'AARON FRAZIER WRITES'

Former Leon School Master Tells of Early School Days
in Leon in an Entertaining Way.
 
 Decatur County Journal
Leon, Decatur County, Iowa
Thursday, January 03, 1908


EDITOR JOURNAL: -- You ask me to write something of my memories of my life in Leon in regard to the school and those who attended. Seventy months of school work ought to afford a basis for an almost endless dissertation; but after a lapse of 32 years, time has blotted out some of the many incidents so that only those very distasteful, or those very pleasing or heartful are left. Of the distasteful, I need not write for such things are discordant and fill the world with misery.

To begin with I must say that I remember that from the beginning of my school work in Leon, I had the support of school officers and of the people that was well nigh unanimous. For a short time there was one individual who was desirous to find fault but soon he was one of my warmest supporters. It was our custom while in Leon, to give an annual exhibition. One of these affords us a pleasing memory of a song and its effect. The cast of the play required a lull or time of listlessness, to be occupied by a song, local or sentimental, MISS DAWSON, not EMMA, was the one to sing. We remember her as almost the only one of all our varied acquaintance who could cry and sing without spoiling the music.

By some oversight we had not determined the song she should sing until the time had arrived for the song. MISS DAWSON hurried to the corner where she knew I was stationed and hurriedly asked, what shall I sing? As hurriedly I answered, "Fading Away Like the Stars of the Morning." She went to the organ, ran over the keys in a careless indifferent way several times as if meditating, then burst forth in that plaintive air in a way that was thrilling, enchanting, beyond anything which I can describe. The singer and the audience alike were carried into sobs and tears. MISS DAWSON finished the song and when the curtain fell hurried to inform me that she had spoiled the whole play. Those lustrous beautiful eyes all filled with tears. I have now and then in coming and going of the years, witnessed the wonderful effects of fine music and oratory, but I remember no greater hit than that song. We believe MISS DAWSON was the greatest success as a tearful singer we ever listened to.

At the last meeting of our school a few evenings before we left Leon for Oregon, our parting song was commenced with a full chorus but feeling and tears dropped one voice after another until the last verse, when one soprano, one tenor, and one alto held on. That stanza was closed by one solitary voice and that was the voice of MISS ELLEN DAWSON. L.W. SILVERS, the tenor and MISS EVA THOMPSON, alto, leaving the field to the sobbing tearful voice we all had learned to love.

Should this memory be pleasing or even acceptable, we have many others that we might reduce to form for the printed page. We remember our girls and boys and are made happy by knowing that they remember us kindly. Teaching is generally written down as a thankless task, but we must say that our labor has been fairly well accepted. G.W. SAMSON, MISS BELLE (used to be BURNS) or LAURA (used to be DYE), have recently spoken of me through the columns of your paper in a way that certainly is pleasing to me.

AARON FRAZIER.

Dufur, Oregon, December 19, 1907.

Copied by Nancee (McMurtrey) Seifert, September 1, 2001
 
Leon School   ***   Schools Directory *** Decatur County IAGenWeb