The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-11-15
A DEFECT IN OUR SCHOOLS.


The Philadelphia American calls
to a most important mat
ter concerning schools. Karl Wern-
er, inspector of the Austrian schools,
and an eminent authority upon mat
tiers pertaining to the most approved
conduct of schools, has had much to
say upon the subject of industrial art
in education. After studying all meth
DDS presented he gives preference to
that set forth by Mr.. Charles G. Leland.
This he does, because the method pro-
vldes not only for copying, but for
drawing and inventing at the same
time. He admits that the only way to
give freedom to the hand and awaken
quickness of perception, and in the
end to lead to inventiveness and art
is to teach the hand to work.
In a few lessons, all children may
learn to produce practical useful de-
signs; but what is of far greater con-
sequence they acquire confidence in
themselves. A boy trained to origi-
nal design learns mere drawing very
quickly, just as it comes quickly to
workmen in factories where they
must draw somehow to execute their
work. And after the general ideas of
design are familiar to him he masters
modelling, or carpenters work, or
wood-carving, almost at once,or much
sooner than he would have done with
out hand training. He has begun to
think about form and proportion,
and their application; and he who
does this finds nearly all arts easy.
The American says:
All boys under fourteen years Of age
are influenced by the spirit of play,
romance, or, in fact, by the ideal. 1t
is constant factor in their nature.
1t is diSliked by serious and practical
people, but it cannot be eXtinguished
| in boy without serious injury to his
morals in after life. When we see one
with precociously hard, shrewd eX-
preston, cunning beyond his years,
we know that he may succeed IN life,
but we feel that the world will be the
worst for it. Instead of killing the
ideal in the young, it is much better
to turn it to practical account; and
this may be done through art. BY
means of every calling, even shoemak.
ing is rendered easier. Ignorant and
narrow minds may ridicule this as
impractical" but experience has
shown that it is serious fact. Wer-
ner has perfectly underst ood it, and
points with rare insight to the rea.
meaning or "true inwardness" of the
system of "theAmerican," that it is Of
all other guides the ideal tendency OF
the young, not only to industrial
studies but to all study.
There is principle, however, which
lies at the root of design, as design it,
self is the basis of all the lesser arts
This principle is the inducing the
young mind to take comprehensive
view of subject. The boy who Car
design patterns knows very well thai
he has a general grasp of many arts
or that he can easily learn them if HI
tries. When pupil comes to the in
dustrial school, he sees brass Worl
and panels, and says in awe: 81 Cal
never learn to do that" After twenty
or thirty lessons in design, he turns
his hand to anything with perfec
confidence. Following this idea, Mr.
Leland has written book, soo1
to be published, in which h,
points out that agriculture, com
merce and household economy
or housekeeping, may be taught a
practically as industrial art. What
is needed is to simply attract the at
tention of boy to farming as to al
art or study, to make him think abou
it, and to give this thinking solidit,
and strength by making him stud,
an easy manuel in which the nature
of farm and its management are Sc
forth. As he grows older, the inter
est and intelligence thus awakened
are continued and enforced by practi
Cal employment in gardens or on
farm. The same method is applicable
to commercial pursuits. 1t is as
sumed that in all cases the calling
whatever it is to be, of later years Cal
be begun in childhood. This is not
direct education, but a preparation TO
it. Herein all the older system
missed the mark-that they assume,
that a little boy could be at once mad
into mechanic.
There is too little practical abou
the schools of this country, while il
our Texas schools there is almost CON
plete absence of any sort of practice
bility. 1t is by the method propose
by Mr.. Leland that interest must b
awakened in a direction, leading t
the profitable practices of life. TIL
bureau of education at Wash
ington proposes and urges the adoI
ton of the method, and it is general
acceded that it is the highest author
ity upon thesubject of school conduc