The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1917-01-26

ident of the Moorhead normal school,
coming to the city twenty-etght years
ago. After spending eleven years in
Moorhead he was called to Charles
ton, ILL.,, to build q new normal school
the structure had been finished. He
has built that school; and one who
heard him speak last evening can I'M
derstands the why of it.
The musical numbers last evening
were by the normal school orchestra
and the mixed chorus OF the normal
school.
John w. Eek of the manual training
department of the normal school gave
Her Menace and Ally. The lecture
was much enjoyed and the pictures
were especially good.
President Ray S. Roberts Of Morris,
superintendent of schools Of Stevens
county presided last evening. He ap-
pointed the following committees:
Nomination.. G. Norby. Fergus
T. E. Lurton, East Grand Forks.
Resolutions-J. M Brendal, Lake
Park; L. R. Adley, Fergus Falls, and
Miss Belle Deans, Moorhead.
Dr.. Lords Address.
Dr.. Lord advised the teachers to
fall head and heels in love with
great poet early in life. This advice
came at the close Of his address last
evening on Desultory Reading. He
gave several illustrations Of saying it
both ways to determine which is the
better way-prose or poetry.
Teachers read" said DR.. Lord, "to
get the benefit of the experience of
others, for no one can go far without
the guidance of such experience" He
advised reading for the fun Of 1t with
no definite purpose in view. Most Of
the good is done without any distinct
purpose and life would be dry and
poky If there was always a purpose
governing every act. 1t would be too
much like living by table Of rules.
Very good people are good people in
a negative way and they so regulate
their lives that they are almost fiat.
The same is true of reading.
He compared the desultory reading
to one wandering, without definite
purpose, through the woods and along
the brook, where he found recreation
with the things Of nature. The things
we read for pleasure may prove to be
the very things we need in the more
important activities of life.
Wat kind of books shall we read?
Good books, of course bad books
never" In some books DR.. Lord said
there is something of evil, but much
of good. The benefit of reading such
books depends upon the mental condi-
ton. If the mind is robust no harm
will RESULT can be so cultivated
and polished that it can touch pitch
and not be defiled. He spoke OF an in
stance where a book was condemned
as being particularly bad-but he did
not find it bad enough to be even
interesting.
Boys are often led into evil ways
by reading bad books" said DR.. Lord,
but we do not hear much about the
bad books the girls read. They are
simply trash and only cultivate the
feelings not the mind of activities
Novel reading was advised, and the
reason the novel is so interesting is
because nothing is so interesting to
one human as the emotions of another
human being. The novel deals with
human nature and the teacher who is
a student of human nature is the one
who gets on in teaching.
THE most interesting character in
fiction is Sam Weller, said DIR. Lord,
and Charles Dickens influenced the
English people more than any his
torian ever did.
To read rapidly was advised, also to
learn to read early in life. Many of
the most rapid readers are the most
retentive. Reading must be linked to-
gether-the transition. from the novel
concrete to the abstract. The great
American essayists, Emerson and
Lowell were declared to be the equal
of any of the English writer's.
Biography, especially of great men
or genuises is as interesting reading
as anything can be. Desultory reading
should include letters. Those Of Huxley
were named as the greatest ever writ
ten. The next transition should be to
history.
The teachers were cautioned to
remember that there is a difference
an author who is supposed to be clear
may only be shallow; and one who
is considered deep may only be
muddy.
Yesterday the joint meeting of
school officers and teachers was held
in the auditorium. The musical num-
bers were given by pupils Of the Moor
head city schools. Two were contri-
buted by the Junior seXtet and one by
the High School Glee club. All of the
musical numbers were excellent and
fully appreciated.
B. B. Mclean, state, inspector of
graded schools, gave an address on
the Obligations to Elementary Educa-
ton. Mr.. Mclean thought it was the
duty of the school board to furnish
the right sort of school house and
to employ some one to look after nee
essary repairs to see that the sanitary
conditions were guarded and that the
water supply was uncontaminated.
The housekeeping was the duty Of the
teacher. One important duty of the
teacher was to see that the air in the
school room Is kept moist, as more
throat trouble is traced to lack Of
moisture than to all other causes.
In the school the cooperative spirit
is necessary and much depends upon
the conduct of the children towards
one another and towards the teacher.
Industry is one of the important re-
quirements, and the teacher should
remember that one may be busy with
out being industrious. A spirit of con-
tentment should prevail in the school
that is properly conducted.
G. C. Swain, state rural school CONF
missioner, spoke more particularly to
the school officers and insisted that
they appreciate the work of the one
room school Out OF 100000 pupils en-
rolled in these schools only 1852 COM
pleted the eighth grade work. This
proves that the education of so many
Of our children begins and ends in the
one-room rural school. School officers
should remember at all times that
they are elected to serve the entire
district-not small clique of friends.
Members of the boards should he
good sports" later qualified by the
speaker to good losers. for life is too
short to go around carrying a Crouch