History Of Greene County, AR As Written

In 1906 by H.B. Crowley, Pioneer Citizen

And Soldier

3rd Installment

BY

HON. BENJAMIN CROWLEY

EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF GREENE CO.

SOME GLIMPSES OF PIONEER TEACHERS

PRIMITIVE LOG CABINS

 The first school the writer ever went to, and among the first taught in the county, was con-ducted by Robert H. Hailey, in a log house on Eight Mile Creek, about a mile and a half from where Paragould now is, but which was then almost wilderness. The house was built by old man Clark, the father of all the Clarks in this section, and grandfather John E. Purcella, a large farmer and stock raiser living near this city. The elder Clark built this house to stay in while he was running a little water-mill situated on Eight Mile creek. The house was constructed of round poles and covered with rough boards. A large space was cut out of one side of the door, and this never had any shutter, one end was left open for the fireplace, and there was no floor except the dirt, and split logs served for seats. This was the house we received our instructor in and some of the lessons learned, they have never been forgotten. We remember that Thomas Clark and some of his children attended the school at the same time. This impressed me as being unusual, and out of the ordinary, and stamped a wholesome lesson upon my mind. Thomas Clark became a prominent and useful man, and served the country several terms as county and probate judge, leaving a spotless record behind him.\par \par The second school the writer attended was at Gainesville, and was taught by old Parson Henry Powell. This school house was said to be the finest in the country, it being at the county site, but it was also constructed of logs, unhewn, and with a door in one side, closed at night by a shutter made of clapboards. This house had a floor made of split logs with one side hewn and placed down on pole sleepers. There was also one window left in the side of the house to admit light and air, but it was with-out glass, shutters or blinds and stood open day and night, winter and summer. The seats were manufactured on the spot and consisted of split logs, hewn on the flat side, and pegs placed at each end for legs. There was no back to these benches, and sa the legs were only at the ends, the bench often sagged almost to the puncheon floor in the middle when full of great strapping boys and girls.

The writer boarded at the home of Dr. and Mrs. H.L. Evans while he attended this school, and he still remembers their many acts of kindness to him. But many of the scholars walked as far as two and three miles to school, and thought nothing of it. School kept from sun-up to sun down, and the boys and girls had a great deal of work to do in those days before and after school hours. On their way to school the children were rarely even out of sight of deer, turkeys, and often met up with a bear if the teacher detained them a little late, and they were after night getting home through the woods.\

The writer will always remember a little incident that befell him during this school. He was running home one evening to his boarding place, bare-headed, having lost his hat in one of the many ways that a boy may become separated from his head-gear. While passing the store of James Poole he was accosted by a gentleman, who proved to be William Lindley, and asked whose boy he was, and what he was doing without a hat. I told him that I was the son of Sam Crowley, but that he was dead, and that I was staying at Dr. Evan's and going to school, and that I did not have any hat. Whereupon the man took me by the and led me into the store and told the merchant to give me a hat and he would pay for it, also some calico to line the straw hat with. Mrs. Evans lined the straw hat and seemed to be greatly amused about something-perhaps that her boarder had become the object of charity. Mr. Lndley had a son in school, and when he sent in after his boy on Friday evenings he often made me go out to his home and visit with his boy over Saturday and Sunday. These little acts of kindness received in youth and never forgotten, however small and trivial they may appear at the time, and as measured by the world in general, are only as a passing dream, but stamp themselves indelibly on the memory.

The school children of sixty years ago in Greene county had but few studies, seldom more than four, but they were required to get long lessons, and get them well. They sat on backless benches and looked steadily at the same lesson for hours at a time, and woe to the urchin who faced his teacher with a task unprepared. The rod was not spared in those days, and consequently few children spoiled in the schooling. The teacher's chief business was whipping the scholars, and every offense was punished alike.

The birch rod was the masters sceptor of authority, and he was seldom without his wand of power in his hand. Yet, the old time school days were not without their joys and silver linings. Human nature was pretty much then as now, and some of the pranks and droll experiences of the boys of three-quarters of a century ago. are more vividly recalled than many of the solemn lessons and the old pedagogue. One trick a rude boy who violated one of the many rules of the school, is distinctly remembered and it caused a great deal of merriment at the teachers expense. The fellow was to be whipped later in the day, and finding the teacher without his hickory in his hand for a moment, the culprit got hold of the dreaded rod and cut it nearly in two at a score of places. When the master attempted to thrash the fellow, the switch flew into several pieces; and showered down all over the school room.

