"The Good Old Days" - William Alcott’s First Day as a School Master 1839 (Louisa May's uncle)

[Hannah Bell]

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.

Monday morning at last came, and with it the long waited for hour of nine o’clock....

The pupils ran in, as eagerly as I could wish, but not as silently...

I had commenced my labors with a sort of confused opinion—borrowed from somebody, I know not whom,—that on entering a school to which one was a stranger, it was a wise plan to let the pupils take their own course, wholly unrestrained, the first day, in order to find out the true disposition and character of each pupil. So I tried the experiment, or rather attempted it; for I did not get through the forenoon, without being obliged to use the word of command, to prevent the desks and tables from being overturned. I believe I had no whip thus far. A ferule* I indeed had, but did not use it…

However, this first class had not yet finished their ‘half hour,’ ere the school grew rather noisy again. Commanding— not requesting,— the class to stop reading, I now told the school, most distinctly and decidedly…that I found so many of them were inclined to behave improperly, that it was necessary to stop where we were, and have a code of rules laid down at once. So I immediately began to lay down rules and restrictions, and to annex penalties.

This, at first, seemed to produce a favorable change in the condition of the school, and I began to congratulate myself on my supposed wisdom, and complete authority...

Matters went on pretty well during the greater part of the afternoon. There was little asking to go to the fire; though there was more begging to go out, to get drink, etc., than in the forenoon. There was less of setting copies and mending pens; but there was quite enough even of these. There were several roguish boys who seemed determined to do every thing upon which a prohibition had not been laid; and as I had not yet established the old rule, ‘write only a page a day,’ a number of pupils had written out their page in the forenoon, and wanted a second copy for the afternoon…

Towards evening there was some noise and disturbance in the school. I had made a rule against whispering...had forbidden any play, too...The school grew more and more noisy, my bow contracted more and more, and the pupils, of course saw more and more the trouble I was in...

Four o’clock at last came—the hour for closing the school. My brow, which had been for some time ‘knit in frowns,’ now partially relaxed, and I assisted the smaller pupils in putting on their coats and making preparation to meet the severe cold; for, as I said before, it was December.

In rendering this assistance, I assumed the air of love and kindness; yet I am not sure that there were not some who regarded the increased and momentary cheerfulness and kindness, as proceeding from quite another source-- the pleasure of getting rid of my charge. Nor am I quite sure they were mistaken, if they did. But be this as it might, the school closed for the day, the pupils were dismissed, and the teacher was left to himself and his own reflections...

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