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 ; I rrouiiirial jtilunitinmil ^ooaricitiaii \ 
 
 KiTII. IITII. ISTII OCT.. IS!i.-,. 
 
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 The special attention ct tl,,. I<,.,„l,.,s ,,, ,1,, i> , n , % 
 
 
 HALIFAX, N. S, : 
 
 i 
 
 ^ PIirXTKD IIY WILLIAM MACXAR, 3 I'RIXCK STHyFT ^ 
 
 
^- e. men & c©. 
 
 124 and 126 (JRANVILLB ST., 
 
 HALIFAX, N.S., 
 
 Keep a well 
 
 ««sorted stock of the Latest . 
 
 '^"d Most Approved 
 
 Scliooland College 
 Text Books 
 CfJobos 
 
 Maps 
 Bxeroise Books 
 Scjibblin? Books 
 Note Books 
 
 Drawing- Books 
 Graving Blocks 
 
 Drawing Papers 
 SoJiooI Mmtiema- 
 tioal Instruments 
 
 ScaJfis 
 
 Protractors 
 Artists' Material 
 
 Sehool Bags 
 Chalk 
 
 Slates 
 
 Slate Pencils 
 I«ad Pencils 
 fiulers 
 
 Pens 
 
 Pall Frames 
 
 Scholars' 
 
 Companions 
 
 
V 
 
 REPOET 
 
 OF THE 
 
 TWELFTH CONVENTION 
 
 OF THE 
 
 fmnml |tlH|ationa( ^mtkim 
 
 OF 
 
 mVA SCOTIA, 
 
 HELD IN THE 
 
 Assembly Hall, Provincial J^ormal School, Truro, 
 
 16th, 17th, 18th Oct., 1895. 
 
 ! 
 
 i- 
 
 PROVINCIAL NORMAL SCHOOL, TRURO. 
 
 _ HALIFAX, N. S. t 
 FEINTED BY uILLIAM MACXAB, 3 PKINCE STREET 
 
 1 UO/! » 
 
 1896. 
 
I 
 
 Hi 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 In the winter of 1890-91 the Provincial Educational Association held its meet- 
 ings in Halifax. There were but five sessions and 78 enrolled members. 
 
 The work accomplished was, however, very important. The followinj,' recom- 
 mendations from a special committee were unanimously endorsed by the conven- 
 tion : — 
 
 1. That p"rovi,sion be made in our educational system for the distinctive 
 i-'ofessional trainin<^ of all teachers of our public schools. 
 
 2. That the syllabus of examination for teachers' licenses be assimilated with 
 the course of study for high schools (as revised), and it was suggested that third 
 class, or grade I) licenses, be based on the subjects of the first year ; second class, or 
 grade C, on those of the second year ; and first class, or grade B, on those of the 
 third year. 
 
 3. That in connection with examination for teacliers' non-professional certifi- 
 cates, the Depaitment of Education be requested to provide for the issue of 
 diplomas to graduates of County Academies and High Schools. 
 
 4. That as soon and as far as circumstances permit, tlie various non-professional 
 certificates be taken tteriatim. 
 
 5. That the professional training of teachers sliould be held to include fuller 
 instruction in Music, Drawing and Natural Science than that contemplated in the 
 High School course. 
 
 The present Superintendent of Education, Dr. A. H. J >. 'C!ay, adopted these 
 clianges very soon after assuming office. 
 
 Wiiether after a practical test of three years they liave received the approval 
 of the largest and most impor..ant meeting of educationists ever licld in Nova 
 Scotia, will appear from the following pages. 
 
 In preparing the programme for tliis Convention, it was intended that every 
 phase of the educational questions of the day should be presented for treatment 
 and discussion. Where there were two sides to a question they were both brouglit 
 forward by tlieir ablest exponents, respectively. 
 
 Yet, throughout the discussions, the diflerencos of opinion seemed to be slight. 
 Generally they were more apparent than real, and vanished as both parties came 
 to understand in tlie same sense the terms used. There seemed to be but one aim, 
 viz., — to arrive at truth V)y a clear prcscntiition of argument. 
 
 Every paper is published except one, whicli was unfortunately sent away before 
 the author was askeil for it. In order, liowevor, to preserve the unity of the plan, 
 its place is taken by another paper of great merit on tlie same subject. 
 
 (3) 
 
 300658 
 
There being no shorthan.l reporter, it was found difficult to do justice to the 
 able and important discussions that followed the reading of each paper. A few of 
 the most important thoughts are however given,— some from the newspaper re- 
 ports and others from short abstracts by the speakers. 
 
 A few of our more prominent educationists who happened to be the chief actors 
 at this Convention were selected to enliven the pages of the reports by their 
 likenesses as well as by their thoughts. For this no apology is needed. By add- 
 ing something of the i)ersonal element interest is increased, and the subject* 
 discussed make a deeper impression. 
 
 Besides, there are thousands of teachers in Xova Scotia who will bo glad to have 
 good .ikenesses of those who were their teachers in the prominent academies and 
 high schools, of Inspectors whose sympatiiy went oiit to them in their work, of the 
 Normal School teachers to whom they are indebted for their professional skill, 
 and of the Superintendent of Education and his able predecessor. 
 
 The Skcretary. 
 
 4s 
 
the 
 of 
 re- 
 
 
 ors 
 eir 
 Jd- 
 ct« 
 
 ive 
 nd 
 he 
 ill. 
 
 OFFICERS 1894-'95. 
 
 President. 
 
 A. H. MacKAY, Ll.D., F. R. S. C, 
 Superintendent of Education. 
 
 Executive Committee. 
 
 J. B. CALKIN, A. M., Principal Normal^ School. 
 
 E. J. LAY, Principal Amherst Academy. 
 
 H. CONDON, Inspector, Halifax. 
 
 W. E. MACLELLAN, Inspector, Pictou. 
 
 MISS N. A. BURGOYNE, Windsor. 
 
 A. G. McDonald, M. a., Nor.mal Schooi> 
 
 Secretary. 
 A. McKAY, Supervisor of Halifax Schools. 
 
 i. 
 
 (5) 
 
^- 'i- Ma.Kw, I.,. I,. K. k.S., •„,,,, ,S,-,.KK,N,KM,KX,„K 
 
 :•• luircAi ION. 
 
MINUTES, PAPERS AND DISCUSSIONS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FROYINOL^L EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION, 
 
 TWELFTH CONVENTION. 
 
 ASSEMBLY HALL^ PROVINCIAL NORMAL SCHOOL, 
 
 1€th, 17th, lo. . October, 1895. 
 
 1st Session— WEDNESDAY, 16th. 
 
 9.15 a. m. — The President, Dr. MacKay, Superintendent of Education, took 
 the chair, and opened the proceedings witli a few appropriate reniariis. 
 
 A. McKay was re-elected Secretary, and Mr. H. S. Congdon of Halifax was 
 elected Assistant Secretary. 
 
 An hour was devoted to the enrolment of members. 
 
 On motion of Principal Miller, Dr. MacKay vacated the chair in iavor of 
 Principal Calkin. Principal McKeen then read the following address : — 
 
 To A. H. MacKay, Esq., Ll.D. : 
 
 Respected Sir,— We, the inspectors and teachers of Nova Scotia, assembled in 
 convention, desire to greet you with warmest welcome on this the first occasion of 
 your occupancy of the chair of our Provincial Association. We have greatly ap- 
 preciated your earnestness in the work of education while engaged as a teacher 
 in our public schools, and especially have we marked with pleasure your work in 
 promoting the study of Science in this Province. Although there may be differ- 
 ences of opinion as to ways and means of effecting this object, all recognize the 
 zeal which you have evinced in this matter. We recognize, too, your unwearied 
 efforts as Superintendent of Education in giving greater fulness and efficiency to 
 the educational system of our Province, so well inaugurated by your predecessors. 
 It is my pleasing duty now to give expression to the sentiment of the teaching 
 ■staff of this Province towards yourself— sentiments of respect, of honor, of good 
 will. The inspectors and teachers of Nova Scotia wish to acknowledge through 
 me, the uniform kindness, care and interest which they have always fouml in all 
 their intercourse with you, and as a mark of their appreciation, a visible token of 
 their esteem, they wish you to accept this cane. We hope that you may live long 
 to preside over us, and to exert your great energies on behalf of the educational 
 interests of Nova Scotia. 
 
 l7) 
 
t' 
 
 E. T. McKeen, PR.xcrrA,, Sydney Academy. 
 
 brought the. together fr:::!Z :^^^';:::2t7' !'""" '''''' '''''' '^'^ 
 inconvenience and expense. For the kst f™''"'"' "' '""^'^ P^'''^^"'-^! 
 
 meet the teachers of everal i.lltorJ: • 7V'' '" ''"' ^'^'^^ aceusto„,ecl to 
 yea, and was delighted w th h r i o'f" """"""^ '''' "■■ ""^ ^■•'"- «^ 
 to n>eot then. i,. Provincia C ^C ^^fT^ '?• '''' "^^^ ^^I->'^"^ ^^''^^ 
 The Christn.as weatlier of Halifax in 1^00 ^'^bernat.on of nearly fi.e years. 
 
 for the absence of any request ll^hrrcitXror^ ''''■ ^''' ""^"^^ '^'^-"^ 
 ventured to call it for Truro in <.ood 2' ' ? '' organization until he had 
 
 There had been nKn^ eh ."'""' ""f "' "°^ ''"^'^'"^^ t"-- 
 dangerous proceeding. To " , ' • kT'^T '*''' '^''" ^lo"e-ahvays a 
 ^vill ; but he was .dad tin akb ",.'', '" ''''^ '' '"'' '^^ '» "'^ o^ chief's 
 that, they would rj " J ^f ' 7' T?-^-"^^''' >— r inefficiently 
 
 presencewiththernforat J a^li^ *^« -^" - ^l-'i^-l 
 
 The wind blew sometimes LVm t ""' '^ "'^^ Convention, 
 tl^e Education Bep:!:::;^ i:! ^^ " J^ "^ ^'-.^-the papers that 
 standard of exanunation, opened t le flo „ 7 \ ',""'''^"''' ''^^ ^'''''"'^^ tlie 
 which, under the laws of ,1,7?' '"^"^^ ""^ -""try with teachers, 
 knew on equal authorit^t ' t il^Z' ' '"T ''''"'' '''' ^"^""^ ^he; 
 
 - — . - - eoUond::::LS'r:^^^^^^^^^ 
 
9 
 
 then, were d..,,^:„/a:a;S„:Z . Zr' ul T" "''T "'"' ™'° °' 
 lect of the practical suhincts for thll "'"^'^"f ; Tlmt there was too great a neg- 
 
 too great a neglect of hl^Lt.:,::","''- 7V'^ ^'"^'^''^' "'"^ ""^''^ -« 
 so on through the gamul J s " m '"' °' '''' """'^^^^ P^^'=^''^'>'' »"d 
 
 but there isLethi^lg "^ Zt'- '" "' " "™"« '^ "°^ ^«^-""-'^. 
 
 Well hp l,n I f I r *^ o»-soniething paintul to somebody. 
 
 so2:!oay i t: :^St7o:r ^^'-^i^-'^.^'^^-^ -'. -<• ^^ 4htbepainf„l to 
 tune his harp anc o en u eves ^'71 '" "^'"^"^ ^^"^^""'^ '"'' -"^-^ ^^ - 
 
 Very disturbing. If iTr ^h "a "", """",'""' ''' '''' ''''' '' '"^^ ^"^^a 
 from $51,000 to .$134,oSo W ;« not 7 h"'"f "? °" "'"°' ^'"'^''^"^^ ™- 
 for them ? The a^.nu. 1 vl oUh Th " ?""•" ^'' '^'''' '"*^^" «°°'^ --"^^ 
 .SI34,000 to |45,000:' tr!^ ^^^ ^f:^'^ "'" *'^^""'° ""^^ ^^°'" 
 not called in the dou days either T> ^ ^u ^'"^ """""' meetings were 
 
 and to .ask them to st Tardlke a Lr' '" '° ""'"'""'^ "^ ^'^^ ^-'^^-«' 
 Then the Government ca" lit tlr? ^"^- '^""^ '^''' ''''' «°"-^-'ly- 
 commenced to pay the teaS Lo f'T" '™" "" ^^^P'*^' »"^ ^^^ "^-^^y 
 From $213,000, the dlr: ^V^JS^T ^""■'"'' '^'^^^ '"^ '"'"^ ^^^'^ 
 up to .$240,000, nearly in Xht „f 1 T'''^ 'P'""^ '" ^""^ '"''"^^ ^^''^-^ 
 
 that be saved tolto the oa sv rl Lt TT ,'V' '"'"""• '''^^ «''°"^'l ^^ ^" 
 n>ore time and expend inTefa-n!" '^^" ^ ""' '" '""'^ *'' '"''^^^ '° *'*'^° 
 of the extra effort And rteZuhe"" ''I'^ ^"■''"^'^"' ''' ''''' ^-''«"'^-" 
 
 i"« the crowds at ex^-L^io To t fr"' '"'^' '" ""''""" "''""^' ""^^^^^- 
 1900, and at last t" T^rWh; e 1^ '™" ^^^^' ^° ''''' ^o 
 
 creaseth knowledge increasl sorrow' '''""^ "" P'°^"'' "^^'^^'''^^ -" 
 
School.^'f"'^;;'^' /n'" •''""' "'"" ^''''""'''^^ '''•"'"'• '^ ^''« Dartmouth PuLlfc 
 ftchools, for tlie following paper :— 
 
 A PROVINCIAL REFORMATORY FOR INCORRKJIBLE PUPILS. 
 
 By Principal Miller, Dartmouth High School. 
 
 of Se'eTeSs of Xj;T^t"^ noeossitates three things: A careful examination 
 ess. tlTml ''''"-'> t IS composed ; the classification of these elements into 
 
 ^^^/tji^;t^T:^^''^r''"'' ^^V^-'^-^ion is a good thing, and, eon. 
 
 owesi S:sii^Sr ^Kra;;^f^!^'SLte^- :^'s..?S 
 
 K2-^r ft tEl^ ^- - S- ^"^ ^- ^re Willing to ae:^;;; t, 
 
 . w}^"rr ^wi^r^'" ^'"^^^'°" "^^"-^^ ™^"^ ^^"-' --r^'"« ^° the 
 
 CaHeton nuts'f .?/^"^ '»°««-ff^°^^" f<^«^^il/ i» every school section who, as Will 
 iZtZ n ' M ^^"tf ° "" P"-^'^* 8"0'1 to be reached by tip-toein»ch Idren up 
 
 higher than ever the.r fathers was teached ;" and who, therefore quite Zstlv 
 ami ignorantly as well, bound their ideas of education by the nar'rrLit oTllf^ 
 
 the^Sl™^^^ UoTT: T'-1 ^-^'^tence if they had the power, would abolish 
 ine Jumleigaiten, b ot out of existence the High School, and expuncre from tl,e 
 
 ndlirr'F"/''?fT "";,^ expensive facfs as Calis\henics'Ee, D w " " 
 venviv • ^"'■tunatey forall concerned, the number of these "su vivals ' is 
 
 J ea,.^ becoming less, and soon they will be of interest only to the anti uari 
 
 ed.u n '"'"' •?• "? ""'"'■ ''''"' '^'''' ^^'^"' ""t satisfied with the sco o f,ee 
 education as it is at present, would throw wide open the door of the Univers tv 
 and permit the _ masses to wander unrestricted amid its classic slides The v 
 w^uld place no impediment in the way of the humblest peasant in le land n 
 he matter of getting an e.lucation, lest, perchance, there mi< 'l t be found oine 
 unite niglorious Milton " standing hopeles's before tiie frowning door 
 
 iJ:t'i^nJf::::^''' '" ^^^'-'"^"^^^ °^ ^■'"" ^'-' ^ - -^ent to 
 
 _ A curtailed and decapitated school system might possibly present some interesi 
 ng features u. the way of scientific investigatio.i to' the aiiaJomisrbut"'to fw o 
 have been intimately connected v.ith it during its lifetime, the mutilated ren a ns 
 shorn of Its fair proportions, would be inexpressibly Ghockincr ' 
 
 Disregardii g then both the character ana the extent of the education whether 
 restric ed to the narrowest proportions of Common School i truSS T'eU m led 
 to embrace within its limits an articulate and complete whole TmLd. he 
 Kindergarten play-room at one extremity and the Universitv aUhe o le L us 
 return to the datum we have laid down :-The State owes u^ educa on o its 
 children, and let us emphasize the word an. education to its 
 
 That the state admits the truth of this assertion a.id acknowledges the oblir.ation 
 
 ■ 
 
(lata 
 
 11 
 
 true, as every toaci.e and s honl 2; i '"^ u'''^^ 'T>""'"'' '^ '^ ""fortimatoly 
 
 cities, is painfully aware ' '''''"'"^' '" '""" ^''"'^«°^' ^°"'"« '-^"'l 
 
 f^yJTLli'Z '™'r'"'':l '''"'''/''■ '•'' '''^" ^^'''" inaugurated the Free School 
 5^ S e Ir^^^^^^^ •""1^^'^ "^, "^'"^ -""try that^'great blessing, were able 
 
 O. J. Miller, Principal High School, Dartmouth. 
 
 ticIVofilr*' ''°«'^f ••' t° ^"••P'-i^e »s very much, this in.lifference to the advan- 
 
 a^e of h! 3 r """''''''{ '' '''° "•'^^^^'-''■y '•-^•^'■ti'^" to profit by it. In all 
 ages ot the world ignorance and superstition have ever resented the efforts nJZ 
 in every direction, to ameliorate their wretched condition! '' 
 
 >Saniary reforms necessary to health and even to life, are frequently enforced 
 upon those whom they are to protect, " n ef arpm " ^ "-nroiceu 
 
 (geologists tell us that beneath the firm pavement on which we tread there i, n 
 
 s°i"'tir ;;: s t, ■^•'i? '="^^^''""^'^ r-^ '•^^*^"^^'' *° ^^ -ml: ,iuk/;":i,it!or 'i. 
 
 ad s tra n l\ ^'f.'"*^"^""^ ^'"^W ''^ s^'^t Up. Colossal forces writhe and heave 
 ami strain, struggling desperately for freedom. Oiants ar.. th«re " .vn,t i,, the 
 
 t^i^o'Zr:!.!''' "^''•" "'"" ''''' P''^^'""^ -'^^ require^a miSulerthan 
 
12 
 
 chiLt%n°!l'!^°^ iKnorance and superstition constitutes a real and evor-presnnt 
 danger to society and good government-to life, property and prosneritv Tn^f 
 
 More frequently, as the years go by, can be heard the rumbling and mutterini? 
 
 hort ,XK""- ^-""ir '""'l T'^'' ^^"'«1 --« sends a' shock of 3 
 liorroi and alarm quivering through the calm indifference of the upper world • 
 
 ILTT\- ,^ ^'''"'' *"' '''^"cation peculiarly their own. As infants thev 
 attend he Kindergarten in the slums and back alleys ; later they sVud Geo'ra Z 
 
 .cilncooi'!.n/"r"'''''/^''^''"^ ""J""^^ "^ ^^"^'^ who attain to eminence in the 
 science of counters, jabs, uppercuts, right and left swings and knocks-out-k "i.-ht^ 
 the short hair, square aw, and broken nose-to whose brilLnt a ieveien 
 
 iKut^iiflmbi^a '"'' '"'^ """'' °' '''' '''""'' ''^''^' ^'^"^'^ ^"^1 -t-ge society are 
 in JtlVtr' ^^'/''' ^''!°°^ '^'*^™ ^'' f^^l*^'! to reach to any considerable extent 
 
 ^^J^:::^i::;^:^:::^z^ --^'-^-^ -^ ^eL„g influence^V":; 
 
 en.y/;?'"']""^'^ '''*','^''^ "f * ''""§°'" ^'■'^'^'^-^ "loi'e revolutions than all other causes 
 
 clertook to prepare a paper on this subject, to find that a lartre number of in, o 
 g.bles come from the homes of respectable, intelligent and ^ luSo par nt" 
 
 Donald /T V"^ 't'' -"'f F.°'"''"°" Educadonal Association at Mo, 1 real 
 Donald J. McKinnon, Principal of Victoria Industrial School, says of the puni 1 !: 
 
 " te b" 2nt7 ur' w' '^ ^^'i^'r% - "-»es not their oJn, till olS e ugl^ 
 10 DC sent to us. Some are motherless boys left to the care of hireling bnnl 
 
 «keeper.s who think they have done their duty when they lave <Ln KhS^^^^^ 
 ood and ck,thing,-everything but love. Some have been ruinerbrL'lh un 
 feeling fathers. Many more are 'mamma's pets,' the sons o wlen wl o ^an't 
 ay 'no, and who practically train their b^ys o believe witl B^iz ar tint 
 
 " r ; ;t •^^'■":,"'^« "if ^' ^^V'-". -'^l "-i bom for their use Bu more th fa 
 
 "farlvSf'"' t'^*^ ^'^>lt? f^.''^^I'''«t=^''l° ■"<="^"d women, who do the r du y 
 
 "c it 'sou ik ''T'T ^" ''^'^°^'" ' ^^''° ''-^"^'^ '' t^"^ W's childish rage and 
 call It spunk, who laugh at his petty thieving and lying and call it 'sowii^ 
 lus wild oats, without giving a single thought to the harvest ^ 
 
13 
 
 "And 80 it goes on until the spoiled boy can defy his father and strike or kick 
 
 his mother, and then he is given to us." 
 
 All the classes described so graphically above are present with us. Wliat are 
 ive doing to save them to society ? Very little if anything. What can we do to 
 repair the evil effects resulting from no fault of theirs, and to prevent them be- 
 coming vagabonds on the face of the earth ? As things are at present, very little ! 
 f yet, the State owes an education to its children," and those neglected 
 starved, ill-used, lU-trained unfortunates are among the number 
 
 In theory the State pays .ts debt by providing Free Schools for all— in practice 
 the debt IS but partially discharged, since many do not take advantage of the pro- 
 
 We already have on the statute book a compulsory school law, with elaborate 
 
 provisions for the treat uent of truants. It is a good law-so fa^ as it coes It 
 
 18 a step-a ong one in the right direction. But it does not go quite far^encmjfh 
 
 It is incomplete and is therefore unworkable. Like the schools themselves it 
 
 fails to reach the very classes of boys for whom it was primarily designed-the 
 
 habitual truants, the incorrigibles. . o "« 
 
 The compulsory law says that after having been "arrested and brought to school 
 
 hree times within three months, the offender shall be liable to imprisonment for 
 
 such term as the Stipendiary Magistrate may adjudge, n.)t exceeding one month " 
 
 Ihe officers can easily arrest the offenders, but when we have them the question 
 
 arises what to do with them. Where will the truant be imprisoned? In the 
 
 County Jail ? Well ! let us think about that a little. "P"-^""''^! ' i» the 
 
 The truant is arrested, brought before the Magistrate, the offence proved and the 
 
 offender sentenced to 30 days imprisonment in the County Jail. x\ow we have 
 
 him safe. He won't play truant, annoy or defy his parents, furnish exercise for 
 
 the po ice, or worry his teacher for 30 days anyhow. But, in the meantime, what 
 
 about his education ? ' 
 
 The primary object of all education is good citizenship-to make men~to turn 
 them out intelligent, moral, law-abiding citizens ; and one of the means by which 
 this great work is to be prosecuted is— the County Jail. 
 
 ♦i,^'i\?*'''u °'r' ''^" education to this child, and we are educating him— pavincr 
 the debt-by shutting him up in jail, to transform a thoughtless, runaway pupil 
 into a jail-bird ; of a truant to make a criminal -to lock him up for a month and 
 compel him to associate with crime and vice of every description ; because he is 
 bad and troublesome, to make him worse ; to compel him at one plunge to cross tlie 
 Rubicon hat as yet, separates him from degradation and disgrace ; to strip off 
 orcibly the cloak of respectability which, up to this time, has protec ed him, and 
 to brand him -Ja.l-bird. It is horrible. But whose boy is this whom defective 
 training has made a truant, ami whom the law has made a criminal? Yours 
 perhaps or mine. Think of it a little : the shame of the open court, of the public 
 stree, of the prison bars. It is an education in itself, certainly, but scarcely of 
 that kind which the State owes to its children. ^ 
 
 I may be,, perhaps, too sensitive ca this point, but I am quite sure of tlus-that 
 1 would as soon see my boy lying dead at my feet as behind the bars oi the iail 
 window. I can only suppose that those who framed that clause in the law did 
 not stop consider seriously the relations existing between Education and the 
 to beTried'' ^^i^n^'^elves had no sons upon whom the experiment was likely 
 
 Every boy is bora a communist. He believes instinctively in the great brother- 
 hood of man. He unhesitatingly subscribes to the doctrines of Fraternity 
 Equality and Liberty. It follows naturally that he firndy believes everything to 
 be his which IS not beyond his reach. It is only by good training that he arriv s 
 at the distinction between meum and <«M;«-that it is wrong to consider "all 
 things common. 
 
 Home and mother usually eradicate these traces of " original sin " during the 
 
14 
 
 nl'^l'/s^r^Inllf !'""il' •'^"y''''!'« "'7^^ tl'«t "">"« "n.l Mother arc of U.o 
 nlitbort. In Imtuas.. the schr.ol has l,ut to l.iiil.l upon the solid f„uiuhitio>, 
 "1 .'il. y propnnMl. Hut if the hoine trainiufr ho .lefectivc or v^vuCZ' Z^t 1 
 Bc .001 has a .liHerent an.I .nueh n>ore di.iic^lt task hef^ t' ^ V ^.^^^^^^^ 
 1.0 l.u.ue work If wanting, or to counteract its teaching, if .njurious hef, 
 ca.i enter on Its legitm.ate functions. J'mou., otioic it 
 
 tn,^l!f •'"V^'''!,;''-''''^^ t'"' confinen.ent an.I .•estraint of the school and hecon.e a 
 « n t 1 " 7 """"' '"' ,»^:'!-^''''""'^ I"'"P<''ty an.I will probahly steal. He vi 
 8..on he letecte.l .n w.'ong-.lon.g, and, to shield himself, will very likely lie } 
 because he has stolen an. lie.l to escape the conse.,uona.s, it by L mean follows 
 It he .s bc branded before the little world of the .school-mom as a thief o a 
 l.ai. To ,0 .so n.ight be logical, but would certainly be unrea.sonable It won .1 
 moreover, hasten the average boy on the road to ruin, and subvert the very a ms 
 and purposes for which the school is designed ^ 
 
 The teacher if she happen to be of the right kind, will frequently save this 
 neglected wait l)y getting hold ..f his affections an. winniiu^ his e^s teem 
 
 spect m some my.stenous inauner which I do not even pretend to xpk nit 
 alas ! t ese heaven-born teachers are few and far l)etween. The " Jete « JS 
 nonfif" of Horace is a so applicable to the race of teachers in a nJkTdZ 
 
 1 was a saying of the late Inspector Condon, that where the Normar':Sc hool 
 mm Ie;.« teachers the Lor.l made one, an.I even that one is fre.iuently ost to the 
 
 w.^l*''-'/?'"''''/' '" ??'"'"' ""■^•^'""^''' inexperienced ; if her heart be not in her 
 work; ,f her knowledge o child nature be deficient ;-that boy is lost Hs 
 offences against law and order n. iltiply ; punishment follows rapidl 'each petty 
 breach of rule or vogu ation ; familiarity breeds contempt and .difference "^'oth 
 t^tf ant:: -^iS '- '- -''-' ''"P-- *^' ^"^^ ^^-^ very'l^g ■;;: W 
 He is arrested tried and sentenced. We have already seen him behind the bars 
 At the expuation of his term of imprisonment he is released and resumes iS 
 pla e ainong hK« fellows. Here one of two things is sure to happe. -rolSy 
 both He w.l be despised by one class, the orthodox good boy, who will slum 
 him like the ph.gue. He will be admired by the oniinary cv,.ry-day boy w Z 
 he will contaminate as much as h,3 is able. He will be a gilde.l L ^V T<;mai c 
 H.S career while absent Ins exploits-imaginary or otherwise-told in n™^ 
 Lnghsh ornamented an.I cmphasize.l by choice and forcible expletives picked un 
 auS' 'Sk^'m 1^ the public expense, will be listene.l L witT CSJlZ 
 attuition. Like all heroes, he will have imitators, and the numbers will increase 
 .^ot good, but positive evil, has resulted from his arrest and i m prison men -!: 
 evil to himself ami to those with whom he is associate.l He is in eve ~ct a 
 m.^ dangerous companion for his fellows than before ^ ^ 
 
 t.Tf "■'' '5'1"'"' to complete th. compulsory law an.I to render it workable- 
 to makeit eliective, IS an iM.stituti,,n where these unfortunates will be cared for 
 
 puE ;'i" "' """"' "''^"^'"^ ^'"'" '' ^''^ ^'^'■'"'" contaminiloncJa 
 
 tho^sil'lT 7""'° '' '' y->^^f~^''^ a jail-where our incorrigibles will be tau<d,t 
 the .beets of a common .school course; where they will, in^addition, be traim.l 
 to habits of obedience, self-restnint, in.lustry ; where they will be tau'dit to so 
 he ordmary tools of median cal pursuits ; and, in short, where they w fl le 'iven 
 a chance to develop into useful, respectable citizens. .'--eonen 
 
 " The State owes an education to its children," and to ail of them. 
 
 DrscussioN.-MR. Wm. McKerru.v, Commissioner of Schools for Halifax citv 
 
 " rose to reply, 
 
 stating, in effect, that it was chiefly carried on by^JiTvate belief rc'tbuT 
 
 !ive the basis on which the Industrial School was carried oii, 
 
 He thought 
 

 15 
 
 thorc was no criniiiml class in Nova Scotia, ami lie was dearly averse to any 
 .sncli institution, thinking' it would be too ri<,'i(l an.l jail-like. The Sumlay-scliool, 
 einstian love, the churches, private subset ij.tions, etc., shoul.l ileal with such 
 children. He thought it clearly their duty, possibly with some as.sistance from 
 the (.overnment. He instanced the j^ood work done bv christian men and women 
 in the courts, the slums, and wherever their <,'ood works were needed." 
 
 Mi.ss GiuiiAM, of Lower Economy.--"rn exprossinj,' mv appreciation of Mr. 
 Millers excellent paper I must object to Mr. McKerron's criticism, for I cannot 
 understand why Mr. ^[cK. should talk of .saving these incorrigibles by kin.lness 
 and love 'instead of reformatories. Does Mr. Miller prt)pos(! a reformatory 
 where love and kindness are unknown ? On the contrary, his paper has evinced 
 limit as well as inklb'cf, and I am sure that he wishes children in reformatories 
 to be oyed and cared for as they had never been in their unlovely homes. But 
 .Mr. .McK. says there am no ineorrij,'ibles, there /'v no criminal class in Nova Seotia, 
 and It IS the church's duty to look after the poorer classes. If the latter are 
 neither incorrigible nor criminal, it is from this class that criminals are generally 
 produced. It IS not the business of the Ciiurch to make citizens ; it is the State's 
 duty to make the best possible citizen.s, for what is the State but a united body of 
 citizens. And while reforimitories luay be for the present a necessary way of deal- 
 ing with etlects, can we not look a little <leeper into the cause of the existence of 
 this incorrigible class, which will largely b*^ found to be poverty,, the remedy 
 tlierefore will be the abolition— not relief— of all unnecessary poverty." 
 
 A. McKay, Supervisor of Halifax Schools.— There are in Halifax two estab- 
 lishnieiits to which incorrigible truants are sentenced— St. Patrick's Home and the 
 In.lustrial School. In the former the boys arc; taught the three R's for perhaps 
 hve hours a day. In the Industrial School several hours each day are .levoted to 
 splitting kindling wood and working in a shoe factory. In St. Patrick's Home 
 the inmates mchide many respectable poor, besides truants and criminals. Much 
 attention is given to farming and gardening. They are both excellent institutions, 
 and both are doing much for the criminal classes, lAit truant children may be in- 
 corrigible truants and yet not criminals. They should not therefore be sent to 
 as.sociate with criminals. 
 
 Public sentiment and practice in ev(!ry civilized country are against such treat- 
 ment of those children who unfortunately cannot overcome their dislike for 
 school. 
 
 Our Compulsory School Act, perhaps tlie best of its kind in tlie world, cannot 
 be ethciently administered so long as we are without well-managed parental schools 
 tor such children. There are in Halifax and in all our large towns, as any un- 
 prejudiced person will at once admit, many boys wiio are growing up in illiti-raey 
 and crime, and who, instead of l)eing trained a^ u.seful citizens, are fast driftiiu' 
 into the erimuial cla.sses to be a burden to the State. It would therefore bo wi.se 
 economy on the part of the Government to establish parental schools, to which 
 uninanagealile puiuls could be sent, and where wise and Jcindly treatment would 
 soon win them to l)etter ways and industrious habits. 
 
