The Elbert County tribune., 1907-01-03
TEACHERS MEET
COLORADO STATE TEAcHERs' AS
ISOLATION.
VERY NEAR TWO THOUSAND


Known in the State-Welcomed by
Governor and Governor-Elect =
Notable Address by Chicago Pro-
fessor.
Denver.-The thirty-second annual
session of the Colorado Teachers Asso-
citation opened auspiciously Wednes-
day in the East Denver high school
with by far the largest enrolment that
organization has ever known. Nearly
every town in the state was repre-
sented- AT noon the register showed
1,2O0 names and by evening the num-
ber was raised to nearly 1000.
In the afternoon the great assem-
bly, hall was packed, with standing
room hard to find. During the general
association meeting and at its close,
after the lecture by Prof. George e.
Vincent, the school teachers fiocked
into the corridors where an informal
reception that resembled bedlam was
held. At one table teachers were reg.
istering, at another friends of teach
ers were asking for them.
At another table teachers were sub
scribing fer school journals. At a third
the programs and free literature con-
cerning things educational, were being
doled out, and at still another tickets
for the lectures were selling like hot
cakes.
East Denver high school was buster
than public market on Saturday
morning; CHEEKY and lively as hop"
at college.
Things began at 9 a. m. when meet
ing of the Educational council was
held, as is the custom, behind closed
DOORS
At p. m. the doors of the assembly
room swung wide to admit l 400 teach
ers and interested laymen to the after
noon proceedings, which were opened
by an invocation by Annie b. Hyde.
Music, directed by Wilberforce j.
Whiteman. supervisor of music in this
city, followed the invocation, and in
turn came the address of welcome by
Gov. Jesse F. Mcdonald, Governor
elect. Henry A. Buchtel of the Univer-
sity of Denver, Mayor Robert r. Speer
and A. ]. Spengel, president of the
chamber of Commerce. They were
brief addresses that made the big audi
ence at home at once, and in response
Miss Katherin Craig. as state superin-
tendent of public instruction, gave
short talk. Committees on neurology
twenty-five nominators were elected.
after which the afternoon session
closed with brilliant lecture on 'Edu-
cation and Efficiency" by George e.
Vincent of Chicago University.
Professor Vincent spoke at the rate
of 800 words minute without stops.
pace that no living stenographer
could follow with a pencil and few
could follow with the mind
A few remarks caught on the fly In
dicated that Professor Vincent consid-
cred three qualities as essential to the
success of a teacher: knowledge, wis
dom and enthusiasm. The balance of
all was the thing TO attain.
Energy alone become fanaticism.
Wisdom without energy is useless
etc He characterized the lifeless man
as a bit of human jelly with back
bone of wet spaghetti.
"Dou you feel your life bounding
with enthusiasm? If so, then your
work is not job. It's profession"
said the professor.
To illustrate the folly OF worry over
petty details, he told of the man who
tried to commit suicide and who, upon
being revived, was asked why he tried
TO destroy his life
"Oh," said the man wearily, II got
to thinking how much buttoning and
unbuttoning I'd have to do the rest of
my life, and decided that life was not
worth living"
A few epigrams of the professors
follow:
"A man who can wear a necktie that
womankind cannot prevent has aesthe-
tic power"
You're safe if you never take
things out of two pigeonholes at the
same time"
"You see ON the street a man bowling
to a woman. He smiles with a grace
almost human and you say this is old
time courtesy. But not so; he is purely
automatic.
''The lady has pressed the button in
his organism and the result is an air
propriate and prompt reaction
"The most vigorous and responsible
audiences l have ever addressed wei
made up of inmates of the penitentiary
and school teachers"
Speaking against the mechanical in
teaching, he said:
Don't be an automaton. A man
once addressed the prisoners in peni-
tentiary. opening with I'm glad to see
so many of you here" 1t was a half
hour before he could proceed.
Automatic education is only yalu
able when routine situations occur. At
present the multiplication table must
be taught mechanically. but the time is
coming when multiplication will be fig
ured by an automatic calculator, like
watch"