New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-06-14
MENTALLY DEFICIENT.
Schools for Them Said to Produce
Remarkable Results.

That simple happiness makes for mental progress
and that children Will not be sick if they laugh
Is perhaps the keynote OF the successful treatment
OF children Of arrested mental development IN
schools devoted to them exclusively The play
time of these little unfortunates. it is said, is as
carefully supervised are their so-called study
hours" IT is recognized that when child is en-
gagged IN what il wants to do and enjoys doing It's
mental as well as physical growth is appreciably
accelerated. The acquisition Of single idea is for
some of the little charges work of weeks. The
ability connect the playing of the national an
them with the American flag, for instance. marks
the mental effort sometimes of months. ms now
ever is only the case OF the most backward
There are others who show marked progress after
a few weeks learning readily to dance and play
the piano. to take intelligent part in simple
games dress ana undress themselves, etc
It is believed by DR.. Seguin, who founded the
seguin School. that incalculable amount of
benefit could be gained by those mentally deficient
from simple contact with healthy magnetic peo-
pie that each different personality imperceptbly
affected the patient pupil, and that the best re-
suits were gained from variety Of such impressions
or erno1ious especially when the work required
necessftated in itself degree Of routine or monot-
onv az do number work (arlthmetic) and letter
work the bercuean accomplishment Of learning 10
read and write. Botany and natural history do not
present such difficulties as even mentally deficient
little peope-aost Of them-take naturally TO trees
seed planting and flower gathering and rambles
in the woods after new bugs and birds. Deficiency
cases is marked Dg an utter ldch VI AiiAoS
nation and individual mental initiative.
IN the Seguin School one little fellow of five,
beautiful boy physically with big blue eyes. golden
curls and a roseieaf complexion, has never asked
question IN the whole Of his short life. He does
what he is told. apparently remembers what he
hears and sees, but far any other mental ef-
fort is concerned he might wen be a sponge
Another. a little girl of the so-caIed Monaghan
type a term designating a phase of mental dis
order marked principally by abnormal abilities for
voice poorly shaped head and somewhat distorted
features is. it seems. blessed with something more
than her share Of the inventive faculty. Having
been interested bat unsuccessful member of nu-
rnerous excursions whose object il was to find new
kinds Of birds. this small romancer graveIy in
formed her teachers and companions one dinner
tine that she had just heard wh0poorwilI cackle
and seen a bird with t9,o tails and one eye
SIZE added THAI it hardly worth while for any
Of them 70 look for the ia1ter creature as ii had
flown instantly away. and also that. no matter
what new birds they discovered, they would
tsinly never be able 70 see anything like this.
it had told her it was never coming back again
Even perverted mental effort. however. is better
than none in such cases. and the repetition
OF phrases heard also. when sptly applied. marks
distinct gain. Thus while eating strawberries one
little girI asked her teacher If she liked the fruit
Then this is a delicious opportunity for you re-
i've and the teacher recalled having used that
BsfooTTeo III reference 70 something else not long
ne room IN which atlthmetic is studied for TWEEN
~ minutes twice Gay for this reason called
The number room" but later. when il was also
used for basketry by another twenty minute class
and for cr0chetine by stiIl another it in this
way acquired such a multiplicity Of names that
even experts might readily have been puzzled. One
day al dinner Mrs Seguin suggested that some sin
gle name be chosen and 5he others dropped. AS the
children were present there was a variety of more
Dr less remarkable suggestions made Presently
small boy said Il call il the stunt room for l
60 my writing there and make stunts of tt Tn
Ger the circumstances the BIT OF slang vel
coined with a. enthusiasm that can scarcely be
imagined by parents OF little people who pick up
new word hourly perhaps and >reveI in new
Ideas Another little fellow who had previously
confined himself 10 yes and especially
backward morning in letter work" and in
answer 10 the teachers question to whether he
were III replied: NO. just miserable" 1t was the
first tine he had used the word. and the sinner
that repenteth' could not have caused greater
3olcing than did this intelligent Of a single new
sound A small boy who had received a light.
flaky cereal for the first time asked how he
liked It. After some patience opinion