 . In Massachusetts our [.resent plan was tried and abandoned as being barbarous. 
 Ihey now have parental schools for every county. The same is true of other 
 places in the liiited States, Great Britain and Germany. 
 
 The expense need not be serious ; for parents would' be expected to contribute 
 according to their ability, and the counties according to the number of pupils sent 
 troin tiiem. The schools would be partly self-sustaining. I'.eing on the cottage 
 system, there would l^e every opportunity for grading and classiHeation to suit all 
 interests. 
 
 It is vain to talk al>out leaving the work to societies and churclics. They are 
 to be praised for what they have done, but in spite of all their efforts the work is 
 not hall done. Ihey have neither the money nor the legal status necessary. Ex- 
 
16 
 
 perienco everywhere proves that if education is to be general so as to safeguard the 
 State, it must bo in part compulsory, and if compulsion is to be effective there 
 must be parental schools. 
 
 The following resolution was moved by Supervisor McKay : — 
 
 Resolved, That this Association endorse Principal Miller's arguments in favor of 
 the establishment of a Reformatory for Incorrigible Truants, and tiiat a committee 
 bo appointed by the Association to bring the subject before the Provincial Govern- 
 ment. 
 
 E. T. McKekn, Principal Sydney Academy.— Before putting this resolution, 
 which, if carried, will definitely commit this Convention to the principle of 
 establishing a reformatory for the in(:orrigil)les of the Province, would it not Ijo 
 well for us to have a deHnite understanding of what is meant by the term "incor- 
 rigible T If it refers exclusively to children of tender years who render them- 
 selves amenable to the laws of the land by the commission of some crime, I would 
 strongly support any plan that would place them under such control that they 
 could be properly trained in the duties of citizenship and kept from association 
 with hardened criminals in the jails and penitentiaries. But if 1 understood 
 Principal Miller aright, and the " incorrigibles " are those who are specially dis- 
 obedient and* jiersistent truants, I am afraid that tiie establishment of either sec- 
 tional or central reformatories will do more harm than good. The boy who is 
 sentenced by process of law will always thereafter be under a cloud in his own 
 community, and tlie taunts of his fellows would be conductive to anything but 
 good in his after life. It would seem like an invasion of the liberty of the subject 
 that a boy should be haled before a magistrate and condemned to a reformatory 
 for a term at the caprice of somebody. I sliall not presume to speak for Colchester 
 or Halifax, or the western counties, but I firmly believe that in the section of the 
 Province from wliich I come, no such law could be enforced. There are various 
 ways of dealing with disobedient and truant pupils, but tlie reformatory is no place 
 for them. In any event, if this Convention is going to ask the (iovernment to 
 build and establish an institution of this kind, would it not be well to ascertain 
 first how many incorrigibles there are in the Province, so that adequate provision 
 may be made. Perhaps there are thousands of them and perhaps there are 
 only a few, confined to some particular locality. 
 
 The following amendment to the resolution was them moved by Commissioner 
 McKerron : — 
 
 Resolved, That the Superintendent of p]. ation, through the Inspectors, collect 
 statistics and information regarding the subject, and report at the next meetiu" of 
 the Association. 
 
 G. J. Miller, Principal High School, Dartmouth. — There seems to be a very 
 general misunderstanding of the sense in whicii the word incorrigible was used in 
 my paper. A great part of the adverse opinions expressed about the necessity of 
 such an institution and the benefits to be derived from it, may be traced to that 
 fact. 
 
 By incorrigible was not meant an utterly bad, vicious boy with whom nothing 
 could be done, but generally speaking, a good hoy spoiled, — a boy who plays truant 
 and of whom it is impossible to get hold and keep hold. 
 
 ' To educate a boy, we must first be able to control him and we cannot control 
 him unless we can place him where he cannot escape. Incorrigible boys are those 
 who when brought to school by the truant oflScer, jump the fence as soon as his 
 back is turned and play truant until caught again, when the farce is repeated. 
 
 It is to prevent those incorrigibles from becoming criminals that I advocate the 
 founding of an in.stittition v.'liore they may have at once the benefits of a home 
 and a school training and if possible, the foundation of a trade. 
 
3 as to aafef,'uaril the 
 be effective there 
 
 giiinonta iii favor of 
 ml tliut a coinniitteo 
 ! Provincial Govern- 
 ing this resolution, 
 to tlie principle of 
 ce, would it not bo 
 by the term " incor- 
 
 wlio render thoni- 
 iome crinit, I would 
 h control that they 
 pt from association 
 nt if 1 understood 
 10 are specially dis- 
 ment of either sec- 
 l. Tiie boy who is 
 a cloud in his own 
 ve to anything but 
 berty of the subject 
 ed to a reformatory 
 peak for Colchester 
 n the section of the 
 
 There are various 
 )rmatory is no place 
 he (4overnment to 
 le well to ascertain 
 adequate provision 
 
 perhaps there are 
 
 1 by Commissioner 
 
 ! Inspectors, collect 
 le next meeting of 
 
 seems to be a very 
 figible was used in 
 lit tlie necessity of 
 ■ be traced to that 
 
 17 
 
 The f„ct that over 1000 heads of families in 
 Hoard f( ■•• • 
 
 Halifax were cited lieforo the Sdi.ml 
 
 Hoard f.U' insum.i.M.t attendance ,1, . . i ''^ «•<;>■" "itcl heforo the School 
 
 reply to ('„„.,, NlcKerr „' r^.' :;■ r ^''"' •"•■"' "" ^'""'- ^^ " '"""I'l-te 
 
 that city. Further that none^f ' 1 JtlX^^I^^S^'lu r'""'''«""-" "> 
 petent to udye eveent tiuw.. ;.. ...1, /• ' > "J'"'"*'"^ "le sehenie were com- 
 
 Wion,''u.;itho:;'^h!rwer"v;:;n:"" "''-'""I-'-^'l-v has been in 
 
 The resolution then passed unanimously. 
 
 ith whom nothing 
 
 
 y who plays truant 
 
 
 ve cannot control 
 
 
 ible boys are tlioso 
 
 
 ice as soon as his 
 
 
 rce is repeated. 
 
 
 lat I advocate the 
 
 
 enefits of a home 
 
 
 2 
 
I 
 
 ID FRA^-PAIS A LA NOUVELLE ECOSSE. 
 
 Hv I'uoFEMSoii Lanos, Halifax Aoademv. 
 
 .•mettro dans le conrs de .;e travnil, ]..,i,n..,nt mm bi.>n «'aimlimi,.r •! IV ^7 ? 
 l'n,V«la..s par dos Fran.;ais qu'a cell., du franrais par des A-K-iah' ^ ' ""'" ''° 
 
 Si je ne traitais que d,, la tln'.orie do. lan^M.os je tue contei.teraiH de vou8 indinn«r 
 
 phu^s sr '^^ "^^^^ - '"^■"'"-^ •-- ''"' «• °-p-t d:^;sj- 
 
 enseigm^ '"'"'"'"'"'"''' »« Joindre a n.es theories tout ce que la pratique m'a 
 
 aLs^fmen'r"' ' ''"'"""'* ''^"' ^'"' '^'^''''''"^ '1"^' ^' ''^""'1'"' ''^ cola se comprend 
 
 la ':Jti:itZ.^ """""""'^'^ ^'^"""-^^ ''' P"'-'- <!- - t-»vent k 
 
 U pratique, quin.arche a travers des difficulties et des .landers dc toutes esn^ces 
 a bcsou) d'un suido habde, experiment.'., s-t de ses pas esp6ces, 
 
 I-a tln.orie d'une langue peut .'tre enscigu.'e par n' importe qui ; la prati.iue ne 
 lo saurait etre que par un nialtre n.'. ou quelqu' un qui e'n a explo e ton les coins 
 
 Les pruunpes g..neraux d'.;du.,.ation s'appliquent aux la.iaues con me .^^0 X' 
 autre science, cependant, il y a quelque cl.ose .le plu. ° *' ^°"*^ 
 
 Les tlu.ones sont souvent la note dominante d'une cat.Wie dVtudes • la note 
 doimnante en fait de langues, doit .Hre la pratique ' 
 
 fai^^Lagr "'''' '^"'"" '"^'"""^"^ ^'-' ^='•'^^•'"1 q»i tire sa valeur de celui ,iui en 
 
 et ktrali;;^'"'" ^' ''"'"'' ''" '"°" """•^" ^" '""*« '^^^"^^"°" '^ f-* ''^ th.^«rie 
 ; ans quel ordre et dans quelle mesure ? 
 Les uns disent: Peu .le theorie-Beaucoup de pratique 
 Les autres ripostent-Qu' est ce que de la pratique sans princip.^ ' 
 
 la praUqne.^' ' *^"' '""' '^"''' ^'"' '''*"' "''"'^ '^'''^''''' ''•^""' ' ^-"^ 
 
 Celui-la repond que tout dans la nature nous enseigne au conuaiic, .. ne porter 
 des lois que sur ce que Ton a connu et mis en ceuvre diMa ^ 
 
 Qui a raison 1 
 
 Qui a tort ? 
 
 L'uu e* I'autre peut-etre. 
 
 esndf"'.n^"" ''^ ^fl «:onsister qu'i former le jugement, qu'k faire un bon 
 esput ,.an. >. , ■. .s sJide, ce que les anciens appelaient : Mens sana in corpora 
 
 (18) 
 
G. 
 
 1110 ]iroj)08o 
 a ri'tiiilc do 
 
 nu8 indiquer 
 Miggc'rer des 
 
 i'ati(inn iii'a 
 
 Ills do tem- 
 orse, ctj'ai 
 ■elleinent la 
 
 coniprond 
 
 trouvont b. 
 
 tcs esjK^cos, 
 
 pratique ne 
 ' les coins, 
 me a toute 
 
 ;s; la note 
 
 liii <iiii en 
 
 t la tlu'orie 
 
 cbf-r ;. vant 
 ne porter 
 
 ! un boa 
 1 corpora 
 
 
 i 
 
 19 
 
 L't'diicution nnti.iue, pfr,,t h'i.«m,.,.,h> ,!• , i 
 
 a!.-. 1.. pri„ci,x.a «ur |..,uel.s la slut :.,;',,;;,.''' ^ ' ''" """"'■^"'"-•'■■^ "■•^ K*'^^'" 
 
 "|'|.rof.,ndir. 4U« i<'n . noi8iN«a,t ou do hi scjenw q,„. l'o„ vonhiit 
 
 ^'important n'c^t nas ,1.. unvniv .u i 
 
 -prit .!t„„ fonddel:nnaLrr«t'Su.!;LT:^- ^'^^' ^T "''^ "" 
 travaill.M- avoc fruit. ^ nuxquelles .>ii pnisse, a I'aide .l-s livroH 
 
 tVst Ja, il me s...nl.I,., la vrai,. .i p,„(itul,l. .:,lucation 
 
 JULES LANDS. II. A., LL.H. 
 
 ii.™»,i, ,„„ 0, i.;„ i',ri,i:;iz;,'':„!;'; '» »"""'" •''■ ''"»i« ■■■■' 1-..0, :,„„, „„ 
 
 exemple. " ' '' "^"^'"^ '1"'''" I'liy«ique et la l.otanic i.;, par 
 
 Done les vieux latinistes narlaient Intin • ii= > ■ , 
 
 fujour; leur conversation .'.aiSeV/.-'^^ ';xerva,ent a toutes les heures 
 ^ pays etaient en latin ' ^'' "-'"*'""•' '^' ^^'^^'""^ '^ savant et .ie pays 
 
 S;r :;^:/S;;ttz;bii" v^ .^'rr^r -'^ -- «^ v^e : 
 
 insensiblenient, jusqu^rjou o . fa , , T r "■"•'' '"f" '^ P^"' " «'««* ' 'iol'^ 
 il est p^trifi. paie^i'il JZ^Z InoJ^o H^; ^^[S;'^ ^'' '''■ ^".'--''"^ 
 si :n-:^ ' S; S^ '^>- '-- ^"'- - '^ P-l« i:i.rie fran,ais no sera Ja.ais 
 
20 
 
 Co qui pst aiTiv(' aiix laii<,'iies ile Rome" et d'Atlu-nes 8Vtei(,'naiit aussitot 
 qu ulle.s ne se parloiit plus, attend le fninyais nioderne a'il D'appreiid pas a uiarclier, 
 
 En offet, quelle diilV'i'ence y a-t-il entre 
 
 un 
 
 vieillard q\ii ne sail plus I'usage de 
 
 ses niemljres et renfaii" qui i>rnore eneore Tusage des sr'us"^ Aucune. 
 
 Ainsi done, si Ton se contentait de rac(;uisition superficielle de ri'gles et de 
 mots, on ne tardeiait pas de s'aperee-oip oil man([ue la laiigue. Kii praticpie, une 
 langue ainsi apprise ne vaudniit rien. 
 
 A peine aiderait-elle h passer un examen eerit tout de tlieorie. 
 
 L'etude des langue.s, depuis la disparutioii prcsque totale du latin a cependant 
 son importance. 
 
 Dans le passi', le latin I'tait ce que le volapiik se promet d'etre dans le present 
 et ravenir. 
 
 Kn ce moment le nionde litteraire, scientitique, artistique, comniereiai et poli- 
 tique n'a reellement i)as de langue et de lien eommuns, et pour se mettre en rela- 
 tions avec ces inondes divers, il faut en savoir, je ne sais comhien. 
 
 Mais, si Ton s'adonne aux langues, qu'on prcnne hien garde qu'il n'y a pas 
 que la grammaire. 
 
 Hans cette precaution on tombe dans I'histoire, la collection, la genealogie, tout, 
 except!' les langues qui doivent etre eminemment pratiques, sous I'ceifvigilant 
 toutefois, des principes nuiitres. 
 
 Taut que le latin, an 
 langues barbares sent restei 
 seizieme et du dix-septiei 
 
 il les ecrire et les parler, immediatement une baisse enc rme se 'prod'uit du cote du 
 latin. 
 
 II avait re(;u un coup mortel. Au moment oi%j'ecris, on ne s'en occnpe uu 
 pen serieusement que dans I'eglise de Rome, oil le latin est encore la langue de ia 
 liturgie et des conciles. 
 
 8i tant d'hommes intelligents n'avaient point attarde leur genie, dans le jiasse, 
 il l'etude du latin, il me senible que I'anglais, le francais et autres idiomes 
 modernes auraient atteint leur forme actuelle cent-cinquante ans plus tot. 
 
 Mais, ne nous plaignons point d'un fait aecompi;, qui, apres tout, a peut-etre 
 plus servi que nui k ces langues. 
 
 Seulemont, nous ne saurions nous dissimuler conibien il est n(>cessaire ii un 
 liomme qui ib'sire marcher avec son temps, de posseder quelquesunes des langues 
 (pn ont succede au latin. 
 
 ^ O'est pn'cisement ce qui m'ii suggdre I'idee de ce travail sur le francais et 
 j'entre dans le vif de la question apres cet apereu genihal de la situation. 
 Abordons, en premier lieu I'enseignement du franyais aux Anglais 
 
 s lUiiiLies. 
 
 u moyen age, a garde la premiere place dans I'education, les 
 restees il Feta^ d'embryon. Miiis voila que les lettres du 
 tieme siecle se mettent a les etudicr, ii les polir, a les enricliir. 
 
 DANS LES ECOLES ANGLAISES. 
 
 Si jamais queliju'un a voulu faire de l'etude un simple jeu, il s'est trompe. 
 
 II n'y a pas plus de route royale k cela qu'a autre chose. 
 
 Voulez-vous savoir une langue du tout? mettez-y le temps, le traviiil et la peine. 
 
 Avec ces forces vous aurez vite parcouru les premieres etapes qui sont les plus 
 rudes. 
 
 Je ne crois pas utile, en presence de mes lecteurs anglais, de bien vanter I'l'tudo 
 du francais. 
 
 lis savent tons son importance et sa place parmi les langues europeenne.s, dans 
 le monde des lettres, des arts et des sciences aussi bien qu'en politique. lis savent 
 condiien on le parle en Asie, en Afrique, en Amerique et surtout au Canadii et ii 
 la Xoiivelle-Ecosse. 
 
 Comme clarte, concision et harmonic ils ont appris le rang du doux piarler de 
 France, et si je leur di-sais qu'apre.-5 I'anglais le franrais merite la premiere 
 
i 
 
 21 
 
 place dans les .^coles, il.s pourraient sourire .In n,a na.vef,,. n.ais ils no se r,'.criraient 
 
 fa;!;ra:;;:;tt";;ossihf.:^'" ^""^^" ^-'"-'^"^^ '^ -naroso„.tuaef,.uetueu«eet 
 
 Kn enseignant le fran.;ais a ties Anglais, il faut .'.vitei- <lenx exc/.s • tron rip 
 grannna.ro d'un cote : de I'autre, trop de pratique sans gramn.aire^- ' '' "^^ 
 
 1) abonl, trop de gra.nmaire-Rappelons-nous le sage precepte : Xon modus rei 
 ante rem : Kn premier lieu la chose, ens.iite ce .|ui PexpliquJ 
 
 Or, SI vo.is drhutez par la grammaire, sans que les eleves aient ce fond de co„ 
 najssances et d'expenences dont je parlais plus l.aut, vons frappc" dan le vide 
 
 Comment voulez-vons que rles regies et des exceptions deLtsd.^,h,es' de 
 <=onstruct.on.s francaises .'vciHent chez I'enfant un int.'.ret qucSiqi e' dSv il 
 ne possede, a un .'ertain .legr/., ces formes et leurs anonudies ^ ' ^^ '^ 
 
 Ailiil est in intellectu quod non prius fuerit in seiisu ■ 
 
 ^ous ne pouvons pas entrer en communication avec I'intelligence de I'enfant 
 
 Pour arriyer a notre anie, les connaissances forcent trois j.ortes ouvrant sur lo 
 
 " m "'on ii; ' r n r ; '""'"• , "^^ ''°^^" 'r, ^""^ ''""'^ ^''^-"^-' cciim/; 
 
 vo.K/: tt, on Je^ appelle— les sens— la mcmoire— rintelli<rpnce 
 
 de proposerais done, comme le plan le plus pratiquJ'et celui qui m'a le mieux 
 reussi depuis que je m'occupe d'onseigner le franeais 
 
 1 La lecture. 
 
 ^° La traduction de ce qui a ('te hi, 
 
 3° La grammaire de cette lecture en s'y bornant strictement. 
 
 reis .lT".tl^;S tZ '"'^"^'^ °" ''''''' ^" ''''''' -'^ ''' '-'^' «-* '1- 
 5 Conversation sur lo morcean ('.tudie ou imitation, viva voce 
 r»e sorto que le franeais s'appreiidrait plntot par usa^e quo nar r;.cln« n. 
 
 I'entendant, le lisant, lo relisant, le transcrivlnt, on 'couvoS tion et'par ?t5io 
 
 Jo devolop])erai un pen : 
 ' I'ii^Sur" 'o;"';;::!?',''^"'"'''^ ^"•"' ^'^ l'i"«^ituteur, comme la nature elle-memo 
 
 Une condition pour bien comprendro est de bien lire ; si vous lise^ .ans fmto 
 vons entendrez la conversation du niaitre sans difficulte; parce qXrk'o^lnS 
 
 vou^'Vset"'' """ '^"" '""'' """' '■^•^•■•^-^'""^ P"'-l«^ «i difleremment de ce que 
 Pas du tout, vous lisez mal. 
 
 La bonne mani(Vede lire est la suivante — Le maitre lit d'lbonl l„nf,... , . 
 distuH-temeut la matiere de la le..on- Les .d.'.ves r Ste i lo ; ? i.o , "^ 
 
 ^, un inoius avance ensuite,\iusqu'a ce que ll, \:l:^^'Zt S:?Z 
 ante. Lo maitre ne laissera jama s passer uno fauto sms Ii i.pm.o,,.!,.. "'''"'"^- 
 do,mm,ler a la classe on generai'de dnJner la pr;mo:^l:.^m^!:,.;2r '"' "' ^"" 
 d'idS^;^/ ''"^"' '' ''■"'''^''"^' ''^^''"^^^'"^ ^'"^-'^ -1- P-iW^'les difficultes 
 ex^dlmr'':''"^'"""'""'/'' •'^"'' '^'"' 'I'-'terroger les eleves sur quelques re<.]e, 
 
 JJoux regies par jour sufHsont, si elles sont nouvcll 
 
 iois, il n'y a rien a d 
 
 ire. 
 
 es. K(''pt'tez les vitill 
 
 es 
 
 vingt 
 
22 
 
 Jamais dii reate, une classe, quelque bion disposi'e qu'elle soit n'ucoutera d'une 
 oreille attentive plus de deux rejjles de gramniaiie. Avec utilite aussi vous 
 pourriez fairc repeter les regies regissant toute une categoric de mots ; I'article, le 
 pronom possessif, ii pro[)os d'un cxemple de ee genre trouve dans le devoir. 
 
 Cela ferait partie ties propos d'erudition, eomnie par exoniplo parlant demaison, 
 je suppose, vous en repassez et redites les diff('rentes parties, de maniere a rafraichir 
 la memoire des enfants, enriehir leur voeaVjidaire et les rendre familiers avec ce 
 qu'ils eonnaissent plus on nioius bien d(''ja. 
 
 La conversation est la pierre d'aclioppement du maitre et des eleves. 
 
 Les questions de I'un doiventetre telles que les reponsos des autres en decoulent 
 aist'nient, mais sans se bonier aux faciles : oui, non, des craintifs. 
 
 Tanttjt il cliangera le lunnbre des nonis et <les adjectifs et des verbes, tantot le 
 temps, d'autres fois la forme et la construction des phrases. JNIais, vouS voyez que 
 I'l'leve a deja du recevoir une certaine instruction grammaticale pour suivre la 
 phrase dans ses diverses metamorphoses. 
 
 Do nieme, apres avoir mis su classe au courant des diverses fa^ons de s'exprimer 
 en francais, pour ce qui concerne lesmouvementsaexecuter, — prendre un livre — lo 
 changer — ouvrir une porte^s'asseoir, se lever, aller au tableau, etc., il devrait 
 invariablement parler fraiKjais. Je n'engagerais pas a tenir conversation tout le 
 temps en classe, I'autant plus que la chose est difficile et n'amcne |)ointde resultats 
 absoklment pratiques avec le genre d'examens que nous avons a subir maintenant 
 aux fins d'annees ; mais un maitre pout s' aventurer a parler fran(;ais avant que les 
 eleves s(jient ca[)ables de comprendre aiscment et de repondre correctement. 
 
 A-t-il jamais existe une personne (jui ait parh' correctement une langue du 
 premier coup 1 
 
 C'est a force d' entendre dire les memes paroles et a force de les rcpeter soi- 
 luenie qu'on parvient li les prononcer avec justcsse. 
 
 Quand I'oreille est habituee aux sons et aux liai.sons, surtout quand ils repon- 
 dent bien a I'iniage epek'e et lue du mot, c' est une satisfaction chez 1' etudiant 
 de s'cssayer a la langue qu'il apprend. 
 
 II arrivera meuie un jour oil il se croira blesse dans sa dignite, si vous lui ditcs 
 en anglais des choses qu'il se sent parfaitement capable d'entendre en fran^'ais. 
 
 Ainsi done, la gramniaire, qui est de peu do necessiti' pour la lecture, ne vient 
 qu' apres celle-ci : 
 
 La gramniaire n' est point 1' art de lire et de comprendre une langue : Ces deux 
 choses se font sans elle : elle s'empare de ces deux choses povr les perfectionner 
 seulement. 
 
 Mais, avec des adultes capables de reflechir, qui savent bien leur langue, 
 n'eloignez point trop la grammaire de la conversation et de la lecture. 
 
 J'insiste beaucoup sur ce point ; il n'est pas sage de parler seulement ou 
 presque exclusivement lorsque vos eli'ves ont besoin de la gramniaire. 
 
 Kt, la, je me permettrai un mot de la methode Berlitz que je n'admire point du 
 tout, bien (jue je la croie la seule pratique avec des enfants qui ne lialbutient encore 
 encore aucune langue. 
 
 Dans les Jardins d'Enfants et avec les bonnes d'enfants, elle est parfaite, mais, 
 nous nous occupons ici des hautes ecoles et des academies oil nous enseignons le 
 fran(;ais a des jeunes genset a des jeunes filles d'une certaine culture intellectuelle, 
 lo cliemin nature! vers le fran(;ais est I'anglais ; ils apprenneiit le fran(j'ais a I'aide 
 de I'anglais. 
 
 Et je rejette la methode Berlitz en bloc. 
 
 Voici pourquoi. 
 
 1° Parce qu'elle s'oppose a ce qu'on se serve do la langue matcnielle de 
 I'enfant. 
 
 2° Parce qu'elle attache le savoir a I'anie et ne I'incorpore pas. 
 
 3° Parce quo dans un examen, dans I'etat present des choses, elle n'apporte k 
 I'examine, aucune arnie utile. 
 
23 
 
 Ce sont (le graves accusations et jo me ferai echarper, sans doute 
 Je sins prct a me conyertir si on m'am.'.ne un l.on candidat de I'academie qui 
 sache bien ses matierea d'examen avec la methode Berlitz 
 
 Pass.', dix ans, on rofl.'.chit, on compare, chaque idee a son moule et son mot 
 dansia langue maternelle, pour comprendre et s'approprier une idee exprimee" 
 dans una langue etrangere, i faut done la degager du motdiff.'rcnt et la revOtir du 
 mo desapropre langue, changer I'id.'.e de moule. Or I'enfant qui n'a encore 
 do moule hien forme pour aucnne id.'.e, de easier bien separe pour aucune concep- 
 tion n a pas besoin de cette traduction. ^ 
 
 mn^r'"T/"'r- 1 ^° "\"t, I'image et son enveloppe tombent, ils creusent leur 
 moule. Une fo.s le moule fin., .1 faut comparer et r.'.flechir si le contenu d'un 
 autre moule s adapte an votre et comment. 
 
 Par consequent, servons-nous de la traduction, des themes et des versions. Que 
 les jeunes etud.ants sachent bien leur anglais d'abord, c'est-a-dire, que leurs 
 monies soient complets et en bon etat. 
 
 Rien n'est plus naturel, au debut, que de vous traduire a vous-meme, en votre 
 
 St'llu r "'"^ °"*^^?'^", ■'^"' ""^ ^"'"-''^ etrang;.re. Par la suite, h force 
 l habitude, vous ne traduisez plus, vous n'avez plus a forcer un moule dans 
 autre, ils ne font .ju un, et avec deux mots dedans que vous employez in- 
 
 ditteremment et a tour de rAle. i J " 
 
 Comment .'.tablirez-vous cette comparaison ou ferez-vous entrer un moule dans 
 1 autre, si la angue (pn doit vous guid^^r est defectueuse, si votre moule est difforme 
 ou si vous n en avez pas ? 
 
 ^t vZ''j', '■^"' ''°"' "''"''V~' l'^'''^^ '^" ^'^'"^''''' """^^^ '^'^'y^ bien votre langue 
 et vous rcussirez, sinon, inutile d'essayer. 
 
 Vous savez le sort de 1' aveugle qui en con.luisait un autre : lis tomb^rent toua 
 deux dans le fosse. lis y sont encore probablement. 
 
 Or, menerde front deux languesdont une n'yvoit pas mieux que I'autre e'est 
 ropeter la mesaventure des aveugles. i -c i«uue, cesc 
 
 En second lieu : N'attachons "pas le savoir a I'ame, incorporons le lui Sfude 
 ^ C'mSrot? '"t" ''f ^•-'-/- ^-■-/'^•«"' 'iua»> obscure plurifncs Muan^. 
 de Pore ■' ' T'^' "" ^pprendrait tout de menioire, m.'moire des veuxou 
 
 de 1 oreille, pen importe, n'est point lionne. Savoir par coeur n'est ,,as savJir 
 
 t.n tranvais *ous avons deux verbes qui expriment bien ma pensee connaitre et 
 
 ,«rtt^*;;:'u? - '::rr lit ^jii^it ttrt^ 
 
 n'hesitez pas, prenez le plus capable. ^ capable, 
 
 Juiant. Pioz-vous pen a la memoire ; Cette faculte n'est pas encore I'ame 
 consequenment, elle ne saurait etre la depositaire de nos tresors de science ' 
 
 'Xi^.^^^r^ ''-'"-' ^"^'^"^^ •'°"- ^'-'^"- nioirt^JtT;^: 
 
 Si, au contraire, vous aviez exerc.'. votre oeil k lire des portees, h les vocaliser si 
 vous vous trouviez en etat.le niettre votre intelligence au service' de votJ moire 
 
 r: L^Xi'SJ"^'^ ''''-' '^'""''°^^^ •'"'"-'>' '' -^'^ -"« ^'™ ^'-^ 
 Dans un cas vous avez la musique en I'ame, dans 1' autre vous faites le perroquet 
 qui plus eT" ' ''"'™'"' '' P"'''"* ^'untenant, elle est inutile et nuisible,' 
 
 \''^:i'^l;il''^^''l^^\'^^^^^^^^ h I'academie en efret. 
 
 v»r=;-.L ? 1 ^ ''■''' '^ ""^ s«bi.sseut quun examen ecrit qui se compose d'une 
 dsmes ^"^ ^^"'' '^"''"""'' ^'' P'"' ^<^^^^^<^^^ses, sur la syntaxe ou les gZ 
 
Est-il possiWf. jiar ccla seul de jiiger des capar.itus d'un candidal ? 
 
 1 as le mollis du luoiide. 
 
 On s'assurora peut-Otre qu'il s'est attache;, k Tfime quelques principes vagues, on 
 n ira pas au fond de ses sens, de sa iii.'iiioire et de son intelliL'ence s'a*mrer, noii 
 seulenient qn'// mit, inais .pi'il nmnait son aftairo. 
 
 Et, de la on part pour juf,'er en hien on on mal des ieimes gens et des ieunes 
 Mies, des mstitiiteurs et des institutrioes ! C'est toiijours la justice avec uii l)an- 
 deau sur les yeux, e'eat-a-dire, le sort aveugle. 
 
 Je lie ni'oppose certes pas a rexaineii ecrit, il est loual)le, ii('o(>ssaire, iiiais, il 
 reprcsento siinplenient un cote de 1' eiisfignenient, le cAt.^ theoriquc. Et nue fait- 
 on du jiratique ? ' 
 
 1)0110, en toute justice, il faudrait un exainen oral quelconquc doiit la lecture et 
 la coiiversarion seraient les traits principaux. 
 
 I)ans les faculties de lettres de France, nous jiassons rexainen I'crit et I'exanien 
 oral, g.iand nous arnv.ms aux languns nous avoiis la lil.erte, pour raclieter une 
 note taihC, (le .lemamier a notre juge de nous entendre parler. II s'vprOte tou- 
 jours de l)oiiiie grace et nous en tieiit conipte. 
 
 Ne pourrions-nous au inoins faire cela ciiez nous 1 
 
 Je siiis certain que la pr.'-vision d' avoir a parler la laiigue a rexanien, encour.V'e- 
 rait 1 .■leve, dans le rourant de raiiin^e, a luvler une oreillo plus attentive au niaitre 
 ot y gagnerait (loubleineiit : 8a graniniaire lui serait utile et la conversation 
 naurait i)oint etc une perte de temps on nieme une faute. 
 
 Inserivez au programme d'examen la conversation obligatoirc et vous verrez le 
 tout autre aspect (pie prondront les clioses. 
 
 11 est fort rare (ju'uii .'l(''ve vraiment liien dou(', qui a class(. quelques t'h'ments 
 de science dans sa tete, donne, un jour d' examen, la niesure de son intelligence. 
 
 II est pr(-sque toujours infi'^rieur a lui-m('iiie. II Test de moiti(' sans Ta jiartie 
 orale ; il Test trois fois si le questionnaire n' a jias I'te judicieusement i)os('. 
 
 ^ Et dans ce cas, je crois que des examinateurs devraient conf(h-er avec le niaitre 
 d'une classe sur les questions a poser. 
 
 Pour(]uoi des instituteursconseientieux n' auraient-ils point le droit d' examiner 
 devant des juges, leurs jiropres ('leves? 
 
 La, il n' y aurait pas de tirage au sort, mais soup(>senient intelligent dc tout le 
 hagage sci(-iitiHque d(! I'enfant. 8i Ton s'aper(;(jit d'une sui^rclierie, il est 
 toujoi'.rs ais(' au moment de la note, de la faire payer. 
 
 Aujourd'liui, une d('faillaiiee de nu'inoire, un trouble d'esprit, tout est rati'. 
 Le hasard joiie un njle (^'iiorme alors (pi'il devrait toujours Otre absent d'une salle 
 d'examen. 
 
 Avec rexanien oral, il y a encore des surprises, sans doute, mais bien (b'cinn'es, 
 et Ton ne UKUKpie janiais les iiullit('s. 
 
