A DAY
IN
MARY CARROW’S SCHOOL.
First Day.
Anne Lyle standing by her Papa. p. [17].
A DAY
IN
MARY CARROW’S SCHOOL
American Sunday-School Union.
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A DAY
IN
MARY CARROW’S SCHOOL.
After the roll had been called, the little boys and girls were invited to say a lesson first; because Mary, the teacher, thought the bigger ones could better understand why they were to wait.
They took their places in the class, and she gave out words of two syllables for them to spell; such as Cam-el, Pea-cock, Hen-coop, Par-lor, Tea-cup.
When they had done spelling, she allowed them to ask questions.
One little boy, whose name was Harry Linn, asked what a camel was? And Mary took down a large book from the shelf, and showed him a picture of a camel, and told him that it was a native both of Arabia and of Africa, and that it could travel eight or nine days without water, over the sandy deserts of those countries. It is covered with a hairy fur, which it sheds in the spring, and this fur is used to make coarse cloth shawls. The camel kneels down to receive burdens, and when it is loaded it will rise again.
Harry was very much surprised, when his teacher told him that the camel could carry men and burdens like a horse or an ass, and could travel a great distance with a weight of eight hundred or a thousand pounds upon its back; and that it gave milk for drink, like a cow.
Harry asked why we had not camels in America, instead of horses and cows?
Mary told him that God had made this a very large world, and that it is divided into many countries. In some countries the weather is very hot, and in some countries it is very cold.
The animals and people, who are born in hot countries, such as Arabia and Africa, could not endure the cold of America. They are happier and more useful in the climate where they are born.
And Mary said, our heavenly Father was so good and kind to every thing that he had made, that he designed all animals, as well as little boys and girls and men and women too, to be useful and happy where he placed them.
Harry asked if a little boy like him could be useful and happy? for Harry was only four years old.
Mary told him, yes; and that when she had leisure, she would read aloud to him and his school-mates the story of a little girl who was only four years old, who was happy because she was useful.
Harry loved his teacher, because she was so kind to him, and though he wanted very much to know how he could be useful and happy, he knew she had not time to answer any more questions now; and he was willing to wait, for his teacher always did what she said she would do, and Harry was sure she would not forget her promise.
So he went to his seat as the other little boys and girls did, and while Mary heard the larger scholars say their definitions, Harry’s class made O’s, and strokes, and pothooks on their slates, as they are called, in this way.
Mary had only eight scholars, and she had leisure to attend to each one, and make them understand all their lessons, that they might have something to think about when they went home from school.
On this morning the scholars were exercised in spelling, reading and arithmetic. The large boys and girls did sums in multiplication and subtraction, and the smaller ones made figures, after Mary had written a line upon their slates for them thus:—
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0.
After they had been two hours in school, Mary rang a little bell. As soon as they heard it, they knew it was recess-time, and they all went out to play for fifteen minutes.
The school was in the country, on the farm where Harry Linn’s father and mother lived, and Mary lived with them.
Mary had been to the best schools to receive her education; and she was very fond of two things—learning and children. So, she agreed to come and live with Harry Linn’s father and mother, and teach school: and she had five of the neighbouring children, besides Harry and his brother and sister, for scholars.
First Day.
The School House at the edge of the wood. p. [13].
The school-room was built at the edge of a piece of “woods,” not far from the house, and it was very cool and shady round about, all summer.
In the winter, when the leaves had fallen off from the trees, the sun shone in at the school-room windows, and it was so light and cheerful that the teacher and her scholars liked to be there better than anywhere else.
Harry Linn’s father used to say that Mary’s face was sunshiny, because it was so good-humoured. When her little flock went out to play, at recess-time, she sometimes went too, for the sake of the exercise; and they were always glad when Mary went with them. She would take turns with them in jumping rope, and playing “Let us see who can run fastest;” and she would show the boys how to trundle their hoops; and she knew how to fix the paper sails to the little boats which the boys made for themselves; and then she would take them along by the side of the little brook of water that was down in the woods, and find a place for them where they could stoop down without getting their feet wet, to sail their boats.
One of the home-made boats was such a fast sailer that Charles Linn, who was quite a little carpenter, asked Mary to print a name on his boat. She asked, “What shall its name be?” But they could not agree upon a name, for one wanted one name, and another wanted something different. So Mary cut up a piece of paper which she had in her hand into nine slips; and then she went round to each scholar, and told every one to whisper to her the name he or she liked best; and she wrote down the choice of each one on a separate slip of the paper, and lastly, on the ninth slip, she wrote down the name which she herself preferred.
After this was done, Mary read the names written down, aloud.
Two of the scholars had chosen the name of “Swan.” Three had chosen the name of “Mary,” and four had chosen the name of “Water-witch.” So the little fast-sailing boat was named “Water-witch.” I suppose they had talked about this name before.
“Now,” said Mary, “we will all go back to school;” and her happy little scholars were ready to do as she wished.
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”
Mary remembered her promise to Harry Linn, to read him a story which would teach him how a little girl of four years old could be useful and happy. And she said all who wished to hear it might put by their books and slates, while she read it to them.
They all liked to have Mary read to them, and all the scholars put up their work to listen to her.