Marie Schech Dutsch Autobiographical Essays

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This page contains several short essays written by Marie Schech Dutsch in the 1960's about episodes during her childhood in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana.

GERMAN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL

Old Salem, the horse, was hitched to the wagon and we children were happily getting ready to visit the school. After we helped Mama with the little ones, we got in the wagon; Mama and Papa on the front seat with the baby, my brother and I on the seat in the back (a board with cleats made to fit the wagon sides) and had one or two little ones between us. How we enjoyed that trip. The school was not quite finished, but we went in, a block for a step which we had to help the littlest ones up on so they could get into the building. It was about 24 feet by 36 feet building and did have windows with glass frames.

It was two (2) miles from our home and we walked to and from school. I was (5 1/2 yrs) five years and 6 months old and was tired in the evening when I reached the pine trees on our turn off road. The trees were what is called virgin timber, very tall and so big around two people holding hands could not reach around them (about 54 inches in diameter). It was shady and carpeted with pine needles and it was soft to walk on. Also going downhill and we were 1/4 mile from home. To this day I love pine trees and I believe that walk started my love for them.

School opened in the fall with about (20) twenty pupils; from the primer to seventh grade. Our teacher seemed to love all of us and mothered us too. There was a big heater in the center of the room with a flue for the stove pipe to go through When we came in the morning with wet stockings and shoes, we sat on a bench in front of the heater; took off shoes and stockings, dried them by the heater, and warmed ourselves. Of course we carried lunch. Some brought small tin buckets with covers and had cooked beans, sweet potatoes, biscuits with butter, fried pork and gingerbread. And some days just biscuits but they were good. My brother and I had big slices of homemade bread and cane syrup my father made every fall. One little girl had nabisco's. We traded a whole 2 slices of bread with syrup that she loved for several nabisco's that we thought were so good. Of course, by night we were really hungry and finally my mamma did not want us to trade anymore.

In the morning our teacher rang the bell and we lined up in two rows and after repeating allegiance to the flag, marched in the school room. Our cups and lunches and coats were hung on wooden pegs in the back of the room. Our lunches placed on the bench under the pegs. And then we marched onto the stage and sang songs. America, My Country, Star Spangled Banner and several others. Our teacher really could not sing so well but she taught us to sing. Then she wrote the motto for the day on the black board. Some that I remember were "If at first you don't succeed, try and try and try again."

How that teacher managed to get all those lessons in one day I don't know, but she did. Bad boys she managed too. One way she used was to have them come to her desk, hold out their right hand and she hit them five licks or more with a ruler on that hand. Seldom did they repeat the offense. Two boys who were cousins were always fighting each other. She tried everything, lose their recess time, stand against the wall and other ways. Finally she made both come up to her desk in front of the whole room and apologize to each other, shake hands, and then kiss each other. One boy did not want to kiss his cousin, but finally did; that was the end of the fighting that the teacher knew about.

At recess time (at twelve we had one hour; we had two small recesses before 12 and before 3 - fifteen minutes for the small children) we played games. Marbles and jack knife in the spring. Ball games and what we called Red Rover. When the bell rang we did not think the time was up. Most all the children had good times. We played London Bridge is Falling Down, jumped rope and many other games.

We sat on the ground to each lunch. One day I went inside and a girl hid my hat behind her. A ground rattler was under the bush and bit her. The teacher sent to the saw mill for her father. He came with turpentine in a bottle and placed it on the bite. Then he pressed on it hard. The girl screamed but you could see the poison coming in the bottle. First he tied a string cloth above her elbow tight. After he could not get any more poison to come out, he gave her whiskey to drink. The mail carrier, who was her uncle, came about that time and he father asked his brother to take her home as he had to go back to work. She missed several days school but was none the worse for it. She was sick from the whiskey.

We had Christmas trees and plays and a Santa Claus. How we did enjoy that time!. A present for each child and when Santa called your name you had to walk up to the stage and for weeks before xmas we had to rehearse for the play.

Also at the end of school we had a picnic. Men put ropes in the tall trees for swings and all the parents brought dinners, cakes and potato salad and various other food that never tasted so good any where else. Also home made ice cream was made at the school. Games were played and a good time had by all. Towards sunset everyone went home. Cows had to be milked, chickens fed and if the truth was known the day had been long enough. Only everybody wished it came more often.

Another thing our teacher had was spelling contests and whoever won got to wear a silver medal and pennate. Most children were very proud to wear this medal "a whole week," but one little boy (Rudolph Schultz) cried when it was his turn. He pinned the medal on his dog's collar. So his mamma made him take it off.

One time the children had a pine knot fight. We started off from school together and as we reached our turn off road we parted. Who threw the first pine knot I don't know but for more than an hour pine knots flew. The small children gathered them into piles for the older children and each side had some narrow escapes. One little boy took no part in it and at home told his mother. Next day she told the teacher. So we had a day of court. That evening the teacher turned one crowd out 1/2 half hour sooner than the others. And later the others went home. There was a coolness between friends for a while but it passed over and were good friends again.