 ^ De t(Miips a autre un inaitre liabile prendra une da.sse et en fera une esix'-cd 
 d'examen pivparatoiie. une sorte de bat.iille sur des mannequins, de iiiani(M-c que ses 
 cleves se pri'sentent aussi parfaiteineiit ('duqut's qu(! possible au iour de la revue 
 finale. 
 
 Une heure de classe aiii-ti |)ass('e ami'iie toujours d'excellents ivsultats. 
 
 Avaiit de passer a autre chose, qu'o.i me p('"rmette de m(>ttre en lumi('.re jiar des 
 exemples, ce que j'ai dit des avantages et des inconvenients des nu'tliodes de 
 conversation et du syst("me mixte que je crois le meillour. 
 
 J'ai eu pour ('b'.ye une dame qui, a la suite de tii'^vres avait perdu la inc'.moiie ; 
 clle avait enseigiK' le jiiano et 1' avait oubli(. ; elle reapprenait .sa langue matcrnelle 
 chaque jour. II mo faut refaire mon L'ducatioii, me dit-elle, iiouvez-vous me don- 
 ner des le(;oii,'5 de fran(;ais 1 
 
 Je eomnienyai. D'abord, je crus pouvoir employer le sy.st('me des ver.sions et 
 des themes, mais je me coiivaiii(|iiis bienb'.t que nion ('K've ne distiiiguait point 
 .toujours le mot fiam^-aio du mot anglais. 
 
25 
 
 nolni'S""' 1"'''''"'^ '^'"'""\ ^eccr., jV.i fi. inuM.Vliate.uent ah.traction ot 
 
 Ue,s.s,nant, faisuat la niiim.jue, et tnuluisant lors.ju'il v avait ....ssihiliK'.. 
 
 .lam. ,?.itt?T'"" ''?'f '' '"•'" '"''"' ••^''"' ^'^'-^ ^^"'•''i"" •l'J--»f.-^"ts. Cette 
 • KiiiK* I'tait en Citancc. de fait. 
 
 .la^rf-S.'"''^''''''" '"''''''' ^''"''''''"^"'■'''' ^'^ ""'^"vanture .le« .leux avcuf^les 
 K.'.'llomPnt, j'anrai.s enseign.: doiix lai.guos avo<: .los -lifticult/.s in,s„nuontal.lf.s. 
 Oi, ,]e,sui)|,o,se que cotte (lame soit auJiH.nl'hui appelre a pas.ser .u. exameu a 
 
 r. r coi 1"," '"■ '■ '"" "" '""""^" '"'•'^'''' '^^' ""■•■•it^'>'"it la moiti.'. dL points 
 uonncs comnie maxiinuni. 
 
 Ui> autre exeniiile. 
 
 co,m!i?!'i'^'""' '"''''"^'■'^'' .q^'i ^^''it retcnu, d-apivs la n.ethode Berlitz, lu-a,!- 
 coe ,la,,se« emu-antes, qui en faisait usage a I'oeeasion assez hien, mas qui 
 
 "a e^ Si v^' r V'' "" """^ ''"■ ''^ ^""^ 'iu'ils..„nq.,„.taient dans leur pluie 
 CO m eW \ f' f '^' ; '";!!/' ''"""'"^^ ^'"■"» ''" ^V-xprimer qui hi etait 
 n.xjiiunn nen <le neuf, rien d'elle-meme, tout de tradition. 
 et^rZ^lu" r ' "';'"'■*;"';.•'' •'" ••'•''"•^'i"" -<■ ^''tai'-nt jamais exereees. II lui 
 
 kun evri h, 'T"'?'''/'';';'"'/""^'""^ '•'^ "•'"'"''■" ^'' "'-^l>'>"e»t de se presenter 
 A nn exameii plus dev.' dont le franrais faisait partie. 
 
 •Son edueation manquait par la Imse. 
 
 ini^rf.h'V"^''"'^'"'"''"'^',''''''; '^ sfi <^'J"naissance parfaite de I'anglais, elle eut 
 mieux tait de suivre une iiictliode mixte 
 
 et dimnST^;. i r"l"^ •'^'•''^''it'^'^te qui empile les n.ateriaux autour des fonden.ents 
 
 les o IV.! V ■ ' '''^"■'^f'''"';'«" "" *"•""- t'"'.u'il>]e ensuite. Pour les langues, 
 
 a en?;., t-' '''T'!'"' '-•'^"""^'*-^^>,"'^'-- «''«-^i''''^' 'l^''^ Kisses pi,'.ees s.nt le mat:^riol 
 
 r^n d l: 'f m'' T r "' '"1*^""'' 1'"^ '" K''a.nn>aire sous la surveillanee de 
 
 el le I r'snr ;: '""""""■' V ''';• ^ •"^^■"'"--■"■" -^-"e on Ln.. 'rote des maisoVs 
 et les aiigue sur une rue, ou des jivres sur les rayons d'une i)il.liotheque. 
 l.nnportant ccstde ne pasetre perroquet ou i)l.onograplie. 
 
 ie''^;"v' ""*?''■" '!"'''f ^^;^"«l'"^'l'^ Halifax ma metl.ode mixte telle que 
 je 1 ai exposee et je suis enel.ante .le leur travail et .1' autres .p„. moi le sont. 
 
 tridm-r^r'' '"""' '''-'! '"■"':' ^r' •'"" •"■"•^•'"' 'l'^ ■'' .^'^■'•■"""'ire mais nons a.ons 
 ira.luit, parlc, eompos.' a tour .le liras. 
 
 n.li*!re'''Hnr,''';''"'''^ ^\'^!':'''''. "'"''•'^ "" ""^'■•^•^''" t'i"'"t «»•■ 1«^ chos,.s jour- 
 j'i, 'l! 1 "'\'^"">^'l'"f^"'';. ">i jour un sujet, le len.len.ain, un autn... 
 0.U.I..1S les ..leyes a conq.rendre, ],^s n.ettaut sur la v..ie, puis, une f..is nu' ils 
 
 o^xTdf!;'^''"'^" "'•;'" "'"^^•''^'-'- --. -1" l-'v.:p..lla'tiin, e ,„e livlais'^vl 
 n .;t s V . '^°'»I'0^it.ons nrarnr. et les iuitiais aux m.:tamorphos..s vari.'es .les 
 mots „ ant l,.urappheat,on diffi^r.mte, gran.n.atiealen.ent parlal.t, Kt e'est ainsi 
 que ,) ai enseigne la gran.maire, s.nis tbrme de renseignement, pas .rensei.mem.mt. 
 J espere en tr.3.s ans .lonner aux .'.l.'.ves .le I'lnstitut .1 -s aveu-des mie honne 
 
 S'Tmot \, ""'TT'' ^'"""•" ----—"■ J- .nat,:Haux"le..t;;;" 
 H 'e la T^„r rr '"■'' '-"^•'■•■«"ti""--l""xi''->.'. ann.^e-grannnairo san 
 •we. la leeture et la cnversatmu. Cest la eonstrueti,.n pn^lnvment dite- 
 
 !t o',' !,'^;"'"''"" !-"'^""'' •■^■"''-•"''^^'"•^"t ^1-^ lV.diHce, avee revues de grammaire 
 et tounmrs conversation. " 
 
 ^nc^.^'t^^T'"' '*' \T ""''' ^PF'^"'!^""^ ««"« >"'nt^P. «eront .les eon- 
 m m : Z '^ ''l'*'^"^^ ^'apables et savants-ayant appris le mieux ,1'ab.u.l, avee 
 A u ' '^^ **" pn:>curcr le pPis d'eux-nu'mes. 
 
 Abordons maintenant la .piestion .lu franrais chez les Acadiens, 
 
26 
 
 I.ES ^COI.ES FRANCA ISES. 
 
 franl^^'Jont'-' n ilvl',?!"''"' ' ""'" "'""^ '" ^'^ Xouvelle-Ecosse, phusieurs centres 
 vince\o„fl,lv '""''('"%''%•''''"'? •-■xt.vme-e.st et ext.vnie-ouest .le cette pro- 
 leur ^ISi""""""' '"" ^'"^'" ''"^""^^ --'•'^"•^ -t-'^l-t pirler anglaS dans 
 
 4^^^'l^:^^''^:U^^ '•'^^"«'''^^- '^^ ■— t 
 
 Conunent cela se tait-il, me deiiiaiidera (lUelqu'ui, ? N'ensei"ne-t-on nas I'ancr- 
 la. dans les ..coles du Cp Breton, d,. IH^rhy et\le Yannoutl. ?" ' ^ 
 
 v.";;'di.n::L;;;^:!:;r';ut:£r^^"'^^^''-^''"'^ -'•■ ^--'^--^''^ — 
 
 Kt le fran(;ais ? 
 
 den«"tflVt..t !T'' u '^'''''"' ^'■""^■'■•''^i^i'' '!"« ramms a 1' ignorance, la .leea- 
 Sns loi'.a;;::.!;:;';^^,!" ^^^--^-^^--'^'^^ l-«- -l- prenuel. colons 
 
 noll-e "Zv'ii'''!!: fu' -^"'l J' ?" r ""•^1"'^"^''"^ J« la Nonvelle-Ecosse. Or, dans 
 
 •\ 1 S^. It •^l!""^'''"- l-'-f, I'"""'^''-'^ »'aitres ,lu sol fun-nt si occup.'-s a d.'.fricher 
 
 A. re k 1 o r n r'-f""""' ^'" '"'^'"^"^ "1^I'°^^"' '''^ ^^'■•■^""' ' 1« patois'prevalnt. 
 Beiioo, , ; vm^ ?'r"" '"'" '!^""r' ""'^^ ^" 'l^'cadence, arriva I'ignorance. 
 
 qi^rX „ S:t^ '*' ^'""^ '^ f'"-^-'^'' ^^'^"^^ ".aitreancunrdesorte 
 
 que ia rclornie nienie <k.s locutions vicieuses a .'•te impossible 
 
 nous^^ns ,^!*i /;!"f *^.'"al appris s;ajouta au fran^ais mal su et anjourd'Imi 
 
 ™, cxi^ IS ' t- ,"« '" )'^"' ' ^"""""* '"^'^""-"^ ''« f™'?ais suranne, do 
 
 dSgTne; ' ^"' dehgure et tronqne et d'anglais pnr .pVil soit possible 
 
 vn?tf eVntrsonn?" l'" '"' '""'^ ^'TT' 'r^''''' '^'' ^^'^I'-'t^^' "'ais je la dois a la 
 ;Sh: n';rr:nS''" ''"' ''"' "■' '" '^'^ ''^ ^••^•^^"^"^ "» mal,inisqnejelni 
 
 ensii^nt-ttsVllS '' 1'1"V''''''''"* '^^'^^P^'' ^^^ "^^ theorie-qn'il ne faut jamais 
 
 enndZrt,'""' '']%'^'''''^J'\P°^^^^ avec nn Acadien dix minutes sans lui voir 
 employer, tres candidenicnt, des mots anglais avec des terminaisons franc-iises 
 
 EgL- ^:t'rr:r^'"'^^ ^""^ '^-^"^ -' ^-'-^ - - ciout;\^;js;si 
 
 m.'ils'.ha",lln!l."^'''' ??' tres senses se poser la question s'il ne vaudrait pas mieux 
 i e* M ? Tf ?"' 1'"*°-' P"'"" « '^n'Parer, ,\ la place, du bon anglais. 
 ^1 cetait possible— Oui—niais c'est impossible 
 
 tradrLt';i;:rcer' '"' """'""■' ^^ ^^^ "'"■''"^^^^' ^^^ *^--"^ ^-p ^ i-- 
 
 An lieu de deraciner le franyais du milieu d'eux, ameliorons-lc. 
 au mmaM. d\, f,i'" f '''"' '""'' 'T ^'""^lai. c'est de I'enseigner aux Acadiens 
 d u? I e r'' T T'' ', '• "" " '^"Z*^"* '^"^"" ^«"'Pt«' "" ^a droit k I'oppose 
 ;l;ep:^diabk,^;rS^'^;!r ^^^'"" "'^ '^^^""^'^ '^"'"" ^^^^'^^^ brossepou/'S^tre 
 
 A ioh; V ' '""'""T V'''' ^"'" P°''^^'^ ^^^^- intelligences Acadiennes' ' 
 
 A morns done que les Acadiens ne sachent bien leur francais, ils ne reussiront 
 
 jamais dans leurs tentatives a .'tudier I'anglais itusaronc 
 
 Je ne preche pas I'exclusion d'unc langue, je veux I'avantage de I'anglais. Si les 
 
27 
 
 enfants Acndiens I'.tnient arrach.v. k lour fainille en bas ase, transplant.'.s on milieu 
 n 'it ettnl^rr/''- "' '"'? ,/"''V'^ f 'I'-eloppent. leu?.' „,o„lL k i.l." I " 
 n ie f anA T-'-^ intellectueis s'accunn.lent, je conseiiierai.s I'an.Iai., pas un 
 mot (6 fian^ais. Mmg, ,1 n'en e.st pas ainsi. Dans la famille on parle acailien 
 dans le vo.s.nage on parle acadion, .lans la cour .le I'ecole on pa e^ alien en: 
 .lant qne le nuutre ou la maitresse .I'.'.eole s'ext,.nue a expliqner en an laisTs 
 hvr- _angla.s. les enfants, sur les bancs, se disent k IWiilJ lles";"!;!":;!:^ 
 
 11 y a un mill- (1 ' Cliine. Le maitr.-, n'enten.l pas I'eleve, IVleve a entre les mains 
 des hvres angla.s puren.ent eni,.natiqnes qu'il arrive a lire, ma,' an con re X^ 
 comme be.u,.,np de lat.nistes lisent Cesar sons en pouvoir 'traduire uJ^^ ' 
 
 il S h ,/ ff "'T'"" "'■"''' ' ' '''"^'' «"" ''''■''''' "'^«t 'I-'i'' Pl"^ «•' ''lane ; 
 1 est tout gntfonne de caract/.res franc^ais ; il faut done les classer et miis les 
 prenant pour guides, se diriger vers I'an.rlajs ^ 
 
 Ln ce moment les eleves acadiens "et anglais sont trait.'s wr le meme pied 
 Ccmnne prme.pe d'egalite c'est parfait, nmis comme r.'.sultats en /.lucatirc'est^lmt 
 
 eccJe ■i"lii;Zo 'leV'"' «ervent dans une .'cole anglaise sont de rigueur dans une 
 n ent 'o p os; . ]'.. '^^''^'V ' *'"'^'^'^"'*'»'«!'t 'loit .^re, dans .leux"cas dianu'trale- 
 
 cW h' unit;'. iuTV ''■' ' r'rf"' ''T '"^ '''^'■'■•^"* 1'°'"^' ""'''« ^« ^"i ''i»'^>-<^. 
 I e._i la nuilitf gcncrale des candidats acadiens 
 
 ^ous avons bien un livre de lecture dans les deux langues a Tusnge des ecoles 
 
 ra/sms-t'i '?"""'"•"' '"<^ P«"r''« .i'^"'ai« de condamner sans donner mes 
 nuSe'^Sle'^""'^"" '"^ '""'^^ ^^ = ^°^"' ^^^^'^-- = - ^'-'^^^ ^-^t^- P'- 
 
 1° La traduction ii'est point fidMe. 
 
 2° P:ile est inutile, meme nuisible. 
 
 3 Kile ne repose sur aueun principe d'education. 
 nntes''"''fe /•;;7" ^'^ "^;^'t«"^''"« ™'' 1^ premi.-.re imputation, c'est I'affaire des 
 maities. Je leur signale le danger .I'inculquer a de jeunes enfants de fauses 
 
 r^s eircir''"' ^-"'^ "^ .OrJesenfants\e,oivent;Wg„enrt 
 comma vous Je leur donnez, sain ou empoisonne 
 
 livi'.H t"i^"'''"l'' ,'"'''"?^"'' ^l'""*^ '^^cole est un n.aitre a connaissances bornees ou un 
 Iivre distrdniant, a qui en veut, le faux et Terron.: 
 
 ^ on second chef d'accusation est que cette traduction est inutile. 
 Wlc n aide pas I'enfant a comprendre le francais 
 
 d'avdr Tn'olositlon isr;' •'' '^'-1'" ^' ^™"'"^' ^'^ '""^""^ '"'^^^'■-"«' l^ ^^ -^^ 
 udvuii en opposition 1 anglais (pi il ignore 
 
 l'in!;hisrFt"!,In?""''''"" ^'^"*' traduction libre ,,our I'aider a penetrer le sens de 
 Wh 'f ' r"'''}J'°' "'^ '« faitonpasaussi pour I'histoire, la gtio^raphie 
 
 1 anthmetique qui n'ont d'autres interpretes que des auteurs anglais i "'""''^P'"" 
 bonsequemment, ces livres sont inutiles 
 
 Oif le dour"tev?"'^' d'education ne justifie I'emploi de methodes semblables.,. 
 n ti es 1 le texte f ^''"' '"'. VIT^ '" ^''^''"' '^ '^'''' '^^ «°"t 1'"" '^ ^'''"tr^ 
 
 haut'el'Scnret T T'" ''" ''f "*' '"■ f^*^^'^"^ ^'' ^^"^'"'''^t*' '^ '-'«««^1'^'""« «« '^es 
 1W|. is • m i.nt H a"' ,'^^'"*"'-«==, P"""^ '^ apprendre le fran.;ais sans savoir 
 f an?is 'JZZ ^,°''"^'^"'''' "v-'U^niment, renversons les termes et disons ; sans 
 
 iram^ais ne tentez pas d'apprendre I'anglais. 
 
 vontl lV.col'e'"Vpn/°?"''?f T ""fl "^^^"'"'^ ^l'""^ lie"re a I'anglais, quand ils 
 vont a 1 Ltole. Pendant cette heure ils saisissent peiit-etre bien deux ou trois mot- 
 en einq ans ou si k ans is ovr-'vent ' n^J.,- ' f ■ i u uuis inoit, 
 dehors de I'.Vnl'p of i l- « '^ ' • '' '^^ ^="'''-' ™mprendre ; puis, vivant en 
 aehors de lecole et dc I'lnfluence anglaises, toutes mediocres qu'elles (;.taient 
 
if: 
 
 28 
 
 comiiio line iVwrve. nioiifie. Kt 1 aiifjliiis SHiiiit tonjoiirs i, portico 
 
 eciu:;;;!;: pi;;';, ,;!:;; ex -'^ '" -^-'- •'- •-"<«« aea,iio„,K. .,e,„a„..o. „,. 
 
 met. ^ "' ''^"^'^ J''Pello ot le parle l.ien, du n.oins pas.sable- 
 
 Supposons que oe soit I'affaire ,le .lei.x ans 
 
 d4~ s';;;,;^':!,r'l:;;;;;:;: "-" ^^^•""'-- i'^--"t f..a„,ai., ,„. n.a,u,ei 
 an;;iais'':;;:rc:;;: js„s;'';r"£'".^r"^^ - '''^'"'^ -'^^ '''^'"-tion 
 
 traduisant, iniitant .-t j.arlli'.t "^ '"' "'^""■'''■' '^" ^''^''''t- analysai.t, 
 
 <l'a"glai.s .„ fpanvais ot viJ: -p " nu Vv V,,f '"'^ I'n.nonhal de trnduetiou 
 pent se .orvir uniqnen.ent do I'an'h.-s '""".tenant .nconsciemmont-il 
 
 nJ!t';Ss;::ir'r;nuit:'d;r'''' ^'T""""^ ^"^ '^^"-^^ '-- -'=^.-ie- 
 :^vJiofai;^.~S^^^^ 
 
 la Lo^iS!:;*;;,'" ^'^1'^"^^'-' 3» rocrituro, 4" La conversation francaise a 
 lae:nvJ;:Sl,If't;S.n^ 4' la traduction en f.n.ais; 5' 
 
 pour les Acadions. nuHai.s qui sent. «./ hb/fum : adleurs, cbligatoires 
 
 d'.m: in^'tjnlltS^' ''"""^ ^"'^'""^ ^'°'-^'-' --"^. -^ i-Portance, n.ais 
 
 en .'-coles communes il fa\,t a,r ver T u n' n Z . ''^'f ^.'•""'l^^°"■^ ^ous, mais .lans 
 le,.h,sc.u..etlep,u. sur, corta" lo;:;;;^^^!,! Sl^s^"""^"^' ''' '' ^"-"'" 
 
 00^.;:;;;::;;^; r i:,;S,iS;1el!Sv:T;;"^ d^nanderau. Acadien, en 
 
 «c!rieuse et un entretien de vi^e ^:^^ Z)^::il:^l "'" '^"'"P-^-" f''«"Vaise 
 
IKK'S. 
 
 nf,'ii(! inator- 
 trioi'iUKM! (hi 
 urs a ))(irt(''(> 
 
 iiiindor lino 
 
 tcs r'oiiiifiis- 
 
 IV'diication 
 
 "II iiK'me 
 
 oil il coin- 
 s'en scrvir 
 
 20 
 
 Tout en siiivant dps cnnrs do vo\]r>iv, fnMnientnnt Ics iniiitrcs d(! Id liiiij,'iie 
 franyiii.Mo, les Aoailiciis ont In faii-w lionte tlc'iilundjlu do ne su servir (lun du Icur 
 putois en vciitnmt clip/, eux. 
 
 Si le ministiTo dp rinstiiiptidii piililiqtio prpiiiiit la ppiiip ilp cliMn^'cr son pro- 
 gramme pour Ips populations franvaisps, pp sprait la moindip dps cliosps (jup pliacuii 
 pt Ips institutPiirs surtout, s'pHornissent do jKirlor porrectement en clnsso et nussi 
 bipii on (k'lio.rs dc I'l'cole. 
 
 II me spnmhlp (jup j'aj ,'.tp im ppu long, mais, Jo traituis (I'une question cpii a 
 bipii son importance piiisquVllp prcnd tant du temps dps (■Ipvps de nos (Voles, 
 sert sur une si vaste ('■cIipHp au coniinpice (riiommes eiitK! eux "t, pour pti rpvpiiir 
 aux Acadiens, doit rapproclier Ips tils dps (colons fraii(;ais dps (lis dc la lil)iv Anf,d('- 
 tcrip. Ips lappropluM- dc lan^mjfp, dp symi.athip, d'entPiito fratornelle pour h i7lu3 
 grand liicii dp la jiatrie une o.t indivisililc, le Canada. 
 
 ,'erais. 
 
 s passahle- 
 
 m maniiel 
 
 '('ducation 
 parfail de 
 analysant, 
 
 I' vidps en 
 stoire, les 
 es qu'il a 
 — laqm lie 
 radiiction 
 iment — il 
 
 da, spiile- 
 avant l(?s 
 iniiip lec- 
 'ducatiou 
 
 r dans la 
 
 lueaise h 
 
 i(;ais; 5' 
 
 )rovinco, 
 igatoires 
 
 e, mais 
 
 rjup Ton 
 lis dans 
 chemin 
 
 (.'IIS, en 
 •anc'aise 
 
THE FRENCH LANGgAGE IN NOVA 8C0TIA. 
 
 (Translation o/Tro/. Lams' paper hy J. w. Tupi 
 
 >er, Ph. D.) 
 
 If I were ( scussiiKr merelv tl,„ n. / 1 '' ''•^^"" ^^"^J'sl". 
 
 with indicating authol^i"" « L l.o'l^s Jrf n t"f "f" ' ''T'I '^°"'-' "'^vaelf 
 and methods. I intend l,o«-, vev f? . "'"'t>>'ft-which suggest plans 
 
 This paper then wil, i^Jiea;^;^ it ^ t jij '^^""'"^ '' "'^- ^^'^--•^ 
 
 I expenniented witli indivichmk nf ,);«•,„.. 
 geuce, and with tliose w C r ' r e ,!n i ''''}^T''T'' "^ ""^^l"'''! '"t«U- 
 are only valuable whe.i tiuy X re.d ttt T'"''' •.''"';^ ^/°"'"1 ^hat theories 
 are intended. Theory has . Se, 7nl "l '"' °^ ""'•^•"1"''»J^ for whom they 
 
 evident. Theory is but L r. El ° '"'r' '''"'J ^''''''' ' ^'"^ ^'"^ '^^^^on is 
 the observation of everyone P ce Sh " '*.""'''.''- "'"'^'' '=""^' ""''•^'• 
 of all kinds, n.e.U.nilAe,.J^^:^,'^^'^^S:^l^^^^^^ -d dangers 
 of a language may be taught by anvone ■ t tl.„ 1 r ^''° ^'"'"'•etiual part 
 
 by a born master, by one who has Ixno'ro i ^ *"'"'' ^'^''^ '"" '^"'3' ^e taught 
 oiples of education applv to Cua.^t well s ! "T''' ■ '^'"^ ^'«"^'-"' P'^"" 
 
 somethi,ig additional Theorv ^"s ofte', tL i f'^ "^her science ; but there is 
 
 language, however, the k rnote s m tS;*^ ^tr'? .^^ '^^ eatogo-y „f studies ; for 
 that has its value in the 11^X0; thi lat'er ' '' ^"' '" '"^^"unent of labor 
 
 praclS^;;^'S;£?^ "^Z^^ ^;|--5 • ^^ every lino of education both theo,y and 
 theory and much pracUce" otl e s"ep y'-lNttl''' 'T'' ■ ?"'"" ^'^^ "'^"j' 
 The one party clai^ms that i . tl^p resent^'^tate f Iff -'"''t"' '""'°"* principles ?" 
 tice ; the other answers that al na u e I n '? ^'""'^ "'"«' P''ececle prac- 
 
 laws on what is not already fio ^ nd nl l'-°r ""' '°"'''"'^^ ""^ ^° ^^r^'^'l'-^te 
 right, who wrong? Perhaps o Fl, ' . ! \7'^'''- ^^ ^''^sa, who are 
 
 j"dgn>ent, in prcnlucing a ound mind^n n f Tt^ "'T''' ''" ''"'''l^Pi-'S the 
 "mem sana in rorporesam'' "'^ ^'°'''^'' ^"''"^ ^^^« ^n^^i^nts called ' 
 
 n.MStS;;^t:S'.r;a;SZ:^ ^^ ^'r^^^' T- ^'- surface of a good 
 of science. The studentX ;;of kno °v a! vtH '^"''"'■^' /'>« fundan.ental principles 
 position to learn very rapi 1 • and w ItH 1 f ^'7^*''°'«"^'''b', l)"t he was in a 
 science, The n.ain poiit s m o L ow £: 1 T '^T"" ''''^' "' '"'^ 'P'^^'^ 
 nnnd and lay a foundation of l2rnLrmi°so^ '^ 'V^'^^'^'^ ^'»« 
 
 indeed was not without a good fo, u a L I ' "/'' '^'^'''" °^ ^'l^^ation, which 
 Let us consider the instance oLatWbo,? 1"'^'"''' V''^ ''' °» ^'"'^ Po'"*- 
 speech, when through it all know ledi.e wis "l^ " /''^ '^'' "^•^'^■"'" °^ "»"^«ted 
 to ..eak it Huentl^ and to oS^gyj^^^t-'S,^ ^I^X^^ U^ t: 
 
 I ;! 
 
i 
 
 81 
 
 stiulonts theorize.1 little nu.l prnc-tiooil imirli. As >rn„tPS(,iiio.i say.s, ^'nnm fait .h 
 CJ'rr "" '""'V/"^ '•",'/"" ''">'l'rafi>,u<'r nud this apHi,.s with n.u.i. n.oro 
 
 the ol.l LatiMists simlie Latin; they constantly traint-.l th.^n.-i.-lvea in it: tlu'iV 
 converHation was in Latin ; the intor.ourso of .s.hoois and oountrios wa.s tluoii«h 
 the jncliiini of Latin. How is it that a lan«uaKo onco .o vi^M.n.u.s sho.,M so 
 mi.lrh.nly hrcome oxtmct? Latin .lid not.lio out at one- ; it gradually .lisa|..K.ar..d ; 
 . nsensihly faded away 1,11 it ean... to bo reganled as a 'd.^,1 ' la„Kuage. ' Today 
 It IS iH'tnhi'd, hecaiiso it has ceased to be spoken. "^ 
 
 Now if Latin has c'eased to exist, since it is no longer spoken, so will French 
 
 viti" dii'i^''^""-. ^':f ^^''''^'' '"" '"^"""" ""■ '"■'^'•'''K- of H''-'H. and Ath;,,;: 
 
 which died out when they were n.. longer spok..n, will befall .od.-in French 
 un ess It keeps abreast of the tiir.es. In fact, what is the .litrerence b.-twcen the 
 old man, uiud.le any longer to use his limbs, ami the infan', as yet ignorant of 
 their use ? Jsone whatever. Sc then if we arc contente.l with a suVerlieial ae.mi- 
 sition o rules an.l words, we shall not be long in perceiving where our knowle b-e 
 
 value. Jt would hardly enable us t,. pass a merely theoretical examination. 
 
 Ihe study ol languages, since the almost total disappearance of Latin, has 
 nevertheless gained in importance. LatiM was what ^'olapi>k professes to l4 for 
 the present and the future. At present , • worlds of literature,' se.ence, art, co „ 
 mcrce an.l politics have in reality no language nor bon.l in common, and in or.ler 
 to enter upon relations with these various " worl.Is," it is necessary to know 
 about as many languages. "' 
 
 But if we devote oiir.seiv.s to the study of a language, it is necessary that we do 
 not a hnv grammar o abst^'b all our attention. With..ut obs.-rving this prcM.amir.n 
 .ve fall into the metho.ls of history, statistics, genealogy, anything bu lan-ua.',> 
 tself, which should a ways under the vigilant eye, however, of m.rster principle's 
 be c'uinently practical. ' ' ' 
 
 In the middle ages, as long as Latin held the front rank in education, the bar- 
 baric langaages remained in an embryonic con.lition. But as soon as the scholars 
 ot tne sixteenth and seventeenth centuries began to stu.ly them, an.l to refine ai .1 
 enrich them in writing and speech, Latin imme.liately began to lose ground. It 
 received Its ceath blow At present the Church of Rome alone gives it riou 
 ,nttention it being still the language of the liturgy and the Council.". Had not «o 
 many intelligent men in the past encumbered their genius with the study of 
 Latin, It seeiiKS to me that English, French and some other m.Klern i.lioms would 
 have attaine.1 tl.eir present form on.' hun.lre.I and fifty years earlier. But let us 
 not compain of an accomplished fact, which has after ail more good than harm 
 perhaps, to these languages. We cannot, however, conceal hot necessary it is 
 that one, who desires to keep pace with Irs times, should be proficient in some of 
 the languages that succee.led Latin, This is just what has suggested to me the 
 
 on?e iLn"t1 ^T''r}!^°' ''^\'-' ^^''' «'"'•■"' ^"'■"^J- ^^ *''^ subject, I shall enter at 
 once into the heart of the subject. 
 
 Let us consi.ler in the first place the teaching of French to the English 
 
 IX THE ENGLISH SCHOOLS. 
 
 _ If ever anyone thought to make study a mere pastime, he was deceived There 
 IS no royal road to learning. Woul.l you know a language at a time ? Devote to 
 It time and arduous labor. By these forces you will clear the first ami greatest 
 obstacles. I do not deem it advisable to exalt the stu.ly of French beftre my 
 English readers. They know its importance and place amon-r the Furon" n 
 languages, in the world of letters, arts and science, as well as in politics. They 
 know how wRlely it is spoken throughout Asia, Africa, America, an.l above if 
 Canada and iNova Scotia. For clearness, conciseness and harmony, they know 
 
as 
 
 what piiHitiim If ilintx /mr/i-r '/>■ Fniwr Imltl.t, miil iC I were to Hiiy that iiftir Kii^'- 
 ;,'lisli Kiciicli (Icstivcs till' fii.Ht plurc in our .scIuidIh, tlicy \\\\^\\l ipfrliii|i.s siiiili' at 
 iii.v iiaivftt', Ijiit lliuy wiitilil not ilispiitc my i-oiitciitioii. lloweviT, I Hinl on con- 
 Hiiltin;,' the statistiivs that in tlio Hij,;h ScIkioIm ami Acadfinics Frencili load.s the 
 living' lunKiiaj,'cs. This is very llatti'iiii^' tu me, ami I slioiiiil like; to ivn'h'r itn 
 study as I'asy ami liciii'ticial as imssihlc. 
 
 ill tca^'im,' FiTiK h in thf Kii;,'lisii, two i-xwsscs must lie avoiilcd : on tin; mw 
 liuMil, too much ;,'iammai', on tliu othtT, too much praeticL' without j,'ianum\r. 
 
