River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1920-05-06
DIR. GALES LECTURE

DR.. "A. c. Gale, of New York City,
addressed the assembled classes at
the Normal school Tuesday morning.
The Doctor, accompanied by Mrs.
Gale, is touring the Northwest on an
educational business mission. He has
spoken at a number of schools across
Wisconsin, his services being much
in demand. The subject of the Nor
NAL school address was, "A Better
Understanding of Child Life" The
Doctor outlined the growth of the
new idea in New York City when it
finally dawned on educators that each
child was a separate problem and nc
set of rules or regulations could be
successfully applied to all children
alike. He showed clearly that un-
derfed, undernourished children liv-
ing in miserable quarters, denied air,
sunshine and home comforts could not
compete with children who had these
advantages. BY concerted effort
the city physicians urged the teach
ers to visit the homes of pupils and
see what the little fellows had to con-
tend with before condemming them
in the classroom. 1t resulted in a
movement on the part of educators
which produced better conditions in
many homes. The Doctor told how
the so-called ignorant classes were
most easily. approached and tried to
cooperate with the welfare workers
in the care of children and to give
them a fighting chance for health and
education, while the middle-classes
filled with social aspirations and CIV
ing more attention to cabarets, dane
es and card parties than to children
and home life were the hardest to
convince or to cooperate with.
He pleaded for a return of the old
time sitting room gatherings when
children and parents spent evenings
together in mutual help and charact-
er building. Urging the students to
realize opportunity is here at home,
the Doctor appealed to them to be
cautious about rushing away to big
cities where vast percentage of the
country-bred boys and girls met dis
enlargement and defeat, and could
not compete with those trained and
hardened to artificial city life. He
told of the thousands of young girls
coming to New York expecting to win
honor, fame and position, only to
tread the primrose path and have to
be sent home by charity. He urged
the boys to stay at home and help
build up towns, counties and states
where they were known and not be-
come ants in sand pile of some con-
eested center The address was clos
ed with stirring appeal for high
er Americanism, better understand
ing of Government, the principles OF
loyalty and rigid determination to
stand pat" on all issues for public
SOOQ ettlu III OppOollAOii ~ StAiA NNS S$-AN'
vagaries seeking to upset our nation
al and home life.
The Doctors address was heartily
applauded by the student and faculty
Monday afternoon DR.. Gale spoke
at the afternoon assembly at the high
school. His subject was, 'The Early
Days of Washington, D. c." He drew
word picture of how the ground was
laid out, the Capitol and White House
built, and many interesting incidents
of the hardships and privations OF
the first residents and workers.
Later in the week DIR. Gale will
speak at Hudson, and Saltwater. He
has been selected as the principal
speaker at the Dunn County teach
ers' institute to be held June at