The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-10-12
DRAPERIES

| the surplus physical energy which needs l a vent and renews his mental vigor. Biology finds a basis for play in the | fact that the chiIu play prepares him | for his struggle for existence His play | is practice. Just little goats play at leaping and little cats and tigers at catching prey, so little boys play at fight
 ing, chasing. catching fish and animals. It is the theory of some scientists that inherited ancestral instinct largely deter mines play, that boys rob birds nests, catch butterflies, and fight because their ancestors in so doing gained their live lihood. The boys have an inherited tend ency to do these things. The initiative impulse is prominent. We see this in the requirement of language by the child, in the tussles of small boys, where they do as they see older boys do and in tlfe doll plays. where little girls emulate their mothers. In the practice element of play !ncalculable value is derived from the
 training afforded the powers of recog
 hilton, of memory, ina gination, reason,
 will, surmounting pain.
 There Is no general impulse to play, along these or other lines, as I think, but various instincts are called upon for de-
 velopment when there Is no occasion .or their serious exercise, merely for the practice. and these develop into special plays. The mother instinct with doll bl- bies is familiar type.
 Psychology sees the cause for play In the pleasure derived therefrom and in the temporary severance from life's se- rlous aims. We cannot be certain that the earliest plays give the child pleasure. When the baby of a few months waves its hands aimlessly about. as soon as it's fingers strike something they instinctively clutch at the object But it is not seek ing pleasure in doing so. That is pure biological play for practice of the infant muscular system. Psychology does not enter into play until the child is con- scious and until that time play is scarce ly completely play" There are three leading elements in the desire for pleas urable play. the desire for attention. the desire to be a cause, and the imagina- ton.
 Attention plays an interesting role We are bored not because we have no eXpo- rience, but because they are not inter esting enough to hold our attention. From the first movements of the baby in its crib straight to the esthetic en- joyments of artistic production there is a certain tension which is always felt during play. When there is no opportun- ity for feeling this tension we are bored. To see how uncomfortable such boredom can become we must read Schopenhauer.
 The desire to be a cause, an origi- nator, comes in many variations. The little person likes to build houses of his blocks he makes mud pies, constructs dams and boats. whttes at wood. When he likes to be captain while he and his companions play soldier he is exercising the same desire to be a cause in its va riation of pleasure in power.
 The same pleasure in originating is evinced in love of emulation, as when the child copies a model set before him, trying to reproduce picture in his book, initiating an engineer with locomotive of chairs. keeping store like his father. paying calls like his mother. It comes in the pleasure of surpassing others like the joy of the victor after race or a game of checkers. It appears In the en- joyment of overcoming difficulties. An extraordinary feat is set before a com pany of children. Each finds delight n attempting to achieve it, the harder the better. Subdulng foes Is familiar phase of this pleasure. Boys are enchanted over an opportunity to put down a bully in hand to hand combat.
 The imagination in play is responsible for sham occupations, the make be- lieves" and let's pretends' conspicuous in the recreations of children. These are "chu chu cars.'' they say of the couch. I'm the baker," the milkman, the team