 Firstly, too niuuii j,'rainniar. Lot us ri'i-all the wise iirecopt, " mm iiiin/ux ii'i 
 nnfr rriii," First the text, thi'u the commiMit. If you li(',i,'in with ;,'nimmar, with- 
 out tiu' pujiils having' the fumlamcnial kiiowliMljic and cxpcricnfc of wiiiili 1 spoko 
 ahovo, your work is vain. How ilo you suppose thi' ruli's and exceptions of French 
 words, plirasesand constructions can awaken any interest in a child if hi! has not 
 already to ii certain extent an idea of these fornw and anomalies? "■Xiltil fxt in 
 iiiti'llfi-tu (luo'l nun pn'uK /writ in mixn." We cannot hold intcrcoursi! with a 
 child's intolli^'ence, unless his eyes have seen, his oars heanl, his tiie^ers feit, his 
 ton;,'ue tasted. To reach the soul, knowled^'e must force three doors opening,' on 
 the same ciu'ridor, the one after the other. These are not side doors, as you .see ; 
 they are culled the Senses, the Memory and the Intelligence. 
 
 1 wotdil propose then as the mo.st practical jtlau, and that which has .secured in 
 my experience the ^'reatest sncce.s.s, tlie following: - 
 
 (1.) Ke.iding. 
 
 (i.) Translation of passages read. 
 
 (3.) (irannuar confined within the limits of the reading. 
 
 (4.) Prii/iox il'iruilitimi, i\<..\i is, a review of words and the rules of grammar 
 already met. 
 
 (5.) Conversation on the passage studied or imitation, that is, rira run' con- 
 struction of sentences oil the model of those in the text. 
 
 So F'rench would he learnt hy u.sc rather thanliy rule.s, liy hearing, reading, ami 
 re-reading, hy transcribing, 'imitation,' and conversation. Rules assist and confirm 
 practice, but tim}' must follow, not precede. 
 
 To develop somewhat, as nature shows us, the souses reijuiro the first attention 
 of the teacher. Now by reading are trained the eye, the ear, and the organs of 
 speech. A condition of understanding well, is reading well ; if you read perfectly 
 you will understand the conversation of the master without (iifliculty since lie 
 speaks as he reads. {.)ne may object, ' the sight of your worths is misleading ; your 
 speech differs so from its lu-inted form. But it is not so ; your reading is at fault. 
 
 Tiie following is a good method for reading ; — The master re.ids first slowly ami 
 distinctly the pa.ssage selected for the lesson ; the ])upils then follow in the order 
 of their proficiency, until their pronunciation is satisfactory. The master should 
 never lot a mistake pass unnoticed ; he should either correct it himself or have 
 the class correct it. This done, he will then consider the tran.slatioii, relieving the 
 class as much as possible of the ditHculties of idiomatic constructions. In taking 
 up the grammar, he will question the pupil concerning rules previously explained ; 
 he will, however, guard against burdening their minds with tlieories now and long. 
 Two new rules in one les.son arc sufficient. 
 
 There is no harm done if the old ones are re])eated twenty times. N'ever will a 
 class, liowever well dis])osed, listen witii attention to more than two rules of gram- 
 nuir. He may witli advantage have repeated the rules governing a whole category 
 of words, the article, the possessive pronoun, etc., with referem;e to an example 
 found intheexerei.se. As the illustration of tiuA kind in the propoftirthuiiition, 
 the master might meet in the lesson the name of one of the parts of a house. He 
 might then mention all the parts and have them repeated, .so that the pupils may 
 freshen tiieir memories, enrich their vocaliulary and thus reiuier themselves fami- 
 liar witli what they know more or less already. 
 
 Conversation is the stumbling block foi' masters and pupils. The questions at 
 
 * t 
 
Now ti... t.H.;i: V .Cth'. ml;;. '\f':, ^^"" "•"'.""^'" -'^'•"■^'-.1. 
 
 "Ka,M ,1.,. ,orn. an.l ...-nstrn.Sm o " ..^^ T^'v^^•"•;;'^""'' ^"'i''^' '""' 
 IMii.i s siiinM.s..,! t(, I..1V,. r,.,.,.i., 1 I""'""'"- 1'1'is you Will (,l,,s..rvc that th,. 
 
 Jy folio J 1... phi , it r;. .""''". ^"■'"'":"'^'''"' i"-<tnu.ti..„, i„ ,„..U.r that L 
 
 an. 't„k..a „K,k.' S,.huri '\^ "^ "'•tion.H 
 
 »."-.!/. a. J.,. .i..,.,.i;r,S,,;rF^;;;:;; "^ ''"""• ''■'^'''' '«<' ^^ ""-'''-k- 
 «n»i ';rl;l:"/u:;;"::;::;;:,;:;;;;r::;s::i: ,? • '^t = i" !'"^ "-^ '"- '^ *« 
 
 when .ncas,.,.,.,! hy the ..xm ZnV . v ' "'"'"" ''l'-;l>'t.ly pnuaical ros„lt«, 
 school y,.ar. I5„t a Zse^ZT^J^ ''"'' ''" "!""*^ r"'""'' "* ''"' "'"» "^ "'^ 
 to w.ul'rsian,! .asi V m ^^^ ™ I nl'r'''"'''''' '"^"'" '"'^ P'-piln are able 
 
 wonK that an accurate pronunlt^on I u '^ '^:;C '^^^ ^ l''"' ''" ^T 
 tnatwl to Hoiin.Ks anil their ..>ii,.l,in,.f; "1"'" i. \\ ncn tlii' ear ln'conics habi- 
 
 fully to the writt or f " V '';?' ;•■^f:"■':''^V''•^" '''*^"' «o"-l""»l faith- 
 
 any.hi4 i^ Kn«i.i;^';;^.,:;;ry-,^^ 'is;;^ • ;'l.;:i:r-'"-" '^^'^" ^'^' ''-•" 
 
 a language. Both .J ti;;so a e " , ^,^ ;i,:; " ^^f j"^ ^'J >-l-t«n,ii„, 
 to ininrove them For •..li,It« Iw>,„ ' T "'"'""* '^ - 't <loniinateH them merely 
 
 their 'ia„,„a«e ^.u'^ni^^l'Z^W^.r, ?'^'"'^ "' """'^^'""' ^^''•' '^-' 
 in8i«t particularly on 11^^. i , •^- " " '•""^•'''■^'"lon and reading, f 
 
 iu.;ner.atio„'ih:'Xs:';;;.:;:--;;;:-';;:;^^ 
 
 merely lisp their mother to i^^, L '"'7 P'-'^^ctuahle one f-,r children who 
 1-fecft; hutaeareeo e^n C;. w h U.e Id: r"",'''! ""'\tl.o nursery it is 
 J^Vench is taught the I.oyn and <- rls of L • " n"'^ ""'^ a.:adendes, where 
 I'iRhway to French isX^lf'^r ,h 7'';'"'.' .'t''""' "'^'T- T'"' ■"''""'^l 
 reject the Berlitz system hftl: "''' ''^ '""""'^ "^ ^''"^'''«'»- «» I 
 
 The followins' are mv ren^nnu • i t>„ -i • 
 
 mother tongue T^, be YusTk o v'h^l ie ^ '] '^•" "'''"'"1 *" ^'^'" "^^' "^ ^'"> *^h'>'l'« 
 not assindlated by it?" f^at^'^L^^^ S ','"' "'^''"■>""N «nd 
 
 ex,Mnination .in.le^he p.^e 't sy'te, To ' '"' ^"""=r''"^>' «l"iM'Hl for an 
 be severely criticized I shnnKl h ' u '"■'' -"'"^'^ '^'""•K^'S »o doul,t I shall 
 
 student ir^^out a u lendes who L« H "'"'I*, "*'"" *" '•■""version, if I could find u 
 the Berlitz system ''"' ^''^"'""fe'^'ly mastered his s,d,ject by means of 
 
 ten ^^T^:7'Sa\^^:i^ "" "' "" '"^^'•'^^ ^""^- '^ ''^f-"-- After 
 
 and its wonl'in t mler to L' t"" ''^"""^'^ > ""'^'*'' "''" '"'"^ ^^^ "'""'^ 
 expressed in a foreimsrechitTL., "'^'^^""'1 «>'<1 Wropriate an idea 
 to dress it in a wou h ' n ti'e Tm^'to ca' r7l""''^, '' '''"' '''' ^^"^•'' ""'^ 
 
 Now the child who has no weirformed mo dd fn , "^'' """ """'^" "'"»^^'- 
 
 cells for any conception has no nee of th« ? ' "'^' "'."''' ""^^ •^^'^" '''^^^ ''^'"ned 
 
 the conception and its form fit ml? translation. As the idea and the word, 
 
 the mould is complete it i.t °"^;«"other, they form their mould. Once 
 
 lat-rHg in ones native tonmie a word heard in o f^.o; i "mi. r.ientaiij traija- 
 
 '■pi<u 
 
34 
 
 with two words of which one or the other may be employed indifferently. How 
 will you establish this comparison, or cause one mould to enter the other it the 
 lansuase, which should be your guide, is defective, if your mould i misshapen or 
 non-exTstent ? So then if you intend to study French know thoroughly your own 
 lanr'uas'e ; otherwise, your labor is vain. ,,.„.. xu 
 
 You know the pai'able of the blind leading the blind. They both f e 1 into the 
 ditch ; and there probably they still remain. And so, to undertake the study ot 
 two languages, of which one is no more familiar than the other, is only to lead to 
 a repetition of the catastrophe. . . , •.• ^ xi • ^ ir- 
 
 Secondly, let us not merely put knowledge in juxtaposition to the intelligence, 
 let it bo rather assimilated. " Stude potim ut jminom dare didiwieque perrt- 
 piant quam obscure pJuribus imhuanfui." A method by which one apprehends all 
 by the memory, the memory of the eyes or ears, is of little signihcance, and can- 
 not commend itself. Learning by heart is not learning. 
 
 In French there are two words, ronnaitre and savoir. Oommdre differs widely 
 from mooir, and he who is satisfied with the latter is not wise. Later m life he 
 is not the man who knows most, that succeeds, but he who knows best, the man 
 aul cmmad. Between the most learned, and the ablest, do not hesitate to choose 
 the latter. There is a good old saying of the schools, " memoriae mmimum 
 Jida,d," trust little to your memory. This faculty of ours is not the intelligence, 
 consequently it should not be the depository of our treasures of science. W ho 
 can rely on knowledge based solely or ahnost solely on the memory of sounds? 
 Bv frequently repeating a song, one may vaguely retain the air for a few days or 
 at the most months, and then it is forgotten. If on the contrary he has exercised 
 his eye in reading the scale, and his voice in singing, if his intelligence has been 
 trained to assist his memory, he may at any time take a copy and render the song, 
 though any remembrance of it may have passed away, In the one case he has an 
 intelfigent understanding of music, in the other it is merely a parrot-like imitation. 
 As a preparation for passing an examination, it is useless-even detrimental In 
 fact the Berlitz system does not afford any a.ssistance to the students of our 
 
 academies. . . ,. , . , • i.„ „r 
 
 \t present the candidates undergo a written examination which consists of 
 translation and some more difficult questions on construction and gallicisms is it 
 pos^iljle bv that alone to estimate the proficiency of a pupil ? Certainly not. We 
 ninv ascertain perfectly that he has absorbed some vague princip es, but we do not 
 sound the full depth of liis mind-his senses, memory and intelligence-to ascer- 
 tain not only if he .<ad but if he ronuad. And from this we proceed to judge for 
 good or ill the pui-.ils and the teachers. This is a blin.l-foded justice, a blind 
 fat.. I am certainly not opposed to written examinations : they are necessary and 
 commendable, but they represent merely the theoretical side of instruction NVhat 
 then is done for practice '! In all justice an oral examination should be held, m 
 which reading and conveisation would form the principal part. In the univer- 
 sities of France candidates are required to pass botli written and oral examina- 
 tiou« Where the subject of examination is a language, the candidate is allowed, 
 in order to redeem a weak record or improve a good one, to speak m this Imiguage. 
 The examiners are always pleased with, and give credit to such efforts. Reading 
 and translation, ajoeW.Wiiro, are part of this examination. » , . :„.i 
 
 Can we not, now, do the same, though on a sraal er scale, in our Academies? 
 I am certain that the prospect of having to speak trench at the e.xaminations 
 would stimulate the pupils in the course of the year to listen more carefully to the 
 master's instruction. This would be a double gain ; his grammar would be useful 
 to him an.l his conversation would not be a mere loss of time and labor Add to 
 the requirements of the examination obligatory conversation, and a complete 
 chw.^e will be noticed in the treatment of this subject. It is very rare that a 
 pupiTof good ability who has assimilated certain elements of knowledge, is able to 
 give the measure of his intelligence in a mere written examination. He almost 
 
85 
 
 -t t:;z^z^^-^!- ^^'1' '^"T-"' ^- *° ^'- papers 
 
 own pupifs u„der thrsn^nSrof S "ffi. 7' '^^ ^""''^r «f---">ini-'g their 
 a mere lottery, but an inte i ent estS^t,•n^f I, '■^"' •"""■' ^ ^^^'''* ^^'""'f' »°t be 
 child. If an/ trickery were loSteToT^^P^^ acquiren.ents of the 
 
 easy to ,nake the neisa'y de uS^^w e„'f ^^ "l' ''""^'T '* ^^°"''' '^^ ^l^^''^^^ 
 >s, a failure of memory or men a" nervo. I o '"''"•ks were l)eing assigned. As it 
 
 now play, a great part in o.rex^ri.nS^^^^^ l'"1 to complete failure. Chance 
 
 oral examination there would vet be i', 1? ' '^T^'^ Y i'»possibIe. With the 
 lessened, and gross ignomnc m-ou d n '^ ' '' ''""^r ''^''' ^^"^' "'^^^ ^^""^^^ ^e greatly 
 a skilful teacher wilfp^^^ e a thm ,' " ""'^'fovered. From tinje to time 
 so that the pupils n,ay be n'e.ted n. w ' P^'^P^'i^/r^; ''''"' "^ '^'^ "^ «'""" %ht, 
 hom.sopasie^willaCB^t^llLSr^sJr'''^'" '" '"^' '^^•'"^^- ^'^ 
 of ti^"^i=Ss "JIJ- LS:!' ^^;;i.^SSS:^J/ ^^hat I have said 
 
 3n.?rn:;--;?s:t^^^^ 
 
 l>ia.u. lessons, but had forjotte 'her muS '^^,""'""'T- ^^.'''" '^''"l '--' g-i'ng 
 ^"gue, English. " It is^.ecessalyt T '' .hf ^id'" Z''''^''^"" '"1 •"°''"^'- 
 Can you give me lessons in Frencli ? I co.n.np f i ' , f" "^«'^"' '"y education. 
 «f translation and exercises ; htl was so" cnnvln 'f,^' ^''' t"^'' ti.e method 
 ways .listinguish between . F ench and ,n F^ . ' T '\'^' P"P'' ^'"' »°t '^1- 
 was no assistance to her so I dec i le 1 f • •" "^ "'"'■'^- "^'^ ""^^^^ language 
 
 but Frenc.h to read, writ" and s^lk 'ZV 1 "''r"""V"' '""^ ^"^^"^ l-r nothing 
 i"<l"lg'.'d in mimicry and w le ro' u-' P" 'f '' ""' and named ol,jects for he. 
 
 the Eerlit. systen.^h^i;;.:; ' e' iE^;^/''^S:f ", ^'^ -as practicall^ 
 as her education was concerned '"L, ''"'^■^^arten. This lady was a child, as far 
 would have been a repetit on f L 11. 'T'''f ,' " '•^'^"''"' '^''''^ ^ '"«f'e use of it 
 have bee., teaching t^'Li.u.d '/,"." n ^1 V"5"i'^'•'■^'^•'• ^ «'-"'^i •««! ' 
 wore to preset hcn^self f^ex n in^ i '^ f' ^" '''."^'="'|"'«- ^^'ow if this lady 
 rejected, even if she couM r^^^ZLZH^""' f " "7"'^' ^" P™'"P"y 
 examinatio.i, .)artlv writte,, .,n,l ,.n .<■ , > ^' «"'' ^peak a little. Li an 
 
 lowed as a n;a.xi..,uu.. '"'^ '"'' "^' '^'■'^'' '^' ^^-^"'^l ^^'-■''"■ve half the ...arks al- 
 
 BeH;;r;^tr;;;S;cci!;^,E^S;:;;t--^ ^r"^^ cxpeneneewith the 
 brt she could never use the ^plr^^'^o^^'T^r "" °'''^"''''" ^'^'^y ^^'«". 
 Avh.ch they I,ad oeeur.'ed i.. the si ^e L n;^ U '^°""'^'=t'°" t''an that i.. 
 Its origiual settiug, she was put a T o"s Sh w., ] ''"'''V'*''' '''^P''''^^'^ f''"^"' 
 new; the.'e was uothiug let lie 1, .^ ;rn;H 1 Tr"""''""'"'^ *'' '''^'l"'''" ''"tl'ing 
 cleduetio.. had ..ever bee^ t ... d J , " ' .1 1 "f '7"'"' "^ '•"^•"^'"■' '-^"^ 
 
 often to tra..slate, while to pass a F.^e,' 1 ' ^ r ' ''"' ^" ■''^''" "'' '■'^'^^'. ""^l 
 absolutely i,n,,ossil3le. Her education , f-^']'."'""tion a.y-ways adva,.eed, was' 
 cnitivate.l intelligence a.id .)e twf [ . '"''^'"K "" " f"lse basis. WitI her 
 
 beuerhyfoiiowing;L:ipS;r.iu;::d "''^" "' ''"«"^'' ^'•'' -"'•• ''---lo;.: 
 gi 's rZg!;;Jt..;;: ;;rh;rcil;:t;;:i;; ^idji^vr-f ^-^ '^*f ^«""'^^^'"-- --^ 
 
 nmtters. I,, ]aug„age, wor.ls , .'r eT*^ ^ ^ i ''''' Tf'^''' ^''^ '"'Portant 
 
 then,ate..ial; the cm.;t..,.cUc . i^ Sed^^. thl!:'f 'Tr^'^'f "'^ -^''"tials n.e 
 
 the superinteudence of the intell.n.re C 'Si'"""'"'';'" ''^ .«'■'"""'■■'••, u..der 
 
 ta,.eously. We cannot place what bdo, / H ''"'''' r*"''' "'"'"''t «"""!- 
 
 intelligeuce, as we numhe? hous f t a s feet or so^r'! ''" "'"""'■>' '-""^ "'« 
 llbrarv IV- ^s -^ stieer, or sort hnnks on t in efiol.- s 
 
 1";^. ' ft;;; ■^-:;: ■:s^e;;;;k'/^: r^..^ » f ;i;:!:;^i;: 
 
36 
 
 ma., but we r,^.tran,latea ^onvevsea a.lcon.jx..l a« n. possihl.. ^Tl;^ 
 
 us,Hl to write, accoraing to tlu. Braille sy^ten, '^ ^ ^J'^;,;" .f^ „/,„,Ue out the 
 of history, now one subject iu>w another J >• 1 J ' J. ^ ^,,, pronunciation, 
 
 information than as dry precept. . „„ni)« of the Blind Asylum a 
 
 proper sense of the tern. ; m the third year, the %n U st Y ^^ ^f^^, 
 
 I til.ish to the «ork by reviews of >'>'''"'';\;^ '/' i/J ! ; "^S t , n^a^ter, they 
 that thev will fly with their own wings; they ^ '^ ;\'*^ ™ 
 
 THK FRENCH SCHOOLS. 
 
 In addition to the English schools tliere ----.^rJ^^^.^^^S^S ^^IS 
 of Nova Scotia, which merit our attention. \ on ;»^' ^ ' ^J'' ^ Acadians, whose 
 in the extreme East and West of the lY^^7;';^;^«j; ^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 mother tongue is not English. \ ery rarely do ^1 f .^ 'Hbanju '^n n ^^^^ 
 
 spoken in their homes. Unless hey travel ^^'f^'^'^Sy ^^ ^^,, Scotians. 
 English, they are ignorant of the anguage « ^''^ " j f ^^Jj^^*^ ^\ (; ,e Breton. 
 
 occupied with clearing the ground, with '^'^f "'^ ^^^^toT serve the pure forms of 
 the fruit of their labours, that they were not tj°"^l«' ^" P\'''''^' '' ^ ^ of m^oi^^^ 
 tt language they brought from France. ;'^»/-'-!P-;;f ^oiSie ^^^^^^^^ th; 
 itself a'n immense step towanls 'b'cadenc , f^^^^^^lj^^'f,^^"™;'! , i.^p.re dialect 
 Acadians were in the past wi hout teachers, ^ ^/.^^^J™ ^ mixed 
 
 .-as thereby rendei.d ^V^f^^J^^^^^^^'^,::^ podge of 
 
 S^e and';::^:a^;:t;i:^l' ^^J^^di^^d, mutHated and pure English, that 
 
 ^"•isSeints of mine may raise a f^-Pes, Imt I am — to tell U. tri^^ 
 aud no one has a better right than mysel t° ^e ea l.-ui i^ '^n; t'.ym ^^^J^^ 
 
 fLaMnofkuow whether ll,cyw..rel,,«l.., or Fr«„^^^^^ 
 
 t Imvo he«r.i very Misible IKrsnns .-..» the »«f '™ ; ^ "^"'J ,„Jj ,, i, [t 
 hetter*,,ao,,«,eir,,*^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
 were possible, bu. ^V!. ^ -tan faithful to their traditions to a.lmit ot any 
 
37 
 
 Bt!si(ips the Sliortest way to Enf^lish is through tlie medium of the pure French. 
 "VVe sliall not i\o well if we disreganl this method. If the pres.mt system remains, 
 French will certainly be prevented from Ijeing a ])roi)erly spoken" language, ami 
 English will he condemned to remain at tiie door of the Acadian intelligence. 
 Unle&s the Acadians know their French well, they will never succeed in their efforts 
 to study P]nglish. I do not recommend the exclusion of one liuiguaf'e ; I desire 
 the advantage of English. " 
 
 If the Acadian cliildren were taken from their homes, when young, and placed 
 in an English environment, at times when their faculties are deveFoping, when 
 their ideas are being moulded and their intellectual materials are accumulating, I 
 vshould advise the exclusive use of English. But such is not the case. In their 
 homes, witli thiiir fellows in tlie play-grounds, they speak Acadian, and when the 
 school-teacher exhau.sts liimself in his explanations in English of Engiisli books, 
 the children whisjx'r their nons(.ns(> in one anotliers ears in Acadian. Between 
 the teacher and pu])il there is often not merely no bond of union, but there is a 
 veritable Chinese wall of separation. The master does not understand the pupil, 
 the pupil has in his hands Englisji books that are simjdy enigmatical. He may 
 reail but he does not understand them, like some so-called Latinists who read 
 Caesar, Init cannot translate a line. Wiien an Acadian child comes to school his 
 mind is no longer a lilaiik, l)ut is scribbled all over with French characters. It is 
 necessary lirst to classify these, and then take them as guiiles leading to English. 
 At juesent tlie Acadian and English pupils are jdaced on the .same footing.*^ As 
 a principle of equality this is all very well, Iwit in its i)ractical results it wUl not 
 hold. The same books that are iiseil in the English are enforced in the Acadian 
 schools; the language of instruction must be the same in the tw<i diametrically 
 opposite eases. The examinations also do not differ, except that they generallv 
 result in the discomfiture of the .'*cadian.s. 
 
 We have indeed a reading b(5ok in the two languages for the use of the French 
 schools, but of what benefit is it? This is a question of jirime importance. How- 
 ever I do not believe in condemning without giving my reasons. The Royal 
 Reader in its double text is more. harmful than beneficial, because, 
 
 (1) The translation is not faithful, 
 
 (2) It is useless, even harmful, 
 
 (3) It is not based on any principle of education. 
 
 1 do not need to delay on the first charge. It is the duty of masters to warn 
 young ]nipils against the danger of false notions, which may last as long as life. 
 They receive instruction as it is impaited by the teachers,' he it wholesome or 
 poisonous. The greatest misloitune of a school is a teacher of limited resources, 
 or a text book of false princijiles. 
 
 My second^ charge is that the translation is useless. It does not enable the child to 
 understand French. Stipjiosing he is able to read French, his mother tongue, what 
 advantage is the English in the opposite column to him, if he cannot understand 
 it? Was this free translation givtai him to comprehend the meaning of the Eng- 
 lish ? And if .so. why is not the .same done for history, geograi)hy and arithmetic, 
 which have no other interpreters than the English au'thors ? Cimsequently these 
 book are useless. In fine, no educational principle justifies the use of such 
 methods. 
 
 Either the bilingual reader is merely to teach reading, and then these languages 
 are mutually unserviceable, or the French text is the Alpha and the Omega of the 
 French education of the Acadians, and that we should all deprecate. 
 
 I repeat my statement of the beginning, \>hen s|)eaking of the pupils of the 
 high schools and a(!ademies : do not venture to learn French without knowing 
 English ; and now speaking of the Acadians, I say, do not venture to learn Eng- 
 lish without knowing French. 
 
 When they arc at .school the Acadians do not give one Imur's thought to Eng- 
 lish. After five or six years spent in school, the few English words they have 
 
\i 111 
 
 38 
 
 learned liardly enable them to understand English with any degree of readiness. 
 Once outside the rather insignificant influence of the school and the English in- 
 habitants, they return to their Acadian ^)o<o/s, to their ignorance and decadences, 
 to a condition worse than before entering, or, at least, not much better. 
 
 If out of these six years they devote three years to their mother tongue, they 
 would not have to deplore their ignorance of French, anil make such a pitiful 
 figure in the world. English will always serve moreover as a reserve. I have 
 heard partisans in favor of the reform of the Acadian schools, demand a purely 
 French education. I thiidc that since we live in an English country, our educa- 
 tion should be as thoroughly Englisli as possible. Hf-re the man is measured by 
 the standard of an English education. Two well acquired languages give a man a 
 double value. 
 
 l^ut since an Acadian child on entering school' is of an age when he rcflpcts, 
 and speaks and understands a language, he ought to be able to make it subserve 
 his endeavors in learning every other language. Thus before a child begins the 
 study of English graiauiars, (1)1 should demand that he read, write, spell and 
 speak French at least fairly well. Suppose that this is a matter of two years. I 
 should have for that alone a purely French grammar, an exercise Vjook and a 
 reader. (2.) I should have a good French-English grammar at the beginning of 
 their Englisli education, with the distinction, that the Acadians should have a per- 
 fect knowledge of the language they are studying, as I suggested above by reading, 
 analysis, translation, ' imitation' and conversation. 
 
 As soon as the pupil can speak English with a certain degree of intelligence, I 
 see no reason why he should not study geography, history, mathematics, etc., in 
 the n^^/ idiom. By virtue of the knowledge that he has acquiroJ in French, and 
 his quickness in noting the niceties of the language, — which intelligence he haa 
 not acquired without the previous work of translation cf English into French and 
 vicfi w/va, now unconsciously performed — he is able to make a ready use of English. 
 
 it is not necessary to change the curriculum, but merely to classify the subjects 
 differently ; we should not put the cart before the l;orse. The authors specified 
 for the Academies are all that are necessary for xeading. The Superintendent of 
 Education will easily select the most practicable and attractive texts books in gram- 
 v.'ar and composition. 
 
 All that I demainl for the common schools within the bounds of justice and 
 truth arc for the first stage, — (1) reading, (2) spelling, (3) writing, (4) French, 
 conversation as a basis ; for the second stage, — (1) reading, (2) spelling (H) writ- 
 ing, (4) translation into French, (5) English conversation. 
 
 AH the branches of Education in our Province will be taught in English with 
 French authors optional, but for the, Acadians French will be obligatory. French 
 will thus be first in order of time, but second in importance. 
 
 In the colleges, where a more exhaustive study is possible, French literature 
 will be studied from the highest point of view ; but in the common schools English 
 nnist bo learned, and hy no means easier tiian by French. 
 
 I should like to see the examiners demand of the Acadians, in compensation for 
 their relative and inevitable weakness, a difficult exercise in French composition, 
 and a severe ordeal in French conversation. Even after a course in college under 
 good Frencli instructors, the Acailians have a lamentable fashion of returning to 
 their patois. If the Council of Public Instruction would take the trouble to change 
 the curriculum for tlie French population, the least that could lie expected woidd 
 be that all, and especially the teachers, slicmld strive to speak correctly in and out 
 of .school. 
 
 My paper seems rather lengthy, but the subject it treats is important since it 
 engages so much of the time of our pupils, serves to such a great extent in the 
 commerce of men, and to return to t'-e Acadians, it brings together the descemlant.'* 
 of t!io colonists of France and. the sons of fme England, it draws them together by 
 the bond of language, of sympathy, of brotherly kindness, for the .^.apreme gooil 
 of our country, Camida. 
 
39 
 
 ^ Discussion.— Rev. Alph. B. Parker, of St. Ann's College :— We need a 
 French p-amniar and readinj,' book in our schools and French-speaking districts. 
 I wish to raise no religious or national feeling nor do 1 wish to have French taught 
 to the detriment of the English language, but only as a means of arriving more 
 perfectly and quickly to a thorough knowledge of English. This is the univer.'^al 
 opinion of the Acadians who could judge in the matter, and it is in this light 
 only that I am there as their delegate. The primary teaching of the children for 
 two years in their mother-tongue would make theni learn Engli.sh better after- 
 wards : experience has shown the difficulty of teaching them to read, write and 
 speak in a (to them) .^iwnjc language, all at the same time. The Acadians would 
 acquire a knowledge! of their own French language at the same time and would 
 end by speaking twi, languages correctly, whilst now they can only speak a patois 
 of one and a jargon of another. 
 
 2nd Semon— WEDNESDA Y. 
 
 Discussion on Profe.ssor Lanos' paper continued. 
 
 The following resolution was moved by the Rev. A. B. Parker and seconded by 
 Dr. Hall of the Normal School :— 
 
 Re»olred, That in the opinion of the Educational Association it would seem 
 desirable that the Council of Public Instruction for this Province should allow 
 mich change to be effected in the books in use in the .schools in French speaking 
 districts, as would give to pupils in said schools text books mi their own language 
 at least in reading and grammar, in order to facilitate their acquiring a knowledge 
 of English. 
 
 Principal Calkin, Normal School :— I hav" listened with great interest to the 
 able paper with wiiich the Association had been favored by Prof. Lanos. I did 
 not previously understand that the scliools among the Acadians were as described, 
 and I feel that there is a grievance which demands some remedy. While I 
 honored the Acadians for their loyalty to the beautiful language of their fathers, 
 I agree with Professor Lanos that a knowledge of English is to them a matter of 
 the highest concern. I feel that one of the first duties which they owe their 
 children is to jirovide them with the means of becoming acquainted with the 
 prevailing language of the country in which they live, as without such know- 
 ledge tl'ey can never take high position or exercise commanding influence in the 
 aflfairs of the country. But while I am in full sympathy with the object sought 
 after by Prof. Lanos, I dififer with him in regard to the method proposed for 
 effecting that object. That gentleman would confine the Acadian children in the 
 schools exclusively to French until they wore thoroughly acquainted with that 
 languiige in order to lay a foundation for their subsequent instruction in English. 
 I fear that sucli a course would utterly fail in its purpose, as the whole of the 
 school life of these children would be spent in securing such mastery of French. 
 I believe that they should be instructed in English from the verv first, and if the 
 French in the bilingual readers is unintelligible to them, as had" been stated, the 
 English lessons should be translated into a language which they can understand. 
 Ksiiecially and aljove everything else, I hold that the teachers in the Acadian 
 schools should be familiar with the mother tongu. of the children as well as with 
 English. Young men and women drawn from the Acadian people should be 
 qualified and placed in charge of these schools. 
 
 Inspector Morse : — I have listened with pleasure to the very interestin" and 
 able paper which has been presented by Prof. Lanns. It is a very timely eotitri- 
 bution, and one whicli merits much consideration at the hands of this Association. 
 
- i 
 
 j Pf 
 
 40 
 
 Tlie Acailiiins of tlii.s Province are to be con^ratulntcil in havinj; in Prof. Lanos ao 
 able a represcntativi!. They are also to be congratulated in iiaving another ablo 
 ciianipion in tlie ])er«on of Kev. Prof. Parker of St. Anne's College, to wluin we 
 have just listi'ne(l. 
 
 1 rise, Mr. Presiilent, more particularly to support the resolution which has 
 just been inoved by Prof. Parker, knowing, a.s I do, the disadvantage's under which 
 the Acadian.s labor in the matter of text-books. There are about f/nrti/ i)urely 
 French schools in inspectoral district No. 4 under my supervision. The children 
 on entering these scliools in most cases can neither speak nor understand the 
 English language, and .some text-books in their mother tongue are a necessity. The 
 only Frendi text-books now i)res(!ril)ed are the bilingual Koyal Readers. As this 
 series does not extend beyond the No. 3 reader, a more advanced French reading 
 book is a necessity in these schools If a suitalile reader for the advanced cla.sses 
 were prescribed, and also a small French grammar, 1 believe that the A-jailiana 
 wouUl ]w satisfied, and it would at once remove any desire on the part of their 
 teachers to introduce unauthorized books on these sul)jects. If Prof. Lanos' 
 theory be correct, that a k:\owledge of pure F'rench woidd materially aid the 
 Acadians in mastering the linglish language, then by all means let a more 
 advanced French reader and a compendious French grammar be prescribed for 
 the Acadian common schools. I have much pleasure, therefore, in supporting the 
 resolution whicli is now before the A.s.sociation. 
 
