The Republican journal., 1916-10-19

as whole, is assimilated, then attention
may be called to the relation word. But
the child introduced to a collection of
words as unlike as conjunctions, prepo-
sitions and copulative verbs, all passing
as connectives, is as hopelessly lost as
he would be in South American Jungle.
1t seems a trife as though common
sense We're abandoned in some text
books on methods of teaching. A few
years ago in one of our fashionable Nor
NAL schools l saw them teaching meth
DDS to prospective teachers. Much time
! was spent in describing scenes for draw
ing out words with which the child is
familiar. In the case of boys using oars
. in boat on the pond, little difficulty
would be experienced in drawing from
the child the word "row'' or Growing"
! and then the written word could be
| thoroughly taught. In practice the sys-
/ tenn is clumsy and never used, and money
spent in teaching it to teachers is vast
! ed. Case and kind begin with exactly
the same sound and yet every child has
| to learn which character to use in each
case.
If people would learn to turn every
effort to the best account, the greater
part of human energy could be spent in
the pursuit of happiness. The world
started out with the idea that happiness
in this world is not a thing to be sought.
The school boy is started out in life by
spending double the time and effort in
earning to read and write than is neces-
sary. There are but few sounds in
human speech and it would be very
easy task to learn to recognize charac-
| ter to represent each of them, provided
the same character.
| 1t is popularity believed that the human
race passed through mythical age.
! Every child passes through that age and
must have his nature satisfied by an
Gent myths, fables and fairy stories.
If half the eloquence and genius that is
bestowed on this ancient trash were be-
slowed upon the beauties of nature the
hlldren would be more highly entertain
ed and also more highly benefited. In
every walk of life, people are too apt to
become machines, doing the same thing
day after day from force of habit.
| The essential of every subject, from
reading to astronomy, could be mastered
with half the effort and allow the time
now wasted to be devoted to subjects
! not yet dreamed OF. Beginning with the
individual we have large floating popu-
lation which becomes scarcely natural
portion of humanity. 1t is as natural
that human beings should be grouped in
to families as it is that hydrogen and
oxygen should unite to form water. The
portion of education as reading, and yet
the mass of young people leave school
and go into business simply to fail. The
same arguments which apply to their
acquiring business ability by observation
and experience, will apply to their &C.
quiring education by observation and ex-
perience.
A few churches oppose students at
tending young peoples meetings unless
they stop to listen to the sermon. 1t |
would require a microscope to discover
Christian motive behind such an atti-
tude. have seen students by the dozen,
go home from young peoples meetings
before the sermon, not because they did |
not care for the sermon, but because
their intellectual capacity was already
overtaxed.
One of the most serious errors of stu
dents who are working their way through
school is to overtax their strength.
Any machine will accomplish the great
est amount of work by being kept in
perfect order. The social hour spent by
the young people Sunday evening is es-
sential to the highest interests of the in
dividual. In some places the pastor is
seen among the young people as one of
them. There is no business, from learn
ing to read, to the management of rail-
road system or nation, that cannot be
improved by bringing together the
thoughts and experiences of all the peo-
pie. Those groups Of people who pre-