School and Holiday Time in Strawberry-Land
I am sure English boys or girls would feel unjustly treated if compelled to learn at least two other languages besides their own when they started school-life, and no doubt…
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“School and Holiday Time in Strawberry-Land” from Peeps at Many Lands: Finland by M. Pearson Thomson, 1909
I am sure English boys or girls would feel unjustly treated if compelled to learn at least two other languages besides their own when they started school-life, and no doubt would rebel at the arbitrary authority which obliged them to do it. Yet the Finnish children must do this, and much more, for they are very well educated, but perhaps, as they are naturally industrious, hard study does not trouble them—at least, they look happy enough over their lessons.
Although education is considered of the utmost importance by the nation, the State does not give any free schooling, and therefore education is not compulsory. But it will serve to show you how much the people desire it themselves when I tell you that, though they must pay for all education, it would be difficult to find an illiterate person in the country. If the State does not insist on education, the Church, however, does, and no pastor will confirm or marry any person who cannot read and write, so if there were any dunces in the land they would be left old-maids or bachelors!
Schools are numerous, well managed, and the education is of the best. The majority of these are mixed schools—that is to say, boys and girls are educated together—an excellent plan for both, as they become good comrades, and have common interests, which tells on the welfare of their national life and the prosperity of the country. Children start school-life by attending a kindergarten, generally at the age of five years. At eight years they are ready for the primary schools; then comes high school; and later the University for those desiring it, or if destined for a profession. Schools of every description exist—agricultural, dairy, forestry, weaving, carpentry, and many others—in fact, you may learn anything you wish in a school, and for those who work in the daytime evening classes are arranged.
Most children are taught German, Swedish, and Russian, in addition to their own language, the grammar of which is very difficult, and, moreover, it has only twenty-one letters in its alphabet. Many of the children take English lessons as well. I once came across a girl of ten years of age who was learning five languages, and when asked if she did not find it very hard work, replied: “It is no use thinking about it; I must learn them, because no foreigner would understand mine, and I mean to be a clerk in my father’s shipping-office.” The school-year lasts only from September till May, with a week’s holiday every month and three weeks at Christmas; also special days are given, such as the Czar’s or Czarina’s birthday, “Little Christmas” Day, and a few others. So you will see that Finnish children have a good deal to learn in their short school-time.
There are no boarding-schools; children, therefore, who are sent to school at a distance board with families, and attend as day-pupils. On the last Saturday in November a peculiar festival in Finnish school-life is celebrated. It is called “Little Christmas.” A tiny Christmas-tree is decorated and laden with small “comic ” gifts, which the children buy or make to give to their teachers and each other. This custom is peculiar to the South of Finland. Another singular practice is that of the “Star-Boys.” On Christmas Eve poor boys array themselves in gilt-paper crowns and swords.
One boy, more gaudy than the rest, is dressed to represent King Herod; another, with blackened face and bright attire, is “King of the Moors.” They carry a large paper star, which is transparent in the middle, on which is a representation of the Infant Jesus lying in a manger. This has a light behind it, and forms an illuminated picture. These boys go round to the houses singing, often very well, in chorus, asking for money, to enable them to pay for their tuition. This is a very ancient custom, for in old days, when education was expensive and difficult to obtain, poor students often could only get sufficient means to pay for their instruction by the money they collected as Star-Boys.
When the fifth form is reached, and afterwards, the pupils meet together in the school-house every Saturday night, to consider the contributions to their own paper, of which the eldest one is the editor. Contributions must be original, and may take the form of prose, poetry, charade, or plays. These papers are called “convents,” and their material is used to provide entertainment on guest-nights, which take place once a month. I once spent a pleasant evening at one of these entertainments. First, we had tableaux vivants of scenes from the “Kalevala,” the staging of which was splendidly arranged. Then followed a little play, whose story told of two small strawberry-gatherers lost in the forest (the counterpart of our “Babes in the Wood”), being very much frightened and in great distress; the animals and birds came to amuse and comfort them. Children were dressed to represent the different animals, and each did something comical. When the bear came, he danced so beautifully that the little strawberry-gatherers, as well as the audience, soon forgot their troubles, and joined in the fun. Finnish children dance very gracefully, and are passionately fond of it—in fact, it is their principal indoor exercise. On these guest-nights scholars provide refreshment for their friends by small contributions from each pupil.
Before leaving school for Christmas holidays a large party is given to the children, a huge Christmas-tree being prepared, laden with gifts of sweetmeats, and splendidly decorated with flags and candles. Tea comes first—a sumptuous one—then follow dancing and amusements, a play being performed, for which the eldest pupil is responsible and has been preparing weeks beforehand. Then comes the distribution of prizes, which generally take the form of beautifully bound books. Should the pupil, however, be very poor, money is then given instead.
In the Christmas holidays the young people arrange ski-ing parties to a neighbouring farm, with either teachers or parents as chaperons. There they have their dinner, and dance and play before returning home.
It is customary on St. Stephen’s Day to drive in large parties in sleighs—the longer the train of sleighs the better, for the higher will grow the flax to make the linen thread—at least, so think the Finns.
The long summer holidays are very happy ones for the young folk, as they spend them almost entirely in the open air, meals being seldom taken in the house. These delightful picnicking days are not, however, altogether idle ones, as some home-lessons must be done for the autumn school term. These home-lessons necessitate long, pleasant rambles in the woods, searching for botanical specimens, all pupils at the high-school having to take back with them to school thirty specimens in their first year, eighty in the second year, and a hundred in the third year. These botanical specimens must be carefully pressed, mounted on cards, and labelled with the local and Latin name, together with the province and village where each is found. These are placed in the school museum when passed as correct, with the scholar’s name attached.
The woods and forests have a thick undergrowth of berries of all kinds—raspberries, cloud-berries, bilberries, cranberries, and others—besides large quantities of the delicious little wild strawberry. The Finns have a proverb which says, “My land is strawberry-land, the stranger’s land is bilberry-land, and my land is best and this every little Finn stanchly believes. A summer holiday is provided for all poor children habitually living in towns, for at least a month, and often longer. These children live in colonies, and in July, when the strawberries are ripe, spend their days gathering the fruit, thoroughly enjoying their holiday task. The strawberries are of a delicious, delicate flavour, but so small that dozens are required to make a spoonful! The children do not forget to eat largely of the berries, you may be sure, so for this purpose they always carry a long pin, with which they quickly and dexterously “spear” a dozen at a time, then neatly wipe them off into their little mouths!
If you are travelling in Finland in the strawberry season, you are met at every station and quay by these little flaxen-haired merchants, with their birch-baskets of refreshing fruit, and very shrewd they are—especially the girls—at driving a bargain. They make these pretty baskets themselves, by cutting with their small pukko a section of bark from the birch-trees, and weaving it into fantastic shapes to form them. This bark is used for many purposes by the Finns, and they show great ingenuity in twisting it into useful articles, such as a drinking-cup by the side of a well, or as a mould for baking bread, for baskets, and many other things. Very noticeable in the woods are the gigantic ant-hills, made of pine-needles, with innumerable tiny tracks leading up to them. On these roads you may observe the busy little insects toiling home with a burden, just as industrious in their way as the little strawberry-pickers.
Thomson, M. Pearson. Peeps at Many Lands: Finland. Adam & Charles Black, 1909.
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