It was a custom in those days for the scholars to bar the teacher out just before Christmas, and make him treat the school to apples, candy and a holiday. One morning just before Christmas the large boys of the school went to the house and piled the benches against the door, and mounted up on them to make sure the door would not open inward. The teacher came and noticed the door swelled out-ward, and grasping a firm hand pulled the door outside, when the boys, books, slates and dinner baskets rolled out into the yard. To make their failure more humiliating, the teacher put the boys to work re-placing the furniture and called school without saying a word about the incident. Opening school was then called "taking up books," and was done by the teacher taking a long hickory and thrashing it against the side of the house several times with all his power. The ferocious manner of calling school had a cowing affect upon the children, and they felt completely under the sway of that bludgeon after "books" was called.

On another occasion two big boys who had given the teacher trouble during the day, were entering the room with a large bucket of water, and by a pre-arranged plan, they stumbled, and tossed the water against the master's feet. The boys pretended to be much hurt, and lay on the floor, nursing their elbows and knees, which they pretended was giving them great pain. The teacher stopped and taking the nearest boy by the collar and seat of the breeches. mopped him around in the water until it was all sponged up, and then dragged the dripping culprit to his table and proceeded to dry him with a wide, heavy black-walnut ruler. The other boy was treated to the same process, and the water which had been spilled upon the floor splashed from under the swiftly descending black-walnut ruler as it came in contact with the posterior regions of the boy's anatomy.

At another time a rude fellow would, as now reach under the bench, and pinch some good boy, just for the fun of seeing how high he would jump. The pinched boy would sometimes cry out with surprise and pain, and when the school master made an investigation, every body pleaded not guilty, and knew nothing of the trouble. One day the teacher saw a fellow reaching under the bench and making repeated efforts to pinch a quite boy so that he would jump and howl. The master picked up his chair and moved it near the mischievous fellow's seat, and made him get up from his bench and place himself across the teachers lap, who then began pinching the fellow all over the back of his legs in a most vigorous manner, explaining to the boy that he did not seem to understand how to pinch, and that the master would teach him. The boy wiggled and squirmed with agony, but the teacher continued to pluck and pull until the fellow promised not to pinch another boy, and he was never known to give trouble in this way again.

The system of education in the early days of the country, if indeed, it could be called a system, and the mode of making up a school, were entirely different from that of today. Each school stood separate and alone from all other schools, there being no organized system, and no free tuition as now. The teacher proposing to conduct a school at a given place went around among the patrons and secured subscribers, and if a sufficient number could be obtained at a certain price, and the teacher boarded round among the scholars, it was given out that so and so would teach school, beginning on a certain day. The writer recalls one of these itinerant pedagogue coming to his step-fathers house to secure scholars after having been around over the neighborhood making up a school. When questioned about his school and what he proposed to teach, he replied "Well the spelling book, reading, writing and arithmetic, as far as the single rule of three." There was no other spelling book than the Webster's Blueback, and it is doubtful if there has ever been much improvement in the text book. I shall never forget with what wonder and amazement we regarded the new teacher when he declared that he could teach as far as the Single Rule of Three in Pikes Arithmetic, and we never ceased to regard him as a perfect mathematical wonder, we never could understand why he was not occupying a chair in some Virginia college, as professor of mathematics. Virginia at that time and for a long time afterward was considered as the home of presidents and the fountain of all higher learning, as most of our great men had come from that state prior to that period. At a later period, some time along in the fifties, we had as our teacher Rev. A.M. Casey and his daughter Miss Lora Ann, who afterward married a Jefrey A. Houghton, at that time a merchant and prominient business man at Powhatan, in Lawrence county. She was the mother of our respected citizens of Jonesboro, Henry Houghton and J.A. Houghton, the latter being the postmaster of Jonesboro.

