Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-11-09
MANNERS OF WRITING.
SOME NEW ,1EWS ON THE SUBJECT
OF CHlRoGRAPHY.

| VT SFIinOSnAfTf.
An Expert Claims That Style l. Heredi-
tary-Teschers of Penmanship Declared
to Be In Opposition to NstNre-some
Interesting Examples.
There is scarcely a school for little folks
in all this dominion of ours where an idiotic
demand is not made by instructors refer
10 the teaching of penmanship.n
But writing is mechanical operation,
and being SUCH
THE highest authority" interrupted the
doctor, mo less person than Charles Oar
win, has declared handwriting to be inher-
tied, rs the eyes, nose and color Of hair.
Yet, pedagogues insist that children shall
| write like somebody else-follow copies writ
ten for them by teachers or printed script,
m this way doubling the task of the little
| ones
NATURALLY LETT HANDED.
What is 70 be done about itf'
Let me give you bit of personal expert
ence IN this matter of interfering with con-
genital tendencies have a sou, n young
man of 20. who was born left handed am
myself afflicted that way. and, knowing its
| nconveniences, | resolved To cure him of IT,
| Ny wife and had time of it. can tell you
| What with taking spoons and knives and
| forks ont Of his left and transferring them To
his right, causing him 20 step forward with
the right foot instead Of the left and the ten
| thousand other interferences with his preiis-
positions, we did make his life miserable and
| our own a. well When 1t came 10 learning
how to write there was a regular tug Of war
The boy was in 4 constant state OF silent re-
volt. Unknown TO Us he learned TO write
with his left hand This he was punished for
until he gave it up. But as TO his chirography
It would amuse you to see it. II is like moth
ing in all the world of handwriting | write
IA bold, open, free backhand, while his is d
hotch-potch Of back, straight and running
and is, besides cramped, pinched. broken
Jagged. infinitely irregular and altogether
bad "
Let him go back TO first principles
Can't he done, because it is too late, or,
certainly, he could not acquire a free, plain
hand, nor modestly decent one, without
years of practice"
There are people who write well with
either hand"
THAT is true, but they are ambidextrous.
Such persons are, however, exceptionally
rare in this world. To get back to this busi-
alike, but the shape OF hands, their size. cell
and tissue arrangement, etc, are inherited.
Sometimes one inherits from the mother.
sometimes from the father, sometimes from
both. Now, ones handwriting depends upon
the hand structure. Were this not true the
plan in vogue Of teaching penmAnship would
be parfectly correct, and it would be the
easiest task in the world to bring all
children TO identical handwriting. That is.
II all the schools Of America used the same
copy sets, all the children who attend the
schools could be taught 10 initiate their sets
perfectly, and would from daily practice
make this style their own This, / say, would
be easy and would be the result il their hands
were nodded in the same shape"
i see what you are getting att
Possibly and possibly not. Keep with me
for few moments. These infinitely curious
and stupendously wonderful organs. If may
he permitted to - term them, the vocal
chords, with the conformation of larynx.
tongue, inner wall Of the mouth and the lips,
- differ in individuals that no two voices are
alike, and, as / have said, no attempt Is made
10 cause them TO perfectly agree in sound
Greater hexibility, compass, richness and
sweetness are communicated 10y intelligent
instruction, but the original, natural individ-
Uality Of voice remains. So ii is possible bv
practice 10 improve the handwriting Of a
child, but either it will be only an improve
ment upon the birthright style or il will re-
suit. a. IN the case Of my boy, in crippliug.
gnarling and snarling the style Voices of
children and Of grown up people have been
cracked or ruined altogether by injudicious
use or improper training, precisely as present
instruction ruins the handwriting OF hun
dreds of thousands of children
HKREDrTY STRONGER THAN TEACHING
But good handwriting is not altogether
dead
No, and because the tendency to hold to
herelity Is stronger than the obstinate teach
ing in vogue Once the child is out Of its en-
vIronment Of instructed instruction nature
asserts itself. You see, ii is in this wise: II
Is absolutely impossible for two men to write
precisely alike. The pupil never succeeds in
precisely initiating the line Of copy at the
head Of the page upon which be writes To
the casual eve there is resemblance. but the
individual crops out in every word The set
copy ceasing before the muscles, nerves. etc
Of the hand are completely formed and hard
ened, as | may say, gradually nature is re-
stored and the hand becomes nimbIe. Writ
ing then ceases TO be pain"
do you mean 10 say that il Is possible to
make a child suffer physical pain in the mere
operation OF writingf"
That Is precisely what / do mean-no more
and no les. Think of the demand made upon
pupils-that they shall sit IN q given posture,
that they shall hold their pens in a given
way, and all that sort of nensense. The
formation Of hands and fingers Is such that
no particular manner of holding the u.u
should he prescribed, and the same applies to
the posture OF the body. When forced out Of
TINS natural bent pain must ensue Then the
little one lie told TO move the hand forward in
a given way, to form the letters % and 20.
AL these Thousand and one red tape, hide
bound regulations are just 50 many hin
ORANGES to progress and the cultivation Of an
improved style"
What would you recommend, tbenr
Common sense and giving nature fair
chance. The children should have copies.
but thess copies should De upon the black
board, or, certainly upon paper other than
that upon which they are expected 70 write
They should De told that they must use these
copies Only as q sort Of general guide, for.
YOU sss, children are initiative, and unless
prevented the natural impulses would lead
them 10 seek TO follow copy in all its details
Then as TO their posture, they, Of course,
ought 10 avoid cramped, unhealthy POSITIONS,
but each should De suffered 10 take such = one
as was most comfortable. As 10 the manner
Of holding the pen, that should be altogether
arbitrary. IL is results that should be in
view and not mere manner Of posing and
seeming grace of hand motion, especially
when these ncn-essentiais lead TO hindrance
of the object ~ be attained Chicago
Herald
Food Adulteration.
Cliffori Richarison. one of the Inited