 the presence of a magnate. He soon put me at my ease, 
 however, and flattered me with his patronizing air, espe- 
 cially when he expressed a wish that he might have a 
 confidential talk with me in the course of the evening. 1 
 say that I felt flattered, still the fumes of his breath awakened 
 a suspicion that he might be in an unusually friendly 
 mood, and that, possibly, in a normal condition, his reserve 
 and dignity would inspire me with reverential awe. 
 
 Later in the evening, while I was reading in the office, a 
 faiiiily servant entered and announced that Mr. Baxter 
 wished to see me in the parlor. I accordingly answered the 
 summons, and found the candidate and the Doctor alone. 
 The latter said as I entered, 
 
Tice Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 95 
 
 " Mi. Baxter wishes to talk with you." 
 
 "Yes," said Muit ^'entleman, "the Doctor has j^iven me a 
 very favorable impression of your worth, and, although ycm 
 are quite young, he has recommended you as one that can 
 aid me in the wo'k in which 1 am at present engaged." 
 
 I felt a little bewildered, and blushed at the compliment, 
 but quickly replied, 
 
 •' I shall be most happy to serve you, Mr. Baxter, in any 
 way I can." ' 
 
 " You speak French, I believe," he said. 
 
 " Not very good French," I replied. •' I learned some- 
 tiling of their patois when 1 was attending district school, 
 and am still able to carry on a conversation in that tongue, 
 though ([Uite imperfectly." 
 
 " And you know most of the hahita^ds in this township, 
 I suppose," ])ursued my interlocutor. 
 
 " Many of them," 1 said. 
 
 " Well," he continued, *' my time is so limited that I 
 cannot see many of them at present, and I wish to employ 
 you to see them for me ; and I shall give you ({uite a sum 
 of money to distribute amongst them and the English-si)eak- 
 ing farmers of the township ; and I wish it to be deeply 
 impressed upon them that these donations are directly from 
 my own hand, and are made from a heaitfelt desire that I 
 have to aid them to build up these Townships, and to see 
 the people here thriving and happy. You understand me ? " 
 
 " Certainly," I said. 
 
 " And, as a proof of my sincerity," he continued, '' and of 
 the interest I take in agricultural matters, you can say that 
 I intend to purchase a large farm somewhere in this section, 
 at no distant day, and reside here permanently. The 
 scenery here is beautiful, beautiful ! " he repeated with 
 
96 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I i 1 ': 
 
 empliabis, " anJ I know of no place in which I would like 
 more to live." 
 
 " Wouldn't it be well, Mr. Baxter," here interposed the 
 Doctor, " to caution Mr. Styles a little against using your 
 name too freely in disbursing the money you giv3 to him, 
 and alsc to exercise much discretion with regard to the 
 character of the individuals to whom he gives it ? " 
 
 "0,1 gave Mr. Styles due credit for discretion in these 
 matters," siiid Baxter, and then, turning to me, continued : 
 
 " Of course you understand that our statutes prohibit any- 
 thing pertaining to bribery in elections, and I would very 
 carefully avoid any imputation of the kind in my own 
 election. Impress upon the electors the idea tliat these 
 simple presents are given solely from my appreciation of a 
 noble peasantry, a .d from my sympathy foi them in their 
 struggles to open up a new country.. Yes, sir, I admire the 
 honest and sturdy yeomanry of any country," and then, as 
 if inspired with the contemplation of their virtues, he 
 dramatically pronounced the oft-quoted lines of Goldsmith) 
 
 " Princes and lords may Hourisli or rnpy fade, 
 '"' A breath can make them, as a breath hap made, 
 ' ; But a l)oM peasantry — their country's pride — 
 
 When once destroy'd, can never be supplied." 
 
 After waiting a moment, perhaps for applause, he said : 
 " With regard to the last suggestion of the Doctor, about 
 the persons to whom you give the money, please remember 
 and sound them well before you offer them any pecuniary 
 assistance. Ascertain, first, what their ideas are al)Out the 
 necessary qualifications for a representative, that is, whether 
 they possess intelligence enough to desire that a city 
 gentleman, an experienced lawyer, should represent them 
 in the council chambers, or whether they are so ignorant 
 
"lie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 97 
 
 ^ 
 
 that the}' prefer to eiitruut their interests to some country 
 clod-hopper who has scarcely been beyond the borders of 
 the county. These are the things, Mr. Styles, upon wb^'ch 
 I wish you to exercise your discretion." 
 
 " I certainly hope, Mr, Baxter," I replied, " that I shall 
 act with proper judgment in doing the work which you may 
 assign me." 
 
 " I have no fears about that, Mr. Styles, no fears what- 
 ever; but, say. Doctor, havn'fc you a little more of that 
 wine ? It's very nice." 
 
 " Certamly, excuse me," said the Doctor, rising, " I was 
 not aware that we had emptied the bottle." 
 
 I then noticed that a bottle and glasses ^vere standing on 
 the table. The Doctor left the a])artment for a moment 
 and presently the servant brought in two more bottles of, 
 sherry. The Doctor filled two glasses, when Baxter asked, 
 with a little surprise, 
 
 " Is not Mr. Styles going to take a glass with us ? " 
 
 " l\r. Styles is almost a teetotaler," replied the Doctor, 
 "he seldom takes even wine." 
 
 " But you surely will take a glass with me," said Baxter, 
 and he extended to me one well filled. 
 
 I did not care for it, yet, in compliment to him, I quaffed it. 
 : " I am not strictly a teetotaler myself," said Baxter. "At 
 home I sometimes indulge in a glass of wine, yet I believe 
 in temperance, and am strongly in favor of prohibition. 
 Should I be elected to parliament, one of my first labors 
 will be to introduce a prohibitory liquor bill. A stringent 
 prohibitory law, Mr. Styles, is what this Province needs ; " 
 and he tossed off his glass with the air of one who was 
 perfectly unconscious of the fact that his practice wavS 
 greatly at variance with his teaching. 
 
98 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 P. i ■' 
 
 ft 
 
 ' Perhaps it would he well," he added, " for you to say 
 to the temperance men of this section, when you meet, 
 that I am heartily in favor of temperance, and shall do all 
 in my })0wer, if elected, to make lic^uor selling a serious 
 offence — a liigh crime in the eyes of the laws of this 
 country. A good idea, eh, Mr. Styles ? " 
 
 " I shall certainly be pleased to tell them what you say," 
 I replied. 
 
 "The Doctor tells me that you intend studying law, Mr. 
 Styles." 'vV---.:^^ 
 
 " I have thought of it,' I said. 
 
 " Well, sir," he said, with an air of great earnestness, " if 
 you like, I shall be most happy to receive you as a student 
 m my office, but, if you prefer something else, something 
 that will pay sooner, you might obtain a good situation in 
 one of the Govermnent Departments. A clerkship such as 
 I could procure for you would pay twelve or fifteen 
 hundred a year. How would you like that, eh ? " 
 
 " I think I could appreciate a situation of that kind," I 
 replied with a smile. 
 
 " There is no reason, Mr. Styles, why you shordd not have 
 one, not the slightest reason, and I'll tell } ou v/hat I'll do. 
 If I am elected as representative of this county I will see 
 tliat you have such a position within three months." 
 
 " You certainly are very kind, Mr. Baxter," I replied, " and 
 I trust that you will find me grateful for any service you 
 may render me." 
 
 " Gratitude, Mr. Styles, is not what I am seeking. I am 
 a philanthropist in my way. I always like to do good ; and 
 whenever I see that I can aid one of my fellows I am only 
 too happy to do it. But," he continued, " we will speak of 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 99 
 
 this thing liereafter. To-morrow I wish you to go with me 
 to Hilton, to introduce me to parties there, and do whatever 
 you can to further my interests in the approaching election. 
 The Doctor cannot leave his business, and he has very 
 kindly offered me his carriage and horses, and advises that 
 I take you with me." 
 
 " I shall l»e very glad to accompany you," I said. 
 
 The remarks of Baxter were r^.ow chiefly addressed to the 
 Doctor. He made many inquiries respecting the political 
 aspect of the county, and concerning individuals whom he 
 wished to see ; all of which were answered with politeness, 
 yet with some reserve and caution. It was quite apparent 
 to ine that the Doctor was not favorably impressed with 
 his guest, and that he placed no great degree of confidence 
 in his extravagant promises, and boasts of patriotism and 
 philanthropy. His office precluded him from taking an 
 active part in politics, but he was a strong pariizan, and always 
 aided, as far as consistent, those whose political views 
 accorded with his own ; and, however much he might prefer 
 some other candidate to the one now in the field, loyalty to 
 his party jirevented him from opposing, in any way, the man 
 of their choice. 
 
 Baxter continued to indulge in frequent potations of 
 sherry, and as the evening advanced he ^ixpatiated more 
 freely on his exploits in the past, and the grand works to be 
 achieved in the future. 
 
 The Doctor appreciated his wine for dinner, but he par- 
 took sparingly of it on thit> occasion, and, as I declined 
 further invitation to imbibe the two bottles were almost 
 wholly appropriated by Baxte: His lo(j[uac''./y had in no 
 degree abated at twelve o'clock, when I thought nroper to 
 
 !;■ 
 
 
100 
 
 The Frontier Sclioolmaster. 
 
 retire, and as I bade him good night he paid me another 
 installment of compliments, and expressed much pleasure in 
 view of s})ending the morrow in my company. 
 
 The events of the evening had been to me, boy as I was, 
 far too exciting in their character to sutler me, even when 
 in bed, to fall asleep. I had taken but little interest in 
 Canadian politics, and knew comparatively n(jthing of the 
 tricks and deceit of unscrupulous politicians. An experi- 
 enced, conscientious man would doubtless have treated with 
 disdain a proposal to employ him in tlie work in which 
 Baxter desired me to engage — a work which was virtually 
 the bare-faced corruption of voters ; an effort to lead the 
 ignorant to prostitute the right of suffrage to ignoble pur- 
 poses. But 1 did not take this view of it. I was too 
 much of a novice to exercise a nice discrimination between 
 right and wrong in these matters, and I saw no particular 
 harm in acting the part which had been assigned me. 
 
 Though I was not so dull as to believe that his " triHing 
 donations " were prompted wholly by " patriotism and phil- 
 anthropy," I thought that if he could thus gain the good 
 will of men and secure their votes, he had a right to do so. 
 I felt grateful to him for his attention, for the confidence he 
 reposed in me, and especially for his unsolicited otfer of aid 
 in the future, and had I been possessed of a vote, he would 
 have received it with my whole heart ; and I argued that 
 if it was right for me thus to shew my gratitude, it would 
 be equally I'ight for those on whom he had bestowed other 
 or similar favors. I cannot say that 1 admired the man. 
 There was much in him that awakened suspicion that he 
 was not altogether just what he professed, yet respect 
 for his social position inclined me to the belief that he 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 101 
 
 would spare no effort to fulfil the promises which he made. 
 It did not occur to me that a man of his pretensions, receiv- 
 ing the patronage of prominent government officials, a 
 candidate for a responsible office, could be so regardless of 
 honor as to offer to one of my age and circumstances 
 boons which he had not both the ability and willingness to 
 bestow ; and so I flattered myself that a clerkship com- 
 manding twelve or fifteen hundred a year required only the 
 contingency of his election to office to be mine. The 
 acceptance of such a position would prevent my studying 
 law, but it would not do to discard a certainty for an uncer- 
 tainty, and besides being lucrative it would soon enable rne 
 to offer Kuth a home with all the comforts she could desire. 
 
!><r-" 
 
 CHA^TEE VIII. ^^ 
 
 A ride to Hilton — A political meeting — Electioneering — A return to 
 the Custom House. 
 
 At 10 o'clock on the following morning I sat beside Baxter 
 in the Doctor's carriage slowly ascending the mountain. 
 As he was desirous of talking with the farmers along our 
 route, we halted occasionally for this purpose. In these 
 brief interviews, he displayed the same patronizing manner 
 that he did on the preceding evening. He was profuse in 
 promises and wild in his asseverations of friendship for 
 the farmer. The greater number of these men, Hattered 
 by his attention, listened credulously to all he said, 
 and without hesitation pledged him their support; but 
 now and then one of more experience and broader in- 
 telligence received his proposals cautiously, and ofi^ered 
 rational objections to non-resident representation. Too 
 inexperienced in political matters, however, to refute his 
 bold assertions, and too timid in his presence to express 
 their honest convictions, they said but little, though wisely 
 deciding to delay their decision with regard to voting until 
 they had watched the progress of events. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 103 
 
 for 
 
 jtered 
 
 said, 
 
 but 
 
 in- 
 
 ftered 
 
 Too 
 
 his 
 
 Though conscious now tliat T possessed all tlie while a 
 sort of inner conviction that there was a want of sincerity 
 in t^ie man, a hollowness in his ])retensions, 1 tried to stilie 
 it, and in my boyish enthusiasm alforded him all the 
 aid 1 could. I liked the work in which I was engaged. A 
 new era seemed suddenly to have dawneil before me ; my 
 ambition was pursuing an entirely difl'erent route. 
 
 The sight of the schoolhouse nhere I first met liuth as a 
 teacher seemed to suggest to Baxter the necessity of more 
 educational institutions in the county. Though each 
 township already had a High School within its borders, 
 which, from scarcity of pujnls, was but poorly attended, 
 Baxter, in his o'ertlowing philanthropy, believed that tliese 
 schools should be multiplied. He argued that every section 
 of a township where there were mills and a store, in short, 
 where there was any prospect of a village, should have a 
 High School regularly endowed. To establish these schools, 
 and to obtain a liberal government grant for their support, 
 was, of course, among the laudable works which as a repre- 
 sentative he was to accomplish. As we descended the 
 mountain, a rough road or path leading back into the forest 
 to the cabins of two or three settlers suggested another 
 way of benefitting his constituents. The immense quanti- 
 ties of bark and lumber in these boundless forests needed 
 but good roads through which to be hauled to market to 
 becone a source of wealth to the poor men dwelling in this 
 section. This wooded country required to be opened up ; 
 roads must and should be made. : . .. 
 
 I had forgotten to say that he had not neglected in a few 
 instances to forward his interests by presenting small sums 
 of two or three dollars to individuals with whom he son- 
 
^0f» 
 
 104 
 
 llie Fi'ontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 versed. It was noticeable, however, that tliese "presents" 
 were made only to those of little intelli<^ence, who at Hrst 
 seemed' rather undecided as to the party they shoidd sup- 
 port in the political contest ; never to those whose pride or 
 principle might lead them to decline it, or to those who 
 evinced a decided determination to learn the ability of the 
 respective candidates, and consider their claims to the office. 
 He was not a novice in the art of reading men ; he seldom 
 made a mistake. Though in disbursing these sums there 
 was no bargain made, no intimation that they were given 
 only as a testimonial of good-will and friendship, the reci- 
 pients, as a matter of course, felt in duty bound to recipro- 
 cate the favor, and in no exceptional instance failed to 
 assure him of their unqualified friendship and support. 
 That they fulfilled these promises is probable ; but that^hey 
 forgot them if offered larger or even equal sums by the 
 opposing party is easy to conjecture. After stopping a 
 short time at the hotel in Glenfield we drove on to Hilton 
 and halted at the door of the inn, a respectable looking 
 building with quite an array of barns and sheds adjoining. 
 The place also sported a bowling alley, and like most coun- 
 try taverns had its complement of rough looking loungers. 
 The host, whose name was Fogg, a tall, middle-aged 
 Yankee, with shrewdness and a desire for money-catching 
 stamped in every lineament of his visage, and portrayed in 
 every action, received us courteously, and, at once, in the 
 most obsequious manner, avowed his readiness to do all in 
 his power to help Mr. Baxter in securing office. The latter^ 
 after ordering dinner, requested the landlord to invite several 
 of the most prominent men, whom he wished to meet, to 
 come in and spend the evening. The request was readily 
 
 > i 
 
The Frontier Schoulnuiater. 
 
 105 
 
 complied with, and as the shades of night drew around us 
 about a dozen rustic looking men assenil)U((l. The parlor, 
 a large room containing an oil-clotli instead of a car[)et, and 
 furnished with a rustic lounge and several chairs of varied 
 styles and ages, was devoted to the use of the candidate ftir 
 the evening. 
 
 Ahiiough I was recognised by tlie men from the fact, as 
 I afterwards learnud, that they had seen me at the Custom 
 House, 1 knew the names of but two of them, hence the 
 work of giving them an lufcroduction to Baxter fell on Fogg. 
 This ceremony performed, they seated themselves around 
 the room, with hats on, and mutely stared at the cjindidate, 
 seemingly waiting for the denouement. This silence, how- 
 ever, was of short duration, for the bar-tender soon entered 
 with glasses and a decanter of whiskey, which speedily 
 dispelled all signs of reserve, and made even the most taciturn 
 vie with his neighbor in loquaciousness. After they had 
 ell accepted the landlord's invitation to drink, Baxter, seated 
 near the table in the centre of the room, began to explain to 
 them the object of his ap})earance among them. They list- 
 ened with breathless attention, for a short time, until he 
 began to expatiate on the beauty and fertility of the country 
 and express his ability and willingness, if elected, to do much 
 towards benefitting its inhabitants, when he was frequently 
 interrupted with cries of " Hear ! hear ! " 
 
 Twenty minutes having been thus consumed, and the de- 
 canter having been replenished, a short pause in the speech 
 afforded Fogg an opportunity to suggest another "drink." 
 He evidently felt that he had a moneyed customer, and was 
 determined to make the most of it. No dissenting voice 
 was raised, so Baxter first accepted the invitation, and then 
 
TW 
 
 106 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 the patriotic rate-payers followed, lilack looking, short- 
 stemmed clay j)ip(!s were now brought forth from jacket \)U(ik- 
 ets and leisurely filled witli tobacco. The men .-seemed to have 
 settled down to the determination to have an enjoyable 
 social evening, and they pufl'ed away for the next half 
 hour, never removing their pij)es from their mouths save to 
 utter some exclamation of approval. 
 
 Baxter, perhaps from the inspiring effects of his potations, 
 delivered the last part of his address to them in a standing 
 jwsture. Nearly suffocated by the to})acco smoke and the 
 imwliolesome fumes of the apartment, at the close of the 
 address, I slipped out, unobserved, into the sitting room, 
 and placed my chair near the open door, where 1 could 
 easily see what was done and hear all that was said. A 
 drink was the first thing in order, and then after they were 
 again seated one of the i){irty said, 
 
 " Come, Steei)le, let's hear from you ; Mr. Baxter wants 
 to know how we stand, and as you're a magistrate and a 
 man of business, you orter speak fust." 
 
 The individual addressed was a spare man of medium 
 height with long black beard and locks which seemed never 
 to have been clipped since his boyhood. He recpiired nc 
 second invitation to speak, and knocking the ashes from his 
 pipe he thrust it into his pocket, rose quickly, and spoke as 
 follows: • ■• '■ ■' ' ■' ' ^ 
 
 "Yes, Jones, your'e right; Mr. Baxter wants to know 
 how we stand, and for one I'm willin' to let him. I never had 
 much chance for book larnin' and can't talk like a lawyer ; 
 but if I can't I know a thing or tew, and I tell yer what it 
 is, boys, I've made up my mind that Mr. Baxter's jest the 
 chap we want ter represent us next session in parly ment." 
 
Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 107 
 
 • Hear 1 h'jar ! " " You're riglit, Steeple ! " vociferously 
 ' shouted .several of his audience, and for a moment there was 
 a deafen ng noise from the .stamping of feet and the chip- 
 ping of hand.s. Steeple continued : — 
 
 "We all know, boys, what kind of a representative we 
 want in ])arlyment. We want a iiian that kin talk — a 
 man what's i). gentleman. Yoa all know, Ijoys, how'*-, some 
 years ago the folks of this county, eluded ter send one o* 
 their own number ter parlyment, and, gentlemen, who did 
 they send ? why they sent old Sam Gibson — a farmer like 
 me and you. He had more money than any on us has got 
 — probly tluee times more'n all on us together has got. 
 He had lots of mortgages out on twelve per cent, intrist, 
 but it took some ont ter git his lection ; but he got it ; and 
 what did he dew when he got inter parlyment. Why, he 
 want no whar. You know its a fact, boys, that he was so 
 tarnal stingy that he use ter take his j)rovisions from hum 
 and sleep in a barn to save expense. They say, tew, that he 
 use ter go right inter the House durin debates with his old 
 woolen frock on. Yes, he was fur savin' the dollars to let 
 out ter poor devils fur twelve per cent, intrist. But them 
 lawyers and big-bugs in parlyment didn't take no more 
 notice on him than they would of a nigger. They used ter 
 have their good times and big dinners ; but dew you spose 
 he was ever invited ? " 
 
 " Not much," emphatically replied one of the audience. 
 
 " No, not much," repeated the speaker. " Now, we don't 
 want ter send no more sich chaps as that ter parlyment. 
 We want a man that wont sleep in a barn — a feller that 
 when they hev any big doins or a champagne dinner, he'll 
 
 u 
 
 i 
 
 be invited. 
 
 Sich a man kin dew something for his consti- 
 
T^m 
 
 108 
 
 The Front ur Schoolniofftei'. 
 
 i 
 
 tooents — and, gentlemen," he continued with f^eat earnest- 
 ness casting a glance at the same time towards Baxter, 
 •' we've got sich a man right here afore us." 
 
 " Hear ! hear ! " again shouted the listeners. 
 
 *' I aint afeard, boys," resumed the orator, " ter say that 
 I'm fav'rbly im])ressed with Mr. Baxter, and fur one I shall 
 vote for him, and I b'lieve he'll be 'lected." 
 
 Steeple now sat down amidst great applause, which hav- 
 ing suljsided, one of the party exclaimed, i 
 
 "Now, Jones, 'tis your turn tew give tis a speech." 
 Jones did not hesitate, but springing quickly to his feet said, 
 
 " I aint no public speaker, boys, nor a magistrate nuther, 
 V)ut you've never known Jones ter back down in a 'mergency, 
 and he aint gwine ter dew it now. I quite agi'ee with 
 S([uire v^teeple that Mr. Baxter is the man what we want 
 fur our next member." 
 
 " Hear ! hear ! " oijce more broke in the audience. 
 
 " I quite agree with the Squire tew," lie continued, " that 
 Mr. Baxter is a gentleman. He aint afeard of spendin' a 
 dollar or tew, and he aint one of yer stuck up kind nuther. 
 He 'pears ter be like one on us, if he is rich and eddicated, 
 and that's what we want. We want a man that when he's 
 'lected won't feel tew big ter talk with us if we happen ter 
 go ter Montreal and need a leetle help 'bout bizness. Yer 
 know, boys, that my ole bosses hev been nights and days in 
 'lection times, and hev carried more'n one lead to the polls 
 and ole Bill and Topsy air good for pullin' more loads over 
 this ere mountm yet. You kin be sartin that I shall go fur 
 Mr. Baxter." Jones now resumed his seat, and after the 
 decanter had been once more called into requisition, it being 
 definitely settled that all present pledged themselves to sup- 
 
The Frontier SchoolmoHter. 
 
 109 
 
 port JiaxtiT, they proceeded to count up the rate-payers, 
 who, in all prolmhility would co-o])erate with them in sus- 
 tainin<^ their candidate ; and they arrived at the conclusion 
 — whicii must have been most satisfactory to Baxter — that 
 there were not more than half a dozen out of nearly a hun- 
 dred in that section upcn whom they could not positively 
 rely. ... 
 
 At this Juncture I seemed for the first time to have been 
 missed, uud I was made aware of the fact by the voice of 
 Baxter asking — 
 
 " What has become of Styles ? " 
 
 I arose, and standing in the door, said, / 
 
 " I am here, Mr. Baxter." 
 
 "01 thought you had deserted us," he replied. 
 
 Attenti(jn now being directed to myself, Stee])le exclaimed, 
 
 " Come, Styles, we haint had no speech from you yet, 
 and we must hev one." 
 
 " Yes, yes, that's so," chimed in several voices. 
 
 " I am not a voter," I replied, " and besides I never made 
 a political upeech." 
 
 " That makes no difference, young man," said Jones, 
 " we've hearn of you, and they say your smart at trappin* 
 ' smugglers. Now a chap that kin dew that kin make a 
 speech." 
 
 " No, no," interposed another, " we don't want any custom 
 officer to make speeches ter us. We smuggle for a livin' in 
 this place, we dew." 
 
 " Shet up. Busby ! " immediately spoke up his nearest 
 neighbor, " I tell yer the boy's gwiue ter speak tew us." 
 
 " A speech, Mr, Styles," said Baxter with a smile. 
 
 " Pitch in !" vociferated others. ,, -. - 
 
110 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I felt embarrassed in the presence of Baxter, more espe- 
 cially from the fact that I was taken by surprise and was at 
 a loss for something to say ; but being desirous of display- 
 ing my readiness to assist him, I did not like to decline, and 
 thinking, too, that possibly he was too nearly intoxicaied to 
 obstrve any fault in my diction or any lack of ideas, I 
 mustered courage and began. » , " 
 
 " I assure you, gentlemen, that I deem it no small compli- 
 ment to address you on this occasion. It is only recently 
 that I have formed the acquaintance of Mr. Baxter, and like 
 the rest of you I ara impressed with the opinion that he 
 intends — I hesitated slightly, for I disliked to speak con- 
 trary to my honest convictions — or at least he .desires to do 
 much for this county, and I trust that he may. A lawyer 
 — a man familiar with the statutes of the country and with 
 legislation, is certainly to be preferred as our representative 
 to one who knows nothing about these matters ; and as the 
 one whom rumor leads us to believe will appear in the 
 field against Mr, Baxter is neither a lawyer nor a practical 
 legislator, he certainly in this respect has not the same 
 claim upon your votes. Mr. Baxter has expressed himself 
 as ready to do whatever it is possible for him to do to pro- 
 mote those things which will contribute to the wealth and 
 prosperity of the country. He has declared himself tho ad- 
 vocate of better roads in this section ; the friend of the farmer, 
 the promoter of schools, churches and temperance reform." 
 
 " Git out ! " exclaimed a rough voice. " We don't want 
 any old fogy temperance lectorer for our representative. 
 Baxter aint no sich chap as that," 
 
 I glanced around and discovered a sardonic grin on the 
 face of the landlord, while Baxter, as if unconscious of what 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Ill 
 
 I had said, was fumbling for papers in his pocket. I saw 
 that I had thoughtlessly repeated his remarks, with regard 
 to temperance, to the wrong crowd. Endeavouring to mend 
 the matter, I continued : 
 
 " T mean to say that he has declared himself in favor of 
 
 a proliibitory law, if the country needs it, or, that is, if 
 
 his constituents require it." 
 
 " Well, that's better, young njan," spoke out the same 
 gruff voice ; " but the country don't need it, and his con- 
 stitooents don't require it." 
 
 "You may be assured, gentlemen,'' I said, "that Mr. 
 Baxter will not oppose the wishes of his supporters in this, 
 or in any other matter." 
 
 "Mr. Styles is right," exclaimed Baxter. 
 
 " That's all square 'nuff, young man," exclaimed another 
 of the electors, " but you said suthin' 'bouc churches. Now 
 we don't want no more churches nuther. No, sir'ee ; I don't 
 go in fur churches. We've got ministers 'nuff to s'port now. 
 P'raps you don't know, boys, that my ole woman has been 
 kinder hangi'i' round these meetins they hev up in the red 
 schoolhouse ; but she has, and so ole Tompkins, the preacher, 
 thinks he must come a visitin' 'bout once a week, and mt 
 his dinner, and have his boss fed, and that aint 'nuff, but, 
 she's got ter pack him off with pertaters, or meal, or one 
 stuff or nuther. I tell yer, boys, I'm down on this thing. 
 No churches fur me." 
 
 As soon as he had thus relieved his mind, I said, 
 
 " I hope you will not misapprehend me, gentlemen. My 
 object in sj)eaking of these things was to show you how 
 perfectly willing Mr. Baxter seems to be to do whatever 
 his constituents wish him to do. He certainlv has no desire 
 
mm 
 
 112 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 to labor in oppositiou to your interests, and trusting, as I 
 do, that he may accomplish much for our mutual benefit, 
 I shall labor most heartily with you to secure his election." 
 
 I sat dowa, and instantly Steeple rose to speak. 
 
 " I tell yer, boys," he said, " that the young man is right. 
 All he wants is ter have us understand that Mr. Baxter is 
 a gentleman, and that he's willin' ter help us. Now, he 
 aint gwine ter build churches and make us pay fur 'em ; nor 
 he aint gwine ter send ministers out here fur us ter s'port, 
 'less we want 'em ; nor he aint gwine ter lay out roads where 
 we don't want 'em ; nor dew nothin' else that's gwine ter 
 be agin us." 
 
 " Hear ! hear ! " yelled the company, and Steeple encour- 
 aged went on : — 
 
 "Now, as fur Tom Snyder's talkin' 'bout feedin' the 
 minister's boss, and 'grudgin' him suthin ter eat if he needs it, 
 I think that's a leetle tew small pertaters fur this crowd." 
 
 "Hear! hear!" 
 
 " Now, I may be agin taxin' ter build churches, but if 
 a preacher, or any other decent man comes tew my house 
 and wants sutliiu ter eat, or if the ole woman wants ter giv 
 him a few pertaters or a little Injun meal, or anything else, 
 he'll hev it, and thar wont be no fuss 'bout it nuther." •. 
 
 " That's you, Steeple, no pigs in this crowd," said Jones. 
 Snyder smoked his pipe, savagely ; the rest cheered. 
 
 " Now, boys," resumed the speaker, " its gittin' late, and 
 w.e orter go home, and let our representative go to bed ; but 
 afore we go I propose that we give three cheers fur him." 
 
 For the next three minutes it seemed as if the neighbor- 
 ing mountain must be shaken to its base, with the noise 
 that ensued. As soon as the cheering had subsided Jones 
 rose and said : 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 113 
 
 " I propose three cheers for the landlord." 
 
 Again the deafening cheers went up. 
 
 " Now three cheers for the Queen," suggested another. 
 
 An earthquake of tumult s.ucceeded. 
 
 "Come, hoys," said Fogg, "its my treat 'fore you go." 
 
 " Hold on," interposed Ruiter, " we must give three cheers 
 fur the young custom officer." 
 
 " Young man," he said, addressing me, " we shall send 
 you to Parlynient some time," and before giving nie time to 
 reply he gave the signal for cheering, and at onc(j the 
 shouts arose. 
 
 The party now dispersed, with the exception of two who 
 hacl imbibed too freely to be at all inclined to leave, and 
 they T)atriotically swore they never would go home till Mr. 
 Baxter was " lected." 
 
 Tired and disgusted with the whole scene, I immediately 
 called for my room, and retired. It was my first experience 
 at electioneering, and I fervently wished that it might be 
 my last. I could but feel that there was something terribly 
 debasing in the whole work. What I had witnessed was 
 only one of the least flagi'ant cases of man leading his fellow 
 man into temptation — an instance of intelligence, for the 
 emoluments of office, pandering to the prejudices and apj)e- 
 tites of ignorance — cool, deliberate encouragement of vice. 
 
 I surmised whr n I heard Baxter request the landlord to 
 invite some of the most prominent men of the locality to 
 his house that evening, that the latter, in observing the 
 request, might possibly consult the interest of his own pocket 
 in the matter, and that, consequently, pre-eminence, in his 
 estimation, would consist in ability to drink the most 
 whiskey ; and the sequel showed that my estimate of the 
 
 !H 
 
 t 
 
^m 
 
 114 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 man was not far fron? correct. 1 knew 'that there was 
 anotlier class of men in that section quite different, morally, 
 from those that we had met that day at the hotel, but as their 
 number was small, I believed that it mattered little, with 
 regard to the success of his election, whetlier Baxter saw 
 them or not. 
 
 In the morning, after breakfast, Baxter called for his 
 bill, which amounted to the mod'^st sum of fifteen dollars, 
 and he then handed Fogg twenty dollars more with the 
 remark — 
 
 " I leave that with you, believing that you wiU see that 
 it is used in my interests." 
 
 " You may be sure of that, Mr, Baxter," was the emphatic 
 reply. ''Yon ca,n count onme." 
 
 Baxter then gave him a few directions, after which we ' 
 entered the carriage and drove off' to a man named ^Vood- 
 bury, quite a respectable farmer and an active temperance 
 man, withal, who lived but a short distance from our direct 
 route to Arklow, I suggested to Baxter the ider of visiting 
 him, iind the suggestion meeting his concurrence, we drove 
 to liis domicile, 
 
 Woodbury was different in many respects from the 
 majority of those men that we had thus fiir met. He had 
 made the most of his little stock of book learning, and, by 
 observation and a considerable amount of reading, had 
 acquired Gufficieut knowlec^ge, so that he was looked upon 
 by his neighbors as a man of education ; and by those, of 
 higher culture as a man of intelligence. 
 
 Spending no money when he thouglit it unnecessary ^ 
 always at home except when pressing business called him 
 hence, and outspoken in his opinions, especially with regard 
 
 ,33 
 
 if: if 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 115 
 
 to intern Iterance, he was not at all popular witli a certain 
 class in Hilton ; his frugality being regarded as stinginess 
 his lectures to the intemperate as meddlesome interference 
 with tlie rights of others, and his sUiy-at-home propensity 
 as a want of appreciation of fun and goodfellowshij). This 
 outline of his character and reputation I had delineated 
 to Baxter ere we arrived at his house, so that I thought he 
 was sutficientl} posted to take the most direct path to 
 Woodbury's good graces. 
 
 We found him at work near his house. He received us 
 somewhat coolly, I fancied, but after the salutations had 
 passed lie inv. 'is to go in and take a seat. Baxter 
 declined — want of time and press of business being his 
 excuse — and immediately introduced the subject of election. 
 When he paused, Woodbury said : 
 : " You came into the place yesterday, I heard." 
 
 "Yes," was the reply, "and I am surprised that I did 
 not see you at the hotel. I met quite a number of the 
 rate-payers there, last evening." 
 
 "I knew nothing about the meeting," said Woodbury, 
 "till early this morning. I heard, then, that they had 
 quite a time at Fogg's, last night." 
 
 I glanced at Baxter, but he, in no wise disconcerted, 
 quickly replied — 
 
 " Yes, a very pleasant meeting. 1 find, Mr. Woodbury 
 that your people here are wide awake about election. 
 They seem to understand well what the interests of their 
 country demand.'' 
 
 " Well," said Woodbury, " I don't know who was there 
 last night, but my impression is, that if it was the crowd 
 that usually patronizes Fogg, they thought the country 
 needs whiskey more than anything else." 
 
 m 
 
116 
 
 The Frontier Schoolviaater. 
 
 <' Indeed," replied Baxter ; " wl y, those whom T met last 
 evening bore the appearance of being honest, industrious 
 farmers. Several of them spoke, aij^-' expressed very sen- 
 sible o])inions as to the character of the man whom they 
 would choose to represent them in Parliament. I am very 
 sorry you were not present, Mr. Woodbury." 
 
 "I never go into Fogg's house," was the reply ; and then, 
 turning to me, he said : 
 
 " Now, Styles, why didn't you come and stay with me 
 last night instead of taking Mr. Baxter over to that Mum 
 Hole ? I cculd have got quite a number to come in, and a 
 class of men who know quite as well, I dare say, what we 
 need as any who were at Fogg's." 
 
 I was taken aback somewhat, but replied — 
 
 " Really, Mr. Woodbury, it did not occur to me that you 
 would like to entertain us, and I supposed Mr. Baxter 
 would prefer going to the hotel, it being the most central 
 place. I am sure that I would have enjoyed staying with 
 you, and I have no doubt Mr. Baxter would, had he known 
 that he could have accomplished the object of his visit here 
 as well as he could elsewhere." 
 
 "Most certainly, I would," said Baxter, "and I only 
 regret that your generous desires were not known before 
 we had made other arrangements. But I trust that we 
 shall be better awjuainted, Mr. Woodbury, for I venture to 
 hope that I shall find you a powerful supporter of my 
 interests in the coming elections." 
 
 " Well,*I don't know whether you will or not," replied 
 Woodbury in a frank and independent manner. "That 
 depends very much upon circumstances. You are a stran- 
 ger to me now, and I shall want to know more about you 
 before I can pledge myself to support you." 
 
m 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 117 
 
 " I approve of your caution, Mr. Woodbury," said Baxter, 
 "and admire your frankness. I certainly desire that every 
 man in this county shall know for who a he is voting, and 
 I exhort you to make all the inquiries respecting me that 
 you may think proper. Should I be elected, I shall feel 
 myself bound to labor earnctly for the benefit of my con- 
 stituents, and I believe that I can accomplish much for 
 their good." 
 
 " I have no doubt of that," was the reply, " but if you 
 accomplish one-half of what you promise to do for us, you 
 will do uxore than any other representative I have ever 
 
 seen. 
 
 " Do you insinuate, Mr. Woodbury, that I am trying to 
 deceive you ? " 
 
 " Not intentionally, perhaps ; but representatives are but 
 human, and may themselves be deceived. Though your 
 desire to effect great things for your constituents may be 
 strong enough, you are but one amongst a large number. 
 Your power to do good is very limited, and I hope you do 
 not take us all for such fools *bat we believe you can do 
 any great thing for this county." 
 
 Baxter was for a moment staggered by these frank 
 expressions of the honest farmer, but he was not to be easily 
 put down, and summoning all his assurance he returned to 
 the charge. 
 
 " Very true, Mr. Woodbury, I am but one, but I have a 
 vote, to say nothing of my influence with others, and by 
 recording that vote on the right side, I shall at least be able 
 to show my good intentions." 
 
 " That is all right, Mr. Baxter, you speak now with reason 
 and modesty, and you have only to assure me that your vote 
 
 I 
 
 t f,; 
 ^.1 
 
^I'l 
 
 118 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 always will bo cast on the right side, or on the side which 
 your jii ' nnent and couscieuce tell you is right, in order to 
 secure mine." 
 
 " 1 wish that I had some way of assuring you, Mr. 
 Woodbury," . 
 
 " I wish you had," was the blunt reply, and then looking 
 the candidate squarely in the face he asked, > 
 
 " What is your opinion of the temperance question, Mr. 
 Baxter?" 
 
 The latter with an attempt at a most gracious smile, but 
 with some faint indications of uneasiness, replied, 
 
 " I am a very firm believer in temperance, Mr. Woodbury." 
 
 " No doubt of it," said Woodbury, with a hearty laugh ; 
 I never knew a man who wasn't, but that is not the question. 
 Are you strictly a temperance man, one who not only advo- 
 cates total abstinence, but practices it ? " 
 
 " As to being fanatical on the temperance question, 1 do 
 not think I am," said Baxter, " but believing that the li([uor 
 traffic is a great curse to our country, I can heartily give 
 my support to any strict prohibitory law, and shall not fail 
 to do it whenever the opportunity is presented." 
 
 " Well, you stand then about as I had surmised. Like 
 thousands of others you dislike to be very active for fear of 
 being considered a fanatic, and too fond of your beverage to 
 deny yourseK for the sake of a good example to your fellow 
 men; you go about preaching one thing and practicing 
 another. Do you know, Mr. Baxter, that 1 regard these 
 moderate drinkers as the greatest curse to the temperance 
 cause that exists ? " 
 
 " Do you think the temperance question the only one to 
 be considered in selecting your representative ? " asked 
 Baxter, with a slightly sarcastic laugh. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 119 
 
 " By no means, sir," was the reply, " but I regard it as 
 the most iin[)ortant one ; and looking at this matter as I do, 
 I shall vote for no candidate for oftice who is not a 
 thoroughly honest, temperance man." ;,^ - 
 
 "Do I understand you to mean that unles? he is a 
 teetotaler, he cannot be an honest temperance man ? " 
 
 "That is precisely what I mean." 
 
 " Even if he does everything in his power to obtain the 
 passage of prohibit(jry laws, and in other ways promotes 
 temperance ? " 
 
 " If he still neglectec^ to abstain wholly from the use of 
 intoxicating liquors himself, I would not regard him as an 
 honest temperance man." 
 
 " And you would not vote for such a man ? " still que- 
 ried Baxter. 
 
 " Not if by doing it I could be made Governor General 
 to-morrow," was the reply. .■ 
 
 " Well, I trust that posterity will appreciate you," said 
 Baxter, beginning to show displeasure, " but I doubt whether 
 many in this age take such a narrow view of temperance 
 as you do." / 
 
 " 0," replied Woodbury, with a good-natured laugh, " I 
 don't expect to be appreciated by men like you ; but if I do 
 labor under that disadvantage, I shall at least have the 
 pleasure of knowing that I have acted according to the 
 dictates of my conscience." 
 
 Baxter merely bade him " good morning," and then we 
 returned to the carriage. 
 
 For some minutes he maintained a moody silence, as we 
 drove homeward, but at length he broke into a hearty laugh 
 and asked, 
 
120 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Have you many such men as Woodbury in this county ? " 
 
 " I think not many," I replied, 
 
 " It is to be hoped that you hav'n't," he answered. 
 
 Had I possessed the fearlessness and candor of Woodbury, 
 I would doubtless have given utterance to my convictions 
 by replying, . > /. 
 
 " It is to be regretted that we have not," but, like the 
 majority of people similarly situated, I only smiled and 
 eaid nothing. • 
 
 We reached Arklow at noon, and though we had been 
 absent but little more than twenty-four hours, it really 
 seemed to me a period of a week. I certainly was glad to get 
 back to the c^uiet scenes of my labor, and it would have afford- 
 ed me great pleasure tnen to know that my work at election- 
 eering was at an end, but I had the consolation of thinking 
 t.nat whatever remained for me to do in this line during 
 that campaign, I would be permitted to do alone, and 
 consequently in such manner as I preferred. 
 
 On the evening of that same day several of the citizens 
 of Arklow met Baxter at the Custom House, but as they 
 were a different class of men from those we met at Fogg's, 
 as might be supposed, the evening was spent in a different 
 manner. ■ ''■-.- \''^,v:,'":^ :-,."'•''■:, ,; :,,;;*. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 I receive money with which I am to relieve the necessities of rate- 
 payers — A chat concerning politics — A visit to Maplo Iligliland 
 — An engagement. 
 
 On the succeeding day, quite early in the morning, Baxter, 
 in the presence of the Doctor, handed nie S200 in bank 
 notes, and after giving me some brief directions, and express- 
 ing many wishes for my success, he jumped into the 
 carriage waiting for him at the door, and set out to a remote 
 part of the county. 
 
 Left alone with he Doctor once more, I narrated to him 
 in detail the incidents that had occurred during my visit with 
 Baxter to Hilton — not forgetting to repeat the patriotic 
 speeches delivered at Fogg's. He had a keen perception of 
 the ludicrous, a hearty appreciation of a good joke, and to 
 him the political meeting, as described, bore so much the 
 semblance of a well-conceived burlesque, that he never tired 
 of alluding to it, and years afterward it afforded him the 
 subject of many a hearty laugh. 
 
 " Such ideas of fitness fur the office of representative ! " 
 he ejaculated, half an hour or so after I had detailed to him 
 
 IS- 
 
122 
 
 The Froniur Schoolmaster. 
 
 the story of our adventures, and he was pacing liis office 
 in the enjoyment of his usual morning smoke. " Well," he 
 continued, "they are as rational perhai)s as those of many 
 others we meet, whom we would naturally suppose were 
 well infonned." 
 
 " Possibly,' I replied. 
 
 " Yes," he said, " and Baxter will find very many such 
 men in this county who will enthusiastically support him, 
 and " — here he })aused, and looking steadily at me he con- 
 tinued — "he'will be elected." 
 
 There was a degree of em])hasis on the last sentence 
 which, considered with his manners and previous remarks, 
 conveyed to me the impression that he regarded such an 
 event as something to be wondered at and regretted. I had 
 not before heard him utter a word which gave me an inkling 
 of the estimate that he had placed upon Baxter. I have 
 already said that I believed from his manner he did not 
 admire him, but this was a suspicion which I strove hard 
 to consider groundless. 
 
 I did not like to question him with regard to his opinion 
 of the man. Pleased with the assurance t'mt he believed 
 he would be elected, and fearful lest, if I questioned him, 
 he might say something which would undermine the air 
 castles that Baxter had inspired me to erect, I chose to 
 change the subject of conversation at once. 
 
 Aa it was now Saturday, I decided to postpone my elec- 
 tioneering *,iVors till the ensuing week, and spend the 
 evening oi i^iat day in the society of Kuth. I was actuated 
 not only by anticipation of the pleasure of seeing her, but 
 T confess to a little curiosity to know how long Mr. Niel 
 remained, and also to a desire to lay before her the new 
 
77</! Frontier Sdioolitnaster. 
 
 123 
 
 projects that liad J)()s.s(;.s.s(h1 me. Relyiiij^ much, aa I always 
 had, uj)on lier judgment, ami re<(ar(ling her advice as .some- 
 thing not to be discarded, 1 felt that it would aftbril me 
 much ])roHt and pleasure to talk freely with her concerning 
 my engagement with I*>axter, and also of his promised 
 reward. 
 
 She seemed unusually glad to see me that evening, from 
 the fact, I presumed, that she was somewhat lonely, her 
 relatives having gone away for a few days on a visit, leaving 
 her — with the exception of a man and maid servant — the 
 only occupant of the house. 
 
 After the salutations had passed, and she had given me 
 a humorous account of her housekeeping experiences of 
 the past two days, with as much santj-fvoid as I could dis- 
 play, I asked when Mr. Niel dei)arted. The i)leasant smile 
 which had previously lit up her face at once disappeared ; 
 her eyes dropped, ?',nd T fancied that there was something 
 slightly pettish in her tone when she informed me that he 
 did not leave until the afternoon following the day when 
 I met him. Her manner excited my curiosity, and I longed 
 to have it gratified. 
 
 " He seems to be an intimate friend of your uncle," I 
 remarked. , . ^ ■ ^ 
 
 " Yes," she replied, with eyes still downcast, as she 
 employed herself busily with a piece of embroidery, " uncle 
 esteimshim highly." 
 
 " And like a dutiful niece, I suppose you feel bound to 
 esteem him highly," I ventured still further to remark. 
 
 " I esteem him as a friend of the family," she answered, 
 still plying her needle rapidly, and after a moment's pause, 
 glancing ini^uiringly at me, half laughing, she said, " but 
 why do you ask?" ' 
 
/' 
 
 124 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Is it not natural," I replied, conscious that the blood 
 had mounted to mv cheek, "that I should feel an interest 
 in your friends ? " 
 
 " Perhaps," she said, " but Mr. Niel is not a very particu- 
 lar friend of mine." 
 
 There was a frankness, an earnestness in this declaration 
 which reassured me. Whatever I had before observed that 
 roused my curiosity, I felt was of little consequeuce. Her 
 words always carried with them conviction of truthfulness, 
 and as they had done so with more than usual force on the 
 present occasion, I cared not to question her further respect- 
 ing a subject of which, I fancied, she for some reason did 
 not like to speak, 
 
 "Well, Euth, we will dismiss Mr. Neil," I said, "and 
 as you have volunteered to give me an account of your 
 doings since I saw you, I will tell you of mine, and I might 
 as well inform you that I have a long story to tell," 
 
 " Indeed, you excite my curiosity. I hope you hav'n't 
 been chasing smugglers again." 
 
 " No, smuggling has been a matter of little interest to me 
 for the last fev/ days." 
 
 " Pray, do tell ; you puzzle me." 
 
 " T have embarked in politics," I replied laughing. 
 
 " Politics ! " she exclaimed, " why I thought you detested 
 politics." » ' - . , 
 
 "So I do, and now more than ever, but if you can endure 
 it I will give you a history of my two days experience in 
 political life." , . 
 
 " I will try," she replied. 
 
 I then recounted to her my meeting with Baxter, the 
 proposal and the promises he had made me, my visit with 
 
 w 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 125 
 
 him to Hilton, and his subsequent doings up to the time of 
 his departure. I carefully avoided saying anytliing of my 
 impressions of him, and in order to do this I omitted what- 
 ever I thought might tend to prejudice her against him. 
 My account, too, of tho meeting at F'^'^g's was only a faint 
 picture of what actually occurred, but with a pure woman's 
 instinctive horror of vice, she looked reproachfully at me 
 when I had reacned this point in the narrative, and asked, 
 
 "Did not your conscience reprove you for being a witness 
 of such a scene?" ' ■ 
 
 The reader already knows what my impressions were on 
 the occasion to which she referred, hence will naturally 
 divine that my answer to the question was in the aftirmative. 
 
 She listened quietly and soberly to the remaining part of 
 my story, evincing no gladness at what she must have 
 felt I regarded as good luck. I was perplexed, not to say 
 chagrined, at her ajiathy. 
 
 " You do not congi'atulate me," I said, laughingly, after 
 a short silence, " on my success in business." 
 
 " Do you really regard it as success in business ? " she 
 asked in a tone of seriousness, almost sadness. 
 
 *' Why should I not ? " I inquired. ' 
 
 " T hardly know," she answered, " but tell me, do you 
 really believe that Mr. Baxter is an honest, good man ? " 
 
 The question was a hard one. I was almost annoyed 
 with her for having asked it. I could not answer in the 
 affirmative, and disliked to answer negatively, so I equivo- 
 cated ami said : - 
 
 " I am not sufficiently acquainted with him as yet to 
 know just what I believe of him." 
 
 •' But do you think it is quite right to do what he re<iuires 
 you to do ? " she still pursued. 
 
126 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ni 
 
 " 0, you women," I replied, " have too delicate cod- 
 sciences to deal in politics." 
 
 " That may be," she answered, " but I have little fear, 
 Frank, that you will do wrong, if you act according to the 
 dictates of your conscience, in engaging in politics." 
 
 " I am glad to know that you think so well of me," I 
 answered, wishing heartily just then that Baxter's money 
 was in his own pocket. 
 
 " And so you will go to work on Monday," she said, " to 
 induce peoi)le to vote for him ? " 
 
 " That is what I have agreed to do," I replied. 
 
 " Well," she continued, " I only hope that you will find 
 him as conscientious in fulfilling his promises to you." 
 
 " I cannot now believe that I shall find him otherwise," 
 I answered. 
 
 A short silence ensued, which she broke with the follow- 
 ing apparently anxious inquiry, at the same time laying 
 her hand on my arm. , . 
 
 " Tell me, will you find it necessary in your labors to 
 liave other meetings like that you had at Fogg's ? " 
 
 " .N(j," I replied, smiling at her fears, " I htpe not. I 
 shall be alone, and shall usually meet the rate-payers at 
 tlieir houses." 
 
 " Well, it will be pleasant for me to think of that," she 
 answered, with an appearance of relief, " and I am sure it 
 will be more pleasant for you." 
 
 " Yes, you may be sure it will," I answered. 
 
 Tlie subject of conversation now changed. It was late 
 tliat evening ere I bid Ler adieu, and the reader will 
 sciircely wonder that I never fully realized how or when I 
 reachetl home, when he learns that I performed the journey 
 under the emotions called forth by plighted love. 
 
CHAPTEli X. 
 
 E'ectioneering— The nomination— A disgraceful scene- The election. 
 
 My first labors in the interests of Baxter, after his 
 departure, took me to two or three French settlements on 
 the mountain slope in Foreston. 
 
 The inhabitants were mostly new comers, from the 
 parishes along the Richelieu and St. Lawrence, and were 
 generally ignorant and poor, but hardy and industrious. 
 
 Flanging into this mountain wilderness, and settling on 
 rough, stony, yet productive land, they had toiled with 
 hopeful, happy spirits ; and with the proceeds of their 
 ashes, shingles, and sometimes sugar, purchased the neces- 
 saries of life. 
 
 To many of those who had been a few years in the town- 
 ship I was personally known, and from these I learned the 
 circumstances and character of their neighbors, and was 
 thus the better able to decide where my " donations " were 
 the most deserved and were the most likely to relieve the 
 needy. They always received these small sums with every 
 indication of unbounded gratitude, and tliough I never 
 
-m 
 
 128 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 #1 
 
 attempted to extort a promise from any one that he would 
 vote for Baxter, I never bestowed a present on one who 
 was not instantly profuse in his declarations of friendship 
 for him, and loud in his expressions of determination to be 
 early at the poll. 
 
 But the habitant was not the only one that I accosted, I 
 often met and talked with the English-speaking citizens, and 
 now and then held a long parley with one better informed 
 than his neighbors, and possessed of an opinion of his own. 
 Thus the entire week was consumed, and at its close I had 
 obtained sufficient information concerning the political status 
 of the township to feel sure that nine-tenths of its rate- 
 payers would vote for Baxter. 
 
 It was already understood that a man named Farmer, 
 living in the county, was to be the opposing candidate, but 
 thus far he nor his friends had displayed much interest in 
 his success. He was an able agriculturist, and, with the 
 exception of being better educated, was in every respect a 
 man similar to Woodbury, whom I have already described. 
 The nomination of the candidates was to take place at 
 Mapleton, the chef -lieu of the county, on the Wednesday, 
 after I had completed my canvass of Foreston. 
 
 On the day previous to the nomination, I was again alone 
 in the Custom Office, engaged in reading, when I was a little 
 surprised by the arrival of Mr. Niel, who drove up with 
 his stylish bays before mentioned. I was the more sur- 
 prised from the fact that T had never before seen him at 
 Arklow. 
 
 He appeared delighted to see me, and, as an excuse for 
 coming there, said that he had called to enter a few simple 
 articles that he had just purchased across the line, in May- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 129 
 
 fair. I Wii3 not a little puzzled to kiiow why he had taken 
 the trouble to purchase such common articles in Mayfair, and 
 then why he had chosen to enter them at Arklow instead 
 of going to the Custom Office where he usually did his 
 business, and which was located on by far the nearest and 
 most direct route to his residence. I made no elTort, how- 
 ever, to gratify my curiosity, and extended to him all the 
 courtesy that I commanded ; and as ne seemed in no haste 
 to depart, after dispatching his business, I invited him to 
 remain and dine with me ; an invitation which he seemed 
 pleased to accept. 
 
 During his stay he appeared intent on winning my favor. 
 As on the occasion when I first met him, so now, he asked 
 me many questions relative to myself, talked freely on the 
 subjects in which he thought I felt the most interested, 
 and expressed many warm wishes for the successful issue 
 of the labors in which I was engaged. He said nothing 
 about Kuth, but enquired particularly after Mr. E(igarton's 
 family, and I took no pains to conceal from him the fact 
 that I had visited their residence since I had met him there. 
 Again he urged me to visit him, and, as he left, obtained a 
 promise once more from me that I would spend a few days 
 with him at his house as soon as I could consistently do so. 
 
 I certainly was in a quandary. I could assign only one 
 reason for his extraordinary interest in me ; but as I had 
 the assurance of Kuth that he was no particular friend of 
 hers I felt secure ; and in the other matters that were 
 pressing upon my attention, he and his visit were soon 
 forgotten. 
 
 On the morning of the nomination, actuated by a 
 feeling of interest and curiosity, I drove, in company with 
 
■I 
 
 130 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 \ i 
 
 the Doctor, to Mapleton, Baxter, with two or three ])oli- 
 ticians, from Montreal, who had come out for the puri^ose 
 of addressing the electors, had arrived befcre us. We had 
 besides a posse of roughs who had been conveyed hitlier for 
 the purpose of cheering and making other demonstrations 
 in his favor, and to do whatever they could to the annoyance 
 and detriment of his opponent. It may not be known 
 to the reader dat formerly politicians often employed 
 such characters to do similar work on similar occasions, 
 and as the custom has not yet been fully abandoned, 
 Baxter alone cannot be censured for descending to 
 such a demoralizing and disgraceful act to consummate 
 his schemes. 
 
 ■ After dinner, the crowd, upon which whiskey already 
 displayed its effects, repaired to the County House, in front 
 of which the speaker's stand was erected. After that 
 gentleman hud been duly nominated, loud cries of " Baxter I 
 Baxter ! " rose from various parts of the throng, and with 
 flushed face and pompous manner he strode to the front of 
 the platform, doffed his hat, brushed back his hair, and in 
 stertorian tones commenced his address. 
 
 I shall not attempt to repeat it, believing that it will 
 suffice to say that it was long, rambling and bombastic ; 
 pregnant with protestations of patriotism and pledges of 
 fidelity to his constituents. ' 
 
 Prolonged cheering followed, and then two or three 
 voices called for Farmer. That gentleman, a stout, intelli- 
 gent looking man, clad in rather coarse but substantial 
 apparel, came forward from the rear of the platform, and 
 would, no doubt, have made a sensible and effective speech 
 had he been permitted ; but his appearance was the signal 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 131 
 
 
 for the roughs from both the city and country to commence 
 a series of assaults as disgusting to the respectabh^ unsel- 
 fish spectator, as it was discourteous and injurious to the 
 speaker. Groans, yells and insulting epithets, hurled at 
 the candidate, followed each other in such rapid succession 
 that he never got further tiian "Gentlemen electors — " 
 although perfectly cool and undismayed, he stood long 
 before them waiting for the tumult to subside. He calmly 
 folded his arms and surveyed the scene like one conscious 
 of rectitude, and possessed more of pity and shame for 
 them than of indignation and rage at their conduct. 
 Several times, when there was . lull in the uproar, did he 
 attempt to proceed, but just as often did his enemies shame- 
 fully prevent him. Once, in the course of the pn^ceedings, 
 Baxter, with a show of candor, stepped forward, and, with 
 a smile on his countenance, which to me seemed one of 
 satisfaction at the conduct of his supporters, asked that 
 they would kindly refra.'n fn^n any acts of disturbance, 
 and permit his good friend, Mr. Farmer, to address tliem. 
 
 "Indeed, gentlemen," he said, "conscious, as I am, that 
 my friends here on the platform, who are yet to address 
 you, will easily overthrow whatever Mr, Farmer in his 
 wisdom and eloquence may say, I earnesiy entreat that 
 you will give him the privilege of speaking. However 
 weak his cause may be, I am sure that a statesman so 
 distinguished, a man of such vast and varied learning, 
 cannot fail to say much that will edify us, and I assure 
 you, gentlemen, that 1 am anxious to listen to him." 
 
 Baxter resumed his seat, and loud cheers followed. 
 Farmer stood, meanwhile, his cheek for the first time 
 flushed with indignation, ..nd his frame quivering with 
 
 
 
 hi 
 
 ,'i 
 
■^ 
 
 132 
 
 x'he Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 • *^. '■' 
 
 eagerness to reply to thi? irony and ungentlemanly satii. , 
 upon his obscurity, and I secretly hoped that he might be 
 allowed to speak, feeling suro, as I did, that he would con- 
 vince Mr. Baxter that he had caught a Tartar. But it 
 was in vain that he attempted it. 
 
 The roughs, as if well assured that Baxter's re([uest was 
 a mere sham — a hypocritical show of fairness — were more 
 demonstrative than ever in their endeavors to prohibit 
 his opponent from speaking. Convinced that it was a pre- 
 concerted plan to give him no hearing, he finally retired 
 from the platform. Some one then ventured to call for 
 Woodbury, his staunch supporter. The cry was caught 
 up and rei)eated by a few others. That gentleman cjime 
 forward, but only to be jeered and hootjd from the plat- 
 form. One of Baxter's friends, from Montreal, was then 
 called out, but just as he was about to commence his 
 address there was quite a move in the crowd, and a large 
 number, who proved to be Farmer's friends, walked off. 
 Disgusted with the treatment which that gentleman had 
 received, and too respectable to seek retaliation by the 
 same ignoble means, they chose to retire, leaving the 
 speaker co address those more desirous of listening. 
 
 Falling into the ranks of those departing I also moved 
 awtu^' and returned to the hotel. I was not surprised to 
 learn from indignant remarks that many who were leaving 
 had come there strongly inclined to support Baxter ; but 
 they had become so thoroughly disgusted with the day's 
 proceedings that they were now resolved to support his 
 opponent. One man, in particular, affirmed that on the 
 preceding evening he had expressed the strongest deter- 
 mination to vote for Baxter, but now, if he were offered the 
 
 il 
 
The Frontier Schoolrriatiter. 
 
 133 
 
 best farm in the comity, lie wouldn't vote for a man who 
 would " uphold 8uch lascality." 
 
 I very gladly refrained from participating in j)olitics on 
 this occasion. I met many during the day who knew the 
 part I had taken in furthering the interests of Baxter, and 
 they congratulated me warmly on the present appearances 
 of hid success, but as I inwardly felt that it was not a 
 subject for congratulation, I had but little to say to them in 
 return. • '.• 
 
 An hour after I h.ad returned to the hotel, Baxter and 
 many of his friends came in. He seemed in the most 
 exuberant spirits, and for the second time that day shook 
 me warmly by the hand, thanked me for the generous way 
 in which 1 had supported him, and added that he liad every 
 evidence that I had used the money he gave me to a " noble 
 purpose." I had my doubts about the purpose being a 
 very noble one, but said, 
 
 "I endeavored to use it, Mr. Baxter, where it would 
 contribute to your interests." 
 
 " Well, Styles," he said, '' continue to do your best for 
 me, and you'll find it all right after the election." 
 
 He was now called away by a friend, and the Doctor's 
 carriage being in readiness for us that moment, I saw him^ 
 no more. 
 
 Not many days after the nomination, the election occuiTed 
 which occupied two days. Having no vote to cast, I re- 
 mained at home, and from the otiice window observed the 
 waggon-loads of enthusiastic, shouting electors, who during 
 the time were constantly going to and from the poll at 
 Foreston. 
 
 Notwithstanding his confident assurance of success' 
 
 
134 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 :|| 
 
 Baxter found that his victory was not so easily won. More 
 than once during the first day of voting did his fritmds 
 have reason to fear the issue, but stimulated by these fears 
 to gi'eater exertion, and goaded to a reckless and bare-faced 
 use of money even at the polls, they finally succeeded in 
 eleci/ing him by a small majority. Foreston, as I had 
 opined, went strongly in his favor, other townships were 
 about equally divided in the number of votes they cast for 
 the respective candidates, while Farmer's native township, 
 in which he still resided, went almost wholly in his fovor — 
 a fact which gave evidence of the worth of the man, and 
 the esteem in which he was held by those to whom he was 
 intimately known. It was generally conceded that Baxter's 
 victory would have been far more easy and brilliant had it 
 not been believed that he secretly instigated and encouraged 
 the shameful persecutions inflicted uj)on Farmer on the day 
 of the nomination. 
 
 ' 
 
•Ml 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Want of employment attain — T vifit Montreal — Tlie politician tJeclines 
 to fulfil hiH promise to me — A visit to Cirroilton — Sui?ar partie-t 
 — I hire money for the purpose of prosecuting my studien. 
 
 Months had passed away since the occurreiice of the 
 events recorded in the last chapter, and we were once more 
 on the verge of spring. I had remained in the Custom 
 Office all the while with very little to do, and had whiled 
 away the time chiefly with my books. I had made no 
 money except the little paid me as salary, and having 
 added many — and some of them expensive — volumes to 
 my library, and newly replenished ay wardrobe, the not 
 over large amount of money which I had in the fall liad 
 dwindled down to a small sum. 
 
 I had neither seen Baxter nor heard directly from him 
 since the day that he was nominated, and though in the 
 newspapers I had carefully read the proceedings of Parlia- 
 ment, hoping that his name might frequently appear as a 
 prominent and influential member, thus giving me faith to 
 believe in his ability to fulfil his promises to me, I was in 
 a measure disappointed. All that I ever learned respecting 
 
136 
 
 The Front lev SchoolmaHter, 
 
 ilf 
 
 fi 
 
 him served to convince me that, while he possessed a little 
 ability, he was hy n* wioans a prominent man in his ])arty, 
 
 licli'n'ing that he knew both niy desires and neiiessities, 
 1 i'elt that inasmuch as he had voluntarily offered to 
 assist me, and I had performed tlie labor he had assigned 
 me, it belonged to him to fulfil his })romises without a 
 reminder of them, hence, I had modestly refrained from 
 visiting him ; but as time rolled on, and I began to feel 
 more and more the need of remunerative em[)loyment, I 
 decided, at the suggestion of the Doctor, to address him 
 by letter. 
 
 I said nothing in this of what had passed between ns, 
 but politely solicited his aid in securing a position. 
 
 " Did you remind him," asked the Doctor, as I was 
 about posting the letter, " that the three months, in which 
 time he was to place you in a situation, with fifteen 
 hundred a year, expired long ago ? '' 
 
 " No," I said with a laugh, " I trust that ^ not ignor- 
 ant of the fact." 
 
 Three weeks passed, and no answer came. Again I sat 
 down and wrote him, this time making a little stronger 
 appeal to his kindness, and even gently hinting that he 
 had formerly inspired me with a hope that he would give 
 me one of the many situations he had at his command. 
 
 I thought that he certainly could not accuse me of 
 sarcasm, if he remembered what he had said while at 
 Arklow, and during our ride to Hilton. 
 
 Under the circumstances, I was quite willing he should 
 believe that I regarded him the Autocrat of the I'rovince, 
 having the power to give away every position of emolu- 
 ment in the government. ; , 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 137 
 
 Ten clays more elapsed, uiid still no word caino fiom 
 him. 1 would have pursued him no further but for the 
 advice of the Doctor. 
 
 "If I were you," said he, " I would visit him. He, no 
 doubt, is very busy, and thinks it will do to answer yonr 
 letters wlnn lie has more time. 1 will write him myself 
 also, reminding him of his promise to assist you, and if 
 you see him about the time that he receives the letter, I 
 have no doubt he will do his best to aid you." 
 
 This advice seemed good, and having reason to believe 
 that Baxter wouM be in Montreal in the following week, 
 I determined to see him. Pursuant to this jdan I reached 
 the Canadian Metropolis on Tuesday, and at once rejiaired 
 to his office. 
 
 He received me quite coolly, in short, in a manner which 
 afforded a striking contrast to his friendly patronizing air 
 towards me but a fev months previous, and instantly 1 felt 
 a sort of conviction that all reliance upon him was useless. 
 Imputing these feelings, however, to an over-sensitive nature, 
 I resolved not to relinquish my suit until I had obtained 
 from him some expression, either fovorable or unfavorable, 
 to my designs. 
 
 He was writing when I entered, and after turning his 
 attention to me sufficiently long to say, gruttly, 
 
 " Good morning," and " you want to see me, I suppose," 
 he handed me a daily paper, saying as he did so, 
 
 " Here, ])usy yourself with this for awhile, I shall soon 
 be through," and then resumed his work. 
 
 I busied myself with the paper according to his injunc- 
 tion for at least an hour, although long before the expiration 
 of that time I had ceased to feel any interest in the matter 
 
 I' 
 
 J 
 
138 
 
 The Frontier School maMer. 
 
 of its columns, and was only wondering when he would be 
 through, and what would be the result of my interview with 
 hira. Occasionally, in the interim, I cast a side glance at 
 him to ascertain whether his work was not nearly completed, 
 and twice I observed him look ng askance at me, and I could 
 not forbear the thought that he was secretly hoping I might 
 become wearied, and retire from his presence without sub- 
 mitting him to the annoyance of attending further to my 
 wants. Be this as it may, however, I remained, and after 
 awhile I had the satisfaction of seeing him throw down his 
 pen. He sat for a moment seemingly absorbed in thought, 
 then whirled about his chair facing me, yawned, and said, 
 
 " Well, how's the Doctor ? " 
 
 " Quite well," I replied. " I presume you have recently 
 received a letter from him." 
 
 " Yes," he said, " 1 received a letter Trom him a day or 
 two ago." 
 
 He then pulled out his watch, glanced at it, mused a 
 moment and then asked, 
 
 " How long are you going to remain in the city ? " 
 
 " I wish to return as soon as possible," I answered " to- 
 morrow, at latest." 
 
 " Pshaw ! man, what's the use of being in a hurry," he 
 said. " I have found, young man, that there is never any- 
 thing made by being in a hurry. I presume it has been 
 quite awhile since you were in Montreal." 
 
 " Yes," I answered, " three years." 
 
 " Three years ! 0, well then, you will want to stay and 
 look around for a time. I am very much pressed with 
 business to-day, indeed I am unusually pressed, and as I 
 would like to have a long talk with you, I wish, if possible, 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 139 
 
 that, you would call to-morrow. Where are you staying ? " 
 
 " At the Americau House," I answered. 
 
 " Well, that is a good hotel," he said. " Now, why not 
 come in to-morrow and see me ? I will be at the office 
 early, say at half-past nine, eh . ' 
 
 " I can do that, if it will be inconvenient for you to talk 
 with me before," I replied. 
 
 " Well," he answered, " you see how it is ; I have a great, 
 amount of work to do just now, and this afternoon I ex- 
 pect two or three different parties in to see me on important 
 business." 
 
 " Very well, then," I said, " I will come in the morning 
 if you wish, at half^past nine." , . ^ 
 
 " Yes," he answered, as he turned again to his work, " at 
 half^past nine." ^i. 
 
 At the appointed hour, on the following day, I was at 
 the office. The office boy had only half completed his 
 work when I arrived, but I sat down and waited for Baxtrr. 
 At ten o'clock he had not made his appearance, but his 
 partner, who came in shortly afterwards, informed me that 
 he had been unexpectedly called out of the city and would 
 not return until evening. It is needless to say that I was 
 sadly disappointed. I felt the humbleness of my position. 
 Had 1 been regarded as a person of any importance by 
 Baxter, he certainly would have informed me by note, or 
 otherwise, of his departure, and mentioned some other hour 
 at which he could meet m^ ; but he had done nothing of 
 the kind, and like all other hangers-on at the door of an 
 important personage, I must await his pleasure. I had 
 experienced nothing so humiliating since I was dependent 
 for a livelihood on the whim of a school committee. : v^ .;■ 
 
140 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ^l\ 
 
 That day I spent like tlie preceding one, in strolling 
 about the city. In the evening, determined not to be 
 thwarted in my design of talking with Baxter, having 
 fonnd out the residence of that dignitary, I repaired thither. 
 I found him at home, but he was in a state of partial 
 intoxication. He seemed much surprised at seeing me, 
 as was evident by the expression with which he 
 greeted me. 
 
 " Why," he said, " I thought you had gone home." 
 
 " You must have thought," I replied, " that I had but 
 little desire to see you, Mr. Baxter." 
 
 " 0, I didn't suppose you were very anxious," he said, 
 •' but come, now, what can I do for you ? " 
 
 I saw that he was in a mood when I could approach him, 
 so I answered good uaturedly, 
 
 " Well, Mr. Baxter, to tell the truth, I am out of employ- 
 ment, and just in the position where I can appreciate a 
 situation with fifteen hundred a year." 
 
 " 0, my dear sir," he said with a laugli, "that is a very 
 large salary. There are but few men in Montreal who are 
 getting as much as that." 
 
 Being convinced that I had but little to lose from his 
 displeasure, I determined not to be over modest in my 
 appeals to him. ■ 
 
 " Indeed," I said, " Mr. Baxter, you led me to infer, last 
 fall, that it would be an easy matter for you to obtain a 
 situation for ine which would command that salary." 
 
 " Yes, yes," he answered, hurriedly, " no doubt it would 
 at that time, but business is very dull now; and you 
 have no idea how many there are in Montreal with nothing 
 to do who would be very glad to get even seven hundred 
 a year." 
 
 I' 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 141 
 
 "Perhaps," I suggested, "that they have no man of 
 influence, like yourself, to assist them." 
 
 " You are mistaken there, young man. I can point you 
 to any number of young men, well educated and most 
 highly connected, who are looking in vain for employment." 
 
 I made no reply, and he soon said: 
 
 " You were not born in Canada, I believe." ■ 
 
 " No, I was born in the States." 
 
 " Well, there is another difficulty," he said ; " we always 
 feel it our <liity to assist those first who were born either in 
 this country or in Great Britain. I was myself born in the 
 old country ; and love of my native land always makes me 
 feel under a little more obligation to aid those who are the 
 most nearly allied to the old flag." 
 
 I felt insulted, and immediately said : 
 
 " Indeed, Mr. Baxter, your loyalty didn't assume this 
 form last fall, when you thrust your friendship on me, and 
 of your own free will pledged yourself to give me a situa- 
 tion, with a good salary, within three months." 
 
