The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1901-11-26

ty hail this annual affair with dellgl
because it means three days of vacatio
for them. The teachers appear to be IL
terested in the event, possibly because tn
law requires them to.
An elaborate programme had been pre-
pared, but it was varied greatly. TIL
morning session on Wednesday was main
ly occupied in the exercises connecte
with organization c. II. Albert, O
Bloomsbury, Pa, gave interesting talk
! on Geography and Underlying Principle
in Teaching.
Earl Barnes, of Philadelphia, in tn
afternoon, spoke on THE Physical Child.
AT the evening session Mr.. Barnes lectur
ed ON England as seen by an American.
This lecture was decidedly interesting
Mr.. Barnes spent three years in England
and had ample opportunity to carefully
study the customs and was in a position
to criticise and compare that country with
America The latter did not suffer in the
comparisons.
America" Mr. Albert gave his second
talk on Underlying Principles in Teach
ing" He held that the child is taught
by his instructor by nature, by everything
it sees and hears, sort of building up,
layer upon layer, of the matters presented
to his attention and impressed upon his
mind. An axiom of education is drawing
out child's abilities. Herbert had said
that the idea of instruction and education,
drawing out of a childs mind, was all
wrong Character was the basis to work
on, to make the best of every child, men
tally, morally and physically. The world
stands ready to aid teachers. The latter
need preparation, not altogether in the
direction of textbooks, but in a practica
manner in the knowledge of the outside
world A broad insight into the affairs
of the world and business are of more i'm
portance than many pages of textbook
most desirable end is to instruct in 8
manner to form character. A teacher
cannot put ability into childs mind, but
she can do much towards framing and
shaping to good advantage what is there
There are two or three schoolroom sins
today, the worst of which is the lack Of
patience. Another is the idea that 6
child's mind can be aided materially by
vigorous efforts and help. This is wrong
Too much aid stunts the mind and wearies
the child by requiring him to think toe
much Method depends greatly upoI
temperament. A nervous person cannot
use the same method as phlegmatic one
1t is perfectly natural for any sane child
to desire knowledge, and it is teacher
duty to foster that desire. Each teacher
should develop her own method, Away
remembering to CONTROL impel, direct
never lead.
Vastly more important is it to make q
manly boy grow up a manly man, to make
womanly girl grow up womanly wo
man than that the child should have per
feet lessons.
After more singing, Mr.. Barnes spoke
on "The Mental Development of Chill
dren." Age, climate, sex, nationality,
social condition, determine the size of a
child, but do they determine mental abil-
ity? If teachers were united and knew
what they wanted no power could pre-
vent their controlling educational legisla,
ZION Teachers must be organized as d
body and must have a standard of ability
Even if child has inherited strength and
ability all children stand equal at the
start How does child secure his ideas
of words and ideas? A child is eager tc
discover, and must have something out
ward to give impression of inward
thoughts. All teaching is gardening, the
seed must be sown, the weeds pulled out,
the crops gathered.
Mr. Barnes lecture was illustrated with
charts based on observation of work OF
boys and girls under fourteen years of
age in English schools. In those schools
boys and girls are taught in separate
buildings, so the observations had to be
made apart, but the conclusions reached
were similar.
At the afternoon session, IN carer, my
God, to Thee, was sung, and Mr. Albert
gave an interesting talk on Commercial
Geography This is a subject which touch
es the life of every one. 1t treats of the
home of man. People are what they are
because of where they are The compar-
alive relation Of places on the earth's sur
face are of great Importance. The COM
mercial life of country depends upon its
physical life. In this study as in every
other application is absolutely necessary,
and one cannot know the commercial pro-
ducts of a country unless thoroughly con-
versant with the physical life of that
country Mr. Albert gave some very in
teresting descriptions of voyages of trad
ing ships and their cargoes, tracing the
relation between the latter and the physi-
cal life of the countries from which they
sailed.
An intermission was taken, during
which the death of former County Super
intendent Edgar Haas was referred to.
The following resolutions were adopted:
WHEREAS, IN the course of nature, it has come
TO our well-beloved friend and former CO.
worker, Edgar Haas to pass through that
great change from mortality to immortality.
which all OF us must, in Gods own time. ex-
perience,
And Whereas. for more than twenty-five
years our beloved friend was County Super
intendent OF the public schools of Burning
ton county, holding in all that period, not
only an official relation to its schools, but n
closer personal and helpful relation to the
teachers thereof; therefore, it seems meet
that this Institute should place upon record
some evidence OF the esteem in which Edgar
Haas was held as County Superintendent,
and OF the tender memories now cherished
in our hearts of his many kindly acts to us
as individuals, and his care for our person
al success as teachers; be it therefore
ReSOLUed That in Edgar Haas, as Count y
Superintendent. the schools OF this county
possessed a superior executive officer OF great
mental power and of conspicuous ability as a
teacher, every energy of whose LIE was de-
voted to the elevat on of the schools and to
The interests of those tor whom the schools
were created and are sustained.
Resolved That his strong personality APP
peuled immediately and directly to every
teacher with whom he was brought in contact,
ana his sympathy with them in their trouble
and trials impressed upon them the certainty
that he was IL staff upon whom they might
lem, or when they needed q sustaining en-
cOufaH eHlenI.
RESOLVED, That while his contempt for mere
show, his impatience at fraud, may sometime
have led him into an emphatic manner OF eX'
preston, his keen sense of justice and appre-
citation of right compelled him to correct i'm
mediately any error he may have committed.
ReSotUed That we cherish his memory for
his virtues.
RESOLVED That the sympathy of the teachers
at This Institute be extended to his widow and
son.
'FChil 1ren's Ideas of History" was the
subject of Mr. Barnes next address. He
said the aim of education is to keep char
acter intact, to keep personality from
hninn tcn much thinned out or diSintegrat