Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1906-11-27
ECHOES FROM THE SCHOOL
ROOM.
BY PHIL. 8. sopHER.


The whispering tongue, the lying lip,
They shall be stung by Satan's whip.
AS long as children have tongues to
talk and lips to move they will whisper.
Nor is this propensity of the human
race common to children alone. Many
of us older people are strongly addicted
to this most pernIcious habit. 1t is the
stock in trade of the gossip and the
worst weapon of the scandalmonger.
(See Prov. 1928; 1920, Rom. / .29, 2 Cor.
1220) The German cOuplet puts 1t
tersely: VIE de Alten zasqgera so z0itschern
die .Jttngen. You cannot entirely sup
press whispering in school. 1t would
be folly to try The best that you can
hope to do in the matter is to regulate
and control it so as to reduce the evil
to minimum. You can, by example
and precept, create strong sentiment
against it in the school, and by putting
the children on their honor you can do
more to eliminate whispering than in
any other way "Whoso keepeth his
mouth and his tongue, keepeth his soul
from troubles"
Children whisper in school because:
1. They wish to ask question.
2. They wish to borrow something.
3. They are idle, inquisitive and
meddlesome.
In a mixed school the smaller chill
dren often learn very much from the
older ones by asking them in whisper
some question in regard to their lessons,
and if whispering ever was Justlhable
in school it is in this instance. Yet this
method of teaching is not to be encour-
aged The second cause can be easily
overcome by cultivating in the child a
spirit of independence and pride IN
owning his own books, pencils. rulers,
etc. There is no excuse why children
should not be supplied with pencils,
blotters, rulers, etc. as many agents
and business concerns are glad to give
them gratis to teachers as an advertis-
ing medium. -,
The third cause is the one that will
give the teacher the most trouble and
tax her patience and judgment to the
utmost. Yet it can be almost entirely
overcome by keeping the child proflt-
ably employed, and by proper and judi
cious seating. The teacher has absolute
control over the seating of her school.
Yet it is wise for the teacher to consult
the wishes of he pupils even in this
respect The Bismarkian system OF
government doesn't take we'll even IN
little country school in America.
But given school that is properly
and iudiciously seated and the battle
for good order is over half won. Place
an idle and refractory pupil in seat by
himself, where he can do the least
harm, the same as you would separate
a vicious and kicking horse from the
others.
| knew a teacher (?) once who claimed
to be man, although he turned out
later to be a fragment of adamant
chiseled into human form by the Master
of that subterraneous region OF which
Dante dreamt. This vampire was sent
by his master to terrify little children
and practice deception upon the inno-
cents of the upper world. He had sixty
pupils in his school and he boasted to
me one day that not one of them had
whispered for a month. And when l
beheld the stony stare OF his counter
ance, and saw the steel-gray, cat-like
expression of his eye a cold shiver ran
through my frame and | wondered
what manner of man was he. But L did
not wonder at the pale and emaciated
faces that confronted me in the seats,
and the pleading, pitiful eyes that
looked into mine, like some dumb ami
NAL that is being driven to death by the
relentless hand of merciless driver.
The school was as still as death. All
was chaos Mental and moral progress
had ceased The whole school was but
one thought, and that was, Beware of
the teacher" And he was lauded by
many as good teacher, a strict teacher,
a teacher who had order and system in
his school. The Lord protect us from
his kind. 4