The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-06-25
PROCEEDINGS OF THEIR ANNUAL
CONVENTION AT THE UNI
yERS1TY YESTERDAY.
UNIVERSITY REGENTS ENDORSED.
And Loyal Support to Be Given the Uni
versity-Officers Elected and Reso-
lutons Passed Before Final Adj
journment-Other Notes.

morning was well attended and the ses-
sion was an interesting and profitable
one.
To add to it's attractiveness Miss Ten
ME Odom sang a solo with such wonder
full power and effect that she was en-
cOred and strong effort was made to
have her appear again.
Several songs by pupils of the city
schools also contributed interest to the
exercises.
Professor Switzer of the WeatherfOrd
female college delivered the invocation
and afterwards presided over the col
lege section of the program.
The first paper was by Professor o. w.
Orr of Owen, Tex, entitled "Commenda-
tons, Their Uses and Abuses" He said:
Regard it as you may, selfish or other
wise, the world owes its greatest bcne-
factions to the love of appreciation, and
we think you'll find it the greatest in the
| greatest.
Upon one occasion her distinguished
emperor, it is said. with his own hands
placed his marshars baton upon Ger
many's oldest and most eminent teacher
There, we are told. teachers are taft
fed and feted so often and so much that
one may find in the teachers ranks the
most ambitious spirits of the nation.
There, no teacher is turned on the COM
mons when he has had the misfortune to
outlive his usefulness.
| Our government retires her old gen
erals in Il very comfortable way. Sup
| pose such Il compliment were paid our
| veteran school generals commanding the
army of 100000 children referred to
day before yesterday by President Wins
ton, would there then be 1000 teachers
going annually into other and safer fields?
at is not so much. however, that re-
pubics are ungrateful, we think, as that
they are undemonstrative. Ours, at least.
doesn't seem to realize the practical good
| growing out of wholesome, liberal COM
| mendaton.
why was it that Frenchmen under
Napoleon fought as Frenchmen never
fought before? Twas because he
scanned every battle with his field glass,
and his soldiers knew that his keen eye
would see. and his ready hand reward
every deserving act of theirs.
1T is not so much because salaries are
low and payments deferred that the ranks
/
from want of commentator on the
part of those interested.
! NO resolution favoring honorable re-
| tirement on official commendation is
| asked for. Don't misunderstood us. The
mere mention of such Il thing would be
| sneered ut as impracticable, but it would
nevertheless, if realized, make many a
noble-heartcd dcserter love to live and
| to die in the harness.
Az q, al,
sensitive to praise. and I'm glad of it.
| Who among us doesn't lean toward his
! apprecative pupil or patron? Now, does
| anybody claim that it is wrong to do so?
Christian ethics may require us to do
| good for evil, but does it require us to
| treat alike both those who appreciate a
| favor and those who do not?
TO get the best work possible out of a
| teacher he must be generously praised
for whatever he does right. Some require
| vii apathetic. others homeopathic doses.
but we must all have it in some form or
| tther If we do our very best.
'Who is now the best school superin-
tendent lin the state? The one that is
Surest to see and quickest to commend
! what is good and right and commenda BILE
| in his teachers
There's no teacher but that does some
| things well, and if he is commended for
those things it will not be long before he
VIII come up on general principles to a
| higher ideal of his duty and capa bilities.
"Who was the best boy or girl in your
| last graduating class? The one that had
| been praised most. Now, if you think
| that we are installing cause fer effect
| just try the worst boy in your school next
| year by sandwiching into his famished
soul few morsels of well-tmed praise
and note the result.
| You may strengthen boy even along
the line of his greatest weakness by show
ing confidence in him. which is only one
OF the many forms of commentator.
What did the Great Teacher do
when he found his pupil, Peter.
rather too tickle? Why, lie solidified
him by commencing highly that famous
confession of his, and promising upon that
rock to build His church so firmly that
the gates of hell could not prevail against
II. Dld Peter afterwards show that he
would do to depend upon?
CommendatiOn, when well timed and
sklllfully given. starts even sluggish
boy or an indifferent teacher upward and
onward. and keeps him going until others
realize the happy results. 1t makes the
teacher better teacher. the patron a
better patron, the trustee Il better trustee.
Good. honest sincere praise. expressed in
any form, is a commodity that the world
has always been short on. We need a
great deal more of it; we need it at home
in school, in business, in private and in
public life. We need more of it while
we live and less of it on our tombstones.
son the other hand, we already have an
excess of the abuse of commentator. We
can excuse the illiterate shopkeeper whose
reckless use of superlatives in advertis-
ing his wares is commensurate with his
ignorance. but have you ever read the adj
vertisement of an ordinary school. COM
mending itself to the public as being sup
piled with the most learned corps of in
structOrs. and having the best line of fur,
niture and apparatus, in the best building.
in the most moral place, in the healthest
community in all these United States of
America?
ooh, the length. the breadth, the depth
of our advertising adjectives.
Eve punish our pupils when they pre-
varicate. What ought to be done with
us for the same offence? Then, again.
when cur pupils, good average boys and
girls for their opportunities or anybody
else, as for that ask us for letters of
recommendation. what do we generally
say, and how do We generally say itS
Suppose he is good easy good-for-noth,
ing-fellow, belonging to an influential fam
lily that we want to compliment, what
euphonious words and clauses. ornate