The Press., 1885-10-08

equally important era in my school days. Yor. all have gone through like experl- ence, and remember, ,a
 Rich man. poor man, beggar man, thief,
 Doctor, lawyer, merchant priest.
 White house, red house. shanty, barn,
 City, village, hamlet, farm.
 Wheat bread, brown bread, ginger bread, pie, Plum cake, lection cake, barley loaves, and
 rye.'"
 sst.I was dreadfuily dull child, ; said a bright-faced little lady, who had been making everybody comfortable, land my mother almost despaired of teaching me to count. At last an old man in the neigh borhood taught me to count twenty before I knew it, by saying over to me:
 'One-two, buckle my. y.shoe,
 Three-four, open the door,
 Five-six, pick up sticks,
 Seven-eight, lay them straight,
 Nine-ten, 8 good fat hen,
 Eleven-twelve, pick her well,
 Thirteen fourteen, boys go a-courting, !,
 Fifteen-sixteen, maids in the kitchen,
 Seventeen-eighteen, girls are a waiting,
 Nineteen-twenty, old maids a plenty
 "I was so delighted when I found l could count twenty, that l went on learn ,. !. ing the table without further difficulty.
 s'I was at teachers institute the other day, said one of the young ladies, "where it was said by one of the educators that children should not b. taught the multi plication- table they should not have a spe Hing lesson; they should not be taught tLe names of towns, countries, states, lakes, rivers, seas, or oceans, they should only be amused by the teacher not allow ed book, nor be allowed to study for fear of straining their young minds. should like to know if it strains child's mind any more to learn something useful than it does to fill it up with such rhymes as you have all been repeating ?' 1 Mot bit. spoke up a dozen ladies at once, who had all been teachers and the doctors wife went on
 I "A childs mind Is like sponge, it re- ceives and absorbs continually; it is 8 natural process. do not believe healthy child can be injured by anything that il learns easily and that it finds enjoyment ir memorizing. l believe most heartily il the catechism, the apostles creed, the ter commandments, and the Lords prayer. also believe in the multiplication table, anG in great many other useful things tha children used to be taught, but are no now. Children enjoy learning by rote, ant the knowledge thus gained comes to be O pfactlcal use In goOd tune. It IS so Ill my own case, and so it will be ill the case O others. am profoundly grateful to thu teacher who encouraged me to learn th' names of the books in the Old and Nev Testaments in their order; the names o the United States and their capitols th. counties in my own state, and the towns il my own county also the names of ou presidents in order, and great many oth CT such things that delighted in learning and that find of constant benefit"
 ''One of the men at that teachers insti tute Jane was speaking of wanted to know of what earthly use it could be to anybod, to know the names of the presidents of tn United States" said another young lady Che said there were always books at hanI to inform ns upon such matters
 ''To be sure," said the doctors wife & I can look in the family Bible if happen to want to know when my birthday is t be, but there are some things that ar 4pleasant to have packed away in ones owl head. But here is the summons to tea and not one word of gossip has been spok en this whole afternoon. It ought to b put in the paper" s........
 'It shall be" said the woman with tn note-b book, and here it is. . @ .s