The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-10-22
TOUR is NEARING ITS END
Professor Hadyn Evans Party Will
Soon Start for America.
MISS ALIENS GREAT SUCCESS
Everywhere She Has Played She Has Cap.
tivated Her Audience and Won En-.
thusiastic Praise-Miss Kaiser Con.
tinues Her Interesting Letters.
Special Correspondence Of The Tribune.


Llanelly, South Wales, Oct. 3.
Yesterday afternoon l had the pleas
ure of paying a visit to a "board"
school here in this place. The differ
ence between board and a national
school here is that the board school is
entirely free to the children, while at
the schools of the national sort, books,
apparatus, etc., have to be provided by
the pupils, as in some Of our public
schools before the passage of the beni-
flcent Farr free text book law. / did
not admire their school system very
much, as Of course it does not compare
with ours, which 1 think is as good as
any in the world. The great and first
mistake made here is that of employing
pupil teachers" to teach the very
youngest children. They enter here at
the age of three, and as their youthful
teachers, who are pupils in a higher
grade themselves, know very little or
nothing of the teachings and methods
of the beloved Pestalozzi or Froebel, or
In fact, Of any good teacher of child
hood, it can be inferred that the in
struction these children receive is not
impaired in the most scientific manner,
to say the least. AS l went through the
lower grades of the school, / found the
teacher in every room teaching the
children by the rote systematic worst
there is for the poor child's mind. Moth
ing of our kindergarten system prevails
even in the most youthful grade.
However, in justice to one youthful
teacher of these babies, who was plain
ly more inventive than her associates I
must mention her use of little swing
in her schoolroom, for the purpose of
giving her little pupils some relaxation
at times. She had it suspended from
the ceiling of the room, where it was
swinging away with a little girl in it
when l came into the room. One child
after another has its turn in the swing
every day. She puts the most orderly
little man or woman in it at the begin
ming of the session, pulls it away back
and gives 1t vigorous push, and away
the child goes, up in the air, on a little
ride, which 1t no doubt enjoys very
much. AS the child is too little to make
the swing go itself, 1t simply sits there
and wishes the swing won't stop for a
long time, as when it does, he has to
best youngster. How disappointed he
must be to find that the swing is "let-
ting the old cat die," and the hopes that
rise in the breasts of the sixty or more
other youngsters as they wait to be
chosen for the next ride, can be better
imagined than described, 1 fancy. /
wondered, if sometimes, there wereever
too many children there for the rides
boys and girls have to wait till the last
for their turn, and 1 think, judging
from the swarm of them I saw there,
and the length of the ride in the swing,
that sometimes they don't get it at all,
poor things.
Sewing Lessons Taught.
One thing liked about these schools,
and which our schools could copy with
benefit to themselves, is the sewing les
son-yes, and the cooking lesson, too,
forgot to mention. Twice a week every
girl in the national and board schools,
all over the United Kingdom, takes her
sewing or needlework lesson, which
lasts a complete session, from till 4,
so you see 1t is pretty long lesson, and
one by which she will be likely to profit.
The cooking lesson is just as long and
as much Importance is attached to 1t,
as to the sewing class. / happened to
visit the schools on the afternoon of a
sewing lesson and must tell you that /
saw some lovely work in sewing, knit
ting and crocheting, done by very young
girls indeed.
One more thing which really cannot
say how much | admired was the deaf
and dumb department in these schools.
Now, take into consideration that these
schools are exactly to the Welsh and
English what our public schools are to
us (as they are really public schools,
but are called by a different name,
board schools and national schools)
and then listen and | will see if | can
manage to tell you, intelligibly what a
fine work they are doing in this direc-
tlon. They find out how many deaf
mutes, and how many of either, deaf
or dumb people, there are in the dis
trict, and gather them together in a
class and have teacher for them, who
is himself a deaf mute, and who has
been we'll educated OF course, the
good done by the establishment of this
deaf mute class in the schools cannot
be estimated. l had the pleasure of
seeing such class, numbering fif-
p,
who was quite an old man. go through
some very interesting lessons in writ
ing arithmetic, drawing, knitting,
crocheting and sewing. What a
great benefit such provision for
the poor deaf and dumb Is. OF
course there are private, or pay
schools for the deaf and dumb in Swan
sea and Cardiff, and in fact all large
cities; but If one could not afford to
attend them here are these classes in
the public schools, which throw open
the same chances for instruction to a
poor deaf and dumb child as to those
who are more gifted.
Back to Swansea.
Guan-Cae-G -Gurwen, Oct. Ave are
here today at Guan-Cae-G -Gurwen, where
we give a concert tonight in the Cair-
rel chapel. 1t Is way up on the noun
tain and very pretty place indeed.
We are all being very well entertained
here and are enjoying the wild and
beautiful scenery " much.
Later-The concert was a great sue
cess. The chapel was beautifully dec
Grated, the audience simply packed in,
and very enthusiastic over our work.
We received great many compliments
at the close of the evening on our fine
singing and the exquisite playing of our
violinist, who has taken the people tre-
mendously. Tomorrow we run up to
Swansea, If we have time, but we are
in such hurry sometimes, going from
one town to another, that do not know
where / am at" until ask.
Swansea, Oct. 5.-Here we are at
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