, 1888-12-20
Old Time School Books and
Those of Modern Use.
The Green Primer i'm Which
You First Studied.
New Methods In the Public schools
Illustrated Lessons--Is the Old
way the Best?

torn out here and there; certainly all the
leaves are worn off or turned over at the
corners, and everv page is covered with
dirt and thumb marks made forty
years ago. What wonderful book that
was, and what an important era in life it
marked. IL was the youngsters ticket OF
admission to the outside world. Armed
with this he crept out from under his
mothers wing, and, dinner pail in hand,
trud ged of to the district school to begin
| to learn his own lessons and fight his own
battles. But it was wonderful in itself to
the eyes which first looked upon it, and
many a man who has not seen 1t for years
could recall how it looked or repeat much
of it from the first reading lesson--"~e 90
| in. so we do''--to the last page in which
| precocious Julia says, with pardonable
pride
| Kind teacher, when you gave this book
| To me and Brother James,
| We could not say our A. B. c.
We did not know their names.
But now we know them every one
Can read and write and spell,
| And all the lessons, too. we've learned
| And know them very well.
On the first green cover there was boy
sitting on the ground. He was leaning
against a huge old oak. and the birds ay-
| ing over his head; even the bat and ball
lying by his side were uDnoticed. 80 in.
tently was he persuiDg book. On page
i h.e was .ue pS nt ~" ~ ~. nar,.
letter, capitais anu sc,ipIi ~ .no so.S
neAV patn oesan Tue WoaSerf,,, a;a,u,eo a., eo
ah' aeoIa' iau''irteu No. ,,os nat rnhh hhinn boz
back against G, frog just ready to
| lump out from under big f, n horn
hanging from the crossbar Of an II, an OK
with an o round his neck for a collar, a
queen WIN ner FACE Iratneu s tn sne oyal ; vi
aQ, peSlaes mho'o sa'e,y " - ,s;.'
MOVES, pigs, owis, uihs anu o'n.i 'niuSa Ssa
men cane .1e I lessons' @ sereS ~ sraued s,"ied
spenine anu feauins 'e'so"'' i"''i"''"
oy pictures
PRIMERS HAVE CHANGED.
The old '.Green Primer" has been super
seded by a host of other primers, but there
are many people who do not understand
even to-day why it was not as good as any
of them. If the phrase, by their fruits
We shall know them" applies to primers,
II is better. for it has taught more great
men to read than all the others combined.
Over B OOO. 900 copies of it had been sold in
1858. IL will be interesting, however, to
compare this old book with modern work
of the same nature. Progress or retro
rress,on in anv science can be more closely
seen by comparing two periods at some
distance from each other than by compar-
inc anv two successive steps. Get out
yoIr green primer. if YOU can find one; ii
moi. cali 70 memory. Nothing harsh
shall be said abont it. It shall be treated
tenderly and with all the respect it de-
Sn sIi t; n;. WY H. IL ho !, dasary.s 70.
ue i.o''Nfs, Vuo ~ T.; ~ ~ ~ Sonaa thet
sieoI speotI NO..oaa ~ hsar r,aJa ~ tba snh.
rsac aot prognJhs;; nch;n a' r;.rw % rsad;nn s;uce
ISgSys s
i02V Ss o,l Tho ,.oas i, ,he old hook roaes
..Tha Az A,Uha vbe st - tba a;rt;est and most
snnar-a,pri.d I, 10 no stretch of the
;'nao,;nat;om to snnrosa that soma littIe
.ampd hint ~ No Az oroona tbs iatters ;s
tp tUunu oio. e. .no .aar ahaS tIivtv naars a,,o
1h 1ue eine ia,ta.s Il .sr nIao.nad sueo sara "a
ts,.''5 aa,,'S o"a,, oo,,..h b,,t at Y.har ,ha
.'aahia uaoawda eaSy unou uu n a-o,'nd u;.h
W. an;, pud rIso;ns, tbp no;nt nn soma
n,s pi;a psniT;t h,,ur;o Ina VIZ IonSad s,arnI, ~
unraial uni IT, hi. bv NV
you y',5s.t 5st o' uoo ar,tor sup ~ - ,aS Somc,
t,uies a stn ne utu , ~. had "'a ad auu '
oua ai,er you aau o aeaTneT Thy your @ a. III n,G
Iaaso', oons,st,m IS ornh ,vnrds ne ho
,ns ies'4n' assnn u and iii evaro of
~ ~, uo, ~. soLs ai' ,ta ia,.ar ,nsson ~
the s" nmn;l aatuaIiv bsaan ~ 20 read senterces
onwppnsad ono pnpd of th, werJs alreaJr laarneS
coWpose; ..Wpp y, ns wo,Gs M u, e ,.1u NC an !"
HE is in." This was the whole method
therr thnt words .ra auu ,nossd 81 Iat,ers
S as,,nn.ss .n%u moes os ards J ''''e''
anu 'e"'enoeo VI "oio''
THE MODERN PRIMER
Now examine critically the modern first
reader One will do as we'll as another,
put as bancroft.s school readers are IN use
In spokane, IL VIII perhaps De most inter-
esting TO look at tnem. Inc Things most