Litchfield enquirer., 1840-04-30
THE INFANT KNOWLEDGE SYSTEM.
Oh the sunny, sunny hours ofchldhood.
How soon-hOW soon they pass AWAY ~

The time is past or fast passing. The boy.
ARE premature mockeries of men the girls
something between doll and stunted wo
man. The schoolmaster is abroad, also the
schoomlstress, besides tutors & governesses
Shortly after the children are weaned, they
commence educating them. While the braiI
is yet IN soft, pulpy state they LOAF it will
heavy facts and hard names, to its serious
detrlment during the remainder of its nun.
cane existence. The ancient Grecian CON-
menced with carrying a Gallup his back a
few hours every day, SO that when the calf
gradually grew into bullock, he carried the
bullock with as much ease as he had done the
calf. This is now the education principle
they lay few leaves of CyclopiDdia or En-
cyclopHdia on chiid's tender brain, and
keep adding thereunto day by day, expecting
That when he is man, he will carry the thir-
ty volumes with perfect ease, without consid-
ering that in the attempt they may crush all
sap and freshness out Of the brain, rendering
1t as flat as pancake, and "dry as the re-
mainder biscuit"
Now is this wholesome-is it natural? Is
1t 1alr-ls 1t humane, that child should be
cheated out Of his childhood, and sent to
learn the fuse of globes before he has
learnt to play at marbles? Or is it to be ex-
pected that this early forcing and hot-bed
system can produce as healthy plants as if
they had been allowed to grow in the free air
and open sunshine? Oh! in place of send
ing child to school three or four years, let
him enjoy three or four more years of heal
thy ignorance. Curb not its young freedom /;
abridge not its first holidays; cage not the
pretty bird too soon! Change not the free
air OF heaven for the pent up atmosphere of
the seminary - the gentle murmur of the
winds for the dull hum of the prison. house.
We were children ourselves once. Let us
have fellow feeling for the young rogues.
Let kind dame nature nurse them a few
years longer. There will be fewer ricketty
limbs and rickctty intellects.
| And does a child learn nothing because it
has not its primer in its hand? Certainly it
does. Every hour of its little life it is learn
ing; it cannot help it. The flower that
blows, the springing grass, the withered leaf,
the running water, the birds that hop across
its path, and the thousand sights of the fields
and wood, or even the squares or suburbs of
a city, cause it to think and to question:
The wind as it blows, the falling rain, the
f1eecy snow, the sharp frost making firm the
unstable water, the thunder peal, the sun
that shines by day, and the moon that steals
into the dark sky ut night, all and each
arouse its infantile wonder and young Curl
osity. Let it then have few years of pleas
ant natural education before it commences
its painful artificial one. Let it, as St.. Paul
says, when it is child, "th;nk us child,
and act as child" and in due and proper
season, no doubt of it, it will "put away
childish things."-N. Y. Mirror.
Tn the neighborhood of the Odeon q great
deal of interest has been excited by the fol-
lowing case, which has lately occurred A
few days ago child, apparently not more
than six or seven years of age, presented
himself to printer in the Rue Vanguard,
and addressing him, said "S Sir, am hun
cry for the last three days have eaten
nothing; could you give me work - But
your parents; do they not support you -
"Alas, sir, have no parents" But, my
poor child, at your age what could you do g.
81 will do any thing you order me; can 20
your snuff" At this last proposal the print
or smiled, and said, i" Very well, there are
two sous and half, go and buy me half an
ounce of snuff" Having given this small
sum, he thought no more of it, and imagined
he had got rid of the child by means of this
aims; but, to his great surprise, in about III
minutes the little boy returned, having per-
formed his commission, and then inquired if
there was any thing else he could do? The
printer, pleased with the boys honesty, Or
dered him some dinner, and sent him into
the workshop, which he Immediately set
about cleaning and arranging. The work
men, charmed by the little fellows activity
collected among themselves few pence
which they gave to him. The days work
finished,the child disappeared, but on the fol-
lowing morning he was first ut work. Inc
master, surprised, asked him where ne slept
II CO." said he, IS into the houses OF the poor
and ask them permission to sleep. there: -
| Sometimes am refused, but sometimes also
thew give me little clean straw and quiet
corner" These answers, the tone of sinceri.
ty with which they were given, and the ar.
| dor with which the child went always to his
work, had such an effect on the printer and
his wife, that they have arranged little bed
room for him, and the poor orphan, thus pro.
tected, continues by his Jealous attention te
prove his gratitude to his bcnefactors.
Paris paper.
Honest Poverty Re,carded.-A gentleman O
New York arrived at the fremont House {
dav or two ago. on his way to Lowell, ant
while in the city had occasion to exchange
some money. He placed the bills in hi:
vest pocket, and took the cars for Lowell
When he reached there he discovered tina
he had lost five hundred dollar bill. Tht
loss seemed irreparable, and he abandoned
all hope of recovering the money. The gen
tleman returned from Lowell, and was not
little surprised to learn that Methodist cler
gYfnan, the Rev. T. e. Pierce, had been pu
ii possession Of his money by an honest or
angc seller, nnmed Connel, at Lowell depot
who had found it there, the gentleman hav
ing dropped it while procuring ticket 70
the cars. The frst thing the gentleman di
upon getting his money back, was to presen
Connel with fifty dollars, and he assure