The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1897-07-08
HABIT OF READING.
A TASTE THAT SHOULD BE ENCOURAGED
AND CULTIVATED.

in Acquiring knowledge and BecOm-
ing Conversant With the Topics OF
the Day-Devote Your Spare Mo-
ments to 1entaI Improvement
Through Reading.
An eminent teacher in an address
TO boys SAID recently that he altrlb-
uted the success he had achieved in
life 10 an accident that occurred to
him when he was eigh, years OF age.
He injured one of his legs SO that he
was confined 10 the house :or many
months. He could not play, and for
weary hours had no one TO whom he
could talk, and he was, therefore,
Obliged to amuse himself by reading
He read every book in the house and
all the newspapers, and by the time
he was through had the book hunger
upon him. He secured the nelghbor
hood for books, but was left unsatis
fed until he moved 10 a great city
and obtained access to a large library.
By that time he was confirmed in the
habit o! reading, and through long
life had devoted all his spare hours
to mental Improvement through read
ing.
According to his view, the Chiet
function Of an educator is TO prepare
his pupils for intelligent reading and
to inspire them with desire to learn.
That done, and the habit Of reading
firmly established, the pupil is pre-
pared to advance in any plane OF &C
tivity for which his mental endowment,
when cultivated, may fit him. Too
much value should no, be put upon
mere book knowledge TO the exclusion
of other kinds of knowledge, but it
forms an excellent preparation for
the acquisition of all other kinds. Nor
is It Of great importance what books
shall be read first or what course shall
be followed, provided only that the
books are of a character to improve
the mind in some way and that they
are read attentively and with under
standing. The chief fault to day is
that we have a superaburdance Of
ephemeral literature which engages
the attention of young students to the
exclusion Of standard authors.
The pupil Of forty years ago had a
real advantage in the possession of a
limited library of choice works from
which to study. But the pupil of to-
day can, ii SO minded, keep in touch
with current literature while devoting
large share of his time to the Clas-
sizes. This IS a necessary course to
pursue if one would get fair literary
training, for current literature cannot
he fully understood except by those
who are tolerably familiar with the
great authors of English literature.
AlluSions to their work are as frequent
as illusions 10 mytholOg zeal tales IN
the poetry Of the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries. The habit OF
reading is very useful habit, with no
evil consequences, PROVIDED It IS not
allowed to interfere with necessary
work
Making liberal allowances for hours
of work, OF sleep and Of recreation, at
least three hours day remain TO
be accounted fr, aLI these three
hours, though t. may be interrupt
ed, cannot be - employed than in
the reading OF Useful works. The
word useful as here empl Dyed includes
works OF the Imagination in prose and
poetry, as we'll as essays, histories and
biographs, which are generally cIas&cd
as substantial and instructive, though
SO many of them are dull and stupid.
In some respects sood fiction and
good pCe,ry, are superior to the learned
books, for they contain much that IS
instructive, while they are made attraC-
tive by the play of imagination. The
boy who has developed book hunger,
if his tastes are not obviously pervert-
ed, is on the road 10 learning and
culture for the earnest and devoted
reader picks up in the course Of few
years a great amount OF information
and if he reads good books, acquires a
knowledge Of words and literary forms
which in itself Will b. Of the creates,
service 20 hun.