The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-09-16

| equilibrium, or balance of these forces
rests the permanenee of the universe.
In the biological field this great law
IS manifested by the two phases of per-
manenee and change. There is in plant
and animal a conservative force that ad-
heres to the type-a something that re-
mains permanent and Interchangeable. on
the other hand we find phase that tends
to variation. and works for constant
| change. The law of permanence and
change is demonstrated by all living
things, it is manifested in man and in
civilization. Life is a process, a per-
petual moving forward, yet forever re-
taining those elements of permanency that
are the same today as they were in ages
past. This change is going on in our own
city, state and nation. Aid ideals give
place to new; old ereeds and verbal forms
become too small for expanding souls:
the forty shbboleths of last year will
not serve for this years campaign.
In Moral World.
IN the moral world this great law
manifests itself under the true aspect of
selhshness and altrulsm. The one is the
law of personal interest and personal am
bltion, which tends towards the indivd-
ual. Every person is the center of a great
universe and his horizon depends upon
his spiritual elevation. The other is the
law of helpfulness, sympathy and love.
Human selfshness and human altrulsm
are two expressions OF one great law of
any moral nature, and the stability of
the soul depends upon the proper ball
ance, or equilibrium of these two SEEM
| ingly antagonistic forces.
The applications of this law to the
! school and to the work of the teacher
! are numerous and suggestive. On the one
hand We have a faction In the commune
/ ity whien demands tea, our courses of
study shall be enriched by the intro
duction of vocal music, drawing and man.
ual training and by giving the child those
| elements of culture which shall enrich
and exalt the soul life The cry goes up
| all over the country against starving
children upon the husks of thought and
Withholding the truth they crave in liter
allure and in art. The other faction de-
plores the dissipation of the ehilds en-
ergies upon. so many diverse subjects. The
cry goes out for the exclusion of these
elements from the school and the restric-
ton of the work of teacher and child to
the three RS. The liberal and conserv-
alive ideals are found at war.
1.-THE true welfare of the school will be
found today in the equilibrium of these
two forces
In our community life as reflected by
the press and our social, literary and
/
philanthropic organizations we find these
two forces manifest. On one side we find
the school, the church and the lecture
platform-our literary organizations and
philanthropic institutions on the other
we find those agencies which divert and
entertain, which exist to cater to the low
er tastes and the lower ideals of our peo-
pie. | would not eliminate the baseball
and the theatre, nor decry them as use
less agencies in civilization but how
sadly do we need to restore the equili-
brium of these forces and to develope
among our people a sense of proportion
with regard to these elements OF our So
clal and commercial life.
Spiritual Attitude.
"These same forces were expressed in
the mental and spiritual attitude of the
teacher. On the one hand is that conser-
vative element which enables the teach
err to enrich his mind and personality,
and to gain adequate preparation for his
great work. The law of selfishness bids
him get all the education possible for
himself; to acquire all those elements of
power which will give him strength in
the battle of life. On the other hand the
teacher must be imbued with the spirit
of altruism, the true missionary spirit,
that by self-sacrifice seeks to benefit
others.
1.-THE teacher must love the child Yes,
4 It Is easy to love the good, the sweet and
| beautiful child, from the cultured home
but do you love the bad, the ugly, the
neglected child of the Stun, whose dis
figured body represents the abuse and
neglect of his fellow beings and whose
distorted soul reflects his Inheritance Of
centuries of ignorance and vice? l read
the other day in our local press of a
lady who was represented as ridiculing
the uncouth appearance and language of
the trustees. teachers and children OF "a
school in which she had been employed to
teach We were told that the young lady
| Immediately resigned Her resignation
was doubtless a blessing to that commune
ity, if that was her spirit But, oh, what
an opportunity she missed for true and
permanent service to that community. The
| teacher himself is often his own enemy
when disposed to fix the responsibility for
his failure, whom other people, or upon
untoward conditions. He might find that
he himself is the true cause of failure
and disappointment.
1.-THE hero of an old Spanish story Is
said to have been followed by a masked
enemy who logged his footsteps and
| caused him to fail in all his undertakings,
bringing sadness and disappointment into
his life. AT last he turned to fight and
slay his enemy, who suddenly threw
off the mask and revealed to the terrified
hero the image of himself, and pointing
his finger at him the image cried out:
| Are you satisfied? The true center OF
our civilization is the little child. This
should be the center for the teacher and
for all the energies and agencies of our
| civic and social llfe."