Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1861-08-03
Lake Erie Seminary.

liar exccencies.
!. The democratic ideal 10 the plan Of the
school, and so far as | could judge, carried out
in the working, is worthy Of all praise. There
is no respect Of persons. Nothing but real
worth 10 character and scholarship gives any
pre- eminence The necessity OF labor, both
mental and manual is perseveringly iuculcated
and successfully taught. Aye aud its nobility
too. With such schools to aid him,a rich man
may hope to have his daughters grow up to be
what he can be proud OF, and what Others can
respect, instead of the vnpid, empty aud uu-
meaning things they so often are. To such
school the poor man may send his child, with
out the fear that she may turn out the mere
second hand copy of pretentious emptiness.
2. TIoroughness, in what is attempted 10 be
taught or learned This idea is evidently very
prominent and its effects, Of course apparent.
The examinations are not for a show, hut an
exhibition Of what has been learned | give
ouy my own iufcrcuces, but am much misto-
ken if these girls have not au impression that
it is Of very little use to come to recitation with
better exhibition than was given by class in
Virgil on Wednesday afternoon, showing such
proficiency in euery member; this argues thor.
oughness better than any catalogue The Book
too, one which looked at if there be any vrtue
in signs, argued the same thing do not mean
to compliment now, the taste or the method Of
thus adapting the lines Of the poet to the ex-
ercise of scanning, but the pencil marks did say
as plain as pencil marks could these feet must
be measured there is no other rcay. A Dactyl
is Dactyl and Spondee is "a Spondce, the
whole book through, and we have made up our
minds to get the crooked things and straghten
them out. So 10 the historical recitations, there
was exhibited rare thoroughuess of prepara-
tioD. What was attempted to be learned was
learned, what was meant TO be taught was
taught. Whether this intention was sufficient
ly broad in It's scope may perhaps admit OF a
question. If I were disposed to critsiz2,
would say that question thrown in occasional
ly of this character-What do you think how
does such . character appear to you &c, &c,
could have increased the interest Of the occa-
sion and might have shown how much the pow
ers of thought had been strengthened in the
pupils as well as habits of industry and inqui-
ry. l should have been better pleased too, Of
ten, TO have had plain simple answer to the
question rather than an extended quotation
from the text book, which contained indeed the
answer, but so overloaded and surrounded with
other thing as to remind one of Maoolios rea.
sons. l confess could not avoid thinking of
the pencil marks in the Virgil and wondering if
there were similar ones in all the text books,
measuring of just so many ems of BREWER or
small plea as an answer to a given question--so
much for so much. VerL Sat.
3. Last but not least is the christian influence
Of the institution. 1t is professedly one of the
leading objects in its design, and the compost
tions read show that the design has been promi-
nen.ly kept in mind. Without this all its other
advantages are dangerous and doubtful at the
best. Moral beauty is the beauty we most
prize in our daughters. This is the gem of
mental excellence, and physical beauty we prize
as the appropriate setting. Win the diamond
they are Of inestmabe value, without it,worth-
less.
May this long be the Distinguishing excel.
lence of the Painesville School.
And now-Mr. Editor give me leave to ven.
tilate thought or two not especially appca.
bic to the Lake Erie Female Seminary but gen.
orally to all systems and schools of learning
with which 1 am acquainted How long must
we be Obliged to catalogue the act of reading
as among the lost arts ? do not mean the art
of calling over words, drumming the page over
with the eye so as to get at the meaning, but
the art of communicating written or printed
thoughts to Others by means of speech. Is it
so difficult that scarce one in a hundred of ei-
ther sex, educated or uncducated can acquire
the art do not believe it. And vet they
do not. With the exception of advocates
in law who must make theirse audiences un-
derstand them or fail entirely-and larger
number of ministers of the Gospel with whom
it is at least very desirable to accomplish the
same thing, and a comparatively few of other
professions and pursuits, the attempt to read to
an audience of twenty-five persons is scarcely
more than vain show Even of those who
can speak articulatey their own thoughts to
the satisfaction OF an audience, not half can
read Witness the mumbling aud sing song of
hymns in the pulpit and the muttering and
sputtering of readers in Court What is the
cause Simply that they hare never learned
and this again because they have not been
taught, and still again because the attempt to
teach has never seriously been made. The com.
mon schools teaches the calling words, some
times their pronunciation, and generally ena-
bles the child to get the meaning and this is
called reading the academies, seminaries, aud
colleges, assume that this part Of scholars
outfit has been furnished, and of course neglect
it, and the educated man or woman is tnrned
out into the world mere pretender in this
most important part of the preparation work of
life. So general is this failure that the patient
public have apparently given up all expectation
OF anything better If one word out of five, is
caught by quick ear in listening to a singer
or a reader so that the rest NAV be guessed at,