The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1878-09-13
TEEKYsoN's GOOSE,
BY Lrwn MInIpru.

The prosaic title of one of the laureate's
poems is The Goose, y to which he gives
NO Key, and offers no explanation It Ia
capable, probably, Of several explanations.
Let me attempt one. Education q n
goose Nay, gentle reader, don't be AZ
fronted- Have patience and / viii explain.
1 do not mean the iron goose of the famous
uine knights of the needle that together
made a man Neither do / refer to the
worldwide famed "Motherp Of the
nursery rhymes. And If you should AJAX
whether l meant the historic fowl Of that
TX which saved the capital of the Romans,
l shouid have to answer, "You haven't hit
yet | mean that it Is the goose that laws
the golden eggs. See If it is not. TSe
poet describes m :" old wife, lean and
poor" whose rags scarce held together"
Let that represent the transformations of
uncultured ignorance. :. Where strobe a
stranger to the door, call that the
teacher. And it was windy weather.
The hue teacher, as q general thing, has
'itLer to go against the wind Of prejudice.
or raise the wind of excitement, or both,
In order to secure attention to his mission,
he held a goose upon his arm" That
means education. He uttered rhyme md
reason That ome from being cultured
and well educated himself. Here. take
the goose, and keep you warm" he said.
The teacher is anxious to share his treas
ures with others. The lean and moor Is old
wife, in that awkward and abrupt manner
so characteristic Of the rude and lettered.
accepts the offer. She caught the white
goose by the leg" Ignorance is always
impolite. What need was there of any
'peciai manners in accepting and handling
a gooseY "A goose 'twas-no great mat
Yer. Ignorance is conceited, and never
has n ranlrzIpar oA.c2 -
education until it begins to acquire it. 1t
soon transpires that this was no common
goose " the goose let fall a golden egg"
AMI here was indeed a discovery. A
goose like this was worth having. Educa-
ton will prove that to any one who gives it
a chance. Her golden eggs" have en-
r.ched the ages. The poets old lady
went for the gold. She dropped the
goose and caught the pelf, and ran to tell
her ~neighbors and blessed herself, and
cursed herself, and rested from her laborsn
VI course she cursed herself if at the sight
OF the first glittering treasure Z" she dropped
the goose and rested from her laborsu
She did what the young lady did on gradu-
ating day considered her eddication
nnsshed-" Education is u life-work. The
teacher only puts us in the way of acquir-
ing possession Of greater and still greater
treasures. The goose in this case was
abused and neglected. The recipient of
its favors turned them into wrong uses.
Agassiz had " had no time make money!
The dazzling bait of SO much a night for
occurring could not tempt him. The
teachers work was far above that. And
the effect of that work on others comes
short of the goal if it does not lift its
subject high above mere sordid lust. The
true discipline and development of man
hood and w~omanhood must take place first
OF all Ignorance and audiences are the
same everywhere-the same, whether in
rags or clad in velvet and satin. And Gull
ture and gentility remain unchanged
shining in plush and gold, or found
IN coarse array. Tennyson's " old wife"
even after fortune favored her with the
pelf." and she,
Feeding high and living soft,
Grew plump and able bodied:
Until the grave churchwarden dotted