Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1919-07-19
(By Harriet Frances Carpenter

While visiting school | overheard
this Dialogue between an unimagina-
hive teacher and small boy who was
helping to remove some cobwebs from
a cabinet in the classroom:
"Spider-webs are very beautiful.
aren't they Miss Andrews?"
Hold the pan higher"
NAH spiders aren't bad. spiders;
some spiders are good spiders, aren't
they Miss Andrews?"
Watch. what you are doing"
l know story about spider. Miss
Holmes told story to her class about
Robert Bruce and the spider"
When, severely. The child hung
his head. IF you loiter at her door
again, I'll keep you in" A sullen look
appeared on his face and the work
was continued in silence. After he had
left the room she turned to me and
said: That boy gets sulky spells.
Oh. he likes nature work and stories,
but | never could tell a story
Upon my suggestion that stories
stimulate the imagination, she held up
her hands and with look of horror
declared: Imagination! You don't
have to stimulate children's magma
ton. The trouble is they have too
much!"
She was unable to reconcile her
adult mental attitude with a child's
outlook.
A little girl. as she ran up and down
the steps of broad terrace surround
ing house in the country, kept saying
TO herself: Its just like an old cas-
tie! Its just like an old castle!"
Nellie, !" commanded her father,
don't do thatl you'll fall.
''Shesis always falling" he explain
ed to his hostess.
Does she hurt herselfp" asked the
lady.
mo, but she might. she is so awk-
ward. She gets worse all the time.
His little daughter manifested a live
ly Imagination, but he did not under
stand bow to make use of in develop
Jig restraint and poise.
Live with children and one lives in
aAwprld of perpetual imagination. In
no way can we more easily control the
child's acts, form his habits, mould his
thoughts, than along this avenue Of APP
proach to his mind. Reproof may adj
roitly be given BY playful appeal to
the fancy.
Poor Patsey', murmured a father,
shaking his head as his needless little
son, a sturdy boy of five. stumbled and
fell repeatedly during a short ramble
in a meadow. Poor Patsey! One
would think to look at him that he had
nice bright eyes, but they are just
beads.
The next day, running impetuously
to meet me this same little fellow
stumbled over a stone. fell. and got
up saying good-humoredly: IF Dad
dy was here he'd tell me | had beads
for eyes. His heedlessness was soon
corrected by this jest.
THE flowers are asking why Pat
sey doesn't take his feet off and leave
them at home when he comes to see
us, suggested one day when he
trampled my snowdrops.
what do the flowers say nowp".
he whispered as he quickly removed
the offending members from the bulb
bed and looked wistfully into my face.
"They say, Thank you. Patsey',
] replied. If you keep your feet on
the paths you may bring them with ,
you when you come to the garden +"
And so a rebuke attained its end with
out creating antagonist.
Sometimes it happens that children ,
lose the sense of discrimination be-
tween fact and fancy. Then we should
clarity their ideas without implanting a
sense of guilt.
It was discovered that a hitherto
truthful child was beginning to make
misstatements. evidently not for the !
purpose Of deception. but entirely thru +,
confusion Of thought. / had read him
an account in newspaper of dog ,
that put IBIS paws on the steering wheel
whil rs master sitting beside him :
changed the gears and saw to the es- |
senbals Of running the car. He made |
no comment at the time. but his Inn {
aqination seized upon the idea. "A /
couple Of months later he told me that /
he had seen dog running car on {
Fifth Avenue. a
''FIis master was with him. ! re- 1
NO. not this one; this dog was {