 " Ah, but you forget," he exclaimed, with some degree of 
 excitement, " that times have changed, wonderfully changed 
 since then. If my election had not cost me so much, pos- 
 sibly I might find it ea-^ier to do something for you. Have 
 you any idea what that election cost me ? " 
 
 " I have no doubt that it cost you or your friends some 
 money," I replied, "but the part that I acted i taiidy cost 
 you nothing, save the violation of your promises, and it 
 has cost me something." 
 
 " You ! " he exclaimed, in a tone of contempt, becoming 
 angry at my plain language to him. " Pray, what has it 
 cost you ? " 
 
142 
 
 The Frontier Scltx)ohna8ter. 
 
 M. 
 
 " Humiliation," I answered. 
 
 At this, he burst into a fit of derisive laughter, which 
 having subsided, he exclaimed : 
 
 "Well, come now, young man, let us knew to what 
 humiUation you have been subjected." 
 
 "To the humiliation," I answered, "of having been in- 
 duced to work for your interests, only to find myself repaid 
 with contumely." 
 
 " 0, it's pay you seek, eh ? Well, make out your bill, 
 and I'll try and settle it." 
 
 "Do not add further insult to injury, Mr. Baxter," I 
 said ; " if I am to understand that you have neither the 
 ability or inclination to assist me, as you promised, my 
 business with you is finished ; " and I rose to depart. 
 
 " I am sorry, my dear sir," he said, with an air of affected 
 sympathy and regret, "but I do rot see how I can possibly 
 assist you." 
 
 " Had you been kind and gentlemanly enough to have 
 said tliis mucn to me, by letter, after I had twice written 
 you, it certainly would have saved me the trouble and 
 expense of coming to Montreal on this occasion." 
 
 " Yes, yes, I presume it would ; but the deuce of it is, 
 you country chaps don't realize how much we business 
 men of the city have to do. You think that, hke yourselves, 
 we can sit down at any time and answer letters ; but as I 
 don't like to have you offended, I propose to bear a portion 
 of your expenses here myself, and we'll be friends in future, 
 eh ? Here are five dollars," and before I fully realized 
 what lie was about he had placed the bill in my hand. 
 
 Throwing it disdainfully from me, I said : 
 
 " I trust, Mr. Baxter, that when you have returned to 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 143 
 
 your normal condition you will realize that, however great 
 my necessities, I am not to be subjected to insult and then 
 be conciliated by five dollars ; at d I trust, too, that my expe- 
 rience with you will prove one of the most profitable lessons 
 of my life." - 
 
 I did not wait for a reply, but as I stepped into the hall, 
 closing the door behind me, he gave vent to another loud 
 guffaw, as if hugely enjoying my display of indignation. 
 It was dark and raining quite hard when I left his house, 
 and the reader may naturally imagine that I performed my 
 walk to the hotel with despondent, unhappy feelings, 1)ut, on 
 the contrary, I returned with more buoyant step ard lighter 
 spirits. Disappointment of what we are hoping to receive 
 is often far less unpleasant to endure than the tantalizing, 
 feverish expectancy \vhich precedes it. 
 
 Such, in a measure, was my experience, but as for a long 
 time I had never really expected much from Baxter, of 
 course my disappointment was nothing compared with what 
 it might have been had not my confidence in him gradually 
 diminished since first we met. As the reader knows, I had 
 applied to him in this instance only at the instigation of my 
 esteemed friend, the Doctor, and now that I had assured 
 myself that I could no longer hope for aid from Baxter, I 
 was relieved, satisfied. 
 
 One thing I had accomplished ; I had learned the man, 
 thoroughly tested the value of his promises, weighed his 
 moral worth, and this, thought I, is something. 
 
 It was indeed to me a good lesson in the art of reading 
 men, which imparted, thus early in life, proved profitable to 
 me in after years. This man, who but a short time before, 
 I, in my inexperience, had regarded with awe and almost veu- 
 
144 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 i 
 
 eration, had, from a moral point of view, dwindled into a 
 pigmy that I could but despise. I learned from him that 
 dignity and honor are not always to be found in high social 
 positions. 
 
 The feelings of anger which his treatment aroused soon 
 died away, and I almost began to regard the whole thing in 
 the light of a good joke. Though never for a moment 
 excusing his rascality, I felt that I was but little entitled to 
 sympathy. IMy confidence in him as a man of integrity 
 and honor was shaken in the very commencement of my 
 acquaintance with him, still I gave him my humble support, 
 and engaged in labors at his request which my conscience 
 disapproved, and now that he had shown himself in his true 
 colors, and deliberately snubbed me, I could but honestly 
 feel that my reward was just ; indeed, I think that I treated 
 the thing far jnore philosophically than I have other troubles 
 which have since presented themselves. 
 
 My business with Baxter having thus been brought to a 
 termination, I left the city the following day, and went 
 directly to CarroUton, in order to spend a day or two with 
 Mr. Niel, and thus fulfil the promise which I had frequently 
 made to visit him as soon as I found a convenient season. 
 Happily I found that gentleman at home, and delighted to 
 see me. His hospitality exceeded anything that 1 have ever 
 since witnessed. His house, servants and horses were all at 
 my command, and iie seemed displeased if I was not contin- 
 ually making all, not excepting himself, contribute something 
 to my comfort and pleasure. As it was about the com- 
 mencement of the sugar season — a time when the roads of 
 Canada are usually fJmost impassable — we could do but 
 little riding ; but the disappointment arising from this pri- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 145 
 
 
 vation \va8 more than counterbalanced by the pleasure 
 derived from the 'sugar parties chat I attended. Three 
 of these were given by Mr. Niel himself, and as there were 
 as many more given by his neighbors, we had almost a 
 daily round of fun and enjoyment. Though living in a 
 quiet country place, three miles from a village, lie had 
 several intelligent and wealthy farmers for neighbors, whose 
 sons and daughters, refined and educated beyond what we 
 usually expect to find in the country, often met in social 
 gatherings, and thus made it impossible for o!ie sojourning 
 with them to grow weary from loneliness. Tlie house of 
 Mr. Niel was the most frequent place for these gatherings, 
 not only because of the hospitality of its owner, but because 
 it was neatly furnished and commodious, and no doubt he 
 encouraged them more than he would had lie been blessed 
 with the society of wife and children. I could see nothing, 
 save the lack of this society, to render my host, temporally, 
 happy. He was very far, however, from lieing a light- 
 hearted man given to pleasure. He was thoughtful, often 
 despondent, and even when he laughed it seemed mechanical 
 rather than the outburst of a truly happy heart. He had 
 a good library, and I found, as Ruth had already informed 
 me, that he read much, especially of whatever pertained to 
 agriculture. 
 
 My stay with him, which I had intended should not be 
 longer than two days, was, at his earnest solicitation, first 
 prolonged to a week, and then I could not release myself 
 until I had remained another week, and during all this 
 time he was entertaining me like a prince, and securing 
 more and more of my confidence. I could not say that I 
 never distrusted him. Believing, as 1 did, that he was a 
 
146 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Ill' I 
 
 iireat admirer, if not an actual lover of Kuth, I could hardlv 
 imagine that his friendship for me was so entirely disinter- 
 ested as he would have me helieve. But then, he was so 
 courteous, so kind, so generous in his oft'ers of assistance to 
 me, that whenever a suspicion of his want of sincerity flashed 
 across my mind I was disposed to attribute it to jealousy, 
 and then tried to regard him as a friend. The lesson that I 
 had received from Baxter was fresh in my mind, and I 
 fancied that this, too, was inclined to make me ungenerous, 
 suspicious even of the kindliest feelings and purest motives. 
 He was altogether a different man from Baxter. If he was 
 not just what he seemed, he certainly played his cards with 
 more shrewdness ; his acts never being of that transparent 
 nature which would enable you to see that they were 
 promi)ted by selfishness. Before I had been with him a 
 week, he had learned from me all about my circumstances, 
 what 1 intended to do, and the fact, which no doubt inter- 
 ested him more than all else, that I was engaged to Ruth, 
 and intended marrying her as soon as other plans which I 
 had laid were consunmiated. And this confidence he ob- 
 tained without giving me any thought of ungentlemanly 
 inquisitiveness on his part. He was never obtrusive, never 
 displayed idle curiosity, but first ingratiated himself with 
 me by giving me his confidence, and then won mine, by 
 adroitness which I have scarcely found any other man to 
 possess. 
 
 He did not hesitate to talk of Ruth, yet, he never did it 
 to such an extent, or in such a way, as to lead me to 
 infer that he was more interested in her than in other lady 
 friends of whom he sometimes spoke. He related to me 
 the story of his early love, of which the reader knows I 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaater. 
 
 147 
 
 had been informed, and, in a manner which conveyed to me 
 conviction of his sincerity, expressed his determination 
 never to wed. 
 
 One evening during the second week of my stay with 
 him, as we were seated alone in his library, he addressed 
 me as follows : 
 
 " Ycur desire, now, Mr, Styles, seems to be to go on and 
 complete a college course." . ' 
 
 •' Perhaps not a college course," I said, " now that I have 
 delayed so long ; I think I would be satisfied to spend a 
 couple of years in some good educational institution before 
 taking a profession." 
 
 " And the only obstacle you find in the way is the lack 
 of funds," he said. 
 
 " Yes," 1 replied. 
 
 " Well, now," he continued, " you will not take it un- 
 kindly if I tell you of a plan of which I have been 
 thinking ? " 
 
 " Certainly not," I replied. 
 
 " Well, then, it is this. I am not rich in the general 
 acceptation of the term, but I have mon'^y at present for 
 which 1 have no immediate use, and shall loan it for interest, 
 the same as I have other sums for which I hold two or 
 three mortgages as security on estates in this township. 
 Now, if you wish, I would like to loan you whatever you 
 may require to carry out your plans, at six per cent, interest, 
 and give you all the time you need for payment." 
 
 " But you know, Mr. Niel, that I cannot secure you by 
 mortgage." 
 
 " I want no security, Mr. Styles, more than your promis- 
 sory note." 
 
14$ 
 
 The Frontier Scftoolmastei'. 
 
 " You certainly surprise me," I said, " and 1 cannot at all 
 divine how it is that you take interest enough in me to 
 proffer me so great assistance, or that you have so much 
 confidence in me." 
 
 " I do not regard it as a very generous act," he rej tlied, 
 "to loan a man who you are convinced is thoroughly 
 honest a few hundred dollars without security ; and as for 
 the particular interest which I take in you, I am not aware 
 that it is greater than' I would feel in any worthy young 
 man who desires to do something for himself; in short, to 
 be something in the world. I missed a libe.al education 
 myself for want of means, and for that reason 1 can sym- 
 pathize fully with young men who have the same ambition 
 and are in the same circumstances in which 1 was then 
 placed. Do you see ? " 
 
 " I see," I replied, " and your kindness should be appre- 
 ciated; but besides the question of honesty, there is the 
 risk of misfortune — sickness, death or something else might 
 prevent the payment of such a debt according to the inten- 
 tion of the debtor." \ » 
 
 " True," he replied, " we all have risks to run, but in 
 this case, if you live and prosper you will pay the debt. If 
 anything should prevent it, you will have the greater mis- 
 fortune to bear. The loss of a few hundred dollars in my 
 circumstances will not affect me seriously ; but I think it 
 almost useless to speak of such a contingency. You have 
 comparatively good health and constitution, and with your 
 ability, the payment of two, three, four or five hundred 
 dollars will be an easy matter for you when you have com- 
 pleted your studies." 
 
 " Well, Mr. Niel," I replied, " I cannot accept your 
 
 ^ 
 
The Frontier SchoolmuMter. 
 
 im 
 
 ur 
 
 generous offer before I have taken a little time for (l«Uil)era- 
 tion; but whether I accept it or not, I trust you will always 
 find that I cherish l)econiing gratitude to you for your 
 kindness." 
 
 " Do not mention it as an act of kindness on my part, 
 Mr. Styles, it is only an act of business. I have S2U0 now 
 on hand, which 1 wish to place at inten^st. If I loan it to 
 some man who has real estate, or a large amount of personal 
 pro[)erty, you certainly would not say that I did it from 
 kindness, but from prudence. It would be but a careful 
 business transaction to make my money contribute some- 
 thing to my income, and just for this reason, 1 pro})ose to 
 loan it to you, and as I regard the security which you can 
 give me amply sufficient, you should consider that you are 
 doing me a favor to accept it." 
 
 " You certainly argue with the ability of a financier, Mr. 
 Niel," T replied, laughing; "but I doubt whether your 
 judgment on securities would be deemed good by business 
 men ; but I will think of the matter, and let you know my 
 decision to-morrow." 
 
 The subject was then, for the evening, dismissed, and my 
 host entertained me until a late hour with accounts of his 
 experience in business, relating many fortunate strok(!S by 
 which he Lad finally placed himself in his present comfort- 
 able position. 
 
 I did not have to deliberate long to decide to accept what 
 
 seemed to me his most generous offer. In reflecting upon 
 
 it, I thought his reasoning good, and I saw no cause why I 
 
 could not pay the debt, unless I should meet with some 
 
 dire misfortune. Accordingly the day before I left his 
 
 house I gave him my n^ te for S200, payable in three years 
 
 L 
 
150 
 
 The, Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Ill 
 
 witli intorest. It was Htij)ulatL'(l, however, that if T rocjiiired 
 a h)n<,'(!r time for payment, I should have it, and that I 
 should also have other sums as I needed them, until I had 
 received all that 1 re([uired; the term of payment always 
 being three years from the time each successive sum was 
 received. 
 
 I believe that my heart never swelled with stronger 
 feelint^s of gratitude towards an earthly friend, than it did 
 toward Mr. Niel, the day that I left his house. I had 
 observed him closely, that 1 might discover, if j)ossible, any 
 feeling of regret that he had rej)osed so much contidcnce in 
 nie. 1 had even hinted that I was (juite willing to release him 
 from his agreement with me, but so far from displaying any 
 wish (jf that kind, he begged me never to mention such a tiling 
 again on pain of incurring his displeasure. When I bade 
 him adieu he pressed me to correspond witli him, and again 
 urged me to ask him, without the slightest reluctance, when- 
 ever 1 ftjlt that I required pecuniary assistance. 
 
 As I had to pass the residence of Ruth on my return 
 home, I managed to spend an afternoon with her, and, of 
 course, gave her a history of my adventures during my 
 absence, and laid before her the new project of once more 
 devoting myself to 'uy studies. 
 
 She only laughed at the result of my visit to Baxter, 
 and said : 
 
 " I trust that you were not at all disappointed ; I 
 certainly am not; for although I never saw him, the 
 impression that I had received of him from yourself and 
 others led me to anticipate precisely such a close of your 
 intimacy with him, and I am only glad that he has done 
 you no greater injury." 
 
The Frontier Schoolnuider. 
 
 161 
 
 \ 
 
 In speakinj^' of Mr. Niol, I did not toll her how much 
 obligation I was under to him for pecuniary aiii, hut was 
 profuse in my encomiums of him, declaring iiim a generous, 
 intelligent and kind-hearted man. 
 
 She smiled, mechanically, at my protestations of friend- 
 ship for him, and as if slie could not at all appreciate my 
 enthusiasm, merely said : 
 
 " 1 am glad that you like Mr. Niel." 
 
 " But do you not like him \ " 1 asked in surprise. 
 
 " I have no ])articular reason for disliking him," she 
 replied ; " he has been very kind to me." 
 
 " Yes," I answered, almost impatiently, " but you speak 
 with an air which leads me to suspect that you have no 
 very high esteem for him." 
 
 " You are, doubtless, too suspicious," she said ; " you 
 know that I can never display the enthusiasm respecting 
 anything that you can." 
 
 I was puzzled. I knew well that she was quite as apt as 
 myself to express her admiration for one that she really 
 esteemed in glowing terms ; and her apparent ctiution on 
 this occasion led me to believe that, for some reason, she 
 did not entertain a high opinion of Niel. Having, as the 
 reader knows, the utmost confidence in her judgment, he 
 will not wonder that her manner awakened some misgivings 
 within me as to the real worth of my newly fonned friend, 
 and suggested the thought that, possibly, I might again find 
 myself the victim of a selfish man. But, then, a second 
 thought assured me that he had not the slightest chance for 
 false dealing with me even were he so disposed, and so my 
 suspicions were lulled.' , 
 
 The announcement that I was going away, not to return. 
 
■'T' 
 
 152 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 probably, for a year, and then only for a visit, was anything 
 but pleasant to Ruth. She made no effort, however, to dis- 
 suade me from this step. Knowing my ambition, she said 
 she was only glad that I could gratify it, and expressed the 
 opinion that I would always be dissatisfied uidess I did so. 
 After thus speaking, she raised her eyes in sadness to mine 
 and said : 
 
 " But how do you think I will spend all these months of 
 your absence ? " 
 
 " In thinking of me, i hope, and in writing to me," I 
 answered, smiling. 
 
 " I trust that you would not have that my only employ- 
 ment," she replied ; and then added, " I shall teach. I never 
 can endure the monotony of remaining at home without 
 something more than I now have to engross my time and 
 attention." 
 
 " It would be well, perhaps," I said, " since you do not 
 regard teaching as monotonous or irksome. But how would 
 you like teaching with me when I return." 
 
 " O, I would like that immensely," she replied, animated 
 by the thought. " Do you know I have been thinking of 
 that f You will be Professor then. Now won't you pro- 
 mise me that when you have completed your studies, you 
 will take charge of some Academy and allow me to be your 
 assistant." 
 
 " You tempt me to consider the proposition," I said, " but 
 what is to become of my profession ? " 
 
 " Make teaching your profession," she answered. " What 
 more noble profession do you ask ? And in what profession 
 have you greater opportunities for doing good ? " 
 " You forget my dislike for teaching," I answered. 
 
 I - i 
 
TJie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 153 
 
 " But you would find that quite different from teaching 
 a district school." 
 
 " I hope so," I said, " but we shall have quite time enough 
 to consider this matter." 
 
 The subject was now changed. Before leaving her, I had 
 promised to visit her more than once previous to my final 
 departure, and the promise was faithfully kept. 
 
 i 
 
 '1 
 
«i 
 
 I 
 
 CHAPTEE XII. 
 
 A change of business — An Educational Institution — My fellow Stu- 
 dents — I form a friendship with a yoting Scotchman, and conceive 
 a strong dislike for the son of a Slave-holder — A quarrel which 
 ends in a fight. 
 
 I had decided to connect myself with an educational 
 institution in Corvette, in the southern part of Vermont. 
 
 It v/as not a college, but a seminary liberally endowed, 
 and the curriculum was little below that of the colleges and 
 universities of New England, I selected this for two 
 reasons ; first, because I could attend it at a very reasonable 
 sum per annum ; second, because, being located in a quiet 
 country village, in which I was a perfect stranger, it pre- 
 sented to me the opportunity of pursuing my studies with 
 little or no distractions. 
 
 Owing to delays and labors of manifold nature it was 
 June before I was fully prepared to depart. 
 
 According to my custom whenever visiting any place 
 where I could conveniently perform the journey by a trip 
 through the Lake, I left the cars at Burlington, and embark- 
 ed on a steamer. Although by thus doing I increased the 
 
 f ? 
 
 I- ^- 
 
 I" 
 
 ft 
 
 [♦ 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 155 
 
 distance, the comfort and pleasure were greatly enliauced, 
 I had passed through the Lake three or four times previous 
 to this, so that all points of note were quite familiar to me, 
 yet I never tired of looking at them, or of dwelling with deep 
 interest on their historic associations. , 
 
 It was a mattei of real disappointment to me, recently, 
 when visiting New York, that I learned that steamers no 
 longer run as they formerly did between the northern and 
 southern limits of this body of water — railroads having 
 effectually supplanted them. 
 
 It is not an easy thing for one who has long associated 
 with men, who has been in business usually performetl by 
 those of mature years, to exchange all for the labors and 
 experience again of his boyhood. Such was the obstacle 
 that I had to surmount in surrendering my commission as 
 Preventive Officer. Though but twenty years of age, my 
 business and associations had made me feel much older, 
 and however unwise it may have been, I could but regard 
 it as slightly humiliating to throw up my claims to expe- 
 rience and maturity and become once more a schoolboy. 
 
 I shall never forget how I sat nearly all day on the deck, 
 as we sailed up the lake, thinking of my situation, and 
 almost regretting thdt I had not sought some emjjloyment, 
 however humble, that would have secured me a liveliiiood, 
 instead of taking the step I had. 
 
 It seemi ' mcurring a great risk. I had contracted a 
 debt, and put otf the day of engaging in business to an 
 uicertain period, and many times during the day 1 wished 
 1 had not done it; but, then, the adage "Nothing ventured. 
 n( :hing gained," coming to mind, served to dispel my des- 
 pondent feelings. 
 
 
I 
 
 156 
 
 The Frontur Schoolmaster. 
 
 h 1 
 
 The boat having reached her destination, I engaged a 
 private conveyance to Corvette — twelve miles distant. It 
 was just sunset when we arrived at the summit of a hill 
 overlooking a large valley in which was located the village 
 of Corvette. It lay in quiet beauty nearly two miles 
 distant, embowered in shade trees, the land receding from 
 it on all hands in gently rising slopes to hills whose sum- 
 mits were crowned with forests. A small river ran through 
 the valley, bordered by broad, rich intervales, and its banks 
 likewise being lined with willows and other trees, all served 
 to make up, at this season, when nature is clad in her 
 richest garb, a beautiful picture — the most beautiful, I 
 believe, that I have ever beheld. 
 
 The Seminary — a four story brick building, eighty feet 
 in length, adorned with bell tower and clock — fronted the 
 main street ; its grounds, consisting of several acres, being 
 covered, with the exception of the fi ower garden, with 
 gigantic maples. Though simple in its style of architecture, 
 the neatness and symmetry of this building and the beauty 
 of its surroundings at once struck me ; and during my long 
 stay here, my admiration for it constantly increased. Years 
 have elapsed, but the impression made upon me by the 
 scene on that memorable June evening is as vivid as if 
 made but yesterday. 
 
 1 found myself, as I had anticipated, a perfect stranger 
 here to all — students as well teachers. The former numbered 
 about one hundred and twenty, all of whom, with the 
 exception of those living in the village, boarded in the 
 Seminary, and, as I, in consequence of being from a distance, 
 must board in the Institution, I was allotted room 57 in 
 the third hall. . 
 
 ill 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 157 
 
 Being fatigued with my day's journey, I retired as soon as 
 I had enrolled myself, and made all the necessary arrange- 
 ments with the financial manager, and was awakened by 
 the gong only in time to dress hurriedly, and reach the 
 dining hall after all the other students were seated for 
 breakfast. Visions of the scanty fare and tyrannical govern- 
 ment described by Dickens and Charlotte Bronte, as some- 
 times found in English Boarding Schools, rose before me 
 when I received nothing but corn cake that morning for 
 breakfast; but the recollection that I was in free and 
 democratic New England, where boys, as well as men, 
 assert their rights, dispelled my fears, and confimied me in 
 the belief that the quality and quantity of our board must 
 be all that I could desire. The bountiful supply of vegetable 
 and animal food provided for dinner assured me that I was 
 right in this belief, and I learned that we were confined to 
 corn cake, solely, but once a week, for the morning meal. 
 
 The number of young ladies attending the Seminary was 
 about e({ual to that of the young men, and though they 
 occupied different parts of the same building, and were 
 supposed to have no communication with each other except 
 in the reception rooms, and there only by permission of the 
 principal or preceptress, numbers found means of evading 
 these regulations, and thus necessitated " eternal vigilance " 
 on the part of the Faculty. The severe public reproofs 
 and punishment, however, which usually followed the 
 discovery of any such offences, rendered love making here 
 an extremely hazardous business, so that none but the 
 most incautious ever ventured upon the experiment of 
 writing billet doux. 
 
 My business here being study, and my interest in the fair 
 
r 
 
 158 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 sex bemjj; confined chiefly to " the girl I left behind me, " I 
 never sought the acquaintance of any of the young lady 
 students during my stay in the seminary ; and besides the 
 simple recognition, in the halls, of those who belonged to 
 the same classes as myself, or a little chat at the table with 
 the lady opposite, I believe I scarcely spoke to a lady dur- 
 ing the space of" two years. I was regarded as an anomaly 
 by the students in this particular, and while many found 
 facilities for getting acquainted with their lady classmates, 
 I met several in the recitation rooms week after week with- 
 out ever speaking with them, or knowing aught of them 
 save their names and places of residence. I have now in 
 memory one of these, Miss Burdell, whom for three months 
 I met daily in the rhetoric class, which, being quite small, 
 consisting of not more than a dozen members, recited to the 
 Principal in his office. She sat directly opposite me on a 
 sofa. She was modest and diffident but strikingly intelli- 
 gent, always displaying a clear and correct understanding of 
 her lesson, and replying to questions addressed her, or 
 expressing her opinion on subjects under discussion in a 
 dignified manner, with voice and articulation which never 
 failed to command the attention of the wliole class. Her 
 essays too were always an embodiment of grace and good 
 sense, quite unlike many others to which we listened, and 
 wliich were characterized by both pedantry and silliness. 
 All that I ever knew respecting Miss Burdell was that she 
 lived in one of the large villages of Vermont, on Lake 
 Champlain ; that she giuduated from the Seminary at the 
 close of the term when I met lier, and that she intended to 
 engage in teaching for a livelihood. 
 
 The term closed, and Miss Burdell left us. Standing a 
 
Ths Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 159 
 
 i 
 
 little away, I saw her step on the train, and a moment 
 afterwards she was fast receding from the friends and 
 acquaintances she had formed in her Alma Mater. Her 
 seat in class was vacant, and I wondered at the loneliness 
 which I, a stranger to her, experiencec' at the al)sence of 
 her familiar face. But it was only the first of similar sad 
 experiences for me while I was in Corvette. There were 
 young men there from nearly every State in the Union. 
 We met daily for three, six or nine months, jierhaps a 
 year or more ; and occasionally an attachment would s] tring 
 lip between one and myself. We walked and chatted 
 together, told each other our former experiences and many 
 of our future plans, and lived as if we were to know each 
 other and meet often through all our future yeare. It is 
 wonderful to contemplate the amount of hope that the 
 young possess. I believe that I had not then a doubt that 
 I should realize the fruition of all my plans, and spend 
 many happy days in coming time in the society of those 
 whom I regarded as friends ; friends whose homes were far 
 off' in the sunny south, away in the cities of the west, and 
 on the Atlantic coast ; but school terms expire, and so did 
 those of which I write. Often I accompanied schoolmates 
 to the depot, the bell rung, we grasped hands, and a wave 
 of a handkerchief from the window, or the lifting of a hat on 
 the platform, was the last token of regard, save, perhaps, a 
 letter or two, that I ever received from those who had been 
 the partners of my labors, disappointments and joys in 
 student life. Many of these have since taken passage on a 
 swifter train to another world — some on the battle field, 
 others in the presence of friends and in the seclusion of 
 home ; but of all those that I then kn3w, I have since met 
 but few. 
 
160 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 fi^f 
 
 Sad memoriea cluster around those partings, but the lesson 
 which they teach is replete with admonitions more solemn 
 and enduring than those that come from the human t(jngue. 
 
 1 was glad to find that I was not the oldest of the male 
 students. There were several there about my age, and a 
 half dozen or more who were my seniors by three, four, 
 and even six years. I have intimated that friendship 
 existed between many of them and myself, but while this 
 is true, I was on terms of familiar intimacy with but one — 
 Gordon McKenzie, a young Scotchman v/ho had l)een there 
 a year previous to my arrival, and who remained a year 
 after my departure, or until he received such a degree as 
 was conferred by the Institution. 
 
 I was first attracted to him by his politeness and en- 
 gaging manners, and as my acquaintance with him further 
 increased, a certain congeniality of taste, and plans nearly 
 similar with regard to the future, cemented a bond of 
 friendship between us that has never been sundered. An 
 adventure or two in which we were participants no doubt 
 served to make this bond stronger, and they are still 
 subjects to v^hich we are pleased often to revert. He was 
 poor hut still popular with the students notwithstanding an 
 impetuosity of temper which led him to act hastily, and 
 which even made most of them fear to offend him ; but as 
 he was very conscientious and frank, and reasonable withal, 
 his indignation was seldom displayed unless his cause was 
 one of justice. In stature he was almost Liliputian, 
 weighing at the age of twenty-one less than a hundred 
 pounds, but his activity, combined with his strength, deve- 
 loped by early exercise and by continual practice in the 
 gymnasium, rendered him the most formidable wrestler 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 161 
 
 amonpj the students. If not the greatest in intellect, he 
 certainly had the most talent in some directions, and while 
 his prose essays generally commanded a tribute of ])raise 
 from the professors, his poems, when recited in ])ublic with 
 his usual grace and dignity, never failed to call forth 
 rapturous ap])lause. Naturally satirical, he, sometimes, 
 gratified his personal piques in poetic satire, and no one 
 who had ever witnessed this exhibition of his powers cared 
 to incur his displeasure. This propensity, on one occasion, 
 nearly cost him his place in the Seminary, A teacher of 
 the classics who was for a time connected with the school 
 having rendered himself odious to McKenzie, or Mack, as he 
 was always called, delivered a lecture before the students 
 on the classics. 
 
 The opportunity for showing his dislike of the Professor 
 seemed to Mack too good to be lost, and the following week, 
 at the time of the usual Khetorical Exercises, by managing 
 to deceive the Principal with regard to the character of his 
 declamation, he delivered a poem on the classics — a most 
 laughable and cutting satire on the lecture. It was an act 
 of imprudence, however, on Mack's part that could be settled 
 only by an himible apology, but this he could afford in view 
 of the ^clat his poem had won him with the students. 
 
 My friend's history was romantic. He was the son of a 
 physician, and was born in Ayrshire, Scotland. He had a 
 sister younger than himself, who died when he was eleven 
 years of age, and the year following his father died. Con- 
 trary to his wishes, and in the face of his earnest entreaties 
 and expostulations, his mother some months subsequently 
 married a man whom he heartily disliked, and thinking 
 that he had no longer any home in which he could hope for 
 
 I 
 
7 
 
 162 
 
 The Frontier SchitolmaMer, 
 
 enjoyrnGTit, ho ran away, like many other boys, ».ont on 
 board u nierchantman, and for four years sailed on the broad 
 higliuiiy (»r nations, visiting renowned cities and (jountries 
 of almost every dime. The vessel to whicli he belonged 
 was finally wrecked off the coast of Chili, and he was taken 
 from the wreck witli a few others by a S])anish merchant- 
 man, and conveyed to Santiago. Here he fell in with an 
 American sea captain, who kindly brouglit him to New 
 York, and having Ijccome tired of the sea, and being anxious 
 to live in the United States, of which he had heard and read 
 much, he determined to seek his fortune in this western 
 woiid. 
 
 The realities, however, were a sad contrast to the. antici- 
 pations inchilged by a boy of his romantic fancy. After 
 knocking about the city for a week he chanced to meet with 
 a wealthy farmer, living in Kensselaer Co., in Nev/ York, 
 to whom he engaged ake care of horses and do general 
 farm work. He found the j)osition a trying one, both from 
 the tyraimical nature of his employer and the arbitrary 
 insolence of his sou, a youth about his own age ; yet he 
 remained here two years, when in a passion one day, to 
 which he was wantonly provoked, he severely beat the son^ 
 in consecjuence of which he once more ran away. Kespect- 
 able ap[>arel and a huudre<i dollars in money, which he had 
 saved by his prudence, constituted his entire worhlly pos- 
 sessions, and with this outfit he decided to attend school, and 
 for tliis purpose had sought Corvette. He was a good 
 scholar for his years when he left Scotland, and he had 
 improved every leisure moment, while on the farm, in read- 
 ing and study. Possessed of a retentive memory, and a 
 careful habit of observing, his mind was stored with inter- 
 
 I 
 
Ihe Frontier School master. 
 
 163 
 
 estiiif,' knowledge of the many i>iaee8 be liatl visited, and I 
 often lelt a keen sense of my own ignorance when listening 
 to his accounts of the things he had seen in his extensive 
 travels. Ueared in the birth-place of liurns, and familiar 
 from earliest childhood with his haunts and home, it was 
 natural tliat he should be his favorite poet, nor was 1 sur- 
 prised to find that he could repeat, verbatim, many of the 
 poems written by that ill-starred genius. 
 
 At the 1 inie I first formed his acquaintance, the stock of 
 money which he had earned wasexhaiu::ted, but having won 
 the favor of the Rev. Mr. Halleck, who taught painting in 
 the Seminary, that gentleman had kindly ottered to defray 
 his exjienses there until he graduated, and give him ample 
 time for the payment of the debt. It will be seen that he 
 thus hold the same position, with respect to the reverend 
 gentleman, that I held towards Mr. Niel ; but whatever had 
 been the motive that induced the latter to assist me, it is 
 certain that the former had acted from the purest benevo- 
 lence, and a feeling that the noble principles and genius of 
 the young Scotchman should be encouraged. Mack's grati- 
 tude to his benefactor knew no limits. N( > opportunity of 
 showing it was lost ; and his only trouble seemed to l)e that 
 untoward fortune might prevent him from canceling the 
 debt he had thus incurred. 
 
 Mack and I had become well acciuainted, and were fre- 
 (|uently together previous to our fall vacation, l)ut at that 
 time an incident occurred which made us warm friends. 
 Among the students were several from the Southern States, 
 sons of wealthy planters and merchants. Sixby, from 
 Raleigh, North Carolina, was one of these, but, unlike the 
 others, he had little of the proverbial civility and courtesy 
 

 164 
 
 T/ie Frontier Schooiinaster. 
 
 of Southern goiitlomen. Ho was my hSte noir, Di.slik- 
 ing his coiiceitud and f()[)pish air from the lirMt, I had tried 
 to avoid him, but, as we were in the same class in Latin, I 
 sometnnes found it necessary to speak to him. He seemed 
 to have conceived the same antij)athy towards me, and 
 though, whenever we came in contact, I observed the same 
 jwliteiiess that 1 did to others, he seldom failed to provoke 
 me by his rudeness. 
 
 In less than a week from the time that 1 entered the 
 Seminary, having learned that 1 was from Canada, he took 
 occasion, in my liearing, to allude to the country as a land 
 of barbarians ; and at another time he astonished tlie com- 
 pany at table by requesting his neighbor to pass the butter 
 to " that Canuck." 
 
 I tried to treat his insults with dignified contempt, yet 
 resolved, if he persisted in this course, to call him some day 
 to an account. 1 might have been more ready to do this 
 had I not observed that he was generally rude to others, and 
 that he was in favor with only a few who danced attend- 
 ance on him, chietly because he was extravagant in the use 
 of his money, and rewarded their servility with private 
 dinners, rides and frequent presents. A fellow named 
 Hardwick, the son of a Boston lawyer, was the most faithful 
 of his satellites, and, thougli not rich, he vied with him in 
 the richness of his dress, and in the size and beauty of his 
 gold-headed cane. It must be confessed that they made a 
 fi.ne appearance as they walked into church in their Sunday 
 toggery, or patroled the streets together, but to those 
 knowing them they were merely snobs, as rude and bois- 
 terous in speech as they were boorish in manner. 
 
 Sixby possessed a fine library, but its contents had effected 
 
■I 
 
 The FrcniHer Sch<)oItnat<ter. 
 
 len 
 
 little towards the cultivntion of lii.s mind. He was twenty- 
 one, and had for a lonj^ time heen |ire|)annj^ for college, in 
 fact liad {ireHented himself the year |)revi()UH for admissi(»n, 
 but, in conseciuence of getting " j)hicked," had returned 
 with the intention, if possible, of taking a degree from the 
 Seminary. 
 
 Soon after the affront lie had given me at the table, we 
 were in class translating one of Cicero's orations against 
 Catiline. I had just translated several lines, when Sixby, 
 who had been inattentive, whisjiering nearly all the time to 
 a classmate, exclaimed : 
 
 " Hold on ! read that agjiin ! I didn't understand how you 
 translated it." 
 
 "Which sentence?" I asked. 
 
 •' All that you read," he answered in an imperative tone. 
 
 Having translated nearly thirty lines, which he might 
 have heard had he given attention, I replied : 
 
 " I will read it if the professor wishes to hear it again." 
 
 He was the same professor that Mack had offended by his 
 poem, and I knew that he was favorably disposed towards 
 Sixby on account of many rides and presents that he had 
 accepted from him ; but he had not the assurance under 
 the circumstances to ask me to translate it a second time, 
 and so smiling, and suggesting to Sixby that he had better 
 attend to his business, he requested me to finish reading 
 my paragraph. Sixby, unused to having his authoritative 
 requests refused by the students, was in a rage. His small 
 black eyes flashed; his face glowed with anger, and there 
 was in it an expression which said : 
 
 " I'll have revenge." 
 
 I met his gaze for a moment with an expression as deter- 
 in 
 
It 
 
 166 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 P 
 
 mined as his own. He lingered outside the door, in the hall 
 when the class was excused, and the moment I came out 
 he said, 
 
 " You are accommodating. Styles. Are the Canucks in 
 Canada all so accommodating ? " 
 
 "When they deal with nigger drivers," I answered. 
 
 I was prompted to this reply from the fact that I knew 
 his father was a slave owner, and with a maliciousness akin 
 to his own, I meant that the answer should be the most 
 cutting I could give ; though I was soon sorry for it, and 
 wished that I had treated him in a more dignified and 
 Christian-like manner. He turned pale through auger, and 
 I think he would have struck me, but just then the Prin- 
 cipal came along and we all dispersed. 
 
 As I passed on, followed by two of the class who had 
 witnessed the scene, I heard one remark to the other in an 
 undertone, 
 
 " I guess Sixby has found somebody at last that he can't 
 l)ully." 
 
 " It looks so," replied the other. 
 
 Sixby did not speak to me for several weeks after this, 
 and I believed that he had concluded to treat me with more 
 courtesy, until the occurrence of the incident to which I 
 have already alluded. 
 
 During tlie fall vacation, which lasted a month, the teach- 
 ers and professors, and many of the students, who lived at 
 a distance, remained at the Seminary. It was our custom 
 to go out daily, during the bright days of October, and play 
 ball for exercise. It was while thus at play that I chanced 
 to hold the bat, while Sixby was one of the parties catching. 
 The ball had been knocked some distance away, and while 
 
 I 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 167 
 
 I 
 
 )lay 
 
 iced 
 
 ng. 
 
 lile 
 
 he ran for it I turned to speak to Mack, who was not in the 
 game, and had just come out. Six))y in returning happen- 
 in'^ to spy a very large potato, half decayed, which liad been 
 thrown from the garden on the playground, picked it up, 
 and, when a few yards distant, threw it swiftly at me. My 
 face being averted I did not observe him, and the pouito 
 struck me with full force on the cheek, nearly knocking me 
 down, the decayed portion spattering over my face and 
 bedaubing my clothes. 
 
 It would be difficult to portray the intensity of my 
 anger when I realized the situation. I had only a glimpse 
 of the diabolical ^vin onSixljy's face ere I had reached him 
 and dashed him to the ground with a savage blow in the 
 face. Two kicks, as savagely administered, followed quicker 
 than thougbit, which made him set up a howl that might 
 have been mistaken for the dirge of a red man. I never 
 felt such rage, such strength before, nor have I since. 
 1 believe I could have thrashed Hercules, himself, on the 
 spot. I was checked in my work of destruction just at 
 that moment by the sight of Hardwick, sprawling on the 
 ground behind me, and a voice saying : 
 
 "Mr. Styles! Mr. Styles! this will never do I" It was 
 Mr. Hanson, the Principal, for whom I had profound res- 
 pect. I was rational instantly. 
 
 " I beg your pardon, Mr. Hanson," I said, " but you saw 
 the provocation." 
 
 " I saw," he said, " but you did wrong, all of you. Fight- 
 ing ! " he exclaimed, in astonishment, " Gentlemen like 
 you and Mr. McKenzie, Mr. Sixby, too, the son of a 
 planter ! " 
 
 Mack's blood was up. 
 
 ■ -.iN "V- 
 
T 
 
 W 
 
 168 
 
 The Frontier Sclioolmaster. 
 
 " If he's got any more sons like him," he exclaimed 
 " he'd better send them up here ; ive'll plant 'em ; " and his 
 eyes glared fiercely at poor Sixby, who had got up and was 
 now limping off" his hand being pressed against his side. 
 Notwithstanding my smarting and swollen cheek, and the 
 ])resence of the Principal and two other professors, I could 
 not forego a laugh at Mack's speech, and knowing Mr. 
 Hanson's appreciation of the ludicrous, I glanced up at his 
 face, and was sure I saw his lip quivering in his efforts to 
 repress a smile. 
 
 Mack's part in the affray may be thus explained. 
 
 The moment I started for Sixby, Hardwick, with a heavy 
 bat, rushed forward to defend liim, and was about to strike 
 me on the head with it from behind, when he was leveled 
 by a blow from M; ck, who had divined his purpose and 
 hastened to my defence in the nick of tin.a. 
 
 " You may go to your rooms now, young men," said the 
 Principal sternly. I will attev.d li this atlair this nfternoon." 
 
 I instantly obeyed him, and so did Mack and Hardwick 
 — Sixby having already gone. I was nut at all alarmed 
 about discipline, remembering that it was vacation, and the 
 Principal in consequerce having no control over us. And 
 even in case h-^ had, I was (juite sure that he would do 
 nothing, having seen the provocation )n which Sixby and 
 Hardwick had been struck, and disliking them as I knew 
 he did. 
 
 My ill-feeling had so far subsided that as soon as I hatl 
 reached my room I burst into a heart_y fit of laughter, in 
 which I wasjoiuea by Mack who had accompanied me ; still, 
 he was too angry to enjoy it fully. 
 
 'You can better aff'ord to iaugh than I can," said he, 
 
 ■lib. i.tt..Mj,..,tfe,,;._,- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster 
 
 169 
 
 wick 
 
 iirined 
 
 nd the 
 
 '\nd 
 
 Id do 
 
 y and 
 
 knew 
 
 I had 
 ter, in 
 
 still, 
 
 " for you had two kicks at that puppy Sixby, while I oidy 
 had one blow at Hardwick. Why, confound it, man, he 
 would have broken your head with that bat if 1 had not 
 been there. I've a mind to go to his room and thrash him 
 now," and he moved towards the door as if really determined 
 on jjerforming the act. 
 
 " Stop, Mack," 1 said. " You would only disgi-ace your- 
 self, and get into trouble, besides we have done enough." 
 
 Lingering a moment as if meditating, he finally replied : 
 
 " You're right, no doubt, but I won't admit that they've 
 had enough ; they'll try the thing again with you, as soon 
 as they have an opportunity." 
 
 " No, never," I said. " That fellow, Sixby, is satisfied 
 Aow. He has learned that I am not to be insulted with 
 impunity." 
 
 1 was right. Ever after he treated me with respect; 
 indeed, his shyness of me reminded me of the dog " Trip " 
 that I knocked on the head the day that I commenced 
 teaching in Meadville. Hardwick was likewise similarly 
 respectful. Nearly every student remaining at the Seminary 
 came into my room in the course of the day to congratulate 
 me, and condemn the insulting act of Sixby and the 
 cowardly one of his colleague. Numbers who came back 
 at the beginning of the next term also thanked me for the 
 deed, thus showhig the estimation in which Sixby was 
 held. 
 
 The rumor was first afloat that I had broken two or 
 three of his ribs, and I was on the point of going to his 
 room to express sorrow for my violence, when I learnef^ that, 
 beyond a very black eye, he was not seriously injured. 
 
" 1^ 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 / 
 
 An account of my work in the Seminary — My friend goes to engage a 
 school and talcea me with him — A school manager — A bargain — 
 My friend hires out. 
 
 Up to this time I had twice written to Niel, and he- 
 promptly answeied, asking me in his last letter if I was 
 not getting " short," and urging me to " draw " on him if 
 such was the case. 
 
 But, from my economy, I had still more than half the 
 sum he loaned me on deposit, and 1 was not obliged to ask 
 for more until the following April, when I obtained another 
 sum of two h ndred dollars. 
 
 Unlike many of the students, I seldom indulged in the 
 luxury of a drive, consecjuently, my livery bill was small. 
 During my tirst vacation I made a trip to Albany, where I 
 remained a couple of days, but this was by far the longest 
 and most expensive journey that I made in the course of 
 two years. My time was wholly devoted to study ; indeed, 
 I gave so little time to recreation that, at the end of six 
 months, I discovered, from the state of my health, that I 
 was studying far too much and exercising too little, and so 
 
 i^ 
 
 
 'f£ 
 
 ■^'^■^4''^';;-.-:^ 
 
 ■ Q'U 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 171 
 
 i shortened the time that I gave to the former to nine 
 hours per diem and increased the time devoted to the latter 
 by an hour. 
 
 The remaining two hotlrs t spent either in reading, chat- 
 ting or in experimenting in the laVtoratory. I had obtained 
 the privilege of prosecuting these experiments from the 
 Principal, whose good favor I was fortunate enough to 
 enjf^y. Perceiving my fondness for study, he strove in 
 every way to aid and encourage me, giving me free access 
 to his own private library, often assisting me in my experi- 
 ments, that I might not fall a martyr to science, as he 
 jocosely remarked, and giving me advice which has saved 
 me from many errors of action in the years that have inter- 
 vened. 
 
 From Ruth I received a letter every two weeks, and 
 during all the time that I was absent from her I made it a 
 rule to write her as often, always devoting a portion of a 
 Saturday holiday to this purpose ; and each letter contained 
 a careful account of every incident of interest to me which 
 had occurred, and of every new aspiration that had seized 
 me during the preceding half Tuonth. She had engaged in 
 teaching soon after my departure, and was still thus 
 employed. 
 
 It was during the vacation of which I have spoken, near 
 its close, that Mack one day entered my room, quite 
 animated with a new idea that had possessed him. 
 
 ** Styles," said he, " do you think I could manage a dis- 
 trict school ? " 
 
 " I do not know why you could not," I replied ; " you 
 certainly have the requisite that is regarded the most 
 important in a teacher in many communities." 
 
172 
 
 The Frontier Schoolrtv^ter. 
 
 Ill 
 
 " What is that ? " he asked. 
 
 " Ability to thrash the big boys." 
 
 " Yes," he said, with a laugh, " but do you really think I 
 could succeed as a teacher ? " 
 
 "That depends very much on the community in which 
 you teach, and the class of pupils that you have. Amongst 
 intelligent people, and with obedient pupils, 1 liavo no doubt 
 you would succeed admirably ; but, in other circumstances, 
 I fear that your stock of patience would not suHice. Would 
 you expect to board around ? " 
 
 He had often laughed at the account of my own expe- 
 rience in teaching, and my question at once amused him. 
 
 " I don't know the custom in this section," he said, " but 
 I have no fears about the board. A sailor is not particular 
 in regard to his diet, and as to patience, I believe 1 have as 
 much of that as you have. It is something I must learn 
 to cultivate, and perhaps teaching will affijrd me the best 
 opportunity for doing it. At all events I < ii't think I shall 
 kill a dog the first day. But do you think my education is 
 sufficient ?" 
 
 "Nonsense, man!" I said, "why you v/ere fitted for 
 college long ago, and with the ability to write such poetfy 
 as you do, to ask me if your education is sufficient t(j teach 
 a district school is most absurd." 
 
 " Well, if you deem me competent, I thitdc f shall iry it. 
 f do ^///t Uka to be so .entirely depejid<<iif ///; iVfr. flallecli far 
 ray s(i/'/>ort. It rar/g| be inconvenient tut inm in his cir- 
 cumstances to advance me so much money, and I wish to 
 show him (hat I am (^uite ready to help myself when I have 
 an opi)ortunity, I havp ]uy,\rd t(j-day of a place about 
 fifteen miles from here, where they wish to get a teacher 
 
TJie Frontier Schoolmdster. 
 
 173 
 
 for the winter, and I have decided to drive over there to- 
 morrow, and would like to have you go with nie." 
 
 "With the greatest pleasure," I answered. "I shall enjoy 
 the ride, and besides I shall be glad to see the })lace where 
 you are to teach ; perhaps, too, as I am quite a Yankee, I 
 may assist you in making a good bargain." 
 
 The next morning we drove away with the enjoyment of 
 a cloutUess sky, and cool, rich autiunnal air. Our road lay 
 for some distance through a fine farming section of country, 
 where farmers were busy securing their late crops ; and the 
 subject of agriculture being thus suggested to our minds, we 
 discussed it with the thorijughness and zoal of experienced' 
 plowmen. The beautiful scenery oiiteu called forth our 
 admiration, and school-teaching also claiming nxi mc<»nsider- 
 able p(jrtion of our thoughts, we talked so inctfssantly that 
 we were at our journey's end before aware of it. 
 
 The school-house was located in a iducu, woody and 
 thinly settled part, with a mountain at no great distance 
 from it. Unlike the structure where 1 taught at MeadviUe, 
 it worf* a faded coat of red pamt, and had an apology for a 
 wood-shed near, but m other respects it bore the same untidy 
 and uncared-inr appearance. 
 
 HaA-mg learned by inquiry that the school manager lived 
 in a h. nt sixty rods distant, back from the road, we 
 
 rejiiUiV'vi Liiii.-v-i, and found liim near his dwelling with a 
 couple of large boys digging potatoes. All 8to])ped work 
 and staled ;^ we approached. 
 
 " Griod morning, sir," said Mack, to the father. 
 
 " Good mornin' ; we're gettin' some fine weather fur 
 pertater diggin, jest now," he said. 
 
 " Yes, tine ; du your poUitoes turn out well ? *' 
 
 mtsamx, m .-iai*L) 
 
 m. 
 
174 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Wall, no they don't," he replied, leaning on his hoe, 
 his countenance assuming an expression of disappointment 
 and disgust. "No, they're little nasty things, and half 
 rotten at that." 
 
 " That's too bad," said Mack, sympathetically. 
 
 "And esi)ecially since they are one of the chief depen- 
 dencies of tlie farmer in this country," I said. 
 
 " Yes," replied the farmer, and he scowled with inex- 
 pressible disgust ; " we're pretty darned hard up fur every- 
 thing ter eat when we haint got plenty of pertaters. I 
 jinerly lay in fur a good stock of 'em, for it's so fur ter the 
 boardin' places in this deestrict, we calkerlate we have ter 
 board the teacliers more nor half the time ; 'specially in the 
 winter, if we happen ter hay a woman teacher ; but I'm 
 gwine ter try and git a man this winter, if I can, one that's 
 able ter travel. I've got a pretty good crop of corn though, 
 so I guess I can keep him, if necessary." 
 
 " If he's as mean as the schoolmaster we had last winter 
 here," said one of the boys, in a husky voice, " pertaters '11 
 be too good for him." 
 
 " Was lie rather mean ? " asked Mack. 
 
 " Mean ! I guess he was," replied the boy, " he used ter 
 knock the scholars round jest as he was a mind tew ; they 
 all hated him worse 'n they would pizen." 
 
 "Darn his picter, he never laid his h?uds on me," said 
 the other boy, who was old(3r and larger than the first siH3aker ; 
 " ef he had, I'd showed him a thing or tew. Tom Gibson 
 and I made up our minds ter put him out of the school- 
 house ef we see much more of liis pufformances, but I guess 
 he begun ter smeU the rat, fur he carried himself pretty 
 straight after that." 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 176 
 
 " Wall, wall," said the old man, " I guess he want a bad 
 feller if the young ones had behaved themselves, but some- 
 how he didn't seem ter have a nack of gettin their goodwill, 
 and I s'pose they used ter make hini mad." 
 
 " I presume you have teachers here, sometimes," I said, 
 "that are well liked." 
 
 " O, yes," replied the man, " they're allers liked well 'nuff 
 ef they only git the hang of the scholars, and play and 
 'sociate with 'cm as if they didn't feel 'bove 'em. 
 
 " It don't dew fer a schoolmaster ter go ter puttin' on 
 style here," said the larger boy, " ef he does we take the 
 starch out on him pretty quick." 
 
 " Well," said Mack, " you rather frighten me from the 
 idea of teaching in this place. My business here to-day is 
 to see whether I can engage the school for the winter. I 
 hear that you are in want of a teacher." 
 
 " Gosh," exclaimed the farmer, " be you a school-teacher ? 
 why I thought you chaps was butter-buyers. I'm sorry 
 yer aint, fur I've got three tubs of as nice butter ter sell as 
 you can find in this county. The neighbors all say that 
 my old woman can't be beat fur butter niakin'." 
 
 The boys had regarded Mack with the greatest curiosity 
 since they had learned the object of his visit, and as soon as 
 the father had concluded his remark, the younger said, 
 
 " Why, you don't look big enough to keep school." 
 
 The elder boy seeming desirous of apologizing for his 
 former remarks, and at the same time to put Mack at his 
 ease, immediately exclaimed, 
 
 "(^ you needn't be scart; the boys aint bud clmps here, 
 and ef you git on the right side on 'em you'll git along. 
 Ennyway I shant touch yer." 
 
flii 
 
 176 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ^n 
 
 It will be lucky for you, younir man, if you don't, I 
 thought, but whatever Mack's thoughts were, he dis';reotly 
 replied, 
 
 " 1 have no fear, sir, that you aiul I will have any trouble. 
 I think I can get along with any well disposed person who 
 will treat nie with the politeness I show i<< him." 
 
 " I guess you wouldn't have any trouble if you used the 
 scholars well," said the father, " but, I swow, I'm afraid 
 you're pretty small ; the boys might think they'd dew as 
 they're mind tew on 'count yer size." 
 
 "You cannot dways judge of a man's strength and 
 activity from his size," I said. " I happen to know that 
 there are few men of Mr. Mackenzie's strength. At all 
 events, there is no one in the Seminary at Corvette who 
 V ' \ venture to \vTestle with him." 
 
 " You don't say ? " exclaimed the man ; " well, 'tis an old 
 sayin' that you never kin tell how fur a toad '11 hop by his 
 looks." 
 
 " By gosh ! 1 don't believe he could throw Tom Gibson," 
 said the larger boy, " he's great on square holt." 
 
 "How much be you gwine ter ax a month?" inquired 
 the man. 
 
 " All that you will pay," replied Mack. " How much 
 have you usually paid ? " 
 
 " Fifteen dollars is the most," was the answer. " Last 
 winter we paid thirteen and a half." 
 
 "That is too low," said Mack. " I expect eighteen, and 
 I prefer boarding at one place." 
 
 " Wall, you couldn't dew that here. The folks wouldn't 
 give yer five ef they thought you felt tew big ter board 
 with 'em; and, 'sides, we allers think a teacher orter go 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 17: 
 
 'round and ^rit 'qu^inted witli his scholars in order ter keej) 
 on the right <<i(le on 'em." 
 
 " It is nol that I feel too big to board around," replied 
 Ma(!k, " but I wish to study, and for that reason 1 think it 
 would be more pleasnnt to board in one i)lace." 
 
 " P'raps 'twould," was the answer ; " but 'taint no use 
 apeakin' on it here ; the deentrict wouldn't stand it ; and we 
 never could pay eighteen dollars. Hev you got a certiiikit ? ' 
 
 " Vo, but I will get one if I engage to teach." 
 
 " Mr. Mackenzie," I said, " is an advanced and thorough 
 scholar. He has spent four years on the ocean, and has 
 visited the most imj)()rtant countries and renowned cities on 
 the globe. If your boys could listen to accounts of what 
 he has seen, the knowledge that they would thus obtain 
 would be worth to them far more than they often receive at 
 a winter's school. If you can get Mr, Mackenzie to teach 
 for eighteen dollars a month, you are getting him at a very 
 low rate." 
 
 The curiosity of the trio v^'as thoroughly aroused. They 
 began to look at Mack witii an eApression of awe and 
 astonishment. The man, after a moment's silence, exclaimed : 
 
 " Wall, I swow, I guess he is quite a chaj). So you've 
 been ter sea, hev yer ? " he asked. 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied Mack. " I have been on many seas — 
 the Mediterranean, Caribbean, Caspian, Adriatic and others." 
 
 " Did you ever see a whale ? " he asked with the utmost 
 seriousness. 
 
 "0, yes, a great many of them," was the answer. 
 
 " Wall, 1 spose that's quite a sight. I never see one, but 
 I'd like tew fust rate. But say, don't you think you could 
 keep our school for less'n eighteen dollars ? that's a thun- 
 

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 178 
 
 TAe Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
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 derin' price. I'd like ter hire yer though, fur I'd be glad my- 
 self ter hear yer tell 'bout some o' thehi big fish you've 
 seen," 
 
 " Eighteen dollars is as low as I can teach," said Mack. 
 
 The school manager meditated a moment, and then turn- 
 ing to his sons said, 
 
 " Wall, what d'ye say, boys, shall I hire him ? " 
 
 " Dew just as you're a mind tew," replied the elder ; " I'd 
 kinder like ter him tell some.o' them stories. " 
 
 " What dew you say. Tim ? " asked the father of the 
 younger boy. 
 
 "Why, I say jest as Jack says." he replied, "dew as 
 you're a mind tew, but I'd like darn'd well to hear 'bout 
 them whales." 
 
 The man hesitated, thought for a moment \7ith downcast 
 eyes, then drc^pping his hoe, and exclaiming, 
 
 " Hold on a minute, I'll see the old woman," started on a 
 dog trot for the house. 
 
 Five minutes afterwards the woman, in a striped woolen 
 govm, with sleeves rolled up, appeared in the door, her hus- 
 band standing just behind looking over her shoulder. After 
 carefully adjusting her spectacles and taking a good look 
 towards us, she exclaimed in a tone of partial contempt. 
 
 " Pshaw, he aint bigger'n a midgit." 
 
 " Yes," replied her spouse, " but that other feller says 
 he's aljlred smart." 
 
 " Wall," she answered, " I don't believe it. Law, I could 
 liandle him myself." 
 
 " You'd better not talk quite so loud thar," yelled the 
 elder boy with some show of mortified feelings. 
 
 The door now closed, and the consultation was continued 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 179 
 
 inside. We amused ourselves by talking to the boys for 
 another ten minutes, when the man walked out, and with 
 an air which seemed to show that he was determind to fol- 
 low the latest advice, said, 
 
 " Wall, boys, yer marm thinks we'd better hev a school 
 nieetin' 'fore I hire, and then thar want be any chance fur 
 grumblin'." 
 
 " That's jest what I've been thinkin," said his eldest. " If 
 yer sliould hire, and give such a tarnal price, like enutf 
 some ov em in the deestrict would be so mad they wouldn't 
 speak tew yer. If yer call a school r jeetin', and talk it over, 
 why, then, they kin dew as they'i*^ mind tew 'boutpayin' 
 sich wages, and they can't blame you any way." 
 
 I here thought that I might again interpose v/ith profit 
 to Mack, 
 
 " You have been appointed as one of the committee with 
 power to engage a teacher, have you not ? " I asked. 
 
 " Yas ; but hang it all, I don't like to go so much above 
 our usu.il figger." 
 
 " I suppose if the school should prove to be a good one, 
 the inhabitants of the district would find no fault wdth the 
 price," I continued. 
 
 "Wall, I 'd'no; mebbe they would and mebbe they 
 wouldn't," he answered ; " but the thing ont io, we can't tell 
 what the school will be now." 
 
 I could but admit that his reasoning was good, but 
 believing that I could persuade him to give the price 
 demanded, I was not at all inclined to yield. 
 
 " For myself, I have no doubt," I said, " that your school 
 will be all that you could w^ish. M •. Mackenzie is not 
 only a thorough scholar, but he is energetic, and has the 
 
180 
 
 The Frontier (schoolmaster. 
 
 f 
 
 faculty, beyond most men, of imparting the knowledge that 
 he possesses. He can furnish you the very best of recom- 
 mendations from the professors at Corvette, and it is my 
 opinion that if you hire another only half as well qualified 
 because you can get him two or three dollars a month less, 
 the people of the district will feel that they have more 
 cause for complaint than they will if you pay the price he 
 asks." 
 
 He seemed to be undecided, but soon said, 
 
 " I don't see why it aint jest as well ter hev a school- 
 meetin*. I kin tell em all about him, and then they kin 
 dew as they're a mincl tew 'bout hirin' him." 
 
 "That would be well enough," I replied, "if it were not 
 for the delay. It will require two or three days to do 
 what you propose, a ;id then a day or two more to let Mr. 
 Mackenzie* know the result of the school meeting, and, in 
 the meantime, he may loose the chance of getting a situa- 
 tion as there are but few schools remaining that are not 
 engaged for the winter." 
 
 The man hung his head again and deliberated. He 
 evidently felt that he was in a trying position. 
 
 At length, turning again to the elder boy, he said, in a 
 nervous tone, 
 
 " Wall, what d'ye say. Jack ; if he'll take seventeen would 
 yer hire him ? " 
 
 The boy hung his head and deliberated; and then looking 
 up with a simple half-smiling expression, exclaimed, 
 
 " Darn it all, I don't know but yer might as well." 
 
 " Wall, will yer take it ? " the man asked with an anxious 
 countenance, addressing ilack. 
 
 It was now the latter's turn to deliberate, but only for a 
 moment, when he answered, " I will take it." 
 
Th£, Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 181 
 
 The man seemed frightened. He spit two or three times 
 fiercely, bit off a huge piece of tobacco, and dug a hill of 
 potatoes before uttering a word, and then, with a half-fren- 
 zied look, ejaculated, 
 
 " Wall, I s'pose I shall hav ter dew it, seein' as how I've 
 said so much. I b'lieve though if IVi stuck tew yer I 
 might have got yer for fourteen or fifteen; but darn yer 
 picter, I want yer ter dew yer best. Give em a good 
 school so't they cant cuss me." 
 
 " I shall do my best, sir," replied Mack, with a serious 
 face, half regretting that he had agreed to undertake the 
 task. 
 
 The bargain having been made the man felt it necessary 
 to give Mack the following instructions. 
 
 " Now, sir," said he, " I want yer ter give the scholars 
 their orders as soon as school begins ter keep way from my 
 well this winter. The darned critters come sloppin' round 
 it every winter, and they git it so slippery thar cant any on us 
 git within a rod ont to draw water without choppin' half-a- 
 day. I had a yearlin' hog that I wouldn't took eight dollars 
 in cash for, slip inter it last winter and drown." 
 
 " Is there no well or spring belonging to the school ? " 
 asked Mack. 
 
 " No," he answered, " but thar's a brook over 'cross the 
 road, in the paster thar ; 'taint more'n a quarter of a iliile 
 off; they kin jest as well go thar arter their wa*«r." 
 
 " I'll see to that," replied Mack with a dubious look. 
 
 " And another thing," pursued the committee, " I want 
 yer ter keep em outer my barn. The plagy boys git in thar 
 and jump on the hay, and they've scart my sheep so I can't 
 git within a mile on em." 
 
 N 
 
r 
 
 182 
 
 The Frontier SchooVnioMer. 
 
 I » i 
 
 " Yes, sir," said Mack obsequiously, " I'll see to that, too. 
 Anything else ? " he asked. 
 
 " No, I don't thing of nothin now, but I want yer ter be 
 on hand in the mornin', and git the fires built in season." 
 
 " Certainly, sir," was the answer in the same deferential 
 tone. 
 
 At this juncture the kitchen door opened, and the house- 
 wife, in a sharp shrill voice, called out, 
 
 ' Dinne?'s ready, Jim." 
 
 Being very hungry, Mack and I were not slow in accept- 
 ing the farmer's invitation to dine with him, and after seeinp 
 our hor^e cared for, we followed him to the house. 
 
 Time will not permit me to detail to the reader the 
 conversation that occurred between the family and our- 
 selves ; it will suffice to say that we enjoyed it as we did 
 our coarse but bountiful dinner. 
 
 As we were again seated in the carriage, and about 
 starting off. Jack, the elder boy, as a final address to Mack, 
 called out, 
 
 " Yer mustn't forgit 'bout them whales 'fore yer come on 
 ter keep school." 
 
 After assuring him that he would not. Mack touched the 
 horse lightly with the whip, and we were off at a brisk 
 trot. Scarcely had we entered the highway when a loud 
 " Halloo ! " caused us to halt and look back. 
 
 Our friend, the school manager, was swinging his hat 
 energetically, and the moment he saw that we observed 
 him, he approached us on the run. As soon as within 
 speaking distance, hat still in hand, nearly breathless, he 
 said, 
 
 " Thar's one thing I want ter ask 'fore yer leave ; have 
 yer got any religion ? " 
 
 nil 
 
"^ 
 
 T^e Frontier Schoolmaster. 133 
 
 It was a moment before Mack could control himself 
 enough to inform him with a grave expression of couute- 
 nance that he was nominally a church member, but regretted 
 that he was not as active in the performance of Christian 
 duties as he should be. 
 
 " WaU," said the man, " it don't make a darn's odds with 
 me whether you be er not. I only tho't I'd ask 'cause thar's 
 tew or three families in the deestrict that's kinder pious and 
 they kinder think that a feller tliat keeps school orter pray 
 a little m the mornin when he commences." 
 
 " WeU, as to that," replied Mack, "you may say to them 
 that I shaU at least feel it a duty to open the school with 
 the Lord's prayer." 
 
 " WaU, I'm glad on't," he repHed, "'cause it'U suit them 
 folks fnst rate, and I'U teU 'em." His curiosity being thus 
 gratified, he put on his hat and returned.. 
 
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 ■ lltiM'' ' : > 
 
 CHAPTEE XIV. 
 
 Mack mgrets hh bargain, but sticks to it — A letter containing an 
 amusing account of his experience in teaching— Copies of letters 
 he receives from his patrons — His second letter, in which he 
 gives a little experience in " boarding around." 
 
 Is'i'ACK was to begin his school on the last Monday of 
 Noveniber, and the Saturday previous to that he bade his 
 friends at the Seminary good-bye, and set out for the scene 
 of his labors. Poor fellow, I pitied him, knowing as I did 
 how much he enjoyed congenial society, and understanding 
 better than he did the number of annoyances to which he 
 would be subjected. 
 
 We had learned, after his engagement, that the locality 
 in which he was to teach was generally regarded as an out- 
 of-the-way place, iuliabited chiefly by poor and uncultivated 
 people, and that on this account the district had been nick- 
 named by its neighbors " The Lost Nation." 
 
 Mack had once or twice expressed to me his regret at not 
 having applied for a school earlier, when he might have 
 secured one in a different community, but he had a great 
 desire to learn the character and customs of different peoples, 
 
 M 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 185 
 
 and whenever inclined to repent of his promise to teach in 
 this particular district, he always consoled himself with the 
 reflection that he would have an admirable opportunity to 
 learn the characteristics of lower life in Yankeedom. He 
 had often remarked that what he saw and heard on the day 
 he engaged to teach was worth to him as much as his 
 winter's wages, and he avowed his determination to keep a 
 diary, during his stay in the district, with the view of some- 
 time making up a quarto volume from the incidents of that 
 winter. His enthusiasm, however, on this subject began 
 sensibly to diminish as the time for his departure drew near, 
 and on the day that he was to leave he would gladly have 
 cancelled his engagement, could he honorably or consistently, 
 with his circumst^ances, have done so. But he went to his 
 work, and in two weeks after he commenced it the following 
 letter announced to me his success. 
 
 M , — th Dec, 1856. 
 
 My dear Styles, 
 
 I still live, but whether I shall continue to do so at the 
 expiration of another two weeks is a question that I am 
 now prepared, seriously, to consider. I have had oppor- 
 tunity to discover the comfort and pleasure to be enjoyed 
 in " boarding around," and I confess I like it. Doughnuts 
 for dinner every day except two, when their presence was 
 supplied with cold johnny cake, with a pig's foot for dessert. 
 Unlike yourself, I have not yet experienced the comfort of 
 sleeping with two boys, but have always had the company 
 of one, and during a period of four nights, when my 
 sleeping apartment was warm, bed-fellows of another kind 
 made a change to a cold room exceedingly pleasant. I find, 
 however, that there are several farmers in the district who live 
 
r 
 
 186 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Ill 
 
 !ii 
 
 k ■ 
 
 
 t ■ 
 
 
 1 ' 
 
 J.!-., 
 
 . i „ 
 
 in good houses, and from the neat and respectable appear- 
 ance of their children, I venture to hope that I shall have 
 all the comforts in boarding with them that I could wish. 
 My present number of pupils is fifty-six, and I under- 
 stand that there are four or five more boys coming " as soon 
 as their threshing is done." Should their conduct prove any- 
 thing like what it is said to have been in school in former 
 times, I imagine that the threshing will be done chiefly 
 after they have become my pupils. On the whole, I cannot 
 complain of the deportment of those who are already in 
 school, having been obliged to resort to extreme measures 
 in only one instance. You doubtless remember Tom Gibson, 
 who is "great on square holt." Well, having become tired 
 of his familiar remarks and the advice that he volunteered 
 to offer about the management of classes, etc., I ventured 
 to inform him on the fourth day that I could manage the 
 school without his aid if he would kindly permit me, 
 whereupon he coolly said : 
 
 " I guess you're gittin' stuck up, aint yer ? " 
 He was evidently astonished at the display of indignation 
 which followed, but not much cowed, he insolently remarked : 
 " You're pretty small, bub, to make so much noise." 
 His right eye is robed in mourning now, and I think he has 
 concluded to waive the discussion of the question as to the 
 probability of my being " stuck up." 
 
 But, my dear fellow, I need your advice about one thing, 
 — the multitude of text books. 
 
 I have four different kinds of arithmetics, five reading 
 books, three geographies, and three spellers, all of the same, 
 or nearly the same grade, and I am expected to hear the 
 lessons in all the different sorts ; what am I to do ? It is 
 
The Frontier Schoolni' ter. 
 
 187 
 
 by far the greatest annoyance that I have ; causing me, as 
 it does, to perform a great deal of unnecessary work, and 
 thus depriving me of time to make the recitations interest- 
 ing and instructive to the pupils, liy giving much oral 
 instruction and the use of the black board, I get along very 
 well with the arithmetic classes, but the other recitations 
 are not so easily managed. I appealed to the committee to 
 aid me in establishing a uniform series of text books, but I 
 might as well have expected an appropriation from New 
 Zealand to build a chair factory in Vermont. They had 
 never heard before, of too many books being an objection 
 to a school, and even after I had explained the case they 
 failed to see the difficulty, and one of them thought if I 
 knew much about school teaching I would have no trouble 
 with regard to the books. Now, as you have had a little 
 experience in teaching, I have no doubt that you can make 
 some suggestion that will be profitable to me. 
 
 Are all the district schools of this country in the same 
 state as mine with regard to text books ? 
 
 I enclose two notes which I have received since teaching 
 here, which will show you at the same time the annoyances 
 I have to meet, and the literary status of 'ny patrons. 
 
 Yours ever, 
 
 Mack. 
 
 The following are copies of the letters enclosed : — 
 
 Mr. Makkensy, Sir, 
 
 i wish you would let james 
 set on nuther seet, i doant want him ter set with the Snider 
 
Ifi: 
 
 188 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 young ones. Tliey call him names and sa his father and 
 mother is fools an you no that aint very plesant. 
 
 Yours eliectionetly, 
 
 Lydi S 
 
 
 i 
 
 Mr. Makenzy my boy sez you wont hear his jografy 
 leson cans its a old won and their haint enny more like it 
 in school and tell him that ive gotter l)y hini a nu jografy. 
 now i shant du it. i studded that jografy miself And i no 
 its good won. i haint got no muny ter fool way and ef you 
 want him ter hev a nuther you kan jest by it yerself er ile 
 take him out yer school. 
 
 i perscribe miself yours 
 
 ^ respecfully 
 
 • ' • ,' Ernest 
 
 The reader will understand that I sympathized with my 
 friend in his troubles, but I certainly felt unable to relieve 
 him. Every one who has had much experience in teach- 
 ing, knows the embarrassment of having a variety of text 
 books in one class. This drawback to the teacher's success 
 was formerly very common, and though it is now seldom 
 seen in the more advanced and cultivated communities, it 
 still exists in many rural districts. 
 
 The best advice that I could give was that he should 
 explain to the parents the difficulty under which he labored, 
 and, if possible, persuade them to purchase new books, but 
 if they refused, to get along as best he could with those 
 already in use. He certainly could not be justly blamed 
 if his pupils, under ,the circumstances, failed to make the 
 progress that they would had his wishes in the matter been 
 observed. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 189 
 
 Reforms i school may be effected in a short time by 
 a teacher who has had experience, and is well known ip 
 the locality where he teaches, provided he has an intelligent 
 school board or a goodly number of intelligent patrons to 
 sustain him ; but old customs and theories can be abolished 
 in a community like that where my friend was teaching, 
 only by wise and persistent efforts tiirough several terms 
 
 of SCu'^ol. 
 
