Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-12-01
Moral Teaching
Needed in Schools,
Says Con'r Thomas

Especial to the Kenncbec JournaD !.
Winthrop Nov. 3o-Stressing the
need in every high school and In
every school for some direct moral
teaching. DE-. A. o. Thomas, Maine
commissioner Of education. gave an
address on the subject, Human
Price Tags" at . community school,
service here here this evening
Or. Thomas pointed out iaat q
mans daily life is his price tag and
that the chief element of value In
character is honesty. "There is no
such thing as being 80 percent hon.
est, he declared. a man may be
30 percent efficient, may know 80
percent OF the questions in an exami-
nation, but he must be 100 percent
honest or he is dishonest. We have
in our social life no sliding or adj
Unstable scale of honesty.
one thing which is wrong with
US today is our standards. We have
made ourselves believe It is fair TO
lie In good cause or withhold the
truth when it hurts. to sell short
weight or measure. Even though the
fraud Is slight, yet in the multiple 1t
~ ouI punt. we get INTO
hablt OF small offences AGAINST absc-
Lutte honesty and this underm:nes
character. Character is lust a hum
die OF habits. Habit begins in cob
webs and ends in iron chains, We
should think of this in Bringing up
cur children. Much of our most eff.
lectlve teaching Is by example, I
would not have dishonest parent
bringing up children: I would not put
dlshonest teacher In charge OF
school. You cannot conceal 'charac-
acter from kids Children are apt
discerners. They are by nature OBJ
serving for they get on by Initiating.
Ihey are quicker than adults to de-
tect. They think what their elders
90 must be right. They are apt to
accept the standards We Set for them.
The old saying that our children weed
new set of parents has some sound
ness. But am willing to accept the
set OF parents we have il they will
fetch up new standards FOR their own
conduct. If they will do this. they
need not think Of the children. If
the pattern is right the lea ner will
come through.
but under some circumstances in
which we find ourselves, we must do
some direct teaching. In every high
school, yes, in every school. there
should be some direct moral teach
Ing. Some teacher in whom there is
no guile. in whom the children have
confidence. should have frequent
talks in a heart to heart way with
the children and youth. They could
well take into the public schools the
direct teaching Of the boy scouts
and even go further. The Path
tlnders,' a comparatively new organ
ization suitable for Schools, is lead
ing the way.
I'm the direct method of teaching
honesty. would teach that there is
no SUCH thing as white lie." lit
tie lie. white lie" is just as bad
as "black one" when there IL no
conscience back of it. There is no
such thing as a little theft. It is
just as dishonest to steal a dollar as
to steal a million and under the
present vogue often more disastrous.
ones conscience may he educated to
crime little by little. No matter how
small it is, if he gets away with I,
he will do bigger Job next time.
THE rights of property AMI the
protection of what is ours is youch
safed by law. The sacredness of
this right should be talked over by
the teacher with even young chill
dren.
THE thing we need. is to intensity
our moral and Spiritual teachihg 1t
least In proportion to the increase
OF the moral hazard We have not
done SO. We have not even speeded
up: have not founl new way.
Tffis is a great human problem.
It is susceptible of solution. II 1t
cannot be solved it ceases to be a
problem and becomes n mystery"