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242 Old-time Schools and School-books
Upon the green, with bat and ball;
And when he heard his playmates call,
Away he sprung across the plain,
To join the little merry train,
But here he comes — why, what means this ?
I wonder what has gone amiss,—
Why, Charles, how came you back so soon ?
I gave you leave to stay till noon.
I know it, sir, and I intended To play till every game was ended; But, to say truth, I could not bear To hear those little fellows swear — They cursed so bold and fearlessly , That the cold chills ran over me —
For I was seized with awful dread That some of them would drop down dead — And so I turned and came away, For, Pa, I was afraid to stay !
An attractive little book published in 1830 was The Clinton Primer. It was named after De Witt Clinton, whose portrait appeared on its paper cover. Illustrations were used freely, and the body of the book was made up of reading at the top of the pages, spelling columns in the middle, and arithmetic at the bottom. I reprint some rather naive fragments from the earlier lessons, and two of the longer lessons complete.
It is a mule. I see a mule ; do you ? He has a flute; let him play on his flute.
Ripe pears are good for boys and girls, but it is a sin to eat too many of them. They often cause sickness. |
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