Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-04-08
UsELEssNEss OF FEAR.
A Bad Element Ever of Discipline
Tbs Cueation for Education.

The children win be home for the
holidays in a day or two. 30 The
parents generally realize that a very
good test Of the success with which
the school is doing it, work is fur
nishcd by the chldrens power of
amusing themselves when the routine
of work is removed Young children
have wonderful skill in filing u9
their time with occupations Of their
own imagining, and children who are
bored are showing one of the sqmp-
toms Of imperfection IN the arrange
ments for bringing them up. These
arrangements the schoolmasters aud
schooimisuesses discuss among them
Selves in the Christmas holidays We
would Ike Ia pas 4 question - the5a
10 put before them an idea which is
not to De loaaG or at any rate ia not
prominent in the received texts e.
treatsfs Has il es'er occurred 10
YOU" We should like to ask, To con
slider the part which fear plays IN
peoples lives and how much better
mea ana women Wouid lie, how mach
more efficient and how much happier
If it could be got rid OF altoGethcree'
Probably orc Of the great essayistS
has written about fear; we cannot al
the moment recall such an essay. Yet
Il must have been written. Every
enc of Us can remember how mach
torture lie has suffered from The an
ticipation Of dreadful things thai
never happened, and those of us WHO
have passed through moments of dan
pep and f e,ra45ve t.,,5,. .t,...
nine cases cut Of ten the terror is
worse than the event Some people
have panic shrinking from the ve3>
idea of death as the extreme ealam
ity. W the doctors who are IA
miliar Observers Of the moment Of
death. what Is called the last agony.
declare that the act of death is usual
- simple and easy, with no sign o
special trouble 10 the person passing
through II. Aalf#nur mistakes II. life.
much of our rashness, much of our
Hhktndness, and three parts of our in
sincerity are tiHe to fears Yet now
rare are the. cases when fear Is other
thah empty. We are speaking Of
tear mainly as an element i'm the re-
iatlons between persons, not 81 me
physical shrinking from visible dam
ger which IS perhaps not quite the
same thing.
Ought i not to be an object IN the
bringing uD ef the young 10 get rid as
TAR as possible OF the element Of fear?
We PROFOUND the question because.
though IL seems To us 10 admit af only
one answer, there are traditions that
make the other way and. as it seems
10 Us, the wrong way. IN the business.
of instructions the cane can hardly DO
a good instrument. and its use is a
confession of Inability to da the ,qarf
properly. Every boy and girl wants
10 know, and the plan eff eompulsian
is an admission Of failure to present
the subject in q shape inteiligibie 20
the mind 10 which il IS offered. But
1t IS rather for Purposes Of discipline,
than as = means Of Instruction that
recourse IS had To fear In this a
great deal depends On the tempera-
aent of the child Not all children
arc brave. Those that are not may
easily be driven in upon themselves
and made into towards. unable to tell
the truth. The effects Of ill-judeed
severity are sometimes longIasting.
possibly permanent. That is one of
the considerations that make il open
to question whether the system bv
which in many schools the govern
inent of the Young community is
largely entrusted to its own members
is good for all cases. The grown man
IS usually considerate sympathetic
able to make allowances.
But boys rarely have these Qualities
ana IN Il mass they usually disappear.
Accordingly the public opinion of a
school is despotic; there is no re-
course from it. Timid boys in sncb
a community may easily be subjected
TO pressure that prevents all spon-
tanelty and sincerity, and such bovs
as a rule have no power of explaining.
TO those in whom they ought natural
~ TO be able to confde the nature af
thelr troubles. Probably the school
masters know more and have Thought
more about these things than any out
sIders, and ii may be admitted that
the matured product of the nubff,
school is not as rule deficient in
lfankness or sincerity 1t is perhane
the exceptions who suffer. Teear is
sun thought Of as an element in milf
taIy discipline. In one ARMY the es-
tabhshed doctrine is that The soldier
should be more afraid Of hi1 officers
than of the enemy. We ore iaot sure
that it is a sound doctrine. .na re-
9"iee to think thnt It ~ not ti.ae Of the
British ARMY. TIM old military codes
We're moastrosities OF harsh.less. m
recent times The 4rtish ANN. has
adopted The wise views OF a school o.
officers Who hold that soldiers sholl8
ne treated as rational human beings
ana given the opportunity of SELF con
troll. The result has been an almost
incredible Improvement in The con.
Duct Of the rank and file and in their
lhteliisenee. The best officers have
come to regard themselves as teach-
ers, and have thus Won the cont
denee OF their men.-London Morninsr
Post.