Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-02-06

sE,,. IA. Nyt,aI. Tnn. ,F S,bnoI Iife Has
n,, H.,
hee" hie'"' i' ~
Plcturcs-introduction OF Object Les
sons.
1t is curious thlhg that' s1e py sac WIth
the modern amenities IN schoolhg, there
sometimes comes IN a reaction against ever
thing that car make learning attractlNe' II
Is IKE the theory Wlieh used 70 eAisI' 'iia1
no drug could pe feaily u'eiul ui'iess 1t saFC
OUT the iull teffors OF It's Halui'h uis'e an"
odor sometimes even now, III uuu oi t"o
way p4ace'' one mus an olu l'''n'o''e' u'us
shop WelhapS opening OUT Oh the very paIlor
ol IN oId ldshloheh "o'UorI' "hole tie hlere
atmosphere Is '' barnaIous ana iorDliIIhs
as lhc strange loIoisn i"'Iiie9 oi ''e u''l'ie'
solu t'ieIe oio'lu''''t''"' P1iu"l,'' VI il',t'
uahha' bht lhe i"o"erh uIus S"vp 'S caile"
Ph''lhacy' ana IL aims 10 ItP'''o Vn"sc
vigorous on "d"fS WIN "lhSi7 auEso'tNe "'
AThby tne bie'r
a similar chahSe nus come over our S,iiooi
ilethou' can IeI'h "leii ""'t''''i uesNS
ana chopped benches were res''rHtu as an
essential part ui even the private sehooi SyS-
teIl' why eoh1ei'i aS'I!i'O ~ 1t ""H ''sAe,i
boys were natural "aToarials anu "otili
soon Ii'ahe l'ie 'lc" '""N as "t'u'S dS 'He "i'
AeI auouI Unat Cii''' 'ho uiN'oNely was i''a'''
tilat INC way 10 SECURE Icslccu l"i S'ho"i llti-
liltufe was 10 MAKE IL resl'etIanle, anu lhe
boylsh larkRhlIe iouhd othcr OBJECTS. 30
can remember "hrii lhe introduction OF
Singing ana later OF ",aWihS' mo our pun
nc schoois was rtg"rdel as llhlcal Whllh,
suitable tof sris scho"l ohly' Elholllt
horeS' earh Oh these Practlces rs louhd I"
help scho"i uscIP'iio anu rciine 'i'e t'p'tt' SO
mat the Whole tone OF scho"l NE Is elevated
| fitted Tor college by n teacher who
never let ms fattan go out OF ms mana except
to lay II ON ms desk close by NM A public
school prlhClpal VINO Shouiu no" pursue thls
course would lose MS place, ana rightly; the
very regulations OF some communities re
qulre that the roo, IL II eNlsts shouiu ne kept
IN the desk, OUT OF slSht, ana that every blow
should be atterward reported TO the proper
authorities.
One of the most curious forms OF this Grad
grind severity Is the crusade occasionally
undertaken against all Illustrations of school
books Inc most thoughtiul and carefully
designed work, IN geography, in history, even
in arithmetic, Is supposed 70 be sufficiently
condemned when 1t is called a picture book.
Yet it IS period when all works for older
persons-dictionarles, encyclopedias, histo-
ries, maSa2ines-have brought the art of
pictorial Illustrations TO It's highest point
Webster and Worcester have alike adopted
it. Justin Wmsors monumental Narrative
and Critical History OF America" is crowded
with portraits, autographs, tac-slmiles, and
reproductions OF historic pictures The later
editions of Grays "Botany of the Northern
United States have careful delineations of
every historical genus. The American maga-
zines havo won the admiration of the world
by their illustrations oil all geographical and
historical papers.
tItn sf of
pictorial exhibition oven into political econ
omy, and is never quite happy till he can get
his proposition embedded for the eye i'll
parallel lines. The United States census re-
port resorts to charts and curves and colored
diagrams when 1t wishes fully to elucidate
amy important general result. All this IS
done Tor grown people-lof the glaVest, tho
maIurest, the most educated. lhey, II any,
are the persons who might fairly be asked to
fix their minds clearly and austerely upon
words and numerals without stopping to the |
alleged frivolity OF picture books IL they |
do not accomplish thus, II the very people |
VINO make the criticism are only TOO glad to |
exc out their own imperfect knowledge by an |
Illustrated magazine or an Illustrated die |
tIonary, IS 1t not a little absurd IN them tco
enforce such grim abstinence upon school |
children'
French writer Professor IN. Ribot on The |
Mechanism OF Attention" he maintains a
Inherent theory Inc infant chlid, he says,
is at first under the sway OF spontaneous at
tention alone, hotlclhg only bright objects or
suStenance giving objects by degrees it OBJ
serves things less seltshIy interesting, begin
ming at about the third month. The path is
from tine most intense, most impressive sensa-
tlonB, TO the liner ana more delicate ones. To
fix and hold one sensation is an art that
must he learned. "A child, Tor example,
refuses TO learn to read, but is vastly inter
ested IN the pictures IN the book. The father
says that reading Will show the meaning of
the pictures ms acts as an artificial IN
ducement, and the enid goes to work, sub
5titutlng an artliclai attention to arbitrary
signs for the natural ottractlveness OF plct-
work, and attention has become second ma
Jure All TINS Is long since recognized In
our schools IN the introduction OF obJect les
sons. Formerly pupils learned definition
Of bird then they were taught something
about bIrdS structure; after that II they |