The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1918-04-06

the beacner why MS boy could not use !
the old blue book. He told the teacher +
4 Iarned in this book and my boy can
larn in it, and he was honest in his
position. The only trouble was that
the world had gone off and left him. :"
We respectfully submit that there
is no evidence that the world had gone
off and left that worthy man. The
schoolboard, at the diction of the
teachers, had gone off and left him.
The world had not been consulted.
Only tiny part of it had heard of
the change. A little bunch of teachers
with really comic egotism assumed
they were the world.
Now, about that backed spell
Ter, we may be prejudiced in its favor.
We learned how to spell in it, and our
friends know we can spell. Mr.. Brin-
son learned how to spell in the same
book, and we vouch for the fact that
he can spell. Either Mr.. Crimson OF
ourself could spell down the average
college graduate of the present day.
About twenty years ago, it became
our duty and our pleasure to teach a
very small boy his alb abs and his
pa ba's. We couldn't find a blue
backed speller just then, so we bought
one of those new "wordbooks." 1t cost
more than an old blueback, and took
| the boy about one-fourth as far in
spelling. 1t took three or four such
books to take him from b-a ba to ere
pub-H-can-ize."
This one item will show how much
more heavily the school patron must
pay for books. His father paid Is
cents for speller-he must pay at
least rs cents for the different SPELL
ers for his child.
And yet they can't spell as well as
the oldsters. The other day in dis
cussing the matter of spelling with
an up-to-date teacher, he said, "a
great deal of the time once given to
spelling is now given to more import
ant studies"
Now, wouldn't that jar you? A
student should neglect spelling to
make a stab at some more important
study"-botany or zoology, for in
stance, neither of which can be mas
tered in books, and are of little use
anyhow.
We venture to say that no scholar
is really well educated in books I'M
less he or she knows how to spell.
| Mr.. Crimson says:
81. challenge you or any critic or
our school system to visit any of our
schools at any time and observe the
work and study the general trend of
the training that is given and then
make up your mind as to whether it
is wholesome or not. You will not find
it perfect, you will find some poor
/ teaching, you will fndssome lapses of
discipline, you will find possibly few
Pupils overcrowded with work, you
will find some pupils not being work
ed to their capacity, but with it all
you will find it the best that we have
had"
1t was unnecessary for Mr.. Crimson
to write this. We have also preached
the same doctrine ourself.
/ After summing up the studies we
criticise, Mr.. Brfnson says we would
have mighty little left but the dry
bones.
i Good spelling, the ability to read
! aloud with the proper intonation and
pronunciation, a good working knowl-
edge of arithmetic and geography, an
acquaintance with grammar that
would keep the pupil from writing
"the committee are," proficiency in
penmanship, fair acquaintance with
history, may be dry bones, but il
thoroughly learned they would be
solid. A large number of studies that
the pupil learns to recite parrot-like
; and forgets in few years, or otter
: months, are not even dry bones-they
are shadows.
: It's our opinion that if the public
school must teach the students how tc
, sew and cook and sing, it should also
! teach them how to put their clothes
t ont should teach them how to wash
their faces, cut wood, build fires, say
grace at the table, wind up clocks
) and run autoes. 1t should not leave
their parents anything to do in teach.
ing them.
! The Star thinks if the public school,
: is to teach the farmer to farm, the
civil " WOIh S6OII6-
trical problems, the future lawyer OF
: druggist to read Latin, it should
!, teach the elements of his calling te
t the future merchant dentist, machin.
: ist, etc. All classes pay taxes; either
5 all classes or none should receive spe-
j cial education.
81 Mr.. Crimson is mistaken about there
having been popular demand a few
years ago for teaching agriculture
/ and civil government in the public
: schools. The great mass of the PEG.
pie never heard of amy such demand
until they were called on to buy some
t more books for their children. The
J public schools play the dickens teach
5 ing agriculture. Not 10 per cent OF
the teachers could teach boy how tc
hitch mule to a pillow.
4 Mr.. Brinson says of our recommen-
dations:
: "These things will come when you
can cage and confine human thought