The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-04-06
EVENING CHAT
BIZ RUTH CAMERON.

Mrs. Ella F1agg Young of Chicago the
woman who is superintendent of the
schools of one of the largest cities in the
country, nay more, in the world, and who
was awarded that office despite the keen
est of competition from the best male
educators in the country, has newly
proven her right to this great position.
AT least in my opinion.
For Mrs. Young has come out with the
statement that the building up of the
codles OF the pupils of the public schools
IS more important than the training of
the mind.
We have ccme to believe" says Mrs.
Young, that it is more important to build
the BODY OF the youth, until IL is as near
physical perfection as possible, than it is
10 devote so much time towards develop
ment in mental attainments.''
l wish that every mother in this land
might read and ponder well over that
statement.
Especially every mother of daughters
between the ages of ten and twenty-one.
was visiting a woman recently who
mas a daughter fifteen years old in the
last year Of high school. She brought
out the girls report card to show to me.
1t was almost all ''A's'' with a wee sprnk-
ling of BIS" She was evidently very
proud of this card. Myself | think she
should have been ashamed of it. For the
girl is a puny, undeveloped understood
stoop-shouldered, colorless little creature
OF girl And the report card was the
symbol of the reason for all this.
1t almost makes me want to cry when
see mothers and fathers allowing and
even encouraging their children to sell
gold for dross in this way.
How can they be so blind or cruel?
Is 1t success you want for your daugh-
terS, Oh mothers?
Then know that nothing can do so
anxiously studied lessons will not do one
tenth as much to bring it to them as nor
NAL healthy bodies and a reserve of
strength.
Is it happiness you want for your
daughters, Oh mothers?
Then kno what nothing can do so
much to bring it to them as a healthy
attractive body-the beauty of health and
the sanity and power of it.
l know two girls who have always
given more thought to mental. than TO
physical development, and who have been
brilliantly successful in school and col
lege. These girls have married recently.
Under the strain of married life. which
should not be any strain to the normal
woman, one girl has broken down so that
she has had to give up her pretty little
home and go to boarding, and another
has become so nervous and unlivable that
the patience of a pretty good man has
been tried to the breaking point, and a
disruption of the marriage is actually
threatened.
oh mothers, please don't take this as
the mere mechanical ranting of news
paper writer. It's much more than that.
It's the heartfelt word of one who knows.
Please believe me and save your daugh-
tiers from the inefficient, unsatisfactory
lives, for which they may be preparing
by their folly.
No matter what the teachers Gay say,
don't allow your girls, especially those
between twelve and sixteen, to study
more than two hours a day out of school
There's possible need of it. If your
daughter can't keep up with her classes
that way, just let her drop behind. That's
disgrace, not half so much a disgrace
as an undeveloped body would be. But I
don't think there would be any danger
of dropping behind.
And in the time that she does not study,
see that she is out of doors as much as
possible. Woods Hutchinson says that
everyone ought to have at least three
hours a day of outdoor exercise Does
your daughter get this? Does she get
half this2 Does she get outdoors at all
except the walk to and from school?
These are questions that / wish every
mother in the country could ask herself
and If the answer is not satisfactory.
make it so.