The independent press. (Abbeville C.H., S.C.) 1853-1860, 1859-03-18
Who'll NUMBER 2O6
Sleep and Study.

We are happy to learn that the Priu-
cipal of the well known Female Seminary at
South lIadley, Mass, after due deliberation
as to the propriety Of such a departure
from an old time CUSTOM" has decided to
give young ladies under his tuition one half
hour more to sleep in the morning.
Within a very recent time we have OBJ
served with pleasure disposition to reform,
in the education Of the young, many old
fashioned absurdities, and to resolutelv " bring
up pupils according to tho laws of health
and plain common sense. Prominent a.
mong these absurd errors is the idea that
sleep is quite trivial maltcr-that
persons of great virtue, industry, and who
are economical of time, sleep very little, aud
til at i'll fact the higher we rise in the scale
of ex celence and intelligence the less we
sleep. Let the reader reflect calmly on the
anecdotes which he has heard ofgreat men,
and of the masses Of advice on the subject,
which he may have read in books for The
young, and ask himself whether all the
world have not united in droning one song
OIL the subject. Sleep is the twin brother
OF Death. Every moment devoted to sleep
is golden spark Of life stolen from thought.
Sleep little and you will sleep much"
To this they add dire anecdotes Of Lord
Brcugham, who only sleeps four hours per
diem, and quote the unwholsome example
of students who waste the midnight oil over
'tomes"--as if any man who ever lived
could not find sunlight enough, taking the
| year through, to study himself blind with
out ever burning oil or Gas. Really VIC
| pity millions blindncs much less when we
recall his very silly, sentimental, and vain
romantic wish that his lamp might be seen
at the midnight hour from some, high, lone
ly tower, where he might long eutwatch the
bear. If the poet had gone to bed at 10,
and got up at or 8, he might ha8er saved
his eyes and done much more work in tie
end.
Twist and turn it as you may; we can
not get over the fact, that just so far as you
bend spring. forward, just SO far it must fly
back. The energies Of mind and body diff.
fer in no respect from spring. Whether
people weary the mind by study or the
body by exercise, makes no difference what
ever. And to deprive a growing animal,
be it girl, 10y or other organism, Of certain
quanlum Of food, exercise, sleep and relax
alton, is to injure her, his or its health.
There is no getting over this. And health
is absolutely and perfectly indispensable.
No acquisition of knowledge, no cultivation
of intellect, no promotion of morals, even
which involves in the slightest degree the
injuring Of physical health, is juslifiahle-
that is TO say, We believe in the long run
all intellect, and all sound morality suffer in
irr,atad or morbidly unbalanced frames.
What should we think of teacher who
punished pupils BY giving them large and
positively injurious doses Of nauseous drugs,
such as castor oil aud emeticss Yet we,
many years ago, knew ofsuch case. What
an idiot should we judge the man to be
who would lock pupil up in a closet, tight
as coffin, SO tight as to stiffen the limbs
and almost sutfocate7 Common sense
teaches us that all these disciplines are wrong
because unhe ,Ithy. Why should we look with
more federation on subtracting from wax
ing euergies'by abridgng the period of sleepi
Closely allied to the subject, as regards edu-
cation, we have the infamous system of over
working pupils during working hours, and
culivatig tho intellectual system, without
regard to the physical. We have been
pleased to see that Of late this one.sided ex-
hausting system has received attention in
our city, and is in a way for reform.
We often hear the question put in prose
as We have seen it in poetry, "Why are the
beautiful so rare?" Why is it that among
so many men we see so few handsome ones,
when experience shows that temperance, ex.
ercises, and absence Of cares, with, as life
advances, due cultivation Of the higher
faculties and feelings, are sure to result in
and preserve good looks? The fact is that
people are too ignorant Of the main truths
Of the laws Of health. A vast majority
still believe thatvery little sleep is positively
beneficial to health-Bulwer sets forth the
absurdity in his last noyeI--and declares
that so long as We rise early it makes no
difference when we 60 to bed. A few
years will probably SEQ great dissemina,
ton of truth as regads the laws of health,
and their application to education.