The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1872-02-29

The school room is acquainted with
greater or more difficult duty than
that of establishing and successfully
carrying out some regular system of
essays and declarations. Almost
every means has been resorted to to
compel compliance with this regula-
ton, and often with little or no sue
cess, and not nnfrequently causing
difficulty in the district resulting from
the wrong impression in the minds of
parents conflicting with the arbitrary
ness Of teachers and wilfullness of
pupils.
When this exercise is cheerfully
conformed to, much profit and pleas
urc results to the school; but if each
production must be wrung from the
from the pupils amid threats and pen
alties, it had better at once be aban-
doned. We know Of good thorough
ss.adent. ~~k&, ~-.:Ah1l.Assr T-a.~. aoha<l~
and forego all the benefits Of their
class from no other cause than that of
being required to meet the require
ments Of essay day. While we can
but condemn their course in SO doing,
yet it does seem as though the teacher
might devise some means by which
this duty would be performed cheer.
fully and at the same time secure
great benefit to the pupil.
In our High School at Upton, a
plan has been adopted seemingly a
good one, but subject to objections
common to all school exercise.
Subjects are assigned to the school,
such as are argumentative, and sides
assigned to the different divisions.
One half hour, or more, is set apart
for writing thoughts suggested by the
question; then time is allowed for
reading at the same. or some other
hour.
We append these essays as part
of the result from this plan. Let us
hear from some who have had expe-
rience in this matter.
w. NJ. WILCOX.
Resolced, That Novel Reading is
not beneficial.
Novel reading is very injurious,
both in the mind and body. Think
Of the waste Of time spent in reading
novels without any real good to com
pensate for it. 1t destroys all relish
for books of fact and real history.
The habitual novel reader lives in
an ideal world and has a contempt
for the more solid pursuits and reali-
ties of life. Many readers will be-
liesc all the stories they read to be
true, and be seeking to initiate their
heroes and heroines, making them.
selves as ridiculous as did Don Quix-
otc by his attempt to revive the fables
Of knight Granny. Perhaps some Of
you remember his adventure with the
windmills, how he imagined the wind
mills to be so many giants, whom he
fnrcrrticd 10 cncuuntci arni, having de-
prived them of life, enrich himself
with their spoils; how he rushed
upon the first windmill he came to,
and running his lance into the sail,
the wind whirled it about with such
rapidity Of motion that his lance
was broken and both knight and
horse were hurled away with it, till
down he fell, rolling good way off
in the road.
While il is true that truth is
stranger than fiction, it is also true
t4at a habitual novel reader can
scarcely be induced to look at a book,
however valuable it may be, that is
not filed with startling incidents and
wonderful achievements. Most nov
els have an immoral tendency from
the fact that all their characters, how
ever wicked they may be, finally turr
out to be good and honest people.
MARY e. SWEET.
Resolved, That the Pen is might
Ter than the Sword.
In the first place, if you shoult
take the pen from the civilized world
and in a few years it would have NJ
written form Of government, M
books, and consequently no schools
and newspapers would soon become
unknown.
| The sword has caused famine am
starvation, and has caused millions 0
lives and property to be destroyed
II has lain the most fruitful countrie
on the face Of the earth . barren an
desolate waste. II has oppressc'
Christianity snd destroyed cite.
for instance Carthage and Jerusalem
and also it has csused thousands (
harmless and inoffensive natives I
suffer the mos horrible cruelties.
With n tile pen we would hav