1010. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
1081 
District Schools To-Day. 
Yesterday Bess started for Boston, 
where she is to spend a year in study, 
which will fit her for a special line of 
teaching. It was only after long delib¬ 
eration and much turning of the situa¬ 
tion over and over that we all made up 
our minds that it was best for her to 
make this departure. For though she 
has some money saved from her two 
years’ work as district school teacher, 
it will mean some help from us and 
plenty of managing, and some self-de¬ 
nials all around. 
At first her father looked upon the 
plan with disfavor. “Now that she 
has made a reasonable success right 
here in her home locality,” he would 
argue, “why not let well enough alone? 
She has been asked to keep on where 
she was, and our district schools de¬ 
serve as good teachers as they can get. 
A girl brought up in a farming district 
understands country conditions, and if 
she is well prepared—and Bess was— 
she can do better work there than any 
girl from the city can. Things have 
alvvavs gone smoothly where she has 
taught and to the satisfaction of parents 
and school board. They have offered 
her almost any position she has a mind 
to work for. Let her stay right here 
where we can have her home over Sun¬ 
days. We can’t spare another, now 
Pauline is married and gone.” 
So spoke my mother-heart, too. At 
least it spoke loudly that way part of 
the time. But all along the girl herself 
had been saying, “Don’t let me settle 
into one of those cut-and-dried, know- 
it-all school manns, will you, mommie?” 
and I knew that while she wanted to 
be of use, and in the words of the 
catechism, to learn and labor truly to 
get her own living, and to do her duty in 
that state of life into which it had 
pleased God to call her, while she 
loved her home and country people aiuT 
country ways, she had still a girl’s in¬ 
tense longing for a wider outlook and 
a broader knowledge of life and the 
big busy world. I knew that it was per¬ 
fectly right to be not merely useful but 
to enlarge one’s usefulness. 
But the subject on which I sat down 
to free my mind was present-day con¬ 
ditions in our district schools from the 
teacher’s side of the work. 
In our locality the old time district 
school has disappeared, at least it has 
become so changed as to make one sigh 
for the good old days when the major 
part of the children were from homes 
where obedience, self-repression and re¬ 
spect for elders and authority were 
everyday virtues. The children now are 
as dear and as interesting, but they are 
not of the same fiber. There may be 
two or three as helpful to the teacher 
in building up the right sort of feeling 
as to manners and morals, but few 
schools furnish enough of the best ele¬ 
ment to create a prevailing sentiment 
strong enough to lift the whole school. 
You might bring a boy or girl into the 
old-fashioned districts, who was trouble¬ 
some, mischievous, disrespectful, refrac¬ 
tory, and the trend of public opinion 
there would suffer scarcely at all; in¬ 
stead the unruly one would be in some 
degree shamed into better behavior. But 
now obedience is a good deal out of 
fashion. In the best homes children are 
treated exactly as grown-ups are, but 
with the added indulgence and admira¬ 
tion natural toward those of tender 
years whom we deeply love. I am no 
stickler for the old severity of floggings 
in the barn and penalties for every freak 
of mischief. But in those old families 
of six to 10 youngsters no wonder the 
fathers and mothers had to maintain 
order or be put out of doors by the 
pandemonium which would have ensued. 
1 am not sure but one son and one 
daughter is the ideal family for many 
nervous, ambitious, half-invalid parents. 
I merely urge that conditions have 
changed, that the school teacher is now, 
in many cases, the first person the child 
has been asked or expected to obey. 
This brings me to the main reason 
why 1 wanted our Bess to leave ordi¬ 
nary school teaching for a position 
where the disciplining of a roomful of 
restless and stiff-necked little men and 
women would not be demanded of her. 
All the two years I had known that the 
teaching was a pleasure to her, but that 
the strain of keeping order and in¬ 
dustry regnant had sent her home on 
Friday nights looking worn and spent, 
and too weary to do more than recreate 
and rest till Monday morning came 
again. Here and there is a girl who 
is a born boss and ruler. Such make 
successful teachers. Their pupils may 
not always love them, but I sometimes 
question whether we can to-day expect 
much genuine liking between teacher 
and scholars. It has come to the point 
m one country school that I know very 
well that when, if the children all agree 
that they like the teacher, I may feel rea¬ 
sonably sure that they are whispering, 
getting two or three drinks of water 
every hour, closeting themselves in the 
little book room for supposed study, 
borrowing, lending, asking questions and 
doing anything but study during the 
larger part of school hours. All parents 
do a great deal in these days to make 
their children have a good time. I am 
glad they do. And I do not rebel that 
the children have become adepts in 
making good times for themselves. 
