Roseburg review. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 1885-1920, 1885-12-04
NO. 35.
TEXT no. $.

things, than IN the selection OF text
books for our common schools. In no
place are the proprieties-not to say
decencies, more cruelty outraged,
while the price Of school books is often
unreasonably high. It does not at all
meet this criticism to assert it is better
to pay high price for a good text
book, than low price for poor ne
This is true but only part Of the truth.
Good text books ought to be sold at a
much lower price than they are, as
they are sold in large quantities, and,
except the cost OF compilation and
arrangement, their cost can be reduced
to a uniform basis, SO that the cost
of production is but small percentage
of the retail price.
There arc two important items of ex-
pensc in the introduction of school
books. One is the maintenance of a
large force of men to introduce books
to committees; and the other, the pay
ment of money to committees to secure
their good offices in introducing books
into the schools. Both items enter in
to the cost of the book to the scholar
who has to pay this outlay, with prof
it on it to the publisher. At the same
time the profit to the bookseller is
made unreasonably small for this rea-
son. Often tue matter assumes this
phase; change that was not needed
is made, and the pupil has not only to
buy book that he does not need to
have, but to pay much more than its
value, to enable the publisher to bribe
the committee to compel the scholar to
make the change.
Time will allow only partial review
| OF the text books now used in our
schools. The cornerstone of common
school instruction is the spelling book.
The one now used is Watson's Com
plete Speller. It is unfortunate that
the author of this work should collect
the necessary material for a good spell
ing book, and then destroy its value
by an illogical, incoherent arrangements
The necessary elementary lessons are
given, accentuations and vowel sounds
are marked, proper rules for spelling,
pronunciation, etc., given, and then the
whole converted into mass Of hash
by massing the words ''topically,a in
stead Of arranging them induc-
lively and analytically. The first
forty-six pages contain twelve and one
half pages of primatiye words, ar
ranged in connection with other words
of similar classification; and so far as
the spelling lessons are concerned, this
comprises about all the practical part
of the book. The rest is spoiled by a
slavish adherence to the topical craze.
The idea is to teach the child how to
spell by memorizing, by the force of
association of objects used i'll the same
connection.
For instance: Under the clas ;ifi-
cation Of vegetable kingdom, page ll9,
this example occurs-reading across
page consccutively-"catn -pine-aloe
-woody-gymnogen-exogenous;-on -on page
LOG under topic Travel and Traffic,
currant-bells-glide -shores-lee shore
chronometer; under Astronomy page
50, -mural-host- -Pisccs-nebular-
rocosm; under Mathematics, page 81
concave-tetragon-isosceles-cong
Now the relation Of these words is to
one another just us clear as mud.
How the child is to be taught to spell,
merely by the power of association Of
names of articles sometimes used to-
gether, OF for similar uses, when they
have nothing lii common, either in de-
rivation, Specification, pronunciation,
OF spelling is a mystery. There is al
SO an absardity in stringing together
hard and easy words that have no an
alogy, for a young child to learn SIM
| ply because the objects they name are
sometimes used in the same connection.
| On page 5S occurs this combination,
lounge-solo-etagerc-p painting-melodian
| How is this for child of six years to
| spell, when probably not one-half the
| school trustees fol twenty years past
could either spell, define or pronounce
correctly the French word ssetagere'
| without first consulting the authorities
| The whole book is conglomeration OF
Ijrst such absurdities. Teachers are
not SO much to be blamed for not lik
ing to teach photography from such al
i'll arranged book. The excellent ma
terial in the book is sacrificed to th,
freak Of some theoretical educator.
| I'm the future, halcyon age,
OF which the poets tell,
Nay there be found some kindly page
From which to learn TO SPELL"
w.
r