Evening star., 1901-04-29
LIBRARIES AND SCHOOLS
GOOD RESULTS OBTAINED BY CLOSE
COOPERATION BETWEEN THEM.
Educators Now Recognize the Inn
POrtance of Securing Solid
Literary Foundations.

George lies in the Worlds Work.
one Of the most momentous steps ever
taken in the service of literature was when,
In 1879, Mr.. S. S. Green, the public, libra
rian Of Worcester, Mass linked in a sys-
tenfat1c manner the public schools of that
CITY with it's public library. This alliance
OF course has spread to other cities, but it
Is only hitting that we should observe it at
It's source, where its originator, as full of
energy as ever, is extending the work along
new lines Of endeavor.
AS far back as 1895 New York enacted 4
law establishing libraries in the district
schools, and the example was copied by
twenty other states; but in the main the
results were disappointing As rule, each
| library was isolated from every other there
was an absence Of care in selecting the
hrst stock of books and in furnishing new
supplies When the old favorites had gone
the rounds. Usually, too, the management
was incompetent and slack, so that in
many places the books. quite unguar,led
sun.
Today, In the best practice, a very differ
ent state OF things has come about. To
begin with. the librarian and the teacher
CONFER together with view to advance
their common interests; the teacher himself
Is accorded for his own work the utmost
facilities Of the library, and, SO far as
FUNDS permit his suggestions for purchases
are promptly acted upon. Next in order
to fill the shelves for his scholars. a care
ful choice is made of the works which may
worthlly supplement instruction. and of
those books which in travel and fiction,
adventure and exploit, may provide sound
ehtertafnment-such books indeed, rs may
Introduce boys and girls to the best Thought
and the worthiest action.
The Work In Worcestcr.
In Worcester every pupil from the Nth
TO the ninth grade is to read two OF these
books in year. and give written or oral
account of their contents. For the younger
children fables, folk lore and simple tales
are supplied to teachers to be retoid TO :heir
little hearers. Still other books offer mas
terpleces OF poetry and prose to be COM
mitted to memory. The Courses of Study
for Primary and Grammar Schools in
Worcester are set forth in a pamphlet of
s1Xty-siX pages To scan these pages is to
see what the librarian and the teacher can
60 when they unite their forces. No longer
Is memoriZing the printed page the he-all
and the end-all of instruction. ANYTHING
that should be observed is observed: any
thing that should be done is done instead
or being merely talked about or recited.
Books come in for reference, for direction,
as means of continuous explanation, as
sources Of knowledge concerning observa-
tons experiments, congratulations far be-
yond the horizon Of the learner. Nature
study begins best at home So We find tho
pupils first provided with excellent man
uals of the flowers and trees the physical
geography, the birds and bird songs OF
Worcester. Next follows similar and
larger array Of books dealing with Massa-
chusetts; after these come the other states
of the Union, with at last some sharpened
glances at the rest Of the world.
There is throughout an admirable group
ing Of the authors who most helpfuly di-
rect observation and explain the subtle
ties which bind flower and insect, the va
riatlons which become the pivot of evoiu
ton, and the diverse strands Of law which
knit the countless facts of field and wood
land into a connected philosophy. Graphic
art, music and physical training, and the
other branches of a well-considered course
Of study meantime receive due cultivation.
In Other Cities.
During the winter months the high-water
mark of circulation among the public
schools of Worcester Is a daily average of
1900 books from the public library. 1t
should be stated. however that an addi-
tional large number Of books are given to
children for school uses on special cards
issued to the children at the library, and
that very large numbers Of books are used
for reference in the library building. In
Detroit, much larger city, the books are
five times as many, purveyed to all grades
of scholars above the fourth. The library
In each school room is changed once In four
months, and no school is likely to get the
same books oftener than once in two or
three years The books are in charge of
the principal Of each building, and are
given out under very simple regulations.
In Cleveland the public schools are branch
stations of the public library; in that city,
in Buffalo, Milwaukee and St. Louis, the
relations of librarians and teachers are
most fruitful.
Not little ingenuity is displayed in elicit
ing the young pupils interest. When the
early history of the United States is studied
1t receives Illumination from the lives of
Washington, Jefferson and Adams; at
later period the story Of the civil war Is
vivified and brought home by the biogr.l-
phies of Lincoln and Grant. Every village,
town and city has history of Its own. its
roll Of honored pioneers and leaders, Its
tales of heroism and enterprise, its scenic
setting and distinctive trades. its home
varieties of birds, insects and wild flowers,
and all these are borne in mind as book is
added to book on the school shelf. Ami
versaries, too, become occasions Of profit.
The birthdays Of Franklin, Hamilton and
Fulton serve to recall their work for Amer
lea and the world, the young scholars
learning above all else how much Of the
liberty and happiness of the present Were
bought by the toll and faithfulness Of men
who long ago went to their graves. On
Arbor and Bird day. The occasion was
heralded by the reading Of Burroughs and
other such authors who may find boys and
girls strangers to the tree and the blossom,
the bird and the bee, only to leave them
their sympathetic friends.
A Sound Foundation Needed.
A thought much in the mind of the mod
ern educator is that his opportunity is all
too fieeting. A faculty or talent springs
up In early life much a promising shoot
in a garden; give it due recognition and
fitting nurture and In the fullness of time
1t will yield precious fruit; under neglect
or wrong tillage the poor child is doomed
to a life wanting the gain and delight 1t
might otherwise have known. Hence it is
that the new education offers an unbroken
round of appeal. No longer are lessons ad-
dressed solely or mainly to the verbal men,
ory; for the hand and eye are hammer,
saw and plane needle and thread, brush
and pencil, plastic clay and wire for the
voice and the ear there is music; instead Of
reading about nature there are excursions
to the woods the fields and streams. The
teacher Is mindful to declare the limtta-
tions of the printed page and relegates the
book to rightful place which it fills
more usefully than ever. Fortunately, we
live in an era when authors include an in
creasing proportion of observers and doers.
men of experiment and experience. Their
work admirably supplements the first
hand knowledge, often meager enough, OF
thnse who have lust crossed the threshold