Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1873-03-15
ABOUT SCHOOL BOOKS.

MEssRs. EDITORS: You invited the |
views of teachers upon matters of in
terest to schools" This embraces
large and interesting field, but 1 pro-
pose to confne myself to small scope |
and to Especial subject.
Solomon's pithy proposition, ITO the |
making of many books there is no
end" was never more literally true
than at the present time. Reading
matter abounds, and school books are
almost as numberIess as the sandsupon
the shore.
This is eminently an age af literary
dissipation. Everybody reads some
thing-Eomiletics, Aesthetics, Poetry.
Romance, Spiritualism, Darwinism,
Ariel, OF the very latest Dime Novel.
l heard boy, the other day, gravely
lamenting that he could not buy TWO
of these popular publications with ONE
dime; because, you see, l wanted
Little Thunderbolt,' but Wild Rube'
is the most exciting the fight in
to fellow. Well, if ! can't get but
one, I'll ask the man to let me have
just the awfullest in the lot 7"
1t too often happens that we are ac-
commodated to just that sort. A lively
Imagination and great credence in the
truth of history are required to make
us realize the time when books were
so scarce that private persons seldom
possessed them, a moderate fortune
being required for the purchase of even
onel That ladies of rank pawned
their plate for the privilege of reading
very prosy poem. That Alfred the
Great gave plantation for a small &C.
ographyl Could the wise old lantern
maker walk into modern school room
how high would beat his mighty soul!
Biographies, biographies, biographies,
upon the teachers table, under it, in
the desks, on the desks, on the floor,
on the steps, behind the blackboard,
everywhere. Yet man may die of
thirst with water all around. Water,
water, water everywhere, and not
drop to drink" Every child coming
to school shows you geography by
another man some of them by
new men," wearing brass buttons
and a military cap, and coat cut like
a soldiers!
1t is a Herculean task TO make a
selection-'First Steps, Primary, In
termediate, Combined, Natural, Phys
ical, Political, Astronomical, etc." |
had almost said, mythical and mytho-
logical. Biographies by women. ge-
ographies by men,. biographies of ev-
cry size and sort and no two alike not
near enough of kin to form a class.
The children are positively sent cru
sading around the world, and in some
very ill-provided vessels, too, and if
they do not sink, it is simply because
of their own bouyancy.
Childrenean not make verbal criti-
cisms.
| One book says, on such a day Co.
lumbus set sail F." another, all things
being ready, the ships were launch
ed" another, the wind being favora-
bic, he "cut anchor" another, the
command was given and the ships left
port" another, the ships ''cut the wa
ter" Finally, "adieus were said, hand
kerchiefs waved, and the old world
faded from view" And so on, lad in
fnitum,' through the long list of
nautical phrases, till the child wishes
Queen Isabella had kept her jewels,
Ferdinand his ships in the dock yard,
and his men at other work!
What is the teacher to do? Take
the time explaining to Them that these
are just different ways of telling the
same story? Plainly, the day can not
be devoted to the shape of the earth,
boxing the compass and learning to
pass the Cape of Good Hope. The
truth is, she generally feels like sink
ing the ship before reaching that rather
perilous point. But what must be
done? By some means or other, jim
mic must learn that the earth is not
fat, because if it had been Columbus
could never have gone around it. AT
ter patient lifting of weighty words,
the tired teacher may so press this
point as to make it plain-but with
frequent interruptions of. that's not
the way It's in my book. / did Mt know
what the man meant by circumnaviga-
ting"
This want of classification makes it
hard on those who teach, and harder
on those taught. What then? Must
the teacher tell everybody but Benny
to buy new book? Presto! that is a
terrible tax. So think and say the
paying parents and patrons. l speak
as teacher and as buyer of books.
| am anxious for a revolution on this
subject, but a revolution looking to
reformation.
Now that Bayonet Rule is over, and
1.-THE Schoolmaster Abroad" what
need for shoulder straps in the school
room? Good Biographies may have
been compiled during the war, and since
that little unpleasantness," by men
who gained their knowledge of the
Southern States by actual presence on
the field of strife. Is this sufficient
reason why better books by better men
should not be adopted into our schools?
We owe it to ourselves and our chill
dren, to give them the choicest in the
market, the best books by the best
men.
Teachers would save money to pat
rons, themselves from labor, add to the
pleasure of children, and at the same
show an appreciation of native talent
and personal worth by adopting Maui
RVS Series of Biographies.
1t is not my present purpose to de-