Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-12
TOYS AS EDUCATORS.
The American boy of Today Has a
Distinct Advantage.

From the Kansas City Star
In his training for life the American bow
o. today has one distinct advantage which
his father lacked. The mechanical toys
OF the time cannot come into a boys pos
session without giving him a certain ac-
QUESTION Of mechanical ideas which may
be of value to him In his future career
The present development in electricity has
been made by men who knew practically
nothing of electrical appliances in boyhood
With the multiplication Of electrical toys
the work of the next generation will be
taken UP by men to whom many Of the
devices of today have been familiar since
earth youth. The twentieth century boy OF
ten years is in a fair way to know more
about the possibilities of electricity than
the professor of natural philosophy under
stood fifty years ago.
The principles on which the modern toys
operate are practically the same as those
used in complicated machinery. The toy
electric railway IS now equipped down to
the slightest detail. The power may be
supplied from a battery or from a gener-
ator driving small turbine connected with
running water faucet. Steel rails ara
laid about the room from which the motor
in the toy engine receives its supply OF
power. There are passenger and freight
cars, signal towers and sidetrackS from
which the boy may learn about the opera
tons of railroads. He is taught the use Of
positive and negative currents: how to con-
meet electric light how to manage a dy-
namo. In fact. If he knew how much he
was learning 10 would probably rebel at
the thought.
There are other devices besides toy rail-
roads to instill knowledge into youthful
minds under the guise of play. Battle
ships and torpedo boats supplied with a
Wet-cell battery for motive power will cut
through the waves of an ordinary pond
with decks awash. Then there are automo-
biles operated by electricity and manifold
games Of similar sort. The steam engine
has been In the toy department for years.
Its principles have become familiar to chill
homes. The possession Of such toy Is a
stimulus to the boys inventive capacity.
He Is constantly tempted to build sonle-
thing for the engine to run.
No Intelligent young American owns
machine that "goes" without trying to
find out the principles on which 1t is built,
His curiosity is stimulated and must be-
satisfied. Here Is where his elders may
find their opportunity. They may
not care to bother with his questions, IN
which case they may be able to stifie his
curiosity with evasive answers Or they
may encourage an intelligent study OF the
principles involved There are plenty OF
good books on mechanics and electricity
which boys can understand with little
explanation. These may be referred to IN
connection with the toys. Then, when the
boy has become somewhat fam1har Win
the habits of electricity. he may be encorr-
AGED to make various simple devices such
as are described In any elementary book on
the subject In this way Christmas toys
NAV prove a valuable factor In educating
the rising generation In the field In which
the twentieth century is expected to show
marvellous development.