 Principal McLeop, Kentville : — I am strongly opposed to any such resolution, I 
 believe it would only set back the time when the French would speak English, which 
 is the language of the land. The Scotch have overcome the difficulty, why have 
 not the French ? If they were really in earnest they, too, would scm overcome the 
 difficulty. 
 
 " Professor McDonald, of the Xormal School, who has also liad much experi- 
 ence in French school's, and considered that as present constituted, the French school 
 could not do good work in the English language. They must have access to tlxeir 
 own language in tlie earlier years. He also was Scotch and he could speak 
 Gaelic, l)ut he felt that the views of Professor Lanos and F'ather Parker were cor- 
 rect, provided the English language was thoroughly taught in the end." 
 
 . Principals O'PIearn and Kennedy also took part in the discussion. 
 
 The resolution passed unanimously. 
 
 I ^ 
 
DISTRICT INSTITUTES. 
 
 By C. W. Komcue, A. M., Inspector of Schools, Woi.kvh.i.e. 
 
 For ninny years the toacliors of some of the inspectorates in tlie Provinee have 
 held meetings at stated periods— sometimes annually- -to interchange views on 
 educational topics, to discuss subjects pertaining to their Work, to see and to hear 
 some illustrative teaching done by persons selected for the purpose, and to form the 
 acquaintance of each other. These meetings were styled Associations. In tliem 
 che subjects for consideration were introduced by readying ])apers, prepared by the 
 members, and these papers were freely discussed by the Association, these 
 Associations have to some extent promoted the efficiency of the teaching service. 
 The two days allowed for the njeetings were too short a time for tlie accomplish- 
 ment of much. The attendance, which was voluntary, did not include more than 
 one third of the teachers in the inspec^torates, where the Associations were held ; 
 and .such Associations were established in not more tlian five or six counties of the 
 Province, so that not much has yet been done, in this way, for the more than two 
 thousand teachers annually employed in the public schools. As a rule, those who 
 attended were from the best .schools, knew most about school management and 
 teaching, and could best do without the help of such meetings. They manifested 
 a deep interest in the work, and expi*ssed themselves as much benefited by such 
 gatheringti. The name Association has been changed to District Institute.' I do 
 not know what intended significance there is in the name, but I shall take the 
 hberty to describe the Institute to which I wish to direct you as follows :— 
 
 I. I would have the Institute a school, in the best sense of the term, in whicl. 
 the subjects should be thoroughly taught and special attention should be given to 
 the method of teaching. It might be of the nature of a summer school, but giving 
 more attention to eleniontary subjects, and especially to the best way of i>resenting 
 and dealing with them. How to t^o school work, how to economize time, how to 
 conduct class exercises, how to reach all the pupils, including tlie dull ones, and 
 many other things, make such work of vast importance to the mass of teachers 
 in our schools to-day. 
 
 The fact that not one fourth of the teachers engaged in the .schools have received 
 *ny training to teach, shows the necessity of some greater effort than is now being 
 made to provide such teachers as the times demand. Three fourths of all our 
 teachers go into the school room with little conception of what should be expected 
 from tiiem. They practise upon the schools— often iloing more harm than good 
 —at the expense of the school section and to the detriment of the whole Province. 
 This IS not altogether the teachers' fault. They often do the best they know how 
 to do, and in many cases succeed in learning how to teach fairly well,"but what a 
 loss of time for the teachers, and what an immen.se loss to their ]nipils ! Their 
 loss cannot be estimated. It must be apparent to all who are familiar with the 
 Tvork of the schools as they now (!xist. 
 
 Our need now is teachers for the schools, not schools for the teachers. The in- 
 terests of the children in the schools far transcends the interests of those who want 
 
 (41) 
 
42 
 
 Sro^tt ';::,;• of s^sS: ^V^ors ir'^^-'v'r^' '^ ^'''^^^■^' f'--^^^' 
 
 dates for positions in them ^' "'''^'' ^°'"'^'''' P'"'=^«'"«' ^^ ^^'"li" 
 
 NoL»f sXS,'3„?„\;"„f,''r,T''"'°,'''° '"'" '"'■"»' »' "" Model „„<1 
 
 
 C. W. RoscoE, M. A., iNSFEcroK ok Schools, Woi.kville. 
 
 ofLliVL'uIit'Kin!!:' Pi'ovince into district., equal in size to about the half 
 01 sucn a countj as Kings and require the atteiKlance of all the teachers 
 
43 
 
 a pleasant time socially than for solid work. Five days woiild enable teachers to 
 take hold of some lines of work and follow them far enough to be able to pursue 
 their ..fter the session is over. Esi>ecially will this prove true of the methods and 
 devic's presented for their guidance in teaching. Ten days would he still better 
 th,i.n five ; but it may be too soon to advocate so great an advance. 
 
 (2nd.) What should the Insf ' te be, and what should it do? 
 
 All the work on the school courses cannot, from the shortness of time, re- 
 ceive attention at any one session of the Institute ; but any subject selected from 
 the idgh or common school course may properly bo taken u]) and taught either 
 to tiie memliers of the Institute or to pupils from the schools who shall be selected 
 to be practiced upon, so as to illustrate methods of teaching. 
 
 It nniy be found advantageous to give considerable time Ui a few subjects at the 
 outset. Chemistry and Physics, for some teachers who are expected to teach them, 
 but who have never liad tlie opportunity to learn them except from books,' may 
 conic in this list. In the common school .subjects I wouM put music, drawing, 
 nature lessons, and calisthenics. To these latter I would give two les.sons per day 
 wiiih! the Institute is in session. As to the time for each lesson, that will depend 
 upon the class. Whore the members of the Institute form the class, one hour 
 should be the maximum. Where pupils are brought in for practice the time 
 should not exceed thirty minutes. 
 
 At the first meeting I would have each teacher give an outline of the course of 
 lessons in which he has been selectetl to give instruction, and when outside stmly 
 IS needed I would asaign a lesson for the first class exercise. The talk at this time 
 shoidd be a pr^)aration for what is to follow. 
 
 To put before you the idea, in my own mind, of what is to be done, I will 
 suppose that some one who has succeeded in teaching history has been appointe<l 
 to give a lesson each day for five days in the history of Canada or Britain. A 
 lesson of reasonable length was assigned, we will a.ssume, at the proper time, to 
 pupils of the grade for which it is suitable, and they have prepared it. Now, I 
 would have each lesson so taught, and the exercise "so conducted, as to exhi' it the 
 best method of teaching This should be made apparent by what is actually taught, 
 as well as by the interest awakoned in the class and the stimulus given to pursue 
 this study. The teachers atte.iding the Institute would make a note of how much 
 or how little stress if laid upon the text-book part of the lesson, of the points 
 emphasized, of the new points introduced, and of the general results. 
 
 Any other subject such as Arithmetic, Grammar and Geography maybe selected 
 as the committee of management may decide. The aim in choosing a teacher 
 should be to get one who knows his subject, and, better still, who knows how to 
 teach it. In a course of five lessons, giving one for review, the plan will be fixed 
 in the minds of the listening teachers, and they will carry away witli them some- 
 thing that may be adopted, something that willprove of inestimable value to those 
 who have not hit upon the best plan heretofore. I would have the time for the 
 lesson, the amount of text-book to be committed, and everything connected with 
 the lesson, natural, and as nearly as possilile like what the teacher would do in his 
 own school, were he teaching there instead of before the Institute. 
 
 To proceed from what is comparatively ea.sy to what is more difficult and of 
 much more importance, I would have you think of five lessons in reading taught 
 as examples before the Institute. Let the teacher, as before, be selected on account 
 of his aptitude to teach the subject, let the pupils as regards grade and attainments 
 be chosen for this particular work, and the lesson in length, etc., be a model. N^^^ 
 let the teachers observe the teacher as he proceeds. What does he do to prepare 
 the pui)ils to read ! How much time does lie spend in talk about words, places, 
 men, etc., of which the lesson treats 1 When he asks a pupil to read, does he 
 expect him to imitate the teacher, or to expre.ss the thought referred to in the 
 introductory talk, or both ? In brief, what is good teachinglu this subject 1 The 
 
'I 
 
 44 
 
 l)(>.at iinswcr should lip foumi in wlmt tlic liviii;,' tfiu'lu'r lif. tioue for five con- 
 BecutivK iliiyH umlcr tlio forcj^'oinj,' circiiiimtniiccs. 
 
 Hf must 1)0 iliill of apprchi'ii.sioii or conii)rcli('iision, who docs not discover 
 sonict.hiii^' in xuch an i-xcrcisc to carry to his own school and nsc in his own 
 tt'jii.'hin^'. 
 
 There are four suhiects that innst for some time, i nf,'a^'e tlu! iittenlion of District 
 Institutes, and 1 would ^'iv( iironiinence to theui hiue. These are, Nature 
 Lessons, Drawing, Culistlienics and Music. 1 am of opinion that the sentiment 
 favoring these, is, in many instances, dormant, or at liest, only a snioidderinj,' 
 8i)ark in the hearts of too many teachers It needs fostering,' and sli;nnlatiug. 
 Wc need not fear or hesilati! to talk it u|). In fact these suhjects need hoomini'. 
 1 tiiink that is the word that hcst e.vpressi s it. The more this is done tiie more 
 popular will tiiey liecome. They Imvfi come to stay ; and none too soon have the 
 schools lieen re(iuired hy law to teach them. For those who have littli; or no 
 oii|>.)rtunity to he tauj^ht these sulijects or to he instructed how to teach them — 
 and a larj,'i' niimher of our teachers are in this condition — I would recmnmend 
 that something,' he done at the Institutes. The work that I am mappinj,' out will 
 necessitate a much lonj,'cr time, and },'reator exi)ense than now, for Institute work ; 
 hut if time and money spent in this way shall he made to contrihute in a marked 
 dei;ree to the advancement of the .schools, and to their value in fitting the young 
 for tlu! duties awaiting them, at the completion of their school days, we need not 
 hesitate to go forward in this direction. 
 
 I would have five model lessons, given on some two topics, that come umlor the 
 head of Nature lessons. 8ay for the first year, five on minerals, and five more on 
 jilants. In the.se we may safidy imitate the summer school of science and do part 
 of the work in the fields. Let tliese les.sons lio sim])le and models for tin; teachers 
 in their own .schools. Tliey shoulil he given to children and slioulil lie neitln'rton 
 prosy nor too trifling, neither t(.o hookish nor too original. I'liey should not he 
 forh.df of the class, nor for ])U|)ilsout of the eia.ss, not for show, and not lacking 
 in interest. What should they he? They slund.l he the best model lessons that 
 can lie conceived of in this line. When the lesson has been given and the class dis- 
 mi.ssed, time should be given for (pie.stions and suggestions or remarks from thos(^ 
 who have tried other succe.ssfid methods of doing the same kinds of work. There 
 is no royal road to teaching any more than to learning. 
 
 C'ah'tif/icnirx. — This should be made prominent in Institute woi'k. Cla.s.ses of 
 pupils may appear before the institute and be diilled to show how to conduct an 
 excrci.se in -school ; but a majority of the teachers will do well to submit them.selves 
 as pupils, and l)e drillp(h Here too, the method is an imp(3rtant part of the work. 
 It seems to mo the sooner we can convince everybody that time is not wasted, 
 and that pupils arc fitted for more and better work l)y this exercise, the better. 
 
 How many teachers receive mea.sages from parents that they do not want their 
 children's time wasted in that way, and how many faint-hearted ones yield, and 
 give only so much time to this drill as will justify them in reporting it in their 
 registers and returns ? All schools have pupils in .some of the graiies who neerl 
 physical drill regularly, and it may be said that all who attend, whether large or 
 small, would be benefited by engaging in some exerci.ses of the kind. How often 
 it occurs that the teacher is worried by the restlessness of little children. She 
 scolds -sometimes punishes, — and continually irritates the nervous little things })y 
 attempting to compel them to keep quiet, when the atmospliere of the room is bad, 
 and the children need a change of position, and a good lively time for a few 
 minutes. This state of things can be quickly changed l)y opening windows and 
 doors, so as to admit plenty of ymre air and remove the vitiated air, by swinging 
 the limbs and exercising the muscles at the dictation of the teacher. This done 
 with exactness and precision secures individual attention, gives spirit to the listless 
 ones and fits all for a pleasant season of work and qiiiet. More can be done for 
 the next half hour than could have been done in twice the time under the former 
 
ir five I'liii- 
 
 )t discover 
 ill iiis (iwii 
 
 of I )i«trict 
 re, Nature 
 1 seiitiiiK'iit 
 iiiDiiMciiii^' 
 liMiuliitiiij,'. 
 
 (I luiillllill!'. 
 L- till' llllllO 
 
 n liiivc tlio 
 itlli! <ir IK) 
 icii IIkmii — 
 
 ■f'L'DlllIlH'lnl 
 
 if^ out will 
 
 tiitc Work ; 
 
 I n iiKirkcil 
 
 tlic yoiiiif^ 
 
 •(• lll'cd IKit 
 
 uiii'ior tii(! 
 'e more on 
 111(1 <Io ])art 
 111! teai'iier.s 
 lieitlier ton 
 ukl not lie 
 lot laekinj,' 
 
 'SSOllS tllllt 
 
 le I'liiss (lis- 
 froiii tiiose 
 •k. There 
 
 Classes of 
 comluet an 
 tlioniselves 
 ' the work, 
 ot wasteil, 
 ! lietter. 
 want their 
 yie'iil, anil 
 it in their 
 \vlio need 
 er large or 
 How often 
 Iren. She 
 3 thinj,'s by 
 Doni is bad, 
 for a few 
 idows and 
 7 swinging 
 This done 
 the listless 
 3 done for 
 the former 
 
 suggestions 
 
 thus given 
 not succeeded in this 
 the best way to teach 
 
 4:) 
 
 conditionn, and all feel pleasant about it. Now what to do, Imw ai eonduet tliis 
 drill, how much time to devote to it, iVc, \-i'., I would have taught at the liiHti- 
 tiite. I am aware that I am treating of what will seem a small matter to .some of you. 
 I expect to hear you ask. Why sjiend the timi' of the In.stitiite in teaching what 
 may be easily learned from a book ? To answer this and convince you of the need 
 in this direction, j would invite you to visit a half dozen ordinary country .s(diools, 
 and 1 believe you will come away fe.'liiig that the small and a|ipareiitly trilling 
 matters connected with school work are the ones of importance and needing care 
 ful attention. You will be convinced that '' the cookies must be [uiton the lower 
 shelf to be eaten." 
 
 Drairintj. — .Most of the teachers in the J'rovince have done something in draw- 
 ing, and realize th.it it must be taught. .Many are not {|uite sure of th(! best 
 methods of teiichiiig it. To do the most for all, 1 would have a sjiecialist in this 
 subject give two halfdiour les.sons each day of the Institute to all the teachers, not 
 so much in the expectation of training them in so short a time to nse the jiencil 
 well and to produce good specimens of drawing, as to show how to teach it in the 
 various grades of the schools. Therefore, in the Institute work, inanii le.s.sons for 
 children may be gone over in ow for the teachers. So long as the teachers catch 
 the idea of how to do it right and well, they can fill in the details themselvPH. 
 Many specimens may be put on the board by the specialist to illustrate 
 what is to be taught and how best to present it to the children. The 
 
 will prove of incalculable value to those who have 
 matti'r before, because they were not ipiite sure of 
 tlie subject. I have dwelt upon this, because one 
 of the weaknesses of the mi.scellaneouH schools of to-day is, that drawing is 
 not tauglit at all, or tauglit to little purpo.se, because not taught ivitli any 
 definite aim in view, ('onsidera.ble time is consumed in allowing pupils to draw at 
 random, without instruction ; though in some cases fair specimens of drawing arc 
 prodn h1. lUit in the main the work is of little value because of the way in which 
 it is taught, or rather because it is not taught at all. The time is long past when 
 an argument is needed to convince the thoughtful of the practical utility of draw- 
 ing, oi of its importance as a means of mental discipline. The teachers who were 
 licensed without an exam.ination in drawing can scarcely be censured for their lack 
 of knowledge of the subject ; hut when the means to ac((uire the knowledge is 
 put within their reach they should be pressed to avail themselves of the opportun- 
 ity. The schools of the United States — especially tlie town schools — spend much 
 time in learning to draw. Perhaps they spend too much time in this way. If 
 they go to one extreme we are at the other. They spend weeks in making draw- 
 ings of plants, at the different stages of germination and growth. They thu.« 
 coml)ine lessons on plant growth and drawing. In this we may well imitate them. 
 Our backward condition in this subject will not be apparent to the teachers of 
 Halifax, Truro, Windsor, or other towns, where are situated county academies and 
 high schools. The most of the schools in Nova Scotia are mi.scellaneous, and in 
 sneh schools the time must be carefully divided and each period jiut to the l>est 
 account. Hence it is that we need the best teachers in such schools. And fortius 
 reason I would, by means of the Institute, put the teachers of such schools in the 
 way of saving their time and accomplishing the best results. Hence also the greater 
 need of teachers in such schools having intercourse in teachers' meetings with 
 those from more favored places, so as to keep in touch with all that is new and 
 good in the line of methods. 
 
 Music. — This fiubject I would have taught at the Institutes as it is now taught 
 to the teachers of the Summer School of Science. If possible to find the time, I 
 woidd plan for two lessons each day while the Institute lasts. More teachers find 
 it difficult to teach this, from lack of knowledge of the subject, than from any 
 other oaupe. Th--^ teaclscra throughout the Province received such a scare on 
 receipt of the Journal of Education for October, 1894, that most of them began 
 
*1 
 
 :i H' 
 
 46 
 
 and did comniendaM ! work in loainiii^ nnd teaching music. As a mi.', it is not 
 well to fii^'htcn |)C( pie, Ijiit Ii.tu is an pxccptioiml case. Those tiiat have thua 
 innde h h ;,'iniiingare itii stage when some instruction would h(> very valuahloand 
 much appreciated. For these and for ail Unu'hers who hav(^ not entered uiion tiie 
 stuily, I would have the best teac.iier tiiat can ho ohtained to give iiistru(!tion at 
 the Institute and have as many le,s.sons as can he tiioroughly given in the time, so 
 that all teachers may go home with such a foundation lai<rthrtt they can do good 
 elementary work in their schools. iMany parents are yet to he convinced that 
 time i8 not lost in teaching music in the schools. Tho.se, however, who have done 
 tlie most and hest work in teaching tliis suhject, a.ssure me that the tinu! spent in 
 learning to sing is more than ei)mi)ensaled for in the increased ability for doing 
 work which comes as the result of engaging in singing There is no exercise so 
 well calculated to drive away drowsine.s,- and hrighten up the |)iipil,s as this. It is 
 fouml, after the music lesson, th-'t the i)upils' mind.s are active and that thoy can 
 do their work rapidly and correctly. From iiersonal knowledge 1 am prepared to 
 corroborate this testimony, and, as far as i.o.ssihle, to ju'ovide that teachers shall he 
 instmdeil and ;///•/■ instructi(jn in music in all the schools. 
 
 To conclude, 1 am oi oj.inion that JnstiLutes should provide for their members 
 instruction of a high order of merit, by supplying teachers to illustrate methods of 
 teaching and school management, which would i)e a model for the members in 
 their own schools. During the evenings of the Institutes I would have provision 
 made for round table talks, lectures (ui method, tpiizzing bv tin" mend)ers, and 
 giving new devices or methods that have proved helpful, "l think it would bo 
 well to provide for one lecture each day on some phase of school work. 
 
 Now the Institute that 1 have imperfectly outlined should posse.ss the followin-' 
 features ; — " 
 
 1. The time devoted to it .should be at least five days. 
 
 2. The work done should be primarily that of training the teachers to do their 
 work in the l)est way. Provision should be made for graduates of the Noruud 
 schools and experienced teachers to do additional work along some linos where it is 
 most needed, and to read pajters and discuss topics pertaining to their work, as in 
 the old Association. 
 
 3. The extent of the In.stitute district should be eijual to about half the size of 
 Kings County. 
 
 4. The attendance should be made compulsory on all who have not attended 
 the Normal School, or who have not had at least five years' exiierience. 
 
 5. Sjieciali.sts should be appointed to condurl this work, who may .select com- 
 petent teachers of the district to aid them. V>\ dividing the Province into thirty- 
 six or more districts the whole time of these -sfiecialists would l)e needed. 
 
 6. An expenditure of public funds is rc.ommended for this purpose. The 
 specialists might bo paid from the Provincial Treasury, and an allowance made 
 from the County School Funds, to make the attendance of the teachers easy and 
 j)Ossible. 
 
 I am aware tliat I have toucln I this subject in only , few points, but hope 
 enough has been said to provoke discu.ssion and resultiu some advance in our 
 work. 
 
 Discussion -—Inspector Morse : 1 notice by the programme that I am 
 expected to ojien the discussion on tln' paper which has been so ably presented by 
 Inspector Roscoe. I regret that I had not seen Inspector Koscoe s paper before 
 these meetings, and that I am therefore not prepared to deal with the subject in 
 a manner worthy of this occasion. The subject of Teachers' Institutes is one of 
 great practical importance in view of the fact that so large a proportion of the 
 teachers throughout the Province have not received a Normal training, and that 
 
 many of them are comparatively inexperienced. Under existing regulations 
 
 so 
 
 these Institutes arc designed to promote the efficiency of the teaching servica. So 
 
47 
 
 far as my peMoiw.1 ki.owl...lK,. is concLTiie.!, I may say that tho mootiuK's of the 
 Instituto hchl annually for tho pa.st Hixtrm vimifh in InHiH.ct..ial District No. 4 
 Imvo been pro.hictive of much k'oo.I, not only in .iiiru.siuK anion- the inexperience.I 
 more correct i.leaH in reKanl tu impartin- instru.'tion, but also in establishing' an 
 e^pnt ,le n„;,H ux the profession which di.l not exist before. Many teachers 
 lu.wever, whom the Institute was especially inten.le.l to benefit did not attend the 
 lueetmfis-. partly from imiiirerence ami partly for other reasons which mi«ht l.o 
 mentioned If a 1 teachers had attended these meetin-s far -reater benefits would 
 Have resultcl J. aKreo with Inspector Hosco.- in thinking that an inspectoral 
 ilistrict IS too larKo a territory, and two .lays too short a time for ihe meetinL's of 
 a local Institute if tho attendance of all teachers be mad.! .'..mpulsory. 
 
 I indors.} the scheme outline.l in the pap.-r t.. which w.- have just listenc.l and 
 l>eli,,vo that if something were .Ion.- on th.' lines su-.'K..ste.l, an incalculable am.>unt 
 of beneht w.nil.l accru." theivfrom. If this s-duMue be a.lopte.l and th.- best 
 lesuUs an. to be expecte.l, a sp,.cialist shoul.l be ,.mpl.,yed in eomlnctin^' Institutes, 
 
 and the atten.lance of teachers shoul.l, within reasonal.le limits, h.- nuule n- 
 
 pulsory as suggested. A portion of tlie e.lucati..nal grant coul.l be profitably 
 
 L. S, MoKSE, M, A., Insi'ectok or Sc hools, Ijiouy. 
 
 employed in the manner in.hcated. U, however, the ( ,.uncil of Public rnstruction 
 should not feel disposed to adopt the scheme suggested, a revision of exist!,.- 
 regulations could prohtably be made whereby a larger nttendaiic.> at the distric't 
 institutes -especially of untrained and inexperienced teachers— cuuld be secured 
 and better results attained than have been reached in tlie past. ' 
 
 I regret, yh. President, that for tlie reasons before stated I have no written 
 paper prepared foi this occasion, and I must ask the indulgence of the Association 
 on that account. The subject has been so ably treated by Inspector Koscoe that 
 but little turtlier neeci be added, an.l on that account T will, with tlip-:-- few re 
 marks, give place to any others who may wish to discuss the subject further 
 
48 
 
 1 
 
 Principal Kennedy of the Halifax Acmleniy :— The paper just read is evccccl- 
 ingly practical, anil contains suggestions which if carried into effect would inevi- 
 tably result in much good. No matter how large and well-appointed a school 
 building may be, no matter how well supplied with apparatus and all facilities for 
 work, no matter even how interested and sympathetic the local public may be, it 
 u f/ie teacher that mahea the school. I would urge the formation of a compara- 
 tively large number of district Institutes in each Inspectorate, at which papers 
 would be reail and discussed, round table informal talks held, and lessons in 
 different subjects given to classes of pupils. At these institrtes let some of the 
 very poorest teachers in the district be made to take part, and let the subject as- 
 signed them be the very one of their greatest weakness, or one closely related to 
 it. They will thus be set thinking upon a matter which they have by no means 
 mastered ; they will be brought face to face with some of their very serious defects ; 
 they may be set thinking to some purpose ; and if they are, the probability is that 
 they will either improve or do the next best tViug— leave the profession. 
 
 I would further suggest, that when an Inspector is about to visit a settlement 
 where there are two or more sections, or a village where there are two or more 
 teachers, a public educational meeting bo announced to be held in the most central 
 and suitable place. At this meeting eacli teacher wouM either speak or read a 
 short paper on a subject assigned by the Inspector or chosen by the teacher with 
 the Inspector's approval, an<l the Inspector would have a grand opportunity of 
 giving practical suggestions to both teachers and parents and of doing much to tho 
 people, and to aid and popularize the claims of education in the settlement. 
 
 Mr. Kennedy then moved the following resolution, which was seconded by ]\Iiss 
 Graham : — 
 
 Resolved, That this Association recoixl its sympathy with the sentiments ex- 
 pressed ill Inspector Roscoe s paper, and that we commend the matter of district 
 or county Institutes to the earnest attention of any Inspectors who have not al- 
 ready established such. 
 
 Inspector Craig : — If we are really progressive and ambitious in our educational 
 work we have been repaid for our trouble in attending this Association by having 
 the privilege of listening to the paper so ably presented by our excellent friend 
 Inspector Koscoe. 
 
 The value of teachers' Institutes can no longer be questioned and it is surprising 
 to me that in so many districts of this Province none have been established. They 
 have become one of the permanent Institutions of Cumberland and Colchester, and 
 so impressed are the teachers with their usefulness that I know one would be held 
 yearly did the executive head will it or not. 
 
 Mr. Chairman, a Provincial Association is of secondary importance to these. Of 
 course each has its distinctive field of operati(in, but in our l.jal institutes teachers 
 are able to commune with teachers ; to became acijuainted ; to learn that they are 
 a power in the land for greatest good. Mr. Roscoe's recommendations are not 
 along the lines on which Institutes have hitherto been conducted, indeed, I have 
 with him recognized that some change was necessary in their management that the 
 greatest good might accrue fror them. 
 
 Last year we enlisted into the service of our Institute much new talent by a 
 departure from the old stereotyped papers. Quotations from leading educationists 
 were chosen as texts for five minute papers, which were not subject to discussion. 
 Many young teachers, who on account of excessive modesty, could not express 
 themselves at greater length, were emijoldened sufficiently in this limitation of 
 time to make the Institute much more interesting by their sb'.^rt pithy exercises. 
 
 Yet we need less theory and more practice ; this, I understand, is the idea Mr. 
 Koseoe's paper intends to convey. 
 
 Over three years ago my very worthy predecessor, Principal Lay, carried out to 
 
49 
 
 a .siiccAssfnl issue many of the su^'cstions inado l.y ^fr. Roscoe Ten or twelvo 
 
 leson n ^ ^\ -^""'"'''' "^ ^'"^ ''''"-"^ experience were selecte.l to give 
 
 wXd "hninuiir ■'" """' "'""'" ^'"""^^' " ^'"^ "''"'^^ ™°"'- '^^'^ P^- 
 
 Tile idei, is not to supers^ede the system of insp...;tion hut to sunnlemont The 
 
 whid. ue «>sl ,l' ,"'"' ''T '"! " -'"'^" ^"' ''"■ draining of teachers' classes 
 
 to a ;;';'"''; 7 .'""•' ^'^'"''.'f "'-^ ; ^^-i'^"! ^^iJ-'re on the part of a teacher 
 suclh^'il!:;::' i;;:„^""'"^'^ ^ '^""^"•^^^^^ ^"^-'"^ ^-- ^-^ ^l- revocation of 
 
 thoron^,";pe;f!.f''V °f M "''^'f ' Academy :-In praising Inspector Roscoe's very 
 
 H .1 T) \lt V. 10 * *''^l^'■"l^°^^^'' P^'"'- I" tl>« «"'"'"<^r of 1891 he had 
 tlo? ctio. .1 \\^ "'^" ,*'''^^'^» ««<=t'«ns. -^n^l at the most central point in 
 
 Ihese remained with the Inspector three days, .lurin- which time he and 
 
 spent n r,r!; c n^ "'7 '^''■°°'- .^^^gi»""'g '-^t 9 o'do.k, an hour would be 
 
 C ^werr 1 e 1 ''•^' r '^1"' '" """''' ""'' '""'''^'' ^'""^ "^ mineralogv. Those 
 
 rim In r.ll '" ^''' '|^^«™°°»; ••^""ther was given on insects, and then a 
 
 tiamp to collec specimens. In the evening a public meeting would be held fo? 
 
 Mants weie ana yze.l and named ; in mineralogy, blowpipe an<l acid tests usecl • 
 in entomology, insects examined and described ' 
 
 dents ' 't"L''rc'o,?nS'''- "^'Tf' ^' '''-'''^' ''''' ^^■■^■^ '" tl'° hands of the stu- 
 thenK,v:menti.T ''^';''^''^'•^''''^'■"P^'^■^-^^ "^ ^''^ t^^-^h^^^ themselves, 
 a rHh;^ ;;;;Sa!::;;/"''^^"^'''^^'^"^° ^•^-'^ a unanimous request to the 
 
 couM™!!;,' sn'r'''''r''''%P'"'''''" ^'''''''^ "">•' '-^'"'"^t «^-« only one who 
 do ll; ? V a scheme as Inspector Koscoe had outlined, and he had no 
 doubt that such assistance would be found in each district, among the teachers 
 themselves, as would make the movement a success. . ^ 
 
 rin^Mf"'^''i^^''w*^^"-"~l"°' '" ^"" "'^^•'^'■'' ^^iththe motion made by Prin- 
 c.palKennedy. With small districts as proposed, teachers could attend at lie 
 
 a't nTit, "'"'Tv' ''^"""'''""'' "''"''^ ^'^ ■'''^^"^-y initseffel Thoe ho 
 attended the present Institute regularly are no better able to afford it than those 
 xvho rema.neu at home, but are showing their willin.ne.ss to make aci fie for tie 
 
 think SauT'T'r"";?"":','"'^? '' ^^•'^'-'•■^''^'•^ ^-^"^'1 -^ be fortl^omi ;^ 
 1 th nk tiiat the work might well be done by the rank and file ^ 
 
 Ihe inexperienced could learn bett^.v metho.ls in watching the work done bv 
 t'u'he, t""' "'"'" ;• ""''^' 7'"'^ "'"'■■^ '^^"""'''t'' the activity o7 he young 
 of hi'Lllows'"'""'"' "' """^ *° '" "•'"'•""' ^" ^''^ By-npathetic consideraUou 
 
 en]Ji::dt'!l"';4:" ^'"'^ ^'^^^ ^^^-'-'^ ■" ^''^-' °^ ^-^-^ ^-titutes as ' 
 
 pfS^^rs^i^itLtrSt^sie'^^- ^"'^^^^^^' ^'^^-^^"> ^^^^^^^-' °^ 
 
 paSul;:~,v:'"^ ^^-^'^ '^ ^"^'^-^^^ ^--' -^t- -^-'^ the resolution 
 
CORRELATION. 
 
 By J. B. Ham,. Ph. D., Noumai, School. 
 
 If i '< 
 
 I* 'i I 
 
 In I 
 
 The "eneral interest raanife.sted by teachers in practical school work is an 
 assurano^e that improved methods and more scientific principles of teaching will 
 
 ^"^Thispractical interest indicated by those who have in charge the training of 
 the child-en of this country gives peculiar character to the work of education at 
 the r osent time, and a bright and hopeful outlook for the future. 
 
 The recent educational reports, discussions and reviews, have treated every 
 nhase of educational work. From tiiese educational movements important results 
 must ultimately follow, in a broader and more enriched educational literature, a 
 deeper interest in the practical work of the teacher, and finally the investigation, 
 testin" and acceptance of more scientific educational principles. 
 
