the foot of the stool; one boy would draw up a brick, which would strike the floor from underneath with a loud thump. The teacher would start out to find where the noise came from, and as he neared the spot a loud noise would again be heard at the other end of the room. Then he would start for that locality, and when he arrived there the noise would again be repeated at some other place in the room. Finally, as the noise seemed to come from below, the teacher visited the cellar and there saw to his amazement several bricks suspended by strings from the floor above. On returning to the school room he called up R______ L______ a nice boy, who was never engaged in any mischief, and asked him if he knew of any one who made the noise. He said that he did and gave the boy's name [this boy was the 'bright boy' of California]. The teacher questioned this boy and he acknowledged that he was one of those who made the noise. The teacher then asked him if he knew of others that had helped to make the disturbance. He told him that half of the school had, and he mentioned a few names -- they afterwards became prominent citizens in Springfield, Mass., and the city of New York. They were asked about it, and though their answers seemed to be satisfactory to the teacher, they were not honorable to the boys. I was dismissed, which caused a row and a meeting of the school committee the next day, who after an investigation decided to let me go back, but the teacher said if I did he would leave. The result was that I was dismissed for the balance of the term for telling the truth and the other boys retained their seats by ______. I amused myself at the old brick school house in the rear of the old Town Hall, with Master Kirkham (William) for a few weeks and then went back, the teacher aforesaid at the old High School having retired.
"When Mr. Vaille took the school he came in the first morning with a handful of switches and commenced using them the first day, and if my memory is correct a prominent merchant of your town, now deceased, got the first dose."
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