The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1890-05-04


Such, said wise old Roman, should
be the aim of the perfect education;
and the saying is as true and as valuable
to-day as when, stamped with the i'm
press of a notable mind, it first became
current coin of the realm of thought.
In this twofold purpose - sound mind
and sound body-le dormant, as within
the acorn lies the oak, the seeds Of per-
feet manhood, perfect womanhood; and
it is this very dualism of the object of
education that we of the nineteenth
century seem to be most in danger of
forgetting or ignoring. In some of our
eastern schools and colleges, athletics
with our lads and study with our girls
have reached the height of positive
mania. To secure the coveted end, our
boys and young men cast to the winds
study, thought, the fond hopes of
parents, even future success in life;
while, on the other hand, our girls sacri-
fee hygienic principles, health; some
times, without intending it., life itself.
No lack as yet, it may be, of pupils we'll
balanced mentally and physically; but
there can be no doubt that strong cur
rent is setting in the direction of one
sided education. 1t is SO hard to keep
the golden mean, SO easy to rush to ex-
tremes; SO hard to make of all our boys
scholarly athletes, of all our girls ath-
letic scholars; so easy for lad to train
wind and muscle at the expense of
brain, SO easy for his sister to ignore
health and future weakness in the fever
Of competition.
In any scheme Of education that pre-
tends to perfection, mental and physical
must alike receive careful training and
attention, must march hand in hand
along the path of youthful life; the bal
ance between the two must be carefully
adjusted and evenly held if the structure
we hope to rear is to be thing of
beauty and Of symmetry.
There can be no prettier, no more
stirring sight than a group OF young
athletes at the starting post, as the
moment for race draws near. Their
faces are ruddy with the glow of health;
their blood is tingling and coursine
through their veins; the brawny muscles
stand out in bold relief; life for them il
certainly worth living, as they restlessl.
expect the signal for the struggle. But
if all this physical activity and beauty
in themselves highly desirable, highly
commendable-have been cultivated tc
the total neglect of mind growth; if
while the muscles have been expanding
the brain has been stagnating; if, to
these lads, "heirs of all the ages" the
thoughts Of the greatest thinkers are
but dead letter, to he tossed con-
temptuously aside; if they have nc
loftier ambition than to run one hun.
dred yards IN the boosted even time OF
ten seconds or, it may be, break 6
record; then are they but one sided alb
normal developments after all, and Johr
l.. Sullivan is greater man, NOR.
wonderful hero than any one of then
can ever hope to lay claim to be.
And what shall We say of system
that changes brignt-eyed, rosy-cheeket
girl into wan-faced, hollow-chestet
graduate. sickly wife, an ailin,
mother? A sound mind IN a SCUM,
body! If each could be a means an,
not an end! For neither sex is eithe
extreme necessity; the danger is com
paratively, still in the embryonic stage
but it would probably be we'll for think
ing men and women to read the signs @
the times and ponder carefully the the
DRY of the Roman sage.
How, we may ask, do the publ
schools OF Helena stand in this import
ant matter! While carefully and sue
cessfully cultivating the mental, are W
not to some degree neglecting the phys
ical training of our children! Book
are noble companions. none nobler, Blu
book learning alone does not constitut
the perfect education. There is Who'll
world OF glorious nature unknown I
the mere bcokworm, with blinded eve
sight, porting over miserable books, ]
it not possible for our trustees to hay