El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-01-08

leading themes The Hebrew people
seem to have been endowed with what
may be called a moral genius, and es-
pecially did they emphasize the filiai
and fraternal duties TO an extent hard
~ eQualed elsewhere. 1t is these duties
that must be impressed upon young
children. and hence the biblical stories
public schools. thereby beginning with
present us with the very material we
require. They cannot in this respect
be replaced. There is no literature in
the world that offers what is equal 10
them in value, for the particular object
we have in view.
Adam and Eve a Good Story.
Adam and Eve in Paradise is a Won
derful story for children. 1t deserves
to be placed at the head of all Others
for II inculcates the cardinal virtue Of
Observation-Disclosures 1t is also a ty-
-pical story of the beginning, the pro-
gress and elimination of temptation
In the story of Cain and Abel, the
moral is: do not harbor evil thoughts
in the mind. If you once give them
entrance, the acts to which they lead
are beyond your control" Gains sin
consisted in not crushing the feeling of
envy in the beginning in comparing
his own lot with that of his more ia
vored brother and dwelling on Tne
comparison until in fit of insane pas
sion he was led on to commit the ter
rible crime Of murder.
In the Abraham cycle there are many
stories which illustrate In turn the vir-
tues of brotherly love, generosity to-
ward the weak, hospitality toward
strangers and maternal love. One of
the most charming idyls Of patriarchal
times is "Rebecca at the Well" l.,
illustrates positively, as the story OF
Sodom does negatively the duty of hos
pitality toward strangers Drink,
Lord and I will give thy camels drink"
is a pleasant phrase, that is apt 10
stick in, the memory. Moreover. the
story shows the high place which the
trusted servant occupied in the house
hold of his master, and offers to the
teacher the opportunity to dwell on
the respect due to faithful servants.
The Jacob Cycle.
Next is the Jacob cycle. What treat
ment should Jacob receive? He. the sly
trickster, who cheated his brother of
his birthright, and stole a fathers
blessing. Yet he is one of the patriarchs
and accorded the honorable title of
champion of God" To hold him up
TO the admiration of the young is i'm
possible. To gloss over his faults and
try to explain them away, would be
a sorry business, and honesty forbids.
The bible itself gives us the right clue.
His faults are nowhere disguised. He
is represented as person who makes
a bad start in life, very bad start,
indeed, but who pays the penalty of
his wrongdoing. His is a story of
penitential discipline
In the story of Joseph we have first
the partially of the father, which pro-
duces self conceit in the son. Joseph's
conceit produces envy in the brothers.
This envy reacts on all concerned, on
Joseph. who in consequence is sold into
slavery; on the father, who is plunged
into inconsolable grief, and on the
brothers, who nearly become murder
ers. The servitude of Joseph destroys
his conceit and develops his noble ma
ture- The sight of the constant afflic-
ton of their father on account of the
loss of Joseph melts the hearts of the
brothers. 1t is this Interviewing Of
moral causes and effects which give
to the stories their peculiar value. They
are true moral pictures, and like the
pictures used in ordinary object lessons,
they serve TO train the power of OBJ
servation.
In the Moses cycle we can extract a
few points, interesting even to chill
dren, thus making them familiar with
the name of Moses, and preparing the
way for deeper interest later on The
points in the stories in the David cycle
are, skill and courage triumphant over
brutal Strength. unselfish friendship,
loyalty, leaders generosity toward
his followers, and parental love.
The New Testament.
From the new testament may be Sc
lected for the primary course the story
of the Good Samaritan" as illustrative
OF true charity. Selected passages from
the sermon on the Mount may also be
explained ana committed to memory.
But if we have religion taught in the
schools. the teacher of religion will
claim the bible wholly as his own. and
may not be willing to share even a
part Of its treasures with the moral
teachr. But If we have no religious
teachers, then by all means let us have
The great moral truths of the bible
taught by the moral teacher.
As We leave the fields of biblical
literature and turn to the classic epic
of Greece, new scene spreads out be-
fore US. new forms and faces crowd
around us, we breath a different at
mosphere. The poems of Homer among
the Greeks occupy a place in many re-
spects similar to that of the bible
among the Hebrews. At Athens there
was a special ordinance that the Ho-
meric poems should be recited every
fourth year of the great Pan
festival. Xenophon in the Symposium
has one of his guests to say. MY
father, anxious tnat 1 should become
a good man, made me learn ali the
poems of Homer, and now 1 could re-
peat the whole Iliad and Odyssey by
heart"
But we shall not go quite to the
same length as Xenophon. We should
hardly think it sufficient in order to
make a good man of a boy to place
Homer in his hands, but a knowledge
of the Homeric poems, introduced at
the right time and in the right way,
will contribute to such a result. Ulysses
is the hero of the Odyssey, Achilles of
the Had. Ulysses is prominently the
type of resourceful intelligence.
Achilles of valor.
Teach Courage.
1t is good for children to have ex-
amples of physical courage set before
them, provided it be not brutal Unless
one has the resolute will, the fearless
soul, and can face difficulties and dan
gers without flinching, he win never
be able to do a mans work in the
world. A second prerequisite of sue