 Mack subsequently informed me that he adopted my 
 suggestion, and succeeded in persuading two or three to 
 purchase new books, but as others refused, he was obliged 
 to continue his work with constant regrets that he was 
 compelled, by their ignorance, to misemploy much of his 
 time. 
 
 Three weeks more passed, when th^post brought me the 
 following letter : 
 
 My dear Styles, 
 
 I am becoming attached to my school. There really is 
 some pleasure to be found in teaching, notwithstanding the 
 many annoyances. One frequently becomes tired with the 
 monotony of his labors, discouraged and vexed at the want 
 of interest displayed by many of his older pupils, whose 
 want of knowledge is really shocking, and he feels that his 
 life is one of ceaseless drudgery ; but then when he finds 
 among his pupils those of bright minds who strive earnestly 
 to learn, who listen with profound attention to what is said, 
 and seem grateful for the instruction imparted to them, he 
 is encouraged, and realizes that his mission is a noble one — 
 that he is helping to mould the minds of those who may 
 eventualij be numbered with the wise and good. Really, 
 
I. 
 
 J\ 
 
 190 
 
 The Frontier SchoGlmaster. 
 
 I believe that there v no other pursuit in which one can 
 engage with such perfect assurance of leaving 
 
 " Footprintb on the sands of tiuie." 
 
 I find that my travels are of immense value to me in my 
 prcseiit labors. 
 
 You would smile to see my large, awkward pupils listen 
 sometimes with gaping mouths to the descriptions given 
 them of things 1 have seen in foreign lands. I am glad to 
 entertain and instruct them in this manner, but they are so 
 curious and imporcunate in their questions, that I often get 
 weary, and to relieve myself of the labor of giving them 
 crally, the information they desire, I have loaned several of 
 them books, and I think that, by so doing, I have awakened 
 in them a taste for reading. I am certain that they all show 
 me more respect than they would, did they not feel that I 
 am possessed of knowledge mucli superior to their own. 
 
 Since writing you my last I have boarded at two differ- 
 ent places, and have been entertained as pleasantly and 
 made as comfortable as I could wish. I must not omit, 
 however, to give you an account of a night I spent with a 
 diminutive Englislmaan, who, but a few years since, resided 
 in Canada. His name is Peacock, and, owing to his gener- 
 osity, six young Peacocks, equally divided as regards sex, 
 are members of my school. He brings his progeny in 
 stormy weather on an ox sled, and as he is very loquacioub 
 I find it difPcult at times to get rid of him in season to 
 commence my work at the proper hour. Having heard, he 
 said, that I was a Scotchman, and a great traveller, he felt 
 much interest in me, and in fact claimed relationship, inas- 
 much as v/e owe allegiance to the same flag. He had 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 191 
 
 urged me frequently to visit him, and as I was pleased with 
 the old fellow I decided to do so. 
 
 The people with whom I wa<» boardiug tried to dissuade 
 me, assuring me that I would find neither comfort nor clean- 
 liness in his domicile. Curiosity, however, and a desire to 
 fulfil my promise led me to make the visit, and one even- 
 ing last week, at the close of school, I accompanied the 
 young Peacocks to their home. The road branches off from 
 the main road, at a short distance from the schoolhouse, and 
 leads first across a wide rough field, and then through a belt 
 of woods to a small c laring near uhe base of the mountain. 
 
 The house, a small log one, scarcely displays its roof 
 above the high ,inow drifts which surround it, and the en- 
 trance to it on the occasion of my visit could be effected 
 only by a slippery path, almost perpendicular, commencing 
 at the summit of a drift and terminating at the threshold. 
 
 Notwithstandin<j a word of caution which was given me 
 by one of the Cxiildren who followed as I mounted the drift> 
 I lost my fooling, slid swiftly down the opposite side, burst 
 open the door, and brought up in a sitting posture on the 
 floor of the Englishman's kitchen. My d^but was first 
 acknowledged by a large yellow, haK starved looking dog, 
 which dashed at me wit}< a fierce growl and seized me, as I 
 wa^ rising, by the coat tail. His short, stout mistress first 
 assailed him over the head with a heavy brush broom-stick, 
 but it was not until his mast'ji' had administered several 
 lusty kicks that he wan disposed to relinquish his hold. An 
 apology wrs first offered, then salutations were exchanged, 
 after which my host offered me the best chair the house 
 afforded, which was once, no doubt, well bottomed with 
 rough bark, but in its present state of dilapidation I was 
 
 i:. 
 
,«" 
 
 192 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 { ! 
 
 Hi! 
 
 obliged to rely on the front round for support, on which I 
 tried to Lalance myself while I answered his questions and 
 surveyed the furniture of the apartment. 
 
 It was the only room in the house, and served the triple 
 purpose of kitchen, dining room and sleeping apartment for 
 the whole family. There were two beds besides a huge 
 trundle bed in it, a roughly made table, three or four old 
 chairs, a long bench and an old stove at which the mistress 
 was engaged in frying large slices of pork. 
 
 Their few dishes were chiefly of tin, but a blue earthen 
 plate of antique pattern was placed on the table ^or my 
 own special benefit. I Lad proceeded thus far in my in", en- 
 tory of mine host's personal property, and was changing my 
 position in the chair to a more comfortable one, when the 
 door again suddenly burst open and in slid a mil grown 
 pig, his bristles, from cold and hunger, standing on end 
 
 " Like quills upon a fretful porcupine." 
 The only difference between piggy's entrance and my own 
 was that he maintained a standing posture. It was an 
 opportunity again for the faithful yeUow dog to display his 
 vigilance. The long curly tail of the pig affording the 
 most vulnerable point of attack, to this he fastened himself, 
 and to the music of a prolonged, terrific squeal, accompanied 
 by surly growls, the quadrupeds commenced the circuit of 
 the room. The broom-stick, wielded as before by the 
 hostess, was again brought into requisition, the Englishman 
 followed with his heavy boots, while the eldest boy, seizing 
 the fire-shovel, formed the rear of the assailing party. 
 IJound and round the table went the animals, and round 
 and round they were followed by the trio of excited bipeds. 
 Blows fell in rapid succession; the Englishman shouted 
 
 iii 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 193 
 
 and kicked alternately, and the squeals became more pierc- 
 ing at each successive shaking piggy received at his caudal 
 continuation by the unrelenting dog. The children, with 
 the exception of the one engaged in the attack, sought 
 refuge on the beds, while T, for safety, removed my chair 
 into a corner of the room, where I was just preparing to 
 take notes, when the elder Peacock gave a furious kick, 
 intended for the pig, but which, unluckily, missed it, struck 
 and overturned the table, and left the man himself, from 
 the violence of his effort, sitting, with flushed face, on 
 the floor. The frightened pig at this juncture dashed off 
 at a tangent, and running beneath my chair bore it off 
 on his back, and landed its occupant on his head near the 
 stove. I rolled over just in time to witness the romantic 
 exit of the animal from the door, the dog still clinging to 
 his tail. 
 
 The excitement having thus subsided, and the Englishman, 
 as well as myself, being once more on his feet, we were pre- 
 pared to contemplate the scene. At first he expressed his 
 indignation in sundry ejaculations, interspersed with half 
 stifled oaths, but at length, incited perhaps by my own 
 merriment, which I struggled in vain to conceal, he seemed 
 to comprehend the ludicrousness of the occurrence, and bui'st 
 into a hearty laugh. His wife, however, wag not inclined 
 to take a ludicrous view of it, especially since she had lost 
 her earthen plate ; and her sorrow seemed the greater since 
 the loss involved the necessity of my eaLing like che rest 
 on a tin one. But I soon put her at her easeiegarding this 
 matter, and the subject was speedily dismissed. 
 
 The supper consisted of fried pork, baked potatoes, corn- 
 bread, and milk. I confess that my appetite was not what 
 
\m 
 
 194 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 it might h^ ve been under other circumstances, but recollect- 
 ing that I had fared less sumptuously many times on ship- 
 board, I believe that I ate a meal at which you would have 
 been astonished had you been present. 
 
 After supper the old gentleman engaged me in conversa- 
 tion, which was prolonged till nearly midnight. Born in 
 Yorkshire he still retains much of the uncouth dialect of 
 the lower classes of that county, still his accent has been 
 modified considerably by his long residence on this contin- 
 ent. Intelligent far beyond his appearance he talked 
 fluently of his native land and of my own country, which 
 he has visited, and he related many amusing and interest- 
 ing stories. 
 
 The most trying part of my stay with him was my 
 experience in retiring. Previous to that hour the children, 
 with little or no appearance of modesty, had doffed their 
 raiment in our presence and sought the spacious trundle 
 bed before mentioned, all lying crosswise in it. Shortly 
 after eleven, the olu fellov/ informed me that one of the 
 beds in the room was to be occupied by myself, and then 
 stepping to the side of the other he proceeded to divest 
 himself of his garments and was soon ensconced beneath 
 its coverlets. The woman was still up enjoying a pipe 
 before the stove ; and how to get into bed without wearing 
 the clothes I still had on became with me a subject of 
 serious consideration. 
 
 I might have had less hesitation about sleeping in 
 my auit, had it not been a black one, but the project 
 was too suggestive of work with the clothes brush the 
 next morning to make it seem at all feasible ; especially, 
 since I had no brush with me, and knowing that there could 
 
'jL he. Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 195 
 
 .'j\ 
 
 be none in the house, I sat long pondering the situation, 
 when finding that it became no better, I threw off my coat 
 and vest, jumped into bed, and then relieving myself, with 
 some difficulty, of my nether garments, I kicked them 
 out at the foot. This difficulty surmounted, I at once 
 dropped asleep. 
 
 The whole family were up and stirring, in the morning 
 ere I awoke, and then how I was to make my toilet without 
 violating my natural modesty, became a more serious ques_ 
 tion than the one of the preceding evening. While thinking 
 over the probabilities of being able to don a portion of my 
 attire before rising, fortunately I saw my hostess step out 
 of the door. It was my only chance. If you have ever had 
 any doubts of my activity I think they would have been 
 dispelled could you have witnessed the expedition with 
 which I put myseK into my pants on that occasion, I was 
 horrified, however, on seizing them, to find that one of the 
 legs was wrong side out. The misfortune caused, perhaps, 
 a second's delay, yet to me it seemed an hour ; but by the 
 time the woman returned, though not in the condition in 
 which I would prefer to be were I going to enter a gentle- 
 man's drawing-room, my appearance for that place might be 
 termed respectable. 
 
 My first work, after completing my toilet, was to rid my 
 pants of the lint with which they were literally covered. 
 To do this without the aid of a brush, I went out, waded 
 through several snow drifts, and then brushed them with 
 my hands. 
 
 For breakfast that morning, we had baked potatoes, fried 
 pork and "johnny cake." What was left of the latter, after 
 being besmeared with a bad quality of butter, was thrust 
 
196 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 II 
 
 into a huge basket for the dinner of the children and my- 
 self at the schoolhouse. 
 
 On my departure, the mistress of the house, evidently 
 wishing to ascertain whether I intended to board with them 
 for the next two or three weeks, asked me if they should 
 look for me with the children again that evening. I had 
 been fearing the question, and so was prepared to answer it. 
 I said I thought not, pleading the long distance and bad 
 road. 
 
 Her husband came to my rescue at this moment with the 
 following admonition : 
 
 " It's nonsense, Becca, for ye to be expectin' a gentleman 
 like Mr. Mackenzie to come such a long way to git 'commo- 
 dations like ours when he can be made comfortable in the 
 families of gintle folks nearer the schoolhouse. Becca and 
 I have seen hard times, Mr. Mackenzie, but, thank God, we 
 now have enou' to eat and drink, and I hope we shall be 
 able to do something for our young folks to make them 
 respectable in the world. At any rate, we shall be glad to 
 have you come and see us now and again, for I like to talk 
 with them that knows the old mother land," 
 
 There was something pathetic in this frank speech of the 
 honest Englishman which touched a tender cord. His hint 
 at the struggles he and his better half had maintained 
 against poverty excited my sympathy, while his desire to 
 make their " young folks " respectable in the world de- 
 manded higher admiration than is due to the efforts of the 
 opulent to bequeath to their offspring wealth and respecta- 
 bility. I am conscious that there was far more sincerity in 
 my reply — " I shall be happy to come again " — than there 
 often is in this old stereotyped expression. At til events, 
 
 Pi.iii 
 
 k 
 
my. 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 197 
 
 whether I ever repeat the visit or not. I shall remember 
 this as an amusing episode in the experience of " boarding 
 around." ° 
 
 Write me soon, 
 
 Yours forever, 
 
 Mack. 
 
If 
 
 % I il 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 A fugitive slave, his history and peculiarities— He undertakes a 
 theological discussion — An attempt to kidnap him — A flglit and 
 repcue. 
 
 It was spring once more. Mack had long since closed his 
 school, which he had taught to the great satisfaction of his 
 patrons, and he was again at the Seminary pursuing his 
 studies, lil > myself, with diligence and increased ambition. 
 
 Everything seemed to be going on smoothly, and according 
 to the wishes of our professors, when another individual was 
 connected with the institution ; and as through him Mack 
 and myself became the heroes of a notable incident, it is 
 proper to introduce him to the reader. Be neither astonished 
 nor disgusted, my aristocratic friend, when I inform you that 
 he was neither a professor, count, or millionaire — but a 
 colored man — a veritable darkey — a fugitive slave, who 
 was always called Tim. 
 
 Remember that it was many years ago, long before the 
 proclamation of the martyred President had loosed the chains 
 of the sable bondmen in the " Sunny South," and while the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 199 
 
 Fugitive Slave Law rejuained as a foul blot upon the Statute 
 Books of the famed Kepublic, that this occurred. 
 
 Tim's history may be briefly recounted as follovs : — He 
 was born in North Carolina, on the plantation where he had 
 always lived till the time of his escape. Though flogged 
 sometimes, and otherwise ill-treated, his lot had been a 
 pleasant one, compared with that of many of his unfortunate 
 race ; for he 'had a wife and two daughters, and had never 
 been compelled to separate from them, all being slaves of the 
 same master. But Tim, notwithstanding his ignorance, had 
 a proud spirit and high ambition. He had heard of a land 
 of liberty where the poor black was allowed to possess a 
 home ; to go and come when he liked ; to enjoy the society 
 of his family without apprehension of being torn from it by 
 the selfishness of cruel men, and for these blessings lie 
 earnestly longed. He sighed for them the more, froiu the 
 fact that his master was growing old, and might soon die, 
 in which case he would be left to the entire mercy of his 
 cruel and profligate son. The master was also on the verge 
 of Ijankruptcy, and should this disaster occur he foresaw 
 that a separation of his kindred would in all probability 
 ensue : and into whose hands they would fall, or what suf- 
 ferings, besides that of parting, they might have to undergo, 
 he knew not. He had heard of the " Underground Railroad," 
 and of the assistance the fugitive slave often received from 
 kind friends at the North, and believing that if he could 
 himself escape he might, in some way eventually procure 
 the release of his wife and children, he resolved to make the 
 attempt. This resolution he put into execution one day 
 when, for some trivial offence, he expected a flogging from 
 his master's son. 
 
n 
 
 I f« 
 
 200 
 
 TJie Froniier Schoolmaster. 
 
 til 
 
 III 
 
 lif^ 
 
 It is needless to recount the lonj]; and toilsome marches 
 which he ])erformed on foot in the night, the hairbreadth 
 escapes from recai)ture, tlie painful watchings, and sufler- 
 ings from tliirst and hunger which he endured in securing 
 his freedom. But at length he reached New York, and 
 having remained concealed there a few days, he })U8hed 
 northward to Albany, where he was introduced by a friend 
 to the President of our Seminary, who chanced to be in the 
 city on business. The latter being in want of a serv9,nt, 
 and thinking that it would be dithcult for the pursuers of 
 the fugitive to kidnap him. at the Seminary, where the 
 students were nearly all aljolitionists, he brought Tim with 
 him to Corvette, 
 
 Once there, he felt quite secure, and, much to his gratifi- 
 cation, he soon became a jjerson of no little notoriety. Like 
 most of his race, he was an enthusiast in religion, and 
 though it was noticeable that he was not on all occasions 
 strictly observant of the ninth commandment, he was, on 
 the whole, more exemplary than many professedly Christians, 
 who had had the advantage of education and cultured 
 society. 
 
 He had often preached in the South to his colored breth- 
 ren, and though he could read but very little, he was quite 
 familiar with the Bible, especially the New Testament, and 
 could quote scriptural, expressions with a readiness that 
 would do credit to a theological student. His conceit was 
 unbounded, and, not being admitted into the pulpits, he 
 sought to enlighten the minds and soften the unregenerate 
 hearts of the white people, who assembled in school-houses 
 in rural districts on the Sabbath to listen to his addresses. 
 Curiosity, and an appreciation of the ridiculous, alone im- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmdater. 
 
 201 
 
 led 
 
 lilt 
 
 as 
 
 he 
 
 ate 
 
 pelled them to hear him, as there was often not the slightest 
 relevancy between the subjects chosen for his discourses 
 and the lessons drawn from tliom. 
 
 Owing to his cdncv^it and (iredulousness, he was very 
 easily imposed upon, and incidents were occurring almost 
 daily in which he was made to minister to the fun-loviiig 
 propensities of mischievous students. His highest ambition 
 was to be regarded an orator, and an invitation, accompanied 
 by a little flattery, never failed to aiU him up for an im- 
 promptu lecture on any subject his audience might suggest. 
 Another weakness of his was to imitate the eccentricities of 
 noted men. Being present on a certain occasion when •! 
 chanced to be sj^aking to some of the students respecting 
 the peculiarities of Beecher and Spurgeon, he listened atten- 
 tively, and decided, it seems, to increase his notoriety by 
 adopting a method of illustration which he then heard 
 described ; and the following Sabbath he astonished his 
 congregation by sliding down the old-fashioned high desk 
 in the school-house where he was preaching : thus imitating 
 the great English divine who, to illustrate some point, slid 
 down the railing of his pulpit. 
 
 Naturally locpiacious and lively, he sometimes surprised 
 his acquaintarces by fits of taciturnity lasting two or three 
 days, during which time he would assume a most melan- 
 choly air, taking notice of no one, and often in the night 
 startling the other servants by loud and frequent groans. 
 As an explanation of this mysterious conduct, he informed 
 his interlocutors that he was " pressed in spirit." > 
 
 One of the arguments advanced by pro-slavery men 
 against emancipation was that a colored man could not 
 be treated with respect and kindness without assuming a 
 
r^ * 
 
 202 
 
 The Frontier ScJioolmaster. 
 
 I' 
 
 'it! 
 
 dej(i"ee of familiarity and impudence that no respectable 
 white man could toUirato. Witli due respect for Tim's 
 good qualities, I must say that my short accjuaintance with 
 him rather tended to make me a ])roseiyte to this ])ro-8lavery 
 opinion. He was engaged as a general servant at the Semi- 
 nary, consequently, came daily in contact with the students. 
 The majority of them treated him kindly, though, as before 
 stated, many of them were too much inclined to seek fun 
 at his expense. A few, among whom were Sixl)y and 
 Hard wick, regarded him with the greatest contempt, and 
 their ungentlemanly treatment of him was only counter- 
 balanced by the kindness shown him by a few others — 
 Mack and myself being among the latter. 
 
 In consequence of this kindness, Tim regarded us as inti- 
 mate friends, and his manifold wants and secrets were so 
 often made known to us, that we found ourselves obliged 
 to request him to visit our rooms only in cases of necessity. 
 He often came to us to write letters for him, and as he was 
 anxious to give his family a full account of all that he did 
 and saw, it became no slight task to pen an epistle accord- 
 ing to his dictation. I once wrote to his master for him, 
 giving a glowing account of Tim's present happy condition, 
 indulging in a tirade against slavery, and closing with a 
 moral admonition to himself. Mack and I also spent con- 
 siderable time in teaching him to read and write, but the 
 most irksome of the labors he imposed upon us was reading 
 to him the chapters from which he chose his texts for the 
 following Sunday, the task always being greatly prolonged, 
 until we forbade it, by his frequent interruptions to deliver 
 9. homily, which the passages he heard had suggested. 
 But Tim soon grew vain and arrogant. In gaining his 
 
 li ' i 
 
The Frontier SclMolmaster. 
 
 203 
 
 liberty he forgot that he owed a duty to his present em- 
 ployer, and tlie latter often said that it seemed as if Tim, in 
 order to convince liimself that he was a free man, would desert 
 the work at which he had Xaiqw ])laced, justatthe time when 
 his services were the most reijuired. In his enthusiasm, 
 he had already ]»lanned for i)urchasing the freedom of his 
 wife and children, and so sure was he that this was soon to be 
 accomplished, that he one day visiteu the President, and, 
 to the amusement of the latter, demanded to know in what 
 capacity his spouse was to be admitted into the " institoo- 
 tion," as he always called it. He claimed' that as the 
 wives of the other clergymen in the Seminary were per- 
 mitted to board, and receive attention as ladies, his own 
 should ba accorded the same right ; and unless this social 
 status was granted her, he should be obliged to change liis 
 quarters. 
 
 About this time an incident occurred which, while it 
 afforded no little amuseiuent to the students, greatly in- 
 creased the conceit of Tim. A clergyman of me note, 
 but of peculiar religious tenets, had been holding a series 
 of meetings in Corvette, and in the flush of success at 
 making proselytes, he sent an invitation to any one of the 
 ministers at the Seminary to hold a public discussion with 
 him respecting the doctrine that he was promulgating. No 
 one being inclined to accept it, I casually suggested to Tim 
 that he should do so. 
 
 He showed no hesitation ; and as he was urged by other 
 students who earnestly desired the fun, he at once com- 
 menced preparations for the discussion. The suggestion, 
 however, which I had thoughtlessly made, caused me more 
 trouble than I had uJiticipated ; for, in order to prepare 
 
r 
 
 204 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmcister. 
 
 himself properly for the occasion, he requested ma to write 
 down the scriptural passages that were to be used in floor- 
 ing his learned opponent. 
 
 At first I declined and tried to dissuade him from his 
 purpose, but, at the solicitation of my fellow students, I 
 finally assented, and so laid aside my own work for the 
 entire day. The Professors knew the plan that had been 
 projected, but said nothing; and I was certain that they 
 secretly enjoyed the scheme, and wished the darkey much 
 success in subverting what i:hey considered heterodox 
 opinions. 
 
 Evening came, and Tim, with a bundle of notes that 
 looked like the manuscript of a. quarto volume, repaired to 
 the hall in which the clergyma.n's meetinj.'js were held. 
 
 In order to avoid the suspicion of being at all connected 
 with the affair, I prevailed on Tim to go early, and T went 
 sometime afterward with several other students. On enter- 
 ing the hall, which was well filled, to my dismay, Tim, who 
 was sitting near the door, rose and followed. 
 
 Down one passage I went, across the hall, up another 
 alley and sat down in a vacant seat near the platform. Tim 
 seated himself beside me, and Mack became his nearest 
 neighbor on the other side. I had made this long journey 
 hoping that my colored friend would take a seat eleswhere, 
 as I knew that he would become conspicuous through the 
 display made with his papers, and that he night thus 
 awaken suspicion among the clergyman's friends, many of 
 whom were acquainted with me, that 1 was the instigator of 
 the attack that he was al'out to make. My fears were not 
 groundless, for he had already attracted much attention, 
 and no sooner was hs seated than he pulled forth a page of 
 
The Fro7itier Schoolmcister. 
 
 205 
 
 foolscap, produced c pencil, and as soon as the minister 
 commenced his address, began to write down hieroglyphics 
 which none but himself could decipher. The attention of 
 the audience was equally divided between him and the 
 minister, as it was evident what was coming. In taking notes 
 he often appealed to me for the definition of a term which 
 he <^id not understand, and thus I, unwillingly, became as 
 prominent as himself. While thus situated, iinding it 
 almost impossible to repress my risibility, my fellow stu- 
 dents were enjoying the scene immensely, knowing, as they 
 did, the pains I had taken to avoid the awkward position in 
 which Tim had placed me. 
 
 At length the sermon closed, and, according to his cus- 
 tom, the minister invited discussiOii. All eyes were turned 
 towards Tun, and as he sprang to his feet, his huge face and 
 rolling eyes exhibiting signs of great excit^^ment, a sup- 
 pressed titter ran through the audience. 
 
 " I wants to know," he began, " ef you sez that when the 
 wicked dies he aint punished ? " 
 
 " Certainly not i " was thd emphatic reply. " ' The wages 
 of sin is death.' It is eternal punishment." 
 
 As this was the point Tim had prepared himself to prove, 
 he was nonplussed by the minister's declaration ; but as he 
 was determined that sucL an opportunity for displaying his 
 learning and eloquence should not be lost, he pulled down 
 his waistcoat, ran his fingers through his woolly hair, glanced 
 around the audience, ahemmed two or three times, and thou 
 \7ith gi'a ve deliberation began again as follows : 
 
 " My very intimate frens hcah on my right han' and on 
 my lef, Mr. Styles and Mr. Mackenzie, tells me dat you 
 don't believe dar is a literal lake of fire and brimstun where 
 
if 
 
 _-* ' ji-^ 
 
 A 
 
 III 
 
 m 
 
 206 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 !:•' 
 
 God frows de wicked and punishes dem fur ever ; now I 
 wants to know ef dis is so ? " 
 
 " Certainly, sir, I believe in no such punishment as that," 
 w^as the reply. 
 
 " 'Zactly, sail," exclaimed Tim, with a triumphant smile ; 
 " I've brot you to de pint now, and I'm gwine to show dese 
 poor unfortinate, ignorent peoples, heah, dat you am tryin' 
 to mislead, dat you am a 'poster, a big humbug, an when 
 dey comes to de day ob ressurrekshun dey'll bless de Lord 
 dat He's raised up a culled man, and bro't him all de way 
 from Norf Carliny, and giv' him de 'bility to save dem from 
 de error of dar ways, and to axpose you." 
 
 As the audience was composed largely of intelligent peo- 
 ple, and the minister himself was highly educated, Tim's 
 estimate of their mental condition was hardly just, but many 
 among tljem enjoyed the scene, and though some person 
 cried, " Put him out," no one seemed disposed to obey the 
 order, or even to second it. 
 
 Enfiouraged, Tim now stepped up on the seat and with 
 stentorian voice commenced his harangue. He referred to 
 his notes but twice, and then, finding that they interfered 
 with his rapid gesticulations, and regarding his victory cer- 
 tain without them, he threw the bundle of papers disdain- 
 fully on the floor, and launched out into a declamatory speech 
 of ten minutes length, ./hich might be aptly compared to a 
 thunder storm. Sometimes he struck upon an idea that 
 might be termed appropriate, but taken -as a whole it was 
 about as senseless a jargon as could possibly be conceived. 
 At length, after he had become nearly exhausted with his 
 effort, and had quite deafened those who were sitting near 
 Lim, he fastened his eyes on the minister, who had been 
 
The Fi'oniier Schoolmaster. 
 
 207 
 
 standing all the while with a confused look and wondering 
 when the storm was to subside, and dropping his voice to a 
 moderate tone, said, 
 
 " Now, sah, if I be not right, I wants you to 'splain to 
 dese poor bredren heah, dat you have deceibed, what our 
 Savyah meant by the pahable of de rich man and Lazarus." 
 
 " My friend," replied the clergyman, " if you will come 
 and se3 me at my rooms, I will be pleased to talk with you ; 
 but as it is now late, I think we had better bring the meet- 
 ing to a close." 
 
 " Ah ! ah ! " exclaimed Tim. " You see, my belubbed 
 bredren, dat he feels scared. Dat's de way de Lord deUb- 
 bers de Flistines into de bauds of Samson. He's beat, my 
 frens, and yet he don't dare to 'knowledge it. He wants 
 to git me 'lone, an', probly, he'll give me five or ten dollars 
 to hoi' my tongue, so he kin go on and deceivb de whole ob 
 ye ; but I shant do it, my bredren. De Lord hab raised me 
 up to save ye, and ef you don't listen to me, dis 'postor 
 will take ye to hell, dat awful place of fiah an* brimstun, 
 ebbry une ob ye." 
 
 The minister took no furthet notice of him, but imme- 
 diately dismissed the audience with a benediction. 
 
 I was the first to leave the room, and, as 1 pushed through 
 the crowd, I noticed much laughing, and heard remarks 
 like the following : 
 
 " The darkey did well." 
 
 " I was in hopeit he w uld go on." 
 
 But others looked displeased, and gave vent to their feel- 
 ings in expressions like this : 
 
 " It was mean." 
 
 " I say that those fellows at the Seminary should be 
 ashamed to get that nigger up here to insult Mr. " 
 
■*""¥^'- 
 
 208 
 
 The Frontier Schoolrnader. 
 
 I) 
 
 ill! 
 
 1''- 
 
 I was not anxious to listen to the various opinions enter- 
 tained of the lark, and, consequently, reached my room in 
 the shortest time possible. As for Tim, he believed that he 
 had achieved a brilliant victory ; and as no one attempted 
 to undeceive him, he was permitted to remain in the enjoy- 
 ment of his happy assurance. The students never forgot 
 the incident, and as long as Mack and I remained at the 
 Seminary we were frequently greeted with the quotation — 
 
 "My very intimate frens, Mr. Styles and Mr. J\iac- 
 kenzie." 
 
 In less than a month from the occurrence of the above 
 incident, Tim had good reason to regard us as friends ; and, 
 had it not been for our friendship, his future lot would, in 
 all probability, have been the saddest he had ever expe- 
 rienced. 
 
 I have already stated that one object of his friends in 
 removing him to the Seminary was to lessen the chances 
 of his being kidnapped. Although the Fugitive Slave Law 
 was in force at the time, such was the odium against it at 
 the North, and such was the sympathy felt for the poor slave 
 who had escaped, that the slaveholder cared not to incur 
 the hatred of the Nev/ Englanders, and meet the storm of 
 indignation they were sure to raise should he come openly 
 before the courts and ask the restitution of his property ; 
 hence, he preferred, with a semblance of justice, to have 
 the arrest made as secretly as possible, and then hurried the 
 prisoner back to bondage ere his friends had missed him. 
 It was, virtually, kidnapping ; yet it was attempted in 
 more than one instance with success. Fears were enter- 
 tained for a while that Tim might thus be taken back to his 
 former master, but as time wore on, both he and his friends 
 
Ihe Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 209 
 
 became less waiy, and, indeed, I think hf; had dismissed the 
 thought of any attempt being made to recapture him. 
 
 One evening in midsummer, during the twilight. Mack 
 and I had strolled away on a road leading southward, and 
 had sat down near a bridge which crossed the stream nearly 
 a mile from the Seminary, Farther on was a rocky slope, 
 and this was covered with a belt of woods through which 
 the road passed. While sitting here, chatting together, a 
 covered carriage, drawn by two horses, rolled rapidly down 
 from the village and passed us. There was nothing unusual 
 in the occurrence, and doubtless it would soon have been 
 forgotten, had not subsequent events it.. ^d it an incidem 
 of no little importance. Twenty minutes, perhaps, after the 
 carriage had passed, the voice of some one beyond the 
 woods, singing an old familiar hymn, was borne to our ears 
 by the still evening air. We listened a moment, and then 
 Mack said, • 
 
 " It is Tim, coming from his prayer meeting." 
 
 There was a schoolhouse about two miles beyond us, at 
 which a weekly prayer meeting was held, and of this, Tim 
 had charge, usually delivering a short sermon to those who 
 were in attendance. As stated by Mack, Tim was returning 
 from this meeting, and was giving utterance to his happy 
 feelings in one of his favorite spiritual songs. On he came, 
 the words becoming more and more distinct as sent forth by 
 his powerful vocal organs, when, suddenly, the singing 
 ceased, and, for a moment, a dead silence ensued. It was 
 only for a moment ; for, scarcely had the last note of his 
 singing died away, ere the air was rent with startling cries. 
 
 " Help ! help ! murder ! " were the words that thrilled us 
 like a^^ electric shock, and brought us simultaneously to 
 our fedt. 
 
210 
 
 TJie Frontier ScJtoolmaster. 
 
 I 
 
 11 
 
 f 
 
 fiii 
 
 "They are taking Tim," exclaimed Mack, in startling 
 tones. " Come on, Styles ! " and away he dashed with the 
 speed of a race horse towards the woods. 
 
 I required no second invitation. From my earliest recol- 
 lection I had regarded slavery with the greatest abhorrence. 
 Ere I was twelve years old, I had read many anti-slavery 
 works, and my indignation had been aroused to the highest 
 pitch by the numberless instances recounted therein of the 
 cruelties exercised by the slave-holders against their human 
 chattels. I remember distinctly that even in my childish 
 years, when my blood had been heated by these accounts, 
 I permitted my imagination to portray the marvelous deeds 
 that I would perform in the interests of the Southern bond- 
 men when I had arrived at the age of manhood. It was 
 then with me an impression, almost amounting to convic- 
 tion, that I would travel through the South at some future 
 time, become acquainted with slavery in all its aspects, 
 display my sympathy for the slave by deeds of philanthropy 
 and individual valor, a,nd eventually subvert the institu- 
 tion by inciting the slaves to an insurrection. Such was the 
 scheme that I confidentially disclosed to an unambitious 
 and unromantic boy, two or three years my senior, but his 
 practical turn of mind induced him to damp my ardor by 
 the following exclamation : 
 
 " You'd do great things, you dunce ! Why, the slave- 
 holders would shoot' you 'fore you'd been there a week." 
 
 It might have been this damping of my enthusiasm, 
 coupled with the barriers interposed by Providence, that 
 prevented my meeting ere this the tragic fate of John 
 Brown. But my boyish plans with regard to slavery were 
 never forgotten, and when that ill-starred hero suffered on 
 
 it 
 
 ^ i . 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 211 
 
 the gallows for the too great sympathy and love that he had 
 manifested for his fellow-man, I bemoaned my lowly lot 
 that I could do nothing to avert his end. It seemed to me, 
 as it will always seem, that he was deserted hy his Northern 
 friends in the hour of peril, in extremest need. One united 
 effort on the part of the anti-slavery men might, i^o doubt, 
 have procured his ransom, if they hpd not the force to wrest 
 him from the toils of Southern hate. Unwise as he doubt- 
 less was in the means that he devised to accomplish his 
 ends, he nevertheless deserves the respect and sympathy of 
 good men ; and the future historian who does justice to his 
 memory will place his name beside those who have died 
 martyrs to a noble cause. 
 
 I have indulged in this digression, kind reader, to show 
 wi h what feelings I responded to my noble friend's request 
 — " Come on ; " to show the deep sympathy for our wronged 
 and imperiled colored friend that incited me — us, I should 
 say, for I know that Mack's feelings were similar to my 
 own — to violate the laws of the country in which we were 
 then sojourners. Already I fancied that I could heu-r the 
 cruel lash and the deep groan of the recaptured fugitive, 
 suffering again in the land of bondage for the love of liberty 
 which had led him to escape. I could see his wife and 
 daughtv Ts torn from his embrace and borne away to distant 
 States — not only to increase the wealth of brutal masters, 
 but to punish the husband and father for the courage and 
 wisdom that he had dared to show. I could hear and see 
 all this, and the blood was boiling in my veins, and my 
 fists were clenched with desperate resolve, as with swift 
 winged feet I followed my friend. 
 
 I was not more than six paces behind him when he 
 
 .\M 
 
212 
 
 The Frontier ScJtoolmaater, 
 
 reached the spot where the struggle was going on. In the 
 twilight, rendered more dim by the presence of the woods, 
 we descried the carriage that hii ' nassed us, and a man was 
 standing by the horses holding tiiem by the bits. A few 
 steps aside, two men, one at his head and another at his 
 feet, were dragging our friend along, despite his frantic 
 efforts to resist them. They had already gagged, handcuffed 
 rid fettered him, and would soon have him in the carriage. 
 
 The man who was holding the horses, seeing us, gave the 
 alarm in time for his companions to prepare for our attack. 
 They had dropped their burden and faced us, just as Mack 
 directed a blow at one which felled him to the ground. 
 Bang ! went the barrel of a revolver at the instant Mack 
 came down with both feet into the stomach of his fallen foe. 
 
 They had the advantage of us in being well armed, as 
 neither of us had any weapon whatever. I am confident 
 that, in our terrible excitement, we never considered the 
 chances of getting shot ; our only thought being that Tim 
 must never go back to slavery. 
 
 When the revolver was fired I recollect thinking that it 
 must be our aim to come into close quarters with our 
 antagonists, which would prevent their using their weapons, 
 and making our chances as good as their own. With this 
 intention then, I rushed on and grappled the other man a 
 second after he had discharged his second barrel at Mack. 
 He was much larger and more powerful than myself, and 
 though I strained every muscle he threw his arms around 
 me, lifted me up, and then, throwing me to the ground, fell 
 heavily on me. My spirits ebbed when I discovered his 
 superior strength, but to prevent his using his revolver 
 again I hugged him to me with a grip more terrible than 
 
 illl 
 
 I m' 
 
'Mf 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 213 
 
 that received by Sinbad from the old man of the sea. 
 Scarcely were we down when a blow on the head caused 
 him to relax his hold of me, and unloosing my own gi'asp 
 he rolled over insensible on the ground, 
 
 " Are you hurt ? " asked Mack, as I sprang to my feet. 
 
 " No, are you ? " 
 
 " Not a bit. But you search this fellow's pockets for the 
 key to Tim's fetters while I search the other. Quick ! for 
 they'll be all right again in a minute, yet, we have the 
 advantage of them nov/, for I have both revolvers ; but we 
 don't want to be recognized, as this may be a serious job 
 for us." 
 
 This affray might have turned out differently with us 
 had the man who had charge of the horses been able or in- 
 clined to come to the assistance of his companions. But, 
 at the report of the revolver, the horses had taken friglit 
 and dragged him along with them until he was at least 
 
 *o&^ 
 
 ten rods from us, before he succeeded in checking them. I 
 have little doubt that he was glad of this excuse for not 
 taking part in the fight ; for as he was, probably, some man 
 connected with a livery stable, who had been engaged to 
 bring the other two to this place, he could care but little 
 how the affair terminated, and, of course, would gladly 
 seize on any pretext for keeping aloof from danger. 
 
 Fortunately, in one of the pockets of my disabled foe 
 I found the key which released Tim from his shackles ; 
 and no sooner was this done, than springing to his feet he 
 darted off for the Seminary as if a pack of blood-hounds 
 was at his heels ; Mack and I following at a more moderate 
 pace. 
 
 At first I was astonished to find that Mack bad received 
 
 P 
 
214 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 II,' ! 
 
 no injury from the shots that were fired, for it seemed im- 
 possible that one man could fire at another, not more than 
 six or eight feet distant, without hitting him, but on our 
 return, I received a satisfactory explanation. 
 
 " He never aimed at me," said Mack, " for I heard lioth 
 bullets wliistle by me. You may be sure they dared not 
 shoot us. If we ever learn the particulars of this matter, 
 depend upon it we shall find that these fellows live in the 
 North; and they had undertaken to return Tim to his 
 master for the reward he offered. They wished to accom- 
 plish this as quietly as possible, to save themselves from 
 the contempt and disgrace which they knew would follow 
 the discovery of their conduct, and they would not be very 
 likely to shoot us when they knew that, in all probability, 
 they would be lynched for it within twenty-four hours." 
 
 His reasoning seemed /ery plausible, and as we never 
 learned anything more respecting the matter, it was doubt- 
 less quite correct. When the kidnappers returned to con- 
 sciousness they certainly must have felt themselves hors de 
 combat, for besides the injuries they had received from Mack, 
 they were without revolvers, as we had taken them with us. 
 I presented mine to Tim, and he afterwards carried it for 
 his defence ; Mack kept his as a memento of the service he 
 had rendfi'bc' the anti-slavery cause. 
 
 Tim was so frightened and bewildered that, on reaching 
 the Seminary, he went straight to his room without speak- 
 ing to any one, but after recovering somewhat, he went to 
 the President, in his office, and reported that he had been 
 set on by several slave-holders with blood-hounds, knocked 
 down, gagged and nearly killed — that somebody — students 
 he thought — liad interceded for him, and had been shot — 
 
2 he Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 215 
 
 and that in the melee he had managed to knock down two 
 or three and escape. 
 
 Jack Fallstatt' never gave a more glowing account of his 
 valor than did Tim of his on this occasion ; but, poor fellow, 
 I do not believe he intentionally exaggerated ; he evidently 
 knew but little of what had occurred. Subsequent exiim- 
 ination showed that he had received a severe blow on the 
 head, and it might have been owing to this, as well as his 
 friglit, that his memory failed him. He had just finished 
 his narration to the l*resident, and the latter was in a state 
 of excited bewilderment, when Mack and I entered and 
 stripped the embellishments from his tragic story. The 
 President was profuse in his thanks to us, but at the same 
 time he suggested, as a word of caution, that we had better 
 remain incognito in the matter, as it might prove serious 
 business for us, were it shown that we had resisted and 
 beaten officers of justice in the execution of a duty for 
 which they had been duly authorized. We thought so our- 
 selves at first, but not learning that we had inflicted any 
 serious bodily injury on any one, and believing that the men 
 whom we had resisted were at best but kidnappers, we 
 took no pains to conceal the part we had taken in the affair, 
 especially after it had been published by Tim. 
 
 We felt less hesitation about it, too, knowing, as we did, 
 that public sentiment in the North would exonerate us 
 from all blame. 
 
 After hearing our story, the President sent two of his 
 servants to the scene of the fight, to ascertain the nature of 
 the injuries which the men had received, as well as to get 
 such other information as the servants might be able to obtain 
 from them or from their coachman. They were too late, 
 
r; 
 
 
 216 
 
 T.ie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 however, for the carriago was rapidly disappearinj^ in the 
 (listunce when they arrivi'il. 
 
 It was evident tliat Tim's enemies had been in commu- 
 nication with some one in Corvette who had laid the plan 
 for his capture, and suspicion a: once rested on Sixby. 
 The (Suspicion was rendered doubly strong by the kindness 
 which, from that time forward, this young gentleman 
 always displayed towards Tim, and from the joy he pre- 
 tcmded to feel at his lucky escape ; but whether he was or 
 was not really guilty of this villainous act no one of Tim's 
 friends ever knew. 
 
 The affair soon ceased to be talked abouv., but Tim never 
 felt quite so sure that he was in a land of liberty as he did 
 before the occurrence. He attended the prayer meeting, as 
 usual, but never went alone, nor did he trust himself away 
 from the Seminary alone or unarmed. 
 
 In the early part of the ensuing autumn, Tim's employer 
 having little for him to do, and finding a good position for 
 him as servant with a friend in Ohio, he gave him due notice 
 of his intention to send him to that State. Tim received the 
 tidings with sorrowful feelings, but he soon became recon- 
 ciled to the proposed change, and made ready for his depar- 
 ture. Some one of the students suggested to him that he 
 should lecture to us before leaving, and as he readily as- 
 sented, a stand was erected in the park from wliich he was 
 to speak. The students, to flatter him and send hi.m on his 
 journey with gladness, all assembled u» hear him, and one of 
 the young gentlemen came r^ffwau; ^o introduce him; but 
 when he wished to announce the suoject of the lecture, it 
 was found that the lecturer had not yet decided on one. 
 Tim gave as a reason for his delay that he presumed the 
 
 !|! 
 
Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 217 
 
 aiulienco would prefer selecting a subject, and ho then ex- 
 pressed a wish that some one would do so. One of the 
 boys, noted for his waggish propensities, stepped forward, 
 hat in hand, and gravely suggested — 
 
 " The Cedars of Lebanon." 
 
 The lecturer smiled, bowed and declared himself pro- 
 foundly grateful for a subject so near his heart ; and 
 then, stepping back a little, and assuming a grave expres- 
 sion of countenance, he opened his discourse. For nearly 
 half an hour he stormed, frothed, stamped and gesticulated, 
 only taking breath when he was interrupted by rounds of 
 ap])lause. His peroration was, perhaps, hardly what might 
 have been expected, as it consisted of a recapitulation of 
 the happy times he had seen in the " Institootion," and in 
 portraying how the " Cedars of Lebanon " must have suf- 
 fered for the want of a just description had not his intimate 
 friends, Mr. Styles and Mr. Mackenzie, gallantly rescued 
 him from slavery, and thus preserved him to do justice to 
 those "magnificent and bootiful trees." All declared them- 
 selves delighted with the lecture, and after a collection had 
 been taken up, he was escorted to the depot with fife and 
 drum. Here he made a short farewell address, shook 
 hands with all the students, stepped on the train and was 
 borne away, doubtless the happiest man in all New Eng- 
 land. 
 
CHAPTER XVT. 
 
 Mistoken notions of economy — 111 health — A charge of inconstancy — 
 An increase of debt — 111 health continues — Unpleasant forebodings 
 — I leave the Seminary and return home. 
 
 It was near vacation once more, and I began to contemplate 
 a visit to ray home. I had been absent nearly eighteen 
 months, without having seen any of my Canadian friends. 
 It was a long time, and I wished to see them ; the frequent 
 kind letters that I received from all hardly equalling the 
 pleasure T could experience by one hour in their society. 
 I liad about decided to go home, when the President, who 
 had quite an amount of work to do in the way of writing, 
 such as copying, posting books, making out bills of account, 
 &c., offered me fair wages to engage to him through vaca- 
 tion. It was unwise in me to accept the offer, for I needed 
 rest from mental labor, and recreation ; but the thought of 
 my financial affairs, and the assurance that I v^ould even be 
 obliged to call on Mr. Niel for money to pay my travelling 
 expenses in case I should visit Canada, caused me to engage 
 in the work, and, consequently, to postpone my visit. 
 Notions of prudence and economy often lead us to do that 
 
Tlie F'^'ontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 219 
 
 which it woukl be far better for us not to do, and thus it 
 proved with me. Had the time I took to earn a small sum 
 been given to active out-dcor exercise, the benefit resulting 
 to me, eventually, would have been vastly greater; for 
 during this period I grew nervous and debilitated, so that 
 when the winter tevm commenced I was in poor condition 
 for study. I did study, nevertheless, and thougli about 
 this time I caught a severe cold, which left me with a cough 
 from which it was long before 1 recovered, I kept my posi- 
 tion in all my classes, receiving as high marks as I had at 
 any time since I became a student. 
 
 The announcement that I was not to go home was 
 received by Ruth with feelings of disappointment bordering 
 on vexation. For a long time she had fancied that my 
 attachment to my new home and friends was growing 
 stronger and stronger, and, conse(][uently, that the tie which 
 bound me to the home and friends of my youth was becom- 
 ing weaker, and she regarded my decision to spend my 
 vacation in Corvette with no little sorrow and displeasure. 
 
 " But little more than a hundred miles away," she wrote 
 me, " and the idea that you cannot find time in the period 
 of a year and a half to com.e heme seems to me almost 
 absurd. It is to mf' evidence of what I feared when you 
 left us — that you have allowed your ambition and friends 
 in Corvette to weaken your attachment for the objects 
 which you claimed to hold dear in your earlier years ; and 
 I can foresee that if you go to college, as you now say you 
 hope to do, you will forget Canada with all its once pleasant 
 associations." 
 
 As I read and re-read this letter, as I always did her 
 letters, I weighed the charges she preferred against me, and 
 
 ■ivU 
 
I 
 
 220 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 iW:\ 
 
 
 ' II 
 
 I could not conscientiously deny that they were in a mea- 
 sure correct. 
 
 That I should forget her, though, even were I to go to 
 college or be separated from her a lifetime, I could not 
 for a moment believe. I had become deeply interested in 
 my studies, and was contented and happy while pursuing 
 tliem, and my desire to go on and complete a college course 
 had become sufficiently strong to induce me to postpone 
 the day of marriage, and settling down to business ; yet all 
 my ambitious projects were associated, as in former times, 
 with her, and I felt that every success I gained in life was 
 another step taken towards making her hajipiness more 
 complete. A young man of more practical turn and less 
 pride than myself would doubtless talk much more with 
 a young lady to whom he is engaged about his pecuniary 
 circumstances 'han I did, but so reticent had I been on 
 this point that she knew nothing whatever of the way in 
 which I was meeting my expenses at Corvette, and conse- 
 quently nothing of the self-denial I was practising in re- 
 maining there instead of going home. In my next letter) 
 however, I informed her of the way in which I was en- 
 gaged, and hinted at the necessity of economy in order to 
 carry out my plans, and she thus not only became satisfied, 
 but regretted sincerely that she had attributed my long 
 absence to a disinclination to visit her. 
 
 " You will pardon me, I trust, for my unkind accusa- 
 tions," she next wrote me, " and especially when I tell you 
 that you have always appeared to me to have so little 
 regard for money, that I have really believed you never 
 could have known the want of it as most poor mortals do. 
 Not because I thought you were unwise and extravagant in 
 
 llili 
 
il 
 
 The Frontitr i^choolmaster. 
 
 221 
 
 the use of it, but because you have never spoken of it, as 
 others do, as being at all necessary to the consummation of 
 your j)lans; and so I naturally received the impression 
 that you never regarded it of any consequence. Do not 
 laugh at me, but often when you have told me what schemes 
 you proposed to accomplish, though conscious that they could 
 be effected only through the agency of wealth, I have never 
 doubted your ability to do all, believing that the means 
 would be provided in some way, either in tlie mysterious 
 manner in which the widows cruse was replenished, or else 
 through some magician's aid. But when you spoke of 
 economy, in your last letter, and of money in a way which 
 showed that you sometimes feel the need of it, I was pleased, 
 for it made you seem more like a real tangible being, with 
 M'ants like myself and others. I feel less awe of you now 
 than I once did." 
 
 Dear, frank, noble-hearted girl, I thought as I read this 
 letter ; ho\v unlike many of her sex who have arrived at a 
 marriageable age. So far from regretting my want of wealth, 
 and discarding my attentions on account of it, she seemed 
 pleased that my circumstances were humble, not dissimilar 
 to her own. I believe that she had never thought of the 
 comforts and advantages frnind in a home of affluence, com- 
 pared with one in which life is sustained by a constant 
 struggle against the gi'im, unpitying monster — want. 
 
 My correspondence with Mr. Niel still continued, and a 
 A . vf'eks after the commencement of our winter term, at 
 my "' 1 uest, he sent me a draft for another hundred dollars. 
 
 It was given apparently with as much cheerfulness and 
 pleasure as he had loaned me the first, and the closing words 
 of his last letter were a request, as usual, to ask aid of him 
 
f 
 
 t" 
 t 
 
 Mff: 
 
 222 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ri \ 
 
 IN 
 
 i ! 
 
 i ,1 i 
 
 i:i! 
 
 whenever 1 felt inclined, and that I would deprive myself 
 of no comfort or pleasure that I desired, so long as he could 
 supply me the means requisite for the enjoyment. 
 
 The winter was a long one, and unusually severe, so that 
 I was outside of the Seminary much less than I would 
 gladly have been, and less than my health required. My 
 cough grew worse, and becoming weaker gradually, much 
 to my regret, I had to limit myself to five hours' study per 
 diy. 
 
 Towards spring, as I became pale and emaciated, my 
 friends declared that I had the consumption, and advised 
 me to leave the Seminary at once and return to the farm ; 
 but as I had never been at all alarmed respecting my health, 
 I laughed at their anxiety, and assured them that I would 
 be all right when the warm weather of spring came. The 
 approach of that season showed that I was partly correct 
 in my conclusions, for I recuperated rapidly under the in- 
 fluence of the balmy air and the active exercise I took ; 
 but my cough never fully left me, and as the M^ann weather 
 of summer came on it increased, and I relapsed into my 
 former debilitated condition. The last term of our scliool 
 closed in the middle of July, and as many besides myself, 
 who had long been students in the Seminary, were then to 
 leave it to return no more, it was an occasion of unusual 
 sadness. Partings of school friends are always sori'owful, 
 partly because they occur at an age when the affections are 
 keen, and partly because the result is seldom considered 
 and prepared for as by persons of maturer years. My own 
 sorrow was greatly enhanced, no doubt, by ill-health, for, 
 notwithstanding the hopeful frame of mind which I had 
 hitherto enjoyed, despondent feelings had recently taken 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 223 
 
 possession of me, and I suffered from continual forebodings 
 of misfortune. 
 
 It had been my desire to get thoroughly fitted for the 
 Sophomore class of some New England college before return- 
 ing home. Before the term closed, I was gratified to receive 
 the assurance from our Principal that I had accomplished 
 this object, and I now intended to engage in teaching or 
 some other business for a year, and then carry out my plan 
 with regard to the college course ; but I had a sad premoni- 
 tion that this would never be. 
 
 Several of the students who lived along the shores of 
 the lake had arranged to take the night boat going north, 
 and I joined the company. I spent the greater part of 
 the day on which we left with Mack, and though there 
 were many heart-aches and much hand shaking during the 
 last hour of my stay, the parting that I had with him when 
 the coach arrived which was to tak'^ us to the point whence 
 the boat started was the saddest of all. 
 
 As we climed the hill from whose summit I first beheld 
 the village and Seminary more than two years before, I 
 looked back and saw them, just as I did then, clothed in 
 the mellow light of the setting sun, and my heart sank at 
 the thought that it was beyond doubt the last view of them 
 I should ever enjoy. 
 
 Grief and anxious thoughts that night deprived me of 
 sleep, and though I tried to enjoy myself with my fellow 
 students, I succeeded but poorly ; every attempt at a smile, 
 laugh or joke being too obviously mechanical to conceal the 
 condition of my heart. 
 
 From time to time the boat landed, one or more of my 
 companions bade the rest of us farewell, and so they went 
 until I was alone. 
 
 
f 
 
 M 
 
 w^ 
 
 . 1 
 
 i 
 
 % 
 
 j , 
 
 lUJti 
 
 ■ 
 ,1 
 
 it . 
 
 1 
 
 
 i 
 1 1 . 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 My walk in the old footpath — Katiiiliar objects — Prince, the house 
 (log — My joy at reaf.hing home — The sympathy of friends — I visit 
 Maple Highland — An unwelcome visitor — A frightful drean» — 
 Jealousy — T inform Ruth of my indebtedness to my rival— A 
 discussion respecting teachers and diplomas. 
 
 Twenty-four hours after leaving Corvette I got out of the 
 stage, and, giving the driver orders to leave my baggage at 
 a certain house further on, I set out for a walk of two miles 
 across lots and through a piece of woods to my home. My 
 object in so doing was, first, because the stage route did not 
 lay by our house ; second, because I was tired of riding ; 
 and third, because it was a path I had travelled hundreds 
 of times before, and I wished to see the old familiar objects, 
 hoT)ing that they would revive the happy feelings that I 
 erioyed in my boyish days. I was not mistaken. The 
 stieamlet, now diminished to its smallest size by the dry 
 season, still gurgled along its pebbly bottom through the 
 forest as of old ; the same gigantic elm spread its branches 
 across it, and further on, half uprooted, the leafless, dry old 
 hemlock was still leaning over the path, while the thrush 
 yet warbled his familiar song. Emerging from the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 225 
 
 woods, and passing on through a meadow, I reached a corn- 
 field, and beyond this ran the ruad, a few rods in front of 
 the house. Prince, the house dog, descried me just as I 
 entered the cornfield, and down he came with his loud 
 bow-wow to show his indignation at the presumption of the 
 stranger in thus trespassing upon private grounds. He was 
 greatly attached to me before I went away, being then 
 only a year old, and I had often wondered whether he 
 would recognize me on my return. I was not long in 
 doubt, for when about two rods distant he stopped, looked 
 at me earnestly, and then, giving a sharp bark of delight, 
 bounded forward and, having reached me, leaped u^ to 
 lick my face. For five minutes there was neither cessation 
 nor moderation of his expressions of joy, and the destruction 
 of several corn hills attested the gladness of our reunion. 
 
 The recollection of my troubles had forsaken me, and not 
 until reminded of them by my mother did I remember that 
 1 was not so well and happy as at the time of my depar- 
 ture. 
 
 Prince had announced my arrival, so that my parents 
 were awaiting me in the front door, and ere I reached it 
 my mother met me. I could not repress a tear, especially 
 when I discovered her sorrow at seeing my pale face, 
 emaciated form, and hearing my hollow voice. 
 
 " Why, what is the matter, Frank ? " she exclaimed, in 
 tones of alarm. 
 
 " 0, nothing," I replied. " I am not well just now, but I 
 shall soon be all right again." 
 
 My father was not less pleased to see me than she, but 
 like all men he had a different way of showing it. His 
 anxiety, too, for my health was plainly discernibb, and 
 
 ;.!n 
 
r 
 
 22G 
 
 The Frontier SchoolrrMster. 
 
 il 
 
 i|M ! 
 
 11 
 
 notwithstanding my efforts to convince them tha> T was not 
 seriously ill, and that my bad appearance was owing to 
 confinement and hard work, he was incredulous, and main- 
 tained that there should be something done for my cough. 
 I had not been at home a day ere my mother had com- 
 menced j)reparing her excellent cough and tonic syrup for 
 me, and I confess that its use, together with my systematic 
 course of bathing and exercise, made a marked improvement 
 in my health in the course of a month. I was overwhelm- 
 ed with sympathy and attention. Every old man, and 
 woman in the vicinity, all of whom entertained tha 
 most kindly feelings towards me, had some expression of 
 sympathy to offer, some new remedy to suggest. It was 
 the general opinion, however, that I could never recover. 
 Many shook their heads dubiously when any one ventured 
 to assert that I was getting well, and now and then an aged 
 person proclaimed that my sickness had all come from my 
 devotion to " them tarnal books." 
 
 Better a thousand times, they claimed, not to know quite 
 so much, and be well, than to drag out a miserable life with 
 a great amount of "book larnin," and I was frequently 
 alluded to as another example f a promising young man 
 sacrificed in the morning of life on the altar of fooKsh 
 ambition. 
 
 The Saturday following my arrival in Foreston, pursuant 
 to the notice which I had given her in my last letter, I went 
 to see Euth. She was at the front gate awaiting me, when 
 I arrived. 
 
 As I approached a smile lighted up her face, but it quickly 
 passed away, and was succeeded by a deep flush and look 
 of fear, as her eye rested on my thin, care-worn face. Ere 
 
 ■; !} ,i 
 
 ^ iiii 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 227 
 
 ...ilntations had been fully exchanged she stepped back, and 
 regarding nie with a sad and wondering expression exclaimed, 
 
 " What is the matter with you ? " 
 
 Smiling, I made the same reply that I did to the similar 
 question of my mother. 
 
 " But your voice ! " she then said, in tremulous tones. 
 
 " Yes, I know it is very weak," I replied, " but it is 
 owing to ray debilitated condition. When I get stronger, 
 it will return to its former tone. I have been at home but 
 three days, and I begin to improve already." 
 
 " Are you sure ? " she asked, in a tone of eagerness. 
 
 " Yes, quite sure," I replied with a smile, yet it was not 
 a smile springing from the fountain of a happy and con- 
 tented heart, for I was not quite certain that it was a 
 permanent improvement. 
 
 "0, I hope So," she replied, taking my hand in both her 
 own and looking up at my face, her eyes suffused with 
 tears. 
 
 There was something so pathetic in her tone and manner 
 that, in my present state of weakness, I was almoei incapa- 
 ble of restraining my emotions ; but fearing that I should 
 betray unmanly weakness, I nerved myself, laughed at her 
 fears, and then went with her into the house. 
 
 " Lie down on the sofa," she said, as we entered the 
 parlor. " You must be very tired with such a long walk." 
 
 Being nearly exhausted from fatigue, I was glad to 
 accept the invitation. I had walked the whole distance 
 from home for the reason that our horses were engaged — 
 it being the busy season of haying — but more especially 
 for the reason that I had many times before taken the same 
 walk, and I was not willing to acknowledge, even to my- 
 
 I; 
 
 t 
 
 -.H^-.H*^..': <y. . 
 
r 
 
 228 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 i 
 
 self, that I was not as strong as evor. I had resolved, too, 
 that I would take as much exercise of this kind as possible, 
 in the hope of being benefited thereby,, and I thought that 
 this journey might be of advantage to me. I had greatly 
 over-estimated my strength, however, and it was many days 
 before I fairly recovered from the effects of the over- 
 exertion. 
 
 " I forgot to tell you," she said, as she drew an arm- 
 chair up near the sofa and sat down " that your friend, 
 Mr. Niel, is here. I think he is now out in i-he field with 
 uncle." 
 
 " Mr. Niel here ! " I exclaimed with surprise. " I shall 
 
 be very glad " I checked myself, for I knew that I 
 
 was about to utter an untruth. 
 
 I could not say thai I would be glad to see him then, 
 even though I might have been on. another occasion and 
 under different circumstances. 
 
 I intended to visit him, but not until I had so far recov- 
 ered my health that my hope and ambition were fully 
 restored and my appearance would not alarm him. I 
 believed that he was my friend, yet I owed him, and I could 
 not persuade myself that, seeing me as I then was, he would 
 not naturally conclude, as others did, that I could not 
 recover, and in that case his seven hundred dollars were 
 gone. I know not how it is with others, but as for myself 
 I always have an unpleasant sensation, in the presence of a 
 man I owe, especially the man of whom I have had to 
 borrow money. It is a sensation at once humiliating 
 and goading. 
 
 The feeling of course is confined to the man in humble 
 circumstances, one whose at'.ty to pay depends wholly, or 
 
Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 229 
 
 almost wholly, upon these things — honor, health., and 
 success in business. 
 
 I know of ncjthing more liarassing to a proud spirited, 
 sensitive man in the above circmustjinces than debt, in the 
 presence of liis creditor, although the day of j)ayment may 
 still be distant, he labors under a consciousness of inferiority. 
 He is sure that he is looked upon as one wanting in calcu- 
 lation and economy; in short, as one devoid of good judg- 
 ment; otherwise he would have no necessity for borrowing 
 or hiring money. There is a feeling, too, even in health, 
 that his cliances of life, his honor and success in his under- 
 takings are all subjects of daily consideration with the 
 creditor, and are things uppermost in Ids mind when he 
 meets him : and he thus lives in constant bondage to a 
 watchful, heartless tyrant — debt. 
 
 . Had I been in more prosperous circumstances, I certainly 
 would have experienced something of the feelings I have 
 described on meeting Mr. Niel, but at the present time, not- 
 withstanding his repeated assurances of friendship, notwith- 
 standing the fact tliat he had urged me to take the money, 
 my feelings were unpleasant, painful almost beyond endu- 
 rance. I have spid that I checked myself when about saying 
 that I would be glad to see him. I did so, and substituted 
 for it the following expression : 
 
 •'I would much rather have seen him at some other 
 time." 
 
 " I am very sorry that he is here," said Ruth, almost 
 pettishly. " I trust that you will not feel yourself obliged 
 to divide your time between him and myself to-day, 
 although he is your friend. You know I shall insist on 
 monopolizing your attention on this occasion," she con- 
 
 m 
 
 
if 
 
 -4 w^ 
 
 230 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 tinued, laughing ; " besides, I think you need rest. I am 
 afraid that I shall make you talk too much " 
 
 " O, do not fear that," I replied ; " you cannot frighten 
 me into the feeling that I am an invalid if you try." 
 
 " But you are, Frank, however much you may scout the 
 idea," she said, soberly. *' Why did you not write me that 
 you were so ill ? " 
 
 " Because I did not believe that I was very much out of 
 health ; nor do I yet believe that I shall not be well in a 
 few weeks." 
 
 " Well, I do not wish to discourage you, but you cer- 
 tainly look bad, and your voice indicates great weak- 
 ness. You'll be so careful, will you not ? " she asked, 
 looking at me with the most anxious expression on her 
 face. 
 
 " Yes, — for your sake," 1 smilingly replied. 
 
 " Not only for my sake, but for your own sake, and for 
 the sake of all your friends. But wouldn't you like to go 
 to sleep, while I go to the kitchen and assist my aunt about 
 cinner?" she asked. 
 
 =• I would, thank you, but it seems a strange thing to do 
 when I have not seen you for so long a time, and have 
 walked so far this morning to ^^dsit you. I thought as I 
 v/as coming tiiat I would not have half the time during 
 this visit to say what I wished to say to you, even if I 
 talked all the while; but I am very tired, and perhaps 
 when I awake I can talk enough faster to make up the 
 time I lose while asleep." 
 
 " Well," she replied, " I only hope you will get well 
 rested," and then, closing the door, she left me alone. 
 
 My thoughts instantly reverted to Mr. Niel. I was 
 
 III! 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 231 
 
 vexed that he shtiuld be there that day; indeed, I felt that 
 it was intriisive, for I wished to see no one but Ruth. I 
 must confess that I exercised but little reason, for he knew 
 not that he would meet me there, and even if he did, what 
 right had I to be u spleased ? He was an old friend of the 
 family, and had a right to visit them whenever he saw fit, 
 and besides, he might have come on business. I am con- 
 scious now that something of my former jealousy of him 
 must have been roused within me, and that I could not 
 shake off the impression that he came to see Ruth. I fell 
 asleep, however, but still he was in my mind. I dreamed 
 that he came into the parlor, stood before the sofa, and with 
 a triumphant, demoniacal expiossion on his face thus ad- 
 dressed me : 
 
 " So you are sick, young man, ha, ha, ha ! Well, I'm 
 glad of it. You are going to die ! You think that you 
 will get well, but you never, never can;" an^ he pointed 
 his finger at me, as he slowly pronounced the last sentence, 
 giving to me the impression by hia solemn demeanor that 
 he was uttering a prophecy, the fulfillment of which had 
 been decreed by the Invisible, Immortal. He then paused, 
 and looked long and steadily at me, his countenance indi- 
 cating an intensity of pity and contempt. Again he broke 
 forth in derisive laughter, after which he said, as if in reply 
 to an allusion I had made to my indebtedness to him : 
 
 " Yes, it is true you do owe me a large su m — a very 
 large sum for a sick, incapable youth like yourself to pay ; 
 but what care I for that ? You are going to die ; the spell 
 that you've thrown around her by your romantic, sentimen- 
 tal nonsense will then be broken ; she will return to her 
 reason, and seeing her true interest will marry me." He 
 
232 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 % 
 
 here gave a chuckle which showed the extent to whioli he 
 enjoyed his anticipated triumph. Placing his hands behind 
 him, he now began to stride up and down the parlor, with 
 an insulting air of superiority. Finally, he stopped before 
 me once more, and spoke again as follows : 
 
 " No, young man, if you owed me seven thousand instead 
 of seven hundred dollars, I would have you die ; yes, die ! " 
 he repeated, with emphasis, his small eyes flashing with 
 fiendish, malignant hate. 
 
 •' You are a Shylock ! " I shouted, no longer able to con- 
 trol myself. " If the sum which I owe you was ducats 
 instead of dollars, your words, like your manner and prin- 
 ciples, would show that you ar<3 almost a perfect reproduc- 
 tion of that relentless, develish Jew ! You are unfit to 
 live i " and I strove to rise and rush at h:'m, but I could not 
 move. 
 
 Divining my object, he retreated towards the door, and 
 opening it, backed slowly out, repeating as he did so, with 
 the same malicious smile, his former exasperating, terrifying 
 prophecy — 
 
 " You'll die, young man ! yes, die ! " and then quietly 
 closing the door, left me once more alone. 
 
 I remember nothing of intervening acts, but the scene was 
 changed. I stood at a little distance from a neat, white 
 country church, before which were assembled quite a num- 
 ber of people, arrayed in their Sunday suits, apparently, 
 with the intention of attending the services which had not 
 yet commenced. The slow, solemn, mournful sounds of the 
 church-bell assured me that it was tolling, and that the 
 persons before the church had come to pay their last 
 respects to a departed soul. Looking away in the distance, 
 
 iiii 
 {lliliiil 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 233 
 
 on a road running at right angles to the one on which the 
 church was situated, I saw a hearse approaching, followed 
 by a long procession of teams, and this, in turn, by people 
 on foot. As I stood there, wondering who the de ased 
 could be, a waggon with two men in it, strangers to me, 
 passed, and having gone a little further, halted near a 
 farmer sitting on the roadside near the church. The men 
 seemed <"o know him, and after saluting him, one asked : 
 
 " Whose funeral is this, Mr. Saxe ? " 
 
 " It is Frank Styles'." 
 
 The shock thus given me broke the chain that bound me 
 to the land of dreams, and I awoke. 
 
 Ruth was standing before me. Smiling, she said : 
 
 "I have this instant come here, and was deliberating 
 whether I had better awaken you or let you sleep and have 
 you dine with me bye and bye. Will you go out now ? " 
 she asked. 
 
 " Yes, I will go now," I replied ; " I have no desire ever 
 to go to sleep again if I have to witnoss such horrid scenes 
 as I have witnessed since I have been sleeping here." 
 
 " What did you dream ? " she inquired. 
 
 " I prefer not to tell you now," I said, as I accompanied 
 her to the dining room. 
 
 The family and Mr. Niel were all there, and they greeted 
 me with all the kindness I could possibly wish. Once 
 more I had to go through the ordeal of talking about my 
 ill health, and accepting proffered sympathy. T was begin- 
 ning to get nervous and sensitive respecting this subject. 
 My dream might have had something to do with it, but I 
 sincerely wished that no one would mention it in future ; I 
 had become tired of speaking of it. 
 
 m 
 
 : r 
 
234 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 11 
 
 Mr. Niel seemed to be in his usually friendly mood. He 
 expressed a great deal of sympathy for me, and inquired 
 particularly as to the nature of my illness and the length 
 of time my cough had troubled me. Was it from a fear 
 that I might not get well, and that he would lose the sum . 
 he had loaned me ? or was it from a fear that I might get 
 well, and that he would thereby sustain a greater loss ? — 
 that he was so particular in catechising me ? These were 
 questions that disturbed me during the whole time that I 
 was in his presence that day. 
 
 The question respecting his fear that I would get well 
 certainly must have been suggested by my dream, for it 
 had never occurred to me before ; and even then, I felt 
 ashamed and guilty of meanness in harboring such a 
 thought ; but in vain I tried to banish it ; in vain I tried v 
 to feel that the interest he showed in me was the natural 
 result of his friendship, of which I had abundant proof; 
 my horrid dream, in which he had appeared as a demon 
 rather than as a man, still haunted me. My latest sus- 
 picion of him, too, was heightened by discovering what I 
 believed was a gleam of satisfaction in his eye, when Mrs. 
 Edgarton, in reply to something I said, remarked, 
 
 " I do not know, Mr. Styles, but I fear that your cough 
 is far more serious than you imagine. You know that con- 
 sumption is a very subtle and deceptive disease." 
 . One thing pleased me. I observed Euth closely, and 
 never discovered the slightest Indication that she gave Mr. 
 Niel any encouragement to pay her more than passing 
 attention. On the other hand, she rather avoided entering 
 into conversation with him, always answering his questions 
 in monosyllables. I even began to fear that she was rather 
 
The Frontier Sehoolii vaster. 
 
 235 
 
 i 
 
 wanting in that respect which was due him, unless she 
 had reasons that I knew not of for wishing to keep him at 
 a distance. 
 
 Not long after dinner she went into the parlor, and 
 taking advantage of a pause in the conversation I soon 
 followed her. When I sat down beside her on the sofa I 
 said, 
 
 " I have learned from Mr. Niel's letters that he has seen 
 you sometimes during my absence ; but has he been here 
 often?" 
 
 I noticed a slight change in the expression of her face, 
 and detected, I thought, something of displeasure in her 
 tones as she answered, 
 
 " Yes, ouite often : I believe he has never been absent 
 longer than six weeks at any one time." 
 
 " And does he come to see you, or your uncle ? " I asked, 
 with an air quite too serious to lead her to sup^ ose that I 
 was indifferent as to the nature of her answer. 
 
 *' My uncle, I suppose," she replied, with a laugh which 
 indicated that she was not quite in earnest, and then after a 
 moment's thoughtfulness she said, " I do not like that man." 
 
 " I am very sorry," I replied ; " Mr. Niel has been kind 
 to me, and I am under great, very great obligation to him." 
 
