{"id":28,"date":"2021-06-16T14:22:38","date_gmt":"2021-06-16T18:22:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.ryerson.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/?post_type=chapter&p=28"},"modified":"2022-02-01T11:23:48","modified_gmt":"2022-02-01T16:23:48","slug":"learning-to-read","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/chapter\/learning-to-read\/","title":{"raw":"Learning to Read","rendered":"Learning to Read"},"content":{"raw":"Very soon the Yankee teachers\r\nCame down and set up school;\r\nBut, oh! how the Rebs did hate it,\u2014\r\nIt was agin' their rule.\r\n\r\nOur masters always tried to hide\r\nBook learning from our eyes;\r\nKnowledge didn't agree with slavery\u2014\r\n'Twould make us all too wise.\r\n\r\nBut some of us would try to steal\r\nA little from the book,\r\nAnd put the words together,\r\nAnd learn by hook or crook.\r\n\r\nI remember Uncle Caldwell,\r\nWho took pot liquor fat\r\nAnd greased the pages of his book,\r\nAnd hid it in his hat.\r\n\r\nAnd had his master ever seen\r\nThe leaves upon his head,\r\nHe'd have thought them greasy papers,\r\nBut nothing to be read.\r\n\r\nAnd there was Mr. Turner's Ben,\r\nWho heard the children spell,\r\nAnd picked the words right up by heart,\r\nAnd learned to read 'em well.\r\n\r\nWell, the Northern folks kept sending\r\nThe Yankee teachers down;\r\nAnd they stood right up and helped us,\r\nThough Rebs did sneer and frown.\r\n\r\nAnd, I longed to read my Bible,\r\nFor precious words it said;\r\nBut when I begun to learn it,\r\nFolks just shook their heads,\r\n\r\nAnd said there is no use trying,\r\nOh! Chloe, you're too late;\r\nBut as I was rising sixty,\r\nI had no time to wait.\r\n\r\nSo I got a pair of glasses,\r\nAnd straight to work I went,\r\nAnd never stopped till I could read\r\nThe hymns and Testament.\r\n\r\nThen I got a little cabin\r\nA place to call my own\u2014\r\nAnd I felt as independent\r\nAs the queen upon her throne.","rendered":"

Very soon the Yankee teachers
\nCame down and set up school;
\nBut, oh! how the Rebs did hate it,\u2014
\nIt was agin’ their rule.<\/p>\n

Our masters always tried to hide
\nBook learning from our eyes;
\nKnowledge didn’t agree with slavery\u2014
\n‘Twould make us all too wise.<\/p>\n

But some of us would try to steal
\nA little from the book,
\nAnd put the words together,
\nAnd learn by hook or crook.<\/p>\n

I remember Uncle Caldwell,
\nWho took pot liquor fat
\nAnd greased the pages of his book,
\nAnd hid it in his hat.<\/p>\n

And had his master ever seen
\nThe leaves upon his head,
\nHe’d have thought them greasy papers,
\nBut nothing to be read.<\/p>\n

And there was Mr. Turner’s Ben,
\nWho heard the children spell,
\nAnd picked the words right up by heart,
\nAnd learned to read ’em well.<\/p>\n

Well, the Northern folks kept sending
\nThe Yankee teachers down;
\nAnd they stood right up and helped us,
\nThough Rebs did sneer and frown.<\/p>\n

And, I longed to read my Bible,
\nFor precious words it said;
\nBut when I begun to learn it,
\nFolks just shook their heads,<\/p>\n

And said there is no use trying,
\nOh! Chloe, you’re too late;
\nBut as I was rising sixty,
\nI had no time to wait.<\/p>\n

So I got a pair of glasses,
\nAnd straight to work I went,
\nAnd never stopped till I could read
\nThe hymns and Testament.<\/p>\n

Then I got a little cabin
\nA place to call my own\u2014
\nAnd I felt as independent
\nAs the queen upon her throne.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":299,"menu_order":4,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":[],"pb_section_license":""},"chapter-type":[48],"contributor":[],"license":[],"class_list":["post-28","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","chapter-type-numberless"],"part":3,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/299"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28\/revisions\/67"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/3"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/28\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=28"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=28"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pressbooks.library.torontomu.ca\/sketchesofsouthernlife\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=28"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}