The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1875-07-22

put Tor moral development, and their should
be systematic set of such exercises for the
cultivation of every virtue. and especially of
those which the pupil chiefly needs.
But the chief and most powerful moral
exercise is that in which the voice goes
forth with ell its emotional strength in the
expression of feeling by song. True song
is gush of feeling, and is therefore moral
education IN it's purity. The voice in true
song expresses every feeling-love, courage,
joy, devotion, sympathy. humor, tranquility
pride, am bition, or the tiercer passions of
anger, fear, hate, scorn and des pair. There
is, no doubt, miserable kind Of empty sci
entific music, 4thOut soul, which moves
no feeling and has no value. It expresses
nothing but the mathematical relations oil
SOUND, and is of no interest except TO the
scientific student so there is a plenty OF
wishy-washy literature which has neither
eloquence nor profundity, bns pleases the
lovers OF rhetorical verbiage. This rheto
icaI verbiage in music has no moral value
The real worth of music lies IN its eloQuenee
or depth Of feeling. Song is eloquence uni
ted to words, and we do not knew the power
Of verse until it is inspired by the tones of
song.
If these views are just, the school in which
song is not prominent part of its exercises,
is not moral school for song is the great
moral element. Songs are the highways of
angels to human hearts, and when you close
these highways and shut out the angels,
the devils are free TO come in their place.
| hold, therefore. that in every moral school
there should be from half hour to one
hour daily given to song, in five Or six inter-
walls throughout the day.
The great power of the church torenovate
human nature, 10 take profligate men and
lift them, as by whirlwind, to a higher
life, lies in IFS songs, It's congre gationa1 sing
ing. The Methodist Church exceis all others
in moving men, becauseits people sing with
grand fervor, and it's ministry carry that
fervent spirit into the pulpit in ali their
exercises. They sing to embody the fervor
Ct their religion, they raise themselves
nearer to the gates of heaven, and they carry
along with them thousands who came indif-
ferent or scofing, and remained to pray.
But no finical or high wrought compleXity
of fashionable tunes will answer theirs pur-
pose. The Methodist song is not decorated
like an empty Drained Top, but rushes forth
in rude attire and giant strenth as it asks,
cam | q Soldier OF the Cross ~ or rejoices ir
the words, There S a Land of Pure Delight
The last national Methodist Conference
held in this city ex pressed it's decided feeling
in favor of simple, pious and eloquent songs
by the people against the innovations of
musical complexity. 1t was by the power
of song that the poor depraved children
from Hamburg were subd1ed to tears at the
Rauhen Haus, and made such remarkable
examples of piety and virtue.
1t Is strange that the wonderful education
al power of song should have oeen so long
neg ected, and so entirely excluded from
colleges. The Rev. A. D. Mayo says
81 know not how [ should have lived
through ten years of the strange experiences
and crushing and confusing tolls of proes-
sional life in great Western city, could /
L OF have been almost every day lifted up
and cheered by the wonderful singing of the
children in the Cincinnati common schools !;
Fr~ ~, l-;f.
of humanity which we call society seemed
whirling beyond my power, snc could not
see ahead the length of the ship l steered,
on passing schOolhous a wave of seng
would come surglng out Though an open
window, hushing the noisy street, arrestlng
the hurrying crowd, as if The gates of the
beforehand had swung half open, and for a
moment we heard the jewellers within
chanting GLORY to God in the highest. on
earth peace, goodwill to men, Marry
your highest moralities to cnildhood's music,
and Young America may yet sing itself
within sight of the millennium in this new
world
A rigid reform is demanded in the selec-
| ton of music for our common schools. A
great deal CT it is puerile too much of 1t
| is beyond the capacity Of children. Some
! of it can be accounted for only by the per
verse desire OF the special teacher to exhibit
his musical meDagerie. We need more songs
| of home, of country, OF simple praise to
| God and love to man. We need less toll
! oyer the science of music, and more actual
singing that shall knit together the souls
of the scholars into loving community
! If have dem onstrated by the examples
of Lancaster, 0aio. Of Mettray, in France
OF the reformatories of England, OF the,
Rauhen Haus at Hamburg, and of Rofwyl
that moral education can regenerate man
kind i'll have shown that the chief power
of moral education lies in the voice, and
that tie purest form of this row err is In
song, l. am justified in demanding
that every school shall have its
/ daily hour OF music, anc that every
teacher should demand that amount
| for the benefit of his pupils and for the
benefit of himself, that his own soul
may be refreshed, aud that the burden
Of the labor or government may be
taken from his shoulders by inspiring
the school with that lovely spirit in
which all duties are performed as
pleasures, and the rod is an unknown
instrument Of government.
Underlying all this practical success
is tue great scientific law that the emo
tions are controlled through the ear;
that the ear is the great organ of moral
education that the voice of the pupil
il the greatest power for Ills moral Gull
eure. and, in short, that the hnnaan
laryns $50 long overlooked) IS the chief
agent in moral education, and therefore
the most important agent in normal IN
teIlectUaJ culture, which largely depends
en- moral energy This principle, which,
as an outgrowth of anthropoogy,
presented twenty years ago, is not nm
familiar to enlightened teachers to-day,
for do mob see how any teacher can
observe and think without arriving at
such conclusions himself. The doctrine
however, In reference TO voice as the
agent of moral education, and the SUI
preme potency of education for virtue,
as well as fer intelligence, may be IN
familiar to-day, but i cannot long re-
maip doubtful will earnest thinkers.