Parson Casey was a good scholar and a successful educator, and so was his talented daughter, who assisted him in his schools in the county. They conducted a series of terms at the Campground, in the southwest section of the county. They were regarded as exceptionally fine educators and people would send their children from considerable distances to get them in the school of the Casey's. They were largely instrumental in laying the foundation of our present educational fabric in Greene and adjoining counties.

Parson Casey was a licensed minister in the Methodist church, and was a strong pillar in that denomination in the early days, although he never took a circuit, or mission or district work, claiming that he could do more good and be of greater service to God and his fellowman in the school room.\par \par By the time Parson Casey came to the country we had fairly comfortable school house, mostly hewed log buildings, well put up, and with some furniture and apparatus. After this we had a teacher by the name of Creed A. Jugram, who was likewise good teacher and a wide-awake, progressive man, who started the youth of the county on the road to an education, and helped to lay broad and deep basic work of our school system. Many of the men and women who were, in after years to control the destinies of the county in the business, religious and political affairs of the same, received their only schooling at the rudely equipped, but well managed institutions conducted by these good men.

In wide contrast with the conditions which then obtained in Greene county are the means and appliances for getting an education at the present time. There are now nearly one hundred good school houses in the county, all well supplied with furniture, apparatus, trained teachers, paid by the state, and good open roads for reaching the same. The writer is indebted to the present county examiner, for the following facts concerning the public schools in Greene county.\

The number of free school districts in the county.........................................................83 

Special Normal..........................................................................................................2 

Number of school age children in the county...........................................................8808 

Number enrolled in public schools..........................................................................5091 

Number in private schools.......................................................................................182 

Average daily attendance of all schools...................................................................2918 

Number of teachers employed in the free schools......................................................109 

Number teachers holding different grade license,

Life, 1, Professional, 5, 1st. grade, 51, 2nd grade, 41, 3rd grade, 17.

There were public schools taught in the county during the year....................................99 

Houses built during the year........................................................................................3 

House in county constructed of logs, brick, I frame......................................................76 

Valuation of school house..................................................................................$41,010 

Number of house enclosed..........................................................................................5 

An institute is held annually for the instruction and better training of the common school
 teachers of the county. 

Amt of money available for free school purposes during the present scholastic year was.$53388.47.

Amount expended..............................................................................................$27148.35 

Balance on hand to credit of the schools................................................................$26350.02 

The attendance upon the public schools was never as good as it is at the present time. There is a comfortable ambition among the people of the county to give their children a fair start in life by equipping them with an education; and they realize the importance of keeping their boys and girls in school. Green county has the proud distinction of having the livest body of teachers in the state, outside of educational affairs. It had no doubt been helpful in bringing about the high standard attained by the schools of the county. The term of school and the salaries paid teachers have grown steadily in the last few years and it is hoped that the teaching ability of those engaged in the work has improved correspondingly. The requirements of persons engaged in teaching have been made a little higher, but it is believed they are still low and improvement is promised along this line. As has been shown, nearly half of the teachers in the public free schoools of the county, are holding first grade certificates and this being the highest grade of license in the power of the county examiner to grant, has become too common, and carries with it no special distinction. The holding of a first grade certificate should mean exceptionally well qualified and especially skilful qualities as an educator, and these two coupled with the experience to demonstrate their correctness. It might well be to raise the requirements for the respective grades of certificates in the county, so that the possession of a first or higher grade license would become an honor to the holder and a sure passport with directors who require the most efficient and expert service of their teachers.

The fact that so many teachers hold first grade license carries no reflection upon the examiners, but does speak volume in praises of the teachers of the county. The questions with which teachers are tested and their rank fixed are furnished by the Department of Public Instruction of the state and that so many of our teachers hold the highest grad certificates shows that they have kept abreast of the authority that fixes the standard. Among the agencies that have assisted the young men and ladies of the county in fitting themselves for the work of teaching and many other fields of usefulness, none have contributed more than the institution on learning maintained by Prof. R.S. Thompson. The influence of this excellent school has and can now be felt in every nook and corner of the county. many of the best teachers and several of the officials and business men of the county received all their education and business training under Prof. Thompson's instruction. Of the young, active generation now holding positions of responsibility and honor in the county, a large per cent of them speak with pride of the fact that they were once Prof. Thompson's pupils, and the benefits of his labors in Greene county can never be estimated.

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