If all pupils were of one class it might 
simplify the case. But every school I 
know has its little Angelos and Christians 
and Tescos and Isaacs, sturdy little fel¬ 
lows, out of which, in a few years, our 
farmers and lawmakers will be largely 
made. But some of them are children 
of parents born where hard conditions 
were in force, where to get bread— 
hard black bread and any sort of nest 
was a struggle; where women tilled the 
fields; where any sort of home life and 
refinements as we know them were out 
of the question. I have liking and re¬ 
spect for many of these mothers, but I 
own that some of them are rude in 
speech and hold most primitive ideas as 
to home government. Coming from 
such homes, wl?v should not the little 
people have about the regard for the 
words of a sof-handed, gentle-voiced 
teacher that a ye:, ling or broncho would 
have? Una subd :ed her lion, but that 
was poetry and not hard fact. 
Yet rudeness mu:t not be met with 
mere force alone. Every child has its 
better side, and only in calling that into 
activity is the best education given. 
Against some of the hardest problems 
of our age is set every Fall a fresh army 
of workers, some experienced who come 
refreshed again for action, others mere 
girls, with heads full of book knowledge, 
to be sure, but with each her own meth¬ 
ods to test out or construct. All practi¬ 
cal school directors know that without 
order and discipline little will be learned. 
We pay large taxes to have good 
schools, not only our own, but every 
neighbor’s child must be reared into 
good citizenship. All must move for¬ 
ward together or the individual suffers 
later on. 
Let us not ask if the children approve 
of the teacher, if they are having good 
times at school. If she tries the keeping 
after school curb, let us have patience. 
Poor lady! she cannot depend wholly 
upon whipping the impertinent, obstrep¬ 
erous boy or upon shaming the frizzed 
and giggling girl to overawe the rest. 
She may not throw books nor use them 
to box ears (.as a recent incumbent 
here did), nor may she win the boys 
by flattery (as another did). She must 
not descend into being a scold, nor 
whack and bang lads into order as a 
peasant mother might. She must lift 
and lead, but how shall she do it? Your 
daughter may be born with the knack of 
doing it well and easily. We need good 
teachers and they need, in the making, 
patience, and all charitableness. 
R. ITHAMAR. 
The Bookshelf. 
Princess Flower Hat, a comedy from 
the perplexity book of Barbara the com¬ 
muter’s wife.—Everyone who has read 
“The Garden of a Commuter’s Wife” 
and the other narratives, wise, witty 
and sympathetic, wherein “Barbara” 
brings us into her delightful circle, will 
welcome this newest of Mrs. Mabel 
Osgood Wright’s books. “Princess 
Flower Hat” is a charming young woman 
who decides to buy a country house and 
build up a garden and a home of her 
own. Her daily perplexities, her mis¬ 
takes and trials, are delightfully told, 
and if the end of Flower Hat’s project 
is rather different from what she in¬ 
tended, that is all the better for the 
reader who follows her fortunes. Apart 
from the undeniable charm which makes 
Mrs. Wright’s books such pleasant read¬ 
ing, they have a knack of bringing out 
the very best side of rural life, for which 
every country dweller has reason to be 
grateful. The binding and general style 
of the book should attract Christmas 
buyers. Published by the Macmillan 
Company, New York; price $1.50. 
Breadcrumb Griddle Cakes.—Crumble 
two thick slices of stale bread, or 
enough to make two cupfuls; scald two 
cups of milk and pour over the bread 
crumbs. When cool add two well-beaten 
eggs and two tablespoons of melted but¬ 
ter. Sift one cup of flour with three 
teaspoons of baking powder, one table¬ 
spoonful of sugar and one-half teaspoon¬ 
ful of salt. Beat thoroughly into the 
bread crumb mixture and cook on a hiss¬ 
ing hot griddle. 
A Ked&nv&zos 
Direct to You ’ 
I'-SADE MARK REGISTERED 
. —“And Gaa Stoves Too” 
Values shown 
with factory 
prices in this 
book have 
Raved $5 to 140 
for over 140,000 
satisfied farm¬ 
ers and home- 
folks. 
Spend One Cent For 
This Big FREE Book 
Wo pay the postage on our Big Free Kalamazoo Book to you—over 
100 pages—fully illustrated—gives wholesale prices—explains our plan 
and our high Kalamazoo quality. Sold only direct to homes. Over 
141.000 satisfied customers in 21.000 towns—soino near you—to refer to. 
6100.000 bank bond guarantee. Every Kalamazoo sent ready to use— 
handsomely fluishedand blacked—safe delivery guaranteed. We give you 
—30 Days’ Free Trial 
—360 Days’ Approval Test 
—Freight Prepaid 
Thousands of farmers and town and city people everywhere are our 
regular customers on this plan. Yon aro absolutely protected and safe 
in ordorlng a famous Kalamazoo from us for 
Cash or Credit 
We trust responsible people—give you time, easy 
payments. 
Write a postal for our book today—shows over 400 
styles and sizes, more than any ten stores can show 
you in stock—and you save P5 to 840 cash. No better 
stoves or ranges than the Kalamazoo could be made— 
at any price. Prove It before we keep your money. 
