The morning call., 1893-07-28
THE CHILDREN.

A week has been devoted at Chicago TO
considering the case of the children. 1t
was fitting that they should follow the
women and that an exposition which pro.
poses to chronicle the march of progress
in everything should take note of what is
being done to improve the condition of the
young folk. That much has been done of
late years every person Of middle age
whose memory is retentive can testify. In
the last century children had a hard
time. They were allowed to play.
to be sure. but 1t was understood
that this was concession to the inirmity
of their nature which their elders kindly
pretended not to observe. They we're re-
quired to study not only during school
hours but during all their waking hours.
When the doctor prescribed exercise to
cure pale cheeks and impaired appetite they
were taken out to walk. On Sunday they
were required to sit up grave on straight
backed CHI irs and to repeat their catechism.
They were not allowed to read novels, with
the possible exception OF "Clarissa Har-
love-" and the list Of things they were re-
Qured not to know was quito as long as the
list of those which they were expected to
the girls of the past than to the boys, but
in well-regulated households both sexes
were under the law.
At somewhat later period juvenile
literature was born, and children were
permitted to enjoy the ARABIAN Nights"
and Robinson Crusoe." These delight
full works were tempered by such goody-
goody books as Stamford and Merton"
which inspired every level-headed boy
with ravenOus thirst to Stay Mr.. Barlow.
as girls grew up with a purpose to stab
Mentor in Telemaque with their bodkn.
Then came still more attractive class of
books for the young-Mayne Reid's stories
of hunting. the Rollo books, Peter Farley,
and in our time Carrolrs inimitable
Adventures of Alice" the Nonsense
Verses and Jules Verne's voyages
through sea and air. Even as long as
twenty years ago it was quite possible to
collect an interesting and instructive
library for the young. and at the same
time schools and colleges realized that
harmless sports were a necessary part of
education. In our day children are still
better off. Scores of periodicals for the
young are written and published; the very
ployed to write and draw for them. Al
most as many books are produced for ju-
venile consumption as for adult reading.
The old controversy between Gradgrind
and anti-Gradgrnd arose at Chicago.
Many teachers OF the young condemn the
perusal of fairy tales on the ground that
it Is unwise to teach that which the pupil
will presently find to be untrue. They re-
ject Grimm. and throw Jack the Giant
Killer out of the nursery; they bring up
children to understand that there is no
such place as Wonderland. and that there
never was an Invisible Prince. This
Difference to fact involves sacrifice of
valuable lessons Of manliness, gentle
ness. bravery and unseIfishness: but that
is not the only drawback to the plan.
Neither children nor grown people will
read that which does not interest them. A
dull book or dull paper will be harmless
because people will throw it side unread ::
the child who is fed with nothing but dull
books will grow up without a taste for
| reading. Young people are constantly
| met who say that they DO not read because
books bore them; it is ten to one that they
| have been brought up on diet Of such
dreary literature as one finds in the school
| libraries.
| 1t Is not absolutely necessary that all the
reading for the young should be extrava-
CANT fiction in the Little Red Ridinghood
and Goody Twoshoes style. 1t is possible
to com bine instruction with entertainment
so deity that children will crave for the
books which contain the combination
Many a young woman will confess that
she owes her knowledge of mythology to
the "Tanglewood Tales" Lots of young
men learned all they know of geograpy
and natural history from Mayne Reid's
stories. and much of what they know OF
science from Jules Verne. These gifted
writer's knew what would interest the
young and they Intervene with it lessons of
fact as the doctors put a quinine pill into
a spoonful Of jelly. What they have done
in the domain they have occupied can be
done In every branch of letters. 1t would
be difficult to make the multiplication
| table amusing, but almost everything else
which children are required to learn can
be taught in such q way that they will
enjoy the lesson.