Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the GospelYeardley, John
Religion
Memoir and Diary of John Yeardley, Minister of the Gospel
Yeardley, John
Clergy -- United States -- Biography; Quakers -- Biography; Yeardley, John, 1786-1858
The mountain multitude waited with patience until we had made our repast,
when a few of the leading villagers were introduced to our room. And what
was their request? A school for their daughters. They were asked what they
would give towards its support. They answered, Whatever we can afford; we
that are able will pay for the poor, and they shall go free. It was then
intimated to them, that their friends would assist them in establishing a
school; but that they themselves must join in the effort, and that it
would be well to consult together, and put down their names and the number
of children they would send. Here the town-crier came forward, and said he
had for the last twenty years cried everything the government wished to be
made known in the town, free of cost, and he would now go round and cry
for the benefit of the school. Next came forward the father of the young
woman proposed for the mistress, who it was proposed should be further
instructed in the village, and then sent to the town to learn the system.
We asked them if they were sensible of the advantages of a school for
girls, of having them brought up to be good wives, capable of managing
their households, and able to read the precious things in the New
Testament. One of them replied, Without instruction what are we?--we are
like the beasts. One peasant had been so anxious for his daughter to learn
to read, that he had made interest to send her to the boys' school. When
we asked why he did so, he said, Because I had no other means, and I
wished to have her read the New Testament to us; now I have the advantage
of hearing that precious book read to me by my own daughter. It was
delightful to witness a feeling like this in a people so uncultivated;
surely the friends of education in Greece have encouragement to go on and
prosper.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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