Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1889-11-30

Ss~cSSS "a SSNhSty WataSu AfO SonoaoNtc iNh
secuted--that is, the inferior classes; and
he shows his sympathy with them by
adopting the ideas Of an ignorant do
mocracy, and by often expressing them
in language which would be rcpugnant
to his dignity II he were free. Poor little
fellowsi When they can evade the por-
ter's vigilance, and run across the road 10
buy a pennyworth Of sweets, they feel
like perfect heroes Of romance. On their
return, their schoolfellows flock round
them to sniff little Of the fresh and free
air that is brought inside the walls. II
the young scamps are punished for their
escapade, they bear II like champions Of
liberty who have fought for tho good
cause. and are looked up to by their COM
rades as martyrs and heroes.
Under the circumstances, It is not sur
prising that they should now and then
show spirit of rebellion. Suppose. for
instance, that some privilege which the
pupils have long enjoyed and looked
upon as their right has been withdrawn
rightly or wrongly, no matter which. In
such case as this English schoolboys
would hold meeting. probably presided
over by one of their masters, and they
would draw up petition, which they
would send to the head master But in
French schools meetings are prohibited.
What will the boys do then? As have
described elsewhere, they will probably
retire to a dormitory, there to sulk and
protest. They will erect barricades, lock
the doors, victual the intrenchments for
few hours and prepare for a struggle
Rebellion has wonderful charms for
them; they are insurgents. therefore
they are heroes Don't ask them whether
their cause Is good or bad. This matters
little; It will be sanctiiied by the rcvou-
ton; the main thing is to play at the
sovereign people," These hot. headed
youths will stand siege as earnestly as
II they were defending their native soil
against the Prussians. Dictionaries, ink
stands, boots, bedroom furniture, such
are the missiles that arc pressed into
service in the glorious battle of liberty.
But alas for youthful valor! 1t all fades
before the pleadings Of an empty stom-
ach; the struggle has TO be abandoned,
the citadel forsaken, the arms laid down.
Tho misguided ones arc received back
into the fold, to be submitted 10 stricter
discipline than ever; the heroic instigat-
ors of the little fete arc in the end re-
stored to the tender care of their NAM
mas, or, in other words, expelled from
the school.
Corporal punishment is banished from
all schools in Frana. II master were 10
strike n boy, the odds are ten to one that
the boy would defend himself, and threat.
en- the master with the first tobiect--inkpnt
or book--he could lay his hand on. Boys
are punished by means of long and weary
impositions. If boardcrs. they are kept
in on Sundays, and thus prevented from
going home. This is u terrible punish
ment. When they seem incorrigible
they are expelled And for boy TO be
expelled from French lycee is no light
matter; for tho doors of all tho Others
are closed to him. and the faculties may
even refuse to allow him to stand as a
candidate for the university degrees.
His prospect in life may be ruined for
ever; for in France a man who is neither
Il. "A. nor b. Sc. cannot study medicine
or the law; he cannot ehter the military
schools, or be candidate for any Of the
government posts at homo or abroad.
Business is the only opening left to him.
From the time table that have given
at the beginning, Il will be easily in
ferrei that, if the French schoolboy plays
less than the British one, he works much
more. But with what results? The
classes in French lycces contain from
eighty TO hundred boys They are
generally composed Of some ten pupils
of extraordinary capacities or industry,
of about twenty who follow the lectures
with some profit, of twenty more who
follow them anyhow, and Of thirty. for
ty, and even sometimes fifty poor boys,
neglected, forgotten, who do and learn
nothing, and are mere wall flowers.
They are all promoted by seuiority-that
premium still given in France to stupid
ity, as NJ. Leon Say once remarked in
the French senate. | remember school
fellows of eighteen ard nineteen in the
highest form who did .iot know their de-
clensions. Boys may be attentive or
not, as they please--that is tlIeig busi.
ness. Provided they do not disturb the
peace, nothing more is required of them
in the upper forms They may even go
to sleep, and the master win seldom take
the trouble TO wake them up. II the boy
is not likely to do honor to his teaching,
he does not think it worth his while 10
concern himself about him.
Witb-su large classes as l have de-
scribed, boys cannot and de not receive
individual attention from the masters,
who deliver lectures TO them, but cer-
tainly do not give them lessons. With
the amount Of work that clever and in
dustrious boys so through, each class
turns out at the end of the year mt least
ten splendid scholars. As for the rest.
you see twenty good average boys, twen-
ty poor ones, and from thirty to fifty
hopeless ignoramuses. Each class has
to go through a course prescribed by the
minister of public instruction, and no
master has right 10 read a book with
his pupils, not even the passage of
book, that is not down on the minis
terial programme. a professor who car
ried his interest in his pupils the length
of introducing new book in his class
would probably have his zeal rewarded
with mastership in the college of some
little out of the way town in France, or
perhaps in Algeria. BY this govern
mental system Of fuss and intrusion, it is |
not only the talent of the pupil that is
'titled, but it is also the talent of the |
master that is hampered
What is to be admired in French |
schools is that the boys get on very well
with one another. Friendship sprung
up at school often lasts lifetime.
The boys stick by each other to such a
point that, rather than tell on an Of
fender, they will all allow themselves TO
be punished for his oifense, even though
the punishment should amount IN the |