 " How so ? " she asked, with an expression of much 
 curiosity on her face. 
 
 " Well, since it is right that you should know all about 
 my circumstances," I replied, " I will tell you." 
 
 I then related to her in detail the way in which he at 
 first induced me to become indebted to him, and all the 
 subsequent transactions by which I had become his debtor 
 to the amount of seven hundred dollars. I was puzzled as 
 
II 
 
 mi\ 
 
 236 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I proceeded with my story to perceive that she changed 
 color, and as I completed it, that her eye? beamed from 
 excited emotions, and she seemed strangely sad, I asked 
 for no explanation, however, presuming that she sympa- 
 thized with me in my present anxiety with regard to the 
 matter, and that it seemed quite improbable to her that I 
 could pay so large a sum. That I was wrong, however, in 
 my last impression was evident by the following remark : 
 
 " I see no reason why you should feel despondent respect- 
 ing your circumstances if you are well, but I do wish that 
 it was some other person to whom you are indebted than 
 Mr. Niel." 
 
 " Will you not give me your reason for this wish ? " I 
 asked. ,; 
 
 " I would much rather not," she answered, " for I may be 
 greatly mistaken in my estimate of him, and, for the 
 world, 1 would say nothing to awaken a prejudice in you . 
 against him after he has shown you so much kindness. 
 His motive may have been the purest one, and until you 
 have positive proof that it was not, he is entitled to your 
 friendship and respect; but, for the present, I think you . 
 had better dismiss this subject entirely from your mind. • 
 When you get well, it will give you no trouble whatever, 
 and from what you say, I infer that Mr. Niel expected 
 to give you a long time for payment, at least all that you 
 require. Let us talk of this no more, but teU me aU ? 
 about your school and the friends you have formed during 
 your long absence. Surely you have not told me in your ; 
 letters all that you have to say of them." 
 
 " No, I think not," I replied ; and as the subject was one - 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 237 
 
 of which I was glad to speak, I was soon so fully engaged 
 with it that I forgot my troubles. 
 
 After we had thus talked for an hour, Euth asked : 
 
 " But why did you decide to go to college ? If I remem- 
 ber rightly, when you went away, you only thought of 
 spending a couple of years in study, and then taking a 
 profefision." 
 
 " Yes, that is true ; but my thirst for knowledge increased 
 when I began to study, and I saw what fields of learning 
 were still left for me to explore, and it seemed to me that 
 the advantage I might gain by so doing would richly repay 
 me for the expense and labor it would incur. Besides, so 
 many of my friends and classmates have gone to college, 
 that it is hard for me to think of being left in the back- 
 ground." 
 
 " Yes," she said, with an air of sad thoughtfulness, " I 
 can understand your feelings and appreciate your ambition ; 
 but it seems a long time to have you absent — three years • 
 think of it, and you will not enter for a year, which will 
 make four,'' 
 
 " I know," I replied, " that it seems a very long period 
 to look forward to, but it will soon glide away, and you 
 may be assured that I will not stay away from home 
 again so long as I have this time ; I shall return at least 
 twice every year." 
 
 " 0, that will be pleasant," she said ; " but have you really 
 decided to go ? " 
 
 " 1 had made that decision before leaving Corvette," I 
 replied, " but fears of my health make me less determined 
 about it now than I then was. It requires a gtul constitu.- 
 tion to do all that I inten led, ftr in order to pay a part of 
 
 t 
 
r 
 
 238 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 my expenses, it would be necessary that I should teach, or 
 engage in some other business a portion of the year. You 
 know many students do this, and keep up with th<nr classes 
 during the time they are thus absent, but none but the 
 strong can endure such extra exertion." 
 
 " Well, then, when there are such obstacles in the way 
 of your gratifying your ambition, why not change your 
 plans and do what you proposed before you went away ? 
 Have you forgotten that you said you would consider my 
 proposition to engage in teaching and allow me to be your 
 assistant ? " 
 
 " No, I have not forgotten it," I replied ; " on the con- 
 trary I have thought much about it, and that is just what 
 I design should I take a college course. Much as I dislike 
 the vocation of teaching, I think the pleasure of having you 
 for an assistant would be a sufficient inducement fur me to 
 follow it. As I hardly consider myself educated now, 
 should I go no further with my studies, I think I should 
 take the time required in college to fit myself for some pro- 
 fession." 
 
 " Well," she said, " I do not wish to influence you to do 
 anything of which you will repent, but with your present 
 education, and ability to impart knowledge, I think many 
 communities would be glad to obtain your services as 
 teacher, now, at a good salary." 
 
 " Possibly," I said ; " but then in every community there 
 are those who always measure a man's ability by the diploma 
 that he carries ; and, consequently, a man who has none is 
 at once set down as an ignoramus. A teacher, above all 
 others, is estimated by this unreUable criterion, and so with 
 my present acquirements, I should feel a continual sense of 
 
The Frontier SchoohnaMer. 
 
 239 
 
 humiliation were I to take charge of a high school or an 
 academy, and I would teach no other. 
 
 " You forget," she said, " that many of those who are the 
 most successful and popular teachers are men who have 
 never received a collegiate course, but have risen to their 
 present position, like those in other business, by industry, 
 and by showing their fitness for the pursuit which they are 
 following. And on the other hand, those who have diplo- 
 mas from college often make signal failures in attempting 
 to teach." 
 
 " Well," I replied, " I know not what I shall do as yet. 
 My first work will be to try to recover my health ; if I 
 succeed there will be sufficient time for deciding as to 
 business." 
 
 " Do not speak, Frank, as if there were any doubt about 
 your recovery. 1 know that these things rest with the 
 Lord, but I am sure He will spare you, and give you much 
 work to do yet in the world." 
 
 " Are you quite sure of that ? " I asked, almost feeling 
 that she was endowed with prophetic vision. 
 
 " Yes, quite sure," she replied. 
 
 " I know you say this to encourage me, Euth, and I con- 
 fess that I do receive encouragement from it ; but as it is 
 now getting late I must return home." 
 
 *' You certainly wiU not think of walking home," she 
 said. 
 
 " No, I cannot," I replied, " although I had no doubt that 
 I should do so when I left home this morning. I shall ask 
 Mr. Niel to take me, and remain with me over Sunday." , 
 
 We now repaired to the sitting room where we found 
 him Ute-di-Ute with Miss Edgarton, Ruth's maiden aunt. 
 
240 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 «ii 
 
 m 
 
 It was unnecessary to ask him to grant me the favor that 
 I desired, for he kindly placed himself and carriage at my 
 disposal as soon as I had mentioned the thought of return- 
 ing home. When I invited him to remain over night and 
 spend the Sabbath with me, although he assented at once, I 
 noticed a slight suffusion of the face, as if it were not the 
 most agreeable thing for him to do. He gave no further 
 evidence of disappointment, however, and during our ride he 
 was as pleasant and affable as I had ever seen him. 
 
 He talked encouragingly to me of my prospects, said he 
 had no doubt that I would soon be in good health, and even 
 tried to persuade me to enter college that year, offering me 
 money to defray my expenses. 
 
 Surely, man never gave stronger evidence of friendship 
 for another than did he for me. But the seeds of distrust 
 and suspicion had been received into my mind. I thought 
 that Ruth, with her far-sightedness and good sense, would 
 never have expressed a dislike for him, had she not had 
 some good reason for so doing; and then, too, I could not 
 shake off the impression my dream had made on my mind^ 
 reason and argue to myself as I would. I tried to remem- 
 ber and feel that it was only a dream, and the most natural 
 one that could have engaged my mind, when I had fallen 
 asleep thinking of my sickness, Mr. Niel and the large debt 
 I owed him ; still he was ever before me, just as he ap- 
 peared uttering the words : " If you owed me seven thou- 
 sand instead of seven hundred dollars, I would have you 
 die ; yes, die ! " Even his present offer of money I regarded 
 as evidence of duplicity, for it seemed highly improbable 
 that he could urge me to go to college in a few weeks, and 
 confine myself to study, unless it was from a hope that I 
 
 mtiii 
 
 ifi 
 iii 
 
 i 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 241 
 
 would not get well. But then, the remark of Ruth, " His 
 motive may have teen the purest one, and until you have 
 positive proof that it was not, he is entitled to your friend- 
 ship and respect," came to my mind, and made me resolve 
 that I would strive never to think of him other than a 
 as a friend, until he had fully shown himself unworthy of 
 the name. 
 
 I would not, however, for a moment think of accepting 
 further aid from him at present. Had I been well, I would 
 have refused it, for it seemed folly for me to plunge myself 
 more deeply in debt, without making an effort to pay a 
 portion of my expenses by my own industry, I argued 
 that if my health would not permit me to do something by 
 which I could raise money, I certainly could not study; 
 hence, my plans must be frustrated. 
 
 Mr. Niel and I attended divine service on the Sabbath at 
 Foreston, and he remained with me until the afternoon of 
 Monday, parting with me, as usual, with the warmest ex- 
 pressions of friendship, and promising to visit me again at 
 no distant day. ;5!<,vw-/ ^ ;: •: -: ', - t^rr^. ...u d 
 
 vi\-,)', • 
 
 ■;.:■;. 
 
r 
 
 Jill; 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 A determination to secure health — A gymnasium — Over-exertion — 
 Dii^appointment and despair — Ti>e wise dealings of Providence 
 with me — My rapid recovery — Engagement once more in business. 
 
 I SHALL give my next year's history bri'^fly. It was the 
 saddest of my life. The fall and winter succeeding my re- 
 turn from Corvette had come and gone, and my health was 
 no better. For some weeks it had improved, but, with 
 characteristic impatience, I grew uneasy, chafed at the con- 
 finement, and resolved that I would redouble my exercise 
 in order to hasten recovery. I engaged in most severe 
 manual labor, and persevered in it in the foolish belief that 
 I could become strong and hardy ; in short, not only acquire 
 my former health, but build up a constitution that would 
 enable me to endure hard mental labor. '--t 
 
 In former years, having always gained strength rapidly 
 on returning home from school and engaging in farm labor, 
 I believed that I might again effect the same result in like 
 manner, never reflecting in my inexperience on the difference 
 in my physical condition. Reading of the wonderful develop- 
 ment of strength and muscle in Windship and others by 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 243 
 
 gymnastics, I, too, was to become like them, and with this 
 object in view I constructed a gymnasium, and without 
 any exj)erienced counsellor to direct me, began a course of 
 exercise which was enough to destroy the constitution of 
 the most robust, and the recollection of which now appalls 
 me. My cougli grew l)etter, and finally ceased, but, in my 
 blind determination to recover, I had so overstepped the 
 bounds of i)rudence that I had contracted other diseases, 
 and suffered greatly from nervous debility. 
 
 During all these months I had fretted and bemoaned my 
 circumstances, and avoided society until I had become a 
 misanthrope. I had visited Kuth from time to time, but 
 even when in her society, I was so sad, so prone to talk of 
 myself and my misfortunes, that I have since often won- 
 dered that yhe did not dismiss me with disgust. Not she. 
 Never was there a more striking example of womanly con- 
 stancy and devotion. Her cheerfulness and meekness wore 
 a tacit rebuke to me, complaining as I always was at the 
 decrees of Fate. Convinced, almost beyond a doubt, that 
 I never could enjoy good health, even in a comparative 
 degree, and, consequently, never realize the fruition of my 
 hopes, I offered to release her from her engagement to me, 
 but the offer was magnanimously rejected. Such proof of 
 her affection for me, while it increased my love and admira- 
 tion for her, embittered the thought that I could never do 
 for her what my youthful fancy had pictured, and, perhaps, 
 never marry her. 
 
 In my despondency, I found no pleasure in writing to 
 the friends that I had formed in Corvette ; indeed, the act 
 was always fraught with so many unpleasant feelings, that 
 I could never write a cheerful letter, and so, ont by one, my 
 
 
r 
 
 244 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ill 
 
 corrospondents were dropped until I had none. I wrote to 
 Mack three times and received two letters in return, Imt 
 my last one he never answered, and as he left Corvette in 
 the following July, I knew not where to address him. 
 
 The first note of S200 which I gave to Mr. Niel came 
 due in the sjjring, and as I had no way of meeting it, my 
 trouhles were not a little increased. He had visited me 
 once since the time I have mentioned above, and knew well 
 the anxiety that I felt regarding my inability to i)ay him, 
 and he strove to relieve me of it as usual by assuring me 
 that he was in no haste, and reminding me of the expres- 
 sions he had used at the time I hired it. 
 
 I saw nothing of him again for a long time. I learned 
 that he visited the Edgartons once in the spring, and then 
 his visits to them suddenly ceased, the reason for which 
 was concealed from me several months. 
 
 In early summer, at a time wlien I was bereft of hope 
 my health, unaccountably to me, began to improve. It 
 might have been from the rest that I was taking, for I had 
 been obliged to desist from labor, and in my despair I even 
 neglected to take much exercise. My recovery, however, 
 was so rapid that I could not reasonably ascribe it all to 
 rest. It seemed then, and still seems, that nothing but the 
 direct interposition of Providence in i . behalf could have 
 effected so surprising a change in such a short time. I felt 
 that He had afflicted me, thwarted my plans, for a wise and 
 good purpose. I was self-willed, headstrong, and far too 
 forgetful of the source whence my blessings came, and now 
 that I had been taught my weakness and utter dependence 
 on Him, I was permitted to recover, or so far recover as to 
 perform the work He had assigned me. 
 
The Frmititr School mdster. 
 
 245 
 
 As 1 grew .strong, by diigrees I began to do a little work, 
 Imt 1 commenced it with great caution, lest I should again 
 over-exert myself and blast all my ho[)es. In a few weeks 
 from the time that I began to grow better, I ventured to 
 walk to Mr. Pkigarton's. Ruth was both astonished and 
 delighted to see me under such improved circumstances, 
 and fearful that the walk would be too long for me she 
 insisted, when I returned, on taking rae nearly home with 
 her uncle's carriage. 
 
 In August, my strength and ambition were so far re- 
 stored that I began to think of seeking some employment, 
 and with this object I wrote to the committee of a school 
 in Bloomingdale in Vermont, some twenty miles distant 
 from Foreston. 
 
 The school was what is known in this section as a Select 
 School, in which the teacher was obliged to depend on the 
 tuition of the scholars for his salary, being granted the use 
 of the school room free of rent. Should his fall school be 
 so managed as to meet the approval of the school committee 
 of the locality, if he desired, he would be engaged at a 
 stated salary to teach the more advanced pupils of the 
 district school during the winter, a female teacher being 
 employed for the lower grade. In the spring, by obtaining 
 the right of occupancy, he could use the schoolroom again 
 for a Select School. The village consisted of about fifteen 
 hundred inhabitants, and their school had been conducted 
 on the above plan for nearly a dozen years. * 
 
 It was my desire to remain in the school during the three 
 terms, and in applying for it I had mentioned this fact to 
 the committee. They replied in due season, saying that 
 my references were satisfactory, and in case I went through 
 
 
246 
 
 '^ke Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 the fall term "all right," there would be nothing in the 
 way of my engagement for the winter. 
 
 My decision was at once made, although my nervous 
 system was so shattered that I feared the result of the labor 
 and confinement; but as it was the only way I saw of 
 reducing the amount of my indebtedness to Niel, I could 
 by no means think of declining the offer of the school. 
 Accordingly, I replied to the letter, notifying the committee 
 that I would commence my labor on the first Monday of 
 September following. 
 
 A few days subsequently, I sent him for distribution 
 fifty circulars, which read as follows : 
 
 SELECT SCHOOL. 
 
 The Fall Term of Bloom ingdale Select School will commence on 
 Monday, September, 1859. 
 
 Frank Styles, Principal. 
 Tuition: 
 
 Comnjon English, per term of eleven weeks, i , ' . $3 00 
 
 Higher, 3 .50 
 
 Classicp, 4 00 
 
 French (extra) . , . . . . . . ' v 1 00 
 
 No pupils received for less than half a terra, and tuition must be 
 paid positively one half at the beginning, and the other half at the 
 end of the term. 
 
 For further particulars apply to the Principal, or to 
 
 G. V. Smallkt, Secretary. 
 
 iilllii^ 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 A representative school building — School work — Disorderly pupils — 
 A suspension — An indignant mother's letter and my reply — Two 
 truants — Punishment — Another angry parent — A party at which 
 my school and myself afford subjects for gossip. 
 
 I WENT to Bloomingdale on the Saturday preceding the 
 week in which my school was to open. It was a lively 
 little village, composed chiefly of wooden dwellings painted 
 white, containing one church, four or five stores and two 
 hotels. 
 
 At one of the latter I took up my quarters until I could 
 secure board in a private family, knowing that my small 
 salary would necessitate the strictest economy and thus 
 prevent my boarding at a hotel. After dinner I visited the 
 academy, a two story building situated nearly in the center 
 of the village on the main street, and but a few yards back 
 from it. A carpenter and wheelwright's shop was the 
 nearest building on the right, while a small dry goods store 
 occupied a place on the left — the spaces between the academy 
 and these two buildings being filled with piles of lumber 
 and dry goods boxes. The academy had once been painted 
 white, but it now gave little evidence of it, and several 
 
I ! 
 
 248 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ilili 
 
 broken panes of glass and its general appearance of rough 
 usage and want of care showed at once its character — it 
 was unmistakably a schoolhouse. 
 
 Climbing dilapidated steps and finding the door unlocked, 
 I went up a flight of stairs and entered my schoolroom. It 
 contained the furniture usually found in these institutions 
 — several rows of rough desks, a blackboard, a cracked and 
 rusty stove, a chair and table. It was well lighted, but two 
 of the windows were without curtains, and the other four 
 were partly shaded by pieces of dirty, torn, unbleached 
 muslin. 
 
 Until this moment, I had not thought of the necessity 
 of putting the room in readiness, not doubting that it would 
 be in proper condition when I arrived, but, on glancing 
 around and seeing the dirty state of the floor and walls, I 
 immediately started out in quest of some one to set things 
 in order. Fortunately, I found a Frenchman and his wife 
 who undertook the work of cleaning, and I then purchased 
 several yards of cloth for curtains, and engaged another 
 person to make and put them up. 
 
 The next person to be engaged was a glazier, and this 
 being done, I sought Mr. Smallet, chairman of the com- 
 mittee, to ascertain whether I was to bear this expense, or 
 whether it was to be paid by the community; also to 
 learn what he knew respecting the number of pupils that I 
 was likely to liave. He was a wide-awake, good-natured, 
 shrewd yankee, and after greeting me cordially, and ex- 
 pressing many wishes for my success, answered my first 
 question promptly as follows : 
 
 " The cleaning of the house you will have to pay for ; 
 the glass and setting will be at our expense, but you will 
 
Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 249 
 
 have to pay for what is broken while you teach. As for 
 the curtains, they will probably be damaged a good deal 
 this term, and I guess we'll divide the expense of those 
 between us." 
 
 I was satisfied, and then inquired as to my prospects for 
 pupils. 
 
 " 0, you'll have scholars enough," said he ; " you'll pro- 
 bably have to get an assistant. Quite a number outside of 
 the place have been around here inquiring for boarding 
 places, and all the village scholars are going. I'll bet you'll 
 have from seventy-five to a hundred. I'll tell you, Mr. 
 Styles, we've heard of you, and we've got an idea that 
 you're going to teach us a good school, and so folks are 
 going to send. The school last year chdn't amount to much. 
 We had a woman teacher, and the scholars did just as they 
 pleased ; and two years ago we had a young fellow who 
 hadn't much ambition, and the f :lks got rather sick of him, 
 and began to send their boys and girls off to school ; but 
 this fall I don't know of one in the village that's going 
 away. You needn't fear but what you'll have scholars 
 enough." 
 
 Greatly encouraged by his remarks, I next inquired for 
 a boarding place for myself, when he offered to take me 
 himself at $2.50 per week. He had a pleasant house at 
 no great distance from the academy, a small family, and, 
 finding that he could give me a commodious neatly fur- 
 nished upper room ctjntaining a stove, I accepted his offer 
 and at once had my lu ^age transported hither. 
 
 I attended divine ser > ice on the Sabbath in the Methodist 
 church, and though I wt.it in the morning and afternoon, 
 and attended prayer meeting in the evening, the day seemed 
 long ; and I felt very lonely. 
 
'T"^' 
 
 250 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I ' 
 
 Nf^ilii 
 
 On Monday, at nine o'clock, I was seated in my school- 
 room, now rendered more respectable by the work which had 
 been done in it recently, forgetful of all past troubles in the 
 interest I felt in observing my pupils, and in my anxiety 
 respecting my success in teaching. 
 
 There were now twenty-five pupils present, and before 
 noon the number had increased to thirty-five, ranging in age 
 from ten to twenty-two, and possessing, of course, a variety 
 of temperaments, habits and manners. There were uncouth, 
 mischievous boys, indigent but industrious young men, boys 
 of indolent habits, boys of impetuous tempers, fashionable 
 and wayward girls, amiable girls, numbers given to study, 
 and others to folly. All as I suppose having been sent 
 hither for the same purpose— -to profit by my example, and 
 to be led up the Hill of Learning. 
 
 After organizing my classes I found that besides the 
 common English branches I had two classes in Algebra, one 
 in Natural Philosophy, one in French, and another in Latin. 
 Giving them their lessons for the succeeding day, T addressed 
 them for sometime, dwelling on the importance of punc- 
 tuality, industry and obedience, and then dismissed them 
 for the day. 
 
 I laid down no special rules for their observance save 
 that which required them to be present at the calling of 
 the roll in the morning and afternoon, and another which 
 demanded their presence always at recitation, unless excused. 
 Other regulations were made from time to time, as the well- 
 being of the school demanded. 
 
 In the course of a week the number of my pupils had 
 increased to fifty, so that, in order to devote to all an appro- 
 priate share of attention, I spent sev^en hours daily in the 
 
 i 
 
The Frontier Sdwolmaster. 
 
 251 
 
 schoolroom. Like all inexperienced teachers I fatigued 
 myself by doing far more work than was necessary, often 
 giving assistance promptly to a lazy pupil when he called for 
 it, thus depriving others of time which was really their due» 
 and at the same time encouraging the pupil himself in 
 habits of indolence and dependence. A suggestion is nearly 
 always more valuable than full explanation, for the pupil 
 is then obliged to exercise his own reasoning faculties and 
 cultivate the habit of self-reliance. 
 
 Another habit, also, which I indulged, gave me much 
 useless j)hysical exertion, and in consequence increased the 
 exhaustion which I usually felt at nightfall. In former 
 years I had frequently heard severe criticisms by people, 
 of course not the most intelligent, on teachers, because they 
 occupied chairs instead of constantly moving about during 
 their labors in the schoolroom. They were denounced as 
 unambitious, inactive ; in short, lazy. Dreading such an 
 imputation, and wishing to do everything included in the 
 line of duty, I conceived it necessary to be always on the 
 move — on the qui vive, I might say, like a well drilled 
 hotel servant, to see if somebody did not want something, 
 wish for some assistance, that I could giv3. 
 
 The amount of mental labor one can endure naturally 
 decreases as the physical system becomes fatigued, yet I 
 overlooked this important fact in pursuing the course de- 
 scribed above. I was not only fatiguing myself unneces- 
 sarily by remaining so much on my feet, but, in rendering 
 assistance to pupils at their seats, opportunity was often 
 given to mischievous ones behind me to indulge in pranks 
 that they woujd have found it impossible to perform had I 
 kept my seat, and thus had the whole school before me. 
 
252 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 -iiii 
 
 
 It is hardly ever necessary for a teacher to turn his back 
 to his pupils, except, perhaps, when he is employed at the 
 black-board ; and during the rest of the time he can easily 
 keep his pupils in view, when he if^ in a sitting posture, 
 and thus be enabled to i)reserve better order and to perform 
 his other labors as well, and with far less fatigue. In re- 
 quiring his ])upils to come to him, also, instead of going to 
 them when they require assistance, he diminishes their 
 desire to come frequently, and by prohibiting them ever to 
 come unless it is necessary, and then never at a moment 
 when he is engaged with a recitation, he maintains far 
 better discipline, increases the dignity of his position and 
 saves himself much labor and many annoyances. 
 
 A teacher who has tact in organizing classes, and has 
 learned how to economize time, can far more easily manage 
 a school of sixty or seventy pupils than one of little or no 
 experience can a school of thirty. 
 
 These are things that I knew but little about at the time 
 of which I write, and they were learned only by experi- 
 ence, the knowledge of them being gradually unfolded as I 
 found myself obliged to husband my strength, economize 
 time, and secure more perfect discipline. Many times since 
 those days have teachers excited my sympathy, as I have 
 seen them with dejected, care-worn looks responding to the 
 calls of pupils from every quarter of their schoolrooms, and 
 increasing their labors two-fold from want of proper disci- 
 pline and organization of classes. 
 
 Things went on quite smoothly, but iiot to my entire 
 satisfaction, for two or three weeks. There were many in- 
 stances of tardiness and a far greater number of absences 
 than were compatible with the interests of the school. Two 
 
 III!! 
 
 vm 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 253 
 
 or three boys and the same number of girls living in the 
 village, and about an equal number from a distance, were 
 in\ariably late, often absent from their classes, and, by 
 their general bad deportment and lack of interest in their 
 studies, exerted a baneful influence on the other pupils, 
 and subjected me to much trouble. 
 
 I had spoken publicly of these derelictions of duty, 
 mildly at first, and then more sharply, alluding to the delin- 
 quents in terms of sarcasm which affected all, and even 
 wrought a reform in one or two ; but the others soon forgot 
 it and went on as before. I next had private conferences 
 with them, and this seemed to have a salutary effect ; 
 but the reforms thus effected were not permanent, and it 
 was evident that more stringent measures must be tried. 
 
 One of the most provoking of these pu])ils was a girl of 
 about sixteen named Mattie Whittimore. She was the 
 eldest daughter of a thrifty merchant in the place, and 
 being good-looking, and quite a successful performer on the 
 piano, she had been indulged and flattered until she despised 
 parental authority as she always had that of her teachers. 
 Indeed, I imagined from what I heard and saw of her, that 
 she had been permitted by her teachers, from fear of offend- 
 ing her or her parents, to do whatever she pleased. She 
 was always neatly attired, possessed faultless white hands, 
 bedecked with rings which she was fond of displaying, and 
 her only object in life seemed to be to try to captivate by 
 her charming face and bewitching manners. 
 
 She, like all others of her class, had several satellites 
 among the poorer girls of her acquaintance and admirers 
 among the young snobs of the village. Though a poor 
 scholar she never seemed ashamed of her ignorance, or dis- 
 
I 
 
 m 
 
 ■fit?'! 
 
 254 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 played any ambition to become wiser ; often sitting with a 
 dreamy listlesss air, casting occasional smiles across the 
 schoolroom at some love-sick youth, or, what was more 
 usual, spending an hour in close conversation with Lizzie 
 Steams, her confidential friend, who occupied the seat with 
 her. The latter was the daughter of an industrious uiechanic 
 in the village, and she was more amiable and a miich better 
 scholar than her friend, but Miss Whittimore had so ingra- 
 tiated herself with her, and attained such an ascendancy 
 over her, tliat I verily believe she would have consented to 
 martyrdom, had she been told by Miss Whittimore to do so. 
 
 Mattie was always late, late in the morning, late in the 
 afternoon, late at her classes, and frequently absent from 
 them. I entreated, exhorted, and expostulated to no pur- 
 pose ; she either laughed, gave some flimsy excuse, or 
 assumed an air of independence, often of indignation, that 
 I should presume to call her to an account. One thing was 
 certain, she must either be made to comply with the rules, 
 or else I could not with any consistency or justice require 
 the other pupils to do so, in which case my authority was 
 destroyed. 
 
 One day, when hearing my class in Natural Philosophy, 
 Mattie, who always persisted in studying the higher branches, 
 although very ignorant of the common ones, annoyed me 
 greatly by her inattention and continual whispering to those 
 near her. Desiring strict attention during recitation, and 
 an entire avoidance of whispering, I had positively forbidden 
 any communication between the pupils while in class. 
 
 For some little time I pretended not to notice her, but 
 this only encourpged her to more open boldness in her 
 transgression of the rule. At length, exasperated beyond 
 
 l; 
 
I 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 255 
 
 I 
 
 forbearance, when she had spoken in a loud whisper to the 
 girl on her right, and at the same time indulged in one of 
 her characteristic giggles, I stopped al)ruj)tly in the course 
 of some explanation I was giving, looked gravely at her 
 and exclaimed, 
 
 " I beg your pardon. Miss Whittimore." 
 
 Astonished, she looked at me for a moment with a be- 
 wildered expression of countenance, and then glanced in- 
 quiringly at the faces of the other members of the class, as 
 if to learn the cause of this strange procedure ; but they, 
 too, were surj^rised, and regarded me with awe and silence. 
 Finding that my eyes were still intently fixed on her, as if 
 awaiting a reply, she blushed deeply and confusedly asked, 
 
 " What did you say ? " 
 
 " I beg your pardon," I replied ; " you spoke to me, I 
 believe." 
 
 At first she seemed more bewildered than ever, but then, 
 as my object in thus addressing her broke upon her mind, 
 her face became scarlet from mortified pride and anger. 
 She replied in a haughty, emphatic tone, 
 
 " NOy I didn't speak to you." 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! I beg your pardon," I said, with an air of 
 great politeness ; " but you were speaking, were you not ? " 
 
 " Yes, I was" she answered, in a defiant and provokingly 
 insolent tone. 
 
 " Yes, I thought so," I replied ; " and since you were 
 not speaking to me, I beg your pardon for interrupting 
 you. A young lady of your refinement and pretensions 
 surely would not be rude enough to transgress our rules 
 by whispering in class, unless it were from a good motive. 
 No doubt ^you were giving Miss Stearns some important 
 
 
 
f 
 
 256 
 
 The Frontier SclioolmaMer. 
 
 
 m 
 
 11 
 
 information, whicli 1 omitted in the explanati(jn 1 had 
 just given. As you are so familiar with natural j)hihjsoj)l)y 
 that you have no need of paying attention during recita- 
 tion, to-morrow, if you liave no objection, 1 will take a seat 
 in class, while you give us a short discourse on the princi- 
 ples of statics and dynamics." • 
 
 As she was conscious that she had not answered a single 
 question of her ])hilosophy lesson that day, and also that 
 this was a i)retty fair 8inn[»le of her lessons during the 
 term thus far, she had too much sense not to perceive the 
 sarcasm and irony emhcxiied in my remarks. The older 
 pupils by this time were smiling perceptibly, and many of 
 them, with whom she was not a favorite, heartily enjoyed 
 her confusion. After the above address to her, 1 proceeded 
 with the lesson, observing her actions without her being 
 aware of it. 
 
 For a few moments she sat silently yarding me with 
 an air of ineflable scorn ; and then she indulged in a deri- 
 sive smile, and after that, catching the eye of Miss Stearns, 
 she fell into a fit of nervous giggling, which was followed 
 by two or three whispers to her nearest classmates. I 
 paid no attention to her until she leaned forward to speak 
 to one more distant, when I said, 
 
 " You are excused from class. Miss Whittimore ; you will 
 please take your seat." 
 
 She instantly obeyed, pressing her handkerchief to her 
 mouth, as she did so, to repress the laughter with which 
 she seemed convulsed. I knew that it was either an 
 hysterical laugh, caused by her intense confusion and 
 anger, or an effort to show her utter disregard and con- 
 tempt for myself. When seated, after resting her head 
 
 m 
 
 W: 
 
The Frontier SchoolTuaster. 
 
 257 
 
 for a short time on the desk l)efore her, continually 
 laughing, she looked up and began to edify the pupils by 
 sundry grimaces at myself, when she fancied that I was 
 not observing lier ; now and then throwing a kiss towards 
 me. Becoming tired of this, she once more began to whis- 
 per to different pupils, sometimes across two or more desks. 
 One of her friends being at too great a distance to be com- 
 municated with in this manner, she obviated the difficulty 
 by writing on a slate, and then handing it to a young girl 
 to be passed along. In this, too, she was treating me with 
 disrespect, as 1 had strictly forbidden tiiis method of com- 
 munication, having observed that the pupils were strongly 
 addicted to it. 
 
 " Mary, you will please bring that slate to me," I said, 
 as I saw her take it from Miss Whittimore. 
 
 As she was about to obey, the latter sprang, snatched it 
 from her, and then quickly erased the writing on it; the 
 sneer on her face at the same time changing to an expres- 
 sion of shame and alarm. 
 
 " Miss Whittimore," I said, " your conduct is such that 
 it would not for a moment be tolerated in a well-conducted 
 school, and I have endured it altogether too long. You 
 will please take your books and go home. If after the 
 expiration of a week you decide that you can observe the 
 regulations in a manner becoming a lady, you can return." 
 
 "Thank you, Mr. Styles," she replied, with mock 
 courtesy, " I don't think I shall return ; " and she began to 
 collect her books preparatory to her depai'ture. 
 
 1 checked the angiy reply that rose to my lips and went 
 on with my work. Profound quiet reigned in the school- 
 room during the remainder of the afternoon, the pupils 
 
 'K 
 
258 
 
 The Frontier ScJioolmavter. 
 
 m 
 
 f 
 
 1 •' 
 
 III 
 
 ^^- 
 
 evidently revolving in their minds the audacity I had dis- 
 played in 8usj)onding Miss Whittimore, and wondering 
 what would be tlie result. 
 
 At the tea-table that evening, Mr. Srnallet, having heard 
 in the village of the incident, alluded to it, and expressed 
 much fear that the course I had taken would operate to my 
 detriment, as the Whittimores would be highly indignant, 
 and would, no doubt, prejudice others against me. 
 
 " I am very sorry to learn, Mr. Smallet," I replied, " that 
 the citizens of your village have so little regard for the 
 true interests of their children that they are ready to en- 
 courage them in aCts of rebellion against their teacher. 
 Such people surely can have no correct ideas of proper 
 school management." 
 
 "Well," he said, "you know how these things are. Half 
 the folks now days let their children do just as they please 
 at home, and they expect teachers to do the same thing in 
 the schoolroom, and if they don't, why thar's a row at once. 
 There aiut any reasonable person but what'll think yuu did 
 just right in this affair, but, the thing of it is, thar won't 
 many of 'em dare say so. Whittimore is a pretty jjopular 
 man here, and a good many owe him, and his wife's a very 
 smart feeling woman, one of these women that's always 
 talking, and she'll probably be blatin round town now that 
 the school aint good for anything. But still, you'll have 
 some friends. There was a man talking with me about it 
 this afternoon, and he said he was darned glad of it, but 
 he wouldn't like to have Whittimore know that he said so, 
 because they are good friends." 
 
 At this moment one of Mr. Smallet's children came in 
 and presented me a letter. I broke the seal, and read as 
 follows : 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 259 
 
 
 " Mu. Styles, ' • ' 
 
 " Sm, — My daughter Mattie came home this 
 afternoon and said you had exjjelled her. I would like 
 you to understand that our teachers that we have had here 
 before have never treated our daughter in this mauuer, and 
 I think you'll find that the people, generally, here won't 
 uphold you if you undertake to be so smart and strict. 
 
 " We would liave sent Mattie off to a good school this fall, 
 but Mr. Whittimore said that he presumed you were a poor 
 young man, and he thought it might be an act of kindness 
 and charity in us to send Mattie to school to you, and, 
 besides, it would give your school a reputation. 
 
 " We thought, too, that perhaps you could teach a good 
 school, but finding that you cannot, we shall send Mattie 
 away where she can learn. 
 
 " Mr. Whittimore will pay you her tuition if you will 
 call at the store to-morrow. 
 
 "Mrs. C. a. Whittimoue." 
 
 If I had been disgusted with the impression Mr. Smallet 
 had given me of public opinion in Bloomingdale respecting 
 schools, and the rights of teachers, I certainly felt profound 
 contempt for it when I read the unique epistle of this 
 ignorant woman. I was astonished that an act of school 
 discipline should be so soon known and discussed by the 
 entire community ; especially, that the punishment of in- 
 subordination in a pupil should be regarded as such an act 
 of impropriety on the part of the teacher, that fears were 
 entertained that it would interfere with his success, — per- 
 haps break up his school. It was evident that they had 
 not very recently, at least, had proper discipline in their 
 school, otherwise my action in this case would not have 
 
 '''i 
 
! • 
 
 !■■ 
 
 ^■J} 
 
 260 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 excited so much comment. I could easily fancy that for- 
 mer teachers, fearful of affronting their patrons and of losing 
 a T)oi'tion of the miserable pittance for which they were 
 toiling, had permitted Miss Whittimore and kindred spirits 
 to iinlulge their caprices ad libitum; and thus to de- 
 moralize the whole school. Perhaps they commenced their 
 work like myself, with high hopes and a determination to 
 enforce rules and maintain good discipline, but had been 
 compelled by public sentiment to retreat from their position, 
 and had dragged through the remaining months discouraged, 
 harassed, and longing for their engagement to expire. It 
 might be thus with myself. Why not ? I was in delicate 
 health, in debt, and could less afford to lose my situation 
 than they could. Would it not be more prudent for me to 
 pay less regard to discipline, to humor the caprices of my 
 pupils, flatter and pet those inclined to be indolent and 
 disorderly, rather than to frown at their habits and oppose 
 their inclinations? Would they not esteem me more, and 
 secure for me a cosier niche in the esteem of their 
 parents i 
 
 I pondered these questions, but my nature revolted at the 
 thought of becoming a sycophant and a hypocrite for the 
 purpose of holding my situation, and gaining the favor of 
 persons whose judgment was as weak as their friendship 
 was unstable. 
 
 I knew that I was right ; that my position, however much 
 it had been degraded by unwise management, and uneau- 
 cated public opinion, was a noble and responsible one, and 
 rather than lower it still more, and do violence to my 
 judgment, I would even beg for a livelihood. With this 
 determination, I went to my room and wrote the following 
 reply to the indignant mother epistle : 
 
 it!!!^ 
 
 kli. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 261 
 
 of 
 
 lip 
 
 luy 
 this 
 dng 
 
 "Mrs. Whittimore, 
 
 Madam, — You complain that former teachers hav^! 
 never treated yonr daughter as I have. The fact is quite evi- 
 dent ; had they done so, she would entertain quite different 
 ideas respecting her duty, and the rights of teachers, hoiw 
 what she now does, and I think her education, also, would 
 have been greatly in excess of what it now is. As to the ques- 
 tion of being upheld by the " people here " in my efforts to 
 maintain order, and command the respe(;t of my pupils, I am 
 not disposed to consider it, being determined to do that which 
 my conscience and judgment shall dictaie, regardless of the 
 opinions of the " people," 
 
 Your husband is quite correct in his supposition that I 
 am "a poor young man," but if he was induced to send to 
 my school as an act of " kindness and charity " to me, he 
 will do me a favor by withdrawing his patronage, as I 
 accept no pupils on such terms. 1 offer more than an 
 equivalent in f^e instruction which I impart to my pupils 
 for the small amount of money I receive, hence, I could, 
 with more reason than you display, assume that I am 
 instructing them as an act of kindness and charity to their 
 parents. 
 
 When I decided to teach, I knew well that, in the present 
 state of society, like all teachers, I would be ol)liged to rely 
 on the fickle, undisciplined minds of youth and children 
 for my reputation, hence, your assertion that I cannot teach 
 a good school does not astonish me. Were it a question, 
 however, whether I am or am not able to do so, io be 
 decided by any tribunal, 1 have pupils in my school whose 
 testimony I would prefer to have recorded — pupils advanced 
 in their studies who have neither annoyed me by their 
 
 i 
 
~.-ii-. jfltM'iT.r.'.-^'i^.^ratt^ - 
 
 262 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 "UNI 
 
 ^i 
 
 indolence, or provoked me to expel them by their disorderly 
 conduct and insolence. 
 
 Hoping that you may find a good school elsewhere for 
 your daughter, and feeling assured that, if you do, there 
 will be a decided improvement in her habits and manners 
 if she remains in it, 
 
 I remain, 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 Frank Styles. 
 
 This letter I sent to Mrs. Whittimore as soon as it was 
 finished. I heard nothing more directly from her, but was 
 informed that she assurer' '^er guests at a tea party she gave 
 a few days afterward, that they had an impndent upstart 
 for a teacher, and expressed a hope ^-iiat the committee would 
 not be simple enough to engage him for the winter. Maioie 
 was sent away to a boarding school, but returned after an 
 absence of six weeks on the plea of ill-healtl.' • I at it leaked 
 out, subsequently, that she had been sent homo on account 
 of her flirtations and disinclination tn study. 
 
 Her suspension from my school, although it gave rise to 
 some disatiection outside, had a gooJ effect on the ])upils. 
 Her intimate friends affected lispleasure, and displayed it 
 as far as tbey thought prudent by scornful looks and short 
 answers, but they were more studious and prompt in the 
 performance of duties. The next day, Mrs. Stearns, the 
 mother of Lizzie, called on me, asking me to see that her 
 daughter was diligent in study and obedient to all rules, at 
 the same time expressing her approval of my course with 
 Miss Whittimore. She said she felt pleased to know that 
 Lizzie was deprived of her society, as her influence on her 
 had been aivything but good ; instilling into her mind, as 
 
 "fji^ ^Stc«aaw .itl*'v>* 
 
The Frontier School, nasier. 
 
 263 
 
 she had, the most silly iKjtions with regard to dress, and the 
 occupation and ambition of ladies. 
 
 I felt encouraged by her remarks and thanked her kindly, 
 pleased to know that all the " people here " were not as 
 devoid of good sense and reason as was Mrs. Whittimore. 
 
 It was impossible, however, to secure the prompt and 
 steady attendance that I desired. Three, four or more 
 pupils were either tardy or absent very frecjuently, and 
 then they walked inco school with the most independent 
 air, depositing on ny table notes like the following : 
 
 "Mr. Styles, — 1 lease excuse for being tardy (or 
 
 absent) yesterday." 
 
 Including those ^yhich asked me to excuse pupils from 
 recitations or from rhetorical exercises, at the end of the 
 term I had received seventy-five notes, and probably 
 seventy of these represented so many acts of foolish pa- 
 rental indulgence, being written simply because the children 
 had requested it, without a thought that by thus shielding 
 them from discipline they were encouraging them in habits 
 of negligence, idleness and deception, besides allowing them 
 to miss many important lessons. This pernicious custom 
 of parents, I have found in greater or less degree in every 
 school that I have ever taught; and so far from being 
 abandoned it still is practiced to a great extent in all schools ; 
 becoming more comm'm, in proportion as the youthful 
 generation receives indulgences that were unknown in 
 former decades. Mistaken parent, you little know to 
 how many weeks or months of time all these absences 
 amount during the period that yo"r son or daughter is at 
 school. You little know what disappointment and trouble 
 your indulgence to your child may cause the teacher who 
 
 £i 
 
 •;'>a: 
 
 "iJie&M^ 
 
264 
 
 The Frontier Sdwolmaster. 
 
 iitli[ 
 
 has charge of his mental training. Often when a boy is 
 behind liis class, and is only brought up with it by the 
 earnest eftbrts and extra labor of the teacher, he is permitted 
 to remain at home on the most flimsy pretext, one, two or 
 more days ; or perhaps go on a visit to an uncle for a week. 
 When he returns he is again behind his class; knowing 
 nothing of the principles which his class-mates have gone 
 over during his absence, he can go on with them only by 
 giving much more than his usual time to study — a thing 
 few boys are inclined to do — and by the teacher's devoting 
 extra time to his assistance. In case the teacher is unable 
 to do this, the boy must enter the next lower class, if there 
 is one, or else strive to grasp the lessons with which his 
 ckss is now engaged. In the latter event, his interest is 
 sure to fail ; lie becomes discouraged, learns little or nothing, 
 and is a continual hindrance to his class-mates. 
 
 It was my misibrtune to have two boys of this description 
 in my school at Bloomingdale. One was the son of a con- 
 ceited, dissipated lawyer, the other that of a carriage maker ; 
 and they were aged respectively twelve and thirteen. Both 
 were wild, headstrong boys, notorious for their prankr^, and 
 for often being truants from school. The fathers had spoken 
 to me in the beginning of the term about their boys, affirm- 
 ing that they were " a little mischievous," and saying, as 
 the parents of pucli children frequently do, that their former 
 teachers were incompetent, feeling no interest in their work, 
 consequently, their boys had learned nothing, or as they 
 expressed it nothing except deviltry. It was with many mis- 
 givings that I took them in charge, but as I could not well 
 do otherwise, I attempted the arduous task. They were 
 great chums, always together outside oi school, and in school 
 
 ■nt-Yt 
 
Tiie Frontier School/niaater. 
 
 265 
 
 by 
 
 mis" 
 
 I were 
 3b.ool 
 
 insisted on occupying the same seat together. In scholar- 
 ship, they were about equal — poor readers, ridiculously bad 
 spellers, knowing but little of geography and arithmetic, and 
 every page of their writing-books — to use a borrowed 
 simile — "looking as if they had spilled all their ink on them, 
 and then wi])ed it up with a curry comb." 
 
 My junior class in arithmetic I found, on examination, 
 was tolerably well prepared to commence at fractions with 
 the exception of these two boys, and so, for their accommo- 
 dation, I had the class begin at compound numbers. They 
 promised me faithfully that ^hey would be prompt in at- 
 tendance, studious, and would make every effort to keep up 
 with the class. The promise was kept by frequent admoni- 
 tions from myself for about a week, when, to my regret, 
 one day, both of them were absent. 
 
 Fearful of punishment, they lingered all the following 
 morning outside the academy, discussing the propriety of 
 coming in, until near the time for their recitation in arith- 
 metic, when they entered, of course, unprepared to recite. 
 They knew that the other boys had informed me of their 
 whereabouts the day previous, so it would be useless to 
 trump up any excuse for their absence. I did nothing ex- 
 cept to reprimand them severely for their conduct, pointing 
 out to them the wickedness of breaking their promise to 
 me, and then I made them study diligently through the 
 rest of the day, and at night, remained with them an hour, 
 or until dark, in order to make them familiar with the 
 lessons they had missed. 
 
 Two days after tliis, on account of their excessive whis- 
 pering, I gave them separate seats. This was in the morning. 
 At noon, as I entered my boarding house, I noticed the 
 
 I 
 
m li 
 
 266 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmastei'. 
 
 carriage-maker's boy coming from the academy with several 
 books under his arm. On returning after dinner I was in- 
 formed that he had left the school because I would not 
 allow him to sit with Johnny. The lawyer's boy was also 
 absent that afternoon, but returned the next morning, sulky 
 and not disposed to study. As an excuse for his absence, 
 he had brought me a note from his mother, saying that he 
 had had a bad headache, but on learning that towards night 
 of the preceding day he had gone two miles with two or 
 three other boys to rob a widow's orchard, I concluded that 
 his illness was not of a dangerous nature. Towards noon, 
 I received the following note : 
 
 "Mr. Styles, 
 
 " Sammy brought hi'^ books home yes- 
 terday, and said he would not go to school any more because 
 you will not let him sit with Johnny Sargent. He and 
 Johnny are great friends, and I hope you v^iU let them s'*^ 
 together. He says he will not whisper again. Will you 
 please try him -i 
 
 Mks. Morse." 
 
 I tossed the letter from me in disgust, determined that 
 I would not try them. It seemed useless to undertake to 
 do anything with boys who could take their books home 
 witliout permission, and coolly tell their parents that they 
 were not going t(i .sc|iof/J a^y more unless — in slioii, iht'f 
 could do just what they pleased. 
 
 And then, to Iiave the parents humor tJjese freai<H I ask 
 the teacher to do likewise! 1 felt tliat it was unj»Rrdona])le 
 ignorance and impudence ; but unless I granted the rerjuest 
 I would purely give offence, and be pronounced like my 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 267 
 
 predecessors, " incompetent," and said to have no interest 
 in my school. 
 
 The latter thought induced me, after my first ebullition 
 of anger had passed away, to decide that I would give the 
 boys another trial, although feeling assured that it would 
 soon result in another separation. Accordingly, that even- 
 ing I sent word to Mrs. Morse that her request was 
 granted, and that Sammy might return. He did so, and, 
 as I had anticipated, I had to spend much time with them 
 in school, besides an hour at night again on two successive 
 days, to bring them up with their classes. 
 
 Scarcely had I accomplished this, when Johnny informed 
 me one night that his mother was going on a week's visit 
 to her sister, who lived in a distant town, and that he was 
 going with lier. I was dismayed, foreseeing, as I did, the 
 ground he would lose, and the amount of work and annoy- 
 ance that would fall to me in consequence. I determined 
 to thwart thi' /Jan, if possible, and for this purpose 1 at once 
 caUed o/; hk lllifthufi showing her the res ult of taking her boy 
 from school for so iong a time, and ent: , _ w.v h> let him 
 remain at liome. In vain : Johnny had not neen his aunt 
 and cousins for a long time, he haa Jinticipated the visit, 
 liad beeu promised that he might l'^», and go he must. I 
 left in disgust, but the most, p :ig part of the affair 
 
 was yet t(j come. On the Mondn that they were to start 
 on the visit, to my extreme vex lion Sammy Morse was 
 again a})sent. At night, I called ou his parents, and learned 
 from Mrs. Morse that Sammy round it so lonesome at 
 school without Johnny, that h^ bad " teased " to stay at 
 hom3 till lie came back, and she had acceded to his re([uest, 
 
 Mr. Morse was present, and [ pointed out to them un- 
 
268 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ■ii 
 
 m 
 
 hesitatin<];ly, yet respectfully, the mistake I thought they 
 were making by such acts of over-indulgence. The father 
 was a stout, good-natured man, drawling in speech, and 
 cared much more about a bargain by which he could pocket 
 fifty dollars than he did the education of his son. 
 
 He rej)lied to my remarks as follows : 
 
 " I think it would be well enough to keep Sammy at 
 school, but I always let mother dew just as she's a mind 
 tew with the children; I never interfere." 
 
 Mother said, 
 
 " I'd like to have Sammy go to school, but he hates to go 
 when Johnny aint there, and I think a boy never learns 
 much unless he feels an interest in his school and likes to 
 attend it. But I'm sorry that he gives you so much work 
 outside of school hours." 
 
 "Yes," said the father, " but hang it all, the schoolmaster 
 gits paid for it. If I could make money as easy as he can 
 I'd never do another stroke of work." 
 
 I made but little reply, but, as I was about leaving, I 
 said : 
 
 " I have taken great pains to instruct your boy, and if 
 I could only keep him in school I tliink you would sec much 
 advancement in his studies by the end of the term ; but I 
 shall not hold myself responsible for his lack of improvement, 
 unless he is regular in his attendance." 
 
 " Of course not," replied Mrs. Morse, " but I guess Sammy 
 will study hard and catch up with his class, when lie goes 
 back. Wont you, Sammy, my dear ? " she asked, addressing 
 her boy, who sat before the door of the sitting-room, on the 
 floor of the kitchen, mending his cross-gun. 
 
 " Guess so," he ausweied, as if only half conscious of 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster 
 
 269 
 
 what his mother had said, and then thrusting his hands into 
 his pockets for something he didn't find, he exclaimed, 
 
 "Say, ma, where's my big jack-knife I let you take 
 t'other day ? " 
 
 I made no further eftort to induce them to send the boy 
 to school, but departed, considering whether I could afford 
 to devote an hour a day extra during the rest of the term 
 to these boys ; for it was evident that, when they returned, 
 they would be so far behind their classes they would learn 
 nothing unless I did so. I knew from what I had observed, 
 that I had nothing to expect, in way of gratitude, from the 
 parents for the pains I might take with them ; indeed, they 
 seemed utterly unconscious of the fact that I would be 
 doing more than I was Ijound to do, should I spend with 
 them three hours a day outside my customary hours for 
 labor, I would gladly have paid twice the amount of their 
 tuition could I have rid myself of them by sending them to 
 some other school, but as that was impossible I must make 
 a gTace of necessity and do the best I could. 
 
 Ten school days had expired before they returned. During 
 their absence, a young man had joined the school, and as he 
 was much more advanced in Latin than any other one of 
 my pupils, I was obliged to give him a separate recitation ; 
 thus confining myself to the school-room from half-i)ast 
 eight in the morning till five in the afternoon, allowing 
 myself the customary hour for dinner. What should I do 
 with these two boys ? 1 thought of declining to receive 
 them, but that would not do, it would offend the parents, 
 and probably this, with the Whittimores' antipathy to me, 
 would be sufMcient to prevent my teaching there in the 
 winter. 1 arranged to hear the young man's recitation at 
 
270 
 
 The Frontier Schoolrrutster, 
 
 \ lii.ll 
 
 ray room in the evening, and gave the two petted truants 
 half an hour at the close of ray school each day for their 
 arithmetic lesson, allowing them to recite their other lessons 
 with the classes. A short respite of three days from trouble 
 on their accoimt was granted nie, when once more they 
 relapsed into their former habits of whispering and i)laying, 
 and once more I separated them. At noon 1 pretended to 
 busy myself in the school-room for a few minutes, but did 
 so for the purpose of watching them. Both coUecttid their 
 books and with them started, at what they regarded an 
 opportune moment, to leave ; but I had observed their 
 movements, and when they had reached the stairs, I called 
 them back, and enquired why they were taking thcii books 
 home. 
 
 Johnny Sargen^ boldly informed me that unless they 
 could sit together they should not come to school. 
 
 I commanded them to replace the books on their desks 
 immediately, and not to remove them again on jiain of 
 severe punishment. They looked sulky, and neither of 
 them moved to obey the order. Johnny made sundry 
 motions v/ith his head indicative of his displeasure, at the 
 same time remarking something in an under tone. 
 
 " What do you say, sir ? " I sternly demanded. 
 
 " I say," he replied, with an insolent air, " that I shan't 
 come to school if I can't sit with Sammy." 
 
 " I say jest so 'bout Johnny," heroically spoke up his 
 ally. 
 
 '' Boys," I said with increased sternness, " are you going 
 to put those books back ? " 
 
 " I don't see what's the use of puttin' 'em back, if we 
 aint comin' to school any more," argued the undaunted 
 Johnny. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 271 
 
 Forlxjiirancc! had ceasbd to be a virtue. I took his books, 
 laid them r»n ii (l«!.sk, and then, sei lug him by the collar, 
 walked him hurriedly to my table. I regretted that I had 
 no whip or implement for punishment except a ruler, as 
 this — unless it is used with great caution— aay sometimes 
 inflict more serious injury than was intended, l macfe 
 him hold out his right hand and struck it once, twice. He 
 danced and roared vocifercxisly, though the blows were not 
 severe, and as the ruler was descending a third time he 
 quickly placed his left hand over tlie other and received the 
 blow on the back of it. By this act, the corner of tht^ ruler 
 happened to hit his hand, breaking the skin slightly, and a 
 little blood oozed from the wound. It being my intention 
 to punish him only sufficiently to command obedience, I 
 now said, 
 
 " Will you put those books on your desk, sir ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir, I will ! I will ! Oh, you've brv>ke ! y hand ! 
 you've broke my hand ! Oh, dear ! Oh, dear ! booh, oo ! 
 booh, 00 ! " 
 
 " Stop your noise, sir ! " I said, as soon as 1 could make 
 myself heard ; several of the pupils who were standing a 
 little distance away, and had witnessed the scene, having 
 broke into a hearty laugh at the ado he made about so slight 
 a punishment. 
 
 He now stumbled along, his eyes covered with one arm, 
 picked up his books, took them to his seat, and then went 
 home. His companion had slipped off with liis books, un- 
 observed, at the time I was leading Johnny to the table, 
 and was now safe at home. 
 
 I expected to hear from their outraged parents, but 
 whatever torm might result from my action, I sincerely 
 hoped that 1 had got rid of their promising sons. 
 
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 WEaSTER.N.Y. 14580 
 
 (7;6} 8/2-4303 
 
 
•fT.- 
 
if- 
 
 272 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 i 
 
 !l 
 
 r« 
 
 .ill 
 
 I had scarcely resumed my labors in the afternoon, ere 
 I was called to the door to meet Mrs. Sargent, elegantly 
 attired, but pale and trembling from anger. 
 
 " I have come to see you," she commenced, " about 
 Johnny. I think it was a shame for you to whip such a 
 little fellow so awfully for a trifling offence." 
 
 •' Indeed, Mrs. Sargent," I coolly replied, " I think his 
 offence was not a trifling one, and his punishment was very 
 slight." 
 
 " Why, Mr. Styles, you know better than that. The 
 poor little fellow's hands were both as red as fire inside. 
 Mr. Sargent and I both thought they would blister ; a;id 
 then there is such a fearful wound on the back of one of 
 them. Why, you must have struck him awful blows." 
 
 " I certainly hope his hands will not blister^ Mrs. Sar- 
 gent," I said, assuming an air of penitence for my rashness. 
 " Do both of them really look very bad inside ? " 
 
 " Bad ! I think they do ; I wish you could see them 
 once. I bathed them both in camphor for a long time." 
 
 "You astonish me, Mrs. Sargent; I cannot see ho'v liis 
 right hand should be so bad; I only gave that one three 
 
 blows." •'-- - .''-■^..:-.- :^--:: : ■■^'.■:. •. .' Vv •;. --. 
 
 " Well," she exclaimed, beginning to cool down a little, 
 as my penitence and alarm grew more apparent, " I don't 
 think that looks quite so bad as bis left hand does ; I pre- 
 sume that has blistered by this time, if the camphor has 
 not prevented it ; besides, that is the one that has the gash 
 on the back of it." 
 
 " And you think there is a possibility that his right hand 
 may not blister ? " 1 asked, with feigned anxiety. 
 
 "Yes, I don't think that will blister; of course it 
 
 11 1! 
 
 m 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 27.-i 
 
 wouldn't be so likely to as the other, as you only struck 
 him three times on that." • ' 
 
 I had preserved my gravity as long as I could, and I 
 now burst into a heart} laugh. The poor woman was dumb 
 with amazement at my impudence and heartlessness. 
 
 " I beg your pardon, madam," I said, " but I trust you 
 will feel less alarm about Johnny's left hand when I tell 
 you that, with the exception of the blow which bruised the 
 back of it slightly, I never struck it at all." 
 
 Her anger was at oroe greatly intensified by this last re- 
 mark, and, with eyes abnost emitting fire, glancing at me, 
 she said : 
 
 " I hope you do not say that for truth, Mr. Styles ; you 
 struck him on both hands, because Johnny said you did." 
 
 " I cannot help "vvhat your boy says, Mrs. Sargent," I re- 
 plied, my own anger beginning to kindle , " I never stnick 
 him except as I have told you, and if you will walk in, 
 several of the pupils here will vouch lor the truth oS my 
 statement." ; : 7 ■ ^ . :' : ■• ' 
 
 There are few things for which a spirited woman will not 
 sooner forgive you than she will for leading her into a 
 position v/here she unwittingly makes a fool of herself. 
 This now wus precisely the ground of Mrs. Sargent's anger 
 towards me. When, instead of feeling contrition for what I 
 had done to hor ly)y, as she supposed I did, she discovered 
 that I had induced her to commit an egregious blunder, and 
 then laughed at her for it, the expression of mortification 
 and anger on her countenance was beyond description. In 
 a voice tremulous with rage, she quickly replied : 
 
 " Well, one thing is evident to me, Mr. Styles, you are 
 no gentleman. I have never known Johnny to uttei* a false- 
 
t:- 
 
 274 
 
 The, Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I 
 
 i 
 
 '} 
 
 III. 
 
 ■iM-H 
 
 liil: 
 
 ; 
 
 iUl 
 
 Lood, and I do not believe he has in thi? instance. Why, 
 Mr. Sargent said, when he saw Johnny's hands, that he 
 would havp, you arrested. He has always claimed that we 
 never can have a good school here till the people are liberal 
 enough to hire a teacher who has been through college, 
 and he said so to-day, when Johnny came home and told 
 us what you had done." 
 
 The latter part of this speech was delivered as she started 
 down the stairs. I deigned no reply but returned to my 
 duties, feeling, alike, amused at her simple ideas, and indig- 
 nant at her insultir:" remarks. The assertion that her son 
 was not untruthful, though very like that of all doting 
 parents, was most absurd. I had caught him in at least 
 twenty ftilsehoods during my short acquaintance with him, 
 and his habit in this respect was so well known that when 
 he did speak the truth it was commonly regarded as a mis- 
 take. But it. was not the first time that fond mothers have 
 felt aggrieved because teachers have distrusted the word of 
 their darling boys. Only a short time since a lady-teacher 
 showed me the following letter, Avhich she had received 
 from the mother of one of her pupils : 
 
 " Miss 
 
 Freddie says you did not like to believe that 
 I told him he might get excused from school yesterday, and 
 wanted he should bring a note from me the next time he 
 wisheu to be excused. Now, you are the first teacher that 
 ever doubted my boy's word, and I hope that in future, 
 when he wan's to go, you will let him. I have not brought 
 my boy up to lie." 
 
 Fond, confiding mother. Her maternal affection was 
 certainly worthy of admiration, but, unfortunately for the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 275 
 
 reputation of her shrewdness and judgment, her boy was 
 said, throughout the neighborhood where he lived, to be in 
 an abnormal condition when he was not engaged in the fab- 
 rication of some mischievous and improbable story, 
 
 Mrs. Morse being a great admirer of Mrs. Sargent, and 
 never acting contrary to her opinion, I had no doubt that 
 she would svmpathize warmly with her in her present 
 affliction, besides being angry at the discourtesy I had shown 
 her own boy. It certainly was not pleasant to know that 
 1 had seriously offended three of the most influential ladies 
 in the place within six weeks from the time I had com- 
 menced teaching, and of course had incurred, to a greater 
 or less extent, the displeasure of their husbands ; but as I 
 had done it unintentionally, in the conscientious discharge 
 of duty, I was free from self-reprooch. It was the lot of 
 all teachers ; and so long as I followed the vocation of 
 teaching, unpleasant things of this sort must be looked for. 
 
 Johnny and Sammy came to school no more during the 
 term. The trouble I had with them, like the suspension of 
 Miss Whittimore, was freely discussed by the citizens, the 
 greater part of them secretly, if not openly, endorsing my 
 action, and expressing the hope that I would hold out as I 
 had begun, and show the disorderly boys that I was not to be 
 "run over." The mark on Johnny's hand was examined by 
 different ones, until he had been sc ridiculed for the " fuss " 
 made about such a small scratch that he declined to show 
 it. The story of his mother's mistake had been repeated 
 by Smallet, to whom I related it, and was soon over the 
 entire village, causing many remarks and much sport. 
 Women who disliked Mrs. Sargent's airs and assumptions 
 of social superiority told the story with much gusto, and, 
 

 
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 276 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmastei'. 
 
 as usual with such matters, in a very short time it became 
 ridiculously embellished. As her boy was frequently 
 taunted with it by the other boys, she, no doubt, often 
 heard it, and her antipathy towards me naturally became 
 stronger. 
 
 A few days after the incident, Mrs. Sargent gave a party 
 to several of the ladies, and Mrs. Whittiniore and Mrs. 
 Morse being present, the conversation naturally turned on 
 their school, and this presently led to a discussion of the 
 qualities and history of my unfortunate self. The discussion 
 was carried on chiefly by the trio named above, though one 
 or two of their friends, unable to forego the pleasure of 
 participating in scandal, gave additional interest to it by 
 relating what "they say." ,. 
 
 One averred that I had never attended anything but a 
 district school, consequently, was unfit to teach. 
 
 " Yes, and I dare say," said another, " t.hat it was a 
 district school, too, in some little French village in Canada." 
 
 " I think he is a conceited, impudent fellow," said Mrs. 
 Sargent. " Don't you think so, Mrs. Morse ? " 
 
 " Yes, I do," replied that lady ; " he was over to our house 
 one night, awhile ago, and he talked to Mr. Morse and I, 
 about Sammy just as if we didn't know anything ; he seemed 
 real mad because we wouldn't send him to school every day." 
 
 " Now, I'd like tc know," said Mrs. Whittiniore, with an 
 air of great solemnity, " if any of you ever heard of his 
 running away from any place ? " 
 
 All answered in the negative, and looked at their inter- 
 locutor with impatient curiosity. 
 
 "Well, I don't know," she said, with an air showing 
 anxiety to avoid exaggeratipn and error : " but 1 was in the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 277 
 
 inter- 
 
 store the other day and heard Mr. Whittimore and a couple 
 of men talking about some young man's running a',»'ay from 
 some place for stealing a watch, and I thought, from some- 
 thing else that was said, that it was our school-master ; but 
 perhaps it wasn't. I meant to Itave asked Mr. Whittimore 
 about it afterward, but I forgot it." 
 
 " I never heard of that," said Mrs. Sargent, " but I 
 shouldn't wonder at all if it was him. They say that he 
 run away from Meadville, where he was teaching, two or 
 three years ago, because he was going to be turned out of 
 school for some scrape he got into." 
 
 " Yes, I heard about that," said another woman, " and do 
 any of you know what kind of a scrape it was ? " 
 
 " Well," said a woman who hitherto had been an atten- 
 tive listener, " you know the Joneses down by our house 
 are related to the Crosses up in Meadville, and Malinda 
 Jones told my daughter, Susan, that Styles courted Jerusha 
 Cross and wanted to marry her, and Mrs. Cross forbid his 
 conJng to her house; and then he tried to elope with her, 
 but she wasn't of age, and Mrs. Cross was going to have 
 him arrested, and he run away." 
 
 " 0, that's it, eh ? " said Mrs. Sargent. " Why, I heard 
 that it was for M'hipping a boy most to death in school." 
 
 " Perhaps," said Mrs. Morse, "it was for both things. I 
 know he's got an awful temper, and he'd just as soon kill 
 a boy as not if he got mad." 
 
 " 0, how is Johnny, now, Mrs. Sargent ? " asked a lady 
 to whom the question had been suggested by the allusion 
 to whipping. " I heard that the school-master gave him a 
 dreadful whipping." 
 
5 
 
 * i: 
 j 
 
 H 
 
 
 278 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I 
 
 m 
 
 \\ 
 
 m 
 
 
 " Well, his hands are not quite so bad as they were," 
 replied that affectionate lady, "but I don't believe he'll 
 ever get over the fright that man gave him. The j)oor little 
 fellow groans and starts in his sleep. I don't believe but 
 what Styles struck him on the head, and the poor child was 
 so scared he never remembered it." 
 
 " Yes, and perhaps he stunned him so that he couldn'.t 
 remember it," suggested the sympathizing Mrs. Morse. 
 
 " Were there not several pupils present who saw the 
 punishment ? " asked another of the ])arty who seemed dis- 
 posed to say something in my defence, inasmuch as my 
 traducers were now talking in the most unreasonable and 
 preposterous strain, 
 
 " Yes," replied Mrs. Morse ; " but what if there was 
 other scholars there ? likely, Styles could git them to say 
 most anything for him ; and then I know that more than 
 half the scholars in this school have always been so jealous 
 of Johnny Sargent on account of his father's wealth and 
 position here, that they've really abused the little fellow. 
 Sammy has often told me this, and he said the other day 
 that he presumed most of the scholars would be glad 
 Johnny got whipped, jest because they were jealous of him." 
 
 I shall not attempt to detail to the reader the entire con- 
 versation of these women, by which they attempted to 
 prove to their companions, and to the satisfaction of each 
 other, that I possessed all the characteristics of a lioor, 
 knave and tyrant ; that I was not a scholar, wholly unftt 
 to teach, and that it would be an outrage on the community 
 should I be engaged to teach for the winter. Having 
 
The Frontier Scfu)olmcL8ter. 
 
 279 
 
 i". con- 
 ted to 
 each 
 boor, 
 unfit 
 unity 
 Laving 
 
 advanced to thia point in their conclusions, an appeal was 
 made to Mrs. Sniallett, my boarding mistress, by Mrs, 
 Whittimore, in this wise : -. 
 
 " Now, don't you think, Mrs. Smallett, that we ought to 
 have another teacher after this term ceases ? " 
 
 " For one reason, I think it would be advisable," replied 
 that lady, who had listened silently, yet indignantly, to all 
 tlie malicious remarks that had been made concerning me. 
 
 " And what is that ? " askcxl Mrs. Whittimore, her com- 
 panions, all attention, awaiting the response. 
 
 " So that j)e<ri)le may have a fresh subject to tolk about,'' 
 was the unkind reply. 
 
 Mrs. Whittimore blushed and seemed displeased, but 
 Mrs. Sargent came to the rescue. 
 
 " Of course you couldn't get Mrs. Smallett to say any- 
 thing against Styles ; she is getting two dollars and a half 
 a week for his board. If Sniallett don't look out, I wouldn't 
 be at all surprised if we had an elopement here before 
 spring." 
 
 Mrs. Smallett was not easily put down, and without no- 
 ticing this low insinuation, she said : 
 
 " I do really think it would be cruel to keep one teacher 
 in our school more than six months, for in that time his 
 appearance, dress, habits and pedigree become stale as sub- 
 jects for gossip, and the poor creatures who have become 
 worn out with discussing them require a change. Ever 
 since 1 have lived in Bloomingdale, every teacher has been 
 subjected to severe criticisms by somebody." 
 
 The espousal of my cause by Mrs. Smallett, aided as she 
 was by another lady, detracted somewhat from the pleasure 
 
» 
 
 I 
 
 280 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 of the entertainment, and when the party broke up the guests 
 were not all on the best of terms. Whether the rebukes 
 that my friends gave the others resulted in any good to me 
 or my successor, I know not, but they certainly inspired 
 me with gratitude, and with the belief that all women are 
 not lovers of scandal and gossip. 
 
.. CHAPTER XX, 
 
 Disastrous effects produced on my school by evening parties — Inef- 
 fectual attempts to suppress them — Objectionn to Rhetorical exer- 
 cises — I am compelled to abandon them — The difficulty of" collect- 
 ing tuition — Uncle Jack Jones — He objects to the high salaries 
 of teachers. 
 
 Among other trials that I had in striving to stimulate my 
 pupils to industry, and to elevate the character of the school, 
 was that of inducing them to remain in their rooms during 
 the evening and devote the time to study. 
 
 It seemed to be a thing unheard of before by them, and 
 was regarded, especially by the boys, as a wanton aggression 
 on their time and freedom of habits. Severax of the older 
 ones, who always improved every spare moment in studying, 
 were pleased with the requirement, and were never seen in 
 the street after the hour designated for the commencement 
 'if their labors. These, of course, were the ones whose lessons 
 were always understood and recited to my satisfaction ; the 
 others who objected to confinement and study, except in the 
 school-room, seldom or never knowing their lessons. To 
 add to the trouble I experienced from this cause, evening 
 
y- , 
 
 1 1 
 
 282 
 
 rA,e Frontier SchoolmoHter. 
 
 parties and apple outs became (juite fashionable, wbicli were 
 prolouf^ed often till a late hour at night, .sometimes even till 
 nearly day-breaic. The effect on the school was most dis- 
 astrous. The pupils not only spent the eveninj^'s, which 
 they should have devoted to study, in this unprofitable way, 
 but they came into school the next morning worn out with 
 their dissipation, unfit for study, and often full asleep in 
 the school-room. I tried in vain to effect a reform. 1 
 exhorted, scolded, and even threatened exjmlsion, to no 
 purj)ose. It was almost like interfering with the lung 
 established religious rite of some heathen nation. Tliey had 
 always been accustomed to these enjoyments ; they saw no 
 harm in them, and their parents, instead of opposing, rather 
 encouraged them ; and under such circumstances my pupils 
 were neither to be persuaded or coerced into al)andoning 
 them. 
 
 It is needless to say that I M'as severely tried, disappointed. 
 I had evidently indulged in too high hopes of my success as 
 a tea'jher. The school that I was to build up in Jilooming- 
 dale had been an ideal one. I had sought to introduce 
 discipline to which my pupils were unused, and which my 
 patrons neither appreciated nor took any pains to support. 
 I had not reflected that the people required to be educated 
 on this point as well as their children, and that this could 
 be effected only by a work of time. I laid my grievance 
 before Mr. Smallett, as a school manager, and his advice 
 was of service to me, though it did not help me to carry out 
 my designs. He said that the parents themselves were 
 mostly uneducated, and had always indulged in those prac- 
 tices which I condemned in the children, consequently they 
 looked upon this quite differently from one who had been 
 
The Frontier School rmiater. 
 
