Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-04-25
From Cape Girardeau.

Ed. Register-Oh, amt me an the
Conference School an' the Normal
Schools a ketchin' it!
We wish to tender the Editor. our
hearty thanks for his kindness and
reconsideration in explaining the three
terms referred to in our last writing
So much so good. He has given us an
excellent introduction to the much de-
sired glossary, and Trinity" and ]
feel sure that it will come out in full
in few weeks. The Editor seems to
think a glossary is not needed. but we
still maintain that If is. Suppose, tor
instance. that some of us should get
the ..fantods, we couldn't tell what
was the matter with US by looking in
the dictionary.
| now understand .'claptrap" and
"hapdoodle" to be in some way related
to lie. s.Claptrap" is what makes men
'.damphools." and ..fiapdoodle" is the
argument of a .sdamphool. Now
have it.
As to my spelling of the word hifa-
tutim, or high dluting, as given by
Webster, wish to state that saw it
written "high-falootin" before l ever
saw Cape Girardeau. Did l not en-
close it in quotation marks? Does
that not indicate that it was borrowed?
l am not in the habit of enclosing in
quotation marks words that are defin-
ed in Webster's dictionary unless in
tend to give them a meaning not given
by the author.
Yes, maybe I'll smile at the s.flap-
doodle" 1 gave ..Old Fogy" when get
older and maybe l won't. As to my
sneering at the experience of an old
man, that | did not intend to do. 1
don't know who wrote that article
signed '.Old Fogy." So how do 1
know whether he is an old man or a
young man In disguise?
l wonder if any reader of the REGIS
TER thinks am .'damphool" enough
to repeat the philosophers of Socrates,
Aristotle. and Plato as they came
down to US through % centuries, crop
ping out along the way in the work of
Comenius, Rousseau, Locke, Arnold,
| Payne and a thousand others who
knew more about the principles of ed
ucation than .'Fogy" or ..Normalite'
will ever know. and offer them as dis
coveries of yesterday. On the other
hand, if any reader of the REGISTER is
..damphool" enough to expect me to
preface all my pedagogical arguments
with the name of the author of the sem
timent, he will be disappointed. Our
knowledge is the result of the ages,
and any man has right to appropriate
for his own use all the arguments of
all the philosophers from Pythagoras
to VIM. G. Harris if he so desires. with
out putting them in quotation marks.
And again, on the subject of young
teachers versus old teachers, l have
been making few observations. Ac-
cording to Page the teacher to be de-
sired is the teacher who succeeds in
making up the minds of pupils. The
teacher who best succeeds in doing
| this is the live energetic teacher.
Where do you find this ambitious this
enterprising this progressive teacher
oftenest? He is very seldom found in
the gray-haired ranks; he is not nu-
merous in the ranks of silvered tenn
pies; he is oftener found in his twen-
ties and thirties than he is in his for
ties. Nay, speak truth when / say
that the best results ia practical work
in the schooiroom come from teachers
of but limited experience, who have
left behind them but little over two
decades of their lives, and who have
just laid aside the insignia of students
for those of teachers. The young
mans knowledge is fresh in his mind.
His record is yet to be made. He has
not the domestic cares of middle age
to contend with. He is full of vigor
and energy and is anxious to make
good reputation. His school and not
his family, his property, his politics.
is uppermost In his mind. This is
none of your ..fapdoodle. Mr.. Editor.
If you want to verify it, just take
trip over our county and see what
teachers are teaching their pupils to
think and giving value received for
the best examples among those who
have babies to nurse, and hogs to feed
and doctor bills to pay, aud farms to
oversee; nor will you find them among
those elderly maidens like the one
described to ..Fogy" whose antiquated
methods have become fixed by tsoenty
years experience. If this does not sat
isfy you. GO to any institution having
heads of departments and assistants.
and you will see the young assistant
questioning. criticising. instrueting.
while the twinkle of enthusiasm beams
forth from the eyes. of the pupils;
while at the head of the department.
you will see the old professor leaning
back in his chair looking as wise as an
owl and keeping his wisdom all to him
self and expecting his pupils to be in
terested in the subject and know all
about it. We cannot expect to find af-
fairs otherwise. We cannot blame a
man for getting tired of teaching the
same subject over again and again.
Then the methods used by our sedate
old professors are all right for a1vanc-
ed students who are capable of doing
their own thinking without assistance;
but for the young undeveloped mind.
it takes a teacher with plenty of ..get-
up-and-go" about him to succeed.
In conclusion, will say that while
/ do not wish to sheer at at the meth
DDS of my seniors and superiors. yet
am not willing TO be sneered at by
them without crooking my finger at
them in reply. / believe with Rous-
seau that the young are best limited
to train tho young. =