The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1911-08-27

Vt mine 10 Asia Minor to study the
proolcm. He found that at the sAason
OF poisoning the peasants went to
the mountain and broke off branches
or the wild-hs tree. which they
brought back and hung in The branches
why they did this. the peasants re-
phed, To make our trees bear seed
hgs. But they could offer no rea-
son why the branches of wild fix trees
should have this influence. They said.
our forcfathers have always done
SO: therefore. 1t must be true that our
orchards cannot make good figs unless
we do likewise"
He looked over the w!id-ng trees,
and found that they were visited In
bloom time by certain moth. You
VII! recall that the fig is a hollow
globe. and the bloom lines the inner
cavity, which opens at the apex.
Hence, the pollen OF the male flowers
can fall only on the female flowers in
the same hg with them But In the
.ig. rs in many other fruits. lmpregnn-
cation The moths which crept Into
the cavity OF a hg to get the honey
OF It's flowers few to the next Gg with
body and wings loaded with pollen,
and so accomplished cross-fertiliza-
ton. My friend brought back to Amer
eHts mum. Whicn. turned loose in
the California groves. solved tho
problem of raising Smyrna figs in
America and established business
whose revenue represents several mil
lions OF dollars
This illustration Will suffice 10 show
now science trains the mind TO weigh
inc value OF evidence. to draw rational
conclusions, and to Ninch truth. Such
abilty constitutes precisely the diff
ference between ma guided by rea-
son and one who is swayed by super
stition.
But. further. education should give
courage. determination to succeed,
self-confidence based on selt-know-
ledge and knowledge of both ideal and
op'ect!Ve relities Shakespeare, in
his inimitable manner. has defined for
US three classes OF successful mon:
those who are born great those who
achieve greatness. and those who have
greatness thrust upon them. All these
classes may undoubtedly be found.
But education can concern itself with
the second only-those who achieve.
now II is certain that no man can
achieve eay real success without the
qualities which have Just named.
And 1t Is equally certain that there
can be no self-confidence based on
nelf-knowledge no Submarines of soul,
ana no determination 10 achieve a set
END unless man is put to the doing
OF real tasks involving real difficulties.
This is the schooling which life gives
whereby men are separated into cap
aoles and incapables. Now every
scientific problem is OF this character
IT is concrete actually lying right
here In the work-a-dsy world.
Lastly, Education should confer
upon Its recipient tastes and habits that
eonduce to his own pleasure and to
That OF society" suppose that It
Will be conceded that all iptellectuai
training conduoes to the pleasure Of
the individual, by widening his hori-
zon and affordins him multiplied OBJ
)ects for contemplation. In this re-
gard. science has nothing peculiar to
oner except the intrinsic worth OF Its
material which is unrivaled by that
OF any otter field of knowledge in
multiplicity. beauty and harmony. It
is absolutely inexhaustibie. But In the
other department os happiness-the
civic. or communal-science stands
alone All Industries and commerce.
sanitation. medicine and surgery. fn-
snee and government are synthesized.
organized, and propagated, in accord
with its canons. The sciences are the
true humanities
At this point, 1 rest my argument.
with the feeling that have established
my thesis that science DISCHARGES
every function which may properly be
demanded OF education. believe al
so that l have shown that Latin Is not
longer entitled to occupy its tradi-
tional place in pedagogics-a con-
tinued devotion to Il being worship
at shrine from which the divinity
mas ned, an act analogous to Thor
worship in modern Germany, or thresh-
Ing with fail in the great grain
fields of the Northwest.
In closing, I wish to express the
nope that no one has construed this
paper as an attack upon Latin, or
other branches OF study. l would not
dispense with any phase of know
ledGe. All are valuable. But do
emphasize the statement that our
present curriculum IS chaos 1t must
be reorganized with a clearly defined
objective. This necessitates its hay
Ing new spinal column; and I claim;