The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-08-12

Phosophy of Eaaca,ion ana the Moral
well Physical Science owingto piessof ouSsess AZ
A communication was alsc received from D Chase,
Esq principal the Newark Wesleyan Institute in
wiling embers 10 visit institute duriog the recess
which was received with the usual rent
Professor WHITAKER, Principal OF the school OF de-
SIGN for women Boston then introduced and deli
yered n lecture on Drawing Means Of Education"
IL was mistake he ma'ntsned to suppose that II was
necessary for every one who intended to learn drawing
should be endowed will all the talents necessary 20 make
an artisttbe effect Of which to render 1t an accom-
Ri whereas it should be universally taught Let
first consider what drawing The art OF any
thing have Nat surface, from nature herself
and real Objects not the mtre copying OF what has
been done by another. Next the powers nc
cessary to acquire this willing mind knowledge Of
geometrcal figures and attention and perseverance, He
had been asked in what respect II was essential to edu
cation? He would ask another in which 1t not
Nothing could be properly explained to convey the
idea to the mind without illustration This the age
of iusrations-when drawing should be taught not as
patch upon other branches Of education but
tia fundamental branch Of it, NO great talent. in
art became more diuscd the demand for its productions
would be much Increased and all artists prayed for
without any feeling Of jealousy or fear.
AN EPISODE.
Mr. FsHEp, of Philadelph took exception 10 ex-
preston used in the coure the lecture that there
was mo royal road to geometry We did want .
royaln road but he hoped TO republican, road
so that should become popular study for 1t never was
intended to be mystery or unintelgble legerdemain
Mr. uUGHEs. of Pa Thought there was easy road
to geometry, perfection be attained in any
thing without deep and long continued sudy-ths only
true path was perseverance.
Mr.. FsnrR would offer aquetation-
The pnsspESr reminded the gentleman the question
before the Association was that Of dra~ins and Mr.
he expressed hope that the science might be attained by
simple satisfactory experiment instead of through the OBJ
and intricate paths OF Euclid The debate then
resumed
GENTLEMAN from the body Of the meeting wished for
explanation to the expression about copying he
considered that copy ing was essential at first
Professor HAlpEMER followed, citing Harding
experienced teacher who says must 20 to nature
last and explained by simple means how impossible it
would be to teach at once pupil to copy or represents
Mr. Wu,rrAKrE at the request Of the President re-
turned TO the stand and explained he would teach the
alphsbet Of drawing by combining forms. &C.; but he
contcndtd copying useless and mode the anciens
never adopted.
lie illustrated his explanations by drawings a black
board and discussed it at considerable length.
At the conclusion, resolution moved and carried,
thanking Mr. Whitaker for his lecture and illustrations
EVENING SESSION.
EDUCATION.
The Convention reassembed at the place at the
hour appointed
Mr. Gro b. EMERSON. Of Boston delivered lecture on
had prepared he said he thought technical
audience than usually collected the evening but the
executive committee had appointed him to deliver
When it was considered how frequently teachers both
men and women possessed little knowledge of books
would have supposed the friends ofeducaton would have
SAID the first great thing to be done s to prepare text
books. The consideration then would be- what they
should be, and how they were to be prepared.
and necessary to the child in its life and this question
should always be kept in view The frst then would be
lanGuage-not aDcient modern tongues and not mere
WORDS. Language the only Of communication
between mind and mind finally with the works OF the
Creator and formation language was Of course the
most important part of education Perhaps this might
be better explained the study Of nature We all
born to communicate with and draw our ideas from,
tue every human soul looks out to 1.-THE soul OF every
i. adapted to it, should not begin by getting
quained with this and how is this to be done but by
language? The first step in every childs education
should be 10 get the and properties of them and
this can only be done by bring ing the thing itself before
and books when every instinct Of their nature pushing
out for not books made by but to the great book Of
GOD himself Should we continue TO do tins; He hop
spect fer the liberties and better knowledge Of the
nature of children and that his perycrson would cease
No house contained all that child should see and learn
about should be seen and this the way know
ledge of things and language was to be obtained. No
pains taken usually to that child had got all the
pIopc Language applicable to the action Of his mind and
to those actions Would it not be better to have
intelligent teacher with him. who understood his
mind. In many parts Of the country valuable libraries
had been cocctedought not to be part of his educa
ton to read But he has not language. Sup
pose a farmer goes 10 read good treatise agri-
cultural chemistry, which would enable him to
improve al bis operations-but he can't read-he
has not the language and he does not understand and
he must lie than human to pereyere against sucha
difficulty. What is useful knowledge" is question
which docs not to be asked considered by the
makers Of many Of text books Every ought to
learn arithmetic for common purposes and to keep
counts end all he meant to say when he was msunder
stood wos that too much time was spent over It, Much
Of our own language neglected in weight and
measure, and in colors particularly In coors there
definite and liked names for Of what
were called dead coiors, or many beautiful tints
Of nature, and those in vague and
indefinite that two persons could scarcely make them
selves understood. Geography undoubtedly,
most useful study but what part most so! 1t
important to know great mountains and rivers near
but should also and it more important, teach
the rules which govern all the earth But the question
What will he want to known would exclude much
that he is trammelled wth-long catalogues OF small
rivers he viii hear Of agan-lnttudes and iong
tudes OF places upon whose latitude and longitude
the time they learned and in the next year win be
still more false The memory should not be numbered by
these. Writing and drawing in connection with it. he
would particularly recommend as useful branch. The
interesting lecture this afternoon must have convinced
every present Of the utility of drawing in connection
with the first Reading, as a matter Of course;
music ne would add and a proper exercise Of
Of all the faculties which included physical edu
cation which did not mean gymnascs exercising the
arms We lived in q world Of laws--which should be
primarily nculcatedbut We shut our eyes TO them-the
laws Of nature-those by which the heavenly bodies
this neglected that questioned whether there
not some doubt chance and whether nature
the God OF Creation Therefore the primary parts
of the education language useful knowledge, due
exercise Of the faculties and knowledge Of the laws Of
and he believed they might be so prepared that even
bad teacher might must teach we'll Such had been done
His New England friends would understand him when
he alluded to Columbus first lesson In mental arithmetic
and Adams sequel to that work He then proceeded to
describe two Of text books which he would have
prepared for the Of schools the first to contain only
the elementary and most necessary branches Of know
ledge and the other rather more advanced He would
have language: the nature. use, and pro.
perty Of things which could only be prepared by
conversant with the laws of nature One on arithmetic
but that we had on geography, writing the laws of
nature &c
Left speaking at nine o. clock P. NJ.
CONNECTION Judge Duer. who spoke Tuesday, is
Judge Duer Of New Jersey, and not Of New York
roneously printed.
Convention Of Women.
The report in the HERALD Of yesterday of the conven
ton Of ladies engaged in teaching in all States now in
session ut Newark caused quite excitement and much