Bo an independent buyer. Send name for Free Cata¬ 
logue No. II*. 
Kalamazoo Stove Company. Mfrs. 
Kalamazoo, Michigan 
All our cook 
Stoves equipped 
with oven ther¬ 
mometer—makes 
baking easy. 
to 
Select 
From 
Kalamazoo “Radiant” 
Base Burner 
—Over 16,000 in most sat¬ 
isfactory use. Most perfect 
hard coal burner. 
Gold Coin Stoves are Guaranteed 
and Freight Prepaid 
“ONE YEAR’S TRIAL and YOUR MONEY BACK IF 
NOT SATISFIED” is OUR WRITTEN GUARANTY 
Some people have used Gold Coin Stoves for 30 years. No better stoves made. 
We pay freight charges—both ways if you don’t find the 
stove satisfactory. You have one year to try it in. 
Buy direct from our factory at wholesale prices and 
save from $5 to $20. Compare our prices with your 
dealer’s for his best stores. 
We insure safe delivery—polished, ready to set up. 
Send for 104-page Catalogue with Price-List—Free. 
It illustrates all our stoves and ranges—gives our plan and offer which saves you money, 
GOLD COIN STOVE CO., 3 Oak Street, Troy. N. Y. 
Let Your Thanksgiving Thoughts Lead to Liberal Acts 
MAKE YOUR CHRISTMAS GIFT 
CARRY A CITY CONVENIENCE TO THE RURAL HOWIE 
Every housekeeper knows the labor-saving value of running water in the country house. The 
installation of one of our guaranteed 
“SIMPLEX” WATER WORKS SYSTEM 
as a Christmas Gift to rural relative or friend would be a 
lasting delight to the recipient. Xt provides water for kitchen, 
bath,toilet and is a safeguard against tiro. 
Our Special Offer-.Ii° mp S!. s tl , l 
Pressure Tank, with hand-power water S/! A Q A 
and air pump, with couplings, complete, Jill 
ready for installation, for ■■ " w w 
Larger systems at proportionate cost. From maker to user. 
OUDEK NOW with deposit. Delivery when desired. 
This non-freezable outfit will pipe water from well or spring and force it to any part of dwelling 
by automatic air-pressure. A child can operate it. Install it in cellar or underground. No trouble. 
Any one who knows how to handle a monkey pipe-wrench can make connections with well and 
house piping. Aerates water and keeps it pure. Hundreds of testimonials from satislled 
“ SIMPLEX ” users. Write for further particulars. 
THE E3coopef^agE C®'t Baltimore, Md. 
Makers and Erectors of Silos, Tanks and Towers. 
NOTE.—Tli is advertisement will not appear again. 
No Expensive Piping Wi .h 
No Dangerous Electric wires VY,t 
“SUN” HOLLOW WIRE SYSTEM : better than gas or electricity. Only 
a few spoonfuls of gasoline need be in your house. Pressure tank any¬ 
where inside or outside house. Lamps operated independently. Bright, 
soft, steady light, 100 C. P. for homes, 800 C. P, Shadowless for stores, 
halls, churches, etc. Permitted by insurance underwriters. Sold di¬ 
rect —No Agents. Catalog. 
SUN VAPOR LIGHT CO., 1116 Market St., Canton, 0. 
Corn Belt” All-Rubber Arctic 
Bears the famous Beacon Falls Cross, a guarantee of quality, 
reliability and independence from any trust. 
Made entirely of Fine Rubber—no cloth used for the uppers. 
A perfect snow-excluder. Keeps the feet warm and dry in 
any weather and absolutely waterproof and. dampproof from 
top to bottom. 
Good rubbers can’t be made of poor material, but lots of good 
material is spoiled by poor construction. “Corn Belt” All-Rub¬ 
ber Arctics were not built on the spur of the moment—they 
represent years of careful study as to the needs of the wearer. 
Reinforced where most needed. See the famous Samson 
Extension Heel, and the “Armor-plated” toe cap. 
Tho fact that it is absolutely waterproof and that 
mud and barnyard filth can bo washed oft‘ makes it, 
particularly appropriate for use about the farm. 
ASK FOR THE "CORN BELT” ALL-RUBBER ARCTIC 
LOOK FOR THE CROSS _ 
When you want rubber boots or shoes of any kind 
ask for the Beacon Falls line. You will be sure of good 
value aud satisfactory service. 
If you cannot buy Beacon Falls Arctics of your dealer, send usj 
hisname. Wewillseethatyouaresupplied. ■ —» 
Write for illustrated booklet, describ¬ 
ing Beacon Falls rubber footwear. 
The Beacon Falls 
Rubber Shoe Co. 
Chicago, 
New York, Boston. 
Beacon Falls 
vrf’ShocW. 
) Trade Mark 
Look for tho Cross.) 