 Thil quickened interest has already manifested itself on both continents, ihe 
 reports of the Committees of Ten and Fifteen have crystallzed this educational 
 
 movement in America. . . ^ i i 
 
 The Elementary Education Act of 1871 has given an impetus to common school 
 education in England, which lias been moving forward with accumulating force to 
 the present time. The continental countries have given character and direction 
 to the movement by their devotion to tlie study and practice of scientific pedagogy. 
 Anv real advance in educational work must include a more careful study of the 
 chil.l and the means to be employed for its highest and best development. The 
 results that come from the acceptance of any educational principle will be con- 
 ditioned by a natural hostility to ^cw ideas and by local educational experiences. 
 The people are the product of text-book learning and they are influenced by 
 
 their early training. , , r ., i. 
 
 An educational principle sufficiently broad to meet the needs of the present 
 must aid the teacher in answering the questions that arise concerning: the child 
 and its environments , the subject matter of instruction : and the endmd aim of 
 education Thesj three important and practical questions have been but partialty 
 answered, and any svstem of education that promises a solution of them should 
 receive the cordial support of every friend of education. , . .. , , 
 
 Every century has thrown some light on these questions, but it has been 
 reserved to the 19th to find a comparative solution of them in the practice and 
 nrinciples of Pestalozzi, Froebel, Herbart and his followers. 
 
 The educational principles of Pestalozzi and Froebel have exercised a sweet and 
 beneficent influence on primary education throughout the civilized world. 
 
 It is, however, to Herbart and his system that your attention is invited for a 
 
 ^^ H^rbaTwas born at Oldenburg in 1776. His written works embodied his views 
 on the following subjects : viz, ^Metaphysics, Philosophy, Ethics, Psychology, and 
 Pedagogy. 
 
 (50) 
 
3rk is an 
 lung will 
 
 ■aining of 
 ication at 
 
 ted every 
 nt results 
 ;erature, a 
 astigation, 
 
 nts. The 
 Jucational 
 
 lion school 
 ig force to 
 . direction 
 pedagogy, 
 idy of the 
 lent. The 
 ill be con- 
 iperiences. 
 uenced by 
 
 lie present 
 : the child 
 md aim of 
 it partially 
 em should 
 
 t has been 
 ractice and 
 
 sweet and 
 Id. 
 ivited for a 
 
 d his views 
 hology, and 
 
 51 
 
 exchisivel^T me Ztltnro IS '^' ^1^ '"'"^ '^'' '^'^''^"^^ ten.led almost 
 research and ob er ° ion ,^; I T''^' ^'"'? ","""'1'' ''^* verification by original 
 rests and substiUiLfano'theJ "'"" "''''"''"' '^'' ^^'^°^^'°" -hich thisldea 
 
 " iJ.VwJif .?' °"/'^"«':-I'«r«'^Ption, verification, and ori^nV...! research 
 
 line. ^''"'' •""' '^ l"^"'"''''^^ f^ force a new departure on our zigzag 
 
 J. H. Hall, Ph. d., Normal Schooi.. 
 
 "This is the doctrine of Ilerbart. which holds tlnf if ;=, «„f i 
 
 tion that i.s wanted, as appercept i'o^^ The iSv ^t^e 7^ 
 progress, helps tore-enforce sense^xuTept on bv he n n 1°" °"'' ^'^^'^S "^ 
 the causal series of ideas. P'-'^^epti'J" hy the memory, throu,cli the use of 
 
 " It therefore combines the two former trends in a higher » 
 
 It is evident that previous educators left the following work for Herbart to ,ln • 
 
 the course of study «uujcci matter ot instruction ni 
 
52 
 
 :i i 
 
 eliminate non-esspiitials, to save lime arnl labor, anil finally to develop the liest 
 ])OHsii)le chanictor in the child. 
 
 Tlie study of i)syeli()lof{y and tlie ol.'S'jrvation of the child hiive proved pretty 
 conclusively, that the principle of apperception, or the reception of new ideas by 
 those already present in consciousness, is a sounil pedaj^oj^ical principle. 
 
 Accordin;^ to this ])rinc.iple, the teacher offers to the child that knowledge for 
 whose thornu-h assimilation, the most favorable conditions are prestnited If thi.s 
 subject matter is prese ,ul in its proper relation it will be so arranged that the vital 
 relation existing between the different parts of the same subject or between the 
 different subjects will be clearly imlicated. 
 
 This idea of unity in the material of study is as old as teaching'. 
 Many k{ the old philosophei's were jirouounced in their views concerning the 
 unitary character of nature. 
 
 Comenius, over three hundred years ago, was constantly seeking afuer a unity in 
 education which should embrace knowledge of every kind. He says; " We see 
 that the branches of a tree cannot live unless they all alike suck their juices from 
 a common trunk with common roots. Can we hope that the branches of wisdom 
 can be torn asunder with bufety to their life, that is to truth?" 
 
 Again he says ; " My aim is to shew, although this is not generally attended 
 to, that the roots of all sciences and arts in every instance arise as early as in the 
 tende age, and that on these foundations it is neither impossible nor difficult for 
 the whole superstructure to be laid ; provided always that we act rea.sonably with 
 a reasonable creature." 
 
 Pe.stalozzi said: "Education then must consist in a continued benevolent 
 superintenvlence, with the object of calling forth all the faculties which Providence 
 has implanted, and its province, thus enlarged, will yet be with less difficulty 
 surveyed from one point of view, and will have more of a systematic and truly 
 philosophical character, than an incoherent mass of lessons, arranged without unity 
 of principle, and gone through without interest, which too often usurps its nanu;." 
 
 Froebel was dissatisfied with the disconnected character of Common Sciiool 
 Education. His desire was to introduce unity into it. 
 
 He said: "There must be in the impressions given the child by instruction, ai 
 regular gradation, and the beginning and progress of this knowledge must exactly 
 correspond with the beginning and increase of the powers as they developed." 
 
 Again he says : "The continued sinning against this truth (i. e., unity) is the 
 chief cause of antagonism and contention, and causes mistakes and failures in 
 education. " 
 
 Dr. Harris says : Frcebel's great word is inner-connection. 
 
 He continues : "This exists first, in the pupil's mind and those objects he has 
 to study (his environment); secondly, there is an inner-connection in the.se objects 
 (and subjects) among themselves, which determine the order in which they shall 
 be studied." 
 
 Finally Dr. Parker says : " The doctrine of concentration will serve intelli- 
 gently to suggest, guide and control study on the part of teachers." 
 
 Many teachers are very anxious to study — indeed do study persistently-— but 
 very much of such study is groping in the dark, is blind, but honest stumbling. 
 
 The theory of concentration presents a distinct plan for economical study on 
 the par^ of teachers, and at the same time demands increased and progressive 
 inovement. 
 
 It proves conclusively the absolute necessity of knowing the central subjects 
 and their auxiliaries thoroughly, and it proves also that the teacher should have 
 masterly ■'^kill in the modes of expression. 
 
 The realization of the ideal, you say, is an utter impossibility. 
 
 Certainly, for us, the victories of quantity teaching ; but the thing to do, the 
 thing that must be dona, if we are true to our sacred, work, is to move steadily 
 and unfalteringly towards the ideal, along the infinite line of unrealized possibili- 
 
53 
 
 the 
 
 ii'e" " fJrlff I""''" "..'"^ the thoory of con.ontratiou fhrow.s a strong li.ht alo„. 
 the path of progress,'' nn.i^alfhougl, i,i that li^ht ,li(Kculti 
 
 o not pioihice (lonl)t : " to I 
 
 68 stand out clear 
 
 .un.l .hstinct, d.fficnlties nniltiplio-l ,K, .,.. ,..,„,« ..onnt : "to know 
 S^ieo/s S^3';H:r:;r^''"7n'""i^^' ^''^ ^"••'•^'^^^ *« *'- common school 
 
 hail'i, "reaSrinf \"" "I'' ?"'' "V'" ^•^^^'"^'' '' ""'^ ^^e school subjects 
 Course. ' "^ '"'••^'''*' '''^^''^ nu.Uiplio.l in the Common School 
 
 Teachers have been unable to present the whole list of subjects in a nrooer man 
 
 » »»;' S™l;;l;i!;:r^[f™ ;r" '»'™"' • ^"»»"*.> % ''.» v^^s^z 
 
 In.ler these con.litions superficiality and pride have in part usurpe.l the nlace 
 The study of pedagogy has demonstrated that all the branc'ies comiirised in . 
 
 the';;;;;;:/! "' t""' '""^ '^ •^'^••■^'^'^ "'^^ ^^^ ^'^^^-t and s dS ; 1 "-! 
 
 T XSr ''r'f "Vr -'";'«- thought-studies and form-studie 
 lhouglit-.stu.hes dea with the subject matter of the course, the child and its 
 
 b.t; irtl"."'" "* '^''r"""'\ '^'"^ ^""f^" '^J--«-tion of the 
 c ll W I '';.'""""" •"■'"'"l course re.luces the ditticultv of aiiplyin" the Drin- 
 
 :;;;! e:p;::i'"' '^ '^ •'^"^^^"^'"" "^ ^''« ^^-p- -i^^-" beSn'thoiight 
 
 .r;!Il^\'''H'''''^ '"'""'■ f^°"''''''-'I'''^«'-^"t''"l^°t'^ *-'l'il<l i'- it« relation and be 
 a.Mn^l with respect to h,s present infornmtion, as well as that S h" wiU 
 
 uniSd inSL3s'^'Thf"i"'''' ''!'"" ^''""''^ '" ^''"^•""•"'' ---h-1 ->^l 
 
 |:eS2:jffii^\r;"Set^^^^^ 
 
 These homo subjects d.veloi. a ".any-si.Jed interest in the child ind tier fo e" 
 
 anTnteresJTff ''"''•?■' '"'?''"■''; '"■'''•'"'"'' ^" ^'"^ '^''i'''' ^^i" "^ouse and sustain 
 an inteiest ni the work and ren.ler educative instruction possible. 
 
 Under these normal conditions the child is a questioner, an investiL'ator H« 
 
 >n*s.'z:.:;;;nK«':;,;r;s ""'"•"' '"' "™^"» '" '■«"""• '»»«««=. 
 
 lii 
 
54 
 
 i ! 
 
 [§ ! 
 
 If the child properly iipperceives the new material, the words become a symbol of 
 thought, an outward sign with an inner meaning. 
 
 An oral or written review of a lesson, a ' .-icriiition of a picture or object, or the 
 narration of events observed by the child afford excellent material for language 
 lessons or other forms of thought expression. 
 
 Every .sentence oral or written should be charged with thought, and from 
 such exercises there is an easy and natural 'transition to the study of short selec- 
 tions of choice literature. 
 
 Practical exercises suited to develop the idea of number, form, and direction will 
 be easily developed in connection with the study of the central subjects. 
 
 By the use of this connected material, the child is enabled to advance naturally 
 and gradually in its study ; its perceptive jiowers will be propei'ly developed ; its 
 interest sustained ; its judgment and imagination strengtiiened ; its powers to re- 
 tain and recall its knowledge increased ; and tlie value of its information will thua 
 be enhanced. 
 
 The necessity of greater unity in the suliject-niatter of instiuction is generally 
 recognized, and this principle is receiving very general recognition in the best 
 schools at the present time. 
 
 Kducators are studying the child with the view of more fully understanding its 
 needs, and more inte'ligently supplying them. 
 
 There are many ditKculties to be overcome before "correlation" becomes a 
 practical working principle suited to the needs of every school, but by patience, 
 industry, and a noble purpose gre:iter ditliculties have been and still may be 
 overcome. 
 
 Every teacher needs the ins]>iration that comes from a sincere desire to improve 
 his work and to avoid educaticjiial inechanism and [juralysis. 
 
 A study of the theory of Correlation will furnish this inspiration. 
 
 The practice school at Jena, which adopts Herbart's principles and Tiller's 
 practice, occupies a central position in the educational world, from which light 
 will he radiated that will illuminate every school and I 
 teacher and pujiil in oiu' land. 
 
 In closing, allow me to quote briefly from Dr. Klemm. 
 foremost leader of the Herbartian principle: 
 
 " I spent several days in this 'city within a city,' and uiDre than once sat in 
 speechless admiration at the Jiianner of teaching and the results I witnessed. 
 When I noticed the absence of that rigorous (lisci[)line under which many schools 
 suffer, when I saw the children converse with the teacher as thou;,'h speaking with 
 a friend, when I saw them working with their hands and giving an intelligible 
 expression of what they had seen, heard and experienced ; when I noticed that 
 they learned as though by means of jday, I felt as though the millenium was 
 near at hand ; and again, when I considered that after all this band of tenchers 
 was in the most hopeless minority, that there may be an api>roxiination to this 
 kind of procedure, but never a perfect imitation of it in the vast majority of 
 teachers in the world ; that, after all, this was a mere oasis in the desert, T seemed 
 to feel the millenium recede." 
 
 irighten the life of every 
 He says of Dr. Fick, the 
 
 It- q 
 
 Is a 
 
 Discussion : — Principal McYicau said it would be impossible in the time at 
 his disposal to more than hint at the mar y excellent points in the paper presented 
 for consideration. Instead of attempting to speak to any of these, he would men- 
 tion the impression which the paper as a wliole made uiion him. This was the 
 need of thoroughness on the jiart of those who might attempt to carry luit in 
 practice the principles enunciiitcd. Certainly, no slipshod n;ethod would suffice, 
 when in piesenting a subjisct l)efore a class, there needed to be united with it other 
 subjects, few or many, bearing upon it or allied with it in various ways, Such 
 teaching required intimate acquairitance with each individual subject in all its 
 relations. Otherwise, iiow could the instructor hope to be able to summon at the 
 
55 
 
 proper time tlie proper correlations in fitting order ? Teachers then should become 
 familiar with their subjects, hold theiu up in various lights and inspect them from 
 different points of view, to piin that comprehension tliat would enable them to 
 fully understand what the subject was and tlie place it held in the class to which 
 it belonged. 
 
 W. M. McVicAK, A. M., Annapolis Academy. 
 
 Miss J. A. Hamilton thought concentration to be one of the most important 
 subjects of educational study. If it were projiorly and generally understood there 
 would no longer lie any trouble about cram and over-crowded courses of .^tudy 
 She had seen it carried out at the Cook County Normal School under Col. Parker 
 and it more than realized all that was claimed for it. 
 
 By permission of the meeting Miss Margaret Graham, of Central Economy was 
 allowed to read the following paper. 
 
 On Woman's Right to Vote at School Meetings :— 
 
 Reformers in general, and women in particular, are accused of bein" very 
 theoretical. " Your beautiful theories are all very well," we are told, " but we 
 want facts, plain, solid facts." Xow in regard to establishing a truer relationship 
 between tlie public school and the home, J shall bring liefore you no cut and 
 dried tiieories to which I ask your assent, but I siiall present a few facts that 
 speak for themselves. A few years ago I taught in a section only a few miles 
 from Truro where lived a family who, owing to the illness of the father, were very 
 poor. With the aid of one or two kind-hearted mothers I succeeded in getting 
 two of the children, a girl of 13 years and a boy of 11, to attend school a short 
 time. Thinking that the rising generation of Xova Scotia were being properly 
 educated, I spent some time in t.?achiiig Hindoos to read and write i:n"lish 
 Last week I returned to this section and found that in this same family there are 
 four boys, between the ages of 6 and 18, who can neither read nor write The 
 girl already referred to never attended, sehool after I left and i.s now— po.n- child -■ 
 an Ignorant wife, nineteen years of age. Yet these four boys can, by their united 
 
56 
 
 votes, holp to soiiil a nmn to Ottiiwa or Hulifiix to ri'in'oscnt tlie jioople of Col- 
 chester, while the intelligent mothers of our luml wUoran read ii newspajjcr — tho' they 
 may find it necessary to ask their husbands to ex])lain tin; profouiul (?) editorials 
 in our Canadian papers— have not the right to vote at school meetings 1 If the 
 mothers in the scttion referred to shared with men the respdiisiliility 'if attending 
 the anntial school nieetinj; and voting at least in the selection of trustees, would 
 they not have known (wliat few, if any, seemed to know) that there was such a 
 law as the Compulsory Education Act? 
 
 But 'tis not for the sake of tlie jioor classes that I would like to see women 
 represented on our school hoards, liut 'twould he for the benefit of every boy and 
 girl attending our pul)lic sclmols. 
 
 Tiiat it woidd l)e for the better were our schools more homelike no one will dis- 
 pute, how then siiall we give mothers a deeper interest in the school? True, 
 individuals here and there may do much to improve school rooms, surroundings, etc., 
 
 / 
 
 Miss M. Ckamam. 
 
 i 
 
 but institutional wrongs can never be righted by individual reform— though moral 
 reforms can— and to my mind it /s an institutional wrong that women sliould not 
 vote on all that pertains to the educational welfare of their children, ami it can 
 he righted by amending section 44 of the Revised Statutes, " Of Public Instruc- 
 tion," so as to include women. True, the few women who as ratepayers already 
 have the right to vote at the annual school meeting do not perform the corres- 
 ponding rZ?<<// which this fi;ilif l)rings, l)ut only a very small number of women are 
 thus enfrancliised, and they are those who have no children, or widows whose 
 cliddren are perhaps grown up. The section of our school law referred to deals, 
 of course, only witii schools outside of the city of Halifax and incorporated towns, 
 but it would be an easy matter to apjioint women on the latter school boards with- 
 out waiting until women servo as aldermen ami councillors. This is not a political 
 q;i- lion, as the poll tax is levied solely for school jjurposes, and we are not trying 
 to enter even the thin edge of the wedge in the direction of women sufTrage. As 
 I have already said I have no cut and dried theories to support. 1 merely .suggest 
 
u c . , se tl.j. ^r,M,,n,l ,„t,,n...t m our schools. L.-t us ...lucato our .u'lpils as rifirm,, 
 
 re' l.uf T ' ?' 1 '" "' ^'•"•■^'^*^"'i'^t'^ ■^^" tl'at all f .tuiv ..itizcns ..auuot only 
 re.ul hut taku an int..llif,',.nt int.T.st lu tliHr countiy and -ov.nnu.M.t 
 
 The following resolution w; 
 
 IS nio\'f( 
 
 1 l>y Insp. Craig ami Principal Miller: 
 
 Tlelieving that a dosor relationship hetwen homo an.l school is desirahle, and 
 
 that nnuh good will lesult iron, having the mothers of our puhlie school children 
 
 take a more actne interest m the s,,.hool, this association endorse every eljort made 
 
 '^ndXmal?"' "^ "'" ^"^"'" "^ ''"'''" '-"•-'-". ''^ -''H-'K the wouls 
 
 r)i«CL-«SK.x.- Ph.xc.pa. McI.,.:,,,,, Kentvillc Academy :--W,uncn are all ri.dit 
 vlie. they are, Their sph.-re is the home, and if tlu-y do faithful work tK 
 
 W „ ! • " ""''""?' ^i'"' *''"'" '" ^'l^' "" "^''^■" I""'t i» attairs outside the home 
 V have It on record where woman's influence oyer man, when .-nan cnialitv 
 with h.m, result,..! far from satisfactorily. J)., r.ot want to see .he like rep .tod? 
 
 A. McLeod, KENTyiLi.E Academy, 
 
 I 
 
 Mii. ANPHRW8 said he thought wumen took a deep interest in teachers now 
 ••as was often evinced when u child was punished. 
 
 Prin-cipal Kennedv said that women l-ad the power now, aiul if tliey desired 
 to pay a poll tax he was thoroughly in favor of it.' They vvere goin<Mo nm the 
 *ivic machine anyway, and it was just as well to stand out of the u>ad.^ 
 
 2os?" "'' ''''^' ^"'' *'" '''°1"""" 23 voted for and 28 against, and it was declared 
 
MANUAL TRAINING. 
 
 I! 
 
 I 
 
 l\ 
 
 u f i 
 
 By Mr. Nelson II. Gahonkr, IIai.ipax Academy. 
 
 In spcakiii;,' to day of manual training I wisli first to present the cause or 
 causes for tiic introduction of tiic manual clement into general education : then to 
 trace briefly tlie origin and growth of tiiis cIimim ut up to the present ; and fmally 
 to consider Manual Training as a feature in general education. Let me then at 
 fir.st try to present the cause or causes for the introduction of the manual element 
 into general education. 
 
 Came or Cawes for. — The leading cause undoulttedly i.s the vast difference be- 
 tween the ideal man of the ])resent and that of the past. Education has ever had 
 one general aim to produce the ideal man of llie age. Hence as ideals have differ- 
 ed in the different ages so too have the .systems of education. Roman culture 
 aimed to ])roduce the orator, the poet and the warrior. 
 
 Tiie training of the "Age of Chivalry" aimed to produce the /i-ziiV/Z^^. As the 
 ideal Koman differed much from the ideal knight, so too did their .systems of 
 trainii.g differ. Tiien too, we may note the marked difference between the 
 educational methods in the days of chivalry and those of the sixteenth and seven- 
 teenth aad eigiiteentli centuries. The invention of printing had brouglit into 
 Europe vast stores of ancient literature. The srholar replaced the knight a.s the 
 ideal man. The i)en replaced the sword and lance. Education became then 
 wliolly litera''y. Tiie ancient classics became the language of the courts and 
 schools. 
 
 Now since such marked changes in educational systems have taken place in the 
 past, changes demanded by the standard set up, changes due to the ideal aimed at, 
 certainly we must expect that, in this nineteenth century, tlii^ century preemin- 
 ently marked as the age of scientific research and invention, a new ideal will be 
 set up, and consequently, that new methods of training will be required. 
 
 This we claim is what has actually taken place. A new ideal has been set up. 
 A new system of education or rather an enlargement of the old system has liecn 
 found necessjjry to produce that ideal. Conse(|uently we have what is known to- 
 day as the Xew Editmfion ; a system of education that has added to the jiurely 
 intellectual training that also of the hand and eye, as acquired through the 
 performing of numerous experiments in Applied Srienre ; and the manipulation 
 of tools together with u variety of drawing in Manual Trainin;/. 
 
 Other, though min )r causes leading to this wir movemeid were the demands foi* 
 .skilled laborers among the leading industrial peo])les of tlie day, and the inability 
 of the old system to meet these demands. But this brings me to my second 
 topic. 
 
 The Orifiin and Growth. — As early as the latter part of the eighteenth century 
 the Russian government in order to cheapen the cost of production of manufactured 
 goods as well as to improve tlieir quality, established trade schools. Later on 
 
 wliile during the past thirty 
 
 auch schools were founded in France and Belgium 
 
 (58) 
 
69 
 
 ycnrs Imiidrt'ds of thuiii hiive been estaljlinhed throughout p:uropt). Not only 
 have tlicse schools (^'mitly inipiovod the nmmifaeturing interests of tlie jJCdple, hut 
 they luive also given hirth to new educationai ideas that liave now spread over 
 the entire civdi/ed world. However, such schools, though well -adapted to secure 
 the ohjeet aimed at in their establishment, are by no means suited for the put poses 
 of general edue:ition. They are far too narrowing in their inllucnee for this, the 
 pupil being kept to one trade. 
 
 Jiroader Liiifs of Dn-plopmeiif.~h''or the development of manual training 
 along broader hues, we must turn our eyes from Kurope to America, in the 
 neighbouring republic, in ISOo, u f,ee institute for the youth of \V(,irester County, 
 Mass., was founded by John i!oyiit..ii, Esq., who gave for its endowment and 
 .support the sum of 8100,000. His aim was " to instruct the youth (of Worceste. 
 Co .>las.s.) m those branches of education not usually taught in the public schools, 
 and which are essential and best adapted to train tin'' youth for practical life." 
 
 Nelson H. (Iakdner, .Mam-ai. Traininc. SqiiocL, Halifax. 
 
 Tiio next year, to further this object, Mr. Washburn gave S7^000 to erect 
 equij. and endow a machine shop to accommodate Mventv apprentices an<l a suit- 
 able number ot skilled workmen to instruct them. This shop, however, was 
 carried on as a commercial establishment. Its pupils were limited to those in the 
 course of mechanical engineering, and were over sixteen years old. 
 
 Tf>e Human S!/stem.—lio^vcver, in 1876, at the Philadelphia Exposition, the 
 Ku.ssian method of class instructicm in the u.se of tools was exhibited. This 
 i"o*r.", ."'■ ''-'^'r "'t''™l»'^'^"l '"to the Imperial Technical .School at Moscow in 
 18b8 liy Victor DellaA^is. At tliat school, however, the students were all to be 
 engineers and were over eigliteen years old. 
 
 Delia- Vos, recognizing that the parts of a complicated construction are for the 
 most part quite simple, abstracted the parts from the whole and then arranged 
 the principles ot their construction into a series of graded exercises suitable for 
 cla.ss instruction. This rnethud opened riio way clearly for tlie introduction of 
 tool instruction into general education. 
 
 ill 
 
mrsaar-aa^ 
 
 II 
 
 (iO 
 
 Firxt Mitiiuiil 'riiiiiinni Si-hniil. -\\\ l.SSO ihc (inf iniiiiniil tniiiiiii^ scliool was 
 i>|)i'IiimI III, St. I,oiiin. |'ii|)i|s wiMc iiilmilli''! at I'uiiitiM'ii y.-iirH of a^c Tin' 
 iiistnulidii ^'ivcM was vi-ry lilicml. Tlic eoiir.-n' ciiiliraciMl iiiatlii'iaalic-s, drawing 
 ami the Kiinli.«li liraiiclii's of a lii},'li wlioul coursi', i\\»\\)i with iiistnicliini ami 
 practice irt tlui use iif fiioln. Tlic tllUf iif tlic sttiilciilH was iliviilcil aluiiit c(|lially 
 lictwi'cii tlicir inciital and iii.iiiual exercises 'I'lie siicci'ss (if tliis mIkhiI was Very 
 
 marked. Kmiii a l)e;,'imiip;,' willi m lass nf ahmit fifty piiiiil.s, in IMHO, tlin 
 
 attendance had reai'heil two hnmlred hy IMH.'I. The ^Towth "f niainial training,' 
 since, a.s shnwn hy iho estiihlishment nf similar schndjs thrntijihmit the I'nited 
 States, has heeii most remarkalile. 
 
 ("liica^n opened a manual triiiniuj: scliooj in ISSI. '!"he Scott Manual Trainiuj; 
 Scho"l was or^'anized as a pail f tiie hi,i,'ii school nf Toledo the same year. Since 
 ISH; many of the hij,'h schools of American cities have opeiuMl manual trainiuj,' 
 departnu'iit^, while in our own |iri>vince we have one well c(|nipp(;d manual train- 
 inn school at Wolfville, a sho|i for wood-work in connection witli our hi;,di school 
 at 11: lifax, ami another similai shup at the Normal School, Truro, 
 
 Having' thus hrietly ^'iven the origin and ;,'rowlh of manual training, let us 
 consiih'r it as a feature in 
 
 (rriirni/ E'lwatioii. — 1 |ireviously mentioned llin new education, statin^,' that it 
 liad added to the old, two very important hranche.s, om-, the natural sciences, the 
 other, manual training Wo thus see that the new education does not duatroy tho 
 old ; there is no tearing' ilown hut rather a huildinj,' up. The old was very^'ood 
 so far as it went, lait it did not ;,'o far enoUf,di. Ileiiij,' wholly liti'i;. v it narrowed 
 the views of its students to tin; facts of literaluri!. In its scho. i|s one was too 
 much occupied with the ima;,'iuary ; too nnich f,'iven to nu'inoriziiiK ; to the study 
 of words, and the forms of laut,'uae;e ; such traiiiinj,', is inaile{piate to tit one for 
 activt! calliuiis. It may do for those who are ^;oiu^' to choose .some of the so- 
 called learned professions, hut for nine-tenths of tlu! pupils in our school-, such 
 training,' is not suited. Nine-tenths or even more of our coinnnai school |inpils 
 must follow .some of the cinnmonly-called lower walks of life; must lio manual 
 lahoH'rs ; must fill .some of those positions in which their hands shall have to 
 handle other implements than ])ens and pencils. Such heinn the ca.se, modern 
 oducati(ai has come to the help of this lar^'cr class of pupils in that it aims to train 
 the hand, the eye, iind the intellect simultaneously. 
 
 (Wine Hmxih mill Sliilfiil Ilnnih). — The results of such trainine; will he youths 
 possessini,' wise heads and skilful hands. In these days of industrial activity men 
 require more than trained intellects Years a<;o, before .science had opi'ued up her 
 vast store house ; in the days when steam and electricity were unknown, few 
 receivod nn education, and they were of the nobility and <;entry. The lit(;rary 
 trainiuf,' was well enour;h then. But in these days of free schools when rll children 
 must lie educated, a ])urely literary culture is iuadequati!. Farmers, machinists, 
 carpenters, sliijibuiMers, etc., who some years ago were thought to need little 
 training beyond what they acquired in apprenticeship, must now, if tln.y 
 would till positions of honor and profit in their callings receive no inconsiderable 
 training, both literary and .scientific ; must be able to intelligently and skilfully 
 manipulate tools as well as to clearly express themselves in language. Carlyle has 
 defined man " as a tool-u.sing animal." If this definition of man be a good one 
 then surely some of the time of one's eaily training should be given to instruction 
 in the use of tools. 
 
 Let us now consider the : — 
 
 Intellectual Value of tool instruction and drawing as given in the manual train- 
 ing school. That the training has unusual attractiveness for boys we have marked 
 proof in ail the manual training schools. In our pchool at Halifax I have noted 
 how that buys from schools a mile or more away privileged to liivc tivfj hours 
 
di 
 
 11 w.'fk lit iniiiiiiiil liiiiiiiii^' liiirry tti tin' m'Ikm,!. | Imv.' alH.. iidtcl scv.thI cm.m.'h 
 wlnTf Ixiys wild wci'M k.'pt liimi.' from tlicir (ithcr clii.sscs in the cailv imil nf 
 llic (lay, huvn vuliintuiily •■nine to nmiiiiMl tiniiuiiK at II (.VInck. Oinc in tin' 
 iiMiiii iiiifMt of Mifiu lion tliiMni|iioim iiiiil 111 fori' ilie ^^uii;,' sounds iirc ciijiiTly n.skiii;; 
 loi tlii-ir nc.Nt lii»k, or if tlicy Imv' an uiiliniHliiil one arr working ovir ii, JIi.ih 
 any one ank, -Whi'l an- tln-y 'Imng ? I aiiHwcr tlu-y arc iiHinj,' thr'ir hrninH itud 
 i-yt's anil hamlH. Yi'm, tiicrc i« training; for ihc intcilci'l licrc as well as for the cyv. 
 anil hand. Ilcri! lioys learn the naliiie of many materials'. Mere tliev >,'et -roinl 
 iiil'ilectualdehnitions of many teehnieal terms. U'liere ean they hetter learr?the 
 
 iiiiiiiK'' of sueh words as "^'rind," "niorlise," "ehamfer," "i.ore,' as well hh 
 
 " knotty," " ron^di," " hard," soft, and the like. 'I'ln-n, too, e-very cxerciHe if ^)rolM•Ilv 
 |■ondll(Jted is Imth inental and manual 
 
 Snpt. Heave! of Huston Says; " Manual traiiiin<,' is essuiilial to the rij,dit and 
 full devi'lopmeni ..f the iinnian mind, and therefore no less henelieial to those who 
 are not ^^oinji l<> hieonie artisans than to those that are." Tlie workshop method 
 of instrui'tioii is of ^'leat ed'ieational value, for it brings the leaiiier face t<» face 
 with the faets of nature ; his mind increa.ses in knowledge hy direet personal 
 ('.xporieiiee with forms of matter and manifestations of force. Xo mere words 
 intervene. The manual exercises of the shop train mental power rather than loud 
 the memory ; they till tlie mind w-'h the solid nieiriiandise of knowl, .jge, and not 
 with its emjity packing cases." i'hiis /e Hee that manual training trains'not the 
 
 '' ' ""^' tlx' <yc only l)Mt also the i ttelle-ct. It aims to develor)— mentally 
 
 idiysically, and morally. ' ' 
 
 Mimtl Inffwnrf. — Let uh no.*' 
 The haliit of precision, of giving 
 in this training, is of inestimahle 
 
 .;<)n.sid( . the moral effect of manual training. 
 h( atieulim to details, formed and fostei ■■i 
 aiue. Ill otherschool work an errorcan usually 
 quiti' easily he rectified, so that the pupil partly at l-ast fails to see the prime 
 impiu'tanci! of accuracy. Hut in the exercises of manual training a mistake cannot 
 he rpctitied, so that the e.xerci.se, to he correct must he hegun again upon entindy niiw 
 material. This has the desired effect. The hahit of accuracy is rciadily formed as it.s 
 imiMirtance is forcibly fidt. Then, too, in the manual training, honesty and self- 
 reliance are fostered more than in other school work. All teachers have had more or 
 less experience with jaipilii who were prone to cojiy another's work and to pass it off 
 as their own. Thus the habits of dishonesty and dependence are sometimes so 
 fostered as to cling to students even in their college days, ye.s, and to the end of 
 life. In the manual exercises, however, there is far less o|)|iortunity for such 
 dishonesty and deiiendence. A pupil cannot possibly copy another's work. He 
 must either do the work him.self, or get another to do it. This is ipiite impossible. 
 Then, too, the fact tint the time of tho.se boys who take manual training is more 
 fully occupied than the tinu" of those who do not, has its good moral effect. lioys 
 who take manual training very soon interest thom.selvcs in some manual work at 
 home. Such boy.s, busy with a boat, or sled, or kite, or some other piece of con- 
 struction, are far less liable to be into mischief when i !:i . f schoid than those who 
 have no such fascinatinij work. Boys thus occupied will also bo kept from many 
 temptations to wrong doing into which other Ijoys fall. 
 