 283 
 
 trained according to a higher standard. Their ideas of school 
 disci])!ine were vague, or based upon what they had seen in 
 their younger days ; so dillerent, in fact, from mine, that 
 if I sought to enforce rules whicli I regarded as necessary 
 in the management of the school, 1 would be looked u])on 
 as unwise and tyrannical. 
 
 He would advise me under the circumstances to do all 
 that I could by mural suasion to induce the })upils to study 
 during the evening, and to refrain from giving or attending 
 parties, but not to resort to coercive measures. 
 
 Unpleasant as it was to adopt this advice, I did it, giving 
 up at once the hope of seeing my pupils, or the majority of 
 them, at least, making rapid progress in their studies, and 
 of building up a school which would command the respect 
 ami patronage of the intelligent citizens of all that section. 
 
 To my chagrin, I also was obliged to abandon another 
 scheme which I regarded as essential to the proper training 
 of my pupils, and which I had already taken no little 
 pains to carry out. This was to make rhetorical and liter- 
 ary exercises a prominent feature in my school. Not so 
 prominent that I could be accused, justly, of giving them 
 attention to the neglect of other things, but I desire to 
 accord to them that importance that they deserve in any school 
 in which speaking and writing are supposed to be taught. I 
 was well aware that in some schools undue attention was 
 given to this department of instruction, as it is in far too 
 many schools at the present time. If the teacher has no 
 school board to superintend his labors, no programme of 
 exercises he is bound to follow, he is at liberty to turn the 
 attention of his pupils into such a channel as may best suit 
 his tastes or convenience ; hence, we find here and there a 
 
284 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmnster. 
 
 pii 
 
 
 Mi 
 
 i I 
 
 ll! 
 
 ir 
 
 teacher of most superficial attainments aioiising a thirst in 
 his pupils for an education wholly ornamental in its char- 
 acter. Aware of the fact that parents are generally pleased 
 to have their children appear before the public at an early 
 age, exhibitions become the order of the school Cfesar 
 and Sallust are at once supplanted by charades. The eli- 
 minating of unknown quantities and the unraveling of the 
 Bi-nomial Theorem are laid aside for the fashion and 
 pleasure of executing tableaux. The conjugating of verbs 
 and the memorizing of capitals readily give place to the 
 easier and more attractive study of comedies and tragedies, 
 and thus, term after term of valuable time is expended, 
 until, too late, the parent finds hit son or daughter deficient 
 in that substantial knowledge requisite in fighting the bat- 
 tle of life. ' 
 
 It is not to be supposed that I question the utility of 
 blending something of the ornamental Avith the practical in 
 our public schools ; I only decry that excess of the forme^' 
 into which some teachers are inclined to run. 
 
 I found that in my school at Bloomingdale, while mr,ny 
 of the older boys and girls were ready at analyzing and 
 parsing, they knew but little about apj)lying the principles 
 of gi-ammar in composition. So little had they been drilled 
 in the art of committing their thoughts to paper, that it 
 seemed an impossible task for them to do it, and nearly 
 every essay that I obtained Mas crude in style and replete 
 with grammatical errors. As in all the schools that 1 ever 
 taught, my pupils there continually beset me to excuse 
 them from writing, saying that it was irupossible for them 
 to do it — the very reason, of course, why they should not 
 be excused and should be made to attempt it. 
 

 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 285 
 
 not 
 
 The same reluctance was manifested with regard t^o de- 
 claiming. All averred that they could not do it — they were 
 frightened, they couldn't learn pieces, they saw no benefit 
 in it, and, consequently, really thought I should excuse 
 them. These were objection? that I had expected from the 
 pupils, therefore, they did not surprise me ; but when many 
 of the parents brought forward the same objections, and 
 opposed my wishes in the matter, I was not only surprised 
 but disheartened. I argued and labored to convince them 
 of the cility of the work, but in vain. I tried to show 
 them that knowledge without the ability of in^.parting it 
 WLS useless ; that nothing betokened higher culture or 
 more thorough scholarship than the power of expressing 
 one's ideas clearly, definitely and gracefully ; and that this 
 power could be obtained by youth, under careful training, 
 more easily than if neglected till after years. Numbers 
 wl:o were willing to admit that writing compositions might 
 be well enough if a scholar had time and inclination to 
 attend to it, could not see the benefit of com.mitting the 
 speeches and writings of others to memory and reciting 
 them in pubhc, especially when they experienced great 
 embarrassn: ent, 
 
 I represented to them that three great benefits resulted 
 to the scholar who engaged in this exercise : 
 
 First, he was stormg his mind Avith the thoughts of the 
 wise ; second he was enlarging his vocabulary and acquir- 
 ing a more easy and graceful way of expressing his ideas ; 
 and, lastly, he v:as constantly overcoming that embarrassment 
 which made it so irksome to him to declaim, and vvhich, if 
 it was not overcome, would always prevent his giving utter- 
 ance to his ideas in public. 
 
 » 
 I 
 
 t 
 
 11 
 
m 
 
 286 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 iliii 
 
 ft' 
 
 ill 
 
 If] 
 
 i 
 
 The truth of what I said was seen and acknowledged by 
 a few of niy patrons, but the majority of them, if tliey saw 
 it, felt too little interest to co-operate with me in making 
 it an imperative rule, that the whole school should attend 
 to these exercises. 
 
 Finding that I was inflexible in my purpose of not excus- 
 ing them, the j)upils apj)ealed to the parents, and with few 
 exceptions found little difiiculty in persuading them to 
 intercede in their behalf. Thus the intercession was made 
 chiefly from inability on the part of the parents to say — no. 
 
 Wea.'ed with their children's importunities, they became 
 accessory to acts which not only proved detrimental to my 
 own interests, but doubly so to the interests of the children 
 themselves. Three or four notes were brought me in which 
 the reasons were given for not wishing their boys and girls 
 to participate in these exercises, and the reasons thus given 
 were these — they could afford to send them to school but a 
 few terms, at most; consequently, they wished them to 
 devote their attention to subjects which would be of more 
 benefit to them. The greater number of notes, however, 
 simply asked me to excuse the pupils, without giving a 
 reason therefor. At first 1 declined tc grant these requests, 
 but after talking with my patrons, as above related, and find- 
 ing that their children still had more influence with them, 
 in regard to this matter, than I had, I thought it advisable 
 not to make speaking and writing a compulsory part of the 
 curriculum. 
 
 Before arriving at this conclusion several of the pupils 
 had absented tliemselves twice from school on the after- 
 noon, devoted to these exercises, and two girls had left the 
 school altogether, informing their indulgent parents that 
 
The Frontier SchoolmaMer. 
 
 287 
 
 they would attend no school where they were obliged lo 
 write and read essays. I could afford to lose no more 
 pupils, and so to avoid further vexation and trouble I reluc- 
 tantly gave up my rhetorical exercises. As I have already 
 intimated, a few of my patrons desired their continuance, but 
 knowing that it could only be done in the face of difficulties, 
 they concluded, like myself, that it would be better to 
 abandon them altogether. 
 
 Here then, as in the case of the evening parties, I was 
 constrained, by the control which children in the place 
 exercised over their parents, to back down from a position 
 which I vas positive was right. 
 
 It was not the last time that I have had to submit to 
 such humiliation and injustice, nor am I the only teacher 
 who can complain of similar usage. 
 
 Among other reasons which the citizens of Bloomingdale 
 g8-ve for asking me to excuse their children from this im- 
 portant and interesting part of school work, one good lady 
 urged the following — she feared that the act of reciting 
 pieces, or reading essays in public, would have a tendency 
 to destroy the natural modesty of her daughters, replacing 
 their sliyness and timidity with unfeminiue fearlessness 
 and boldness in society. Although I failed to see that 
 self-possession, ability to read or recite a piece with ease 
 and dignity before an audience, was synonymous with bold- 
 ness and immodesty, I did not argue the point witli her. 
 Having had no experience in rea.'ingaud training daughters, 
 I yielded without protest to her superior age and judgment, 
 and politely granted her request. 
 
 More than two-thirds of ray term had now expired. It 
 will be remembered that my circulars announced that 
 
iil i: 
 
 288 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 i II 
 
 
 ' i 
 
 |-» 
 
 tuition must be paid at the middle of the term. As a re- 
 minder of this important fact, a little before the ex])iration 
 of the half term, I gave to each pupil a bill of his tuition 
 and then in school expressed a hope that there would be no 
 delay about the settlement. But only three of my patrons 
 responded promptly to the call. Four more paid within 
 thi next three weeks, and the remainder of the amount, 
 notwithstanding the fact that I had spoken two or three 
 times in school about delinquent patrons, remained unpaid. 
 
 During the ninth week I was spoken to by several 
 differejit j)artie3, who at this late hour discovered that they 
 were unable to pay money, and insisted on my taking 
 either the products of the farm or the shop. 
 
 In three instances, where I knew that families were very 
 poor — the heads of two of them being widows — I pre- 
 sented no bills whatever, esteeming it a pleasure to aid 
 their children in acquiring an education, and from three 
 more families i received nothing because the fathers were 
 too dishonest to pay. 
 
 In collecting my dues, as Messrs. Whittimore, Morse and 
 Sargent had not paid, I called at their respective places 
 of business, and, strange to say, they paid me without 
 demurring or offering any abuse beyond saying that the 
 school had amounted to nothing to them, and that it was 
 equivalent to making me a present of the money. At the 
 office of Sargent I met one of my patrons in the person of 
 a rough old farmer who was known throughout that section 
 as Uncle Jack Jones. He lived about a mile from the 
 village, and was reputed the richest man in town, yet he 
 was always bemoaning his poverty, and, judging from his 
 appearance, one might easily have mistakei^ him for a beg- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 289 
 
 gar. Uncle Jack was very pugnacious, hated taxes, grew 
 furious over public improvements, and though he sent to 
 school and attended church like a great many others, he 
 had a decided antipathy to school-teachers and ministers, 
 regarding them as the drones of society whom industrious 
 men were obliged to support. 
 
 At the time I saw him at Sargent's office, he was in 
 trouble with his neighbor. Parkins, who he said was trying 
 to cheat him out of a dollar and a half, which he owed him 
 as damage done to his horse-rake, and which sum he avowed 
 he would have if it cost him a hundred dollars. He had 
 come to Sargent for advice, and as soon as that dignitary 
 was at liberty lie heard Uncle Jack's brief story, and then 
 gave the required advice — the time required for the latter 
 occupying not more than five minutes. 
 
 " "Well, what's your bill ? " gruffly demanded Uncle Jack, 
 after the lawyer was done. 
 
 "Two dollars," laconically answered Sargent. 
 
 Without a word of remonstrance Uncle Jack handed out 
 the sum, and then Sargent gave it to me, being the amount 
 I had decided to take for his boy's tuition, for the seven 
 weeks he attended school. I accepted it gratefully, and 
 took my leave. 
 
 The following morning I chanced to meet four or five of 
 my patrons at the post office, and Uncle Jack was among 
 the number. Seeing one of the men paying me tuition, the 
 thought of his own indebtedness was naturally suggested, 
 and he gruffly addressed me thus : 
 
 " Well, say, schoolmaster, I s'pose I'm owin' yer some- 
 thing. How much is it for that girl of mine .? I'd 'no whether 
 she's larnt anything or not." 
 
 ii 
 
290 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ! ! 
 
 if ! 
 
 I 
 
 V.i 
 
 f' is 
 
 I III 
 
 liiirl 
 
 If)! Ill 
 
 " Your bill is three dollars and a half, Mr. Jones," I said. 
 
 " Three dollars and a half!" he exclaimed in astonish- 
 ment. Why I thought 'twas only two dollars for the com- 
 mon branches. I don't a'pose she studies anything more, 
 does she ? " 
 
 " Yes, she studies algebra and natural philosophy ; the 
 common branches are three dollars." 
 
 " Is that what you've charged all ov 'em that's sent to 
 school ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," I replied. 
 
 He hung his head a few moments in silence, the very 
 picture of disappointment and disgust, and then looking up, 
 exclaimed : 
 
 " Algebra and nat'ral philosophy ! What the devil is she 
 study in' them things for ? I didn't know nothin' 'bout her 
 studyin' 'em. What good be they goin' to dew her ? " 
 
 " 1 suppose, Mr. Jones, you might ask the same question 
 with regard to any branch a scholar pursues at school. 
 What good does education do any of us ? " 
 
 He seemed staggered by the question, and for a moment 
 did not answer, querying, I presumed, in his own mind 
 whether education was really of any benefit to us. At last, 
 having apparently settled the thing to his own satisfaction, 
 he said : 
 
 " Wall, 1 s'pose readin', writin' and 'rithmetic are well 
 enough, but I don't want my girl to fool away any more 
 time with them things you mentioned. You don't mean 
 ter say that I've got ter pay you three dollars and a half 
 though, dew yer ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," I replied. 
 
 " Wall, I s'pose if you say so I shall have ter dew it, but 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 291 
 
 I didn't think you'd come in here and try ter git rich out 
 on us in one term ; p'raps you'll want ter teach here again 
 sometime." 
 
 "Very likely," I answered, "and I hope you will be 
 glad to have me." 
 
 " Not if you're goin' ter rob us in this way. Three dol- 
 lars and a half!. Why, it's perfectly ridiculous. You'll 
 take less than that." 
 
 The bystanders were observing the colloquy with much 
 interest, and, though all too proud to make the same dis- 
 play about so small a sum, I had no doubt that two of them, 
 at least, were in sympathy with him ; the others, including 
 the postmaster, were intelligent gentlemanly men, who 
 were secretly enjoying the old fellow's trouble. 
 
 " No, Mr. Jones, I could not take less than that, and I 
 am surprised that a man of your wealth and intelligence 
 should consider tluit too large an amount to charge for 
 teaching a pupil nearly three months. Come now, own up 
 that you were merely joking when you claimed that the 
 tuition is too high." 
 
 " Of course it's too high," he said, beginning to display 
 more evidence of indignation. '"At the rate you charge, 
 you'll make two or three hundred dollars this term ; won't 
 yer ? " 
 
 " No, not half of it," I said, " but suppose I did, would 
 you consider that a high salary ? " 
 
 " High salary ! " he exclaimed in disgust. " When I was 
 a young man like you, I was glad ter git ten dollars a month, 
 and I had ter work aU day chopping tew ter git it." 
 
 " Did it cost you as much to learn to chop as it has me 
 to prepare for teaching ? " 
 
 I 
 
i 
 
 i! 
 
 
 if 
 
 
 
 i 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 I. 
 
 
 
 292 
 
 The Frontier Schoolrrmster. 
 
 This was a new thought to Uncle Jack. He ahemed, 
 hesitated, and finally said, 
 
 " No, 1 don't know as it cost me so much, but if it had, 
 I don't think I should have wanted to git it all back in 
 three months." 
 
 " You are willing to admit, I presume, that teachers are 
 as worthy of salaries as other professional men are, and 
 work quite as hard to earn them ? " 
 
 " Yes, I don't know but I be," he answered. 
 
 " Well now, Mr. Jones, if you have no objection, I will 
 tell these gentlemen around us a short story." 
 
 " I don't know as I've any objections," he growled rather 
 than spoke. 
 
 I then went on to relate an incident in which an able farmer 
 had called on a lawyer to receive advice by which he could 
 obtain one dollar and a half from a neighbor. " The advice," 
 I saidj " was given in five minutes ; the lawyer charged two 
 dollars, and the farmer paid him without even obj(;cting to 
 the fee. The next day the fanner met the teacher of his 
 school, held a long parley with him, and almost refused to 
 pay him three dollars and a half — the amount of the teacher's 
 tuition for instructing his daughter for a period of eleven 
 weeks. 
 
 " Don't you think, gentlemen," T asked, " that the farmer 
 was rather unreasonable in his treatment of the teacher, in 
 view of what he so cheerfully paid the lawyer ? " 
 
 "Of course we do," answered one of the men, and all 
 looked at Jones and smiled, as if conscious that he was the 
 farmer in question. 
 
 •" It is perhaps needless to tell you, gentlemen," I said, 
 " that the farmer was Mr. Jones." 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 293 
 
 " Come, Uncle Jack," said the postmaster, langliing, 
 " you'd better pay your tuitiou. Mr. Styles has got you in 
 a tight place." 
 
 " Wall," said Uncle Jack, " I expect to pay it if he's 
 mean enough to take it. You all know that we expect to 
 be gouged by lawyers when we have anything to dew with 
 'em, and I think it's gittin' to be jeSt as bad with school- 
 teachers." 
 
 The old fellow did not seem an^xous to quibble more 
 with regard to my bill, and pulling out his pocket-book and 
 counting out the money, reluctantly handed it to me. As 
 he did so, he cast a wistful, lingering glance at the bank 
 notes as if it was the last time he should ever see them, 
 and then his face assumed an expression of unutterable 
 disgust, indicative of self-reproach that so large a sum 
 could be extorted from him for such a useless purpose. He 
 maintained a profound and respectful silence while he re- 
 mained, listening to the remarks of the others as they 
 discussed the subject of teaching. I said nothing myself, 
 but, like him, respectfully listened. There was not a teacher 
 in the number, yet they all assumed an extensive know- 
 ledge of the business, and though they expressed many 
 erroneous ideas, they were, in my opinion, correct on one 
 point — all agreeing that it is " one of the hardest ways " in 
 which an individual evei sought a livelihood. 
 
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 ii 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 An unexpected letter — Utter despondency — I receive comfort from 
 anotlier letter— My pecuniary circumstances — I apply fur tlie 
 winter hcIiooI at Blooiningdale — Hypocrisy — The scliool coni- 
 niitti.'e — I am hired to teacli again — My sncceps during the fall. , 
 
 It was next to the last week of my term, I was sitting alone 
 in my room, despondent, as I had been for some time 
 from overwork and the harassing anxiety that I felt 
 respecting my school together with the prosj)ect before me, 
 when a boy entered with my mail. Glancing at the 
 addresses, I saw that one was from Ruth and another 
 from Niel. I was surprised at receiving the latter as he 
 had not corresponded with me since I came to Blooming- 
 dale. 
 
 I wrote him a short time before I left home, informing 
 him of my intention to teach, and expressing a hope that I 
 might be able, at the end of the term, to pay a part of the 
 note which was now due, but I had heard nothing from him 
 since. In my present state of despondency I was prepared 
 to imagine some unpleasant intelligence, and dreading its 
 efl'ect upon me, I held the letter in my hand some minutes 
 
 ' r 
 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 295 
 
 before breaking tbe seal; still my curiosity was so great 
 that I could not refrain from o]H'ning it before I did the 
 others. The content were as follows : 
 
 '• (Jaurollton, October 30th, 1859. 
 " FuiENi) Styles, — I am sorry to inform you '.lat I need 
 the full amount of that note and the inter, "t on it, immedi- 
 ately. I did ho])e that I niight give you more time, but losses 
 in business make it impossible for me to wait. As you are 
 now at work, it will jjrobably give you no trouble to raise 
 the money. Hoping to hear from you in a few days, 
 
 " I remain, 
 
 " Yours truly, 
 
 "NiKL." 
 
 Having read it, I sank into a chair, feeling in my weak- 
 ness like an infant, unable either to plan or execute. Had 
 I been well and strong, with a fair prosjiect of business, I 
 have no doubt that I W( uld have felt differently; the 
 amount of the debt would have seemed smaller, and my 
 ability to earn something much greater ; but in my present 
 circumstances, I could see nothing but sickness, poverty 
 and disgrace. I felt, too, that my confidence had again been 
 abused. This man who had advised, urged, and almost 
 forced me to take the money, who had laughed at my fears 
 when I spoke of the possibility of ill health's preventing my 
 paying him, and had even assured me that in that case the 
 loss would be of no consequence to him ; tliis man who had 
 always written me letters replete with expressions of friend- 
 ship, now at a time when he knew it would be most embarrass- 
 ing to me, had written me a short note, devoid of all his former 
 assurances of fraternal feeling, and demanded the immediate 
 payment of money. What did it mean ? Had he really 
 
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 The Frontier SctmolnKiMter. 
 
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 met with losses which made it necessary that he should call 
 on ine in this manner ? It might be, hut if so what was the 
 necessity of the altered tone ? His former letters without 
 exce]»tion had all commenced "My dear Styles," hut this 
 one was simply " Friend Styles ; " and then again he had 
 said nothing of my former letter, nor had he encjuired after 
 my hcudth or my success in teaching, things he would 
 have been sure to do in former times. There was some 
 mystery about it which I could not understand. 
 
 I have informed the reader that he had not visited the 
 Edgartons during the summer, and 1 learned from Kuth 
 that she had not seen him since I began to teach. I could 
 but think that h's great change towards me must in some 
 way be associated with the cessation of his visits to them, 
 and I believed that things had occurred which lluth, for 
 some reason, had concealed from me. 
 
 If so, she would not refuse to tell me if I was anxious 
 to know, and I determined to learn what I could the next 
 time we should meet. But whatever might have occurred, 
 I was still owing him ; he had requested payment, and I 
 was bound by all the laws of courtesy and honor to use 
 every possible effort to cancel the debt. 
 
 After sitting a while, thinking over th-^ matter as des- 
 cribed above, I opened and read Euth's letter. It was like 
 all her letters — dignified yet affectionate — full of sympathy 
 and encouraging expressions. I had seen her but once since 
 I came to Bloomingdale, which was at the middle of the 
 term, the only time I had been home ; but a letter from 
 her came regularly every fortnight, and did much to revive 
 my drooping spirits, and roi'se me to greater determination 
 " to do or die." To my surprise, she informed me in her 
 
The Frontier Schoolmafter. 
 
 297 
 
 present letter that Niel liad lately visited them and remained 
 all night. I then saw that his letter to me mu.st have l;een 
 written very soon after the visit she had mentioned, and 
 tlie conviction was deepened that liis visits were connected 
 in some way with his manner recently towards myself. 
 
 Findinj^ myself now in j, better state, mentally, than I 
 was when 1 read Kiel's letter, I began to consider my 
 chances for raising the means to i)ay the note which he 
 held. I should have said notes, for one of two hundred 
 dollars which I had given him would be due in a few 
 months. The tirst one, with the interest which hud 
 Ixicn accumulating more than three years and a half, now 
 amounted to about $250 ; the second one, with the interest 
 up to the time when the note was due was S23G. Now, 
 that he had asked me for tiie tirst amount, 1 had no d(nibt 
 that he would demand the sec(jnd as soon as it was due, 
 uidess, i>erchance, I paid it before — a thing that I saw no 
 possibility of my doing. 
 
 To pay this amount, which I then regarded as enormous, 
 I had nothing only the small sum which would be left me 
 from my school, and as a portion of this must be used in 
 supplying my emj)ty wardrobe, I could do nothing more 
 than pay the interest on the first note. I had no disposi- 
 tion to ask aid of my friends in this matter, for 1 saw no 
 reason why, if I was unable to pay, they should lose 
 instead of Niel, who had prevailed on me to hire the money, 
 and who was more able than any of the others to sustain 
 the loss. My father was the one to whom I would natur- 
 ally have looked for pecuniary assistance, but, as he had 
 been making some unprofitable investments in the way of 
 improvements on his farm, he was himself in debt, and 
 
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 298 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 only manag?,d with difficulty to make both ends meet. 
 Such being the case, I could not for a moment think of 
 soliciting his assistance. My decision was made, and, 
 accordirgly, I drew up to my table and wrote the following 
 letter : 
 
 My dear Mr. Niel, — Your letter, asking for the payment 
 of my first note of $200, is received. 1 regret, exceedingly, 
 that fortune has not so changed with me during the last 
 few months that I can astonish you by making payment 
 according to your demand ; but it has not, hence, I shall do 
 just what you expect, and siy that I cannot pp^y it at 
 present. I will pay you the interest on that note in a few 
 days, and the principal in installments as I am able to v3arn 
 the money. You have always expressed yourself as satisfied 
 with this mode of discharging my indebtedness to you, and 
 even when I was sick you urged me lo become your debtor 
 for a larger sum, offering the same chance ag::;in for payjng 
 you. ,,;, . ■■ .',.: . ., • ■ . - ..■..,.:,■ 
 
 To tell the truth, Mr. Niel, your manner towards me for 
 some time has surprised me. I wrote you two months ago, 
 and you have not even acknowledged the receipt of my 
 letter, and when I compare your last with the friendly ones 
 you wrote me while I was in Corvette, I can but think 
 that for some reason I do not hold the place in your esti- 
 mation that I once did. Trusting, if such is the case, that 
 you will no longer withold from me the cause, 
 
 I remain, as ever, 
 ., . ■ ^ ; , Your friend and servant, 
 
 Frank Styles. 
 his letter to the post office, I returned, and to 
 thoughts of my embarrassments spent the even- 
 
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The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 299 
 
 ing in the sitting-room of Mr. Smallett, enjoying a sociable 
 and pleasant chat with himself and family. 
 
 The next day I set to work, earnestly, to close an engiige- 
 ment with the school committee for the winter. I had 
 applied, as the reader knows, for the winter school at the 
 time I engaged to teach in the fall, but whether I was to 
 have it or not depended upon two things : firs';, as to whether 
 the committee, or the citizens, I might say, were pleased 
 with my present school, and, second, the price I set on my 
 labors. The question of my teaching in the winter had been 
 pretty freely discussed in the village, and 1 found that there 
 were advocates for it and others against it. There were five 
 more candidates for the situation, and as they all had their 
 friends, who were urging their respective claims, it was 
 uncertain who would get it. All of them offered to teach 
 for a smaller salary than I did, but as it was conceded by the 
 citizens, whether with reason or not I never knew, that I 
 was the best qualified of the candidates, the higher price I 
 demanded seemed to surprise no one. Another thing in 
 my favor was the fact thiit I was now in the school, and by 
 their custom I was entitled w the preference, other things 
 being equal. 
 
 An attempt on the part of a teacher to re-engage for 
 another season to his employers is generally a sure means 
 of learning the position that he occupies in the estimation 
 of all the different members of the community It calls 
 fort' I all his friends and foes. He is astonished to find that 
 individuals whom he has seldom met, and of whom he 
 knows comparatively nothing, are the best pleased of his 
 patrons, and are now among his staunchest supporters ; 
 while, on the other hand, those whom he regarded as friends 
 
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 300 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
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 are working sub rosa to prevent his re-engagement. He 
 learns that men and women who have met him witii smiles, 
 invited him to tea, and in various ways led him to believe 
 that they esteem him not less as a teacher than as a man, ha^'e 
 held private interviews with the committee, and given it as 
 their opinion that he should not be hired. Clara and Sophia, 
 or Wellington, don't like the teacher, he is so particular, so 
 strict, that they can't get along with him ; and, in deference 
 to their wishes, the parents advise a change of instructors. 
 They would not have it mentioned " for the world ; " no, it 
 would be unpleasant to have any one discover that they 
 are at all hypocritical in character, nor would it do to 
 acknowledge that they are so weak and unreasonable as to 
 ojjpose the interests of a person simply to gratify the 
 caprice of their inexperienced and wayward children ; so 
 they enjoin great secrecy on the committee, which injunc- 
 tion they observe until they find it necessary for their own 
 interest to lift the curtain and reveal the power by which 
 they are, to a greater or less extent, controlled. A person 
 who has taught for many years, and not learned much of the 
 foibles, the weakness, the deception of mankind, is but a 
 poor observer ; he lacks one of the essentials of a success- 
 ful instructor — the ability to read and understand human 
 nature at a time when it is the most susceptible to good or 
 evil impressions. It is this power which enables him to 
 discern the characteristics and bent of his pupils, and thus 
 to encourage their virtues, repress their \ices, and find the 
 most direct path to their confidence and affection. 
 
 The school committee of Blooraingdale consisted of three, 
 Smallett, Barnes, and Gregory. Barnes was under the com- 
 plete control of Whitthnore, and so opposed to me ; Gregory 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 301 
 
 was a friend of lawyer Sargent, yet he sent two children to 
 school, claimed to be pleased with their progress, and was 
 always friendly and courteous to myself. 
 
 For a little time after Sargent's boy had left school, 
 Sniallett feared that through that trouble Gregory might be 
 influenced in favor of some other teacher, but Sargent was 
 one of those men who are easily excited, who say a great 
 many foolish things in the heat of passion, and then subside 
 into a state of passive quietness, indifferent to everything 
 except their daily routine of business. By the time the tt^i-m 
 had closed he had so far forgotten his boy's punishment 
 that he informed Gregory that he cared not who was 
 engaged to teach, adding, in his characteristic way, that it 
 was not likely they would hire any one who was lit to 
 manage a school, and thus Gregory was left to act just as 
 he pleased. 
 
 Mrs. Sargent, however, was not so forgetful or forgiving. 
 She had lost no opportunity of making disparaging remarks 
 of myself, and when she learned that her husband had not 
 used his influence to defeat me, she was equally indignant 
 with him, assuring iier friends that she had always labored 
 to instill some public spirit and energy into her husband, 
 but in vain. 
 
 Morse was too much engrossed with his business to feel 
 any great inierest in the engagement of a teacher, and was 
 therefo.'e mer ' y a passive objector to my wishes, leaving, like 
 Sargent, all the talking to be done by his wife. 
 
 1 learned these facts from Sniallett, from \\l:om, also, I 
 understood that the number of those who actively apposed 
 me was small ; being confined to two besides those I have 
 mentioned. The rest of the patrons were willing to concede 
 
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 302 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 m. 
 
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 that I had taught a good school, though some of them who 
 had friends or relatives among the other candidates for the 
 winter school objected to me on tlie ground of salary. 
 Barnes, who was unwillmg to have it said that he was 
 wholly influenced by Whittimore, also kept harping on my 
 " outrageous price." The other two committee did not ven- 
 ture to hire me until they had canvassed the nntire commu- 
 nity, and learned the opinion of every man, woman, and 
 child in it ; and then I was engaged only by falling from 
 fifty to forty dollars a month, exclusive of board. 
 
 The item of board was particularly mentioned from tl:.3 
 fact that, previous to my coming there, teachers during the 
 winter and summer terms, when they were hired by the 
 district, had always " boarded around," unless, as in some 
 instances, they preferred to pay for the luxury of boarding 
 at one place from their own pockets. It was no small 
 evidence, therefore, of my influence, to be able to get the 
 committee to allow me ten dollars a month extra for mv 
 board, and it was done with much trepidation under the 
 solemn protest of Earnes. 
 
 So, filially, after all this delay and trouble, all this canvass- 
 ing, in which I had been discussed in the store, shop, bar- 
 room and private dwelling, by old men and women, young 
 men and maidens, small boys and girls, I was hired; 
 engaged to teach again in a community where, from a con- 
 scientious desire to do my duty, I had gained the ill-will 
 of several children and their parents, and where, now, many 
 more were displeased with me because of the high salary 
 that I was receiving. Yes, I was hired for thirty dollars a 
 month and my board to spend one-fourth of a year in an 
 uncomfortable, untidy old building, with three scores of 
 
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The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 303 
 
 boys and girls of diverse habits and manners, with the 
 chance of again making enemies if I always acted accord- 
 ing to the dictates of conscience. Surely the prospect was 
 not a cheering one, but circumstances compelled me to view 
 it with the best possible grace. 
 
 Amidst all my discouragements, and the unpleasant feel- 
 ings I experienced from naving unjustly, as I thought, 
 received the enmity of so many of my patrons, one tiling 
 afforded me great consolation, 1 had secured the confidence, 
 esteem and friendship of a large majority of my pupils, all, 
 i might say, who had shov. y disposition to learn. 
 
 With the exception of four or five, none of my pupils had 
 made the progress that I hoped they would in the begin- 
 ning of the school, or as much as they might, had they 
 made a proper use of their opportunities — evening parties, 
 as I have sliown, and other things, having taken their atten- 
 tion from their studies. This want of progress, however, 
 I must reasonably expect in a school where the pupils were 
 generally under so iittle restraint at home — coming to 
 school or staying away as they pleased — and where about 
 the only incentive to industry was what I was able to give 
 in the way of advice and kindly admonitions. It is found 
 in every school where little or no moml support is accorded 
 the teaoher, by school boards or patrons, and it always will 
 be. But yet my pupils had learned, accomplished much 
 more, in fact, than one knowing the exact state of the 
 school would imagine ; and, on the last day of the term, 
 the many marks of friendship that were shown me testified 
 that my labors had not been unappreciated. Had I not 
 been going to remain as a teacher, I felt conscious then that 
 the parting with my pupils would have been a sad one. 
 
 
 
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 304 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Niill <l 
 
 As it was, some of the older ones who were intending to 
 teach bid me adieu with an ap]^earance of regi'et, and with 
 kind remarks that called forth the warmest emotions of my 
 heart. Two young ladies and a young man of this class 
 came to me at the close of school that day, and ex|)ressed 
 themselves in such terms of respect and gratitude towards 
 me that I was surprised — never befoi^ having knoMii that 
 I held so high a place in their esteem. 
 
 Miss Rowell, one of the young ladu^s, about twenty 
 years of age, who had taught district school three or four 
 seasons, a good scholar and very intelligent, said, as they 
 were conversing with me : 
 
 " One thing, Mr. Styles, should certainly comfort you ; 
 you have the enmity of no one of your pupils who likes 
 to study, I have observed that all those who show any 
 disposition to learn are gi'eatly attached to you." 
 
 " That certainly is comforting, Miss liowell," I said, " if 
 it is true " 
 
 " I know it is true," said the young man ; " and 1 think 
 all the scholars feel that your anxiety to have them learn 
 is much greater than theirs is to learn." 
 
 There was much comfort in this assurance. If they, in- 
 deed, feel this, as he says, I thought I certainly must have 
 their respect, and if their parents could but know it, feel it, 
 they, too, would respect me and honor my intentions ; but, 
 not one of them ever having visited my school, they knew 
 nothing of it, save what they had gathered from the pupils, 
 l)eing ignorant of all the persuasions 1 had used to induce 
 them to study, and the many methods I had devised to 
 simplify, explain and render attractive the studies they 
 were pursuing. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 305 
 
 After Miss Rowell and lier two companions had bid me 
 good-bye, two younger girls from a neighboring Ljwn, who 
 were not intending to return in the winter, came to say good- 
 bye, and, with many tears, thanked me for my kindness, and 
 expressed a determination to return to my school again in 
 the spring should I teach in Bloomingdale. Several of the 
 smaller pupils living in the village, some of whom I had 
 often reproved and occasionally punished for their mischiev- 
 ousness, also expressed, in their juvenile way, gratification 
 that I was again to be their teacher. 
 
 " I'm glad you're going to teach this winter, Mr. Styles." 
 
 " I'm going to try and learn something this winter, Mr. 
 Styles." 
 
 " You'll see, Mr. Styles, if I'm not awful good next 
 term," were addresses that greeted me many times ere I 
 had left the schoolroom, and assured me that my pupils 
 were not indifferent to the place they held in my esteem. 
 
 My heart glowed with gratitude for these testimonials of 
 regard, assuring me, as they did, that n:;/ labors had not 
 been wholly in vain. 
 
 It was the greatest reward that I received, being, in my 
 estimation, of much greater value than the money paid me, 
 however much I needed the latter. 
 
 On closing, I found that my net profits amounted to jast 
 $87, more than half of which I immediately forwarded to 
 Niel in payment of interest. 
 
:'liili! 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 My vacation — I ask to have my curiosity g'-atified, and discover a 
 sheep in wuifs clothing — A iiohie friend — My disgust willi man- 
 kind — A surprise, in the shape of a valuable present— My winter 
 school. 
 
 Having a vacation of one week allowed me, I spent this 
 
 time at home, making two visits to Ruth in that interval. 
 
 Pursuant to tlia intention which I have already an- 
 nounced to the reader, the first time I saw her, I sought 
 the reason of Mr. Niel's absenting himself for so long a 
 time from her uncle's, and after considerable evasion on her 
 part, I learned the following facts. 
 
 During all the time that I was absent at Corvette, Niel 
 had fret^uently visited Mr. Edgarton on the pretence of 
 doing brsiness with him, and by making many trades, such 
 as buying or selling horses, cattle and sheep, or introducing 
 some new farming implement, he had even made this pre- 
 tence a specious one. Having managed to make all 
 these trades profitable to Mr. Edgarton, he had thus obtained 
 his confidence, and by making him a present occasionally 
 he had also acquired his friendship, and, consequently, 
 never failed to receive a warm and urgent invitation to 
 
 iiiil 
 
TJie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 307 
 
 repeat his visit at an early day. While thus ingratiating 
 himself with Mr. Edgarton, he had every opportunity of 
 speaking of myself, and, with a great display of candor 
 and disinterestedness, had represented that he regarded me 
 with feelings of friendship, but had little hopes of my future 
 success on account of my visionary propensities and want 
 of stability. Frank and honest himself, Mr. Edgarton sus- 
 pected nothing of duplicity and dishonesty in others, and 
 though be had always liked me, he became impressed, through 
 the influence of Niel, with the idea that it would not be for 
 the best interests of his niece to harry me. He was very 
 fond of her, always had her welfare in view, and reposed 
 much contidence in her judgment, yet fear that in this case 
 she might be sacrificing judgment to affection, he could not 
 forbear talking with her sometimes, and, without alluding 
 directly to myself, counseled her against a false estimate of 
 character and ability in selecting a partner for life. With 
 the design too, no doubt, of influencing her in favor of Niel> 
 he often spoke in eulogistic terms of that gentleman, and 
 dwelt particularly on his wealth and his pleasant home, 
 which, connected with his amiability of nature, would make 
 him a desirable partner for any woman. 
 
 Ruth listened to all this with respectful silence. As long 
 as no more strenuous eftbrts were put forth to induce her to 
 encourage the attentions of Niel, and as long as her opinion 
 of him was not directly asked, she felt herself bound in no 
 wise either to show him disrespect, or declare to any one 
 what she thought of him. But believing, as she did, that 
 he was secretly undermining her uncle's confidence in me, 
 while at the same time he was affecting to be my warmest 
 friend, she could not but inwardly despise him, and only 
 
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 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
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 awaited some deiioueiuent from liiin, some act by Mhich his 
 suspected treachery would become i)alpable, to let both 
 hhnscilf and her uncle know her true feelings. Though this 
 act was long in coming, it came at last. 
 
 In the spring foUowing my return from Corvette, while 
 I was yet ill, with little prospect of im[)rovenient, Niel 
 decided, it would seem, to have a definite settlement of hia 
 prospects with her, and for this purpose emjiloyed Mr. 
 Pxlgarton to broach, cautiously, to her the question of wed- 
 ding him. Previous to this he informed him that I had 
 hired a large sum of him for the purpose of prosecuting my 
 studies, an'l that as I was in no ])()sition to rejjay him, he 
 exj)ected to lose it. He assured iiim that it would be the 
 most egregious folly for his niece to wed me, for even should 
 I recover, it would be impossible for me to sujjport her, 
 harassed as T wovld be, constantly, by debt. In thus dis- 
 closing my financial condition to Mr. Edgarton, he very 
 cautiously avoided saying that it was through his advice 
 and solicitation that I was his debtor, leaving him to infer 
 that I had asked his assistance, and that he had granted it 
 solely on the ground of confidence and friendshij). As 
 there was a semblance of reason in what he said about my 
 not being able to support Euth, Mr. Edgarton was justly 
 alarmed, and no doubt resolved on pressing the suit of 
 Niel with earnestness and persistency. If such was his 
 resolution, however, he failed to adhere to it after his 
 first attempt to convert Ruth to his opinion. She had 
 known Niel's object from the beginning of his intimacy 
 with me, reading him with all the accuracy of woman's 
 instinct and perception. She had long before discovered a 
 selfishness and want of principle in him, which assured her 
 
 
Tiie Frontier HchoolmaMer. 
 
 309 
 
 tliat lie had sought my friendship and confidence, and finally 
 made liiniself my creditor, for the purpose of accfmiplishing 
 my disgrace and ruin. It was her superior knowled>;e of 
 the man tliat caused her to express a regret when I first 
 informed her how largely I was indebted to him, yet fore- 
 seeing that no good would result from giving me her im- 
 pressions of him, she had wisely refrained from so doing. 
 
 Now, however, when her uncle related to her what Niel 
 had said of me, she had positive proof of his perfidy ; he 
 had done just what she had anticipated, and she gave full 
 vent to her indignation and conttunpt for the man. Housed 
 to a pitch of anger which she had never before dis^jlayed, 
 she forbade her uncle ever to insult her by mentioning the 
 name of Niel to her again, on pain of her leaving his house 
 for ever ; and she then proceeded to give him a detailed 
 account of all the trouble Niel had taken to gain my frit nJ- 
 ship, all the persuasions he had emphjyed to bring me into 
 his debt. She also described to him the anxiety I felt 
 when I first returned from Corvette respecting my indel)t- 
 edness ; and expressed the belief that it was owing, in a 
 great measure, to this anxiety, still, that my health did not 
 improve. 
 
 Mr. Edgarton had not imagined that she knew aught of 
 my obligations to Niel, and on finding that I had told lier 
 all, and the circumstances connected with it, his confidence 
 in me was in a measure increased, while that in Niel was 
 correspondingly diminished. But he had too great respect 
 and friendship for him to believe him as bad as Ruth had 
 represented, and in relating to him the result of his inter- 
 view with her, it is quite probable that he gave him only a 
 faint picture of the scorn with which she had treated his 
 
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 310 
 
 The Fronfier Schoolnmsfer. 
 
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 proposal. Be this ns it may, however, he seeniod to have 
 concluded that any further effoits to win her attlctions were 
 useless, lience, his visits to Maple Highland ceased. 
 
 •' Why did you WjI tell me of this treachery of Niel last 
 spring?" I asked ot Ruth, when she had related to me the 
 facts recorded above. 
 
 " Simply because I thought it would do you more harm 
 than good," she answered. " I knew that in your bad state 
 of luialth it would be likely to produce no good ellect, and 
 so I concluded that it would be wiser to let you know 
 nothing aVtout it." 
 
 " And so," 1 said, " you permitted me to remain in igno- 
 rance of his true character, thus giving him a chance to 
 deceive me again if he thought proj)er ? " 
 
 " 1 had no fear," she answered, " that he would venture 
 to meet you again, as he would, doubtless, think I had 
 informed you of what he had done." 
 
 " Hut why did he come here again, recently ? " I asked. 
 " 1 don't know," she answered ; " I think uncle did not 
 let him know the extent of my displeasure, and, possibly, 
 he thought that, by returning in the garb of friendship, he 
 might still be regarded as a friend of the family. 1 do rot 
 think he will come again," she added, "for, as uncle had 
 concluded, from his long absence, that it was through no 
 friendship for himself that he had formerly visited us, he 
 received him rather coolly, as did my aunts." 
 
 " And you, '<f course, received him with every demon- 
 stration of joy," I a 'id, laughing. 
 
 " 1 did not speak to him," she replied, with flashing eyes. 
 " He dined with the family, but I was not at the table." 
 " I see now," I said, " that he went away in a state of 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 311 
 
 disfTusi;, and immo'liatidy wrote me, asking payment of that 
 not(!. And you believed all the time, Kiith," 1 continued, 
 "that he was no friend of mine, and was merely plotting 
 to carry out his own seltish ends ( " 
 
 " I did," she replied, " and 1 was alarmed when you told 
 me how much obligation you were under to him, for 1 felt 
 assured that ho wo'dd in some way use his advantage to 
 your harm." 
 
 1 felt dee])ly chagrined, as she said this, at my want of 
 penetration, on account of which I had twice permitted my- 
 self to be duped, just as she had imagined and to herself 
 had prophesied. That she, a young lady of njodest and 
 retiring manners, living almost the life of a recluse, should 
 knuvv and uuderstjind men better than myself, who claimed 
 to know much of human nature and business, was anything 
 b'lt flattering to my self-esteem. I almost regarded her as 
 a superior being, endowed with more than human vision. 
 And then she had acted with so much di-^cretion, in not 
 revealing the afl'air to me, realizing that it could only have 
 the effect of increasing the worry and regret that I already 
 experienced at not being able to release myself from obli- 
 gation to the villain who had so deceived me. That he was 
 a villain, I now had every evidence. Besides the baseness 
 of disclosing a private business transaction with me, in a 
 place where he believed it would V«avethe effect of injuring 
 my prospects, he had proposed to marry her to whom he 
 knew I had long been engaged. Yes, it was now apparent 
 tiiat he had wormed himself into my confidence for the 
 purpose of learning the exact relations that Ruth and 1 
 sustained to each other, and then believing that he could 
 only win her by getting me out of the way, or by lessening 
 
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 312 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 mM 
 
 her confidence in me, he had bent all his energies to the 
 accomplishment of this objee' . 
 
 I believed it to be quite probable that at first ho fancied 
 if he could sejiarate us for some time our attachment for 
 each other might become weaker, and that during this inter- 
 val if he met Kuth quite often she might conceive a fancy 
 for himself. Her dignity and true womanly ])rinciple, 
 however, had prevented him from making any open ad- 
 vances to her during my absence, and on my return in such 
 bad health, he had no doubt hoped that I would not recover, 
 therefore, had concluded to await the progress of events. 
 What but a desire to get rid of me could have induced him 
 to urge me, invalid as I was from over work, to enter 
 college at once, and again apply myself to study ? What 
 could he have hoped, except that I would either destroy 
 my constitution wholly, or that in case of recovery ray 
 ambition and continued absence from her would cause me 
 to forget Euth ? 
 
 Failing in this attempt, he had waited in suspense until, 
 thinking that my prospects of marrying were as deplorable 
 as they could well be, he thought that by making my finan- 
 cial embarrassment known to lluth and her friends, and 
 then ofl'ering her a home, with all the comforts and luxuries 
 which wealth could provide, he would succeed in his designs. 
 Unfortunate man ! He had found a woman whose constancy 
 was not affected by time, whose affections were not to be 
 purchased by gold. 
 
 His plans which he had laid with such cunning, and the 
 maturing of which he had watched so long and patiently, 
 had failed. 
 
 His interest in me was destroyed, and his only object 
 
 m.A 
 
 Sliftl' 
 
 li \i\n\ I 
 
 ii< 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 313 
 
 to be 
 
 object 
 
 now was to get the money with which he had entrusted 
 me. He was to me no longer the man I luid regarded him, 
 generous hearted, public spirited, an appreciator of educa- 
 tion and laudable, youthful ambition, but a soraid, selfish, 
 heartless knave, as unworthy the alfections of a good 
 woman as he was the confidence and respect of an honest 
 man. ■ \ ' - 
 
 I returned home from that visit to Ruth with an indefin- 
 able contempt for mankind. Had it not been for the noble 
 redeeming qualities I found in her, I think I would have 
 embraced the whole human race in one general maledic- 
 tion. I had lost all confidence in everybody, everything 
 but herself. I believed that there was no such thing as 
 friendship, and I almost determined that, besides her, I 
 would never regard any person as a friend. 
 
 Towards the last of the week, calling at the post office in 
 Arklow, for the purpose of. getting my mail and having a 
 chat with my old friend Doctor Sutherland, I was surprised 
 at finding there a registered letter for myself. On opening 
 it my astonishment for a moment was indescribable when 
 I sa^v the number and value of the bank notes it contained — 
 three hundred dollars, enclosed in a sheet of paper, on 
 which were written in a strange hand the words, " From a 
 friend." There was no signature or other mark or the sheet 
 by which I could tell from what friendly hand it had come. 
 I looked at the post-mark and found that it was mailed in 
 Forestop. 
 
 My bewilderment lasted but a few minutes. There was 
 only one friend in the wide world who would have conferred 
 such a favor on me, and knowing that that friend had 
 received about six hundred dollars in the settlement of the 
 
fflll! 
 
 314 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 paternal estate, and had likewise saved about half that s im 
 in teaching, she was in a position to bestow this boon, if so 
 disposed. But the reader will naturally enquire Vvhy she 
 had taken this method of jnesenting it. Simply from a 
 consciousness that I would not accept it if I knew the donor. 
 She feared that she would wound my feelings and incur my 
 displeasure by ottering it to me, either as a gift or a loan, 
 yet knowing what a great pleasure it would be to me to pay 
 the amount to Niel, she had determined to place it in my 
 hands in such a way that I would not be certain whence 
 it came. 
 
 She was mistaken, however, for so sure was I that no 
 other person than herself had sent it, that I determined to 
 r>'^turn it to her M'ithout even taking the trouble to eno;'iri 
 at the Foreston post ofhce what person had mailed the letter. 
 
 I was glad that the Doctor had been engaged at his desk 
 when I opened it. otherwise he might have noticed my sur- 
 prise. As it was he only knew that I had received the 
 araouLLt, and until I informed him to the contrary, long 
 afterward, when he had nearly forgotten the incident, ne 
 supjjosed that it wj,s a sum I had hired of a friend. 
 
 That evening I sat down and wrote the following letter, 
 in which I enclosed the full amount I had received : 
 My dear Kuth, • 
 
 I appreciate your noble gencrojity, and the 
 delicacy with which you have shown it. It is only another 
 testimony of your devotion to me, and the self-denying 
 spirit you possess ; but you will pardon me if I decline to 
 use the sum you have with such modesty placed in my 
 hands. Were I positively certain that circumstances would 
 enable me to return it with interest at no distant day, 1 
 
 hi 
 
 :. 
 
 |l 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 315 
 
 long 
 
 ino to 
 \\ my 
 
 f 
 
 doubt that I would accept it ; but as I have no such assur- 
 ance, I cannot for a moment think of making use of it. 
 No, Kuth : if loss is to be sustained, it must be by the man 
 through whose advice I am where I am. ,' 
 
 Faithfully yours, 
 -V-', •■ '• ' . , ■■■^:>-./. '■' : ■ Frank. 
 
 The next day, looking up all the letters I had received 
 from Niel at diff'eren times, 1 took them, with t^e one 
 above, to Euth. My object in taking Niel's letters was to 
 give her an opportunity to read them to her uncle, thus 
 proving to him that it was owing wholly to Niel's own 
 desire that I had become indebted to him. I gave lliem to 
 her as soon as I arrived, but the one addressed to herself, 
 containing the money, I said nothing about ; giving it to 
 her onlv at the moment 1 bade her adieu. 
 
 j\Iy reticence concerning the present I had received, af- 
 forded me no little secret amusement, for she had no doubt 
 anticipated a disclosure of the affair from me, and conse- 
 quently some pleasure herself in witnessing my mystiiied 
 condition and listening to my remarks. When, however, I 
 made no allusion to it, and spoke of my relations to Niel 
 in my usual manner, she evidently was puzzled, and began 
 to doubt that 1 had received the money. To remove 
 this doubt, after I had been with her some time, slie 
 casually, and with an air of indifference, asked me if 1 had 
 visited Dr. Sutherland during my vacation. On informing 
 her, without mentioning the letter, that I had spent an liour 
 with him on the preceding day, a shade passed over her 
 face. She evidently began to fear that I had not received 
 it. Whatever might have occurred to prevent this, any 
 inquiry from her at the post office respecting it would, 
 
iTg*-^-- ■ «■ 
 
 iri 
 
 mi 
 
 316 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaater. 
 
 doubtless, make the whole transaction public, in which case 
 it would be most embarrassing to both of us. She felt that 
 she had done a foolish thing, for which there seemed to be 
 no help. Divining her thoughts, I began to relent that I 
 had not before disclosed my knowledge of the matter, and 
 was inclined to do so now, but knowing that this would 
 cause her much embaiTassment, I determined to carry out 
 my plan. I cut short my visit for the sole pur|)ose of 
 relieving her of her unpleasant feelings ; and, after promis- 
 ing to write her on the following Saturday, and bidding her 
 an affectionate adieu, with a smile, I slipped the letter into 
 her hand. A crimson flush which I observed on her face, 
 as I went out of the door, showed me that she had divined 
 the contents, and to prevent any impression on her part 
 that I was offended, I gave a hearty laugh, as I once more 
 said " Good-bye." 
 
 The following Monday I was to begin my winter term 
 at Bloomingdale, and to avoid the loneliness of spending a 
 day there before commencing my labors, I remained at 
 home on the Sabbath, rising in time the next morning to 
 reach Bloomingdale before nine o'clock. I ran into the 
 post office on my way to the academy, and received a re- 
 ceipt from Niel for the money I had sent him, but there 
 was no letter — not even a word acknowledging the receipt 
 of my letters. 
 
 At the academy, everything was hurly-burly. Nearly 
 one hundred and thirty boys and girls were there, filling 
 both rooms, and making a most hideous noise from running, 
 Jumping, loud talking, and scrambling for their favorite 
 seats. 
 
 A young girl, scarcely eighteen, had been engaged to 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 317 
 
 3d to 
 
 teach the junior pupils. This w£.: !.^. first school, and she 
 had been hired for the two substantial reasons that sl.e was 
 a niece of Barnes, one of the committee, and had offered to 
 teach this motley throng of eighty youngsters for a dollar 
 and fifty cents a week and board around. 
 
 I threw open the door of her room as I entered the 
 porch, both to ascertain the cause of the tumult and to 
 quiet it, not imagining that the teacher was present. To 
 my surprise, a pale, weakly looking girl stood on the plat- 
 form at the farther end of the room crying. Going forward 
 and addressing her, I found, as I had supposed, that she 
 was Miss Barnes — the teacher, in despair, and weeping at 
 the prospect before her. No wonder ! she had entered the 
 room where there was a countless number of urchins 
 screaming, knocking off hats, turning summersaults and 
 performing sundry other actions known only to uncouth 
 children, and had timidly and modestly asked a few near 
 her, if they were not afraid they would not get hurt by 
 playing so roughly. One of them shouted, " No ; " and to 
 prove his fearlessness of such a result of his actions, im- 
 mediately upset the table upon which three or four . f his 
 companions had climbed. 
 
 They became quiet as I entered, and I heard various 
 whispers, while in the room, like the following : 
 
 "That's the high schoolmaster." "That's that cross 
 Styles : he'll lick us like the if he gits mad." 
 
 I made a few encouraging remarks to Miss Barnes, 
 ordered the pupils to take their seats, and after exliorting 
 them to be good children and obey the teacher, I went 
 upstairs, forgetting my own inglorious prospect in my 
 sympathy for her. 
 
1 .. ^ 
 
 ' ' 1 
 
 1 
 
 1 
 
 M 
 
 '{■■ 
 
 
 i s 
 
 318 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 The appearance of my room, when I entered, was hardly 
 more satisfactory than the lower one. There were ab(jut 
 sixty pujiiLs in it — a large number of them strangers to me 
 — boys and girls who never attended school except in the 
 winter, and many of them as uncouth in manner as they 
 were in expression. There was about the same wild confu- 
 sion in the room as in that I had just left, but the din im- 
 mediately subsided when they saw me, and quite a number 
 of my former pupils came forward and expressed pleasure 
 at my return. 
 
 If my school in the fall had been a trying one, this was 
 doubly 30. It seemed to be well understood by the pupil? 
 that this was a district school, my authority in it being less 
 absolute than it was in the other, and they felt that their 
 rights were assailed whenever they saw a disposition on my 
 part to render it anything different from the winter school 
 to which they had been accustomed. This might be briefly 
 described as a place which they had been accustomed to 
 visit at leisure, a sort of entertainment specially provided 
 for them during the winter months, into which they strolled 
 at any convenient hour, beheld, with listless, dreamy atten- 
 tion, one or more scenes in the play, and then went out to 
 while aAvay the remaining time in sauntering about the 
 - streets or gossiping in some place of favorite public resort. 
 
 Any attempt to make the school different from this was 
 an innovation at which they were disposed to rebel, and as 
 their parents and guardians felt less interest now than they 
 did in the fall, simply because it affected their pockets less, 
 it required far more tact, watchfulness and persuasion on 
 my part to induce them to discharge their duties with any 
 degree lu mgnity and industry. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 319 
 
 Scarcely a week had passed when as I was n1)nut to step 
 inco a store, one evening, I heard loud and angry voices 
 inside, as if some one was engaged in violent altercation, 
 and presently there was the sound of a scuffle which was 
 succeeded by a heavy fall. Opening the door I was both 
 amused and alamied at the spectacle. 
 
 Near the stove in the centre of the room was Uncle Jack 
 Jones lying on his back, both hands clutching the hair of 
 Sniallett, who was on him, ordering him in husky, smother- 
 ed tones to " let go ; " punching him, at the same time, in 
 the face, chest, stomach, or wherever mo^ convenient, with 
 his fist, as a persuasive to obey this mandate. Two men 
 stood at a little distance from them viewing the scene with 
 grave countenances and intense interest, while the merchant 
 behind the counter was convulsed with laughter, regarding 
 it as a good farce. Soon after I became a spectator of the 
 scene a heavy blow in the eye of Uncle Jack produced the 
 desired effect, he concluded to " let go," and Smallett having 
 got off him, he instantly bounded to his feet, and glancing 
 wildly around the room, his eye fell on me. The sight 
 seemed to stir up his anger afresh, and augment his pugna- 
 cious desires. Dashing up to me with clinched fijt he 
 astonished me with the following salutation : 
 
 " And so, you've come, you Canuck ! Why don't yer go 
 back to Canady and stay there ? Nobody wants yer here ! 
 You're a great man ; so stuck up that you can't board with 
 the people in the deestrict, and so we have ter work and 
 drudge to git money for yer to pay to that fool thar (point- 
 ing to Smallett) fur yer board." 
 
 At first I really believed the man was insane, and 
 stepped back in no little fear for my personal safety ; but 
 
1 
 
 i . 
 
 
 320 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 fci"«l 
 
 llWli^ 
 
 Ijti 
 
 iilii^ 
 
 when he spoke -"^ the subject of board, I began to under- 
 stand the cause of his wrath, and was disposed, like the 
 storekeeper, to laugh. 
 
 The latter now inter.'^red in my behalf, and by talking 
 quietly to the old fellow, and ridiculing his absurd actions, 
 he soon got him so pacified that he began to evince signs of 
 shame, and in a few minutes he left the store. The other 
 two men I have mentioned had already gone ; and from Smal- 
 lett and the merchant I now learned the cause of the fight. 
 
 It seems Small tt had dropped into the store just as 
 Uncle Jack and t. e other tv\'o men were discussing the 
 action of the school committee in hiring me, and permitting 
 me L^ '. ^'"^ at one jlace, at their expense. All of them 
 were agi'eed in tne inatter that it was a most unjust thing 
 to do, though one of the number affirmed that, individually, 
 he cared but little about it. The other, however, felt sorely 
 aggrieved, while Uncle Jack was not to be reconciled, 
 declaring that there had not been another such flagrant 
 cause of rebellion since the imposition of the Stamp Act 
 and Tea Tax. He averred that if there were a few more 
 spirits like himself i i the " deestrict," they would " pitch " 
 me out of the academy, hang the school committee in effigy 
 and compel them to resign their office, or otherwise leave 
 the community. 
 
 Unless there was some such action on the part of the 
 intelligent and respectable citizens, this high-handed roobery 
 would continue until their farms, stock and everything else 
 were sold at the auction-block, and themselves obliged to 
 spend their last days in the poor house. He went on in 
 this strain t<:) Smallett for some time, when, being provoked 
 beyond forbearance by his badgering replies, he expressed 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 321 
 
 )f the 
 
 |.jbery 
 else 
 
 ted to 
 )n in 
 '^oked 
 
 leased 
 
 his determination to " put some sense into him," and his 
 success in the eflort has been described. His black eye and 
 bruised face did not prevent his coming to the village, as 
 usual, to relate his gi'ievances; on the other haiid, he 
 seemed to regard himself a martyr to a noble cause, and he 
 proudly exhibited these marks to his friends, as proofs of 
 the heroism with which he had defended their rights. 
 
 If the reader has ever taught school he will understand 
 with what emotions I learned that there was such a strong 
 current of feeling in the district against my teaching. I 
 assume that he will understand it, for he has experienced 
 the same emotions, though perhaps in a less degree. He 
 has witnessed the same objection — high salary — on the ])art 
 of many in every community with which he is acquainted, 
 and though perhaps it may not have resulted in a light, as 
 in this instance, it has displayed itself in various ways — 
 resulting in estrangements, back-biting, feuds and even 
 neighborhood quarrels. Yes, every community has its 
 Uncle Jack, with those v/ho either openly or secretly uphold 
 and encourage him. 
 
 From the moment I learned the cause of this quarrel, I 
 knew that in all probability, tlvrough the influence of Uncle 
 Jack and his colleagues, one-fourth of the citizens of the 
 village were my enemies, and that instead of giving me 
 their support they would contribute, in no small degree, to 
 make my school unsuccessful — a failure. I seldom, met a 
 person in Bloomingdale after that, who looked sour and 
 seemed distant and cold iu manner, without thinking that I 
 was the cause of it; having been instrumental in wresting 
 from him the dollars for which he had toiled, and which were 
 so much needed for worthier purposes. Nor were these 
 
 t 
 
 : V 
 
 .; ; 
 
 \v 
 
 r 
 
 4 
 
 If' 
 
^jjgefM 
 
 322 
 
 Tfie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 jiff • ^ h 
 
 thoughts all the result of my sensitiveness and fancy. 
 Haviuf^ bouj<ht a coat, one evening, in a store, wliere three 
 or four men were lounging, 1 learned that, as soon as I iiad 
 left, one man remarked that he wislied himself "smart" 
 enough to fool the district out of forty dollars a mouth, he 
 woukl wear good clothes. Another one averred that as far 
 as real hardship and wear on the constitution were concerned 
 he performed more labor in a day than I did in a wetk, 
 and yet he was receiving less than half the salary that I did. 
 And so remarks went round, each one giving utterance to 
 some feeling of disj)leasure, that they had not hired a 
 " cheajjcr teacher." 
 
 But, notwithstanding these un]»leasant things, I remained 
 and went through the school, how, I scarcely know. That 
 any of the p ipils should have advanced in their studies, 
 was a surprise to me, when I reflected how little of punc- 
 tuality there was, and how many things were constantly 
 drawing off their attention from their books ; but yet, the 
 majority of them had learned something— a trilie compared 
 with what they should have learned in the same time. 
 
 During the third week of my term, a singing school was 
 opened in the village by Professor . He was an expe- 
 rienced and able teacher, and, of course, all the young 
 people of Bloomingdale must go. Nearly every one of my 
 pu] ils J<jined his class, and, to my disgust, they were to 
 meet him twice a week, every Tuesday and Friday after- 
 noon at two o'clock. None of the parents objected to this 
 hour on account of its interference with my school. A few 
 of the pupils who felt a little interest in their studies asked 
 the Professor ^*' he could not meet them in the evening, 
 but no, he had other classes elsewhere to meet, and so he 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 328 
 
 )1 was 
 
 expe- 
 
 y'oung 
 
 )f my 
 
 lu to 
 
 lafter- 
 
 this 
 
 few 
 
 Lsked 
 
 miiig, 
 
 ISO he 
 
 walked in without meeting a word of exjiostulatioT!. Know- 
 ing notl\ing of the arrangements that had been made, 1 was 
 taken by surprise when the pupils came up oi m(t,H,^e at 
 two o'ch)ck to get excused, and 1 promptly refused them ; 
 but, on receiving the positive assurance that they had paren- 
 tal ]»ermission to go, and the jjromisethat they would, indi- 
 vidually, bring me a written notice of that fact the next day, 
 I allowed them to go. The notes were brought according 
 to agreement, and for the next six weeks a perfect stampede 
 of pu])ils occurred at the academy every Tuesday and Fri- 
 day afternoon. Three or four usually remained, but as 
 these were my oldest pupils, who were fr(»m u distance, and 
 they had only one recitation after that hour, after reciting 
 that, they returned to their rooms, giving me an opportimity 
 to return to mine, ov remain aiid muse in solitude as I pre- 
 ferred. Of course, I chose to do the former, but I had 
 enjoyed this short respite from my labors only twice, when> 
 as 1 had supposed, there was a loud comi>laint that I 
 was neglecting my business, liarnes, who lived a little 
 distance from the village, and had not been seized with the 
 fe-^'er for singing, or heard to what an extent it was raging, 
 came to Smallett one day, saying that he had been informed 
 two or three times, recently, that I was not in school more 
 than half the time, leaving it for the purj)ose of attending 
 singing school, and sending my pu])ils home a whole day 
 twice or three times a week. Having had his erroneous 
 ideas corrected, he asked if it was not true that I left the 
 school-room on those days, when I had few or no scholars, 
 before four o'clock. Being answered in the alhrmative, he 
 gave it as his opinion that I should remain there, as the 
 patrons, seeing me outside, or knowing that I was in my 
 
.1 
 
 
 
 Hi 
 i 
 
 
 
 If 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 1 
 
 
 324 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 IP 
 
 room, would naturally think t^at 1 hud no interest in the 
 .school, an<l, conseciuently, ftar that their children were 
 learninj,' nothing. Others also in([uired of Smallett how it 
 v.'as that I was out of the school-room so much, and, on 
 being enlightened with regard to the matter, instead of ex- 
 pressing surprise or regi'et that the citizens should permit 
 a singing school to take precedence of the othev, they 
 always evinced deep regret that I should have such an 
 " easy time " of it when the district was paying me such 
 "high wages." 
 
 Scarcely was the singing school in operation, ere a danc- 
 ing school was oj)ened, which occupied two evenings in the 
 week, and as the remaining evenings were usually taken 
 up with parties, it would have been folly to expect any- 
 thing in the v.ay of study from my pupils outside of the 
 six hours they were in the schoolroom. 
 
 During all the time that 1 had taught here, the onl two 
 indivi luals who had visited the school were the min of 
 the village and the school suj)erintendent. The fomiui nad 
 been in three or four times, and spent perhaps a couple of 
 hours at each visit. Thougli he sent no children to school, 
 he knew more about it than any other person in the village, 
 .*dd his words of kindness and sympathy gave me much 
 comfort and encouragement. I was greatly indebted to 
 him ft)r the good opinion many of the citizens entertained 
 of me as a teacher, for although they had too little interest 
 to come in and ascertain for themselves the way in which 
 I was discharging my duties, they were intelligent enough 
 to rely on the judgment of one who was educated and had 
 been a teacher himself. In my experience in teaching, I 
 have always found myself sustained by the clergymen of 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 325 
 
 the localities where I luive labored ; partly, I sui)p08e, from 
 the fact that there was a degree of similarity in our respec- 
 tive vocations, and partly because often exposed to unjust 
 ^rit'cisms, and generally receiving only a small salary, 
 they know how to extend the hand of symjjathy to 
 those in like circumstances. I look back over the years 
 that I have taught, and rev»\\ tht; names and faces of those 
 who have given me their support in those times of trouble 
 which come upon all teachers, and I find none more dear 
 and familiar than the minister of the Gosf)el. None so 
 ready to examine my work, to strive to awaken an interest 
 in the school among patrons, or to frown at every appear- 
 ance of paisimony and injustice. 
 
 The suj^erintendent visited the school twice — once in the 
 fall and then again in the winter, spending but one hour 
 each time. He declared hi; ^elf highly pleased, paid 
 me many compliments — a duty which superintendents 
 seldom forget towards teachers ; and carried forth a good 
 report of the school to the village. It no doubt did me 
 some good, inasmuch as his report was regarded by many 
 as a careful, correct estimate of the character of the school ; 
 but to me it seemed a farce. What can he learn, I thought, 
 in one hour, of my method of instruction and discipline, or 
 of the general habits and progress of my pupils ? 
 
 But when I compared my lot with that of the young 
 
 lady teacher in the same building, I felt that I had little 
 
 cause for complaint. Not a week passed during the whole 
 
 term that she was not visited by some father or mother, and 
 
 called to account and abused for some injustice done to 
 
 their offspring. Fieddie or Katie had been punished too 
 
 severely ; the older pupils had misused them ; their books 
 
 w 
 
i| 
 
 fit 
 
 326 
 
 The Frontier ScJioolmaster. 
 
 f i' 
 
 m 
 
 had been torn, or they had been the victims of some other 
 misfortune, for which the teacher was wholly to blame, and 
 for which also she must receive discourteous and heartless 
 treatment. Often, when leaving my school at night, I 
 found her standing in her door, meekly receiving these un- 
 just reproofs, so intimidated by the coarse manner and 
 angry tones of the offended ones, that she was unable to offer 
 a word in her defence. She generally retired alone to her 
 school-room after these unkind reprimands, and spent an 
 hour or more in weeping and bemoaning her unpleasant 
 
 lot. 
 
 I could but feel much sympathy for her, and was not 
 backward in expressing my indignation at the treatment 
 she received. Not one in ten of the complaints that were 
 made against her was supported by reason o" justice. 
 Among such a number of pupils, it would be surprising if 
 simple accidents did not sometimes occur, whatever care or 
 vigilance the teacher mighn exercise, and to hold her respon- 
 sible for them was an act of cruel injustice. It was no 
 different, however, from the treatment which, many times 
 since that, I have seen accorded teachers, sometimes with 
 the same, and at othe s, with different results, accordiuir to 
 the nerve and teraper;i:nent of the teacher. I now speak 
 more particularly of female teachers, as they, on account 
 of their meekness and timidity, are more frequently sub- 
 jected to these abusive attacks than males. While one, as 
 if forewarned of what she is to e :})ect in teaching, receives 
 these complaints and reproofs as a matter of course, with 
 but little disturbance of her equanimity, another is quite 
 differently affected, not understanding that, in assuming 
 charge of a school, she is to be scolded and abused by every 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 327 
 
 one of ner patroDs who may feel inclined to gixe, vont to 
 his il]-humor, 
 
 In a territory supporting tei/ distric* schools, I have 
 known two teachers to be almost incapacitated for their 
 duties from these unjust con^plaints and censures, and yet, 
 from education and refinement, they were the best quali- 
 fied of all the nimiber for the labors in which they w^ere 
 engaged. Sensitiveness, and a regard for the opinions of 
 others, are traits not to be ignored in securing a teacher, as 
 their natural tendency is to make one watchful, lest, by 
 omitting some duty, dissatisfaction should arise, and care- 
 fui in deportment, lest offence, unwittingly, should be given. 
 Yet, owing to the thoughtlessness and ignorance of patrons, 
 these very traits are often made subversive of the true 
 interests of their school, causing the teacher many hours of 
 disquietude, making her dislike her vocation, and thus un- 
 fitting her for the proper discharge of her duties. 
 
 Miss Barnes was a representative of this class of female 
 teachers ; though I must admit that she showed much less 
 tact in governing than the majority of them do, but as no 
 one eA't-r came to encourage, only to accuse her of favoritism, 
 indifference to her work, or of severity on the one hand and 
 leniency on the other, no wonder that she was discoura<'ed. 
 
 Many of her pupils were large and as old as herself ; boys 
 and girls of poor people who had been to school but little, 
 or else those of French nationality, who were learning the 
 rudiments of English. Johnny Sargent and Sammy Morse 
 attended her school for a short time, or until some offence 
 which they committed made them fearful of punislnnent, 
 when they left, and spent the remainder of the term in the 
 street; Mrs. Sargent still persisting that Johnny would 
 
328 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 INII 
 
 III 
 
 'iiJI 
 
 never learn anything till they hired a graduate of Dartmouth 
 to teach in the village, and Mrs. Morse entertaining the 
 same opinion with regard to Sammy. 
 
 I have shown that the singing school afforded me a short 
 rest twice a week. 
 
