Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1882-11-23
Use and Abuse Of Text Books.
PAPER READ BEFORE THE MAINE PEDA.
GoGICAL SOCIETY, BY d. o. $. LOWELL.

Z
erature gave birth to a poet who wrote n
certain line perennial in its freshness and
eternal in its applieation,-
Medic tutissimus ibis;''
while a contemporary still farther crystal
llzed the thought into the ott-quoted,-
"Auream mediocritatem." Indeed, il were
scarcely too much TO say that all the great
blunders Of mankind-proyed to be blum
ders BY the unbiased record Of History and
the cool Judgment Of succeeding genera
tiOns-haye been made by extremists and
their disciples, a class that has existed. and
ever will exist, in all ages, countries and
oonditions,-in science, religion and social
life.
Here walks band Of bigots, or perhaps
a solitary one. proelalming that 1t is not good
| for man to be alone, and up spring the mon
astery and the hermitage.
Over there. beyond the Rockies. eongre-
/ gates class Of very much married men. the
| one great blot yet remaining upon the fair
face Of our land, which is Just beginning to
be wiped out.
Here dwells an Epicure, Of aldermanic
/ form. who vows that he will eat, drink aud
| enjoy good things without labor. He does
aud has the gout.
! who proclaims fasting as the remedy for all
earthly Ills He starves himself for forty
I days to prove II. and gains-sn empty stom-
/ ach and an emp,ier name.
/ Dlo Lewis tells US to chew turnips and es-
I chew meats-to reduce our living expenses
10 10 to Is cents day Though the, do say
I that with an Inconsistency worthy Of Seneca
he indulgcs nov and then in .si dinner at
( Parker'sl, to drink water only and amuse
( ourselves with eallsthenics and Il We have
I no eugailed disease. and are not broken by
. excess We may be healthy and happy.
I But anon We find that our horizon wldens.
I We need not restrict our diet. or keep good
hours. or twist our muscles with Tk some
I gymnastics. II matters nothing a. 10 our
age, previous condition or present surround
,ngs. We read IN q thousand journals, on
/ the dead walls and the wayside rocks. the
glad good news. enforced by an ever present
face, lllumlned by an everlasting smile. that
the ltstiess Invalid of every cline twho j.
not 50 unfortunate As to be a mani can buy
health IN bottles. put up by Mrs. LYDIA r.
Pink ham.
Some men shuddcr at the physical dr.en-
cracy Of oar nation. aud would even .acrl-
fee brain TO muscle. They agitnir the
question on all occasions; they push for
ward their hobD, hy money and influence
until ~ witness the eNtreme-Jlm Sullivan.
the great moral American shoulder hitter.
Other, are utterl, regardless OF bodily
development, and while wise IN all things
else are entirely unmiudfu of Ii,gitnics
Thus ~r find the grand stone mason OF
Cromart, tolling into the wee sma' hours
upon HI. greatest and his latest work hold
ing ms feet in a bowl of Ice-waler tu drive
back the hot blood INTO the weary BRAN.
which IN despair at this unrea,on drove the
ruling Reason from her throne and caused
the pity Gns World 70 mourn suicide.
II would BE- an anomaly, indeed. II We did
not find extremists among teachers. 10
some extent they are i necessity. They are
the high -pressuGe and the brakes that op-
crate the wheels of Progress. and are called
respectively Theorists and Old Fogiea.
Ii Ne JON either class, why
''ii,tter the rNcr-- than the defect;
Better ihr more IN n less"
but shall We not rather choose the middle
ground where sr ma> walk most wisely a.
well as most safely There alone can We
find tina, grand freedom OF thought and ac-
tion which allows US 10 be, as Sumner 50
happily exclaimed, Reforming con>erya-
tiyeS and cunser, Atl,e reformers."
VI, subject appears, at fist sight, 10 h,
an antlthetical one bu, on close con,id.ra-
ton We hnd it lack, term which. # added.
gives the two extremes between which lies
the golden mean already mentioned. The
title Thu. prrfected uoula read The .iI,s,.
Use and D,suse Of Text-book,."
Have ,her, been abuse, of textbook, ?
Upoue,,ionably. And therefore. some en-
thutl..t. have rushed. lk. a pendulum. 10
tie other l.mi, Of the arc. claiming that ali
,n.fy,,ctiou .houlI h.. given by lecture. and
object lessons.
No doub, this +. ,Ncel-u, practic, for the
teacher Lord Bacyn ,a,, ..,ou had b-ti.r
relate vour..If "a i, statue ar A pieturr ,bau
10 T., ,nn, ,hn,,,h,. nass MA .m,rb.r r.
III I'LL. ,b. Isc,rrsr d,,ly snI,r,,. ~. H.
cabulary and increases his stock of idea, a.
he r,hearse. for. what miyht often we'll
~ Incl ...,a,n..
l., a.. II MI Twain. booL. IN.
Tran,n Abrn,d | rhi,Ll ,hare !. IN a,,n.ino
sccnup, M q csl.br,r.d (;,rrnar nrofs,sor in
o,.. NJ E,rberl,nd'. s,mnns nn,yar.,,;..s
~. "a. ,cc,,.,n,,..d IN conc ALL ~ ,hs
nI,,f,r,n and ,dd,a.. vim ,rear ora,i,, .
7 KIN .,,.,s !, IA i, s,rda,,. ,hn III, n
s.,ar,l hu,d,.d, cnn.idaTsJ !, in ,b,. line "a
/ H.. ., I;s,.,, - ~. ,,.;,,h,, ID r.,