Morning journal and courier., 1892-03-05
THE FLEETING SHOW.
Some of Its Facts and Fancies.

Some Of 1tS Facts ana FanC1e6. Written for the JOURNAL AND CouRIER.l ONE OF OUR YOUNGER AUTHORS. Kate Douglass Wiggin is a woman of remarkable versatility of talent and ac complishment, versatility encouraged by the varied influences which have surround ed her from childhood. She was born in Philadel phia, educated in New England, began her work as teacher in California, and is now engaged ill literary work ill New York. She is perhaps best known in California as the founder of the first free kindergarten west of the Rocky noun tains. A society fer promoting kindergar- ten work had been formed in San Francis co, but little was known of practical meth ods, and Mrs Wiggin, then unmarried, gave up her position at Santa Barhara college to ! take charge of tho work. The kindergar- ten school was from the first remarkably l successful, and from this opening resulted ! fifty-six other free schools in San Francis | co and Oakland, beside many others up and down the coast. On her marriage Mrs. l Wiggin gave up teaching, but continued her regular visits to the schools and her | lectures to the Training Glasses. Her 1 printed reports of the work were widely 1 circulated, and inspired similar undertak l ings in Japan, Australia New Zealand, 1 British Columbia, and the Sandwich Is-
 lands, and brought her into correspond
 ence with prominent educators in Europe.
 "The Story. of Patsy" was written and l printed in San Francisco to raise money 1 for the school, and three thousand copies
 were sold without it's ever being placed in book store. "The Birds Christmas Carol" was printed and sold for the same
 purpose, these books being reprinted by
 Houghton and Mifflin after Mrs. Wiggin's s
 removal to New York in 1888. These
 stories attained immediate popularity, and
 were soon followed by "A Summer in a
 Canon," and "Timothy's Quest;' also, in
 collaboration with her sister, Mrs. Wiggin
 has issued 1.-The Story Hour," for kinder 1 gartens and nurseries. A book for girls
 followed these, and a series of New Eng
 land sketches inspired by summer in
 Maine.
 The "Carol" is 8 favorite with public
 readers, and has been translated into
 French and German, while 'The Story
 of Patsy" has been published in raised let
 tering for the blind.
 Beside her gifts an organizer and teacher, and her literary ability, Mrs. Wig
 gin has an intense love of music, delight
 ful voice in singing, and much skill as {
 composer. She has written some exquisite ] melodies for favorite poems, and has pub lished collection of chidren's song anC , games, entitled Kindergarten Chimes. , 1 With the aid of her sister she has also pre- pared a collection of Mexican folk-song
 l with guitar accompaniments-
 Still another accomplishment is that O 8 reading in a very charming manner, ant - she occasionally reads in aid of som l | charitable enterprise with such success :, that it has been said that "those who hay A not read her books, or heard her sing, o ), known of her wonderful capacity for or 0 ganizing great practical work, are con v yinced that her forte is public reading" :. Mrs. Wiggin is moreover woman 0 U most winning personality, as sympatbeti @ as she is practical, as witty and graciou 7 as she is wise. Have not American wome l a right to be proud of the ability an ,t charm of this one of our younger writers u since the purpose and end of all her varie 5, acuuirements seem to be the true happines n and welfare of others?
 ANOTHER KINDERGARTEN WORKER.
 To Mrs. Sarah B. Cooper rightfully b. a longs share of the credit of establishin '' the free Kindergartens of San Francise B. and the Pacific coast. She entered upo s' the work soon after Mrs. Wiggin began s' and being an enthusiastic teacher ar 70 leader did much to make the success of u '' first school an incentive to the founding others.
 = Mrs. Cooper has nearly all her life bet III identified with educational and religior Id work. When 8 young governess in u es family of Governor Schley of Georgi ga before the war, she organized the five hu |. dred slaves belonging to the Governor i ps to Bible class At Memphis, where s
 lived for while after her marriage, al = during war times, she kept up Bit LII class of from one to three hundred soldier rs- In 1869 MT. and Mrs Cooper were t d, 6xst sthrough passengers" to Califorr