 Providentially for Miss Barnes the stove pipes in her 
 room gave her a longer rest, if not quite so frequent. With 
 a view to economy, old worn out stove pipes were 
 stretched the whole length and nearly across one end of the 
 room, and these were supported by scanty bits of wire. 
 Nearly every week, as might be supposed, the stove pipes 
 indulged in a general tumble, filling the room with smoke, 
 soot and ashes. The event was always hailed as a jubilee 
 by the pu])ils, for they never had less than a half-holiday 
 on these occasions. Of course some member of tlie com- 
 mittee was sent for, and the pipes were replaced, usually, 
 with the additional expense of a yard of wire, and sometimes 
 by a new joint. On the first and second instance of the 
 pipe's falling, little was said ; but finally people began to 
 grumble, blaming the committee somewhat for not making 
 their stove pipe structure more firm, but generally throwing 
 the blame wholly on the teacher. In most instances the 
 disaster occiirred either in the morning before school com- 
 menced, or at noon, and it was soon said that if the pupils 
 were instructed by the teacher neither to jump nor run in the 
 schoolroom, nothing of the kind would happen, hence, some 
 meanly insinuated that she secretly encouraged these rude 
 sports for the sake of a holiday, or at least did not prevent 
 them. To prevent rough sports entirely in the schoolroom 
 during his absence, is a thing almost impossible for a strict 
 and experienced male teacher to do, and to expect this young 
 
 f M9f 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 329 
 
 lady, with her unruly boys, to do it, was a thing most 
 absurd. It never occurred to any one that it was a duty 
 incumbent on the patvons to help her to preserve order, or 
 to put the stove ])ipes up so securely that they would not 
 tumble down on the slightest jar ; no, that would cheat the 
 people of the pleasure of fault finding, as well as interfere 
 with their notions of economy. The pipes had been down 
 seven times, when, strange to say, the committee were ad- 
 vised by several of the citizens to purchase and put up new 
 ones, and stranger still, they did it. Hitherto they had re- 
 frained from so doing, on the plea that they were to build 
 a new academy in a year or two, and they feared that an 
 investment in new pipes now would be deemed useless 
 and extravagant by the district^ but, after losing five 
 days of school, and causing an endless amount of profanity 
 and abuse of the teacher, they were suddenly seized with 
 the thought that the pipe would nut be suthciently damaged 
 to prevent its use in the new building. 
 
 " Stove pipe holiday " had become a favorite expression 
 with the boys of the village, and the frequency and zest with 
 which they screamed it on the street, I have no doubt, 
 annoyed the committee, and n^ ived them finally to heroic 
 action. The reminder of duty neglected was too frequent ; 
 "it was becoming monotonous," 
 
 The trouble experienced by the teacher in that di~*'ict 
 from the falling of the stove-pipe was only one of many 
 similar instances that I have witnessed. 
 
 I shall weary the reader with no longer account of my 
 trials at Bloomingdale. It is sufficient to say that I finished 
 my winter term and taught also in the spring. No event 
 of importance to me occurred during the winter save one. 
 
330 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster 
 
 i) 
 
 On account of his insolence and disorderly habits, I felt 
 obliged to expel a large, rustic youth of eighteen, which act 
 secured me the enmity of his relatives, from his grandfather 
 down to his baby sister. 
 
 At the annual school meeting, which was held in March, 
 the citizens who sympathized with Uncle Jack in his cru- 
 sade against expensive schools, and those who had been 
 bored with his complaints, united to make him chairman 
 of the new committee which they elected. A part of those 
 who voted for him affirmed that they did so, both from a 
 curiosity to see what he would do, and to put an end to 
 his " eternal grumbling ; " and so, on this broad and liberal 
 platform. Uncle Jack was elected to preside over the educa- 
 tional interests of Bloomingdale. Barnes and a man of 
 kindred nature were his colleagues. 
 
 I learned that the next winter they ..ngaged a girl for two 
 dollars a week to teach the higher department of the school, 
 with the specific understanding that she was to " board 
 around," and hire a boy to build her fires ; and, for the 
 lower department, they engaged a girl for one dollar and 
 twenty-five cents a week, with the same stipulations that 
 are given above. Barnes was in favor of again hiring his 
 niece, provided she would teach for twenty-five cents a 
 week less than she received in the preceding winter, but 
 the other two objected, on the ground that she had made so 
 little effort to keep the stove pipes from tumbling down 
 thiis securing to herself several holidays. 
 
 In the spring I was obliged again to depend on tuition as 
 remuneration for my labors. The school was small, but 
 pleasant. I made rules as stringent as I thought I could 
 with propriety enforce, and to my gratification they were 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 d$i 
 
 verj' generally observed. It had become pretty well under- 
 stood by this time that I strove to maintain discipline, and 
 the cases of punishment and expulsion which had occurred 
 showed, too, that I was not afraid to resort to such measures 
 as I deemed necessary for the accomplishment of my wishes, 
 so that those who sent to school, sent with the full under- 
 standing that their children must obey. 
 
 Mrs. Whittimore became so far reconciled that she even 
 decided to send Mattie. I presume she would have sent her 
 away again, had not the unhappy result of placing her in a 
 distant boarding school, in the previous autumn, led her to 
 the conclusion that she had better in future keep her under 
 her own eye. Mattie's humiliation, in that school and in 
 my own, had produced a good effect on her. She was far 
 more humble, more respectful, more studious, and in fact 
 gave considerable evidence of becoming a woman of stability 
 an'^ good sense. She was not altogether punctual in her 
 
 ondance, but so much more so than when she was last 
 uy pupil, that I was disposed to be as lenient as possible. 
 
 Johnny Sargent was sent away to his aunt's to attend 
 school, but his chum, Sammy Morse, attended mine. 
 He often ran away, but his mother, fearful of the result, 
 always brought him back, apologized and assured me that 
 she had punished him for the offence. As she showed such 
 a strong desire to have him observe the rules and learn, I 
 got along with him as well as I could, although quite con- 
 scious that he was learning very little. 
 
 My school, this term, brought me as net profit just S40, 
 the full amount of which I was obliged to use for other 
 purposes, so that nothing remained for my creditor. About 
 this time, I received a little more than half the amount of 
 
fffii* f 
 
 i 
 
 332 
 
 The Frontier SchooCmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 my winter's wages, but the remainder was not paid till Sep- 
 tember. From the entire sum I was able to transmit to Niel 
 $70. 
 
 I believe I never enjoyed a release from school more than 
 I did that which left me free at lUoomingdale, 
 
 I had now completed my first year of teaching High 
 School. I had learned that it was not what, in former 
 years, I had anticipated — a lucrative, pleasant occupation, 
 commanding a good salary and the respect of all my pa- 
 trons. I remembered how, in former times, I had imagined 
 myself enjoying the luxury of a suite of rooms, laying 
 aside my gown and slippers in the morning, walking to the 
 academy, issuing orders to the janitor, and then, after devo- 
 tion, stepping into the lecture room, and, with retort and 
 crucible, unfolding the mysteries of science to a large and 
 intelligent class of young ladies and gentlemen. 
 
 But, alas, as in most cases, the reality had been a sad 
 contrast to the anticipation. I had learned that the high school 
 of the country was scarcely an improvement on the district 
 school — the teacher in the one being subjected to all the 
 vexations and hardships that he was in the other. True, 
 my situation at Bloomingdale was, in some respects, more 
 pleasant than it was in Meadville, yet, in other respects, it 
 had been more trying ; and when I reflected upon all the 
 labor I had performed, all the annoyances and humiliation 
 I had suffered for a little more than $200, exclusive of 
 board, I could but feel that I ha^ sought a livelihood 
 through the most rugged and thorny path by which it could 
 be reached. > v ^ ^ 
 
 m 
 
 I i 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 A visit from my creditor — I give new notes in exchange for the old — 
 A desire to go West — I commence the study of law — I give it up, 
 and return to teacliing — I decide to try farming, but making too 
 many improvements I am obliged to abandon it, and engage once 
 more in teaching. . 
 
 In the fall, after leaving Bloomingdale, hoping to secure a 
 better position as teacher in another place in Vermont, I 
 delayed a little too long, and the school was given to another, 
 so that I was left without any employment, save that of 
 
 assisting my father about his farm work. ; ' ; ; .■ » 
 
 Early in October Niel visited me, and to my surprise was 
 in a state of partial intoxication. > 
 
 I had never known him to be in this condition before, 
 nor had I ever heard that he was intemperate in his habits, 
 so that I could easily divine that he had sought to drown 
 his shame on this occasion of meeting me by potations to 
 which he had never been accustomed. I treated him with 
 respect, yet not with cordiality. No allusion was made by 
 either of us to the events which caused the estrangement. 
 He said that he had come to exchange my old notes for new 
 ones, in which the rate of interest waj to be twelve per 
 
334 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 III 
 
 ii|j|!:i 
 
 cent, instead of six, which I had before paid him. He 
 claimed that this was the rate which he received on all the 
 mortgages and notes which he held against other parties, 
 and presumed that I would have no objection to paying the 
 same, inasmuch as he would doubtless be obliged to wait 
 some time longer for the principal. My first impulse was to 
 command him to leave the house, especially as I. doubted 
 that he received twelve per cent, from others, and felt that 
 he was only demanding it in this case to oppress me and thus 
 satiate his thirst for revenge; but then, I knew that he • 
 would immediately sue me, and make more cost in the end, 
 so I concluded to humor his caprice, and yield to his 
 demand. I also had a great dread of being sued, regarding 
 it as a disgrace. Up to the present time I have escaped 
 this annoyance, though more than once, to satisfy rapacious 
 creditors, I have paid interest which old Shylock, himself, 
 would have blushed at accepting. Then, too, I thought that 
 by yielding to this proposal I might effect a compromise 
 with him and get an extension of time, and I quietly sug- 
 gested that in case I gave him twelve per cent, he should 
 permit me to put the whole amount into one note, payable in 
 three years from that day. Whether he was too drunk to 
 realize that this would be a great favor to me, or whether he 
 feared to provoke me to a rehearsal of his villany, I know 
 not; but he made no objection to the suggestion, and I 
 gladly gave him the new one and received my old notes. 
 
 During the few months that I was at home, I was far 
 from being happy, fretting because I was in no better posi- 
 tion, and continually forming plans, and then dismissing 
 them. Hearing of the high salaries that were paid teachers 
 in the west, i was strongly inclined to try my luck there. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 335 
 
 but numerous things opposed themselves to this movement. 
 I had never so far recovered my health, that I felt able 
 to enduHi much hardshij) ; indeed, it was with fear that 
 I might not be able to com])lete it that I commenced every 
 term of my school at Bloomingdale. 
 
 I was obliged to take great care of myself, being very 
 systematic and regular in my hygienic habits, and avoiding 
 an excess of mental labor, otherwise, I would, in all pro- 
 bability, have been compelled to desist from teaching. This 
 was the chief thing that prevented me from seeking em- 
 ployment so far from home, among strangers. And then 
 the uncertainty of finding a position at once, indeed, the 
 improbability of finding one until after I had been there 
 some time and formed acquaintances, made the prosjject of 
 going, especially in my penniless condition, anything but 
 pleasant. Added to these, the objection of my friends to 
 such a step, and the fact that a large number of teachers 
 from the east were already there looking for situations, 
 made it appear wiser and more profitable to remain in 
 my own section. I have many times since, how^ever, 
 regretted that I did noi go, and had I known thai ^ would 
 follow the vocation as many years as I since have, I think 
 no trifling thing would have prevented me. I now regard 
 it as one of the gi'eat mistakes of my life. 
 
 My 'brother-in-law, in Mayfair, once more advised me 
 to study law, and I was so far induced to heed his advice 
 that I took up Blackstone and became familiar with its 
 contents. But, though I liked the study of law, I had 
 formed a dislike to the practice from what I had seen and 
 learned of it in various ways. Owing to this, my know- 
 ledge of law terminated with my knowledge of Blackstone. 
 
336 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Ml^ 
 
 1H!i' ^ 
 
 in? 
 
 rriit 
 
 It was another of my too common mistakes, in conseiiuence 
 of which I have liad many regrets. 
 
 As winter api)roached, a neighbor who was committee of 
 the school in my own district, where, as the reader doubt- 
 less remembers, 1 had formerly taught, asked me on what 
 terms I would again take the school for four months. 
 
 Knowing their inability to pay much, I replied, 
 
 " Twenty-five dollars without board." 
 
 Having ascertained that I was in earnest he at once 
 accepted the offer, saying, as he did so, that he had no idea 
 that I would take the school at any price, since — as lie ex- 
 pressed it — I had been throngh college. 
 
 I boarded at home again, and went through my school as 
 before, though, from my superior knowledge of science, I 
 was better able now to give m^ pupils short lectures which 
 interested them greatly, and I had the satisfaction of know- 
 ing that, though I was receiving low wages, I was accom- 
 plishing good. .< 
 
 During the winter I usually spent my evenings in reading 
 when I was not too fatigued, and as I read many books on 
 agriculture, and every week devoured the contents of the 
 " Country Gentleman " and " Moore's Kural New Yorker," 
 I became possessed with a strong desire once more to engage 
 in farming. 
 
 This desire was not a little increased by the gradual 
 decline of my health from confinement in the school-room. 
 Then, too, I was daily meeting strong, robust young farmers, 
 my school-mates in former years, and their lively spirits and 
 general happy appearance convinced me that they had been 
 wiser than myself in being contented with their lot and 
 following the occupation of their fathers — clinging to the 
 
 
 1 li 1 
 
 
 i J ^ ^ 
 
 
 ■ 
 
 1 
 
 1. * 
 
 
 h 
 
 ^L, 
 
The Frontier Schoolmastei', 
 
 337 
 
 farin. Tliey seemed in almost every way Ix^tter off tlian 
 myself, lit-in^' healthy, free from deht, and aljove all con- 
 tented and ha|)py. I was much better educated than tiiey, 
 but as an offset to this advantaj^e my constitution was shat- 
 tered, I was badly in debt, discontented and unhaj)j)y. If 
 by any means I could acquire the health that they en- 
 joyed, and free myself from debt, it seemed to me that my 
 temjioral happiness would be complete. 
 
 My education would heighten this enjoyment, not only 
 making my leisure hours more })leasant, but afford ing mo 
 snbjects for contemplation during my labors, and also, if 
 rightly employed in this occupation, it would contribute 
 much towards my pecuniary profits. Yes, I would be a 
 farmer, and with my usual enthusiam, when about putting 
 into execution a new plan, I began to revel in the antici- 
 pation of my future lot, and was vexed that 1 had not long 
 before given myself to this vocation in prufcreuce to any 
 other. 
 
 Euth was now in New Hampshire. Early in the winter, 
 having been offered a good situation as teacher in that state, 
 through the influence of a friend, she accepted it, and had 
 now been gone some months. I missed her society greatly, 
 but desiring to be unselfish with regard to the matter of her 
 leaving, I contented myself once more with her letters. 
 Being, as I have already shown, much more pratical than 
 I was, 1 knew that she would regard my determination to 
 be a farmer with much pleasure, hence, it was pleasant, for 
 me to inform her of my decision. 
 
 Having spent so much of my life on the farm, I was 
 familiar with all the different kinds of labor connected 
 with it, and, of course, felt myself quite equal to the 
 
T 
 
 338 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schuolmaster, 
 
 m 
 
 iiii 
 
 manag(miont of it, iucludiiig the stock and all tho necessary 
 exiKiiidilures. 
 
 1 had not yet learned that knowing how to do farm hibor 
 and knowing how tonianuge a farm are (|uite distinct things, 
 and rc({uire talents of different order. A carpentrir may 
 execute his work neatly, he may hang a door, })ut on a 
 casing or cornice with taste ami accuracy, yet, if required 
 to plan a house, he might show himself a wretched archi- 
 tect ; and so a man may plow, sow grain, mow and pitch 
 hay, or take care of stock properly, yet, if required to 
 fence, improve and fertilize a farm, keep no more than tlie 
 proper amount of stock, hire lielp, and do all this without 
 overstepping his income, he may prove that he is wholly 
 unqualitied for the work. It was my unhappy privilege 
 to exemplify the truth of this statement in the summer of 
 which 1 write. I had a small sum of money at the close 
 of my winter school, and, had I possessed more wisdom 
 and prudence, I would have applied it at once on the large 
 note that 1 had recently given, but, with the conviction that 
 I could so invest it that in a year or two it would double 
 in amount, 1 laid it out in improvements which, for the 
 hrst year, paid but a small percentage on the sum invested. 
 
 Full control of the fa; had been given me, so I went 
 on buying phosphates, draining, drawing muck and soiling, 
 with the expectation of receiving enormous crops of gi'ain 
 and numberless tubs of butter. But everything turned 
 out differently from what I had expected, and, as fall 
 approached, instead of having two or three hundred dollars 
 left, as the result of my agriculural speculation, I had barely 
 enough to pay the help I had hired. The only benefit that 
 
 iiflliii i 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 339 
 
 I had derived from my summer'a work was a decided im- 
 provoraent in health. 
 
 Disgusted with farming, I began to look about again for 
 more lucrative employment, but, as in former times so now, 
 the only tiling that 1 could find to do was school teaching,' 
 and to this, once more, disappointed and sad, I devoted 
 myself. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 A leap over three years — A history of their events — Mv marriage— 
 Our baby — We lose 3iir ail by fire — My experience d8 book agent. 
 
 Kind reader, since last we met my circumstances have 
 greatly changed. I am three years older, a married niati, 
 and the father of a bright blue eyed, flaxen haired girl — 
 six months old, named Dora. Her advent forms an im- 
 portant epoch in my history — a new phase in my emotions 
 and ambition. I had never been fond of children, not like 
 many people disliking them, but never regarding them with 
 anything beyond passing notice. 
 
 It might not perhaps be saying too much to aver that I 
 disliked very young children — babies ; nothing making me 
 feel more awkward than to have a mother present her tiny 
 infant for my admiration. I could see nothing to admire. I 
 could not compare it with other babies to its own advantage, 
 for all looked alike, and having been reared alone, without the 
 companionship of younger brothers and sisters, I knew 
 nothing of the dialect in which babies should be addressed, 
 consequently I could only look simple, smile, ask its name. 
 
 4 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 341 
 
 that I 
 
 |ii;_C me 
 
 r tiuy 
 
 liire. I 
 
 .ntage, 
 
 (Ut the 
 
 knew 
 
 'essed, 
 
 name, 
 
 how old it was, and whether it had teeth. This much done 
 I usually diverted the attention of the mother to some sub- 
 ject, leaving her with the impression, no doubt, that I was 
 a boor, and baby with the thought that I was very unsocial. 
 Like most other men, however, when the baby had grown 
 larger, had become three, four or five years old, my interest 
 in it was stronger, especially if it had been well trained, 
 and displayed evidence of brightness But even then I 
 never enjoyed more than a moment's attention to it, never 
 entering into its sports with the zest that I had seen other 
 young men display. 
 
 It was some time before I could assume the situation of 
 paternity with the ease and pleasurable emotions that my 
 companion wished me to exhibit. 
 
 My disinclination, however, to caress her soon wore 
 off, and I began to watch her developments, and fondle her 
 with the highest degree of paternal affection. 
 
 At her present age^ young as she was, her image had 
 become so engraven on my heart, she was so blended with 
 my every thought of home, that future separation from her 
 I felt would be worse than death to me. 
 
 It seemed to me that a home without children must be 
 cheerless, comfortless — that a man who had never experi- 
 enced the emotions, the cares, the responsibility of father- 
 hood was a creature but half developed — a being with the 
 better portion of his nature yet dormant. 
 
 But I must not leave the reader to infer that everything 
 had gone well with me since I had abandoned the occupa- 
 tion of farming. 
 
 For a year after that event I had taught in a neighboring 
 
 X 
 
342 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Hl'itt 
 
 township of Canada, from the result of which I had paid 
 the interest due Niel and forty dollars of the principal. 
 
 Keturning home once more in a debilitated condition, and 
 finding my father in poor health, I was again inclined to 
 try my luck at farming. I believed that my former mis- 
 takes in this business would serve to make me more cau- 
 tious, and I had little doubt that, if I economized and made 
 no improvements except as means and opportunity presented, 
 farming could be made to pay. My father being anxious 
 to relieve himself of the care of the farm, I was induced 
 to accept it. 
 
 My first act, after making this decision, was to get mar- 
 ried. It was not quite pleasant to contemplate the difference 
 in my situation now and what I had formerly resolved it 
 should be when I led Euth to the altar, but I was not the 
 first who had been obliged to exchange a castle for a cottage 
 in his transition from the ideal to the real. 
 
 My wife then asserted, and she still persists in asserting, 
 that the only reason for my getting married was that I had 
 nothing else to do, that I had tried everything else with 
 the design of securing either honor or happiness and failed, 
 hence, in disappointment and despair, I got married. That 
 my life had been calculated to confirm her in this suspicion, 
 I cannot deny, but the reader will understand by tliis time 
 that my marriage was effected, finally, from the firm con- 
 viction, on my part, that it could never occur under liappier 
 auspices, and with the reflection that conjugal life might, 
 perhaps, be as pleasant in humble circumstances as in the 
 higher walks of life. 
 
 Euth, as I have shown, had some means of her own. 
 
The Frontier Schoolniaster. 
 
 343 
 
 own. 
 
 The accumulation of interest on this, and whf-t she had 
 saved by teaching had left her, at the time of our marriage, 
 in possession of a thousand dollars. The farm of which 
 I was the proprietor, with stock, etc., was worth twice that 
 sum, so that in reality we seemed to be prepared to enjoy 
 the comforts if not the luxuries of life. As I now had, 
 something myself, although obliged from this to provide for 
 the support of my parents, I felt less delicacy in accepting 
 her offers of assistance than I formerly did, and I had so far 
 descended to the realities of life that I was ready to talk with 
 her about the practical subject of our support. 
 
 It was decided that I should sell off part of the stock, 
 all that could be possibly spared from the farm, for the 
 purpose of paying a portion of the sum I was owing Niel. 
 That lluth's possessions should be used in enlarging the 
 house — to make it convenient for two families, and in fur- 
 nishing it, and that we should endeavor to save enough 
 from the iarm from year to year to extinguish my debt. 
 Having mutually agreed to this arrangement we married ; 
 but before any part of the above plan had been put into 
 execution a sudden disaster frustrated the whole scheme, and 
 left us in an unpleasant condition. 
 
 One night, late in October, during a strong gale from the 
 west, I was suddenly awakened by Ruth, with the startling 
 intelligence that the ho- ^e was on fire. Partially dressing 
 myself, 1 tlew down stairs, awakened my parents, and then 
 rushed out ith the hope that I might succeed in extin- 
 guishing the ire which had caught in the roof of the kitchen 
 from a defect! i chimney. But the hope was futile. Al- 
 ready a large part of the roof was ablaze, and the burning 
 shingles were flying directly on the roof of the barn, which 
 
r •' 
 
 344 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 m^ 
 
 3 ' i 1 . 1.- 
 
 Iljill 
 
 was but a few rods distant, and tliis too was on fire. My 
 
 first work, therefore, must be to save the cattle and horses, 
 
 which were confined in it. By the time I had unloosed 
 
 and driven them from the stable, all the buildings — houses 
 
 barn and shed — were in flames. Our nearest neighbor was 
 
 a quarter of a mile distant. I had aroused him by my 
 
 shouts when I first left the house, but ere he came it was 
 
 too late to render much assistance. 
 
 Besides the animals, I succeeded in saving the^harness 
 
 and waggons. The other members of the family had saved 
 
 the clothes and bedding ; except this, everything else was 
 
 gone — hay, grain, farming utensils, furniture and books. I 
 
 had a small library which 1 had collected at different times 
 
 at an expense of about $400, and this was to me the sorest 
 
 loss of all. 
 
 Homeless now, we spent the rest of the night with our 
 
 neighbor. In the morning, when I went with liuth to view 
 
 the site of our dwelHng, now a smouldering heap of ashes, 
 
 I think I was the saddest, the most discouraged that I had 
 
 ever been in my life. Fire insurance companies were not 
 
 as numerous in those days as they now are, nor had people 
 
 generally been aroused to the importance of having their 
 
 property protected by them, consequently, our buildings 
 
 were not insured. 
 
 Ruth saw my disheartened condition, and, concealing her 
 own feelings, she assumed a cheerfulness and a quiet resig- 
 nation to our loss that surprised me. 
 
 She adjured me not too look so sad and hopeless, saying 
 that much worse things might have happened, and that as 
 long as we still had each other, and my health was far better 
 than it had been, I had no reason to despair. There was 
 
resig- 
 
 re was 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 345 
 
 truth and wisdom in her remarks, and, inspired by her 
 example, I rallied from despondency, and, before night, had 
 done much in the way of disposing of the stock for wliich 
 we now had no hay, and towards preparing for building. 
 
 Her money was now all that we had to rely on, and with 
 this and the aid that was given me by kind neighbors and 
 friends I succeeded in rearing very good buildings, though 
 obliged to get along without the comfort of many of those 
 things which accTimulate in households in the course of 
 years, yet so gradually that the occupants are hardly con- 
 scious that they have been obtained by a considerable out- 
 lay of money. 
 
 Contrary to my intentions, before this misfortune I taught 
 the district school wliich I have before mentioned, boarding 
 at home. Unpleasant as this work was, I was again placed 
 in circumstances where I felt obliged to do anything by 
 which I could honestly earn a dollar ; my bad luck having 
 blasted almost all hope of releasing myself from the clutches 
 of Niel. I had got along comfortably up to the time I have 
 mentioned, when our child was six months old, but the low 
 price of farm produce that summer had prevented my paying 
 the help we had to employ, and meeting other expenses, 
 without contracting debts which I saw no way of canceling, 
 except by devoting myself, for awhile, to some business 
 disconnected with the farm. What should it be ? I was 
 neither a professional man nor an artizan. I could neither 
 preach, practice in the courts, treat the sick, build a house, 
 work in a cabinet shop, or on the shoemaker's bench. I 
 wished that I might hire out to work on a farm, cut cord- 
 wood, draw wood and bark to market, or something of that 
 sort, but my strength was not sufficient. I could think of 
 
f 
 
 \m\ 
 
 -i!i 
 
 m 
 
 346 
 
 The Frontier Schoolviaster. 
 
 nothing except teaching, but that I would not try until 
 positively assured I could do nothing else. 
 
 While trying to settle on some business, I picked up a 
 newspaper, and my eye fell on the following advertisements : 
 
 $ioo a month ! Business easy, requiring a capital cf only $5. Last 
 year four of our agents cleared $1500 each. 
 
 Address, Z. Tom kins & Co., 
 
 H- 
 
 N. H. 
 
 WANTED , .; ; 
 
 Agents in every town in the United States. No risk. Profits im- 
 
 mense 
 
 Address, 
 
 Fogg & Smith, 
 F , Conn. 
 
 AGENTS WANTED 
 To sell Livingstone's Explorations in Africa. 25,000 copies sold 
 last month! 
 
 Ferguson & Follktt, Publishers, 
 
 New York. 
 
 Without saying anything to Ruth, I addressed letters to 
 all these firms, not doubting that I would have employment 
 that would bring me S60 or $70 a month net profit. Deter- 
 mined not to be disappointed, I placed my income at this 
 low figure, so that in the event of my making what other 
 agt^nts had made my pleasure would be the greater. 
 
 In due time the answers came. I was with Ruth alone 
 in the sitting-room in the evening when the letters were 
 handed me by a neighbor. I first opened the letter of Tom- 
 kins & Co. 
 
 It informed me that for $5 they would send me a recipe 
 for making a " very durable and beautiful jet black ink." I 
 could get the ingredients at any drug store, enough for $2 
 
 1 
 
 ■ ■ ■ \ ' i 
 
 
 ' ■ ■ 1 
 
 
 
 im 
 
 ■ 
 
The irontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 347 
 
 until 
 
 to make a quantity of ink that I could retail for $25. 
 Everybody would buy it. It was so cheap that very few 
 families would take less than a gallon, lawyers and men who 
 had much writing to do often taking ten or twelve gallons. 
 It also gave me the pleasant assurance that af: .r I had 
 obtained the recipe, if I had not the S2 with which to 
 purchase material, I could buy a smaller quantity, even ten 
 cents being suthcient to start with. The ink manufactured 
 from the ingredients that I could obtain with this small 
 sum I could sell to my " nearest neighbors," and thus 
 secure means to extend my trade. There was much more 
 information given in the circular which I did not take the 
 trouble to read. My hopes of employment began to flag. 
 I next opened the letter of Fogg & Smith, and, to my 
 inexpressible disgust, the first sentence that met my eye 
 read as follows : 
 
 One Barrel of Excellent Soft Soap for Five Cents. 
 
 This was enough. Thrusting these letters savagely into 
 my coat-pocket, I tore open the envelope of the last letter, 
 I could not be disappointed in this, as I knew the kind of 
 work in which Messrs. Ferguson and FoUett wished me to 
 engage. 
 
 I regarded their offer as quite liberal, inasmuch as they 
 promised to supply me with any number of copies of a book 
 for $1 each which I could retail for $2. They averred that 
 one of their agents often sold ten copies in a day, and 
 scarcely one of them had ever sold less than three. This 
 was encouraging, and I determined to try it. 
 
 It is said that pride and poverty often go hand in hand, 
 and I think that at that time I must have been a living 
 illustration of the truth of this saying. That I should have 
 
r^ 
 
 348 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 considered it at all humiliating to be the vender of an inter- 
 esting and instructive book, I can only account for on the 
 ground that, as a rule, book agents are generally regarded 
 as persons of little ability and very " hard up." 
 
 Taking a book agency seems to be the dernier resort of 
 every body. It is the business to which all flee when they 
 have shown themselves to be incompetent to do any other, 
 hence, the expressions " he is nothing but a book agent," 
 or " he is only lit to act as book agent." The fact that well 
 educated and highly respectable people sometunes for 
 various reasons act as book agents, does not seem to wipe 
 out the stigma that rests upon the profession. They are 
 not regarded as a dangerous class of individuals, but so 
 many ill-bred characters have engaged in the business of 
 book selling, and pressed their solicitations so much beyond 
 all courtesy and decency, that the whole class has come to 
 be regarded as a nuisance destitute alike of money and 
 good breeding. 
 
 This opinion of book agents was not as prevalent in 
 those days as it now is, yet it was generally entertained in 
 the cities and in the most populous and wealthy districts of 
 the country. It was the knowledge of this fact that made 
 me decide that I would do nothing at this business except 
 in some section where I was an entire stranger. 
 
 After reading these three letters I rose, went to the 
 kitchen, and threw the two that displeased me into the 
 stove. Euth had observed the expression of disgust on my 
 face and was naturally curious to know the contents of 
 the letters, and when 1 paid no attention to her request to 
 see them, she followed me and snatched them from the 
 Stove. She read them with much merriment and many 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 349 
 
 jokes at my expense, and long afterward she never heart! 
 me express a desire to exchange my employment for some 
 other without suggesting the manufacture of soap. 
 
 As she had learned thus much, I felt constrained to inform 
 her of my intention with regard to the book agency. She 
 said with a smile, 
 
 " If I believed that you would stick to it I would object 
 to your taking a book agency, on account of your being 
 absent from home so much, but I have no fear on that 
 gi'ound." 
 
 •' Why ? " I asked. " Don't you think I will succeed ? " 
 
 " No," she replied. " I don't wish to discourage you, but 
 if you will allow me to be your oracle in this case, I 
 prophesy that you will give up the business within one 
 week, and you will not make a dollar." 
 
 " Well, we shall see," I said, having a little too much 
 confidence in her judgment not to feel somewhat discouraged 
 by her prophecy. 
 
 A week after these letters were received, I was about 
 forty miles from home, in one of the flourishing villages of 
 Northern Vermont, to test my success in getting subscribers 
 for "' Livingstone's Explorations in Southern Africa." 
 
 I had arrived by stage late the previous evening, stayed 
 at the principal hotel over night, and after breakfast the 
 next morning sallied out to commence my labors. I shall 
 not recount in detail that day's adventures; the rebuffs, 
 excuses and indifference that I received, nor describe all the 
 queer characters that I met. At night I had three sub- 
 scribers ; one of whom I was informed always subscribed 
 for every thing, and paid for nothing. I was told that I 
 
350 
 
 The Frontier SchoolmoMer. 
 
 m 
 
 would do better outside of the village, among the fanners ; 
 and so the next day I acted on this advice. 
 
 The first house I stopjied at was a fine large ])rick lesi- 
 dence with commodious outbuildings, and everything around 
 betokening such a degree of ta^te and wealth, that I had no 
 doubt the proprietor would subscribe at once. He was 
 sitting in his shirt sleeves, on his verandah, when I accosted 
 him ; a man i)ast middle age, and looking us if he might be 
 possessed of considerable intelligence. He took the book 
 without making any remarks, or asking me to be seated ; 
 sent his little daughter into the house after his " 8])ecs," 
 and then commenced reading. While he read I talked to 
 the child. Fifteen, twenty, thirty minutes passed away 
 and he had not raised his eyes, or spoken a word. At last 
 I said : 
 
 "You find that a very interesting book, do you not, 
 sir ? " 
 
 " Yes, pretty fair," he u vvled out as he turned another 
 leaf and went on reading as before. 
 
 I amused myself with the child about ten minutes longer 
 when I ventured to remark, 
 
 " I suppose I can take your name as a subscriber for the 
 work." 
 
 So absorbed was he that he made no reply this time. I 
 pulled out my watch and tried to show him that I was anx- 
 ious to go on, but he seemed to be perfectly unconscious 
 that I was present. Had it not been for his stoic coun- 
 tenance and something in his speech and manner which 
 warded off any such suspicion, I might have thought he 
 was indulging a freak of humor by tantalizing me, but 
 I could only attribute his actions to meanness and stu- 
 
 m 
 
 *i \ 
 
27te Frontier ScJioolmaster. 
 
 351 
 
 pidity, and my anger began slowly to rise. After waiting 
 ten nnnut(!.s more, I walked up to him, presented my sub- 
 scription list and said, 
 
 "Will you have the kindness to })Ut your name on 
 this ? " 
 
 Without deigning a look at it or raising his eyes from 
 the book he replied, 
 
 " I'd 'no, its pretty hard times." 
 
 " ThiugH about here don't look as if times are hard with 
 you," I said. 
 
 No reply, but he kept on reading. Determined that he 
 should continue this no longer I said, 
 
 " My dear sir, you are so int rested in this book you 
 surely will not refuse to subscribe for it, 1 am in some 
 haste to go on, and if you will put your name on this list 
 you will greatly oblige me." 
 
 " I never subscribe for books or for anything else," he 
 replied. 
 
 " Never ? " I asked. 
 
 " No, never ; I always pay down for everything I buy. 
 When you come round with the books like enuff I'll 
 take one." 
 
 " But I shall have none to sell, as I sell only by sub- 
 scription." 
 
 " Well, then, I shan't get one," he replied, " You can't 
 git me to subscribe for one anyway." 
 
 " Why didn't you tell me this at first," I asked, " instead 
 of keeping me here an hour for you to read ? " 
 
 " you never can expect to sell goods unless you show 
 'em," he retorted with an indignant look ; and this was all 
 the satisfaction I received. 
 
 
r 
 
 I'rt 
 
 352 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 I 
 
 m^\ 
 
 m \ 
 
 At the next house a woman carae to the door, and 
 before I had time to speak she asked in a sharp voice 
 which reminded me of the yelp of a cur, 
 
 " Be you j^ittin' subscribers for books ? " 
 
 " Yes, for one l)ook," I replied, considerably abashed. 
 
 " Well, we don't want none," she yelped, and tlien, slam- 
 ming the door in my face, retreated through tli*' hall. 
 
 Book selling was losing its charms for me. It now 
 ranked with school teaching as an employment in my 
 estimation. 
 
 Proceeding to the next house, I found the i)roi)rietor, a 
 coarse, blunt, but not an ill-natured fellow, hitching his 
 horse to a buggy in the shed. Disclosing my business to 
 him, he was silent for a short time, and then, in a drawling 
 voice, exclaimed : 
 
 " Wall, I don't know, I never thought 'twas a very good 
 plan to encourage these loafers that go round the country 
 tryin' ter git their livin' without work. Of course, I don't 
 mean you; you may be all right enuff, but half these 
 fellers that go round sellin books aint any better than boss 
 thieves. Aint you able ter work ? " 
 
 I was dumbfounded. For a moment I made no reply, 
 but at length I stammered out — 
 
 " If I were not, I think I would not be in this business ; 
 I never did any harder work." 
 
 " Why ? Don't they scribe pretty freely ? " he asked. 
 
 " Not very," I replied. 
 
 " Wall, I don't know," he said, after meditating awhile ; 
 " ef I thought 'twas any charity to you I might subscribe. 
 Haint you got no recommends or nothin' 'bout yer ? " 
 
 " I did not suppose a person required any recommenda- 
 tion for himself in order to sell a good book," I replied. 
 
The Frontier Schoolma8tei\ 
 
 353 
 
 lor, and 
 rp voice 
 
 ihed. 
 
 n, slam- 
 
 U. 
 
 It now 
 in my 
 
 irietor, a 
 king his 
 siness to 
 Irawling 
 
 ary good 
 country 
 , I don't 
 df these 
 lan hoss 
 
 reply, 
 
 usiness ; 
 
 sked. 
 
 awhile ; 
 
 ibscribe. 
 
 ?" 
 
 imenda- 
 
 lied. 
 
 *' Wall, p'rai)8 he don't," was the reply, " but I never sub- 
 8cril)e for a book except ter help the feller that's sellin' it." 
 
 "That may he a very good motive," I said, "but I prefer 
 that you subscribe for this book on account of its value." 
 
 "Wall, let's go in," ht said, after hitching his horse, 
 " and see what my wife says ; " and he led tlie way into the 
 kitchen. 
 
 " Sarah," he said to the woman who seemed to be getting 
 dinner, " here's a book agent. 1 <lon't know nothin' about 
 the book, but he don't look like a very rugged chap, and I 
 thought p'raps 'twould kinder be an act of charity to sub- 
 scribe. What do ye say ? " 
 
 " Why," she exclaimed, " if you think its goin' ter dew 
 him any good, subscribe." 
 
 " Wall, I guess I will," he replied. 
 
 He then added his name to my short list of subscribers 
 for a book, the title of which I doubt if he ever knew. 
 Thanking him, I went in pursuit of another patron. It was 
 some distance to the next dwelling, and as I walked rapidly 
 along, anxious to get over as much tenitory as possible, I 
 passed a man and two boys near the road reaping wheat. 
 As I neared them, one of the boys espying rae watched me 
 for a moment and then addressed his companion, who by 
 this time had also desisted from labor, to look at me, as 
 follows : 
 
 " I'll bet that feller's one o these — what d'ye call 'em ?" 
 
 " Book agents," suggested the man. 
 
 " Yes, that's it, book agents," said the boy. " Wonder ef 
 he'll sell any ter Barber's folks." 
 
 The other boy now spoke in low tones, but as I was in 
 close proximity to them I distinctly heard the remark. 
 
 
354 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 ( i 
 
 " I tell yer, Jack, that aint a book agent ; he steps too 
 spry. 'Half on 'em don't move as though they had life 
 enough to breathe without help." 
 
 " Tf they wer'nt lazy, they never'd try to git a livin' in 
 that way," said the old man. 
 
 I was now too distant to hear the final verdict of the 
 paity with regard to myself and my vocation, nor was I 
 anxious to hear more, having abeady become convinced that 
 I had embarked in a business which caused everybody to 
 regard nie either as a pauper, or as one too indolent to work. 
 
 Turning in at the next liouse, which I presumed was 
 Barber's, I timidly raised the old heavy iron knocker, and 
 gave three faint raps. A short, black-eyed and very con- 
 sequential man of fifty answered the summons. He did 
 not ask me to come in, and as I was hesitating, fearful of 
 making my business known, he gruffly said : 
 
 " Do you want to see me, sir ? " 
 
 " Are you the proprietor of this house f " I asked. 
 
 " Yes," was the immediate response ; " but if you are a 
 book agent there will be no need of your stoi)i»i:ig ; I sliant 
 subscribe." 
 
 " Good morning, sir," I said, turning oti my heel to depart. 
 
 " Good morning," he replied, and the door instantly 
 banged behind me. 
 
 No doubt, many in my place would have meekly solicited 
 a hearing, and in the end, perhaps, would have succeeded 
 in securing a subscriber ; but, if persistency like that were 
 essential to make a successful book agent, I e' idently had 
 mistaken my calling. 
 
 Had it not been for the humiliation of returning home 
 80 soon, I would at once have retraced my steps to the 
 
 iiiii 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 355 
 
 i cited 
 
 3ded 
 
 were 
 
 had 
 
 village, preparatory to the journey ; hut fear of ridicule 
 made nie decide on a few more efforts. 
 
 It was now near noon, and I began to feel considerable 
 desire for dinner, and, as there was no hotel in the vicinity, 
 I visited the next house, more with a wish to appease my 
 appetite than to obtain a subscriber. 
 
 All the dwellings I had before visited indicated the 
 possession (tf wealth by the proprietors ; but this was 
 a small, unpainted house, yet everything about it displayed 
 neatness and taste in the occupants, and I had decided, in 
 my own mind, that here I would get a subscriber and a 
 good dinner. A young giri came to the door, and my first 
 request was that she would ask the mistress if I could 
 obtain anything to eat there. 8he stepped into an adjoin- 
 ing apartment, and I heard her make known my recj^uest to 
 some one, evidently a woman. 
 
 " He's got a book, hasn't he ? " inquired the person, and 
 I concluded that I had been observed from a window as I 
 WP" approaching. Being answered in the alHrmative, she 
 said, 
 
 "Well, if we give him his dinner, he will make us sub- 
 scribe, so you can tell him we have nothing ready for dinner, 
 and that he had better go to the next house ; and to the 
 next house I went before the girl returned with the message, 
 resolved that my career as book agent was closed. The 
 house was a few rods back from the road, and, as I turned 
 in, I concealed my book under the fence by the gate, but 
 I had been seen by a precocious urchin wlio was playing 
 with his little wagon before the door. As I ap[)roached 
 him, he looked at me with impertinent curiosity, and 
 asked : 
 
356 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " Be you a book agent ? " 
 
 " No ! " I growled, feeling inclined to thrash him for in- 
 dulging the thought, and then I inquired if his folks were 
 ut home. 
 
 "Yes," he answered, "and you can go in if you aint a 
 book agent. Ma don't like them fellows, and I thought 
 you was one 'cause I see you have a book oi' somethin' 
 when you was comin' in the road," 
 
 To cut my story short, I obtained a good dinner for 
 which they refused pay, and then I walked back to the 
 village, and the next do^y I returned home, having spent 
 four days and eight dollars in getting xour subscribers. No 
 one but my own family knev what I had been about, so 
 that I escaped nuicule from every one save Euch. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 My wife and T teach in Shirley — A demand again from my creditor — 
 Inability to comply with it--The civil war — My sympathies and 
 desire to enlist — A recruiting officer — I feel compelled to enter the 
 army — A sad night — Further proof of my creditor's desire to ruin 
 me — I enlist, and thereby obtain means fo release myself from his 
 clutches — My joy at the event — The parting. 
 
 It was now toward the last of August, and I immedi- 
 ately secured the privilege of teaching a selecc school in 
 the town of Shirley in Vermont, where I had been a stu- 
 dent several vears before. 
 
 As Ruth's knowledge of French was superior to my own, 
 and she, also, was skilled in drawing and painting, it was 
 decided that she should teach these in the school, and, if 
 necessary, assist me by teaching a class or two in some 
 of the other bi'anches ; the baby to be left in the care 
 of a* nurse at our boarding place. Pursuant to this arrange- 
 ment, we opened our school, and the number of pupils 
 which came in was sufficient to inspire us with the hope 
 that we should have a prosperous term. 
 
 Y 
 
 ii^^^itayyi 
 
358 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 A sharp letter from Niel just before we left home de- 
 manding payment of the note had strengthened our deter- 
 mination to practice the closest economy. 
 
 In consequence of the fire, I had been unable to pay him 
 anything excej)t two years' interest, since the new note was 
 given. After the loss thus sustained, I sold all tte animals 
 except one cow and horse, as I had neither hay nor gi-ain 
 wherewith to keep them. 
 
 In the spring I bought stock again on credit, and had .not 
 been able to pay for it and carry on the farm without, as I 
 have shown, contracting other debts. It was now my decision 
 to save what I could from my labor and in the spring to 
 sell oiT everything, stock and whatever else would sell, and 
 cancel my note to Niel with the proceeds ; trusting that in 
 some way I might be able to support the family until I 
 had raised more stock. 
 
 The great civil war was now raging in the United States, 
 and everybody on the continent was looking on with intense 
 interest, and anticipating the issue with varied degrees of 
 anxiety. 
 
 As that was the land of my birth, and I had vspent much 
 of my life and received my education there, it was natural 
 that I should watcl the struggle with no ordinary interest, 
 and receive tidings of every battle with excited emotions. 
 
 My sympathies were wholly and strongly with the Fed- 
 eral cause, and had my health permitted, I doubt not that I 
 would have enlisted at the very first call for volunteers 
 after the attack on Sumpter. I often spoke of my desire 
 to enter the array, but my friends, especially my mother 
 and Ruth, opposed the step with all the force of admonition 
 and persuasion. 
 
 
 V-''«4'^ '>■•-■> 
 
The Frontier Schoolrnaster. 
 
 359 
 
 I once mentioned ray desire to a recruiting officer, but 
 as he immediately informed me that he felt assured from 
 my ap])earance that I would not be accei)ted by the ex- 
 amining physician, I did nothing further at that time 
 towards becoming a soldier. 
 
 This was just previous to my marriage, but after I be- 
 came strcmger, and had assumed a more healthy appearance, 
 my former thoughts of enlisting occasionally returned. 
 
 We had boon teaching at Shirley a week, when I received 
 a letter from Niel, in which he threatened to expose me to 
 the law unless my note was paid within ten days. I liad 
 replied to his last letter, and told him in full my intentions, 
 which I have stated above, and, as he could not possibly be 
 pressed for money, I knew that he had not yet lost his 
 desire to embarrass me. I confess that I was greatly worried 
 by the letter, and knew not what to do. I had thought of 
 the matter much through the following day, and in the 
 evening was talking with Ruth respecting it, and trying to 
 devise some method of complying with his demand, when 
 our boarding mistress entered and informed me that a gen- 
 tleman was awaiting me below. I went down, and found 
 sitting in the parlor a well-dressed mnn, who informed me 
 that he was a recruiting officer. 
 
 " Have you any idea of enlisting, Mr. Styles ? " he asked, 
 after we had conversed for a moment. 
 
 " I have had some idea of it," I replied, " but I was once 
 told by a recruiting officer that I would not be accepted on 
 account of ill-health." 
 
 " Do you not think you would be able to endure the 
 work of a soldier ? " he again asked. " If you can, I am 
 permitted to ofl'er you good inducements for enlisting," 
 
 ri'-j'«.| 
 
 E' 
 
 
 
t 
 
 
 
 t 
 
 i 
 
 ( 
 
 360 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 " What are your inducements?" I inquire l 
 
 " Our Government pays a certain amoui to this the 
 State adds considerable more, and the town to wliich I 
 belong, in Chittenden County, has very generously offered 
 to pay $200 more to any one who will enroll himself as a 
 citizen of that town, so that in case you are disposed to d 
 that, I will pay you $800. 
 
 " That certainly is a liberal offer," I replied, "and a great 
 inducement to one in my circumstances to enlist, but I 
 would not like to have any one imagine that I go as a 
 mercenary soldier. Did I not feel a very strong desire for 
 the success of the North, the money alone would be but a 
 slight temptation to me." 
 
 " We need men of this sort, Mr. Styles. One man who 
 fights from feelings of patriotism is worth ten mercenary 
 soldiers ; and a man who is not rich cannot afford to refuse 
 the bounty that is offered, as his family, or those relying on 
 him for support, may very much need it during his 
 absence." 
 
 " I think your reasoning is quite correct," I replied, " and 
 I will consider your offer." 
 
 " And when can I know your decision ? " 
 
 " To-morrow morning, at eight o'clock." 
 
 Satisfied with this, t went up to our room, having decided 
 before reaching it that I would enlist, provided I could be 
 accepted. As I went in and sat down, Ruth, observing t))at 
 I was l^f)fmj}g under excited emotUiitH, fiflked if I h(i4 
 heard anyt|ji/ig further triiln Niel, f said — 
 
 " No, and after a few days Wiel will give iii(? no more 
 trouble, as I sliall pay him." 
 
 ^m^ 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 361 
 
 " How ? " she asked, with an expression of anxious curi- 
 osity on her face. 
 
 " I am going to enlist," I replied. 
 
 " Enlist ! " she exclaimed, in a tone which showed her 
 alarm at the thought. 
 
 " Yes, Kuth, I mean what I say ; T know of no otlier 
 way of obtaining the money for Niel, and besides, it will 
 afford me great pleasure to do something in the cause of 
 right and justice." 
 
 She had dropped the sewing at which she was engaged, 
 and was now sitting unemployed — the picture of despair. 
 At length she said : 
 
 " This is not your country, and it would be wicked for 
 you to enter the army and fight, yes, to kill men for the 
 sake of money." 
 
 " Come, Euth, let us talk reasonably about this mrtter. 
 This is my native country ; and you know that, had my 
 health permi^^ted, I would have entered the army ar a time 
 'fijifm I could hope but little in the way of pecuniary 
 tti*HiiH], so I am free from the imputation of fighting merely 
 from mercenary motives. At tiit; present time, however, I 
 see no way of extric^iting my.self from the toils of Niel, 
 only by li-'Cf^r.tiaag the otter that has been made me, and I 
 confes« j-L _f mofla+fV is a great inducement to me." 
 
 " Well, wJMBt wiD vou do with your school ? It would 
 not be honoiai)le tt. abandon it now after you have cum- 
 meuced." 
 
 " As for that," T replied, "the citizens of this country 
 are never displease 1 with a person who leaves his business 
 to enter the army , oa the other hand, they rather a])])laud 
 the act ; and you know there is a young man in this village 
 
 i'?r 
 
 I 
 
362 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 W f 
 
 who came very near getting the school instead of myself, 
 and ho will take it off my hands now, if I wish." 
 
 " Well," she said, after another pause, " if you are deter- 
 mined to go, I suppose you will, but what will become of 
 me and our Dora in the meantime ? Can you leave that 
 baby, Frank ? " As she asked the last question, she stepped 
 to the side of her crib where she was sleeping, and slightly 
 removing a blanket exposed her rosy, innocent face to 
 view. 
 
 The thought was too harrowing. I was vexed that she 
 should thus try to make my leave so painful when she 
 must know I thought that there was no alternative but to 
 go. I did not for the moment consider that it had not yet 
 so struck her, and that it was by thus appealing to my af- 
 fections she sought to keep me with her, I made no reply, 
 and a moment afterward she came up to me, and placing 
 her hand on my shoulder said in the most pathetic tones, 
 
 " You will not go, will you, Frank ? " 
 
 " What about Niel ? " I asked. 
 
 At the name she started suddenly, and with a look of 
 anger which I had never before seen her display she ex- 
 claimed : 
 
 " Oh that wicked wretch ! I do not believe the Lord will 
 suffer him to drive you into the army to be killed. If 
 there is a place of endless torment, man surely never 
 deserved it more richly than he." 
 
 " He has a right to his own," I said ; " he should not be 
 cursed for wanting his pay." 
 
 " I am astonished, Frank, that you should say a word in 
 palliation of the actions of that wretch. His pay ? " she 
 repeated in a tone of scorn and contempt ; "he carew 
 
Tlie Frontier Sehoolmdster. 
 
 363 
 
 not be 
 
 word in 
 ? " she 
 carefj 
 
 nothinj,' at all for the money. If he had it, he would either 
 keep it in his house, or else put it out for half the interest 
 you are paying him. And then to demand it of you just 
 when you are begimiing to recover from your misfortunes 
 and are struggling to earn it for him ! He should lose it 
 all ! " she exclaimed, being wrought up by the contemj)la- 
 tion of his heartlessness to such a })itch of indignation that 
 she seemed for the moment to have lost her conscientious 
 regard for strict integrity in business transactions. 
 
 " That might be only justice to him," I said, " but you 
 know that if I live he will never lose a cent through me," 
 
 " I know that," she replied, " and 0, I wonder if he 
 never feels how much superior you are to him iu honesty, 
 as well as in everything else that pertains to manhood ; but 
 I am sure, that if you were to see and talk with him, he 
 would give you time to pay without com] )elling you to enter 
 the army. Do you not think so ? " 
 
 " I do not know, but I certainly shall never ask a favor 
 at his hands." 
 
 Our conversation continued long ; I might say, through 
 the entire night, for neither of us slept, and scarcely an 
 interval of half an hour elapsed when we were not thus 
 engaged. 
 
 As soon as people were astir in the morning, I called on 
 the different members of the school committee, to inform 
 them of my intentions. Though they had little to do with 
 my present school, I thought I might regard their opinion 
 in the matter as an expression of my patrons' feelings ; and 
 as they affirmed that they would be satisfied in case I 
 obtained another teacher to fill my place, I inmicdiately 
 sought and found a successor. My resignation, however, 
 
 ItJ 
 
 .1 
 I 
 
H 
 
 mi 
 
 ::\ 
 
 '': 
 
 .b 
 
 1 
 
 pll ' 
 
 1 
 
 ; 
 
 il 
 
 
 364 
 
 jT/iC Frontier Schnolmaater, 
 
 was contingent on the circumstance of my being accepted 
 as one physically qualified for military service, and in order 
 to have this problem settled it was necessary to visit the 
 town of Burlington, in Vermont. After seeing the young 
 man who was to succeed me in school, I called at the hotel 
 to give my final answer to the recruiting ofhcer, and to effect 
 a complete understanding with him in regard to the terms 
 of my enlistment. 
 
 While waiting in the office for him to come in I chanced 
 to glance at the names entered the previous day on the 
 register, and was astonished to find the name of Niel, my 
 creditor. The name below it was written in the same hand, 
 which I recognised as his own. On enquiring of the clerk, 
 I learned that the other name was that of the recruiting 
 officer, and that he and Niel came together, and remained 
 over .. ght, but the latter had not yet left his room. 
 
 Up to that moment I had not known from what source 
 the officer obtained his information that I wished to enlist, 
 but it was now plainly evident. As everybody in the sec- 
 tion where I lived knew my sentiments with regard to the 
 rebellion, also my inclination to enlist, Niel must have been 
 cognizant of them, and no doubt he had laid the plan for 
 securing my enlistment. It would serve his purpose in 
 two ways. First, he would get his money, and, second, 
 he would have the gratification of knowing that it would 
 give great trouble to both my wife and myself, causing, as 
 it would, our se[)aration for a long time, if not for ever. 
 
 He had, no doubt, written his last letter with the inten- 
 tion of compelling me to enlist, should the opportunity to 
 do so present itself, and then he had taken care that the 
 opportunity should be presented ere the first effect of his 
 letter on my mind had time to wear off. 
 
The Frontier Schoohnutster. 
 
 365 
 
 3r. 
 
 The discovery of the part lie had thus played, in j,'ettin<» 
 me to enlist, made not theslij,'htostditlerence in my opinion 
 of him, for I already lespised him as thor()u«^hly as man 
 could despise another. 1 did not see him, while at the hotel ; 
 whether because he knew that 1 was there and wished to 
 avoid me, or whether something else detained him in his 
 room, 1 know not. When the recruiting officer came in 
 I iisked if Niel was the man who informed him that 1 wished 
 to enlist, and being answered in the athrmative, 1 knew, of 
 course, that my suspicions of Kiel's motives in so doing 
 were correct. 
 
 From a desire to pay Niel before leaving, I insisted on 
 having the SHOO i)aid me as soon as my examination was 
 made, and I had been accepted. 
 
 The day following, I went to obtain the note which 
 had so long haunted me,, causing many days of anxiety 
 and sorrow, proilucing many a sleepless night, and now 
 contributing much towards taking n* from my family to 
 encounter the hardsliips and dangers of military life. 
 
 Strange power to be embodied in a bit of paper I thought, 
 as 1 took it and placed it carefully in my pocket-book. I felt 
 that I was now in possession of some vast treasure. I had not 
 experienced such })leasurable emotions for years. It vv,i> a 
 release from bondage ; and I doubt if ever a fugitive slave 
 breathed freer than I did, or v;as happier on reaching a land 
 of freedom than I was, when x returned home with that 
 note in my possession. 
 
 Niel, I was informed by his servant, was not at home, 
 but, in anticipation of my coming, he had left the note with 
 him, authorizing him to give it to me whenever I was 
 ready to pay it. 
 
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 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 H 
 
 Ruth now returned to Foreston, and after spending a few 
 days in arranging my business for a long absence, I started 
 for my regiment. As the recollection of it is now painful 
 to me, I shall not give a detailed account of all that 
 transpired in my family during the preparations for my 
 departure. 
 
 Many families along the frontier of Canada, as well as 
 thousands iu the United States, have experienced th(i same 
 thing— the entire household enshrouded in gloom — sleepless 
 nights, tears, prayers, and the sad, almost agonizing, final 
 separation. 
 
 On the day I departed, Ruth began to display quiet 
 resignation, and eveu cheerfulness ; yet I knew that it was 
 only assumed for my good, and that behind all this was — 
 *' grief that passeth show." 
 
 In trying to rouse her from her sad and gloomy state, a 
 day or two previous, I cheerfully said : 
 
 " You do not very aptly imitate the heroism of Spartan 
 women, Ruth." 
 
 *' That is true," she said ; " but I might feel differently 
 had I been born in the States and spent my life tuere ; yet, 
 I believe that then, unlike Spartan wives, my motto would 
 be — " My husband first, and country afterwards." 
 
ing a few 
 
 I started 
 
 V painful 
 
 all that 
 
 3 for my 
 
 s well as 
 
 th(i same 
 
 -sleepless 
 
 ing, final 
 
 lay quiet 
 tiat it was 
 lis was — 
 
 y state, a 
 
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 iifferently 
 uere ; yet, 
 )tto would 
 
 CHAPTEE XXVI, 
 
 I join my regiment — I meet two of my former pupils— My horaesick- 
 ne88 — Our winter quarters near Brandy Station — A betrayal and 
 the punishment of the betrayer— A fight— I hear of n)y old colored 
 friend, Tim, and am pleased to do him a favor once more. 
 
 At Burlington, I met about a dozen volunteers who had 
 recently enlisted, and we all were Lent on immediately to 
 Washington. A day or two subsequently, in company with 
 many other new recruits, and convalescents whc had left 
 the hospitals, we were dispatched to the army of the Poto- 
 mac to fill up the ranks of those regiments which had been 
 decimated by battles and disease. 
 
 The Vermont regiment which I joined belonged to a 
 brigade encamped but a short distance south-west of Cul- 
 pepper, in Virginia. 
 
 It was now early in October, and as the men were under 
 the impression that they were to remain in this position for 
 some time, they were sparing no pains to make themselves 
 as comfortable as possible. Vacant houses, which were 
 known to belong to rebels, as well as bams and other out- 
 buildings, were demolished, and either converted into smaU 
 
¥ 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 \l 
 
 l ■ 
 
 1 
 
 11 ; 
 
 ill 
 
 i 
 
 368 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 cabins for the comfort of the soldiers or else into fuel. I 
 was not backward in appropriating whatever I cculd that 
 I conceived to be necessary for my comfort, and my expe- 
 rience at manual labor gave me the advantage over many 
 of the regiment who knew but little about work. 
 
 There were members of every trade and profession in 
 the regiment — lawyers, doctors, clergymen, teachers, farm- 
 ers, merchants and mechanics ; men of every degree of 
 intelligence — from the poor young man who had barely 
 learned to read and write, to the clever gentleman who had 
 graduated \/ith collegiate honors. A common cause, how- 
 ever, and common danger levelled all distiac*^ions of rank 
 among the soldiers. The country was at stake, the lives 
 of all there were imperilled to preserve it, and the feeling 
 of patriotism b) which they were animated united all by 
 a tie too strong to be severed or weakened by the conven- 
 tionalities of society. 
 
 I was surprised soon after my arrival to be addressed 
 by two soldiers who affirmed that they had been m}^ pupils 
 in Meadville, nearly ten years before. After a little time I 
 recognised them as Tom O'Callaghan and William Sargent, 
 both of whom had been actors in the scene in which Tom's 
 father had shown me how they flog pupils in Ireland. Both 
 were intelligent young men, nearly as old as myself, but 
 Sargent was the only one married. They recollected the 
 incident of the flogging distinctly, and we all laughed 
 heartily over it. Tom had made a good use of his time since 
 I kiiew him, so that, as unpromising as he then appeared, 
 he was now something of a scholar, and was of sober and 
 industrious habits. He retained considerable of the Irish 
 accent, and having inherited no small amount of Irish wit 
 
 ■1 ! 
 
fuel. I 
 :uld that 
 Qy expe- 
 'er many 
 
 ession in 
 rs, farra- 
 egree of 
 d barely 
 who had 
 ise, how- 
 
 of rank 
 bhe lives 
 e feeling 
 ed all by 
 
 conven- 
 
 ddressed 
 
 y pupils 
 
 e time I 
 
 Sargent, 
 
 h Tom's 
 
 Both 
 
 self, but 
 
 ted the 
 
 iiiighed 
 
 le since 
 
 peared, 
 
 jer and 
 
 le Irish 
 
 ish wit 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 369 
 
 and exuberant spirits, he was always a welcome companion 
 when immediate dangar or thouglits of home tended to 
 make his comrades despondent. 
 
 I was very glad to meet these old acquaintances, even 
 though I had not known them for years, for the sad and 
 lonely feelings which possessed me during ihe first few days 
 of my residence with the array made even the sight of a 
 face that I had ever seen bofore a source of great pleasure. 
 
 I was not alone in my despondency ; nor did I wa'^t for 
 sympathy, for there was more than one in our regiment 
 whose heart constantlv vearned for home and the friends he 
 had left behind. 
 
 A few evenings after my arrival, as several of us were 
 sitting around a camp fire, Tom O'Callaghan, observing my 
 disconsolate frame of mind, exclaimed, 
 
 " don't be looking so sad about home and the Missus, 
 Mr. Styles ; in less than a month ye'U forgit all about it 
 .and be dead in love with one of the beautiful daughters of 
 Dixie, that we so often see in this section." 
 
 Tom's design was evidently to arouse me into a more 
 happy frame of mind by this address, and though it created 
 a slight laugh among those present, and changed the current 
 of my thoughts for a moment, it did not suffice to remove 
 the burden of sorrow which had settled down upon my heart. 
 
 Nearly the whole night I rolled from side to side, dis- 
 turbed by frightful dreams, and by deep bitter i egrets that 
 I had ever enlisted. I know not what I might have been 
 tempted to do had there not been behind all these sad feel- 
 ings, this anguish at separation from my family, a sort of 
 feeling, a premonition, as it were, that God would preserve 
 my life and give me other work to do in the future. 
 
r-' 
 
 Jill 
 
 nil 
 
 370 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 :l 
 
 !i m 
 
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 In the morning we received orders to march, and though 
 I knew not but that it might be to certain danger, I hailed 
 the order with delight. The work of marching would at 
 least afford a momentary relief to my feelings; it was a 
 respite from utter wretchedness and home-sickness. 
 
 It turned out that the movement we made was a retreat 
 of the whole army. Simultaneously with this, Lee, the 
 rebel general, changed his position, and soon there was a 
 race between the two armies for a commanding position at 
 Centreville ; but fortunately we reached it first. Two or 
 three days were consumed in effecting this march, and as we 
 were sometimes attacked by detachments of the enemy, every 
 hour was attended with more or less excitement. By the 
 time vre had reached the position desired, my homesickness 
 had considerably decreased, and I was rapidly becoming 
 reconciled to the life of a soldier. It was during this march 
 that I had my first experience of having hostile bullets fly 
 around me, and of sending i,he same missiles at my fellow 
 men in return, but I witnessed only a little of the horrors 
 of war compared with what I afterwards saw. 
 
 Early in December the army went into winter quartei • 
 between the Rappahannock and Rapidan in the vicinity of 
 Brandy Station, and we remained there until March. The 
 way in which we spent this winter may be learned from 
 the following extract from the history of a Vermont regi- 
 ment. 
 
 " The occupation of the men during these winter months 
 were various — they were Yankee. Their quarters were all 
 comfortably arranged ; some of them were ingeniously fitted 
 up and fancifully adorned. 
 
 Harper's and Leslie's Illustrated Weeklies furnished 
 
The Frontier Schoolvmater. 
 
 371 
 
 d though 
 I hailed 
 would at 
 it was a 
 s. 
 
 a retreat 
 Lee, the 
 ive was a 
 ositicn at 
 Two or 
 ■ind as we 
 ny, every 
 By the 
 esiokness 
 becoming 
 his march 
 bullets fly 
 ny fellow 
 le horrors 
 
 ■ quartei ' 
 icinity ot 
 ch. The 
 ned from 
 lont regi- 
 
 r months 
 were all 
 isly fitted 
 
 ■urnished 
 
 many a soldier's hut with tasty decorations, after he had 
 profitably read them. The battle cuts, views of camps and 
 landscapes, were often carefully preserved and pinned or 
 pasted to their cabin walls ; added to them were the bril- 
 liant pictures and daubs of novel covers, and all these often 
 interspersed with their own rude pencilings. Some of 
 their tents were turned into cobbler's .^hops and tailoring 
 establishments, where the occupant, with true Yankee enter- 
 prise, would repair the clothes and shoes of his neighbors ; 
 some of them, besides all the other purposes they served, 
 were converted into jeweller's shops, and watches were 
 actually well cleaned and repaired in the camp. 
 
 All kinds of craftsmen were fourd among the volunteers 
 of our army, and details were easily made for the telegraph 
 office, the forges, and all the workshops of tJie Quarter- 
 master-General. " 
 
 About six weeks after we had been encamped here, five 
 of our regiment, after chatting awhile together one morning, 
 agreed to take a tramp. Lieut. Stanley, a gentleman who 
 had been a teacher and editor of a country newspaper for 
 some years, Smith his friend, Sargent and O'Callaghan, 
 whom I have mentioned, and myself, composed the party. 
 
 As the rebel army was encamped in sight, and parties of 
 rebel soldiers were daily strolling away from camp and 
 coming into proximity with our own, we knew that it was 
 necessary to exercise much caution lest we should find 
 ourselves exposed to their bullets, or perchance be taken 
 prisoners. We were all well armed with muskets and 
 revolvers, still we had no intention of wantonly exposing 
 ourselves to danger, hence, we decided not to wander far 
 from carnp, which decision was strictly in accordance with 
 orders. 
 
-r» ./Wj*^* 
 
 372 
 
 The Frontier SchooVmxister. 
 
 m 
 
 p! 
 m 
 
 " -5 
 
 III 
 
 WM \ 
 
 111 
 
 Hi 
 
 
 There were many houses scattered over the country in the 
 vicinity of our camp, some of which belonged to men loyal 
 to the Federal cause, and others to men whose principles 
 were not so well known, though it was pretty generally 
 believed that they secretly desired the triumph of the 
 Southern arms. The habitations of those men who had 
 openly espoused the Confederate cause were quickly evacu- 
 ated on the approach of our army, and their personal 
 property left behind was as quickly appropriated to our 
 use, the dwellings, as I have already shown, being demo- 
 lished. 
 
 We had to walk some distance from our own cabins 
 before we reached the outskirt of the camp, and passing 
 two or three houses, we pushed on to a fine, large residence, 
 standing on a hill about two miles distant. 
 
 A part of our company hesitated about going so far away, 
 but Smith urged us to proceed, saying he had been informed 
 that the house was owned by a staunch Union man, and 
 that in case we were to visit him he would doubtless 
 entertain us with a good dinner. This was a temptation, 
 as we were all pretty well cloyed with the fare that we had 
 had constantly for a long time, and so after a little discus- 
 sion we yielded to Smith's solicitation and went on. I had 
 some misgivings, so had Stanley and Sargent, but O'Cal- 
 laghan and Smith laughed at our fears, and assured us that 
 they should go on and enjoy a good dinner, but we might 
 return to camp if we liked. 
 
 Nothing occurred during the walk to excite our fears, 
 and we soon reached the old mansion, on the front gallery 
 of which sat the proprietor in an arm-chair, smoking. He 
 was just past the middle age, with a haughty carriage and 
 
y in the 
 en loyal 
 rinciples 
 enerally 
 of the 
 vho had 
 Y evacu- 
 personal 
 I to our 
 g denio- 
 
 n cabins 
 
 passing 
 
 esidence, 
 
 'ar away, 
 informed 
 man, and 
 lonbtless 
 station, 
 we had 
 discus- 
 , I had 
 O'Cal- 
 us that 
 /e might 
 
 ur fears, 
 gallery 
 mg. He 
 iage and 
 
 The Frontier ScJioolmaster. 
 
 373 
 
 a keen, restless black eye, which, from the moment its 
 glance met my own, 1 felt assured portended evil to us. 
 
 Lieut. Stanley, addressing him, was received rather 
 coolly at first, but in a few minutes the old fellow's manner 
 changed and he seemed ({uite sociable. I had noticed the 
 name R. A. Kershaw on the door-plate, and immediately 
 remembered the surname as that of an old aristocratic family 
 of Virginia, of whom I heard two officers of our regiment 
 speaking a few days before. 
 
 " Are you out foraging ? " he asked of Stanley, whom he 
 recognised as the only officer in the party. 
 
 " Not exactly foraging," replied Stanley, " but becoming 
 tired of the monotony of our camp life, we concluded to 
 take a stroll this pleasant day." 
 
 " Well," said Kershaw, " if you would like to rest awhile 
 here, sit down, and I'll have some refreshment prepared for 
 you before you go." 
 
 There were a few chairs and a settee on the verandah, 
 and on receiving this invitation we all seated ourselves. 
 
 " Do you or any of your party smoke ?" he next asked. 
 
 Sargent and myself wero the only ones in the party who 
 did not smoke, and learning this fact, he went into the house 
 and soon returned, followed by a colored servant, who car- 
 ried a box of choice Havanas. After Kershaw was again 
 .seated, and our friends were engaged in smoking, the con- 
 versation was opened and carried on with considerable 
 animation between Kershaw and Stanley, for nearly an hour. 
 The beauty of the situation of his residence commanded much 
 admiration from all of us, and then he gave us quite a 
 detailed account of the doings of his ancestors, as well as 
 himself, since this pa^-t of Virignia had been their home. 
 
r ' 
 
 '874 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 ft 
 
 ill ' 
 
 ■1 
 
 11 
 
 - 
 ,1 
 
 It was noticeable, liowever, that ho never alluded to hid 
 political views, and as he never once spoke of the rebellion, 
 or the causes which had led to it, it was obvious that he 
 was a rebel at heart, even though he attempted to display 
 friendship for us. 
 
 At length a female servant came and informed him that 
 the refreshment he had ordered for us was reedy. 
 
 " Well, show them into the dining hall," said Kershaw 
 to her. "You will excuse rae, Lieutenant," he said, address- 
 ing Stanley, " for not dining with you, for I took a very late 
 breakfast, and as I feel somewhat indisposed to-day, I have 
 no inclination to eat at this hour." 
 
 Stanley excused him, and then began to offer «ome apol- 
 ogy for our intrusion, but he was quickly interrupted by 
 Kershaw, who bade him not to mention intrusion, trouble, 
 or anything of the kind, and added with a smile : 
 
 " It is only a pleasure to show hospitality to the defend- 
 ers of our country." 
 
 "I thought you were a Union man," replied Stanley, 
 " although I had no means of knowing." 
 
 Kershaw colored deeply, and after a little hesitation, 
 stammered out, as if reluctant to do so, the following reply, 
 
 " yes, I believe in sustaining the Union at all hazards." 
 
 He then rose from his seat and walked off to the further 
 end of the verandah, while our party followed the servant 
 to the dining hall. The table was supplied with everything 
 that we could desire. Beside a bountiful supply of meats 
 of various kinds, and all the substantial kinds of food, there 
 was champagne and a variety of wines. The champagne 
 and wines were not touched, as we gladly accepted tea and 
 coffee instead. The peculiar manner of our host had not 
 
 iii 
 
Tli£ Frontier Schooviiiaster. 
 
 375 
 
 been unobserved by any of us, and most of us felt a sense of 
 uneasiness, a desire to get back to our cauip as soon as 
 possible. 
 
 While we were engaged with dinner, another servant, a 
 fine looking colored girl, not over twenty-two, entered the 
 dining hall, and passing by us to the further end of the apart- 
 ment, she took some article from a stand and then immedi- 
 ately returned. As she passed behind and near mo, she 
 quickly but cautiously dropped a note before me. Taking 
 it up and unfolding it I read as follows : 
 
 " Dear Friends, — For heaven's sake do not betray me. 
 Master Kershaw is a rank rebel, and officers of the rebel 
 army often visit him. 1 think he expects some of them 
 here this afternoon or evening. Soon after you came, he 
 sent Jake, one of his colored servants, a^''ay on horseback^ 
 towards the rebel camp. 
 
 " Look out for yourselves. 
 
 "Your Friend." 
 
