Smyrna times., 1898-12-07
TEACHERS INSTITUTE.
ITS TWENTY-FOURTH SESSION HELD
IN SMYRNA WITH INTER.
ESTING EXERCISES.
The Night Entertainments an Especial Fea-
ture of the Occasion.

| The Night Entertainments an Especial Fea
ture of the Occasion.
The twenty-fourth session of tn
Teachers Institute of Kent County
met in Smyrna on Wednesday, Thurs
day and Friday of last week. The cit
izens of this town gave them a cordia
reception and greeted every session
with crowded houses. Smyrna has al
ways stood we'll by Supt. Tindal anC
this year found no abatement of theil
interest and enthusiasm. A marked
feature of the attendance was the turn
out at the day sessions. The Opers
House was crowded and in many cases
it was almost impossible to secure
seat. Such inspiring audiences must
have been fattering to the instructors.
The institute throughout was q success
and the teachers and town people car
emulate some of the thoughts and sug
gestions given out during the sessions
for their mutual advantage and good.
Early Wednesday morning the teach
ers began to arrive from all parts o.
the county. Their bright happy faces
soon began to fill the town with gOoC
cheer, and they made our streets 6
scene of activity as they passed to and
fro on their way to the Opera House.
Wednesdays Session.
The twenty-fourth annual session
ST the Kent Coanty Teachers Institute
opened on Wednesday morning with
prayer by the Rev. Geo. w. Dame, of St
Peter Episcopal church. The organ
ization was dispensed with. Supt.
Tindal was master of ceremonies, and
Mr.. Cornelius Freer, Rising Suu. Del.
was continued as secretary By this
time the Opera House was well filled.
The first speaker introduced WAS Dr.
Chas. G. Boyer, of Kurztown Normal
School, Pa. He took as his subject
Toward the Top" and at once began
to get and hold the attention of his
hearers. When DR.. NJ. G. Brum-
baugh, of the University of Penn
sylvania, arose to address the In
stitute, he was greeted with round of
applause. This was not DIR. Brum-
baugh's first appearance before q
Smyrna audience as was the case of DIR.
Boyer. In fact he needed no intro
duction. The people of Smyrna love
and know him too we'll to make him
feel stranger in their midst. He was
given a rousing reception. When he
took up his subject: "Germinal Facts
in History" he had the closest atten-
tiOn of his audience. DIR. Brumbaugh
has the faculty of instructing and en- :
tanning at the same time, a gift that
few instructors have. He gives you
solid facts with plenty of substance
and yet keeps his audience in broad
smile by the funny expressions and in
cldents he brings in to illustrate his
point. 1t is undoubtedly this feature
that makes DR.. Brumbaugn such fav-
orite wherever he goes. His talks on
history showed that a better method of
teaching was to go back and study the
origin of events and broaden your
ideas on a general study of it rather
than rely upon the writings of single
author as it is penned from his point of
view. DIR. Boyer closed the morning
session with an interesting talk on
Mental Moods and Tenses.''
The afternoon session again found a
crowded house from balcony, auditor
1um to stage. The exercises opened
with DIR. Brumbaugh as first speaker
OF the afternoon, and he took up the
Al
threads OF his morning subject: Ger
mlnal Facts in History" and gave a
sple ndld discourse. Following this.
Prof. Richard Welton, who for the
past two months has been instructino
the pupils of the Smyrna High School
In the Tonic Sofia Method of Learn
ing to Sing from the Staff" had a class
OF children from the school to illustrate
what could be done in a short time
while under the method he advocates
and teaches. The classes made cred
liable showing and afforded the teach
ers much interest as well as entertain
ment. In fact the teachers regard
Prof. Welton one of the "cards" of the
Institute.
In order to catch the first afternoon
train, DIR. Brumbaugh was granted the
privilege of the next address, and he
closed his remarks with some excel
lent thoughts and suggestions ON
'Germlnal Facts in History" Prof.
Welton occupied a few minutes with
another singing class from the SMYRNA
High School, and DR.. Boyer made the
closing address of Wednesday with an
interesting talk on "Wiser than Ser
pents.
In the evening the celebrated poet
and lecturer Will Carleton entertained
. large audience with a subject which
he announced "The Chain of Success. !"
As a lecturer Mr.. Carleton did not
come up to the standard the people
were wont to place him, but in reciting
his own poems he was decided suc,
cess and his hearers manifested their
interest and appreciation bv giving
him frequent applause. The lecture
was preceded and followed bv two
sweet tenor solos by J. Edwin H0ffeck-
u, with the accompaniment of Mrs.
narIon " COverdale. Congressman
elect ) Ohm. II. Hoffecker presided and
Introduced the speaker of the evening.
Thursdays Session.
The second days session opened
With the weather much more pleasant
nan the day previous. By this time
mere was nearly the full quota of
eachers present. In fact there were
'ery few absent from the one hundred
ma forty enrolled on the countv
ISL. Tue exercises were opened nv |
ne Rev: q. A. Hill, of Asburv M. n |
hurch, invoking the divine blessing
liter which Supt. Tindal introdnced |
superintendent Geo. |. Aldrich of |
massachusetts,. He took for his Sinh
ect; Arithmetic" and gave the teach |
rs many helpful suggestions. He de-
recated the method used in many
ountry schools of crowding a chiIdfs
llnd with too much study of this
ranch OF work. He thought that n
MID ought to grasp the elementary
ranches in three years time. Prof
WeltOn succeeded the latter
peaker with another class to illnsfrafe
is Tonic Sofia Method of IearninS
DING Inc next speaker of the
forming was Prof. Austin G. Apgar, of
ie trenton State Normal Schools.
ne latter is an authority on nature
Iudles. In fact he was a student of
le celebrated Swiss naturalist and
'acher, Agassiz. Prof. Apgar highly
ntertalned and instructed his hearers
Mature Study in the Public
chools" and illustrated his method by
Sc OF charts and the black board.
tier another short period by Prof.
lelton in singing, Supt Alrich took
le platform and closed the morning
ssslon with a continuation of his sub
ct Arithmetic.
The afternoon was somewhat of the
Ime order of things as the morning
'ssion. Prof. Apgar on Mature
tudies" and Supt. Alrich on "Arith-
etic," the former having two speeches
Id the latter one, were of highly in
ructive nature. The subject of Ma
ire Study was particularly interest
g to the audience and many things
ere told that the teachers and our
4 I.-Ao..o1 A.. | ,