 Another moral good springing fr. Ill manual training is mlf-resjtert, and resjiect 
 for honest, intelligent labour. Our boys who receive no manual training are too 
 liable to see only drudgery in manual labor. They are inclined to look down ui.oa 
 those who construct our engine.s, ])uild our bridges, etc.,us men of little culture. Give 
 these boys manual training and these prejudicial notions leave them forever. Once 
 having acquired some skill themselves in the use of tools they will be ready to 
 recognize skill in others. Consequently they will learn to "respect those who 
 possess skill in any mechanic art. 
 
 Undoubtedly, too, manual training will have a wholesome influence over the 
 troubles between labor and capital. 
 
62 
 
 Industrial Value. — As for the industrial vahu! of inamial training, no one can 
 doubt tliat our natural industries will be fostered and that our ciUzens will be 
 benefited financially once the new element is well introduced into our schools. 
 However, the industrial and economic are merely secondary oljjects of manual 
 training ; its first object being, as 1 have sai<l before, educational. 
 
 Having now pointed out some of the educational values of manual training I 
 wish to speak briefly of manual training in our ccninion schools. I do not wish 
 to say anything against our connnon schools. They are the choicest gems in our 
 educational system, the nurseries of our high schools, colleges and universities. 
 They have done our country much excellent service in the past and are now doing 
 more excellent service ; yet 1 l)eliev(! that when manual training becomes one of 
 the obligatory parts of our common school instruction they will do us far greater 
 service. It seems quite ajiparent that too much of our common school life is 
 devoted to purely literary instruction. We spend too much time in memorizing 
 what is given us in texts as facts, and far too little in investigation, in original 
 Tesearch for truth. Tiio laboratories in our colleges furnish their students oppor- 
 tunities for this best of all means of intellectual development. Here they are 
 placed face to face with materials, forces, etc. Here, better than anywhere else, 
 they are trained to think, to renmn, to drair romparinoiiti, to ol)serve. But in our 
 common sciiools we liave no laboratories, while l)eyond the kindergarten, manual 
 training occupies little or none of the time given to school work except that given 
 to drawing. Most teachers now feel the need of some tool-instruction in our com- 
 mon schools along with the drawing and the literary training. Yet just how to 
 accomplish this is a problem that under present circumstances quite defies 
 solution. However, when our teachers have received more or less manual train- 
 ing, and our school commissioner.s, and others interested in the training of youth, 
 see the good results following manual training in other countries, then ways will 
 quite readily be found for giving all grades some manual training lieyond that of 
 drawing and writing. In the lower grades but few tools and apjjliances will be 
 needed. But when pupils have reached the age of ten they should have access 
 to well equipped departments for industrial training. The boys should have an 
 hour at least each day in a workshop, under a trained instructor, while the firls 
 should receive as much training in sewing, cooking, and other domestic duties. 
 The time thus spent would not lessen the pu])ils' chances for success in their 
 literary pursuits, but rather increase them. For it is found that pupils takin" 
 manual training simultaneously with the literary make greater intellectual advance" 
 ment than those devoting their whole time to the ordinary .scnool subjects. 
 
 Scholars liave hands and eyes as well as intellects that need careful trainin" if 
 they are to be of much use in the busy world. Why not train the three sinud- 
 taneously ? This is the object of manual training, 'it does not narrow down a 
 pupil's vews but widens them ; opens up to them new channels of usefulness and 
 activity from which they may choose their life's work. 
 
 Then, too, there is a time when the literary, as a means of training, loses its 
 charm. How many of us have l)een wearied by purely literary tasks given by 
 teachers who knew nothing of the metht !s of Froebel and Pestalozzi ! What a 
 pleasure it would have been to have had an hour examining objects, or whittlin<r 
 out a penholder, or doing something, -ith real things instead "of with imaginary 
 ones. I remend)erwhen a ln.y of nine that some of njy training was so (iistiistefiil 
 tome that, rather than go to school, I would s])end my time any where, even under 
 a lumber pile by the roadside, and run the risk of a wlupjiing at home beside. 
 
 ^ early disliked memorizing, and attributed my distast*' for school partly at least 
 '-' " •.. . ■ - %j,^ 
 
 I 
 
 to the early lessons in ^.ure memory, Vv-ithout an object lesson to lighten them 
 this source much of I lie truancy in our common schools may be traceil. 
 
 For boys who have no great absorbing interest in words, speeches, etc., as found 
 in books, the manui training school ojiens new avenues and gives them an 
 opportunity to develop other powers that they possess in far greater measure than 
 
63 
 
 that class of boys who delight in the i.urely word-study. Boys who sometimes 
 are called blockheads in the common sciiools are found possessed with no mean 
 abdity when given a chance in good manual training schools. Eovs of this class 
 should bo given an apportunity for development along lines as congenial to them 
 as books are to the other class. This opportunity would be given them were 
 manual trammg a part of their ordinary school work, while as has been shown in 
 a former part of my paper, even those boys who do get somewhat interested in 
 the common school subjects «ill proHt mucii by a (mnulfaneous) course combiniu'r 
 the literary and the manual elements. ° 
 
 While, as I have said, the time is yet somewhat distant when manual trainin" 
 in a broad sense can be given in all of our common schools, yet we Ijeliove every 
 teacher in these schools would make the school work more interesting did he 
 but utdizo to some extent the inculental r.ianual element in each day's work^ Even 
 pocket-knives called in use for so>"»thing in ordinary class work have been known 
 to awakm new interest in otherwise indifferent jiupils. To wiiat extent this inci- 
 dental n.anual element should be utilizeil, and when, each teacher should decide 
 for herself or himself. Sometimes bits of work i\v it l)e given to be done at 
 home, However, the training derived from such home work lacks many of the 
 important qualities derived from work dene in the class. We believe that, if such 
 simple ways, even, were utilized to awaken interest, our teachers would find far 
 fewer " incorrigible boys " than we now hear of in our common schools. 
 
 Discussion :— Lek Russell, B. Sc, Normal ScIhk,!, said that after so able and 
 exhaustive an address as Mr. Gardner's there was uttle more to be .said on the 
 subject. As Mr. Gardner had dwelt largely upon the use of tools, the impression 
 
 Lre Russell, B. .Sc, Normal School. 
 
 might be formed that carpentry .^r machine work was the only form of manual 
 training. If, however, we look at the principles upon which such work is based 
 we shall find that its scofjc is much broader. The greatest emphasis is laid by all 
 advocates of manual training upon the gaining of knowledge at rim hand J>, 
 will be seen that this is true of any sort of laboratory or exi.erimental work 
 whatever. 
 
64 
 
 l?i 'I* 
 
 II 
 
 ^I,'unllll tiiiiiiiiiL; pioposcs ji sdiciDc of L;piipr;il cliiciition wliicli slmll use this 
 iiictlKHl U< 11 liirgc cxtvnt, (li'pMii.liiio; np(.ii Imoks iiiiil Icctiiivs only in a loss <]cHfi>c, 
 where the limits of time (irotiier cxigeiicii's i)n'v.'nt the iiL'tiial e'xiievinientation. 
 
 (»iie <,'ioat value of iiiamial triiiiiiii,i,' iiiotliii(ls in the schools of this province is in 
 ].iittiiig the pupil in a new attitude towanl all knowlcl^'e. The ohl idea is well 
 shown by the course of a teach<.r of mineralojry, who cnlculate.l the numher of 
 piiges of the text-hnok liis class must .'over at eacJi lesson, and then retpiircd them 
 to nieinnrize the daily task. Within a radius of ten miles from the school house 
 inijiht have heen found UiMrly all the im;) U'laut minerals treated of, and tho 
 method urged by helievers in manual training wjuld have been the collection and 
 study of tiie specimens themselves. 
 
 The siM'.iker also pointed out the fact that in the kindergarten we introduce the 
 pupds to the very methods which are employed in manual training, and there- 
 alter, during the whole eours(> of education, give tliem onlv books and other 
 second hand means of acquiring facts and experience. 
 
 That the educational anthoritie, are working against tliis is .shown by the use 
 of textdiooks based on experi.i.ent, l)y the advocacy of <lrawin--, moileiling, and 
 otlier .sorts of original work. It is lU'.'.'.s.sMry that t'he teachers co-operate in this^ 
 or the plan will come to naught. Mr. Russell urged that the teachers try to take 
 the manual training p:iint of view, esjiecially in the teaching of science, 'and tlms 
 to give their pupils the o])portunity of doing for themselves, 
 
 CoMMi.ssio.vEi? :\I(.Kei![!().\ of Halifax said he thought tlie .subject under 
 discus.sion was of great importance, lie was strongly in favor of it. ' He felt it 
 wouM be a .solution to the (piestion of iucorrigiblcs. He thought that every 
 .school luiuse should have a plot whc!" liotany could be learned practically. 
 
 rnixni-Ai. Mel. Eon:— Ladies should be taugiit .something more u.seful than 
 how to handle the saw or how to make fancy boxes. 
 how to use the needle and how to cook. 
 
 Professok Macdonai.I) favoie.l the substitution of sewing as ore form of 
 manual training for girls. In this respect Halifax and Dartmouth led the province- 
 at the late exliibitioii. 
 
 Misis Hamilton- found the manual traininj. 
 pupils physically. 
 
 PuixciPAi. Gard.neu .Slid that in his manual training clas.ses the ^rirLs were 
 superuu' to the boys. They could sow, drive nails, or draw with moiv. neatness 
 and accuracy. 
 
 ,^luch better U) teach them 
 
 exercises to be of groat vahie to the 
 
65 
 
 Srd Session— WFAJNESUAY. 
 
 Public Meeting. 
 
 This session was held in tlie hall of the Yonng Men's Christian Association, Dr. 
 Mackay, Superintendent of Education, presiding. On the platform were the 
 Inspectors and Commissioners of Schools, Provincial Exami 
 
 ixaniiners, N rnial School 
 of the Association. Th > room was 
 
 Professors and other ex-officeo member.' 
 •crowded. 
 
 After a few general remarks. Dr. MacKay introduced Kev. President Forrest, 
 wJio ri'i ♦ addressed the meetiiii'. 
 
 Rev. John Forrest, D. D., President Dai.housie College. 
 
 Mr Chairm.an :— I esteem it a privilege to attend any educational meetinsi I 
 consider that all who are engaged in the noble work of te.inhina whether inth- 
 University or the Kindergarten, are doing the same work ; and if true to their call- 
 
 
 
66 
 
 ing must be interested in each other. When I hear of a teachers' convention in 
 our province I always want to be there. I have been engaged in teaching ever 
 since I was a boy and have worked from the kindergarten to tlie university. I 
 remember well having attended one of the early conventions held in Windsor about 
 thirty years ago. It was a mere handful when compared with the large assembly 
 which I see before me. When I see here this great gathering of intelligent men 
 and women who have come from all parts of the province to team from each other 
 how they may do their work better ; when 1 see on the platform, the Hon. Provincial 
 Secretary, the .speaker of the House of Assembly, and this large gathering of repre- 
 sentative men all deeply interested in this great work, 1 feel profoundly thankful 
 for the progress that has been made during the past thirty years. It is just 32 
 years since our present school .system was introduced. Most of us remember the 
 condition of things which preceded it and have watched the progress of the work 
 ever since. We remember the old school house cramped and conhned, badly light- 
 ed, poorly heated, and wholly without ventilation, where one teacher laboured to 
 impart instruction to a hundred pupils of all grades. Over worked and under paid 
 no wondei men made the teaciiing profession a mere stepping stone to other call- 
 ings and abandoned it the very first opportunity that oifered. No wonder that 
 they looked upon the taws as the only means of discipline and the only spur to 
 progress. There were good teachers in those dp- , men and women who have left 
 the impress of their work upon our province, bu' '.hey worked at a terrible tiisad- 
 vantage and are worthy of great honour for theii i.-ithfulness and their endurance. 
 I remember well when a boy listening to the late Dr. Forrester, who may be looked 
 upon as the father and founder of our present school system, when he was lectur- 
 ing through the Province endeavouring to rouse the people to a deeper interest in 
 education. The picture he drew of the children of most of the sclnjpls so aroused 
 the people and stirred their representatives in the Legislature that the present 
 'school law was the ; . ;ult. In the whole history of the Province I know of nothing 
 more honorable than when the leader of the Government and the leader of the 
 Opposition, forfVttii\g their party difference united in placing on the statute book 
 tlie School Law of 1864. This was the start and since that time the progress has been 
 most encouraging. To day we have 2;i05 schools and 100555 pupils. We spend 
 as a province $811,804 on education. We have a continually increasing number of 
 well educated teachers who make teaching their life work and with the improve- 
 ments in buildings, apparatus, and text books, they are every year securing better 
 and better results. The students who come to our colleges are much better prepared 
 so that the standard of higher education is steadily rising. I know that there are 
 those in the community who say that there is too much education, that we are 
 turning the young away from honorable labour and sending them into (.ver- 
 crowded professions. Such objections can only come from those who have never 
 examined the statistics of labour. There are fewer educated unemployed in our 
 land to-day than the u. employed of any other class. Too much education ! That 
 juF' means too much intelligence. True education generally does take men out of 
 the ditches. PMucated men and women are not content to be hewers of wood and 
 draweis of water. Why should they be ? There will always be drudges enough 
 in the world, and if the time should ever come when general education will lift 
 all men above these servile employments, then the intelligence of man will invent 
 machines, and harnessing wind and water, steam and electricity to them will make 
 human drudges no longer necessary. 
 
 It is a matter of great satisfaction to us all to see here on the platform with us 
 the Premier of our Province and the Speaker of our House of Assembly, and to 
 know that they take such a deep interest in our schools and teachers. It is just 
 an indication of the fact that public education covers the most important matter 
 entrusted to our government and legislature. 
 
 Hut we have not yet attained to perfection. The letters which have appeared 
 
 weeks attacking what are considered I ■ 
 
 v'spaper 
 
 ring 
 
 past 
 
 ig 
 
 il 
 
67 
 
 teacners tlemsehes. I take this to be a most liealthv siLm There can h« nn 
 the'rT -''-"V^'f-?-' «f ^P"'-n an.) consequent ;ii..ciSon- With many o? 
 
 honest effort to improve them. We will not attain to perfection th s year or thi^ 
 
 good, I look for .reat results from this convention; We have never had such 
 an important gathenny before. On many points we may differ bt we ave o„« 
 En "ulir"'- ""' '''■' K'athering'W' teachers, 'but wc hav cle here o 
 karn 1 et us express our views, discuss our .lifferences, hear all suggestion and 
 
 ^:^:^m^'^''''''^'''' -^ ''^^ ^^'-^« P-vince wii;St°by £ 
 
 Ri:v. Ai.Mi. B. Parker. 
 >.,-fr'' ^'f^ •r^r"'' '^°''' "^ '^'^ wonderful development of onr countrv and of 
 
 Kngli,h i„ „rj„ to better 8. tI,e„„elveTf j;XirdZ.'of cWzZhi."' ^"""'' 
 

 68 
 
 1 1 1 
 If] 
 
 Mr, Chairman : — It afifords me great pleasure to renew to-night, even though 
 temporarily and informally, my connection witli the Educational Association of 
 Nova Scotia. It is especially pleasant to present myself under your auspices, and 
 to have an opportunity of publicly recognizing your wise direction of j)ublic 
 education in this province, in adapting it to changing conditions and in making it 
 as d pystem at once more symmetrical and more effective. And I can assure you, 
 sir, that the sight of so many familiar faces, the sound of so many familiar voices, 
 the general aspect and tone of familiarity about everything, excite a multitude of 
 most pleasing recollections. It is very gratifying to find myself once mor ' the 
 company of the distinguished Premier of the Province, and of so man ' er 
 leading educators, with whom it was my honor to be associated in pa . • .bcis. 
 Not less pleasing is it to recognize ,' the main body of your asso.i. ion, I ; faces 
 
 III 
 
69 
 
 of 80 many well-known teachers, whose faithful and skilful labors attracted my 
 attention and «on my admiration in the past. -Hut, sir, the present suggests the 
 absent. Many of those with whom I was wont to associate on such occasions as 
 this are here to-night, but for some I look in vain. Among the missing I am 
 sure I can mention one name witliout incurring the criticism of injustice to other 
 worthy memories. You will perceivf at once that I am referring to the late 
 Inspector for Halifa.x, Mr. Hinkle Condon, who grew gray in the school service 
 ot tins his native province. To me his absence is really the only noticeably 
 strange feature about this meeting to night. There are probably but few here 
 who have not some knowledge of the manner and spirit in which our departed 
 friend performed his public duties. He has left behind him a record of earnest, 
 unselfish and abundantly fruitful toil. X.. province ever had in its service a more 
 faithful custodian of its interests and honor than Nova .Scotia had in him Those 
 associated with him in official responsibility found in him a counsellor on whose 
 jUtlgment they learned to rely the more explicitly the more thoroughly the genuine 
 simplicity and sincerity of his character were understood. The teachers with 
 whom his official duties brought him into relationship were not more "rateful for 
 his wise counsels and suggestions than foi the considerate kindness and sympathy 
 that invariably characterized his iiitercour.se with them. Personally, Mr. Condon 
 was a genuinely good man, and his memory is one that .leserves to be cherished 
 And now, Mr. Supenntemlent, let me congratulate you on the succe.ss of your 
 Association s meeting so far, and on the prospect of good likely to be accomplished 
 by It. I nave listened with great interest to the speeches of the preceding 
 speaker, -the i)lea for improved conditions of higher education available for the 
 Acadian people of the province, advanced by the gentleman who has just sat 
 down (Rev. Mr. Parker). Living, as I do, within a few miles of St. Joseph's 
 Coflege, .Memramcook, 1 am in a position to bear testimony to the uplifting 
 influence which a single institution of learning, wisely planted an-l efficiently con- 
 ducted, may exert on the fortunes of an entire people. The college 1 have 
 mentioned, <!esigne.' particularly for the training in the arts and sciences of the 
 Acadian youth of New Brunswick, has, as the result of its thirty years operations 
 comidetely changed the conditions and prospects under which aspirin" youn" 
 T,'?.° r' "ationality now address them.selves to the .struggles and competition! 
 ot lite. Its educational facilities and inspirations put thein on a par with tlieir 
 baxon compeers and have opened up for them avenues to every post of influence 
 and honor in the land. No one can look with indifference on any attempt to do 
 tor Nova Scotia what the late Dr. Le Febvre— a true benefactor of his race and 
 country— so successfully accomplished for New Brunswick. 
 
 I will not be expected, Mr. Cliairman, to abuse your kindness by attempting 
 the discussion of any of the great educational problems that your Association has 
 met, and is no doubt prepared to consider. At such gatherings as this there are 
 certain questions which, in some shape or other, must alwavs come to the front 
 ilie mere fact of organized public education under state control raises enquiries 
 as to the grounds on which the state's authority to teach is based, and— which is 
 of more practical concern-within what limits this teaching shall lie, and of what 
 character it shall be. It is held by some, if r ot by many, that as self preser- 
 vation IS the true ground of state authority over teaching, such teacliina should be 
 confined to branches demonstrably sufficient for the end in view. These branches 
 are assumed to be the simple and fundamental ones— reading, writing and 
 arithmet'c, with possible subsequents such as history and geography To oo 
 further is held to be one form of taxing the many for the benefit of the few The 
 obvious difficulty with this theory is the impossibilitv of drawing a clean satis- 
 foctory line between primary or fundamental, and secondary or polite branches 
 I he opposite (may I call it the Nora Scotia) theory claims that facilities for 
 secondary education are ns essential to national progress and f^afety as those for 
 primary training, and that for either to be trulv satisfactory and effective both 
 
I 
 
 70 
 
 appliances must exist together, But however liberally we may interpret the 
 function of public education, the question of the most desirable curriculum, 
 involving both the particular sulyects of study and their proper correlation, must 
 continually present itself. On this question and its implications it is vain to 
 expect perfect unanimity. Many will sympathize with the views so ably pre- 
 sented by President Forrest in favor of greater concentration of effort and more 
 thorough mastery of individual subjects. Others will liold po.osible such a 
 collocation and sequence of studies as will best secure the ends of mental disci- 
 pline and general culture with a large variety of subjects. The fact that differences 
 of opinion exist on such points as these no more proves education, in the sense 
 of the cultivation of the intellectual faculties, a matter of questionable utility than 
 differences as to biblical interpretation and etiiical theories impugn the value of 
 religion to morality. (Dr. Allison concluded his address w ;h a few remarks 
 which have not been reported, on the subject of the Provinciid Examinations, ia 
 which, as one of the Provincial Examiners, he l)ore testimony to the pains taken 
 by the Superintendent of Education to secure the fullest possible justice for those 
 writing for certificates.) 
 
 Rev. D. a. Chisholm, D. D., Rector St. Francis Xavier's College. 
 
 Kev. Dr. Chisholm spoke as follows : — He was pleased to be present at this 
 convention of teachers. He had an interest in the public schools as the earlier 
 portion of his own education was received in them ; and the institution with which 
 he was connected recruited its ranks for the most part from the schools of this 
 
the 
 lum, 
 nust 
 
 I to 
 pre- 
 
 II ore 
 h a 
 isci- 
 iices 
 jnse 
 han 
 : of 
 jrks 
 I, ia 
 ken 
 lose 
 
 his 
 lier 
 ich 
 his 
 
I 
 
 Hon. W. S. FiEi.niNO, I'rovincia. ' 'cretarv. 
 
71 
 
 Province. Like Pre8..1..nt Allison I,, considerml the higli school courno ncosflarily 
 a comi.ronuse. No mutter what the provisions of the course, some would he ili*^ 
 8 .shod ; ye wth President Forrest he thought that an iniprovenient could prZ 
 subjects " ' '" ' '"'' unloading the present course of some of ita 
 
 In the common schools a very wide range of subjects was taught but in his 
 opinion none of inore importance to the welfare >., the country was prescribed for 
 mstruction than th.t which came under the head of " Morahmd Patriotic Duties' 
 
 T^uJl? r\ T *'"•"/'. "''''^1'1'™'^'"'«'"" ^••^i«t'-''l in tl'« "lindsof teach.rs and 
 
 pup.l in regard of this subject. He recalle.l to mind the time when the free 
 chool system was hrst introduced. In the school which he frequented the pupils 
 Ivi/n '"'^l'''^^^''^"!!' "^ t'"^"; o"'" »n the word "fr.e " which characterized tliis 
 system. The pupils were henceforth to be free of supervision outside of 
 
 ho, r uT{ H ° ''""'"r, '"''i ""'}'" "" *''^''' '"^y ^^ ""'• ^^^"' •■'''»'°"1 "lid at play 
 hou and do other pec ..d.llos of that sort. It was a very mistaken idea and good 
 teachers took early ocasion to disabuse them of it. Hut he sometimes thought 
 the Idea s 111 lurked m the minds of some teachers an.l pupils, Teachers should fee 
 responsible for the conduct of their pupils not only whilst these are in the s hod 
 
 tZ h'V ' ''"'f •":•' f •^'' "'V'" *'"y '^'•^' ^^'^'''" ••''"^'' "f Parental coi rol 
 The .there were patriotic duties to be inculcated. We have a magnificent country 
 with resources mast varied a„ ' aistitution. as perfect as tho.se of anv c„Mntry Z- 
 d the sun. School children .),ould be taught to appreciate these' and tliiou"5i 
 S. w " " ^"""^ ^'"■^' ^»'ould early be brought to know the way in 
 
 Avhicli we are governed. Advantage should be taken of everything to brin- this 
 home to them. >o the pupils look out of the wiiulow of their school dse a 
 
 tZ frrr?"'T!r"'^'"«' "■'^"^''^ ^'"^ municipality, let, casion be .some- 
 t mes taken to teach the purpose of these buildings and therefrom let a lesson be 
 given on municii.al government, on the work of our local legislators, &c. Occasi- 
 Z ^Y" -If^l"' ^'""P'^l^ith lessons on the responsibilities of citizen- 
 
 ship which carry with them the right to vote and choose the best men to send to 
 parliament or best policy for the country, will do a great good. The future of the 
 country depends on (ho intelligence and honesty of voters. These are trained 
 principally ,n the public schools. Hence the imjoitance of giving a high Tace 
 an boir'"";,'" .'"r^ '° .instruction on moral an.l patriotic^dutie.s, a place they 
 vanhol.l without the setting apart for then, of any particular hour. They are 
 best taught incidentally i.e., by taking advantage of what occurs in the school 
 Sen T T1:'' ^°.^^'-"'^''-- to pupils truths useful to them as fiil^re 
 of thp Pr. ''°''* ,^^' '>«'■'"' '■.M^ressing his pleasure in being with the teachers 
 en "led '" convention and his interest in the work in which they were 
 
 Hon \Y. S. Fieldi.vg said he had come to the meeting to listen rather than 
 to speak, and would have be< . pleased if he had been per.Htfr..! lo n ake onlv a 
 formal appea,,n,ce on the pla.l.,rm. He felt, however, th,a it w otl. a utv 
 and a pleasure u>v him as the first minister of the Provincial %ovon ,.°ent w ch 
 IS charged with the supervision of pul.lic education, to take an n.teiest i he wo k 
 of the Kduca tional Association. While he could not hope to be able to attend all 
 
 bn^woT 'Vvr„' -f ; "'" '' ^^° ^"' '^^? "^'"-'' - P--''''-- oi the Sc?" 
 rion s work h\en it ther.. were no considerations hut those of a financial char- 
 acte to >ntluence h.m he would feel bound to give his best attention to li^ wo k 
 becau e as finance minister of the Province it became his duty to provide ior vZt 
 education a very large proportion of the Provincial revenue.^ It w-as satisfactory 
 to know that our people always evinced a liv. !y interest in educatioS Srf 
 This mteres. ,vas sometimes manifested by very free criticism in the pubic press 
 He sincerely wished that the numerous critics vv!,o i,..d bee:, ,rivi„. theii nSo 
 the newspapers for the last year or two could be present at tlds gather ng.' Some 
 
 m 
 
M 
 
 72 
 
 of them, no ilonbt, wore present and he felt sure tlint the Superintendent of Ed i- 
 »;ntion would he glnd to hnve the benefit of any sug>,'estijns that tliey could offer. 
 The luinierous complaints that were made hy newspaper critics respecting the 
 examinations and the course of study might lead a careless observer to imagine 
 that there was great room for improvement. It would he found, liowever, that 
 there was a remarkable lack of unity in these criticisms. When a writer attacked 
 one feature of educational management it was hardly necessary for the Superinten- 
 dent or anybody else to defend the Department— it waa safe to assume that some 
 other writer would l)e found a few days later criticising our educational system 
 from the oi)posite point of view. He was reminded of an old story whicli he 
 thought might be applied here. A narlatan had persuaded a number of ignorant 
 peoi)le that he was able to produce rain when required. A number of fiirmers 
 called ui)on him to prove his ability to produce the rain. " All right," said the 
 charlatan, " I will have the rain to-morrow 1" " Oh no," said one of the farmers, 
 "that will not do ; I have some hay down, and we must iio( have the rain until 
 tlie hay is in." " Weil then," said the impostor, " we will have the rain on Mon- 
 day !" Another said, " no, that will not do ; I have arranged for some work on 
 that day, which cannot be done if the rain comes." " Well then, what about 
 Tuesday f Another spoke up, saying he had planned a trip for Tuesday, which 
 would be spoiled by the rain. So it was found that while all wanted the rain 
 they could not agree as to the time for it. And so the humbug folded his hands 
 and said, " when you people can agr.e among yourselves the rain will come." 
 He (Mr. Fielding) did not wish to ai)ply the story so far as to treat the Superin- 
 tendent of Education as a humbug. Tliat gentleman, of course, was prepared to 
 carry out in hi.s Department all th.it he engageil to do. But he might with some 
 reason sny to the numerous critics that before they could hope to effect nnich 
 improvement they wouKl have to come to a better understanding as to the direc- 
 tion in which change was needed. This evening one of the speakers, in an 
 enthusiastic addtess, had suggested some additional books for use in the schools. 
 Now if there was any point in which the public generally were sensitive with res- 
 pect to our school system it was that of increasing the number of books. lu-ery new 
 book presciibed for use in the schools imposed a very considi'r.il)le burden upon 
 the people of the country who had to purchase Imoks for the children. Hence the 
 Government felt that they should be exceedingly careful in dealing with that 
 subject and not prescribe books unless a very strong case could be made out in 
 support of their adoption. Much of the critici.sm on school work would be found 
 unreasonable and l)ased upon erroneous information. But in so far as there was 
 room for improvement, the Superintendent and the Council of Public Instruction 
 would always welcome the suggestions of those whose knowledge and experience 
 qualified them to give advice. The criticisms to which he had referred were 
 those of educationists and had reference to the details of the system. There was 
 another class of criticism not emanating from educationists, but one which he 
 thought educationists would do well to consider. While questioning the wisdom 
 of some details, teachers and those closely associated with them were perhaps too 
 loady to assume that the school work is giving satisfaction. We are all disposed 
 to declare that our school system has been a great success. He thought that this 
 meeting would jn'obably take the same view. But candor woukl compel him to 
 say that while those assembled here might be willing to agree upon such a verdict 
 on the school system there arc some other people who are not so ready to take the 
 same view. Strange as it might appear to the teachers and those closely associ- 
 ated with them, it was a fact that many people in our province entertain doubts 
 as to the complete success of our school system. The free school system had 
 been in operation now for many years and an enormous sum of public money had 
 been expended upon it. There were people who thought that the results, in their 
 application to the welfare of the province, were not altogether commensurate with 
 the labor and outlay. Perhaps .some would say that this waa oiily the criticism 
 
73 
 
 of igiiorniit poo|ila, But we rmist not ntteinpt to dismiss the matter in that li«lit 
 wny. The douhterfl were not ignnrnnt pfuplit. They were in many cnsea |)eoplo 
 of much intelligence, whose opinions were entitled to great respect. Not long ago 
 he happened on a i;ertain occasinn to meet four gentlemen with whom'ho had 
 some diH( iiHsion on this question. The meeting was accidental. The four gentle- 
 men were prominent men. They ilitf'ered in occupation, in creed, in politics. 
 Kach of them had been successful in his own particula; walk of life. Each of 
 them would he regarded as a fair representative of his class. And every one of 
 the four was prepared to vote that the goner.d result of the pul)lic school system 
 had been unsatisfactory. Their view was that our school system did not eilucote 
 our boys and girls for the work that they were likely to be called upon to do. but 
 that its tendency was to educate them away from their legitimate work and 
 create a feeling of dissatisfaction and unrest, wliich to a large extent led to tho 
 e.vodus from tho province. This view, of fourso, would be warmly resented by 
 most educationists. Hut he (Mr. F.) thought thut while perhai)s the view was 
 too strongly expressed by the gentlemen to wlium he referrcid there was enough in 
 it to demand the thoughtful attention of all who are cntinected with the direction 
 of the school system. He would suggest a way in which some of the teachers 
 might put this criticism to the test. Let a teacher having the charge of a senior 
 class of boys, soon to end their school day.«, ask them the (piestion, what work of 
 life they propose to engage in ? If our country was to prosper most of our people 
 must devote themselves to the development of our natural resources. Were the 
 schools imjtressing the young people with this idea / Did the boys come out of 
 school with an appreciation of the dignity of labor and a disposition to apply them- 
 selves to the work of the farm, the mine, the worksho[), or the fisheries 1 Some, of 
 course, would be rerpiired for other walks of life. But the great majoritv would have 
 to rely upon these industries for a living. If the boys came away froni the .school 
 with a feeling of uniest and unwillingness to engage in such work, then indeed it 
 was questionable whether our school system was protlucing satisfactory results 
 While he (Mr. F.) thought tfie criticisrns to which he ha<l referred ought not to 
 be lightly dismissed, but on tiie contrary, .should engage the thoughtful attention 
 of educationists, he was not prepared to endorse the conclusion to which some 
 people were ready t(j rush, that there was too much education. If there was an evil 
 in the direction indicated, the remedy he felt was not in less education but rather 
 in more. We must turn these powerful forces of education in a more practical 
 direction, and endeavor if possible, to give tho young people a higher appreciation 
 of the resources of their own country and a stronger determination to assist in 
 building it up. There was need for the cultivation of real patriotism. Speaking 
 at an educational meeting on a previous occasion he had ventured to suggest, that 
 some improvement might be effected by giving more attention in the schools to 
 politics. Doubtless many people would say that there was more than enough 
 politics in the country now, and proba1)ly they would be right. There was more 
 than enough politics of a certain kind. But their could not be too much politics 
 of tho kind which he had in his mind. What he meant by the teaching of politics 
 in the schools was the teaching of the duties of citizenship. We ought to be able 
 to give the young people in the schools some idea of the resources of their own 
 country, its system of government, and the privileges and responsibilities of 
 the franchise. This, he thought, was a field of work in which the teachers 
 could do much that would help to make better citizens. One gratifying feature 
 of the proceedings of ti>e presert educational association was the hearty co- 
 operation given to the work b;, representative educationists of all classes and 
 creeds. At any time this wcula be a pleasing state of affairs. It was particularly 
 gratifying just now because it was in marked contrast with what prevailed in some 
 other places. If he was at any time disposed to boast of our Province it was when 
 he remembered the pleasant relations which had long existed between the different 
 religious bodies. Elsewhere differences had seriously affected educational interest 
 
74 
 
 and prevented that harmonious co-operation which is essential to the public welfare. 
 Even in our own Dominion it would not be possible in «very province to find such a 
 union of educational effort as was manifested in the presence on this platform to-night 
 of the lejiding educationists of all denominations. This happy state of affairs spoke 
 well for our school system. At a time when tiie difficulties of other communities 
 <are so prominently before us it was something to be grateful for that wo in Nova 
 Scotia had learned how to carry on a great 'system of free public education upon 
 lines that were fairly satisfactory to the whole community, that by a spirit of 
 Jiberahty which had long been characteristic of the people of Nova Scotia, and 
 which he hoped would long continue, by an earnest effort on the part of the 
 authorities to meet the views of minoritijs, by allowing elasticity at points where 
 tins was possible without any violation of principle, this Province had built up a 
 school system which the people of all classes and creeds could conscientiously 
 suppL"t. 
 