 There was no name appended to the note, but I felt that 
 it was written by an honest and sincere friend, and that, 
 consequently, the warning given us was not to be despised. 
 I threw the note across the table to Stanley, and after he 
 had read it he in turn gave it to Smith, who was sitting on 
 his right. He then, with an expression of countenance 
 which indicated some degree of uneasiness, looked at me 
 and said, 
 
 " What do you think of that. Styles ? " 
 
 " I think," I replied, " that we had better start for our 
 camp as soon as possible." 
 
 Smith having now read the note and heard my reply 
 exclaimed. 
 
r' • 
 
 376 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 \m 
 
 " O pshaw ! I don't bRlieve that tliore is anything to be 
 feared. This servant like ail darkies wants to get up a sen- 
 sation." He then took up the note and read it aloud, after 
 which he said 
 
 " Don't be scared, boys ; let's finish our dinner. Tom, 
 please give me a bit more of that bacon, it is very nice." 
 
 It was perhaps his coolness and fearlessness of danger 
 which made the rest of us reluctant to leave the talile, 
 hence, we remained and fully satiated our aj)petites, 
 although it was evident from the countenafices of all e.Kcept 
 Smith that they were ill at ease. Having finished my 
 dinner, before the others had risen from the table, i stepped 
 to a window in rear of the apartment and looked out. 
 
 Judge my astonishment then, kind reader, when I saw, 
 not more than a hundred yard yards distant, ten or twelve 
 rebel horsemen approaching the house under cover of the 
 barns and outbuildings ; and just behind them rode a colored 
 man, who no doubt was the servant that Kershaw had des- 
 patched to betray us. As he had not been gone very long 
 it was evident lie had met them. There was no time to be 
 lost. 
 
 I immediately said in a low tone : 
 
 " Quiet boys ! we are betrayed ; the rebels are upon us." 
 
 Instantly every one of them was at the window and took 
 in the extent of our danger. 
 
 " We must either escape or die fighting,'' said our Lieu- 
 tenant. " Which shall we do, Styles ? " he asked of me in 
 startling tones. 
 
 " They outnumber us, " I replied, " and have horses too. 
 Let us escape if we can, but let no one of us be taken 
 aUve." 
 
Ifie Frontier Schoolniaater. 
 
 377 
 
 As I said -his, I glanced at the faces of my C()in])aiii(>u.s, 
 and the low but detenu -ned " No ! no ! " which broke from 
 their lips, showed piaijdy that my opinion was the opinion 
 of all. , ,. .,, 
 
 Our guns were all standing in the hall, and in another 
 moment we had taken them and were quickly passing out , 
 of the front door. No one was in sight ; but, ere we were . 
 across tlie lawn, the girl who had kindly given us the warn- 
 ing called us, and then ran towards us with outstretched 
 hands. 
 
 " Oh, for heaven's sake, take me with you," she entreated ; 
 "they will kill my for telling you, if I remain." 
 
 Although our flight would, no doubt, be greatly retarded 
 by granting her request, not one of us for a moment thought 
 of refusing her, and as she came up, Stanley took he • by 
 one arm and Sargent by the other and hurried her away 
 with us at the greatest possible speed. We had gone per- 
 haps two hundred yards when we heard a loud cry and the 
 discharge of a gun, and at the same instant a bullet 
 whistled over our heads. Tom O'Callaghan stopped, and,/, 
 instinctively, the rest of us halted to see if there was any- 
 thing the matter. As Tom brought his gun to his shoulder 
 and fired, we were not long in suspense as to the object o f 
 his stopping. Standing on the veranda with a carbine in hi s 
 hand, which he had just fired at us, was Kershaw. Coming 
 around towards the front of the house, on the gallop, wa s ' 
 the party of rebels who had descried us, and they now gave 
 a lusty shout and came dashing on, thinking no doubt 
 that they had an easy prey. Tom, with his usual accurate 
 aim, had made sure of his mark — Kershaw threw up hi s 
 arms and fell backward. We gave Tom a cheer, and as we 
 turned to run again, he exclaimed : 
 
 !l 
 
r 
 
 l^W 
 
 iiP 
 
 ?78 
 
 T/ie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ** I meant the old traitor should be punished for his treach- 
 ery if I hadn't forgot how to shoot." 
 
 He had no more than uttered these words than several 
 bullets whistled above us. As we were so much below 
 them we had little fear that their shots would hit us, but 
 they were rapidly nearing, and should they be permitted 
 to come up with us, all hope of escape was at an end. This 
 fact was obvious to Stanley, and he at once said : 
 
 " Lie down, boys, and shoot them before they can reach 
 us! Quick, fall flat on your faces and fire." 
 
 Instantly the order was obeyed, and as they were now 
 on their horses, and afforded good targets, we felt that the 
 advantage was on our siclo. At our first fire two men and 
 one horse fell to the ground. As there was a slight depres- 
 sion of the grou nd where we were lying, we must have been 
 almost concealed from our foes. They halted and fired, 
 but this time their shots not only flew high above us but 
 considerably to one side. Seeing our advantage of them, 
 they dismounted and tried to conceal thvimselves behind 
 iheir horses. As they were in the act of doing this we gave 
 them another volley, and another horse with his rider went 
 down. The fact that we had them at our mercy, and could 
 shoot them all and escape unharmed ourselves, seemed now 
 to dawn upon them. Mounting their horses again they 
 galloped rapidly back, taking their killed and wounded with 
 them. We gave them a parting volley as they retired, but 
 without etfect. Our whole party miglit ha^'e escaped with- 
 out a scratch, but Smith, who had led us into the difficulty, 
 with his usual foolhardiness rose, p.nd swinging hits hat gave 
 a loud cheer to the retreating rebels. He was the only 
 one exposed to view, and seeing him, one of our foes, evi- 
 
 LI 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 379, 
 
 treach- 
 
 several 
 h below 
 
 us, but 
 jrmitted 
 id. This 
 
 m reach 
 
 ere now 
 
 that the 
 
 [nen and 
 
 , deprea- 
 
 ave been 
 
 md fired, 
 
 e us but 
 
 of thenij 
 
 1 behind 
 
 we gave 
 
 ic r went 
 
 id could 
 
 led now 
 
 tin they 
 
 ed with 
 
 red, but 
 
 d with- 
 
 fficultv, 
 
 lat gave 
 
 he only 
 
 DCS, evi- 
 
 dently a shaip-shootcT, turned in his saddu^ and fired. 
 The bail struck Smith's >high, but :t was only a bad flesh, 
 wound which bled profusely. 
 
 As soon P.S the rebels had left us, we took our wounded 
 companion and hastened towards the camp. We had gone 
 less than a mile when we met about twenty of our 
 men who had been out foraging, and having heard the 
 firing, had come on to ascertain its cause. Having told 
 them our story, it was suggested that four of the party 
 should take Smith back to camp, and the remainder return 
 to Ker.shaw's, both ,o destroy his buildings and, if possible* 
 capture the rebels who had pursued us. Accordingly Sar- 
 gent remained with those who took Smith to camp, and 
 Tom and myself, with seventeen more, all under command 
 of Lieut. Stanley, returned to take summary vengeance for 
 
 our wrongs. 
 
 As we pass':<I the spot where we shot the rebels and 
 their horses, we found one poor animal attempting to get 
 up. He was severely wou:ided, and, in compassion to him, 
 one of the men sent a bullet through his head. The rebels, 
 e\idently, had anticipated a return of our soldiers, and had 
 not remained long at Kershaw's. As we reached the house, 
 we saw them more than a mile distant, hastening to their 
 camp. 
 
 A pool of blood on the floor, where Kershaw stood when 
 Tom shot at him, showed the accuracy of the aim. Two 
 servants who were in the house informed us that " Massa" 
 ■was " drifuUy wounded," end would, no doubt, die ; but 
 that he had asked the rebels to carry him to their camp, 
 where he could be trep,ted by a surgeon and escape the 
 wrath of the Union soldiers. 
 
380 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 iiji 
 
 li IS iM 
 
 r Vi f 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 
 
 ^"1 
 
 I had forgotten to say that Julia, the girl who went with 
 us, had insisted on returning to the house, now that she 
 was so well protected, in order to obtain her clothes and other 
 possessions which remained there. After ransacki'ig the 
 house, and giving to her and the other servants whatever they 
 wishe , we went out and harnessed the horses to a cart and 
 express wagon which we loaded with provisions and other 
 valuables for the camp, drove off three cows and a yoke of 
 oxen which we found on the premises, and then, having 
 fired all the buildings, departed. 
 
 The female servants informed us that Ja.ie had gone 
 with his master to the Rebel camp, but they accompanied 
 us to our own camp and were placed in charge of the wives 
 of .several of our othcers who were there on a visit to their 
 husbands. As we were returning from Kershaw's to our 
 camp the first time with the colored girl, I learned that 
 her name was Julia Larkin. She also informed us that 
 her father had escaped from slavery some years before, and 
 now that she was free she hoped to see him. Being too 
 much engaged with the exciting incidents of the day to 
 give particular heed to what she said at the time, I dis- 
 missed it from my thoughts. Several times, however, 
 during the afternoon I thought of the name Larkin, and 
 fancied that it sounded familiar, yet I found it impossible 
 to tell when or where I had heard it. Early in the even- 
 ing, in thinking of the name once more, Tim Larkin, our 
 colored friend at Corvette, came to my mind. 
 
 Here, then, the mystery was solved ; the name which had 
 so puzded me belonged to the fugitive slave whom Mack 
 and myself had rescued from his kidnappers. Julia had • 
 informed me that her father had escaped from slavery.. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 381 
 
 Was it possible that she was Tim's daughter ? It might 
 be, and I decided to see her again. An hour later I 
 sought and found her, and to my surprise and pleasure 
 learned that she was the daughter of the identical Tim 
 whom I have introduced to the reader. In less than two 
 years after her father escaped, their master failed, and, in 
 consequence, she, her sister and mother were separated, 
 being purchased by different slave holders. She wa^ pur- 
 chased l)y Kershaw, with whom she had now lived some 
 time. Though she had no parti ular reason to complain 
 of ill treatment at his hands, sh(^ had never liked him, and 
 was only too glad of an opportunity to escape. His wife, 
 who had recently died, had been very kind to her, and 
 through her influence she had been taught to read and 
 write. She informed me that iier father was a soldier in 
 one of the colored regiments of the Union army, and it was 
 now her intention to find him. She had heard from him 
 occasionally, but had never seen him since the day he , 
 escaped. Her mother was still in North Carolina, and her 
 sister was in Virginia, about fifty miles distant, but she had 
 seen neither of them since the day they were sold. She 
 knew not how the rebellion might have affected them, but 
 she had no doubt that they were still living with their 
 former masters. She was (|uite intelligent, and after learn- 
 ing that I had written two or three of the letters which 
 they received from her father soon after his escape, and 
 that I had also assisted in rescuing him from the toils of 
 slavery after he had once obtained Lis freedom, she mani- 
 fested great gratitude, and asked that I would assict her in 
 finding her father. I related her history and that o*" uer 
 parents, so far as I knew it, to the wife of the officer with 
 
4\ 
 
 t ■»:■- 
 
 382 
 
 The Frontier Sclioolmaster. 
 
 whom sLj was then remaining, and an interest in her being 
 thus awaicened, it was decided that the lady would take 
 her to Washington, in which place the whereabouts of her 
 father could easily be ascertained. 
 
 I returned to my quarters after this interview, meditating 
 on the strange mutation of affairs which had again given me 
 information respecting the almost forgotten fugitive slave, 
 Tim, and given me also another opportunity of showing him 
 a kindness. It was a pleasant, happy reflection, too, that, 
 through the dispensations of an Omnipotent Judge, Tim's 
 hopes of again living with his family would be realized. 
 Yes, the poor fellow would now no longer be obliged to 
 watch and skulk among his fellow men to preserve his 
 own liberty, and to pray and plan for means by which he 
 could secure that of his wife and children. God had relieved 
 him of this burden, and not only to him and his, but to 
 millions of his race, had he proclaimed the joyful tidings of 
 Freedom. 
 
 i 
 
 M 
 
 11 
 
 i 
 
er being 
 ild take 
 ;8 of her 
 
 iditating 
 riven me 
 ve slave, 
 i^ing him 
 
 00, tiiat, 
 e, Tim's 
 realized, 
 bliged to 
 lerve his 
 /^hich he 
 relieved 
 
 1, but to 
 idings of 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Battleof the Wilderness — Spottsylvania — Tom O'Callaghan, my friend, 
 is shot, and I avenge his death — His friend Sar^frent's grief— The" 
 severe fighting — We receive our mail, and I get a letter from Ruth 
 — Battle of Cold Harbor — We are ordered to Harper's Ferry— 
 Monocacy — The Shenandoah Valley — John Brown — Our return 
 to Washington — My confinement in hospital — My recovery — My 
 old acquaintance, Baxter, turns up unexpectedly, in humble cir- 
 cumstances — I return home. 
 
 As it is not in my province to give a history of the Ameri- 
 can Rebellion, I shall not detail to the reader the various 
 changes that were made in our Army Corps and Divisions, 
 nor the marches, counter-marches and manoeuvring which 
 preceded the battle of the Wilderness. Up to this time I 
 had never been directly under fire of the enemy, nor had I 
 witnessed the excitement and ghastliness of the battle field. 
 
 During the several days fight which here occurred, 
 although our division was kept in reserve we were exposed 
 much of the time to the shells of the enemy, and several of 
 our regiment passed to 
 
 " The bourne whence no traveller returns." 
 
 The battle of Spottsylvania soon followed, and here prob- 
 
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 384 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
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 ably occurred one of the mo.st desperate fights of the whole 
 war. It might perhaps, above all others, be regarded the 
 battle in which the respective combatants strove to the 
 utmost for the supremacy. It was here that in assaulting 
 a rebel earthwork my old pupil, Tom O'Callaghan, was 
 killed. Poor fellow, ever sirce I entered the army he had 
 been a friend. The position of teacher, which I formerly 
 occupied towards him, seemed never to have been for- 
 gotten ; he always treated me with kindness, and never 
 addressed me in any but terms of the greatest resp ct. 
 
 During the battle of Spottsylvania we received an order 
 to capture a rebel earthwork from which sharp-shooters had 
 harassed us and picked off many of our men. 
 
 There was no hesitation, we felt as keonly as pur officers 
 the necessity of doing the work, and although many of our 
 brave fellows fell in crossing the space that intervened 
 between us and the breastwork, we never hesitated but 
 rushed on, and were soon in a hand to hand fight with our 
 foes in their entrenchment. Tom O'Callaghan and myself 
 mounted the parapet together, and just as we were in the 
 act of leaping down on the other side, a tall rebel, not ten , 
 feet distant, shot Tom through the chest. I shall never 
 forg(3t the look ■which the poor fellow gave me as he fell and 
 rolled over on his back. It seemed to say, 
 
 " Styles, do you see this ? Will you avenge me ? " 
 
 He lived long enough to know my answer. His slayer, 
 who was just in the act of aiming his revolver at me, 
 the next instant fell forward, and their life blood oozed 
 out and mingled in the same pool. I would have spoken 
 to Tom, but there was no time. I pressed his hand and was 
 hurrying away when a rebel rushed upon me with fixed 
 bayonet, and would no doubt have driven it through my 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 385 
 
 lan, was 
 
 body, had not one of our men, at that instant, shot him 
 through the head. 
 
 It was a fearful fight, but quickly over. I recoil from 
 portraying in detail the bloody scene. In less than three 
 minutes after we had reached the breastwork, the rebels, 
 although they had fought with desperation, turned and fled. 
 Giving a loud hurrah, we followed them until we came in 
 range of one of their batteries, when we turned bad:, I 
 immediately sought my friend Tom amongst the dead and 
 dying witli which the ground was covered, and found liim 
 just in time to see his spirit take its flight. 
 
 Sargent, like myself, had gone through the fight unliarm- 
 ed, and seeing him a little distance off, I ran and informed 
 him of our friend's fate. 
 
 We went back to his lifeless form, where Sargent gave 
 himself up to the emotions of grief which filled his breast. 
 They had been neighbors from boyhood, had enlisted at the 
 same time, and during the time I had been in the army, 
 they had always manifested a strong feeling of friendship 
 for each other. It was no wonder then that he felt Tom's 
 death keenly ; and I could fully appreciate his feelings too, 
 when, after looking on the form of his companion for a 
 moment, and then on that of the one who had shot him, 
 he placed his hands over his face, and exclaimed, in anguish 
 of spirit : 
 
 " Oh, this dreadful, horrid war ! " 
 
 It was, indeed, dreadful, and as I looked around upon the 
 ghastly slain, and thought of the households and friends 
 that would mourn their loss, the solemn truth, embodied in 
 the lines, 
 
 " Man'n inhumanity to tmm i ' 
 
 Makes countleee thousands mourn," 
 
*"^^T« 
 
 386 
 
 Tlie Frontier ScJwolmaster. 
 
 \ 
 
 
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 mi 
 
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 a«iii 
 
 was impressed upon me with a force a thousandfold more 
 potent than I had ever felt it before. 
 
 Tom O'Callaghan was unmarried ; his mother was dead ; 
 his father was still the same dissipated man that he was in 
 To: 1*3 boyhood, hence, he probably would feel his loss but 
 little. He had two or three children besides Tom, but, as 
 they had long been separated, seeking a livelihood in places 
 far apart, they had but little love for each other, and, con- 
 sequently, Sargent was doubtless the deepest mourner in 
 the world, save one for poor Tom. Liice myself, Sargent 
 had a wife and child, and, as we walked away, he said : 
 
 " It is well that Tom was neither a husband nor father. 
 It would be hard for our families, Mr. Styles, to learn that 
 we had met his fate ; " and the tears started afresh as he 
 thought of the grief such tidings would carry to his fire- 
 side. 
 
 The subject was ooo harrowing for me to speak of, and I 
 made no reply. This was the second day of the fight, and 
 as we had as yet gained no decided advantage, there was 
 still ] t and bloody work to be done. It seemed impossi- 
 ble that we could escape death exposed another day as we 
 had been on that, and it was more than probable that the 
 sad scene Sargent had been contemplating would soon 
 occur. 
 
 I say that such an event seemed more than probable, 
 yet, the inner feeling of security from death on the battle 
 field, which I have already mentioned, buoyed me up, and 
 nerved me for my work. I wondered whether all our sol- 
 diers enjoyed the same feeling, yet I feared to ask any lest 
 I might find that they did, and, consequently, my reliance 
 on the premonition would be destroyed. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 387 
 
 fold more 
 
 was (load ; 
 he was in 
 is loss but 
 m, but, as 
 i in places 
 and, con- 
 lourner in 
 if, Sargent 
 3 said : 
 aor father, 
 learn that 
 resh as he 
 to his fire- 
 
 of, and I 
 
 fight, and 
 there was 
 1 impossi- 
 
 ay as we 
 that the 
 
 uld soon 
 
 probable, 
 the battle 
 e up, and 
 
 our sol- 
 c any lest 
 f reliance 
 
 The enjoyment of this assurance I thought miglit be a 
 blessing vouchsafed the soldier to sustain him in his work. 
 But through all my stay with the army, I dreaded death 
 far less on my own account than I did for the little group 
 in Foreston that was praying without ceasing for my pre- 
 servation and return. 
 
 Fighting continued for many successive days, and nu- 
 merous square miles were made gory with the blood of the 
 best men in the contending armies. Not privates alone but 
 officers of all ranks, those who had won lai els on other 
 battle fields, largely swelled the lists of the killed. 
 
 Some days after moving from Spottsylvania Court House, 
 and before crossing the North Anna, we received our 
 mail from the North. It was a joyful event, as we had 
 received none before for nearly three weeks. 
 
 It was a sad sight to see the scores of letters addressed 
 to poor fellows who since we received our last mail had 
 gone to their final resting place ; letters written by those 
 who far away were praying for the preservation of fathers, 
 husbands, brothers and sons, and anticipating years of 
 comfort and pleasure in their society after their return. 
 Sargent was standing by me when the name of Thomas 
 O'Callaghan was called. He took the letter, and with tear- 
 ful eye, glancing at the superscription, said, 
 
 " It is from , tlie girl whom Tom intended to 
 
 marry when he went home. I shall write to her to-morrow 
 and return her picture, which I found in his pocket before 
 he was buried." 
 
 I received a long letter from Ruth, in which was the 
 following paragraph, which displays the wonderful power of 
 our magnetic union : 
 
' jJ»-7» ■•• 
 
 388 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 :| 
 
 lIlHiii 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 " I fear, my dear husband, that you are either ill, or thrt 
 serious danger or ditticulties of some kind attbct you. 
 During the last few days an indefinable feeling of uneasi- 
 ness with regard to you has possessed me. Did I not 
 enjoy that feeling which you say you enjoy, that God will 
 answer our j)rayers and permit you to return, it seems to 
 me that I must become insane. I still adhere to my reso- 
 lution of not reading the war news in the papers ; I never 
 could endure it." * 
 
 The date of this letter showed that the last few days 
 which sho mentioned referred to those in which our last 
 battle occurred. I wrote to her that day, giving a full 
 account of the fight, but never intimating that we were antici- 
 pating an immediate renewal of the scenes in another place. 
 
 At the battle of Cold Harbor, which next followed, 
 Sargent's left arm was taken off by the bursting of a shell, 
 in consequence of which he was sent to hospital, and after 
 nearly recovering he was discharged. Though maimed for 
 life, a pension which he afterward received served with his 
 other sources of revenue to make his family comfortable. 
 
 Early in July, the division to which I belonged was 
 ordered to Harper's Fer.y, to contest the advance of the 
 Rebel General li^arly into Maryland. Nothing save the 
 close of the war and a discharge from the army could have 
 given us greater pleasure. Owing to the long campaigns 
 and constant fighting, the soldiers of our Corps were nearly 
 exhausted, and a respite, however brief, was regarded a god- 
 send by us all. For two months, twenty-four hours had 
 not elapsed that we were not within gun shot of the 
 enemy, and not an hour that we had not been obliged to 
 listen either to the roar of musketry or of cannon. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 389 
 
 r 
 
 As for mysalf, I wondered at my powers of endurance. 
 In a few days after the above order was given the battle of 
 Monocacy was fought. Althou ^h in this engagement two 
 men were shot down by my side, a musket ball was sent 
 through my coat and another through my hat, I escaped 
 unharmed. I began to imagine that I possessed a ch*»nned 
 life. 
 
 During the first days of August, the campaign of the 
 Shenandoah Valley was inaugurated. On the tenth of that 
 month our forces, thirty thousand strong, marched into 
 Charlestown, the place made famous by the trial and execu- 
 tion of John Brown, to whose memory I have paid tribute 
 in a preceding chapter. 
 
 As the incident had rendered the place one of deep interest 
 to me, I marched through the streets with something of the 
 same feeling I fancy that the Moslem approaches the shrine 
 of Mecca. As '.i in retributive justice for this foul deed, 
 the marks of decay and desolation were everywhere visible 
 in the town. 
 
 I almost fancied that I could hear the voice of a prophet 
 proclaiming woe and desolation to it, not unlike that which 
 was pronounced against Babylon. The whole army seemed 
 possessed with Lhe same feelings, and thousands of voices 
 broke forth singing, " John Brown's body lies mouldering 
 in the ground," and several bands played the air to which 
 these words were set. 
 
 It was my good fortune to have the honor of participating 
 in all the succeeding important battles of the Shenandoah 
 Valley, Winchester, Fisher's Hill and Cedar Creek. In 
 December, we returned to Washington, and soon after our 
 division moved to Hatcher's Eun as a supporting column 
 
m 
 
 B^li 
 
 390 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaater. 
 
 to those who had gone to destroy the Weldon Railroad, 
 which was being used by the enemy. During this expedi- 
 tion, while we were standing several hours in line of buttle, 
 in mud and water six inches dp'3p, 1 caught a severe cold 
 which proved of serious consequence to me, and prevented 
 my performing further service during the war. Neglecting 
 this cold too long, I was soon obliged to go into hospital at 
 Washington, where congestion of the lungs, fever and utter 
 physical prostration compelled me to remain during the 
 entire winter. It was a great blessing and pleasure to me 
 to have Ruth come and spend a month nursing me during 
 the time that I was the most prostrated. She was desirous, 
 as well as myself, that I should return home after I had 
 become sufficiently convalescent ; but my physician forbade 
 it, declaring that the cold, changeable climate of Canada 
 would bt; more than my constitution could stand until I 
 had become much st 'onger. He advised that I should 
 remain here until the warm weather of spring had set in ; 
 and having much confidence in his judgment I reluctantly 
 accepted the advice. 
 
 It was about the middle of March, after I had become 
 sufficiently strong to ride out occasionally with a friend 
 residing in the city, who had been in the army but dis- 
 charged on account of ill health, that I was greatly sur- 
 prised by falling in with an old acquaintance who has 
 already figured in these pages. 
 
 A few miles out from Washington, and on a spot where 
 numberless regiments had encamped preparatory to being 
 sent on their campaigns, stands, or did stand, a building 
 which at that time was used as a factory for utilizing the 
 carcasses of animals which had died o^ been killed in that 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaater. 
 
 391 
 
 section. Horns and hoofs were here made into glue ; the 
 hair was preserved for various |»urp(»8es while the carcasses 
 themselves were niaiiufactured into soap. An unwhole- 
 some stench pervaded the phice, so that none with delicate 
 nerves or fastidious tastes would be likely to visit it except 
 with an eye to business. While riding near this factory 
 one fine morning with my friend, we chanced to meet a 
 portly looking gentleman with heavy side whiskers walking 
 leisurely witii a hickory. His face was very red, Iwtoken- 
 ing indulgence to considerable extent, while his habiliments 
 were exceedingly seedy. 
 
 He was a man something over fifty, and bore all appear- 
 ance of one who had seen better days, but, either from 
 dissipation or untoward fortune, was now in reduced 
 circumstances. As we neared him, and he raised his eyes, 
 I was startled ; his countenance seemed wonderfully 
 familiar, and yet I could not tell when or where 1 had 
 seen him. As he passed us I turned round to get another 
 look. Could it be possible ? Was it Baxter, the former 
 representative of McClintock County, who had treated 
 me so ignominiously in Montreal, some years before ? 
 He certainly very closely resembled that worthy, and 
 I determined to learn his name. Two boys were coming in 
 the road about ten rods distant. On meeting them I said : 
 
 *' Can one of you young gentlemen tell us who that man 
 is whom we just passed ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," said one of them promptly, " that is Mr. 
 Baxter, what's a boss in the soap factory over thar." 
 
 The idea was too ridiculous, and I burst into a hearty 
 laugh. The boy's face reddened, and he evidently thought 
 I was making fun o2 him. 
 
'r 
 
 392 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 t 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 : : M 
 
 " Don't be offeuded, my boy," I said, gi\ ing him a small 
 coin, " I wish to ask you a few questions. Do you know 
 where Mr. Baxter came from ? " 
 
 " I aint sure," he responded, " but I believe he came 
 from Vennont." 
 
 "No, Jack," interposed the other boy, "he come from 
 Canady. Father works in the factory, and he said so." 
 
 " How long has he been here ? " 
 
 " 'Bout two years, I guess." 
 
 " And where does he live ? " 
 
 " Up thar, in that house he's jest gwine into." 
 
 I looked back, and saw him entering an unpainted, un- 
 pretentious looking house, a f e v steps back from the road. 
 
 Having driven on a little further, in which time I 
 gave my friend a brief account of my acquaintance with 
 Baxter, we returned; and such was my curiosity ^o learn 
 how it was that he appeared in that place, and in circum- 
 stances so different from those in which I had known him, 
 I determined to ascertain from himself. 
 
 Halting at the house and alighting, I knocked, with the 
 intention of asking for a glass of water, when Baxter him- 
 self came to the door. 
 
 " How do you do, Mr. Baxter ? " I said. 
 
 He stiffly acknowledged my salutr.tion, and after looking 
 at me sternly and enquiringly for a moment, asked if I 
 would walk in. As I stepped inside, I said : 
 
 " You do not recognize me, I perceive." 
 
 He replied : 
 
 " Your countenance seems familiar, but I certainly can- 
 not say where I have met you." 
 
 " My name is Styles," I said, " and I went with you 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 393 
 
 once on an electxoneering trip from Dr. Sutherland's to 
 Hilton, when you were canvassing the County of McClin- 
 tock." 
 
 Had an angel appeared to him that instant, I do not 
 think he could have been more surprised. 
 
 At first his countenance flushed ; he looked bewildered, 
 stammered out something, and then seizing me by the hand, 
 shook it until I thought my arm would have to be ampu- 
 tated. 
 
 " Who have you here," he exclaimed, looking out towards 
 the carriage. 
 
 " A friend," I replied. 
 
 " Well, ask him in, ask him in, by all means ; you are 
 going to dine with me to-day." 
 
 I invited my friend in and introduced him, but declined 
 remaining more than a few moments. 
 
 Baxter showed us into the parlor, which was provided 
 with a faded and nearly worn-out carpet, the scanty furni- 
 ture corresponding well with it in respect to its dilapidated 
 appearance. A care-worn woman, who, in her younger 
 days, might have been handsome, and whom he introduced 
 to us as bis wife, left the room as we entered. As we seated 
 ourselves, Baxter said : 
 
 " How is It, Mr. Styles, that you chance to be down here ? 
 I am astonished to see you here." 
 
 "Your astonishment cannot exceed mine," I said, "at 
 seeing you here ;" and I then related briefly to him how 
 it happened tuat 1 was a soldier. " Well, now," he said, 
 " let's have a little wine, and I will then gratify your curi- 
 osity." Saying this, he went out and in a moment returned 
 vidth a bottle and glasses. We each took a glass of port 
 \7ith him when he commenced as follows : 
 

 n^^SflB ; 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 if '. asi 
 
 itilii 
 
 394 
 
 The Frontier Schoolrmister. 
 
 " I suppose you saw a paragraph in the Montreal papers 
 two or three years ago, about a little difficulty I had there.'' 
 
 I had seen nothing of the kind, yet not wishing to say so, 
 lest it might prevent our hearing the truth of the matter, I 
 remained silent a moment, trying to devise some ingenious 
 answer »vithout telling a falsehood ; when interpreting my 
 silence S3 an answer in the affirmative, he continued : 
 
 " Well, they tried pretty hard to make forgery of it, but of 
 course that was all nonsense. I knew I could easily defeat 
 them, but as business was very dull in the city, and I did 
 not care to remain, especially since some of my old friends 
 had deserted me, I concluded to try my fortune elsewhere, 
 and so I drifted down this way." 
 
 " And are you practicing law ? " I asked, as if ignorant 
 of his present occupation. 
 
 " no," he replied, " I am an overseer in a manufactory, 
 I wished to have something for my boys to do, and as this 
 seemed to be a good opening I secured it." 
 
 I did not ask what sort of a manufactory it was, 
 nor did I ask him further with regard to his trouble in 
 Montreal. By his own admission he was fearful of being 
 convicted of forgery, hence, had run away. Until that 
 moment I knew not that he had any children, and touched 
 with pity I forgR.ve him his rascality towards me, and 
 cordially hoped that he might do well. After a moment's 
 silence he said : 
 
 " You knew my political principles in Canada, and of 
 course are quite aware that they would not be tolerated 
 here. I refer to my sympathy for the South at the com- 
 mencement of the Rebellion, and as an old friend you will 
 say nothing that will be injurious to me in this section," 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 395 
 
 sal papers 
 id there.'' 
 to say so, 
 matter, I 
 ingenious 
 eting my 
 ntinued : 
 it, but of 
 ily defeat 
 ind I did 
 d friends 
 ^sewhere, 
 
 Ignorant 
 
 ufactory. 
 d as this 
 
 it was, 
 ouble in 
 of being 
 ntil that 
 
 touched 
 me, and 
 aoment's 
 
 and as he uttered this he cast a searching look towards 
 both my friend and myself. Previous to that, I had 
 known nothing of his sympathies with the South. I only 
 remembered that his loyalty to "the old flag" on one 
 occasion had caused him to refuse to assist me, because I 
 was born in the States. I felt that he had need of sympa- 
 thy, however, and I promised him the favor of both my 
 silence and that of my friend. 
 
 After a few more remarks with him we bade him fare- 
 well with a promise to call again, if possible, at no distant 
 day, and then drove off. I did not see him again. In a 
 few days I received my discharge, and bidding farewell to 
 the ucenes of war, I made my way to Canada. 
 
 , and of 
 tolerated 
 he com- 
 you will 
 section," 
 
m 
 
 I 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 1 ■ I 
 
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 it 1 
 
 1 
 
 i 
 1 
 
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 Farming again — sad affliction. 
 
 I WAS now at home again, happy in the presence of my 
 family, and hoping that during our earthly pilgrimage un- 
 toward fortune might never again call me from them. 
 There was such happiness in contemplating a quiet, peace- 
 ful life in this secluded spot — the life of a farmer, so pleasant 
 and healthful, and wonderfully in contrast to that which I 
 had led for so long a time. Yet I could foresee that even 
 this must have its discomforts. Hardship and exposure 
 had shown their effect oii my physical system, and it was 
 obvious to mc that I was poorly prepared to confine myself 
 to severe labor. Though the vocation of agriculture may 
 be all that I have said, pleasant and healthful, it requires 
 bodily vigor and unintermitting industry in the person 
 who follows it to make it remunerative, A man whose 
 income is derived wholly from a small farm can ill afford 
 to hire labor, and especially if he has a family ; his own 
 hands must do the plowing, planting, sowing and reaping; 
 in short everything^ if he would thrive. This was the diffi- 
 culty under which I labored, the unyielding obstacle which 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 397 
 
 nee of niy 
 
 image un- 
 
 om them. 
 
 iet, peace- 
 
 30 pleasant 
 
 t which I 
 
 hat even 
 
 exposure 
 
 nd it was 
 
 ne myself 
 
 ture may 
 
 requires 
 
 le person 
 
 an whose 
 
 ill afford 
 
 his own 
 
 reaping ; 
 
 the diffi- 
 
 ;le which 
 
 had prevented me from accumulating means. The money 
 I received on entering the army had gone to pay debts ; 
 that which was paid me afterward from time to time had 
 been used to employ help, so that now I was without the 
 funds necessary to carry on the farm, and was unable to do 
 it myself. 
 
 I had a piece of woodland which I t^ jtermined to clear 
 and bring into pasture and tillage land, and thus be enabled 
 to increase the quantity of my stock. Soon after returning 
 I engaged wood choppers for the purpose ; hoping to realize 
 enough from the wood, timber, lumber and first year's crop 
 to more than pay for the expense o^ ^^^'U'ing. 
 
 It was another instance of miscalculation ; one of the 
 unhappy consequences of possessing idealty in a too large 
 degree. The expense was much greater than I had calcu- 
 lated, and the proceeds resulting from the sales I had hoped 
 to make were much smaller ; hence, I was again consider- 
 ably in debt. I found that my investments, though valu- 
 able, would make returns only in the lapse of time. 
 
 There is scarcely any business into which a man with- 
 out experience m.ay enter with less surety of success than 
 he can farming. And yet the managing of it seems so 
 easy, so simple, that many a novice with a good capital 
 has rushed into it, following his theoretical notions until he 
 has eithei- found himself in bankruptcy, or with his means 
 invested in improvements which will only bring back the 
 money in installments, in the course of a generation of 
 time. 
 
 This disastrous experience in farming occupied my atten- 
 tion for a year after my return from the war, but scarcely 
 had I entered upon it ere I was doomed to affliction such 
 I hai never before experienced. 
 
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 39B 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 Dora, liKe the only child of all parents, was the idol of 
 the household. She had heard me spoken of so much during 
 my absence, and Kuth had so often talked to her respecting 
 me, that, I have no doubt, I was as much associated with 
 her thoughts as I would have been had I always been pre- 
 sent with her. It had been one of her favorite amusements 
 during the time I was away to pick up scraps of paper 
 and read imaginary letters from her " papa " to the family. 
 Their contents, of course, were suggested by such points in 
 the real letters as her childish memory retained, and were 
 usually an account of marches, defeats and victories, in 
 which the names of places and commanders were grotes- 
 quely commingled and confounded ; the whole closing by 
 affectionate allusions to the different members of the family. 
 
 So constantly had her thoughts been directed to me, that 
 when I returned, though a little shy at first, she soon 
 expressed as much delight as the others. From the day 
 that I came home, until sickness prevented, she was always 
 with me in i^" rambles, and, sitting on my knee, beguiled 
 many iin hour of despondency with her childish prattle. 
 
 But it was not always to be thus ; her society, so dear to 
 us, was vouchsafed only for a short time. Even before I 
 entered the army, the wonderful development of mental 
 power which she exhibited awakened my fears that she 
 would die at an early age. As accounts of her precocious 
 actions and wc.rds were written me from time to time by 
 Euth, I felt more certain that my fears were not groundless, 
 and even suggested to her mother that we should regard 
 her as a treasure we were not long to keep. Though deli- 
 cate in health, she had never been sick, and, after my 
 return, when I saw her in gleeful mood running about the 
 
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 ! 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 399 
 
 the idol of 
 ich during 
 respecting 
 iated with 
 been pre- 
 Qusements 
 I of paper 
 he family. 
 1 points in 
 , and were 
 ctories, in 
 jre grotes- 
 closing by 
 ihe family. 
 me, that 
 she soon 
 31 the day 
 m^ always 
 \, beguiled 
 prattle, 
 so dear to 
 before I 
 of mental 
 that she 
 jrecocious 
 time by 
 foundless, 
 Id regard 
 )ugh deli- 
 after my 
 ibout the 
 
 yard, her flaxen ringlets dancing in the breeze, I saw no 
 reason why she might not live to cheer us in our declining 
 years. 
 
 While she was playful like most children, there was 
 something more grave and thoughtful in her face — an 
 expression of sadness — which we often observed with pain. 
 
 Not long after my return, she began to decline, and, her 
 sickness developing into brain disease, she died in three 
 weeks from the time of her confinement to the house. 
 
 It was the saddest blow I ever felt. Comrades had fallen 
 at my side on the field of battle ; I had seen the lamp of 
 life go out in the dwelling and in the hospital — all, scenes 
 that touched my heart, and led me to thoughts of the 
 unknown future ; but this affliction alone stirred the 
 foundations of my heart. Before, everything that had 
 seemed so light, so bright and cheerful, was now enshrouded 
 in midnight gloom. 
 
 An anxious, yearning desire seized me to know more of 
 the home to which she was going. My heart longed for 
 constant, familiar intercourse with those into whose presence 
 she had been translated. Where is she now ? Shall we 
 ever see her again ? were questions continually suggesting 
 themselves to our minds, and inciting us to search the 
 Scriptuie, the only source whence the answer could be 
 obtained. Life with me was changed. Death seemed dis- 
 armed of its terrors. A cemetery which before had appeared 
 so dreadful, was transformed into a place of beauty — the 
 only spot on earth where the weary could find rest. 
 
 We placed her down beside the river bank o'ershadowed 
 with willows, in the quiet grave-yard of Arklow, and thither 
 for four or five successive summers, it was often a pleasure 
 
r; 
 
 400 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
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 for me to retire. They were the happiest days of my life, 
 I wonder that time and the scenes through which I have 
 passed should in any dt ce have stifled the emotions that 
 I then enjoyed. But, alas, such is the frailty, the change- 
 ableness of the human heart. 
 
 After this blow, for a long time I had but little interest in 
 secular affairs, I wished to retire from the world with all 
 its cares and hardships, and live the life of a recluse ; but a 
 sense of a duty — a consciousness that the temptations of 
 the world are not to be avoided, but to be met and overcome, 
 led me to devote myself as usual to my labors, however 
 distasteful to me they were. 
 
 My land clearing went on as I had purposed, and after its 
 unprofitable termination I felt constrained to engage in some 
 other business. Teaching, of course, was the only thing 
 that I could do, the only occupation for which I had fitted 
 myself. 
 
of my life, 
 lich I have 
 actions that 
 the change- 
 
 3 interest in 
 rid with all 
 lii&e ; but a 
 iptations of 
 li overcome, 
 :s, however 
 
 md after its 
 
 age in some 
 
 only thing 
 
 I had fitted 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 My early preparation for teaching — The little it availed me — Individ- 
 uals who think themselves qualified io teach— School buildings — 
 Salaries of teachers. 
 
 Kind reader, since the occurrence of the events recorded in 
 the foregoing chapters, many years have passed away, and 
 ten of them have been devoted to teaching. I have followed 
 it in different places along the Frontier, both in Canada and 
 the neighboring Republic, sometimes in the little rural 
 hamlet of five hundred inhabitants, and then again in the 
 more flourishing and aristocratic village of three or four 
 thousand. This long devotion to the business has afforded 
 me many and varied experiences ; some of satisfaction and 
 pleasure, contentment with my lot; others of disquietude 
 and disgust, arising from the occurrence of incidents similar 
 to those which annoyed me at Bloomingdale. 
 
 In saying, as I have above, that I had fitted myself for 
 teaching, I do not mean that I had merely attended school, 
 and passed over certain branches which all do who acquire 
 either an academic or a collegiate education, but I had 
 studied with the special aim of making myself useful to 
 
 ■■.1 
 
402 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 
 4 
 
 )ii i 
 
 others ; striving to become so familiar with the branches 
 that I would be likely to teach, that I could explain them 
 to the pleasure and profit of my pupils. A person may think 
 himself well acquainted with a study which he has pursued 
 while at school, yet when he becomes a teaclier, questions 
 with regard to it are continually arising, which re([uire 
 thought and investigation on his part, ere he is able to 
 answer them. 
 
 A knowledge of this fact in the beginning of my experi- 
 ence as a teacher, gave me a desire to understand thoroughly 
 whatever subject I took up, and I dwelt especially on those 
 points which were to me at all difficult or obscure. While 
 at Corvette, under the impression that I might devote much 
 time to teaching, I closely pursued this course, and after- 
 wards, whenever in charge of a school, [ made it a point to 
 spend more or less time in reviewing the subjects of the 
 next day's lessons ; unless they happe'bed to be something 
 with which I felt myself perfectly familiar. I have always 
 to a greater or less extent followed this course, believing 
 that very few are competent to appear before a class and 
 explain in an interesting manner a subject to which their 
 attention may not have been called for months or years. 
 
 Then, also, I had not been an idle observer of the differ- 
 ent Tnethods of governing a school and of imparting instruc- 
 don. I had made the most of every opportunity presented 
 of learning the modes of different teacliers, and never let an 
 article in a book or paper respecting these things pass by 
 unobserved ; and whenever I found anything that was an 
 improvement on my own ideas regarding these matters I 
 unhesitatingly adopted them. 
 
 It is not pleasant, however, now to realize that these 
 
 ■•! 
 
e branches 
 plain them 
 I may think 
 las pursued 
 , questions 
 Lch rc(iuire 
 is able to 
 
 my experi- 
 
 thoroughly 
 
 [ly on those 
 
 re. While 
 
 3vote much 
 
 and after- 
 
 t a point to 
 
 jects of the 
 
 J something 
 
 lave always 
 
 B, believing 
 
 class and 
 
 which their 
 
 or years. 
 
 the differ- 
 
 ng instruc- 
 
 presented 
 
 ever let an 
 
 ^s pass by 
 
 lat was an 
 
 matters I 
 
 that these 
 
 Tlie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 403 
 
 efforts to prepare myself for my vocation have availed but 
 little towards securing me situations. Such is the hick of 
 intelligence on this subject that very few, comparatively, 
 regard previous experience or preparation as a matter of 
 importance in the selection of a teacher. Everybody is 
 supposed to be capable of teaching. So prevalent is this 
 idea that the experienced teacher, the one who has spent 
 his nights at the lamp and his days in the schoolroom for 
 years, in the acquirement of thorough knowledge of his 
 profession, often finds himself successfully opposed when 
 applying for a situation, by one who has never taught, 
 and knows nothing whatever of the business. 
 
 Says Dr. M. H. Buckham, President of the University 
 of Vermont, " The one thing which the largest number of 
 those who have a little education think they can do is to 
 teach. Let business get a little dull, and immcliately 
 there is a large accession of applicants ibr opportunities to 
 teach from almost all the other employments. Clerks, 
 book-agents, patent medicine venders, lightning-rod-ped- 
 dlers, insurance agents, all appear to think that, when all 
 other employments fail, there are always two things that 
 remain— one is to teach, the other to turn tramp." 
 
 While public opinion tolerates ideas like this with regard 
 to the vocation of teaching, what inducement has the young 
 man to enter it with a view of making it a life-long pro- 
 fession ? What hope has he of securing a reputation or 
 moderate competence for his declining years if he finds 
 himself liable to be supplanted by the one who makes 
 teaching only a stepping stone to something higher ? 
 
 We hear loud complaints against our public schools. 
 A hue and cry is raised against " defective education." The 
 
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 404 
 
 TJie Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 press teems with suggestions and moral advice to teachers ; 
 books on tlie art cf teaching are distributed through the 
 country, and in Canada it is obligatory on all candidates for 
 diplomas for teaching to understjind them. 
 
 Teachers themselves assemble to consider and discuss 
 methods of governing and insti acting. All this is well. 
 Whatever tends to educate the teacher and fit him more 
 perfectly for the duties of his profession is to be commended 
 and encouraged. But how much has this effected towards 
 elevating the standard of our schools ? 
 
 What has it accomplished towards awakening public in- 
 terest in them, sufficient to make their mission gi'andly suc- 
 cessful ? Very little indeed. It is like an effort to produce 
 growth, symmetry, and beauty by pruning the branches 
 of a tree which is rotten at the core. A sea captain may 
 be all that the duties which he has to perform may demand, 
 experienced, brave, energetic ; but give to him an unwieldy, 
 leaky, dangerous vessel, half manned with ignorant, ineffi- 
 cient seamen, and he will have accomplished no small 
 achievement if he takes it without accident over danger- 
 ous waters in tempestuous weather to a distant port. 
 And yet it is not more unreasonable to expect him to do 
 this than it is to expect a teacher, in the present state of 
 public opinion with regard to school management, to con- 
 duct a school according to the wishes of his patrons and the 
 best interests of his pupils. The work is almost an impos- 
 sible one. Until public opini ,n is thoroughly, radically 
 changed with regard to i,lj,e s-'oooi question ; in short, until 
 society is revolutionized, we cannot look for an entire sub- 
 version of the evils which now so successfully operate to 
 the detriment of our schools. With the hope that it may 
 
The Frontier Hchoolmoftter. 
 
 405 
 
 contribute in sonu^ liltU; dcj^reo to the assi.stunce of those 
 who an; striviii},' nianfitlly for the improvement of our edu- 
 cational system, I jtrojMJse to point out some of the most 
 flagrant of those evils. And as they liave l)een learned and 
 felt duriu".^ a lnn<^ exj)erience in teachin<,', I trust that they 
 will not he re<^arded as the visions of fancy. 
 
 Amonj^ the first, I would call attention to the dc.Tioraliz- 
 inp; cll'ects upon the youthful mind, prfxlucedby the ill-con- 
 structed, homely, untidy edifices tlirou»^hout the land, to 
 which children and youth are ol;li<^ed to sj)end the years 
 that are devoted to their education, A schotd is supj)()sed 
 to be the place where cultivation of good manners, as well 
 as the culture of the mind, is effected. 
 
 In the present state of things, the former of these desirable 
 objects, unfortunately, is seldom attained. And why ? Is it 
 the fault of the teacher that a l)oy soon becomes rough, and 
 even boori.sh in his manners? Has the plain, untidy build- 
 ing, in which he spends several hours a day, nothing to do 
 with it ? Everybody is conscious of the surprising change 
 produced in the manners of one who has retired from a 
 palatial residence and refined society, and spent months or 
 years in the cot and haunts of the backwoodsman. Will 
 any one deny that similar results may follow in the case of 
 a boy who spends no small portion of his life in a })lace 
 destitute of all tlie neatness, beauty, ailornments, comforts 
 and luxuries of his home ? As a rule, every home in 
 populous districts has some pretensions to neatness and 
 adornment, the majority of them being rendered attractive 
 by the expenditure of no small amount of money. Take a 
 boy from one of these, and place him in a school l)uilding pre- 
 senting the most striking contrast to it — a building as cheap 
 
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 406 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 and plain as the most niggardly economy could desire, or 
 ingenuity devise, and what may one expect ? 
 
 Will the pupil respect it ? Will hj not ratlier become 
 lax in the exercise of that regard for neatness and proper 
 decorum which he has observed in his mother's sitting-room 
 or parlor? Let the thousands of individuals who have 
 attended these institutions, and the hundreds of teachers 
 who have had them in charge, answer. The majority of 
 experienced teachers know how much, how very much 
 easic' it is to maintain order in a new building, sustaining 
 some pretensions to respectability, than it is in one already 
 defaced and falling into decay. I^et us advance a step 
 further, and contemplate the pleasant situation of the 
 teacher in the school building which will be reared when 
 our communities have learned that education is of more 
 value than money, and have formed a proper conception of 
 what a school should be. We see the pupil, at the proper 
 moment, briskly approaching an elegant and substantial 
 edifice through the avenue of trees which adorns the 
 grounds, donning his slippers in the ante-room, and quietly 
 entering the carpeted or tesselated school room, which 
 is furnished with all the improvements of modern art, 
 and decorated with pictures, statuary and flowers. The 
 very surroundings have a refining effect upon his nature. 
 Inspired with respect for them at the beginning, he feels 
 no little anxiety and pride in preserving them in their 
 condition of order and beauty. The ruthless vandal 
 assaults that are now continually made by pupils upon 
 school buildings and furniture would cease to occur, and, 
 with their departure, much of that rouglmess which 
 now annoys the teacher and pains the patron would also 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 407 
 
 desire, or 
 
 ler become 
 and proper 
 itting-room 
 who have 
 of teachers 
 majority of 
 i^ery much 
 sustaining 
 )ne already 
 nee a step 
 ion of the 
 mred when 
 is of more 
 ncept^.on of 
 the proper 
 substantial 
 adorns the 
 ind quietly 
 lom, which 
 lodern art, 
 wers. The 
 his nature, 
 ig, he feels 
 11 in their 
 ss vandal 
 ii])il3 upon 
 occur, and, 
 ess which 
 A^ould also 
 
 
 disappear. Such should be the school room patronized by 
 every man who has a desire for the improvement of the 
 manners and morals of his child. What a contrast to those 
 we now find in all the rural districts of this northern land. 
 It is almost impossible to conceive what sort of reasoni- g 
 still induces men to erect educational structure:; which are 
 but a little improvement on those attended by the first 
 settlers of our country. Almost every other building, 
 public or private, displays in its architecture the progress 
 of wealth and intelligence ; but the educational institution 
 gives little evidence of general prosperity. It would 
 almost seem as if people imagine that during the hours 
 their children are at school they are in an abnormal condi- 
 tion, not requiring any of those comforts which are so 
 necessary for their enjoyment while at home. Rarely, 
 indeed, do we find a country school suppUed with curtains, 
 and still more rarely do we find one, or even an academy, 
 supplied with water. In many instances, to keep out the 
 blinding rays of the sun, the teacher resorts to newspapers, 
 or perhaps, if possessed of sufficient courage and energy, 
 he procures curtains of more durable fabric with money 
 raised by subscription. 
 
 Water is obtained wherever it can be found, but very 
 seldom near the school building. The first labor of a man, 
 after he has erected a house, is to dig a well in proximity 
 to it, if nature has not provided him with a spring ; yet 
 this, same man will send his children for years to a school 
 which hps neither spring nor well connected with it. and 
 where the only possible chance for them to quench their 
 thirst is by trespassing on the property of others. 
 
 It is an indisputable fact, that this want of forethought 
 
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 408 
 
 jT^e Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 and care on the part of school boards and commissioners is 
 a source of vexation and trouble to almost every country 
 teacher. The pupils in squads from two to twenty visit the 
 nearest spring or well, to the annoyance of the proi)rietor. 
 Immediately complaint is made to the teacher, and in con- 
 sec^uence the pupils are obliged to seek water at a more dis- 
 tant place, and not unfreciuently complaints are again entered. 
 
 The general remedy for this excessive economy is to' 
 detail two boys, three or four times a day, to bring water 
 from some distant place, where they are permitted to get it, 
 thus consuming a vast amount of time, which should be 
 devoted to other purposes. 
 
 As a fruit of this culpable neglect of duty towards schools, 
 there is a constant warfare between the pupils and those 
 living adjacent to the school edifice. Few are the teachers 
 who do noi receive two or more letters every term from 
 citizens, complainmg of the trespassing proclivities of their 
 pupils. And yet one can scarcely blame tlie latter; the 
 torture of thirst is not pleasant, and if they are tempted to 
 trespasses and rudeness, surely, it cannot be claimed that 
 the patrons are altogether blameless for the conduct. 
 
 Trivial as the matter may seem, it nevertheless is pro- 
 ductive of much discomfort to the teacher and others, and 
 shows a sad want of the interest requisite to render a 
 school pleasant and prosperous. It is one of those 
 draM'backs to comfort which may easily be avoided 
 by a trifling outlay of time and money, and, taken in con- 
 nection with other discomforts and a wretched school 
 building, produces a demoralizing effect upon the pupil, 
 
 A few years ago it was with no small degree of pleasure 
 that I found a well, provided with a nicely finished pump, 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 409 
 
 pro- 
 , and 
 ider a 
 those 
 ided 
 con- 
 liool 
 ill 
 isiire 
 ))imp, 
 
 I 
 
 adjacent to a public school house in one of the towns of 
 Long Island. 
 
 • It was the property of the school, and a novelty to me 
 from the very fact. A small cup was attached to the pump 
 by a chain, and I quaffed many draughts from it during 
 my different visits to the school, more from a desire to 
 boast of the peculiar privilege of drinking from a well be- 
 longing to a school than from actual thirst, and I could not 
 refrain thinking, as I did So, of the hundreds of teachers 
 and pupils in this northern country who are either obliged 
 to eniiure the pangs of thirst during the sweltering days of 
 summer, or solicit the boon of a drink of water of some 
 benevolent family half a mile or more away. 
 
 Generally, in these rural districts, we find that ])eople 
 are not negligent or j)arsimonious in the erection of church 
 edifices, nor are they reluctant to embellish them with taste • 
 ful and expensive adornments. 
 
 The work is praiseworthy. We can never condemn the 
 psirit which impels man to liberality in promoting the in- 
 terests of religion, or in showing his reverence for the 
 Almighty. But if Intel'. igence is conducive to morality, 
 why should there be less liberality displayed in the promo- 
 tion of those means by which intelligence is secured ? 
 
 Why should communities exert themselves to the utmost 
 even contract large debts, to erect a xjostly church edifice 
 STid yet permit a squalid diminutive school building to 
 .i^- nd by its side ? 
 
 If one third of the money and labor expended on churches 
 in nearly every one of our villages was devoted to the cause 
 of secular education, we might have educational institutions 
 of which, to say the least, we need not feel ashamed. And 
 
pr.. 
 
 410 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Mil 
 
 
 Hi! 
 
 m 
 
 would morality decline, the great work of the Eedeemer 
 suffer from this division of money between schools and 
 churches? Let the intelligent christian minister himself 
 answer. 
 
 Another of the evils I have proposed to mention in con- 
 nection with our school system, and one which has elicited 
 much discussion, is the low salaries of teachers. There is 
 no other class of public servants in the world that should be 
 so carefuUy guarded from the effects of poverty and want 
 as teachers. 
 
 The reason is obvious. The labor of a teacher is almost 
 wholly mental in its character, hence, whatever tends to 
 distract or trouble unfits him for the proper performance of 
 this work. Cheerfulness in the schoolroom has always been 
 regarded as a most desirable trait in a teacher, yet very few 
 persons are so constituted that they can maintain this 
 pleasant appearance when harassed by continual forebodings 
 of financial embarrassments, or driven to constant calcula- 
 tions of how to make both ends meet. That these are the 
 circumstances under which our teachers labor can easily be 
 ascertained by any one who makes the effort. The fact 
 becomes still more unpleasant and startling when we learn 
 that in some of our communities teachers are accorded a 
 good social position, and are expected to keep up the same 
 outward signs of respectability, and practice the same hos- 
 pitalities that those do in whose society they mingle. In 
 many instances to do this is simply imposiible, and the 
 teachers are not few who, because of their inability to 
 gratify their most harmless tastes for luxury, and to return 
 the hospitalities extended to them by those in better cir_ 
 cumstances, shun the society which they most like, and 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 411 
 
 almost lead the life of a recluse. We can conceive of no 
 more unpleasant position than that of :. j^^rson whose 
 intelligence and refinement prevent him u-om associating 
 with one class around him, while he is debarred by the con- 
 ventionalities of society from another; and yet such is the 
 position of many teachers. Is there notliing wrong in tUid 
 condition of things ? Is there nothing wrong in the educa- 
 tion of that community which pays for everything far more 
 liberally than it does for the labor which trains the minds 
 of its children and youth ? 
 
 To see fine and expensive residences rising in our 
 country villages as the result of a young lawyer's devotion, 
 for a few years, to his business, is a thing of frecjuent 
 occurrence ; but where is the costly edifice that has ever 
 been reared from the salary of a teacher ? 
 
 The question recalls the incident I have related, wlien 
 Uncle Jack sought the advice of a Bloomingdale lawyer, 
 and again displays to us the difference with which a man 
 rewards the one who has aided him in obtaining a few 
 dollars, and the one who has spent long months and years, 
 perhaps, in developing and training the mind of the child 
 that is to be his prop and comfort in after years. 
 
 What shall we say of society that makes heroes of those 
 who, with the k asi; possible claim to noble motives, perform 
 some great physical feat, and totally ignores those who are 
 exhausting both physical and mental energies in the accom- 
 plishment of good — training the future legislators, sttites- 
 men and governors of our land ? Within the last few years 
 public sentiment has lifted many into notoriety simply for 
 great feats of pedestrianism, and the same perverted taste 
 has rewarded others with wealth and honor for rowing boats 
 
 I'* 
 
 El 
 V 
 
412 
 
 The Frontier ScJioolmaster. 
 
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 a certain distance in an unusually short space of time. 
 Where is the school teacher that has ever won wealth or 
 distinction for drawing out and successfully developing the 
 latent powers of the youthful mind? Where is the com- 
 munity that has ever raised purses for those displaying the 
 most tact and ability in teaching or governing a school ? 
 O tempora ! mores ! Let us not regard as barbarians 
 those who delight in bull-tights, ' .' boast of pur Christian 
 land, as long as we enrich and crown with laurels the ath- 
 lete, and starve and degrade the one to whom, in a gi'eat 
 measure, the mental training of our children belongs. 
 
 It would be unfair, however, not to give certain members 
 of almost every connnunity due credit for liberality in the 
 suppoi-t of schools, and an intelligent estimate of the moral 
 support that should be accorded the teachers ; but as they 
 are usually much in the minority with regard to numbers, 
 their eiforts are not unfrequently thwarted by those holding 
 precisely opposite views. 
 
 The one who has ever attended many sessions of 
 school commissioners in the Canadian Townships and 
 Parishes will liave scores of amusing anecdotes to relate 
 respecting incidents that he has frequently witnessed. Dis- 
 satisfaction arises in a district with regard to a school, it 
 may be from the offence which t/ie teijcher has unwittingly 
 given to an ignorant patron, but generally from an opinion 
 on the part of some, that the salary is too high. A reckless 
 committee perhaps has agreed to pay to the teacher in winter 
 $18 or S20 a month and board ; and in summer as high as 
 $2.50 or $3 a week and board. The provocation being 
 deemed a sufficient casus b Hi, a petition for the removal 
 of the obnoxious teacher is circulated, and at the next ses- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 413 
 
 of time. 
 iV'ealtli or 
 oping the 
 the com- 
 aying the 
 I school? 
 )arbarians 
 Christian 
 s the ath- 
 in a gi'eat 
 ngs. 
 
 . members 
 ity in the 
 the moral 
 it as they 
 
 numbers, 
 ;e holding 
 
 isions of 
 lips and 
 
 to relate 
 (J. Dis- 
 
 school, it 
 
 wittingly 
 opinion 
 reckless 
 
 in winter 
 
 ■^ high as 
 )n being 
 removal 
 
 aext ses- 
 
 sion of the school commissioners the petition is presented, 
 and the matter discussed by the respective friends and foes 
 of the school. The scene to an intelligent disinterested 
 observer is provocative alike of laughter, pity and disgust. 
 Words are bandied, old feuds brought up, characters villi- 
 fied, and, in fact, all the disgi'aceful or mean acts committed 
 by either party or their ancestors embracing two or three 
 generations are recounted in detail for the edification of the 
 commissioners and s])ectators. 
 
 Hap[)y, contented teacher ! How many and fascinating 
 the charms connected with your vocation! What lofty 
 incentives to enter it, and how rich and satisfied th- parent 
 who has struggled to educate his children, when he sees 
 them duly qualified and engaged in the profession of teach- 
 
 ing. 
 
 The troubles that I have mentioned arising from teach- 
 ers' salaries are obviously the result of ignorance ; not only 
 from inability to set a just estimate on a good school, and 
 consequently on education, but from inability to discriminate 
 between a good school and a bad one. Sad as may seem 
 the fact, it is, nevertheless, true that very many of our in- 
 habitants regard one school as good as another, hence, the 
 teacher who is willing to engage for the lowest salary is 
 the one sure of a position. People like these, by uniting 
 their efforts with those of selfish principles, who, having no 
 children to send to school, take no interest in it, are enabled 
 to carry their points in nearly all our communities, com- 
 pletely overpowering, as I have before said, those of more 
 intelligent views. In the same lecture from which I have 
 already quoted. President Buckham says : 
 
 " Not the least evil of the present depression of business 
 
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 t! 
 
 i 
 
 
 j ■ 
 : 
 
 11 
 
 414 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 is the throwing into the ranks of competitors for positions 
 as teachers thousands who have no qualifications and no 
 love for the work, who steal the bread from the mouths of 
 competent teachers, and cheapen and degi'ade the whole 
 process of education." 
 
 In an address delivered recently at a school opening on 
 Staten Island the Hon. Geo. William Curtis said he did not 
 believe that in all the 20,000 school districts in the State 
 of New York, there was one teacher who was really fit for 
 his position that was overpaid for the services he performed. 
 Such are the opinions of intelligent, educated men, but from 
 the want of a proper estimation of these opinions by the 
 masses, teachers and education must suffer. Is there no 
 remedy ? If ignorance is a national misfortune and curse, 
 should it not be treated like other pubUc evils ? May not 
 legislation properly step in and stay its progress as it would 
 the tide of intemperance or any deadly epidemic ? May it 
 not say, " Thus far thou shalt go, but no farther." 
 
 If it is right for our legislators to say what the qualifica- 
 tions of teachers must be, is it not also right for them to 
 say what salaries they shall receive ? 
 
 When a teacher has chp ge of a school, and is doing his work 
 to the satisfaction of all his intelligent patrons, would it be 
 unjust for our lawgivers to prevent selfishness and ignor- 
 ance from dismissing that teacher from his position, and 
 supplying it with one unqualified for the work simply be- 
 cause he will teach for a smaller salary ? 
 
for positions 
 ions and no 
 e mouths of 
 B the whole 
 
 I opening on 
 id he did not 
 n the State 
 •eally fit for 
 
 performed, 
 en, but from 
 ions by the 
 [s there no 
 s and curse, 
 ? May not 
 
 as it would 
 c ? May it 
 
 le qualifica- 
 or them to 
 
 ng his work 
 vould it be 
 and ignor- 
 sition, and 
 simply be- 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Baneful effects of a frequent change of teachers— Want of moral sup- 
 port to our teachers. 
 
 In this chapter I desire to show the baneful effects of the 
 frequent change of teachers. 
 
 According to the present system, teachers in district 
 schools usually remain but one term of three or four 
 months, rarely a year. Principals of academies are engaged 
 for a year, and in some instances remain two or three years, 
 occasionally, but very seldom, five. If the teacher is in- 
 efficient, one year is as long as he should be retained ; but 
 if, on the other hand, he proves himself a competent, 
 energetic, instructor, no greater injustice to him, and no 
 greater injury to the school, can be done than to dismiss 
 him, I would present the following reasons for this asser- 
 tion: 
 
 First, a teacher, to be successful, must become intimately 
 acquainted with the dispositions and habits of his pupils. 
 Unless it is one of his first endeavors to do this, he is not 
 adapted to the work of teaching, and should by no means 
 defraud his employers by remaining in the school. But 
 
 W: 
 
 I 
 
 
7.-71 
 
 If] 
 
 M 
 
 416 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 that ho can do this, that he can so understand his two or 
 three scores of pu])ils in the short period of a few months, 
 that he can manage each one properly — that is, repress his 
 vices and awaken and rouse to action the better jjrinciples 
 of his nature — no intelligent person can believe. Moral 
 reforms can be ettectcd only by a work of time, and how- 
 ever good a disci] (linarian a teacher may be, he can never 
 bring an undisciplined, rough school into a state of respect- 
 ful obedience to his authority, and give to it a spirit of 
 industry, in the com])avatively shui't period for which 
 teachers are engaged. Not only does the teacher re([uire 
 time to learn the characteristics of his pupils, and know 
 how to adapt himself to their various natures, but they 
 also require time to assimilate themselves to the nature of 
 the teacher. It often happens that at the end of three or six 
 months, a mutua.' feeling of discontent and dissatisfaction, 
 a want of respect and affection for each other, exists be- 
 tween a teacher and his pupils, and yet, after the lapse of 
 an equal or longer period, they have formed a strong ad- 
 miration and like for each other. The pupils have learned 
 that instead of being unkind, and needlessly strict in his 
 dealings with them, he really has had their welfare in 
 view, and that, in proportion as they become docile and 
 industrious, his sternness relaxes, and he shows himself the 
 possessor of the warmest and most friendly emotions. 
 
 On the other hand, the teacher has discovered the latent 
 power, the hidden springs of noble feeling possessed by 
 those whom before he regarded as destitute of ambition 
 and noble qualities ; in short, he has discovered the main- 
 spring in the moral mechanism of each one of them, by 
 means of which he ' i controlled, and he is now guiding 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 417 
 
 (1 his two or 
 
 few months, 
 
 1, repress his 
 
 }r principles 
 
 eve. Moral 
 
 le, and how- 
 
 8 can never 
 
 e of respect- 
 
 a spirit of 
 
 for which 
 
 3her rec^uire 
 
 !, and know 
 
 ;s, bnt they 
 
 :ie natnre of 
 
 f three or six 
 
 isatisfaction, 
 
 [•, exists be- 
 
 Ithe lapse of 
 
 strong ad- 
 
 ave learned 
 
 trict in his 
 
 welfare in 
 
 locile and 
 
 liiniself the 
 
 tions. 
 
 I the latent 
 ssessed by 
 f ambition 
 the main- 
 them, by 
 w guiding 
 
 him with a skillfnl hand *o a goal of usefulness and honor. 
 The removal of a teacher at a time when such relations 
 exist between himself and ])upil8 ran only result in dis- 
 satisfaction and discouragement to the former, and in ])o8i- 
 tive harm to the latter. The teacher's successor must go 
 over the same ground ; he has the same things to learn, 
 the same work to accorajjlish ; hence, every change of this 
 kind that is made, necessarily, retards the progress of the 
 pupil. 
 
 In my own experience in teaching I have found it one 
 of the most unpleasant features of tlie business to leave the 
 charge, and consequently society, of those pupils to whom 
 I have become attached. Frequently entire classes have 
 been together under my charge, term after term, and 
 between them and myself mutual confidence, respect and 
 friendship have sprung up. 
 
 The thought of leading them on in their studies until they 
 had matriculated into some higher educational instituticm, 
 or prei)ared themselves for the employments of life, was 
 pleasant, and I always felt no little pride in fitting them 
 for either of these events. To be compelled then to leave 
 them at a time when my interest in them was strongest, 
 and my attachment for them by no means slight, was, to say 
 the least, unpleasant, and I always entered my next school 
 with a sort of feeling that there was little encouragement 
 for me to form the same attachment for others, as it would 
 in all proba])ility soon be severed in the same manner. It 
 is thus shown that frequent changes have a tendency to 
 weaken the interest and destroy the ambition of the teacher. 
 
 It is preposterous to suppose that he can ever feel the 
 interest in a school when he knows that he is soon to leave it, 
 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 »f 
 

 418 
 
 Tlie Frontier Sclioolmaater. 
 
 m 
 
 1 !ii 
 
 that he would did he feel that he was to remain in charge 
 of it for a long time. 
 
 In (jrder to display the proper k. ^Jof ambition ho should 
 feel that he is a permanent citizen of tlie place in which he 
 teac'ies, and is identified with all its interests. In this 
 case the interests of the school are his, and he works with 
 a zeal and earnestness which shows tliat he is anxious with 
 regard to the result. Let a man a contract for coustru( t- 
 ing an edifice, and he knows that he will be held responsible 
 for the style and durability of his work ; but engage him to 
 work on the same structure for a few days only, and his 
 interest in it, and the anxiety which he feels respecting the 
 character of the work when fully completed, will be far 
 different from wliat they will in the former case. So with 
 a teacher ; engage him for a term of years, and he will at 
 once see that he is to be the chief instructor of the youth- 
 ful part of the community in which he labors, and a desire 
 for his own reputation, if nothing more, will induce him 
 to use eve"y means to make the instruction as thorough f 
 possible — something to which he can point with satisfactic. 
 and pride. On the other hand engage him for a few months 
 only, or for a year, and allow him to feel that at the expira- 
 tion of that time he is to be succeeded by another, and how 
 much less the incentive for him to work. He feels that he 
 is to perform but a small part of the work of educating 
 those of whom he is placed in charge. 
 
 Where many different teachers are employed in educating 
 a child, all will leave impressions upon him, but no one can 
 claim the honor of doing a great share of the work. 
 
 The fact is, no teacher can feel contented and at home 
 under the present system of engaging ; he is like an itin- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 410 
 
 L in charge 
 
 II he should 
 u whicli he 
 J. In this 
 vorks with 
 ixiou8 with 
 • construrt- 
 responsible 
 jage him to 
 Jy, and his 
 pecting the 
 will be far 
 I. So with 
 I he will at 
 the youth- 
 ud a desire 
 nduce him 
 horough i 
 
 itisfactic. 
 ew mouths 
 
 le expira- 
 and how 
 els that he 
 
 educating 
 
 educating 
 no one can 
 k. 
 
 at home 
 e an itin- 
 
 erant preacher, knowing not to-day where he will be 
 employed to-morrow. 
 
 For the reasons that are above enumerated, 1 bcdieve 
 that no community having the well-being of their school in 
 view should ever engage an experienced teacher for a shorter 
 period than five years. One year may be sufliciently long 
 to engage one who has had no previous experience, but then 
 it should be on the condition that he is to remain longer in 
 ciise his first year's efforts are successful. Besides preclud- 
 ing the Livils I have mentioned such a course would jnevent 
 from entering the ranks of teachers those who have no idea 
 of making teaching a permanent profession, and only use it 
 as a means of obtaining something more lucrative. 
 
 The greatest of all the °ivils, however, connected wnth 
 our school system, the one that most degrades it, and shuts 
 out of the profession of teaching men and women of ability, 
 is THE LACK OF MORAL SUPPORT ACCORDED orR TEACHERS. 
 
 The prosperity of a Government depends ; a a great measure 
 upon the harmony existing between the different depart- 
 ments of which it is composed. As the faithful perform- 
 ance of those functions assigned them by the various organs 
 of the body secures health to an individual, so does the 
 harmonious working of the machinery of a Government 
 secure happiness and confidence at home, dignity and char- 
 acter abroad. Not only is this true of National Govern- 
 ments, but it is equally true of every association of indivi- 
 duals, whether it has for its object moral, intellectual or 
 physical culture, or the promotion of pecuniary interests. 
 
 Discipline in the army has ever been regarded as the 
 passport to success on the field of battle. Weeks, months 
 and even years are required to bring a soldier to proficiency 
 
 w- 
 
 i 
 
If 
 
 i i 
 
 . 
 
 420 
 
 The Frontier ScJioohnaster. 
 
