Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1898-04-06
HOSTS OF INSTRUCTORS
BIG CONVENTION IN SESSION
LAST WEEK.
Some Five Hundred Teachers Attend
Interesting and Profitable Nee ,ings
Held-Was Successful in Every Way
The Topics Under Discussion.

y
vention of the Southeastern Wisconsin
Teachers association, and d thorough
success it proved to be. Not for more
than fifteen years, when the state as
sociation met here, had such large
number Of pedagOgues convened in
our midst, and the Importance of the
occasion seemed to be manifest on
every hand. Watertown, with it's ex-
cellent railway facilities, should have
more of such conventions, as they are
profitable both morally and substan-
TALLY.
The evening trains of Thursday v
brought in the advance guard of tn e
teachers and the hotels were rapidly
filed. This force Of early delegates
was largely augmented Friday fore
noon, when it seemed that every mon
! arch of the school room from Jefferson
i and her surrounding counties was
| pouring into the city to take in the
! expected ''feast of reason" The re-
| ception of the visitors had been well
| planned by the local entertainment
committee, and a corps of guides
|
! high school was at each incoming
| train to meet the delegates and escort
them to the headqu quarters-Turner
! Opera house-Or to the hotels. At
! the Opera house Prof. Viebahn and
his assistants assigned the teachers
to homes in which they were to be
entertained. The attendance at the
/ I'D Of oh
At $3.50 Friday morning the first
session began at Turner Opera house,
| the president of the association, Prof.
| NJ II. jackson, Of Columbus calling
! it to order. After making few buSi-
ness announcements President jack
son called Mrs. ElnOra &. Fulcomer,
| of Milwaukee, 10 the chair and the
convention soon settled down to active
work. The subject under discussion
was 'sChild Study" and a most inter-
e5ting one it proved to be. DIR. NJ. Y.
O'Shea, Of the state university, opened
the question with an address on The
Results of Child Study and Its Imme-
diate Problems" BY illustrations the
speaker pointed out the law that gov
|
with those of adults. The point made
was that children, either at. home or
in school, should be told what to do
instead of telling them what not to do.
| Holding forth evil is sowing evil.
Discipline and good government come
largely from the personality of per-
sons, which is shown by a public
speaker who can hold an audience, or
teacher having the attention in
school room. The law works some
times with adults as we'll as children,
and he said it could be summarized
in the words of the Great Teacher,
that whatsoever things are true, or of
good repute, or honest and just, think
on these things; that will develop
character.
Other phases of the subject were
| treated by Prof. w. II. Cheever, of
the Milwaukee Normal school, with
an address on ssWhat the Institute
Conductor Can Do for Child Study in
the Institute;" by Miss M. B. Huff,
of the state university, with paper
\ on ''What Child Study Can Do for the
j Student Teacher;" by Mrs. John g.
4 Conway, of this city, with a paper on
/ "The Parents View of Child Study, -
ieand by Mrs. FulcOmer with a talk on
The Work of the Wisconsin Child
Study Society,"" Mrs. Conway's effort
was a studied and practical one, and
very interesting.
The convention divided into sections
Friday afternoon and meetings were
held in the rooms of the high school
building. There was a high school
section, a grammar and intermediate
section, and primary section. Mat
ters of interest to each section were
discussed and a large number of ex-
cellent papers and addresses heard.
Among the speakers was Miss L. E.
Stearns, librarian Of the State Library
commission.
Friday evening the visitors were
treated to a popular entertainment at
Turner Opera house, which, by the
way, was prOfusely decorated with
palms, bunting and flags in honor of
the convention. Admission to the
hall was by card and fine audience
/ was present. A program OF songs Dy
William Sproesser, Mrs. G. r. Field,
E. J. Brandt, and a double quartette
composed of Messrs. Lehman, Schempf
Whiting, Sproesser, Meyer, Keck,
Rohr and Feisst, was enjoyed, after
which lecture was delivered by DR..
Fred c. Eastman, of the Upper Iowa
university, on Limbo of Letters. "
The title is an odd one and the speak
er also showed an oddity that rendered
him, however, all the more interesting
He displayed wonderful command of
classic English, and taken altogether
the lecture was one Of the finest eff
forts ever heard here.
At the conclusion of the entertain
ment the teachers and their friends
repaired to Concordia Opera house,