Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-06-08
BOYS VERSUS GIRLS
Masculine and Feminine Natures Ac-
curately Compared.
MENTAL AND PHYSICAL TESTS
Unique Instruments and Novel
Methods Employed.
SUNNI MARRYING r E L L T S

Written fer The Evening Star.
A vast treasury of fresh and surprising
facts, throwing new light upon the nrooted
problem as to where, how and when the
feminine sex excels the masculine has
been amassed by Arthur Macdonald 4
psycho-physicist in the employ of the bu-
reau of education. The data is the result
of recent tests of millions of boys and
girls, men and women, of all nationalitieS.
conducted by a hundred different investi-
gators, many using curious Instruments of
precision.
That the boy is excelied by the girl and
the man by the woman in nearly al of the
higher qualities is the verdict of the az
erages tabulated. The experiments are
distinctly original and unique They are
pregnant with surprises and where they
confirm suspicion they do so in statistics
which are entertaining. Leaving out al
technicalities, the discoveries are as fol-
lows:
A novel test proved that womans is, in
fact, "the gentler Sex" Upon a black
board was written the story of a little girl
who, after having been given box Of
toy paints, dabbed the parlor furniture
Herewith Ito make them look nice for her
mother" eff you had been her mother
what would you have done or said?" was
the question asked thousands of boys and
girls. A much greater percentage of boys
than of girls stated that they would have
administered whipping. Among the chill
dren who would inf1ict such punishment
the proportion of boys increased with age.
Thus was discovered the extent to which
girls are more merciful than boys.
In young children the boys idea OF COM
mon acts which are wrong offers mate
rally from that of girls. A similar test
proved this. When asked to state what
they thought of as most wrong, the boys
answered that it is most wrong to steal,
{Srr1,f ta1-
The girls were more apt to state that it
is most wrong to leave the hair uncombed
to spill things on their dresses. etc.
Girls the More Aesthetic.
That girls are more aesthetic than boys
and that the latter are more practical is
another deduction. This question was
asked: Johns father gave him piece of
ground for a garden and said that he
might plant three things. Guess what he
planted? Why?' The boys selected plants
which they priced for their material value.
as for food. The girls selected those which
they esteemed for their beauty or perfume.
Boys on entering kindergarten were
found to be more ignorant than girls of
things in their immediate surroundings.
More girls than boys had never heard of
animals and plants of the fields and woods
but more boys than girls did not know
what was meant oy the words ribs, elbow
wrist, cheek, forehead, throat, etc"
An instrument to test ability to keep still
was applied to boys and girls. larger
percentage of boys than of girls could not
maintain repose within the given period
Three instruments, the ataXeograph, the
acknowledgement and tremograph, were ap-
piled to the various muscles. Their move
ments were recorded by pointers automat-
ically writing the movements upon paper,
in waved lines. Each child was asked to
fix his attention upon a distant object and
to stand still for a minute. The amount
of movement having been measured, the
subject was allowed to rest for half min
ute. Then the experiment was repeated as
before, except that the eyes of the child
were closed. Both boys and girls swayed
more with their eyes closed than with them
open.
Girls and women were found to fear
much more than boys and men. The av-
erage person of the masculine persuasion
was found to have 2.21 fears; of the femi-
nine, 3.55 fears: Nearly six times as many
Of the gentler sex as of the sterner feared
rats and mice. The fears of boys were
found to increase between the ages of
seven and fifteen, and to then decline
Those of girls increase more steadily from
four to eighteen. In fear of the end of
the world, blood, being buried alive thun-
der and lightning, reptiles, darkness, death
domestic animals, insects, ghosts, wind,
robbers machinery, solitude and imaginary
things, girls were in the excess More
boys than girls feared water and great
heights.
Six Times More Lazy Boys Than Girls.
Six times as many lazy boys as lazy
girls were found among 1900 children,
whose dispositions were designated by their
teachers. while. of course, there is no
standard for laziness." the report accom-
panying these data states, there are GER
tain children whose excessive 1aziness is
apparent to every teacher The same is
true in regard to unruly children AS we
might expect, the boys are much more I'M
ruly than the girls. The highest per cent
of unruliness Is shown by the dull BOYS
Dull colored girls. however, show the high
est per cent of unruiness in colored chill
dren."
Girls have a higher average for bright
ness in school than have boys. Nine per
cent more bright girls than bright boys
were found among these 1900. There
colored girls than bright coIored boys
Among children Of strictly American pa