New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-11-24
THE BOSTON RADICAL CLUB.

Dr. Barol, No. IT Chesnutst. The largo drawingfoohs
were crowded. though the familiar faces OF VINO
are wont 10 be among the most welcome taihers wore
missing David A. wnsson was sitting at the receipt OF
oustum Col Higgnson had followed the " moving No
cano Of Woman's outrage to Cleveland; John weiss
Ind not been wise enough to the calm philosopher
of Concord Ralph Waldo Emerson was busy oouoo'
on the new lectures for which his frehds arc "as
and his neighbor A. Bronson Alcott OF tne s'er hA
and the kindly face and tho slow. subtle talk has al
ready s.artcd on his way to his Western hunting
the new and apprecave audiences whom he loves ana
praises ..,,,
Radical Club without all these familiar faces conia
not BIO quite itself but other less hDh corners ooAou
upon us from cosy and gave us Pheasant cou
tsnance Drs f. II. Hedge and James Freeman CLARKE
the morn branch OF the Unita
rans: and another clerical dignary, the Rev. petroleum
" Nasty, having secured Boston and us Suburbs IN
search OF the Man OF Sin, had drifted INTO the hac
Club doubtless expecting to find him there, vi couso
he must have gone away disappointed, Tor Tom bro"h
Uuebes declared that the Club appeared to INN 70 DO
set NJ nopes and we all know since the great council
that popes are nfable The essayst OF the day was
tho Rev Francis Tiffany Of West Newton VINO mas never
before addressed the Club He chose Tor MS SUBJECT
" Education" which he claimed 10 be SIMPLY rro
cess OF Organic Development"
ADDRESS OF TIE REV. FRANCIS TIFFANY.
Uo hogan by setting forth the might and multitude OF
developments which went to the performance OF
one simple oraoro at Music Hail. He described the
enormous platform, crowded with the orchestra anu
banked on either side by the chorus; the great tieed
organ with the Beethoven standing at us base III
scupturod trance OF waiting expectation Yet Beetho-
ven would wait ia vain forever. and organ pipes ana
twisted horns and well strung vos and Threats or sing
e,s would he alike dumb but for the presence OF the at
mospheric air: since musical instrument ID anything
more than contriyanco TO FAKE air yDrate In parcu
lar yay For this has experimental Tor centuries
with metals woods reeds strings, and throat tissues
| fold
his ear some stirring the pathetic element In him. some
the JOYOUS As In waves that beat like pulses odors from
rose or lily delight his SMELL 80 these pulses OF sounu
gladden. and inspire his soul through his ears ana Tor
their sake he tolls and contryes till he has constructed
organ, bugle violin or developed human 'oce.
But giving the instruments and the wanting an anu
the next thing is the performer, ., thout whom sui
silence reigns And this performer must be also trained
His whole bodily organism must become an exquste III
strument ITSELF of which the instrument on which nc
plays be only extension or proongaton JUST as
a telescope IL an extension OF the eye. We are not
through yet There 5000 hearers In the hail. ana as
symphony harmony, all around their ears must
also be attuned. Then let the organ roll the Vonns
complain the bugles ring, the chorus pour out us a
esfc food Of sound 1t is all the expression OF the
ethereal spirit which disdains base means, and VIII nave
| of our best.
There are eternay ordained conditions under which
ALL divine or beautiful things manifest themselves
and the true educator is he who understands now 10 pro
duce these conditions. Man is born vague, dimy-o
gained possibility. At what abortiye crosspurposesa
babys hands at what odd angles his round eyes
squnt There Is physical power there, but the channels
along which the nervous currents shall flow In CON
sciousy-inelllgent lines not yet established len
yeals later his eye and hand quickened He cha.-
leng YOU keep three stones going in the ar all at
once as he can and, when you try and fail, you
| solace your vanity by the reflection that lie VIII
have 70 be organized good deal before his verbs
and his snstantves will obey him well as do his fin
| gers, You see unaccustomed eountryiah uy 10
write letter He has strong sense and KIND heait ana
something OF vital importance to communicate but now
he suffers how he pcrspires. and how I'll he succeeds at
last His Door idea sing The can't get out OF sternes
starting city clerk, with half his native mind, half
his native feeling between whose and brain the
avenues communication have boon opened by haplt
would have done the work infinitely better In nan the
| time.
Every ystemof education implies aims to initiate.
process Of organic development They recognize the
fact combinations OF light will educate the ear,
and TO combinations sound will educate the eye; but
they do begin to go far enough with these adnis-
sons: and they refuse to call anything organ, and
therefore proper subject for development that is not
two or three fair inches long, like the nose, the ear,
the tongue But everything Is a special organ which
does n special work; and Nature does not make these
things for fun. Tie development OF every one OF these
organs brought about at all, must be brought about
by exercise you develop biceps. The more vital
force You upon any the better it
will yOu This is why so often shut your eyes
when You want liisten intenty to music. We are,
largely what we educated 10 be. Who doubts, for
example that such grave diyines DR. MoCoh or such
impassioned orators Wendell Phillips, might instead
OF instrueting inspiring large audiences "a they now
do have taught by vigorous of training,
commenced in childhood, To intoxicate vast crowds
nightly with the abandon of their dancing upon the
tisht rope or the brcathless audacy OF their eas
| the flying trapeze
Accurate and discriminating perceptions must
lie at the base OF all true culture without thcm having
eyes Se sec not hear not. The very beginning
of culture the learning to observe Nature can be seen
only in the lump long ourselves remain In the
lump But how little do our present systems OF
| education achieve in the organization Of the
seusep perceptions of children. This organization
should be the first object of the educator, while
| the second should be the reproduction in the
mind OF pictures Travel is worth little unless
the traveller sitting aferward in his chmneycorner
can call up vivid images OF the among which he
has wandered. This faculty should be sednlously cult
waited in "a child. He should be shown an object, and
then should be removed he should be forced to de-
scribe to draw it, then he should be confronted with
the mistakes he has made and this should be re-
peaed until clear mental photograph has been pro-
! duced
Having learned to infinitely, and recall faithfully,
the third great lesson il that Of selection We must
choose wisely the objects which to concentrate
attention. Under this progressive system OF education,
Mr. Tiffany believed that development might be almost
infinite. Emotion can be cultured as well intellect
sympahies well force Of will The greatest men,
the masters in poetry painting and sculpture speak Of
moods OF inspiration in which they dictated to, and
,nOre comes out OF them than theyAknew. But these
'Een have olod terribly for he prerequisites Of these
ours OF inspiration. The ETHEREAL spirit dsdans still
|