The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1921-01-20
CHARGE THAT AVERAGE MAN :. HAS MENTALITY OF CHILD
 BRINGS DENIAL BY DOCTORS
Army Surgeon and Psychologist Re flute Assertion Of pr. Percy Stick ney Grant, Who Also Said that Most Men Look Half Dead or Run Down.

Written by IMAGERY REIN for the
 International ews Service.
 New York-The average man has the mental development of child of eleven and most of them look halI dead or run down.
 Dr. Percy Stickney Grant. of the Church of the Ascension. pronounced this opinion in the course of ser mon on What We All Can Do in 1921" He expressed a belief that the educational status of the country was low, urged its raising and ad- vised his hearers to become physical ly perfect.
 "Everything follows health. As look around I see that everyone looks half dead or run down. A well body means a healthy, progressive | mind"
 Dr. Grant did not say whether he meant an. average child of eleven or a prodigy in his comparison regard ing education, but on the assumption that he meant the average two dis cussions of his subject are offered here-
 A psychologist and an army sur geon refute Dr. Grants sweeping l statement. both using arguments that | tend to show that not only is op- portunity awaiting in our schools and colleges but that the average man IS willing to take advantage of it and make the most of even the smallest l chance for improvement Undeveloped in Reflection
 'cNinety-five per cent. are inteili< their education" says pr. Edward Wallace Lee. who has seen army service.
 Big men have come from our public schools" pr. J. L. Quacken- bos. professor emeritus of Columbia University, reminds me
 "On the other hand" Dr. Quack- enbos continues, many university graduates are unable to write-an or | dinary letter with ease and grace l 'The head of a large publishing house here in New York wrote to me when I was secretary of the faculty of philosophy at Columbia Don't | send me any more Pm D.s l i"But I don't know what Dr. Grant
 means here by education
 "If he implies by education refiec-
 ton. I agree with him that adults are undeveIoped in this direction
 'Refiection is a lost art
 "The average man doesn't think.
 But he can learn things. cram his mind, fill his poil-parrot memory full of facts. We found at Columbia in
 the graduate courses that it took a
 student two years to learn to think
 enough to produce any original work
 This young man who has finished
 high school has been subjected and
 exposed to enough education to helI | him a long way in life if he also i.
 able to think. But thinking cannot | very well be taught
 Many a college youth finishes hi: 1 compositions out of old magazines ht
 he thinks his instructor hasn't read and paints off his theme in class | 'I always tried in the seminar and classes of graduates to give wori
 that would compel thinking and ob servation-" } The importance of observation i also stressed by pr. Lee, who declarei that, regardless of a college educa tion, a young person can observe ant 2 draw conclusions from what he ob l serves
 I, ."The average American is intelli . gent" says the surgeon He is \ well-eiucated individual I mean tn American citizen. I do not includ
 in my statement the man who ha 2 come from another country. bori l Elsewhere, and perhaps partly raise' 5 here Although he may be very in teIIigent his opportunities have beel slight in another ceuntry, and he t an 'uncducated' American r "But what of the child of eleven :. Now that we have so many prodigie t entering universities at about tha 1 age, what will they say at being com l ] pared with unintelliEent adults" t View Of Boy Supcr-Student- f Ask Edward Rochie Hardy, super v student matricuiated in Columbia a
 the tender age of twelve, who chat pleasantly in a number of tongues . and is, withal. no pedantic dullard
 but a most entertaining and charm n ing young man.
 lli Edwards clear, boyish voice didn' N hesitate in making his answer, but