 K'l 
 
 mn 
 
 1; 
 
 u 
 
 |..iK-ib 
 
 11; 
 
 in this respect, but this end attained, he is endowed with a 
 qiiaht)' so pctent that not unfreqiiently in the annals of 
 warfare we see both courage and patriotism sinking before 
 it. Discipline in tlie navy is one of the broad stepping 
 stones to honors and dominion on the sea. J)isci])line iu 
 the prison is regarded as one of the essential means of 
 securing the reformation of the convict, and thus of sending 
 him forth a wiser and better man. JJiscipliue in orphan, 
 inebriate and insane asylums is the basis upon which their 
 founders build hopes of relieving unfortunates of the human 
 race. 
 
 If ends thus grand and important are secured by means 
 of discipline in institutions like tliese, may we not expect 
 grander results from its proper ui?e in the management of 
 our public schools ? If there are any means by which good 
 can be accomplished in our efibrts to elevate the human 
 family, where can they be better employed than in those 
 institutions to which thousands of boys and girls are now 
 looking, and to which mUlions will look for instruction in 
 coming years ? 
 
 The majority of institutions founded for the promotion 
 of public benefits are provided with a variety of oiHcers, 
 upon whose hearty and unoeesing co-operation the success 
 of the institution depends. Every banking establishment 
 must have its president, toller and cashier. Every railroad 
 and insurance company, every benevolent and Bible society, 
 must have its complement of officers, every one of whom is 
 to guard with peculiar care the intereste of the establishment 
 with which he is connected. How is it with our public 
 school ? Do we rind the same watchful care over it ? the 
 same liberal expenditure of money to crown it with prosper- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 421 
 
 d with a 
 jinals 01 
 ig before 
 stepping 
 j)line iD 
 iieans of 
 ' sending 
 ori)lian, 
 ich their 
 e human 
 
 y means 
 t expect 
 3ment of 
 ich good 
 hi, man 
 ill those 
 I are now 
 ction in 
 
 motion 
 olUcers, 
 success 
 sliraent 
 aih'oad 
 )ciety, 
 lom is 
 .sliment 
 tiiblic 
 it? the 
 )rosper- 
 
 S( 
 
 ity ? Far from it. As regards its management, it is an 
 institution prominently and proverbially unicjue. It is 
 true, it has a certiiin number of officers connected with it 
 who are supposed to have its welfare in view and to make 
 it the subject of their supervision, but as at present 
 managed these officers may be considered nominal rather 
 than taking an active part in its support and control. The 
 teacher is the only functionary of this institution upon 
 whom any great amount of labor or responsibiUty devolves. 
 Into the schoolroom he is ushered to officiate in every 
 capacity, from that of corporal to generalissimo of the army 
 of youth who are to look to him for instruction. Filling at once 
 the execut "ve, legislative and judicial departments, in order 
 to secure success, he must possess versatility of talent and 
 the power of adapting himself to circumstances, that are 
 rarely found combined in one individual. But whatever 
 the order of his talents, however strong his determination 
 to discharge his duties promptly and efficiently, however 
 sanguine his hopes of success, he will find himself sadly 
 disappointed, and subjected to annoyances of which he had 
 little thought. Speaking both from actual experience and 
 observation, I believe that of all his discouragements and 
 troubles none is so great as that arising from the custom of 
 his patrouG of seldom or never visiting the school-room, and 
 of basing their opinions of his fitness or unfitness for teach- 
 ing on the judgment of their children. As things now 
 exist, the teacher is reduced to the unhappy necessity of 
 looking to the vacillating and undisciplined minds of youth 
 and children for his reputation. Is this fair ? Is it reason- 
 able ? Is it justice ? Do you, farmers, who have stock to 
 sell or purchase, who have important improvements to make 
 
 cc 
 
 I' 
 
 r. i 
 
 -5*' 
 
 ■ i 
 
 '•■%: 
 
r- 
 
 422 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaater. 
 
 m 
 
 ril ff 
 
 '(■ I 
 
 l! 
 
 in the way of fencing, subsoiling or draining, send your 
 children to superintend the work for you ? Do you, mer- 
 chants, send your boys or girls to distant markets to make 
 such purchases as your business from time to time requires ? 
 Do you, mechanics, accept the suggestions of your chil- 
 dren with regard to your work, or allow them to make the 
 slightest alteration in the plans you have projected ? 
 no, say you, they are far too young and inexperienced to 
 be relied on in such matters. Yes, their judgment is too 
 feeble to be relied on in matters -where dollars and cents 
 only are concerned ; but, my dear friend, does it ever occur 
 to you that the mind of your boy or girl is too feeble, too 
 undeveloped, to place a proper estimate upon character ? to 
 judge accurately of the moral or mental worth of persons 
 of mature years? to exercise a nice discrimination between 
 what is right and wrong in the conduct of a teacher ? 
 
 To form an accurate opinion of another, to judge cor- 
 rectly of character, requires ability that very few possess. 
 It requires not only judgment of mature years, but the 
 keen perception and broad reflective powers resulting from 
 large experience and intimate knowledge of human nature. 
 Yet, in the face of these facts, have you not sent your 
 children to the public school from early childhood, and 
 permitted their opinion to bias your judgment of the worth 
 of the various teachers who have had charge of their mental 
 training ? 
 
 Were youth and children always infallible in their con- 
 clusions, genial in their tempers and agreeable in their 
 habits, teachers could submit cheerfully to be arraigned 
 before such a tribunal to answer for their conduct ; but in 
 the present condition of human morals, we protest earnestly, 
 solemnly and vehemently against it. 
 
 1 
 
Tlce Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 423 
 
 • send vour 
 o you, mer- 
 its to make 
 le requires ? 
 
 your chil- 
 to make the 
 ijected ? 
 )erieuced to 
 tnent is too 
 3 and cents 
 t ever occur 
 ) feeble, too 
 laracter? to 
 L of persons 
 ion between 
 iclier ? 
 ) judge cor- 
 few possess, 
 irs, l)ut the 
 
 ulting from 
 nan nature. 
 
 sent your 
 jdliood, and 
 if the worth 
 
 leir mental 
 
 tlieir con- 
 ic, in their 
 
 arraigned 
 |ct ; but in 
 
 earnestly, 
 
 It is a fact to which people seem obstinately to close their 
 eyes, that a teacher can never instruct and interest his 
 pupils unless he is free from all those perplexities and 
 harassing anxieties to which, in the present state of school 
 management, he is invariably subjected. It cannot be 
 denied that it is owing, in a gi'eat measure, to the indift'er- 
 ence manifested by school boards and patrons to the com- 
 fort and interests of teachers, that many able men and 
 women now refrain from entering the profession ; and that 
 from the same cause, those wlio do teach fall short, very 
 far short, of doing the good which, under other circum- 
 stances, they might accomplish. 
 
 A clergyman once said to m.e, " I would like to teach. 
 It would be a a great pleasure to me to instruct boys and 
 girls in the branches in which I feel an interest, and to 
 watch the development of their minds. I taught two or 
 three terms, but the disrespect which many of my large 
 scholars showed not only for the rules, but for myself also, 
 kept me in a continual state»of care and perplexity. I had 
 no one to support my authority, and in two or three cases 
 where I appealed to parents, they seemed displeased, and 
 inclined to regard me as unnecessarily strict, and so I 
 abandoned the business, leaving it to those who are more 
 indifferent to the pranks and insults of rebellious scholars 
 and the fault-findings of their parents." 
 
 The experience of this clergyman, as thus related, is the 
 experience of thousands. They would gladly teach, but 
 the manifold annoyances connected with the business make 
 almost any other employment preferable. It is scarely an 
 exaggeration to say that a majority of our country schools 
 and academies are almost as scrupulously avoided as i)est- 
 
 4 
 
 ! 
 
 - 
 
 h 
 
r"^ 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 424 
 
 The Frontier Schi^olmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 
 m 
 
 W'tll 
 
 liiiifl -Am 
 
 ■ j'l' 
 
 houses. I have myself taught in a country academy five 
 successive years without receiving an hour's visit from any 
 school commissioner or patron of the school, except on days 
 of the annual examination, and then a very few came only 
 at my repeated and earnest solicitation. Is it any wonder 
 that under such circumstances pupils find that they can 
 carry forth and retail the most preposterous stories respect- 
 ins the school and teacher without fear of detection ? Is it 
 any wonder that we find evil-disposed persons, who may 
 have taken a dislike to the teacher, catching up and exag- 
 gerating these tales for the purpose of gratifying some petty 
 resentment or malignant gi'udge ? 
 
 Every one knows with what pertinacity and zeal the 
 teacher of a country school is criticised. The advent of a 
 new teacher into a country district or village is an era in 
 the history of that community. It is an epoch in the labor 
 of biographical research and mental speculation. I often 
 think that the system of engaging teachers for a term of 
 years, as advocated by some, 4s a cruel one, when applied to 
 country schools. It deprives many in every community of 
 the long-cherished habit of looking up annually, or semi- 
 annually, the pedigree of a teacher, and displaying their 
 knowledge of the art of teaching by indulging in the freest 
 and most absurd criticisms of his school management. 
 
 The person who volunteers an opinion or i)ronounces a 
 stricture on any business or profession of which he knows 
 nothing, practically, is generally regarded as a conceited 
 ignoramus, l)ut this stigma is avoided when he approaches 
 the subject of teaching. A profession which above all others 
 demands experience and tact in the person who follows it, 
 is the only one whose votaries may be criticised by every- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 425 
 
 cademy five 
 nt from any 
 cept on days 
 V came only 
 any wonder 
 lat they can 
 iriea respect- 
 etion ? Is it 
 IS, who may 
 p and exag- 
 g some petty 
 
 tnd zeal the 
 advent of a 
 is an era in 
 I in the labor 
 on. I often 
 [or a term of 
 en applied to 
 omm unity of 
 y, or semi- 
 aying their 
 in the freest 
 ment. 
 
 onounces a 
 I he knows 
 a conceited 
 approaches 
 »ve all others 
 follows it, 
 d by every- 
 
 body with impunity. So true is this, that it has become an 
 accepted dogma that the teacher is a scape-goat for nearly 
 all the evils, moral or social, with which the community 
 where he pursues his vocation happens to be afflicted. If 
 it suffers from reckless legislation, and is overburdened with 
 municipal, railway or other taxes, the teacher being the 
 only vulnerable object at which grumblers may level their 
 artillery, must suffer. His fnormous salary is the cause of 
 the financial embarrassment, consequently, it must be 
 reduced. 
 
 Should he seek relief for his over-worked brain and 
 exhausted body in those simple recreations to which others 
 osort, he is not dignified, or his morals objectionable. If 
 he is reserved, he lacks sociability, in short, is " stuck up." 
 If he dresses with care, he is a fop ; if he fails to do so, he 
 is slovenly. Should he get angry, and stand up for his 
 rights, he is too independent, and must be put down ; if he 
 fails to display considerable spirit, he lacks determination, 
 and is unfit to govern a school. In short, a person who 
 answers all the requirements of a country district must be 
 an anomaly — there can be nothing like him in heaven or 
 on earth. 
 
 Certain communities are proverbial for constant warfare 
 against their teachers. The incidents recounted in preceding 
 chapters of this work sufficiently corroborate this statement, 
 also, another, viz : — that in almost every, and perhaps in 
 every community, are parents who seem to think thei^' 
 children are never a])])reciated at school, hence, are unjustly 
 treated by their teachers. When it happens, as it some- 
 times does, that three, four or more families of this des- 
 cription reside in the same community, woe to the one who 
 
 li 
 ^^i .. 
 
 
 .lli 
 
t*r^'-h -" 
 
 426 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 mt 
 
 
 ill 
 
 ill 
 
 I 
 -111 
 
 •ia hired to teach their school. I now have in mind a com- 
 munity of tliis kind. For twenty years the experience of 
 their teachers has been uniform — annoyed, harassed, slan- 
 dered, and happy only when the periods of their engagements 
 have expired. No teacher has ever remained there longer 
 than two years, and the majority of them but one, many but 
 i?ix months. The most experienced teachers that have ever 
 labored there have been the least successful, and have usually 
 lost the reputation which they have secured in other places by 
 years of patient toil. The school is seldom or never visited 
 save by the school inspector, and it is a matter of coumion 
 occurrence that the school committee are about quizzing 
 and cross examining pupils for information res])ecting 
 difficulties in school — difficulties that never would have 
 arisen had these guardians of educational interests visited it 
 at proper intervals, and given the teacher their support in 
 his eflbrts to elevate it to the standard of a well conducted 
 school. This is an isolated instance of miserable school 
 management, but what is true of this community is equally 
 true of numberless others. 
 
 A glance at a few more instances of the treatment which 
 teachers often meet may not be uninteresting to the 
 reader, and it is to be hoped that it may contribute some- 
 thing towards showing the necessity of a refoim in our 
 system of managing schools. 
 
 Some yeara since, a friend of mine took charge of a high 
 school, in which many teachers had previously labored, 
 but only a few of whom had met with any degi'ee of suc- 
 cess I knew him to be profound in scholarship, unim- 
 peachable in his morals, painstaking in his efforts, and I 
 verily believed him to be one of the best teachers the 
 
nind a com- 
 :perience of 
 'assed, slan- 
 ngagements 
 here longer 
 !, many but 
 it have ever 
 lave usually 
 er places by 
 3ver visited 
 of common 
 ut quizzing 
 
 res])ecting 
 vould have 
 its visited it 
 
 support in 
 1 conducted 
 able school 
 
 is equally 
 
 lent which 
 
 ng to the 
 
 >ute some- 
 
 m in our 
 
 of a high 
 y labored, 
 Be of suc- 
 ip, unim- 
 rts, and I 
 chers the 
 
 J7i3 Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 427 
 
 country afforded, but, like many another of his profession, he 
 soon learned that he was in a position where talent would 
 avail but little. He was one who believed that system is 
 essential to success. He felt the imperative necessity of 
 establishing a degree of quietude in his schoolroom, and 
 securing promjjt attendance at recitation, in order to awaken 
 an interest in study. To do this, it was necessary to cross 
 the wishes of an over-indulged and conceited daughter of the 
 most influential member of the school directors. His fate 
 was sealed. The complaint of the daughter, with exag- 
 gerated details of her wrongs, was laid before the 
 weakminded parent. Encouraged and pitied, rather than 
 reproved, her conduct assumed an insolence towards the 
 teacher which his own ideas of justice and the dignity of 
 his position were ill-prepared to brook. 
 
 But his authority was undermined. The spirit of rebel- 
 lion having been fostered by the one whose business it was 
 to destroy it in the bud, it gradually infused itself through 
 the school, and, at an early day, resulted in the teacher's 
 dismissal — sent adrift at the fancy and suggestion of an 
 ignorant and wilful girl of fifteen. 
 
 A few years later, a young friend, whom I knew to be 
 the soul of honor, and thoroughly energetic in his habits, 
 was, at my suggestion, engaged to take charge of a school 
 in a rural district in one of our border towns. Knowing 
 that few teachers had been fortunate enough to go through 
 the school with a reputation unspotted, I waited with no 
 little interest the close of my friend's labors. Embracing 
 the first convenient opportunity, I inquired of a prominent 
 school committee as to the character of tlie school. To my 
 surprise, he informed me that it was the poorest one they 
 
 III 
 

 I ; 
 
 11 ' 
 ■If 
 
 
 \ , 
 
 1 
 
 
 s *" 
 
 
 J ^i ■ 
 
 „„ u , 
 
 
 
 .';' . 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 
 1 ' ' 
 
 , f 
 
 1 'Mi ' I'^i'' 
 
 : 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 428 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 had luul for years. Not willing that a young man I had 
 recommended should be thus traduced, I submitted my 
 informant to a rigid cross-examination, and succeeded in 
 eliciting from him the following facts : 
 
 First, he knew nothing of the school save what he had 
 gathered fro n his children — two or three large ungovern- 
 able girls in their teens, with a younger brother controlled 
 by as many devils as were cast out of Mary Madelene. 
 
 Second, not an individual living in the district had 
 visited the school during the entire winter. 
 
 Third, he could not mention a single fault in the school, 
 and only judged it to be poor from the fact that his children 
 did not like it, and were averse to attending it. 
 
 The matter was now plain. My experience as teacher 
 at once led me to divine the true situation of affairs. The 
 teacher had found the school sadly demoralized, and the 
 scholars backward in their studies. With a natural taste 
 for order, manly deportment and study, he sought to re- 
 strain the boibcerous conduct of the rustics of whom he 
 found himself in charge, as well as to infuse a spirit of am- 
 bition into all the members of the school ; but his efforts, 
 so far from being appreciated, were by many regarded as 
 wanton aggressions on their freedom of speech and manners, 
 and a useless disturbance of the ease in which they had 
 been accustomed to spend their time. Bred in the habit of 
 discussing and criticizing in the family circle the words 
 and actions of their teachers, their mistaken notions were 
 now imparted to parents ready like thousands of others to 
 accept their children's story of the teacher's imperfections, 
 and to unite with them in vilifying him. 
 
 The statement i j often made, and made, too, by those who 
 
TJce Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 429 
 
 nan I had 
 niitted my 
 cceeded in 
 
 at he had 
 luigovern- 
 coiitrolled 
 lelene. 
 strict had 
 
 ihe school, 
 is children 
 
 as teacher 
 airs. The 
 i, and the 
 :ural taste 
 ^ht to re- 
 whom he 
 rit of am- 
 is efforts, 
 :j:arded as 
 manners, 
 they had 
 e habit of 
 le words 
 ons were 
 others to 
 rfections, 
 
 hose who 
 
 are supposed to be people of intelligence, that if a school 
 is what it should be, children will always take ])leasure in 
 attending it. If the teacher is pleasant, happy in his illus- 
 trations and explanations and attractive in his manner, 
 there will be no need of compulsory methods to get him to 
 school ; he will go from choice. My dear sir, or madam, 
 is it possible that in this nineteenth century, with children 
 of your own whose habits you have observed, you can give 
 utterance to such expressions ? As well might you argue 
 that if a minister of the Gospel is attractive in the pulpit, 
 if he sets forth the doctrine of faith and repentance in a 
 clear and logical manner, every hearer, no matter how 
 vicious or de])raved in character, will at once accept the 
 views he is promulgating, and afford a striking example of 
 a regenerate soul. 
 
 If your ground is tenable, then, a good teacher must bo 
 able to render hard, unceasing labor more attractive to 
 youth than all the pleasures they have ever known. He 
 must be a magnet so powerful that he will draw every boy 
 just at the proper hour from the skating rink, the bowling 
 alley, the race course, the bar-r< jra, cricket-ground, depot 
 or whatever plaqp of amusement he has been in the habit 
 of frequenting, and, without any compulsory efforts, induce 
 him to devote himself to his studies with heroic and untiring 
 energy. 
 
 So far from accepting your theory, my friend, I shall 
 most persistently contend that the duties of every teacher 
 demand that daily, and almost hourly, he shall oppose the 
 wishes and plans of at least some of his pupils ; and that to 
 contradict this statement is to assert that boys and girls are 
 always infallible, both in judgment and conduct. 
 
 I 
 
TfTT'^ ' • 
 
 430 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 Dr. liiickham says : 
 
 " A teacher may be popular for the very things that make 
 him a poor teaclier, foi- beiii*.' slack in his ret^uirements, 
 over ready with his help, profuse in his undeserved C(jmmen- 
 dations. A good teacher is likely to be uni)0})ular with a 
 certain class at all times and with all at times." 
 
 Quite in contrast to this is the opinion of those who 
 think a teacher to be successful must always be popular, 
 and that unless he is so he should be immediately 
 discharged. 
 
 To flourish, a school must be the object in which much 
 of the hope and pride of its patrons centre. If the human 
 mind is of any value, if it is a matter of any importance 
 that our children should be elevated to something besides 
 a mere animal state of existence, then certainly the public 
 school demands our encouragement and b pport. Its claims 
 upon us are of such a character that we should marshal 
 every faculty to render its mission successful. To attain 
 this end, I believe it one of the most necessary things to 
 elect a board of ethcient managers, whose business shall be 
 to receive competent teachers, and, with their assistance, to 
 frame a code of wholesome rules, and see that in the mi- 
 nutest details these are faithfully executed. I have endea- 
 vored to show that in many instances the usefulness of the 
 teacher is almost, and sometimes wholly destroyed by the 
 meddlesome interference and criticisms of those who know 
 nothing practically of teaching; and by the system I pro- 
 pose this evil would be abolished. It should be incumbent 
 upon the school board to be so frequently in the school- 
 room as to become well acquainted with the pupils, know 
 all the delinquencies, observe the merits or defects of the 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaftter. 
 
 431 
 
 teacher's method, and relieve him in a measure of gov- 
 erninf? the school 
 
 hy this arrangement tlic; teacher would l)e enahh^l to de- 
 vote much more time and attention to recitatif)ns, beinj,' free 
 in a measure from those distractions wlii(!]i at the pnjsent time 
 so materially interfere with the proper performance of his 
 duties. There should he the most perfect understanding 
 between the school hoard and the teacher, so that he will 
 be ever ready to consult them, assured of their respect for 
 his own rights, and of their co-oj)eration in whatever pro- 
 mises to promote the well-being of the school. While thus 
 assisted and directed by the school managers, and feeling 
 that his acts have been sanctioned by them, the teaclier will 
 naturally feel a degree of quiescence, which, as things new 
 exifit, he can never exj)erience. No pupil could success- 
 fully misrepresent him, and if censure for anything should 
 occur, it would be shared by the managers, whom the people 
 have selected to do their work. 
 
 Will you who advocate the idea of sustaining a school at 
 the least possible expense teU me that a school thus man- 
 aged would not form a pleasing contrast to the ones we now 
 find in our communities ? Will you claim that the exjjense 
 and labor of sustaining such schools are too great for the 
 amount of good achieved, or that there is only here and 
 there a community that can afford it ? 
 
 Will you claim this, and still unblushingly assert that 
 you can justly appreciate a well developed, a thoroughly 
 disciplined intellect ? 
 
 Are you as careful of the expense that is to contribute to 
 your material comfort ? Possibly, like many others who 
 advocate the closest, nay, most niggardly economy in sus- 
 
r 
 
 ul 
 
 in 
 
 432 
 
 The Frontier Scftoolmaster. 
 
 ^1 
 
 fl u 
 
 tuiMiiif,' schools, you find means to purchase a splendid 
 e(iui|)ii<^e, or to erect a residence, which for size and archi- 
 tectural beauty will surpass anything of the kind in your 
 vicinity. You never visit the school-room where you send 
 your children, but from the time in which you placed your 
 material for building in the hands of the car])enter and 
 mason, you have not ceased to visit these individuals daily, 
 to see if they are making a proper use of that material 
 and performing their work according to your wishes. 
 
 Do you not know that you have given the teacher a 
 greater work to ])erform ; a greater responsibility to dis- 
 charge ? Do you not know that in suiTendering to him the 
 work of moulding the minds of your children you have 
 placed in his charge material tiuer than ivory, more valuable 
 than marble ? Are you not aware that every precept and 
 example of that teacher are of more importance to you than 
 the clink of the trowel, and the stroke of the jack-plane, you 
 are so narrowly watching? Yes, be assured that every 
 principle implanted by tlie teacher in the breasts of your 
 children is to have a mightier influence in determining the 
 weal or woe of your declining years than Doric columns or 
 Corinthian capitals. Perhaps that, with all your indifference 
 to the interests of the public school, you are an admirer of 
 the fine arts, and generously open yi r purse to place your 
 son under the ablest masters of music. Eemember that in 
 the moral and mental mechanism of that son are keys capa- 
 ble of sending forth diviner music than ever ywelled at the 
 touch of Handel. It is the privilege of that teacher whom 
 you disregard to tune them to discordant notes that will 
 render the possessor wretched, or draw from them a soul- 
 inspiring melody that will cheer him in all his march from 
 the commencement of active life up to the Throne of God. 
 
 i !?,„: . 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 A joyrul H,rpri«e-My old friend McKenzie t«r„H up after a separatio,. 
 from me of several years-A letter in which ho ro.ouuts his wan- 
 derings and trials. 
 
 During the spring of 187- while remaining at home giving 
 my attention to the farm, I drove one evening to Foreston 
 viUage, when the postmaster presented me the foUowing 
 letter which had been addressed to himself. It read as 
 follows : 
 
 YoNKERS, N.Y., 3rd May, 187- 
 Dear Sir, 
 
 Will you have the kindness to give me the address of 
 Mr. Frank Styles, a gentleman who attended the Seminary 
 at Corvette in Vermont during the years 1856-57. 
 
 At that time his parents resided in Foreston, Canada 
 East. By giving me his address, or any information that 
 will lead to the discovery of his whereabouts, you will 
 greatly oblige, 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 Gordon McKenzie. 
 

 nnfi 
 
 434 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 i 
 
 Iwj 
 
 I-- 
 
 
 M 
 
 1 was wil '' with delight. Here was a letter from my old 
 friend — o' whom I had thought of thousands of times and 
 longed to see, yet I knew not where he was, and even 
 doubted that he was still alive. 
 
 Tlie next day's mail from Foreston conveyed to him a 
 letter embracing four sheets of foolscap closely written. 
 A few days subsequently I received the following reply : 
 
 YoNKERS, N.Y., May, 187-. 
 My dear Styles, 
 
 I feel at this moment not perhaps dke the Morning 
 Star, but, as the poet says. 
 
 " As if I had this moment canglit 
 Some treasure, I through life have sought." 
 
 The treasure assumes the shape of a letter, and I have 
 but this moment finished reading it. It is yours. 
 
 To say that I am very glad indeed in having heard from 
 you, is but a faint way of expressing my pleasure. I have 
 had nothing to equal it since 1 received the first letter from 
 the one who is now my wife — married you see. 
 
 As you insist upon my giving you a complete history of 
 my doings since 1 left Corvette I will attempt it. First, 
 however, let me refer to the circumstance of my writing 
 your ])ostmaster in relation to your whereabouts. 
 
 The evening I did so, I had occasion, in the work of 
 correcting the French exercises of my pupils, to consult my 
 French dictionary. On taking it down my eye, for the 
 thousandth time, fell on your name. The book you see 
 is the one you presented me in the Seminary at Corvette 
 more than ten years ago. The decision, I will )earn where 
 Styles is, flashed upon me in a moment, and I immediately 
 addressed your postmaster. The rest you know ; and now 
 to my narrative. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 435 
 
 ve 
 
 see 
 
 itte 
 
 lere 
 
 On the morning of the 5th day of July, 18 5-, I left the 
 Seminary never to return to it as a student. In order 
 to replenish my scanty wardrobe and procure enoucrh 
 money to pay my fare to Troy, N.Y., I had sold all, or 
 nearly all my books. Two days subsequently, having no 
 money with which to obtain a mea,l or a night's lodging, 
 I pawned my watch in Cohoes for $3.00. This sum had 
 dwindled down to fifty cents, and I was still without 
 employment, when I entered a public house for my dinner 
 in a village not far from Cohoes. While there, I learned 
 that the landlord was desirous of obtaining a l)ar-tender. 
 A chance for employment, however humble or menial, 
 in my present circumstances seemed a godsend. I liad 
 walked about and sought sometliing to do without avail, 
 until I was completely tired out and disheartened. I had 
 no money to pa> for my lodging that night, and the 
 prospect of beggary was before me. You know my 
 abhorrence of the liquor traffic ; well, I hesitated, shuddered, 
 then offered my services and was accepted. My ignorance 
 of the business, of course, reduced my salary to a very 
 small sum, but it would preserve me from starvation, and 
 possibly afford me an opportunity to secure otlier employ- 
 ment. 
 
 I immediately commenced my labors, but am confident 
 that the reluctance I felt to perform them rendered me 
 an unprofitable servant. I was in a phace where I was 
 liable, constantly, to meet those with whom I was 
 acquainted, especially the old students at Corvette, many 
 of whom lived in Troy, Albany and otlier places adjacent. 
 They all knew my standing in the Seminary, the honors 
 with which I had graduated, and the strenuous effoits I 
 
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 I: 
 
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 436 
 
 T/te Frontier Schoolmo er. 
 
 had made in behalf of temperance, hence, the dread of 
 having them form the impression that I had willingly 
 settled down to the business of tending bar was harassing, 
 tormenting. Luckily, I saw but very few of them, and by 
 being constantly on the qui vive I managed to keep out of 
 sight, and thus escaped recognition. 
 
 I lived, or rather existed, in this way two months, 
 when I chanced one day to hear a gentleman inquiring of 
 another, if he could inform him where a school teacher 
 might be found to take charge of a school of which he 
 was a trustee. I was not long in requesting an interview 
 with him, and after telling my story, and showing him my 
 diploma and recommendations, I was engaged. The school 
 was not far distant, in Saratoga County, but as it was a 
 district school my salary was low, yet the prospect of 
 getting out of my present situation made me happy. 
 
 I remained here until the spring of '61, when, the fall 
 of Sunq)ter rousing my patriotic emotions, I resigned 
 my situation and went to New York city with the inten- 
 tion of enlisting in the Federal Army. Alas ! my defective 
 stature blasted my hopes, and I fear that the disappoint- 
 ment somewhat diminished my patriotism. I was declared 
 two inches too short. It was in vain that I expatiated 
 on my jjrowess, ardor and agility. The officials were inex- 
 orable ; a man was too insignificant to be allowed to die for 
 his country unless he was two inches taller than myself. 
 Hoping that they would deduce from it the fact that a 
 man's value as a warrior is not iii proportion to his size, I 
 cited them to the story of David and Goliah, but they 
 seemed never to have heard of it. 
 
 I assured them that I was born in Scotland — a land of 
 
The Frontier Schoolnmster. 
 
 437 
 
 and of 
 
 heroes whose soldiers liad won glory for their country on a 
 thousand fields, but all to no purpose. Disappointed and 
 disgusted I walked off, scarcely knowing with which to be 
 the most indignant — the arbitrary laws of the American Re- 
 public, or the lu8U8 naturae which in a nation and family 
 of giants had made me a pigmy, 
 
 I believe, however, that my wrath was poured out upon 
 the latter. I could see no good reason why I, with as large 
 a degree of patriotism and other kindred emotions as ever 
 animated Wallace or Bruce, should be permitted to remain 
 a dM^arf, so small indeed as to be regarded insignificant by 
 my fellows. I fear that my murmuring at that time against 
 the decrees of Providence, my complaints respecting my 
 diminutive size, were the cause of my present proportions. 
 Within the past two or three years I have been growing ; 
 not tall, but latitudinally, expanding to a degree astonishing 
 both to my friend,? and myself. You will scarcely recognize 
 in me, when we meet, the Mack weighing but ninety-eight 
 pounds whom you knew in Corvette,. But pardon this 
 digression. 
 
 I spent several days after my disappointment in wander- 
 ing about the city looking once more for employment. I 
 had just obtained a situation in a carpet store, and was to 
 commence my labors there on the following Monday, when 
 I was taken sick, and did not rise from my bed for three 
 weeks. By the time I was abl'^ to go to work again, my 
 money was nearly i^one, and the .situation referred to in the 
 carpet store was filli 1 by another. One evening, sad and 
 disconsolate, in lookii ' over the advertisements in a daily, 
 my eye fell on one ask ig for a man to drive a bread cart 
 in the city. Applicants were requested to call at No. 296 
 
 DD 
 
 % 
 
 wm i miH i miM ' 
 
438 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 R street, at 9 o'clock on the following morning. As 
 
 hateful to me as was the thought of engaging in this menial 
 occupation, I was by unavoidable circumstances again placed 
 where I was constrained to do whatever was proffered me. 
 I knew how to manage horses ; driving was not hard work, 
 and, in my present enfeebled condition, it seemed altogether 
 advisable to obtain the situation if possible. 
 
 At the appointed hour with anxious heart I was at the 
 place designated. It was a small confectioner's shop, 
 attended at the time I was there by a modest pretty girl 
 not more than sixteen, but from her intelligence and dignity 
 appearing to be at least three years older. She informed 
 me that her father, who placed the advertisement in the 
 paper, had been unexpectedly called over to Hoboken, and 
 would not return until eleven. Having nothing to do else- 
 where I resolved to remain there until he returned. 
 
 It wanted a few minutes of nine when I arrived, and I 
 had been there but a short time when another applicant, and 
 then another came, until within an hour ten had presented 
 themselves. Only three of them, however, stayed to see 
 Mr. risk, the advertiser ; the others with disappointed, 
 scowling looks left in disgust on finding that he was absent, 
 and that there were four already awaiting his return. 
 
 The other applicants were hardy looking, laboring men, 
 and it seemed to me that their chances were far better than 
 mine, pale, effeminate looking, and slight as I was. I 
 made myself as agreeable as possible to Miss Fisk, hoping 
 and believing that she was a favorite with her father, and 
 that her intercession with him in my favor would have its 
 influence. I related to her incidents in my history, roused 
 her sympathy by telling her of my recent sickness and my 
 
The Frontier Sclioolmaster. 
 
 439 
 
 ning. As 
 his menial 
 :ain placed 
 tiered me. 
 lard work, 
 altogether 
 
 *vas at the 
 er's shop, 
 ;)retty girl 
 id dignity 
 informed 
 3nt in the 
 3ken, and 
 do else- 
 d. 
 
 ed, and I 
 icant, and 
 aresented 
 ed to see 
 
 pointed, 
 s absent, 
 rn. 
 
 ing men, 
 iter than 
 was. I 
 
 hoping 
 her, and 
 have its 
 ^ roused 
 and my 
 
 necessities, and finally hinted that by appealing to him in 
 my behalf she would confer a lasting debt of gratitude 
 on me. 
 
 Clearly comprehending the situation, smiling she said, 
 
 " I think I can help you. Many people call papa stern, 
 but he's not so to me. I can usually make him do what 
 I Uke." 
 
 You will please understand that these remarks between 
 us were made in an under tone, while the other three were 
 conversing together in the farther end of the shop. Soon 
 after this a door in the rear of the shop opened and Mr. 
 Fisk entered. I could well understand why people called 
 him stern, for there was a frigid air about him, an unfeeling 
 expression of countenance which made me shrink from 
 appealing to him in the hour of necessity. He was a tall, 
 spare, dark-visaged man with gruff voice ; and every look 
 he gave from his small piercing black eyes made me feel 
 that he suspected me of the triple crime of theft, murder 
 and arson. 
 
 " Mr. McKenzie, Papa," said his daughter, as he entered 
 the shop and looked inquiringly at me, " he has seen your 
 advertisement, and has come to apply for the situation." 
 
 He bowed, looked searchingly at me for a moment, then 
 at the other applicants, and was about speaking to me when 
 his daughter laid her hand on his arm and looked towards 
 me as if she would speak to him privately. I retired a 
 little from their presence, when, after she had talked with 
 him for a short time, he came forward, and, speaking in a 
 tone not altogether unkind, asked, 
 
 " What wages do you expect ? " 
 
 " Whatever you think I can earn," I replied 
 
 
r '] 
 
 440 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 mw 
 
 \\\ 
 
 He asked the others, individually, the same thing, and 
 each named the amount he expected. After asking me 
 another question or two, to ascertain whether I knew any- 
 thing about the care of horses, he turned to the others and 
 said, " 1 shall engage Mr. McKenzie." 
 
 I certainly felt sorry for these poor men when I saw 
 them going disappointed away, but not many hours, subse- 
 quently, I felt that they ought to have been congratulated 
 for their happy escape from the lot that fell to me. 
 
 I trust you will pardon me for relating so minutely the 
 details connected with my engagement at this time, but, as 
 the events of that day have had much to do with subsequent 
 events of my life, you will understand why I am thus 
 explicit. 
 
 After the others had gone, Fisk said to mo : 
 
 " I am afraid you will not like my work and the accom- 
 modations I shall be obliged to give you. You do not look 
 as if you were able to endure much hardship." 
 
 Believing it necessary to inspire him with as much con- 
 fidence in my physical ability as possible, in order to get 
 the situation, I affected a good deal of sang froid with 
 regard to the fare I received, and scouted the idea of not 
 being as able as any man to undergo exposure and hard- 
 ship. I said, 
 
 " I have been a sailor four years and a farmer two, so 
 you see, I am not ignorant of what labor is, nor am I at all 
 particular about my fare." 
 
 " I fear," he answered, " that yov will find more fault 
 with the arrangements for lodging than for anything else. 
 I always require a man who drives my bread cart to take 
 care of the horses and sleep in a room which I have had 
 
 Pi 
 
 11 
 
 ill I: 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 441 
 
 fitted up for the purpose in a loft above the stable. My 
 reason for this is that before I took this precaution my 
 stable was broken into on two occasions and my harnesses 
 were stolen, and once, one of my horses was badly 
 maimed." 
 
 I shuddered at the thought of sleeping in. such a place, 
 yet regarding it more discreet to treat the matter as of little 
 consequence, I said, 
 
 " I think I can get along with the lodging." 
 
 After talking with him awhile longer I returned to my 
 boarding place, took dinner and then removed my trunk and 
 valise to a boarding house near the dwelling of Fisk. I 
 was then sent out with the man who had previously driven 
 the cart in order that I might learn the different routes. In 
 the evening after our return, it being quite late, we stopped 
 at the shop a moment when, the man who had been with 
 me leaving us, Fisk went with me to the stable. A ferocious 
 bull dog had a kennel in it, and after commanding him to 
 be quiet, and seeing the horse cared for, Fisk mounted a 
 ladder which led to the loft, and showed me the couch I was 
 to occupy for the night, which consisted of a few blankets 
 spread on an old-fashioned bedstead. As I followed him 
 below to lock the door, he unloosed the dog, wished 
 me pleasant dreams, and departed. I had not fully realized 
 my situation until I was alone. Never did I spend such a 
 night ; sleep never visited my eyelids, and whenever I rose 
 and paced the floor to give relief to my feelings, the savage 
 brute below growled and roared with the ferocity of the 
 wild beasts in Central Park when about receiving their 
 meals. 
 
 I cursed my folly in hiring out to endure such ignomi- 
 
442 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 ^l 
 
 li i 
 
 m 
 
 wm 
 
 Wim 
 
 II 
 
 mm 
 
 M 
 
 111 
 
 1 
 
 4 ; 
 
 nious treatment, and resolved that this should be my last 
 night in this place. The man who had previously driven 
 the cart was ignorant, and his rough exterior and brutal 
 manners were quite in keeping with these surroundings, and 
 I was not surprised that he had had no objection to sleeping 
 in this unwholesome place. 
 
 Fearful that I might have trouble with his dog, being a 
 stranger, Fisk, as soon as morning broke, came to the 
 stable. The depression of spirits which resulted from my 
 incarceration in this place gave rise to forebodings of 
 poverty and sickness, hence, I was not as ready to dismiss 
 myself from a situation as I was some time previous to his 
 arrival. I only informed him that I was apprehensive of 
 injury to my health from sleeping there, and asked if he 
 could not change my quarters. He replied in the negative, 
 reminding me of my assurance to him that I was willing 
 to accept rough, hard fare. 
 
 " I can well understand," said he, " that you are deserving 
 of a better position than the one I have given you, but regard 
 for the safety of my property compels me tu have a man 
 sleep where you do." 
 
 I saw the reasonableness of his statement, and as his 
 manner towards me was kind, I formed quite a favorable 
 impression of him, but still was determined that my stay 
 there should be short. 
 
 I remained with him a week, but I was about as 
 unpleasantly situated as I was while tending bar. Fearful 
 lest I should be recognized by some old chum or 
 acquaintance, it was to me a week of wretchedness. 
 
 At the expiration of that time, I had money enough 
 to visit Philadelphia, which I did in hopes of finding 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 443 
 
 employment. In the course of my journey I happened to 
 meet the proprietor of the carpet store to wliora I had 
 previously engaged, and he informed me that he was again 
 in want of a man, and would hire me if I wished to 
 return and take the place. I promised to do so at the 
 expiration of two days, in case I should find nothing to do 
 in the city to which I was going. Disappointment await- 
 ing me there, I returned, on a packet boat, and in so doing 
 formed the acquaintance of a young man who then had 
 charge of a school in Kingston, New Jersey. He intended 
 to enter Rutgar's College in the fall, and he thought he 
 could obtain for me the situation he was to leave, in case 
 he should do so. Some weeks, subsequently, while I was 
 in the carpet store, I received a note from him informing 
 me that if I would come immediately to Kingston he 
 would assist me in securing his school. I started at once, 
 and the adventures which attended me on the trip I will 
 recount in my next letter. 
 
 Trusting that you will write me without delay, 
 
 I remain, 
 
 Yours most sincerely, 
 Mack, 
 
 '' 
 
 jasa'fffiffi'' ..- 
 
Mi 
 
 '<;-y 
 
 m :ii 
 
 i 
 
 IHhiII 
 
 m 
 
 "llfiif 1^ 
 
 CHAPTER XXXTI. 
 
 Another letter in which Mack concludes his narrative. 
 
 Tn compliance with Mack's request, I answered his 
 letter without delay, and a few days subsequently an 
 answer came, in which, after a few liminary remarks, he 
 resumed his story as follows : 
 
 Princeton Station was the nearest place to Kingston 
 that I could reach by railroad, and as it was nearly dark on 
 Saturday evening when I arrived there, and too late to 
 transact business should I go on, I decided to remain there 
 until Monday. Shortly after my arrival several men came 
 in, and I learned that they were about going to a 
 neighboring village to take part in a grand political 
 ratification meeting which was to take place there that 
 night. Among the number was a school trustee of an 
 adjoining district whose name was Fletcher. The landlord, 
 knowing the object of my contemplated visit to Kingston, 
 informed Fletcher that one of his guests was a young 
 gentleman in pursuit of a school, whereupon Fletcher 
 immediately solicited an interview with me. 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 445 
 
 He said their school was then vacant, and that he was 
 making efforts to secure the services of a teacher ; and then 
 desired to know if I was at liberty to engage to him. 
 
 I replied that I would accept the situation in ca.se they 
 would pay as much as they would at Kingston, and without 
 hesitation he assured me that they would do so. I was 
 highly elated, of course, with the prospect. 
 
 Fletcher insisted on my going with them to the meeting 
 that evening, saying that he would introduce me to his 
 associate trustee, and added that I would be pleased with 
 the speeches, as several distinguished men were to be pre- 
 sent. I consented, but as I was in ignorance as to the 
 " stripe " of my new friend's politics, I thought it best to be 
 reticent with regard to the character of my own. 
 
 I was not left long in the dark, however, for on our way 
 over, one of our party in the coach said, 
 
 "I'll bet the Black Republicans will get the drubbing 
 to-night they deserve, for Chai'lie Ferguson is to speak." 
 
 This remark at once called forth several others, from 
 which I learned the not very pleasant fact that I was in a 
 nest of rabbid Democrats. 
 
 To add to my discomfort, Fletcher uttered a most dis- 
 paraging remark about the Eepublican party, and then made 
 an appeal to me to corroborate it. Having already con- 
 sidered the awkwardness of my situation, being a Republi- 
 can, and decided that under the circumstances it might be 
 as well to keep them in ignomnce of my views, I merely 
 laughed, and replied that his appeal to me suggested a story. 
 By the time the story was told the former subject was for- 
 gotten, and I had not committed myself. I confess that I 
 felt slightly ashamed of my hypocritical conduct, but I 
 
 I 
 
 -J. 
 1 ■ 
 
 r 
 
 iis 
 
44G 
 
 The Frontier' Schoolmaster. 
 
 m 
 
 fit 
 
 ill % 
 
 II 
 
 silenced the murmurs of conscience by arguing to myself 
 that owing to my obscurity my influence was nothing, and 
 that whatever I said would soon be forgotten if notice I at 
 all. 
 
 That my reasoning was fallacious in part, the sequel will 
 show. It was soon obvious that the company regarde< { me 
 as a promising, warm-hearted Democrat, and the dilernna 
 which resulted to me that night from my hypocrisy I shall 
 never forget. 
 
 On arriving at the place of meeting I was actually forced 
 upon the platform with the speakers, and regularly intro- 
 duced to each one of them as Mr. McKeuzie, " the gentle- 
 man from New York city." " Charlie " surpassed all his 
 previous efforts in vilifying the Republicans, and was 
 repeatedly obliged to cease speaking until the thunderous 
 applause had died away. % i ?: .= 
 
 Another and then another speaker rose, each striving to 
 outstrip the other in his denunciations of the Republican 
 party, to all of which I was obliged mutely to listen, and 
 I began to fear that I would either have to show my colors, 
 or be compelled even to play the role of a political Peter. 
 
 I decided, however, if called upon to speak, to refuse, but in 
 order to save myself the trouble I intended to make my escape 
 from the platform while the next one was speaking. Judge 
 my astonishment and confusion then, when the next speaker 
 rose, made a few remarks, and then said he had been requested 
 by the chairman to make his speech as brief as possible as 
 the meeting was to be addressed by the Honorable Mr. Mc- 
 Keuzie from New York city ; and at the same moment he 
 waved his hand towards me. When the applause which 
 greeted this announcement had died away, the chairman 
 
 I 
 
 iiiiiiil ' 
 
 f MH 
 
The Frontier Schoolmcister. 
 
 447 
 
 ) myself 
 1'"^', und 
 t)ti(>.| at 
 
 uel will 
 
 *d<-''i me 
 
 'lil<nina 
 
 1 sJiall 
 
 y forced 
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 nng to 
 
 iblican 
 
 sn, and 
 
 colors, 
 
 eter. 
 
 but in 
 
 escape 
 
 Judge 
 
 leaker 
 
 tested 
 
 jle as 
 
 . Mc- 
 
 it he 
 
 'hich 
 
 ^man 
 
 rose and introduced me in a fulsome sjieech, which was 
 received with hearty cheers. 
 
 I never fainted in my life, but I think I came ilearer to 
 it on this occasion than I ever did before, or have since. I 
 was nior.illy certain that any attempt on my jjart to stand, 
 much more to speak, would be an utter impossibility. I 
 therefore simply kept my seat for some seconds ; then deliber- 
 ately took (Hit my watch, opened and looked at it for several 
 seconds more, and then, still seated, begged in view of the 
 lateness of the hour, the fact that such able speeches had 
 been made, that I be excused, urging, likewise, that any- 
 thing I might say at that late hour must only prove " stale, 
 flat and unprofitable." The chairman attempted to speak, 
 but before he could utter a sentence, from every part 
 of the house came the cry " McKenzie ! McKenzie ! " and 
 I saw that further delay would be dangerous to my repu- 
 tation. Brief as this interval was, it enabled me to collect 
 my thoughts and become more composed. 
 
 I had decided to make a speech without even commit- 
 ting myself. It was a dangerous thing for a young man 
 like myself unaccustomed to public speaking to attempt, 
 inasmuch as it required both coolness and tact. It was 
 simply an effort to speak for a certain length of time in a 
 way that would satisfy my audience, and at the same time 
 neither do harm to my own party nor violence to my prin- 
 "ciples. 
 
 I was sufficiently conversant with the political history 
 of the country to expatiate successfully on the achievement 
 of the Democratic party in decades gone by. I advised 
 moderation, exhorted them them to unity of action, and 
 closed by expressing the belief that, if they were united, 
 
448 
 
 The Frontier SchoolmoMer. 
 
 II 
 
 ill 
 
 they would undoubtedly carry many of the States by a 
 large majority. Of the truth of my last remark I had not 
 the slightest doubt. 
 
 Yov will please remember that in all this time I never 
 LiPiitioned the Kepublician party, nor did I express a hope 
 that the Democrats might be successful. I touched lightly 
 on some of the prominent things in the Democratic plat- 
 form, but dwelt in generalities. 
 
 Kemembering the condition of my audience at the time, 
 and judging from the applause which greeted me, I have 
 every reason to believe that these generalities were regarded 
 " glittering." 
 
 Although conscious as I was that the speech was one 
 that any schoolboy should make, when at last I closed, and 
 three cheers had been given for " the Hon. Gentleman from 
 New York," I was borne from the platform by the most 
 demonstrative of the audience — among whom was my 
 friend Fletcher — and carried to the nearest hotel. Hore 
 they all drank my health, and, will you believe it ? they 
 tried to make me swallow a glass of vile whiskey ? Having 
 heard, howo'^er, of " Jersey Lightning," I was iirm, and 
 respectfully declined. 
 
 That speech decided my fortunes in New Jersey, for so 
 well pleased were they with it that both Fletcher and his 
 associate insisted ';hat I should name the price for which I 
 would teach their school. I declined doing this until I 
 had seen the trustees in Kingston, whom I was about <x) 
 visit, but they were still importunate. I asked how much 
 they had usually paid, and the reply was $125 per quarter ; 
 but they assured me that that would have nothing to do 
 with my case. I thought of asking $250 per quarter, but 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 449 
 
 feared that I would be overdoing the thing, and so refused 
 to give them my terms before I visited Kingston, 
 
 Seeing that there was no moving me from tliis posit' m, 
 Fletcher proposed that I should remain with him until 
 Monday, when he would carry me over to Kingston and 
 conclude the bargain with me there, in case I did not hire 
 out to the trustees of that place. I acceded to his pro- 
 posal, and accordingly on Monday was driven to Kingston 
 and met the trustees. 
 
 They offered me $160 per quarter, saying that that was 
 ten dollars more than they had ever , -aid before. I refused 
 the offer, when, after a brief consultation, they advanced the 
 price to $175. My friend Fletcher slyly giving me a 
 wink, I again declined the offer, and we were abouL going 
 away, when the chairman of the board asked if I would 
 remain for $190, provided their constituents did not object 
 to iihe price. I glanced at Fletcher but his eye was averted, 
 and I then asked if they would give me two days in which 
 to consider .;he matter. 
 
 " Certainly, as long as you like," was the reply. 
 
 We then returned to Morrisville — the place where the 
 school was located — and found the other twotrvstees await- 
 ing us at the hotel. The one whom I had never seen before 
 was a staunch Republican, and my two Democratic friends 
 were very careful not to let him know the part I had taken 
 in the meeting of Saturday evening. After a long parley 
 they agreed to hire me for a year, at $200 per quarter, which 
 was to be raised to $210 for the following year, in the event 
 of my giving good satisfaction. 
 
 After the bargain was closed and I had time to reflect 
 upon the strange combination of circumstances which had 
 
450 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 placed me in this desirable situation, I could but wonder. 
 I must confess I felt that I had been guilty of some deceit, 
 and had displayed a great deal of assurance in contending 
 for the salary that they finally agreed to pay me ; for, as 
 near as I can recollect, I had decided on leaving New York 
 to accept any price that my employers w^ere willing co pay. 
 
 I remained in the Morrisville school three years. After 
 I had been there about six months, one morn'ng a young 
 lady, with a fiice wonderfully familiar, entered my school as 
 a pupil. Until I had time to speak to her and learn her 
 name, I was sorely puzzled to know where 1 nad m£t her. It 
 was Emma Fisk, the young lady through whose influence 
 I had obtained the siiuation with her father, confectioner, 
 and proprietor of a bakery in New York. It appeared that 
 Mr. Fisk had formerly owned a farm in New Jersey '.i the 
 place where I was teaching, but had sold out, removed to 
 New York, and engaged in business there. Finding it less 
 profitable than he had anticipated, he had /eturned to New 
 Jersey and re-purchased his farm. His daugliter soon after 
 their arrival commenced attending my school, and did so 
 until the intimacy which s])rung up between us necessitated 
 my removal to another place. 
 
 Discovering that she possessed much intelligence and 
 amiability of character, I naturally took an interest in her 
 as a pupil, and in less than a yea- a warm friendship 
 existed between us. 
 
 Three months afterward I had fully effected the 
 transition between friendship rnd a 5 tronger emotion, and 
 disclosing my feelings to her I was surprised to learn that 
 she entertained the I'ame with regard to myjelf. 
 
 About this time the removal from the place of the 
 
 ,il! 
 
 i\ k 
 
 m 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 453 
 
 man with whom I had been boarding obliged me to seek 
 quarters elsewhere, and the house of Mr. Fisk seemed to 
 be the only available one where I could board in the 
 future. I, of course, gladly made the change, but in the 
 new position the relation which I sustained towards Emma 
 could not be concealed from her parents. 
 
 Her mother never opposed us, but the father, on the 
 contrary, sternly forbade her to have anything to do 
 with me except as a teacher and boarder of the family ; 
 his only objection being my want of fortune. In con- 
 sequence of this objection, we were obliged to dissemble, 
 and thus eluded all suspicion for several months. One 
 evening, however, Mr. Fisk returning home unexpectedly, 
 found Emma aad myself alone in the parlor, and at once 
 gave vent to his feelings in unijualified abuse of myself. 
 He also commanded me to leave his house forever, and on 
 the following morning I sought another place. I fortun- 
 ately found one with a respectable family, though living a 
 long distance from my school. I had cherished a hope that 
 I might find employment wiiere I was then teaching for a 
 much longer period, but as Mr. Fisk was now chairman of 
 the school board, and objected decidedly to my re-engage- 
 ment, I was obliged to seek a school elsewhere, and soon 
 found one ten miles distant, of which I was given charge. 
 
 Previous to leaving Morrisville I learned from both 
 Emma and her mother that Mr. Fisk was anxiously 
 endeavoring to effect a marriage between his daughter and 
 a bachelor merchant of the village, who was reputed 
 rich, but, owing to his crabbed nature and penuriousneas, 
 was unpopular with his fellow citizens. He frequently 
 visited the house of Fisk while I was there, but as Emma 
 
452 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 p% 
 
 i. 
 
 disliked him, and only treated him with courtesy to please 
 her father, I was not at all apprehensive that he would 
 meet with sufficient encouragement to induce him to 
 propose marriage. Knowing, too, Fisk's affection for his 
 daughter, I could not believe that he would advise, much 
 less coerce her to a union which was highly repugnant to 
 her feelings, and which would in all probability reault in 
 years of discomfort and wretchedness to her. No 3ooner, 
 however, had I left his house than he began to encourage 
 Judd, the merchant, to make frequent visits there, in 
 hopes, no doubt, that he might succeed in winning Emma's 
 favor, and that she would thus forget me. 
 
 Through the favor of her mother and the kindness of a 
 friend of mine, I was enabled to correspond with lier after 
 I left the place, and occasionally I met her at the house of 
 my friend. 
 
 I trust you will not imagine that when I was carrying 
 on this clandestine correspondence, and meeting her 
 thus secretly, I had lost my former respect for frankness 
 and open, fair dealing ; for I had not, and I had many scruples 
 and questions to settle with myself about the honor of 
 inducing her to disobey h. r father's positive commands, 
 before I could feel that I was not doing wrong. The fact, 
 however, that her mother, who was a christian lady, respected 
 by all who knew her, was encouraging our attachment to each 
 other, and seemed to regard our marriage as the only means 
 of securing the happiness of her daughter, was a sufficient 
 guarantee to me that I was doing nothing incompatible 
 with the principles of an honest man and a gentleman. I, 
 therefore, resolved that our uniou should not l;o long 
 delayed. 
 
 
 Jf rf'V'r 
 
 li& 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 453 
 
 Shortly after I had formed this resolution, T learned that 
 Mr. Fisk had broached the subject to his daughter of marry- 
 ing Judd, and ou hearing her prompt i-efusal he hadthieat- 
 ened to disinherit and disown her unless she complied with 
 his wishes. I soon obtained an interview with Mrs. Fisk, 
 and asked if she would object to the immediate mar- 
 riage of Emma to myself, provided it could be effected. She 
 assured me that she would not, yet, with deep grief and 
 many tears, expressed her belief that it could never take 
 place with the knowledge of her husband. I next saw 
 Emma, who, after listening to my plans, and receiving ex- 
 plicit reasons for my course, consented to an elopement. 
 Accordingly, on the night of the 6th of Decern oer, 186- 
 collecting such articles as she required, she met me at 
 a place of rendezvous, where I had a coach in readiness 
 which conveyed us to the railroad station at Trenton. 
 Here we arrived in time to reach the Owl Train, which 
 took us to New York. In consequence of an accident 
 which occurred to a freight train which had preceded us 
 by an hour, we did not reach the city until five o'clock the 
 next morning. 
 
 It wiU be necessary here to acquaint you with a few facts 
 in regard to my past history which I came near forgetting. 
 I knew that several of my old friends resided in the city of 
 New York and in its immediate vicinity, at the time I 
 found employment there. A feeling of pride kept me fnjni 
 acquainting my former friend, the Rev. Mr. Halleck, with 
 my whereabouts at the time I was tending bar in Saratoga 
 County, and during that time a change of residence on his 
 part caused me to lose his address. After I had left that 
 
 
464 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 • iniii 
 
 ii 
 
 ^ 
 
 !'• 
 
 situation and engaged in teaching, my low salar. 'revented 
 my discliai'ging any i)art of the debt I owed liim, hence I 
 refrained from looking him up ; deferring it until my cir- 
 cumstances should change for the better. While eng-aged in 
 the carpet store, 1 one day happened to meet our old friend^ 
 Scott, and from him I learned that Mr. Halleck resided in 
 Brooklyn. I did not visit or see him, but, after I engaged 
 the school in Morris ville, I sent money at stated intervals 
 until J had paid the full amount I owed him. I cor- 
 responded not only with him, but with Scott also, and to 
 the latter I had confided the story of my relations to my 
 future wife. 
 
 I had already made arrangements with him to meet us 
 at the depot when we arrived, and when he did so, to my 
 delight he informed me that he had arranged to take us to 
 Mr. Halleck's, and that that gentleman had promised to 
 unite us in the bonds of wedlock at his house. The pro- 
 gramme was faithfully carried out, and v/e then reii ved to 
 our boarding house, where Scott had made all preparations 
 for us to spend our honey moon. 
 
 A few weeks, subsec^uently, I went to Blackstone, t^ong 
 Island, to take charge of the public schfjol there, whicli Mr. 
 Halleck had engjiged for me at a salary of SI, 000 per 
 annum. I remained there until 1868, wlien I resigned for 
 the purpose of securing the principalshij) of the scliooi at 
 this place .'^ " 'i'xher salary. 
 
 I am stii. i, , in the enjoyi//^nt of good health, iLitMi^\ng 
 in addition to my salary a few humlivddoliara yearly from 
 different papers for the productions of my humble pen. My 
 jPather-Jai-law has so far laid aside ^/^ iiji<iignttti<.»iii and pre- 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 455 
 
 •revented 
 , hence I 
 I my cir- 
 igiiged in 
 Id friend 
 Bsided in 
 
 engaged 
 
 intervals 
 
 I cor- 
 
 and to 
 IS to ray 
 
 meet us 
 ), to my 
 b ns to 
 aised to 
 he pro- 
 ved to 
 irations 
 
 2, Long 
 ch Mr. 
 00 per 
 lied for 
 loul 
 
 judices against me that he now sometimes visits us, and 
 always brings a present of no small value to the young 
 Georgie McKenzie, who now enhances the happiness of our 
 household by his prattle. 
 
 With a most cordial wish that you will visit us with 
 your family at no distant day, 
 
 I remain, I ^ 
 
 ■ ' Yours assuredly and ever, 
 
 Gordon McBIenzie. 
 
 living 
 
 'rom 
 i. My 
 d pre- 
 
m^ 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 Mack's change of fortune — He secures me a situation — Unlmppy 
 prospect of another separation from my fanuly — An unexpected 
 letter — The death of Niel — A surprising change of fortune by 
 whicli I am at last released from the necessity of teaching — My 
 removal to New York. 
 
 1/ 
 
 Two or three letters more were interchanged between 
 McKenzie and myself, when I visited him. The following 
 summer he visited me in return, and thus we met each 
 other from time to time. While on my last visit to him he 
 received a letter from Scotland which, while it was the 
 cause of sadness, also afforded him the cheerful prospect of 
 relief from the arduous duties of teaching. 
 
 While he was a student in Corvette he wrote to his 
 mother, and in due time received an answer which was 
 replete with expressions of maternal tenderness. Thus a 
 correspondence was opened between them which was kept 
 up until the time of which I write. A year after he com- 
 menced his labors in Blackstone his mother visited him, 
 and remained two or three months. Soon after her return 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 457 
 
 to his 
 
 •li was 
 
 lius a 
 
 s kept 
 
 coni- 
 
 him, 
 
 return 
 
 to Scotland her husband, who the reader will renieml)er 
 held this relation by a second marriage, inherited quite a 
 fortune by the death of a relative. In less than two vears 
 he died, beiiueathing the gi'eater part of his property to his 
 wife. After sending her son Gordon several valuable 
 presents, and vainly endeavoring to induce him to come to 
 Scotland and reside, she decided to come to Anurica, and 
 spend her remaining days with him. It was while con- 
 templating this movement, and making preparations for it, 
 that she was seized with a dangerous illness, which in the 
 course of a few weeks terminated her life. 
 
 The letter alluded to above announced to McKenzie the 
 death of his mother, and the fact, also, that she had left him 
 the sum of twelve thousand pounds sterling. 
 
 It was now Mack's summer's vacation, and the day after 
 receiving this letter he inform.ed me that he intended to 
 resign his position as teacher where he then was, and 
 remove to New York ; and he wished to know if I would 
 like to be his successor in the school. 
 
 I had previously been teaching in Warsaw irf Canada. 
 My family was still there, and I had been engaged to as- 
 sume the principalship of the academy at that place an(jther 
 year. I replied to Mack's inquiry by saying that nothing 
 would give me more pleasure than to succeed him in his 
 school, and would do so on condition of my getting released 
 from my engagement at Warsaw. 
 
 He had little diiliculty in securing me his situation, and 
 I then returned to Canada, hoping to be al)le to obtain my 
 own release. I was not disappointed, and immediately set 
 abont making aiTangements for my departure. 
 
458 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 A week previous to the time when I was to leave I sat 
 alone one evening with my family, now consisting of a wife 
 and three children. They were to remove to our old home 
 at Foreston, where my aged i)arents still resided, and were 
 to remain there a year ; then, in the event of my re- 
 engagement at Yonkers, they were to go with me to that 
 place to reside. 
 
 The prospect of separation was an unhappy one for us all, 
 but still it was neither new nor strange. 
 
 Owing to my inability to incur the expense and trouble 
 of moving my family and household effects every time I 
 was obliged to change the scene of my labors, I had lived 
 in almost constant exile from my wife and children, seeing 
 them only at intervals of one, two or more weeks, accord- 
 ing to my uistance from them. During the last three years, 
 however, 1 had enjoyed the pleasure of their society con- 
 stantly, and though, if I followed teacliing. it was not likely 
 that this pleasure would be vouchsafed me long, I had 
 no doubt until I returned from my visit to Mack that I 
 would be with them during the ensuing year. 
 
 The education of our children had been a subject of 
 great interest to us, and Euth had given much attention to 
 it when they were in Foreston. On the evening alluded 
 to above, we had been impressing upon them the import- 
 ance of devoting themselves to study during my absence, 
 and our two boys. Jack and Tommy, aged respectively 
 thirteen and nine, were now lamenting my departure, and 
 tearfully declaring their determination to be industrious 
 and obedient to my wishes. 
 
 Ruth sat by the table with an open book near her which 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster, 
 
 459 
 
 which 
 
 she evidently felt too sad tc read, and was now seeinin^'ly 
 trying to reconcile the dcitlings of I'rovidence with her 
 ideas of love and justice. I could easily divine her 
 thoughts, for I had long 1 nown he inclination at times to 
 indulge skejitical feelings. Though generally niaintaiinng 
 consistent Christian faith, she could not sometimes forlx^ir in 
 hours of trial, betraying the weakness of the doubting 
 A])oslle, and th(;se moments were always characterized by 
 the same sad, hopeless expressions of countenance now so 
 plaiidy visible. Her path like mine had not l)een one of 
 sunshine and flowers, and the slight furrows on her face, 
 and the gray hairs that were here and there discernible, 
 showed that time and care had affected her not less deeply 
 than myself. ' 
 
 " This evening," she at length said, " brings back so 
 vividly the thoughts and emotions I exjjer-^nced tlie nigiit 
 you promised to eidist, and the evening also before you 
 started for the army." 
 
 " I Lope, my dear," I said, " that thi' prospect of a good 
 situation in cultured society does not seem fraught with 
 the danger to me that the life of a soldier did." 
 
 " No," she said, " that is not it, but I cannot bear the 
 thought of your long absence from us again. I am not as 
 strong now and as well able to bear it as I then was," and 
 tear; moistened her eyes as she said this. "Besides," she 
 continued, " these children require your presence and care. 
 It seems cruel that circumstances compel us to live in this 
 unnatural way." 
 
 There was too much of truth ii these remarks not to 
 • dflect me. The thought of being absent from my children 
 
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 460 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 so long, at a time when perhaps the most comfort was to 
 be realized with them, and at a time, too, when they most 
 required my care and instruction, had already been suffi- 
 ciently harrowing, and it was made doubly so by the 
 consciousness that lluth so fully realized and deplored 
 the same (Ling. 
 
 " I understand the truth of what you say," I replied, 
 "but there is no use of repining at our lot, or finding 
 fault with the decrees of Providence. We might be in 
 much more unpleasant circumstances than we are now in> 
 and every cloud you know has a silver lining," 
 
 " I have often tried," she said, " to console myself with 
 these thoughts, but when I remember how long and faith- 
 fully you have Avorked, and I see so many of our early 
 friends who have displayed but little industry enjoying 
 all the comforts and ease of wealth, it seems to me that 
 yc u must have been born under an unlucky planet." 
 
 *' You forget," I replied, " that wealth is secured by honest 
 industry in only rare instances, and that those who have 
 it often come into possession of it by a combination of 
 circumstances o"'er which they have had no control, and for 
 which, consequently, they can claim no credit." 
 
 " I know that," she said, " and 1 used to have a sort of 
 presentiment that some such circuinstances would|place 
 you beyond the necessity of hard labor in the later years 
 of your life, but I am now bereft of even that consolation." 
 
 At this moment a neighbor's boy entered to ask our 
 oldest boy to accompany him, as usual, to the post-office. 
 He did so, and no sooner had he gone than Kate, our five 
 year old, who had become somewhat distinguished for her 
 
 llf 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 461 
 
 quaint sayings, and who evidei'tly had some conception of 
 the cause of the prevailing sadness, climbed on my knee and 
 M'ith an anxious expression of countenance said : 
 " Papa, wiU you have to teach stool in heaven ? " 
 " I hope not, my chilr" ." I said. " But why do you ask ? " 
 " 'Cause," she answered, " I heard mamma say she was 
 'fraid you'd always have to teach stool." 
 
 I continued io chat and play with her until Jack returned 
 with our mail, which consisted of a letter addressed to Euth 
 and the evening paper. I took the latter, and busied myself 
 with it a few moments, when, glancing towards Ruth, I 
 was surprised to see her rale and trembling from emotion, 
 still holding the letter in her hand. 
 
 " What is the matter ? " I said. " Please let me read it, 
 and I held out my hand for the epistle which I had no 
 doubt was the cause of her singular appearance. 
 She withheld it, and said : 
 
 "Not now; I wiU let you see it by3 and bye," and 
 then she took a book, commenced reading, and soon dis- 
 played her usual composure. 
 
 1 returned to my paper, though still wondering what the 
 contents of the letter could be. After reading a few minutes, 
 Ruth, in much better spirits than I had recently seen her, 
 asked : 
 
 " Don't you think you will be able to judge by Christmas 
 whether they will want you to remain another year or not, 
 so that in case they do, you can send for us ? " 
 
 " It is possible that I may," I replied. 
 
 After musing a moment she said ; " What a lucky 
 fellow Mack was, he will probably never teach again. I 
 
,s. 
 
 i ■ 
 
 HI 
 
 III 
 
 11 i 
 
 462 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 wish that some such good fortune might be in store for you. 
 Would you fultill your engagement with the school trustees 
 at Yonkers were yoa now to receive a legacy from some 
 friend ? " she asked. 
 
 I might not have been at all surprised at the question had 
 there not been something peculiar in the expression of her 
 face, an unusually bright sparkle in her eye, and I thought 
 I detected a strong effort to suppress a smile. But thinking 
 that this might all arise from her contemplation of the 
 pleasure an unexpected fortune would give us, I replied : 
 
 " Certainly I would, unless they were quite willing to 
 release me from it." 
 
 " And what would you do after they had released you ? " 
 she asked. 
 
 " I don't know I am sure," I said ; " but why do you 
 tantalize me with this idle talk ? " 
 
 " O, to see what you would say," she replied, and then 
 continued : " You have no fears I suppose that a valuable 
 legacy would dethrone your reason as it has others ? " 
 
 " I would be most happy to risk it," I replied, 
 
 " Well, then, read that," she said, throwing me the letter 
 she had just received. 
 
 Seizing it with trembling hand, I opened and read as 
 follows : 
 
 " CAliROLLTON, Aug. 20th, 187- 
 
 " Mrs. Ruth Styles : 
 
 Dear Madam, — I have great pleasure in informing you, 
 as the attorney of Mr. Niel, that previous to his death, which 
 occuiTed on Thursday last, he left you in his will, pro- 
 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaster. 453 
 
 perty, consisting of bank stock, mortgages and real estate to 
 the amount of$21,000 (twenty-one thousand dollars). There 
 being no claims against his estate, the property is awaitxng 
 your order. ° 
 
 I am, Madam, 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 B. P. WiNSLOw, Advocate. 
 P.S.—I enclose a letter from Mr. Niel to your husband." 
 I gasped, took up the letter enclosed, which read • 
 "My dear Mr. Styles,-! address you as I was wont 
 to do years ago ; for, though I have been ashamed to see 
 you the honesty of your principles I have never forgotten 
 and you are still dear to me. My physician tells me that 
 I have but a few days to live, and with a desire that I may 
 make reparation for the ™ng I have done, I shall bequeath 
 either you or your noble wife the principal part of my pro- 
 perty. With the exception of what I have done to you 
 and yours I do not know that I have ever wronged one of 
 my fellows, hence, I trust that you will not think t'oo harshly 
 of me when I am gone. I have sought forgiveness at the only 
 Fount whence it can be obtained, and have the assurance 
 that It 13 granted. Could I now feel that you too forgive 
 and that the amount I leave you wiU in a measure repay 
 yon for all the trouble I have given, I would die happy. 
 
 Believe me. 
 
 Your sincerest friend, 
 
 W. N. Niel." 
 This letter was in the same handwriting as the other 
 which made it probable that it had been written after the' 
 dictation of Niel while on his death-bed. 
 
464 
 
 The Frontier Schoolmaster. 
 
 M 
 
 m 
 
 Poor man. Not naturally vicious or unkind, he liad per- 
 mitted his love passion to betray him into an act of wicked- 
 ness unlike anything he had ever before committed, and for 
 which he had no doubt suffered bitter feelings of remorse. 
 
 It was too late to assure him how fully he was forgiven ; 
 but now, for the first time, we told our children the story of 
 the sorrow and hardships which finally resulted in a tem- 
 poral blessing to us, and we teach them to respect the 
 memory of the man who was the author of all. 
 
 The day following that on which my fortune so unex- 
 pectedly changed, I received a letter from Mack containing 
 a draft for $1,000. 
 
 " I did not present it tc you while you were here," he 
 wrote me, " knowing that, if I succeeded in getting you to 
 accept it at all, it would only be after a long parley into 
 which I had no aesire to enter. You are on no account to 
 refuse it, nor even to think of such a thing. You would 
 have done the same thing for me had our circumstances 
 been reversed, and you can do me no greater favor than to 
 use it without evei meiitioning it hereafter. 
 
 Bring hour family with you at once, fit up a house at 
 Yonkers, and be happy." 
 
 Although now beyond the necessity of accepting my 
 generous friend's munificent present, I was not the less 
 grateful to him. I immediately visited Yonkers, when I 
 returned it, and surprised and delighted him with the story 
 of my own strange good fortune. 
 
 I procured a substitute for myself in the school where I 
 had agreed to teach, and then removed to Foreston, to 
 engage in the quiet and peaceful pursuit of farming, which 
 
 ' ■ : f 
 
The Frontier Schoolmaeter. 45- 
 
 I had always intended to follow should n,y eircumrtances 
 ever perm.t. Since that time, however, a Lre to ed, cats 
 our chUdron led me to remove U> New York and en e. ,^to 
 partnerslnp wuh Mack in a lucrative business in which h^ 
 had embarked. In our improved condition of life w ,' 
 
 1 ;' °^, *"'"' '" ^•'<»" "" «y»Pathy and hospitality 
 are extended none receive them more cordiaUy than the 
 teacher who rs toiling over the thorny path w' both have 
 
 THE END. 
 
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