The herald., 1896-06-21
AT THE CASA De ROSAS
The Address Given ON Thursday Night by
Mis-. G. M. SeXerance

The Address Given on Thursday Night by
Mrs. G. M. Severance
Following is the address delivered by
Mrs. Caroline M. Severance in the class
rooms of the Frobel institute, upon the
occasion of the commencent exercises
of the class of 90:
II am, dear friends, very like the
* of the mathematical formula: I
stand for an unknown quantity, when
advertised for an engagement such as
booked for it, not because of i'll health,
which l escape beyond most persons of
my years, but because of an inveterate
habit of measuring my strength by my
zeal, which habit brings a collapse aften
at the critical moment.
Having been advertised by our good
friends, the ClaverieS. for an address,
l am impelled to make this explanation,
lest you report me more than l have
time to prepare, or Uirength to give
for am not ready-witted. 1 must have
time to 'unpack my thoughts as my
clever friend, Mrs. Julia Ward, once said
of herself. Malapropos in her case, sure
none could be more ready of speech than
she.
Education is in the air, dear friends,
on the lips of the speaker, the pages of
-
paper. And, of all methods, the natural
one Of the kindergarten is conceded to
be the best, and is coming more to the
front, practically. 1t cannot be that any
persons now present are ignorant of it's
value, or need argument to enforce it.
The duty then-the pleasure, I hope
of those who conscientiously believe in
it, is three-fold, as 1 see it.
"First--to help create strong senti-
ment in it's favor
"Second-To use all our influence-in-
dividually and collectively-to raise the
standard of character scholarship in it's
teachers.
power, that only the thoroughly qualified
teacher has place in our private or in
our public schools.
The proper public sentiment and the
high standard will insure the right
teachers. But their place in the public
school, the kindergarten, can only be
permanently secure by the election of
experts in education on our city and
county school boards.
"On this point, ] beg leave to quote a
strong paragraph from an article in the
editors study of the June Harper, which
article deserves to be known and read
by al men and all women:
. Dudley Warner, 1.-THE choice of
teachers" writes: 1.-The course of study,
the whole method of education, should
be In the hands Of those trained to the
business: We are beginning to brag
loudly of this as scientific age"
We are learning to put our charity in
stitutions into the care of experts-why
not treat the profession of teaching as we
do that of law, of medicine, of theology?
If we have a lawsuit to be conducted
we do not go to faith healer. If we
have diphtheria we do not call in a
ward politician, though his political
management of his ward may have
caused the unsanitary conditions. Why.
in the name of common sense do we
turn over the education of children
the one really vital interest in the repub-
lic-to those who know nothing about
education, and are too busy to study the
subject?
We, my friends, each one of us, vot-
.ers and non-voters Gas yeti, areuespon-
sible for an ADEQUATE answer to that
pressing question Why do we allow
this this to be done? What possible in
terest in social or public life can out
weigh this with thoughtful parents, wise
citizens; can keep one too busy" to look
-religiously after the welfare of the child