Year: 1861

| O. all the subjects Of popular education,
where used in the every day life of the mass


es of the people, there is not one SO much neg
lected in our common schools, as that of his
tory. No teacher, nor board of Directors,


would for moment think OF excluding read
ing, or arithmetic, or writing, or geography.


or indeed English grammar from our common
schools yet none Of these subjects are of


more practical Importance, than knowledge


of the past If any one will take the pains


to classify the different kinds Of knowledge
taught in our schools, which men use most in


the ordinary concerns Of life, it will be found
that none of them takes higher rank, than
history of the men and events of the past


There is scarcely subject about which we
converse, nor business in which we engage,
where knowledge Of history is not of advan-
tage, if not of absolute necessity. Even
common newspaper paragraph, to say nothing
of the science of government, of political
| economy or political philosophy, or Of educa-


ton, cannot often be understood, unless illu-


minated by the light of past experience A


subject thus interviewer into the texture OF
popular knowledge ought most certainly, to
form part Of popular education.


There is an old maxim in philosophy, that


all knowledge is one, that the present is but
the continuation of the past. If this be true,


we can never gain complete and exhaustive


idea of subject, by just viewing that part OF


it which is under our immediate notice and
hence the Importance Of all OF our studies can
only be seen by @ reference to their history
For example, n the study of geography, We
find in cur books whole pages devoted to the


most minute description Of England, France,
| Germany aud the United States, while other
countries which occupy far more space on the


maps are passed over with as many lines
| The inquiry is at once started, why this
| difference The answer most obviously sug-
gestcd is, on account of the greater Importance
of these former countries to the general we'll


being of mankind, than the latter. But the
next question, how came England to be supe-


rior 10 Turkey, or the Uuited States to Mexi-
CO? cannot be answered without knowledge
of their history.


1t would be difficult to find any practical or


useful purpose to which the description OF


country may be applied that does not apply


with equal force to its history. The two Illus


trate each other and should be studied to-


gether. In fact many localities have place


upon our maps and in our books only because
of some event which transpired there in years


gone by. What would give jamestown


place on our maps, if it were not for


being the place Of the first permanent Eng
lish settlement 10 North America What


would give ST. Helena or EIba their locality,


and their page, but the fact that they were


connected with one Of the greatest of modern


heroes. Now carry out this principle. When


locality is learned, associate with it an


event or series of events which transpired


there, and they will assist each other in being


held iu the memory the event will help i'm


press the locality of the place, and the place


will fx the event And what is true of the


relation of History to Geography is true OF
its relations to all the subjects Of common
school education. Every article in our read


ers has it's peculiar incidents of composition


or delivery, aud every rule and almost every


example in Arithmetic has its history which
if known would contribute beyond all compu-


tation, to the interest of those studies. A


subject SO intimately connected with all the


subjects Of popular education, ought certainly


to have place in the peoples colleges.


TERRYTowN, Pa. &c