The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-03-24

d DAILY PRESS. TUES
tuition of each pupil, and one hundred
and twenty dollars for each non resident
pupil, to defray the expense of board and
lodging. That the stipend was not
enough seems proven by the fact that the
city made an annual appropriation OF
twelve hundred dollars. The last legis-
lature appropriated sixteen thousand dol
lars for the purchase of a dormitory or
home for the school. The new building
has been occupied since January and
proves satisfactory in every way The
children are better fed and housed and
are under influences more refined and
homelike than ever before. The effect
upon them physically and morally must
be beneficial How far the patient and
intelligent efforts OF the teachers have
been successful in helping to unstop the
mouths of their charges SO hardly dealt
with by nature. can only be known by
those who have visited the school
Admirably as the school Is doing it's
work it is in an anomalous position. The
state owns the dormitory; the city the
sohoolhouse. The city bears the expense
of board, and tuition of the pupils and
looks to the state to reimburse the greater
part CT the outlay. 1t has given the use
of the school building and twelve hun
dred dollars year when no other oity or
town has directly contributed anyt hing
and will maintain school and home
for children of the state when not one
sixth of the pupils are residents of Port
land. Most Of this outlay is repaid by
the state and it would be far from the
wish of the committee to complain of the
treatment of this school by the state for
that his been most liberal and has been
ch nx in he, nj
equipment of the new building. From
small beginnings it has grown to it's
present position of usefulness but 1t is
now time to put 1t upon the ba sis of a
state institution, supported by the state
and under the charge of trustees APP
pointed by the state.
Several changes IN
TEXT BOOKS
Course has been long in use, the commit
tee finding that new books were needed
to supply those worn out decided to try
the experiment Of putting the New
Natural Music Readers into the Hackson
Grammar and Casco street primary
schools. These books were mainly written
by Mr.. Ripley, for many years principal
of grammar school in Boston, and his
aim was to teach music reading In sys-
tomato and thorough manner. These
charts and readers present the difficulties
in such manner as to be easily over
come by the pupils. Mr.. Ripley made
several visits to Portland for the purpose
Of explaining his system to the teachers
in those schools and by his enthusiasm
and knowledge of the best manner of pre-
senting this study to the children has
impair ted much Of his enthusiasm to the
teachers. Tt is probably true that school
teacher who is also musician may write
music books better suited to the needs of
young pupils than another who lacks his
peculiar experience. 1t cannot yet be said
that this new course has passed it's time
of probation and proved its claims to be
generally used, but the progress in music
of those schools has been marked and the
teachers express themselves confidently of
the good results to follow longer trial.
Barnes's History of the United States
has been exclusively used in the grammar
schools till this year. Believing that the
pupils would be benefited by the views of
more than one author and that the COM
parison of those views would be good
mental discipline, the committee made up
set of histories by taking equal proper
tions of Fiske's, Scudders and Eggleson's
books SO that the children learn that
history writing is but some mans az
6empt, taxing Gucn materials as ne mad
access to, to set forth tho events of the
past in their true relations to events
which proceeded and followed them. The
same plan has already heen adopted to
considerable extent in furnishing several
reading books to each class. The teachers
work is made less humdrum and the
pupils are relieved from the drearin ess of
a constant study of the same book.
A new system of drawing books, made
hu ~ "a Ann al inc frr, how
have been introduced in place of the
Prang system in use
MUSIC AND DRAWING
have become firmly fixed in our course of
study. Special instructors in both SUBJ
jects spend their time in the various
schools in rotation giving to each room
its fair share Of attention. At intervals
Mrs. Merrill teaches music to the chill
dren of any given room, while Mr.. Shailor
in the grammar and Miss Bedlow in the
primary schools make periodical visits.
At other times these exercises are con-
Quoted by the teachers In their respective
rooms. Two obstacles stand in the way of
success in music and drawing. A lack
of capacity to instruct In the teacher and
a lack of certain natural capacity in
tho pupil to take advantage of instruo-
GlOn. In tine rooms OIL musical teachers
we find good singing and natural apti-
tude for drawing is manifested in the
good work Of the class. Many of our
most valuable assistants are practically
devoid of musical faculty, and the
power to reproduce forms with pencil is
even less frequently met with. The bur-
den of instruction In these two SUBJECTS
must rest almost entirely upon the teach
ers for the visits of the special instructors
are necessarily infrequent 1t seems best
that music and drawing in each school
should be under the direction of those
assistants who, by natural aptitude and
training are most competent, and that
their work in other studies for the time
being should be carried on by their asso-
ciates. We cannot make knowledge of
these subjects sine qua non to the APP
pointment or retention of our teachers
but if the efforts of the special instructors
were devoted to the instruction of the
assistants the results would be more
satisfactory.
THE NEW BOOKS
like the old, contain Observation-Disclosures