pronunciation of picturesque as though it were spelled picturcskew. System was wanting to most of them, so that their pupils were instructed singly and not in classes. Thus not infrequently children attended school for four or five years without learning to read, write, and “cipher” through Long Division.

Rev. R. W. Todd gives the following graphic picture of “old-time schools and schoolmasters” of the thirties and forties. The school described is situated in Maryland, but so near the Delaware line as to be in nowise different from the average Delaware school at that time.

Mr. Marshall’s clean-shaven face -- for only rowdies wore beard in those good old times -- was furrowed over with many wrinkles of benevolence and care; and the friction of many anxious years had polished his bald head until it had become a favorite skating rink for the festive house-fly. One little patch of iron-gray hair remained in front, above his pug nose, which was combed tip and carefully trained into a sort of drake-tail ornament; and the little remaining on either side above his ears was twisted into little tufts ,sticking out at right angles. and giving him somewhat of the appearance of a nondescript animal of the baboon persuasion. with three horns. The grotesque was heightened by the presence of an immense pair of brass-bowed spectacles, which alternately bestrid his nose and adorned his bald and glistening pate, all fit index to the vast library of knowledge entombed within the venerable skull.

“The entire curriculum of our school was covered by the three cabalistic letters R. R. R., understood to represent the three great sciences, ‘Readin’, ‘Ritin, and ‘Rithmetic,’ The three G’s -- Grammar, G’ography and G’ometry -- had then scarcely been dreamed of as ever possible to be taught in a country school. It was not until several years after -- not, indeed, until the renowned ‘Chinquepin’ school-house had been built over a mile away on the road to ‘Punch Hall’ -- that we ever heard of such a study of English Grammar or Geography.

“The primer, or, rather, a primer, for it mattered not what it was, so there were A. E. C’s in it -- was the text-book most in demand in Mr. Marshall’s long-cabin school * * * * * * His method of teaching A, B. C’s was to point with a little stick he kept for the purpose, to each letter in regular order, call its name and require us to pronounce the name after him. As his time was

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