The herald., 1895-02-07

person to study children but 1 would
like to enter my protect against the
work being done by Mr.. Russell, and
aleo in many of our normal schools-a
generalization of Statistical data in re-
gard to child study. 1 believe we should
have o special line to work On.
II am therefore going to take up thie
morning simply the subject of Dis
cipine.
THE philosophy I take docs not say
that .ba child is born corrupt, but that
he lie gooi. clean, straight little animal.
But tsere are instincts planted in him.
I'm the early pages OF the worlds his.
tory punishment consisted simply in
getting even with the other fellow.
"All this feeling rests npon the feeling
OF revenge. The thing is never sstisiac.
tory, however. The syatem ia wrong
and is disappearing with the advance
ment of civilization. Punishmont is
resorted to simply to brighten the per-
son who may contemplate an act such
as we are puniehing another for. An
absolutely pernicious idea Ia that crime
can be paid for by suffering. In Har-
ward years ago there was a tariff on
crime. II the student went out for
bit of fun he was fined go cents; il be
was absent from chapel he was fined
cents. The result was If he wanted to
violate a rule he asked himself if he
could afford it.
"The case OF medicine man sent
down from Alaska to serve IL years in
San Quentin because he was said to
have caused the death Of witch who
was thought to have caused the Ia
grippe among tho Indians is an instance.
A severe foeging administered right on
the spot would nave been q greater ex-
ample for the savages OF Alaska than
the IL years in San Quentin. So the
criminal ia simply being punished to
pay for his crime.
standpoint, whs. We want is the child's
adopted the plan of having the teachers
write out an exercise telling exactly the
feeling the punishment caused.
The idea is that this child's mind
will be confused regarding the puniah-
ment. The thing is not we'll analysed
in their own minds. The results that
emerge from such studies OF this comes
in the impossibility Of expressing our
selves in words.
"There are groups which clearly de.
fine themselves, however. One case is
where there ia O feeling that the punish.
ment doee not At tho crime. Another
thing is being punished with others be-
cause some member of the class has
not done thing just right.
Another sense OF injustice is where
the boy feels that he has committed q
crime for which he should be punished,
but he sees others doing the same thing
without punishment, and he rebels
eimply because the other boy is not
puniahed.
"Children object to all forms OF abb
normal punishment; they object to
being punished in crowd because some
one of the crowd has committed crime !;
they object to being punished when
other offenders are allowed to escape.
"Most offenses come from exuber.
ance of spirit. Therein lies q great field
for the study OF ths child.
ga child always objects when he is
punished on @ question OF time. He is
told he may go out and play a little
while. He stays all the aftsInoon and
is punished. He always objects. Why +?
Because his idea of time ia very crude.
1t is strange what strange ideas of time
the child has. u. Ca fisa,-3
The case of the child who thought
the war OF 1872 occurred about 10000
years ago. is an example OF this.
'Four-tfths OF the children, be.
love, have very little idea of the value
OF money or property. 1t is interesting
to note that children always Object to
punishment for the destruction of props
erty. They say they did not know that
thing was Of any use Or that the owner
cared for it.
Il say that the child should be pun
ished with a regard for his homo life.
That Is, if pupil comes from q home
where cutting and kicking ia his natura raj
diet. this diet should not be changed.
The punishment. should be adjusted to
the child's inner consciousness. The
punishment OF the younger child should
be OF q quick, physical nature. For in.
stance. If Johnnie persists in hitting
Billy, would hit Johnnie, and just Q
little bit harder than he hit Billy"
The address was listened to closely and
chsered frequently. A song followed.
and then Professor Search introduced
Misz Tessa L. Kelso, who delivered an
address on Parent Study. Professor
Search said that it is pleasant to find q
person who. in the midst OF an active
Uusluoen iilos uuoo tiAuo lux tuo iiboEafy
life. Therefore have found it appro-
pirate to have the ono person out of all
in the city who is not closely connected
with the schools. who has done so much
in literary way for our schools.
MISS KELso's Address.
Miss Kelso spoke in q plain, straight-
forward way of the need of more study
of children by parents. She said in
part:
perhaps not 80 much the study Of
parents as the parents study of the
child, with q touch OF the etudy OF the
teacher, shall be the subject OF my
talk" said Miss Kelao.
There is lamenta BILE lack OF study by
the parent of the child mind. The par
emit pays too little attention to the ohild's
inevitable and eternal Whats it for"
The general idea Of the parent is that
the teacher ia hired to teach the child
that 2 and 2 make 4. Still 1t is the
teacher who teachas the child how to
act. how to stand-how to live, in fact.
1t seems to me that the school teacher 10
fast becoming the public nursery maid.
"Thers is q sentimental thought on
the public mind, in regard to the wom-
an teacher. have asked hundreds Of
mothsrs and they say that the woman
is the natural teacher. The whole
thing lie wrong. The child goss to school
to be subjected to discipline.
1.-The laxity of the parent in regard to
the child makes it impossible for the
teacher to study the child and the alb
-. I'D 10. Nao