 Rev. Dr. Forrest replied to some critici-sms by previous speakers. 
 
 The Hon. F. A. Lawrence spoke briefly, paying a fitting tribute to that great 
 pioneer of education in Nova Scotia, Dr. Forrester, the founder of the Normal 
 School. 
 
 The meeting closed with the singing of the National Anthem. 
 
4th Session— THURSDAY. 
 
 <J0RRELAT10N OF THE STUDIES OF THE HIGH SCHOOL, 
 AND METHODS OF TESTING ITS WORK. 
 
 Ey a. H. MacKay, Ll.D., F. R. S. C, Superintendent of Education. 
 
 I can not umiprstaml exactly why tlie Executive Committee should ask me to 
 ■open a discussion on this sul^ject. It is generally thought, I imagine, that my 
 views aie to at least a considerable extent reflected in our present system of 
 -correlation and of examination. And if that were not sufficient, there are now no 
 ieas than four of my annual reports gone out with remarks on the present order of 
 things. Perhaps they wished me to present myself as the impersonation of that 
 
 evil which nfflicts the unfoitunate teacher or the unsuccessful candidate in the 
 domain of high school life, so diat I might stand up at the commencement and 
 answer to my name antl for my acts. If so I am hero. But the charges have not 
 yet been read, and how can I then proceed to answer? Perliaps I am expected 
 -to invite you to proceed with them, and not to be bashful. That stiikes me as 
 .the best explanation of my being asked to open this discussion, instead of being 
 simply ready to reply. I therefore most heartily invite you to enter into the dis- 
 cussion with tile utmost freedom. Y.\-cn shouki the enthusiasm of any delegate 
 rise to vehemence I shall not be likely to misjudge him. For I feel that each 
 Irue teacher here is filled with the desire of making our educational system as 
 ►practically useful as possible for our people, and an honor to ourselves wlien we 
 :3Und beside the educationists representing other countries. I think I can under- 
 ^stand the experience of each one here, no matter in what class of school he is 
 engaged ; for in my experience of a quarter of a century in the profession I have 
 been through them all. And while I have thus a practical knowledge of the con- 
 ditions existing in nearly every section of the province, I know you will give me 
 ■credit for at least the effort to keep acquainted with the development of educa- 
 ■ tional theories and practice abroad, and that however painful the operation of any 
 ^of our present conditions may bo to any individual tir class, my object is the ulti- 
 - v.te good of the profession and of the country for whose proper development we 
 are largely responsible. Therefore we can atlbrd to have the fullest freedom, only 
 should any one be borne far aloft in his eloquence, to prevent the possibility of 
 misunderstanding his feelings, he should wear a smile somewhere on his face, if 
 not alway.s, at least whenever he " comes to." After the general discussion of prin- 
 'Ciples, I shall be glad to answer any special questions appropriate to the general 
 -Association ; but matters of detail connected with the necessary annual revision 
 of the course of study I shall arrange to have discussed in conference with those 
 -interested or those who may be selected for the purpose by.the Association. 
 AXT-^'"*" ""^^ ^^^ aware that the great newspapers nowadays publish reports from 
 Wiggins and the weather bureau. The one takes up an almanac calculated by an 
 ^astronomer, and when he notices any more largely attended conventicle of planets 
 ..than usual, or that the sua is about to coss the line, he says, " There is going to 
 
 ^73) 
 
76 
 
 be a stonii somewhere around the globe," as if there ever was a day in whicht 
 something of tl.nt kind was not going on, and all this is done at tlie cost of a 
 patent medicine almanac, than which I know of nothing cheaper. The weather 
 burrau, with its telegraphic reports coming in every day of the year from 
 evHry quarter of the continent and on the cables from the islands of tlie- 
 surrounding seas, showing where the storms really are, whitlier and how rapidly 
 they are travelling— the weather bureau has its say too. But Wiggins, with one 
 effort a year, impre.sses himself more on the attention of certain large classes of 
 his countrymen than the weather bureau with its three hundred and sixty-five. 
 And at this very day we may come across some who from the newspapers, attention 
 to Wiggins mistake him for the weatlier Viureau ; and they are quite ready at the 
 next election to support a representative who will promise to suppress that same- 
 weather bureau and all its expense 
 
 I feel that I am now before an audience which can distinguish between Wiggins 
 and the weather bureau. It will not therefore be necessaiy, even had I the time, 
 to marshal before you the multitude of details bearing on my subject,— details 
 you have found set forth in one way or another in the different official publica- 
 tions which I hope you all have been able to peruse. Nor can I enter into any 
 particulars of any modifications deemed desirable in the minutes allotted me. 
 
 THE EDUCATIONAL TREE-TRUNK OF NOVA SCOTIA. 
 
 l.et US rejiresent the pupils and students of this province from the kindergarten' 
 to the end of tlie highest university course by the trunk of a great tree, find those 
 leaving school each year as an iminense whorl of branches. The rapidly tapering 
 trunk starts from the ground with a diameter, say, of eleven feet, and after throw- 
 ing off seven luige whorls of branches into the air where the green and, snd to say, 
 the dead spray away in the pissing breeze, the trunk is reduced to less than Kewn 
 feet. This represents the number attending school in the eigiitli grade, the last 
 year of tlie common school. The nineteen thousand who started in the first grade 
 have been reduced to about six and one-half thousand in the eighth. Where are 
 the twelve tliousand and five hundred 1 Some in the field, some on the sea, some in 
 the worshop, some in the mine, and, alas, so.ue of them in the grave. After the 
 eiglith whorl has branched off the trunk is lait four ami one-half feet. Of the 
 19,000 scarcely 3,0(i0 are to he found in the first year of the )\igh school. After 
 the ninth whorl breaks off, the trunk is seen to have tapered to less than three 
 feet, and after the tenth to only one ami three quarter feet. After three years of 
 the high school we may suppo.se tlie Arts college begins, including in its numbers 
 tlie so-called fourth year of the high schools. Here the stem is but one foot 
 through, and after four whorls have spread off, it is but a fraction of a foot-thick 
 .^teni which towers above, toissing off its three or more tuftdike circlets of leaves 
 representing the post graduate courses in Theology, Law, Medicine and Applied 
 Science. Eight years in the common schools, three years in the high school, four 
 years in the Arts college, and three in post graduate stu ly make up the eighteen 
 years' course through which the puniest stem fibre ascends to burst forth into the 
 tiniest leaflet tiiat flutters from the tip-top. 
 
 The trunk of this tree whose cross section, it must be remembered, varies as 
 the square of the diameter, represents the more or less general training of the 
 schools and the university. The brandies which reduce the size of the stem from 
 year to year represent tl'.ose diverging into the work of life or special training for 
 It. The eight lower circles of branches represent the unemployed young, those 
 engaged in Uie most rftdimentary M the industrial occupations, apprenti.es and 
 the lowest order of clerks. Those lirancliing from the high school portion of the 
 stem are fewer, but they are leaders in the various in(histrial occupations, clerks 
 of a higher order, the professional men wlio do not take time to go into the 
 university ; and although they are few in number compared with those branching 
 
77 
 
 -off from the common schools, they count for a very great deal more than their 
 numerical projmrtion in their influence on society, the development of the country 
 and Its governmeiit. With the fewer which diverge from the top of the tree 
 they practically govern the country and give tone to its civilization and reputation 
 abroad. And never were competent leaders in every department of human 
 activity more necessary than to-day if a country is going to have any chance in 
 the competition between rival commonwealths. It is through the trunk the sap 
 of life and beauty of form find tlieir way into the branches where they burst into 
 full expression in the verdant and fragrant spray which gives character to the 
 provincial or national tree. 
 
 Assuming our tree to be a living and healthy organism, any portion of the stem 
 must have a very intimate correlation of matter and structure with the portion of 
 the stem immediately below, the portion immediately abovn, the branches spring- 
 ing out of It all around, and the elementary fibres within its own body. ° 
 
 CORRELATION WITH THE COMMON SCHOOL COURSE. 
 
 _ The correlation of the high school course to that of tlie common school course 
 IS as perfect as that between any two portions of the steins of the murmuring pines 
 and the hemlocks which grace our forests or our [toetry ; for tliey are structurally 
 and functionally parts of the same organism. There is no loss of teaching ener<rV 
 due to the lack of articulation between the two. But then if the comino^n school 
 course is not what it should be, this close articulation may not altogether be an 
 unmi.xed blessing. For we can imagine the common school work to be carried on 
 too far, or not far enough, or it may be defective on account of the omission of 
 some subject which should have an e.irly place in the cliijd's education. Whetlier 
 the common school work is carried on too far or not far enough, must be deter- 
 mined to a great extent by the classification into which tiie whole world is 
 gradually falling, as the result of its experience of what is generally ft-lt to be the 
 most convenient for t\u> sum total of all purposes. And especiall'v in these days 
 when through the infiueiice of the Dominion K.lucational As.sociatinn. it has becoiiie 
 fashionable for puldic writers to advocate the assimilation of tiie standards of the 
 various grades of provincial scholaisliip certificates, so that those oi each i)rovince 
 sliould be as valid in the one jn'ovince as in another, from Nova Scotia t.i British 
 Columbia. "Whether we should approve of that policv or not, we find that not 
 only m Canada, but also in the United States, througli tiie influence of its National 
 Educational Association to a great extent, the cuimuon sciiool course has Ijeen 
 definitely and universally agreed to be the first ei;{ht years of the public school 
 work. This unanimous conseiusus of educatiounl opinion and i)ractice makes it 
 necessary for statistical comparison that we should follo'v the classification But 
 wo have no occasion to folio n; for before the famous Committee of Ten apiioimed 
 by the National Educational Association of the United States in 1892, proclaimed 
 the first draft of a National system of secondary .•ducation, to wipe out the uncon- 
 formability between institutions which made the summation c^f their statistics a 
 chaos, and their co-operation unsatisfactory— before that time the general and 
 many of the particular lines of that authoritative report, were not only drafted'but 
 in operation in this province. Ye.s, down even to the years when Latin and 
 Greek, and French and German should begin : down to the pronunciation of Latii 
 and the habitual recitation of the languages ; down to concrete Geometry or mathe- 
 matical .irawing on the lower side of the dividing line of the high and the common 
 school, and the commencement of synthetic Geometry immediately above ; and 
 other such details. And the latest authoritative utterance from the same quarter 
 still more closely approximates the principles we had already put into practice I 
 refer to the report of the Committee of Fifteen, at the Cleveland meetinK of 
 ■Superintendence on the 19th, 20th and 2l8t of last February, which I will refer 
 iu again as the most nbaolute endorsement of the principles upon which our 
 
78 
 
 IZr^'ft'f T'"'" based with regard to the subjects of study and their correl- 
 a o„ Tlie leading sp.r.t on both the Conimittees of Ten and Fifteen was Hon 
 L»l^ Han-.s, Con.m.ss.oner of Education for the United States. ' 
 
 hJZ H"'"r" '^l'^«^''"l«". the vecple's schools, also cover the eight first years - 
 tu. asthe Uerman orthography has been made nearly perfects phonetfcthe 
 th v" ;."/'^"^.^,^'o'ht years do one or two year's work .nore in o^the directions 
 than English children of equal ability.. Especially do they excel in the nmte^ 
 VtlZnisl^'T'^ elementary science, which we have on our coirurS 
 the title of Isature lessons. The practical study of Mature as found in the en 
 v.ronmen of each school is looked upon as a recreation from the severer sSdies 
 as laying the foundation of the habit of accurate observation ; as expoundinc? tSe 
 scientific principles underlying the successful prosecution o a 1 Se i^Sr Lt 
 e pecially h..e of Agriculture, Horticulture, Arbo.-iculture, the arts aiid nWae^ 
 tur as dignifying labor generally by allowing the laborer to understand t le laws 
 of nature operating around h.m, and draping the drudgery of his toil with Zl 
 interest wluch fascinates the man of science To undertake with pleasure what the 
 
 Z7 "tT \i^'?°r-' ""'^- ^^T" ^^"™ ""^'1 ^°r-^l t)y starvation. And even for 
 
 mo e ban th .t it is considered to be essential to know the land they live In their 
 
 atherland, fram its rocks to their king. It is necessary in order to uuZm 
 
 E'lS ,• 1 •' ''""^'''.'r^ '^'' "^ -der to know the fill meaning of Ssaiid- 
 
 tand ^baMMT'^"' /* VT''''^ '? '^""" '^' ^h>"SS for which the words 
 
 tl.pn ; M 't^ "'"^f ' ^°. *'"'" l^'^I^^^ *° ^^P^IJ and pronounce words and string 
 
 them together in tlie order of subject and predicate or the reverse without tS" 
 
 ing them to know the things, in order to be' able to use their languag^^ a it wo S 
 
 be for a nuin to pull up his boot straps in order to jump a fence. 
 
 In the German "people's schools" the work does not only in many subjects ecy 
 fur her on than with u,., but their course is more comprehensive, including retiS 
 
 ho lid r" affliT 17'''''' "?"■ P7^°""^"^ *^'"^"-''"* °^ -hal a course^of tudy 
 the t L intr rn. f •]■ T ""^'"'r.'' °[ '''''^'''^^' '''''^''' ''^'^^ ^hey take to bJ- 
 
 Th.t nv ! ^ A' ^'"T" '""^ "^ '^'''' ^'''"' *'>'^* the course is overcrowded 
 
 That may mean one of two things. That it contains too manv subjects or that 
 too much IS required in some subjects. That we can not do what he Ge mans 
 ThVre V r "°* *^.>,t« ^1" so much as our nearest neighbor, .\ew BruisTck 
 There, Latin is an option in the eighth grade-another subject. Wh e we- 
 give no s>;nthetic Geometry ,n the common schools, there, Euclid Book I to p7c^ 
 position 33 is required. While we require little more Algebra hai is ne ess'Irr 
 to enable he mechanic, workman or farmer who can not go to the hiah scS 
 nI,Z^?' >H;at rues given in algebraic formulas in simple ban C ok otht 
 solution of problems that turn up in their business,-simply little more tha?, the 
 evaluation ot a gebraic expressions,-there they are' requi.U to go oT o eqt ions 
 and easy problems. We have left Latin out because in the high schod the 
 general commencement in Latin is made, and the pupil who did a yearV wo k i^ 
 the CO ninon school would have to be formed into a class by himself in the first 
 year of the high school, thus doubling the work of the teacher, o hav^t the 
 whole drill given to all the Latin puf.ils, unless he choose to go in wiJh the 
 beginners and learn for a term how to take it easy. The course mav cri^i^i ed 
 for not being compreher 'ive enough : but hardly in the light of what is bS 
 done in the rest of the .orld and bj; our own go^d teachers 'can it be ma ntaSef 
 that t IS too comprehensive or too advanced. That is not the eauivilent of Tnl 
 ing that it^is perfect, but lather of saying that it can be im u3 nd i mZt 
 change with the changing charactei of our teachers and of our social coitions or 
 eivi ization 03 the Committee of Fifteen call it. The comic mn my find 
 hat we touch upon nearly every subject in this common school ccuirse wh ch nZ 
 be found in IS advanced stage in the largest university. But his geni, s s s3 
 If he cannot go at least one better" and show how the toddling babe of W 
 years has really touched upon the fringe of everv .«,.,Vnc. nn-l .^rt in he woS 
 
id their correl- 
 ien, was Hon. 
 
 ht first years;. 
 
 phonetic, the 
 ler directions 
 1 the mastery 
 
 course under 
 id in the en- 
 erer studies ;. 
 pounding the 
 le industries^ 
 and manufac- 
 iand tlie laws 
 3il with that 
 ire what the 
 Lnd even for 
 live in, their 
 > understand 
 :>f words and- 
 1 the words 
 is and string 
 'itliout train- 
 , as it would 
 
 ' subjects ga- 
 ting religioft 
 rse of studjr 
 y take to be 
 vercrowded. 
 ;cts, or that 
 le Germans 
 Brunswick. 
 While we- 
 k I, to pro- 
 is necessary 
 l)igli school 
 ooks to the- 
 ■e than the 
 
 equations 
 schools the 
 t's work in- 
 in the first 
 lalving the 
 
 1 with the- 
 e criticised 
 it is being' 
 maintained 
 int of say- 
 id it must 
 iditions, or 
 
 may find 
 vhich may- 
 is is small' 
 B of three 
 the world 
 
 79 
 
 known to ancients and moderns. And when the babe is doing that he is doinff 
 the best possible to assure liis future But if he happen to think that it is an 
 advantage in a course of study to specify the different parts of a subject in order 
 to assure that such a phase of it should not bo. overlooked, and that after all if it 
 IS in the numerical complexion that distresses him, the whole might be reduced to 
 five such as 1 English, on which we spent in the year ended, 1894, 42.7 p. c of 
 the ime ; 2, Mathematics, 21.4 p. c ; 3, Geography and History, 14.4 p. c ; 4, Cali- 
 graplHcs 1-.6 p. c; and 5, general improvement exercises, 8.9 p. c ; which makes up 
 the whole one hundred per centage of time utilized in the common schools of the 
 
 lllhmu '^^"' ^" *^''"'' ''""'' ''''•^' ^'^ '"" ^^ "'^''' "^'''^ *''""g^ "°^ ""^ 
 
 There are some who want more in the course, even more books ; while I am 
 hoping through the influence of our xXormal School, that in the hands of the 
 pupils they may be.ome less. For instance, there has been pressure for the pre- 
 scribing of some text book on agriculture in the common schools, as has been done 
 or IS proposed to be done in the other provinces. But I am afraid of books for 
 another reason than that of the man who pays the bill. 1 know that so many 
 teachers use the book so as to kill what little love the pupil might originally have 
 hac. for the subject And I would ,,refer, that instead of prescribing an additional 
 book which after all would only pretend to be adapted to one class of industry 
 we should increase our efforts to enable all our teachers to give the prescribed 
 training properly to their pupils in the subjects of the so-called nature lessons, not 
 froni books which would make it little better than the dullest fiction, but from 
 the things themselves,-the whole to be blended into the unifying patriotic spirit 
 of devotion to our own country. This would be laying the foundation of .scientific 
 agriculture a hundred fol.l more pleasantly and u.sefully than cramming a book : 
 and the training would be equally valuable to every other industrial class, even to 
 those who are to enter the literary professions. I think our Normal School is 
 beginning o prepare such teachers now. A live teacher is better than a library 
 01 text books lor the young pupil. "^ 
 
 COMMON SCHOOL CORRELATION OF STUDIES. 
 
 To wind up the threads relating to the princii^les determining the evolution of 
 modern courses of study, I will now simply quote the opening page of that re 
 po.t already referred to, the report of the committee of fifteen, 1^895" the leading 
 Un> T'^f/ "'f was the same Dr. Harris, Commissioner of Education for the 
 Un ted States, who was also the leading member of the committee of ten three 
 yeai ^ betore : 
 
 " I'our committee understands by correlation of studies : 
 " J. Loffical wder of iopics and branches. 
 
 " First, the arrangement of topics in projer sequence in the course of study in 
 such a manner that each branch develops in an order suited to the natural and 
 easy progress of the child, and so that each step is taken at the proper time to 
 help his adyan.e to the next step in the same branch, or to thr nex'. steps in 
 other related branches of the course of study. 
 
 " 2. Symmetrical ivholc of studies in the tvorld of human learnimj. 
 
 "Second, the adjustn.. iii of the branches of study in such a manner that the 
 
 ^^ whole course at any given time represents all the great divisions of human learn- 
 ing, as far as is possible at the stage of maturity at which the pupil has arrived, 
 and that each allied group of studies is represented by some one of its branches 
 
 ^^ best adapted for the epoch m question ; it being implied that there is an equiva- 
 lenceof stndies to a greater or less degree within each <troup, and that each branch 
 
 ^ cf human learning should be represented by some equivalent studv : .-.o that wl.qe 
 
 • no gieal division is left unrepresented, no group shall have sui.erfluous representa- 
 tives, and thereby debar other groups from a jiroper representation 
 
 
80 
 
 "3. Psyc}<.ological System. 
 
 ■ '• Third, the selection and arrangement of the branches and topics within eacli 
 " branch, considered psychologically, with a view to afford the best exercise of the 
 " faculties oi the mind, and to secure the unfolding of those faculties in a natural 
 " order, so that no one faculty is so over-cultivated or so neglected as to produce 
 " abnormal or one-sided mental development. 
 
 *' 4. Correlation of pupils' course of study with the world in which he lives— his 
 spiritual and natural e"mro7ivie7if, 
 
 " Fourth f.nd chiefly, your committee understands by correlation of studies the 
 " selection und arrangement in orderly seiiuence of such objects of study as shall 
 " give the child an insight into the world that he lives in, and a command over its 
 " resources such as is obtained by helpful co-operation with one's fellows. In a 
 " word, the chief consideration to whicli all others are to be subordinated, in the 
 " opinion of your committee, is this requirement of the civilization into which the 
 " child is born, as determining not only what he shall study in school, but habits 
 "an I .Mistoms he shall be taught in the family before the school ago arrives ; as 
 " well as that he shall acquire a skilled acquaintance with some one of a detinite 
 " series of trades, professions, or vocations in the years that follow school ; and, 
 "' turtlu-rmore, that this question of the relation of the pupil to his civilization 
 " determines what political duties he shall assume and what religious faith and 
 " spiritual aspirations shall be adopted for the conduct of his life. 
 
 "The branches to be studied, and the extent to which they are studied will be 
 " determined mainly by the demands of one's civilization. These will proscribe 
 " w'nat is most useful to make the individual acquainted with physical nature and 
 " with human nature so as to fit him as an individual to perform his duties in the 
 " 3everal institutions, family, civil society, state, and the church. But next after 
 " this, psychology will furnish important considerations that will largely determine 
 *' the methods of instruction, the order of taking up the several topics so as to 
 " adapt the school work to the growth of the pupil's capacity, and the amount of 
 " work so as not to overtax his powers by too much, or arrest the development of 
 *' strength by too little." 
 
 CORRELATION WITH THE COLLKQES. 
 
 While the high school studies are thus correlated with those of the common 
 schools, which 1 have endeavored to show make a very fair terminus a i/uo for them, 
 we have also liappily been able to arrange a terminm ad queni, which with the 
 device of a certificate bearing tlie valuation of each examination paper by the 
 provincial examiners, enables us to articulate the studies of the high schools with 
 colleges of even different standards, as, well as with their various times of opening. 
 And this is done in a more effective manner than the Conmiittee of Ten ventured 
 to recomm-nd, in order to obviate the "serious inconveniences for secondary 
 schools which habitually prepare candidates for several different colleges or scien- 
 tific schools," because "'^the admission examinations of different institutions are apt 
 to occur on different dates, sometimes very widely separated." The same school 
 can prepare candidates for various colleges without forming a class for each ; and 
 as the examination papers arc published as well as the syllabus of the provincial 
 examinations, colleges are in the position of making their standard of admission 
 40 p. c, or 50 p. c, or 60 p. c, and so forth on such of the subjects as they deeni it 
 necessary, as shown nn the provincial certificate. This not only dispenses with 
 the necessity of the very inconvenient proposal of arranging to have colleges set 
 their admission examinations on the same dates, independently of their times of 
 opening ; but it dispenses also witli the necessity of having any examination at all 
 for such as have won provincial certificates. 
 
81 
 
 -hix 
 
 COUREr.ATI0N WITH (.UH «UCI .L AND IM.USTR.AL ENVIRONMENT. 
 
 For the sake <if })revitv 1 sliall (•oiisi(l..r Low. ti.- i ■ i 11 
 
 of time spent^n^ach is ^C^ii::^::::;;],^::^ ^^;: "f'l'-— to percentage 
 
 suiUECT. 1st year. 2nd year. 3r.l year. 
 
 1 . Knghsl, (2 papens) 2O p, c. 20 p. c. 2 . „ e 
 
 2. Languages (optional) 2o " 2O " 05 <". 
 
 3. Matlieniaties (3 jjapers) 20 " 0() " on " 
 
 4. Natural Science (1 paper) 15 " Tr. „ "" ,, ,„ 
 
 5. Geog.anaiUston'(iVap«><-.).. 15 " I5 » f? " (^ papers.) 
 
 6. JJrawnigand Book K. Cipaper) 10 " 10 " 
 
 100 100 ioo~ 
 
 options IS not exploited there to the extent it is here Wo!* n ^ ■ 
 
 then, a n,„» y,:a,'» c„„rM a, th« G,m„a,i,„„ ,1«,. On v thitei' VMr, ?« thi 
 Uti„ with .h„ s„i,j.ct. of the Keafahuk vK„^ fof *f | ,,"^^^ 
 
 the forces directing the newer trend. At the .^reU edn,..,finnnl i \ , , 1 ^ 
 
 Berlin on the fourth of J)ec.mb.=r, 18P0 pmh 1 ov t^^^^^^^^^ "^ 
 
 of Education, the German E.nperc; .nadJ i;::^:! T li^cc^^t? -^i' irt 
 the gymnasia, asserting that if it was more national and less literi; ■',..«;, 
 the socalKstie spirit would soon die out. He made a plea f ,r the n lu L^ nf K 
 
 Latin and about half that time^o Greek '' 8'^'''» f' "•"""' J'^ars to 
 
 The facts that the imperative portion of our hi<di School ,;-,uv^,. ;.. t^„ a ■ n 
 the three classes of Cn.rnmu higU school, even in tlu' I- sS Z T^ "' ^" 
 
 of tiie several conferences unde'r the .■.« . t ee of e n „ ■ .fJ? "ir'"^ 
 
 ^^Tz!^:^ Ti^ ''\ ^r-' -thoritir;;XS\.rr £f '™d 
 
 th.m ,dl imperative. A. I .said before even the cla,ssical schools of Germany make 
 
 m 
 
82 
 
 more s^lnects imi-erativc than wc do. It is claimed by some of the classical men 
 that it would be an improvement to allow classics to be aubstitnted for one ot the 
 imperatives, which principle is in a modified form admitted in the fourth year. 
 I cannot take time now to discuss this proposition. ,., , , , , 
 
 Our present method is without doubt the one which is most likely tfl extend 
 the classical culture, for only the abler pupils will take the extra woi'k Tliere is 
 a special inducement for the literary, the mathematical and the scientihc minds of 
 averace or more than average ability to take the complete course at hrst because it 
 counts more. In the future, then, we would expect all the abler liput.-nants 
 and captains in the different bands of the industrial army of the province to 
 know some classics. Under no other .system is the sulyect likely to become so 
 popular, as our annual statistics are proving. And I see that in the I rovince of 
 Ontario the new regulations just issued authorize the languages to be aclded 
 as a bonus to the score in the primary examination as we have been doing, provided 
 the mark is not below 34 p. c. There are some among us probably who instead of 
 moving in the direction of the 34 p. c. of ( )ntario would prefer to have any score on 
 the optional subjects however small added into the aggregate. I would al ow 
 that question to' be decided by a vote of the classical masters, but while! 
 think that the encouragement of the classics is desirable, I think the study ot each 
 of the imperative sul)jects as we have them most necessary. Ami 1 tiiink that 
 even if a candidate for B should make an average of 75 p. c. on each of his Latin 
 and Greek papers, that he might be allowed to pass although he made on(v 22 p. c. 
 on each of the eight imperatives, as he would be entitled to do under our present 
 recrulations, rather than not give a chance for classical work to every abl.^ student. 
 I do not very well like the idea of beginning the distinction of major and minor 
 subiectstoo early in a course of education ; but if it is useful in some cases there is 
 a wide margin allowed for it in our present plan. Perhaps the Ontario minimum 
 of one-third of the full vahie of a paper in order to let it count at all may some 
 day come in ; but it is too severe for us at present. 
 
 I have left no time to show, other than by authority, that our minimum high 
 school course of the first three years can not aflbrd to lose a single subject ot 
 those we call the imperative, in order to meet the demands of our present environ- 
 ment In fact we need more work done in t.iese so soon as we can afford it. 
 Our classical, our English, our mathematical teachers, arc the latest of a more or 
 less lon<' line of evolution, but there has not been enough time for the evolution 
 of perfected teachers of the natural sciences. They are ^ry few and far 
 between And when one comes his duties are so imperfectly understood that he is 
 hampered by the general ignorance of the ditfevence of the demands made on him 
 as compared with, say, the language master, who can sit in his chaiy and direct 
 the class work by lecture or reference to the page of a book. The science teacher 
 to-day has to be an objective demonstrator, for nature must be interrogated 
 ■directly when possible. He has to provide the material suitable for the demon- 
 stration of the hour, and that often requires several hours of mental planning and 
 perhaps an hour or two of manual labor. And after the demonstration hour is 
 •over tliere may be another of manual labor in having things fixed up. Ihat 
 is every hour of the proper scientific teacher's time on the programme means at 
 the very least, on an average, the equivalent of two hours of the language or 
 mathematical teacher. He is not paid double though, and therefore I fear there 
 is often a temptation not to exert himself to the double effort which would be 
 necessary if his demonstration classes are run into each other so closely as the 
 other classes. But there is a better time coming. 
 
83 
 
 CORHELATION " TANDEM " ANO " AllREAST." 
 
 J:X::i a' ti;:':^""^'^- '''- ""^'-^■""'•^^ •" -- ~ «- -'divided 
 
 i^uVs/ Year. 
 
 Arithmetic. 
 
 Algebm. 
 
 Geometry. 
 
 Second Year. 
 
 Arithmetic. 
 
 Algebra. 
 
 Geometry. 
 
 IVdrd Year. 
 
 Pract Math. 
 
 Algebra. 
 Geometry. 
 
 11 wo.il.1 „pp,„r to bo a qiwslioi, will, some „ to whrtlict it would not be , 
 
 Algebra. 
 
 Secontf Year. 
 Arith & Pract. M. 
 
 Third Year. 
 Geometry. 
 
 Tim would gwe us the apparent simplification illustrated in some parts of the 
 sample courses suggested by the committee of ten. It is the tanden versus thl 
 abreast system The first year candidate would then be exanuned o a th .e a 
 of our present three years to the end of the text book. The C candidate would 
 ,>repare to pass on all the Arithmetic and Practical Mathematics. A^do^ Xen 
 should such work on one of these subjects be not found too monotonous, and though 
 the subjects of the precedmg years might run no danger of bein<' for^otton from 
 d.8use, some too difficult work would have to be done in the firs^yLrl:^n the 
 second ; and the many opportunities now had of correlating, or iitor-relatin- the 
 sul,,ect.s as we go on from the simpler elen>ents ,n each to tC; more difficu ^from 
 year to year would be missed. There would be as niuch work to do as eve 
 although the title <K the bran.Jes would not appear so often in the course of study 
 Jlut witlnn each year the teacher can now at his option take "D " Arithmetic for 
 hree months, then Alge^^ra entirely for the next three months, and GeomeUy o 
 the last three; from which he would receive all the advantages of the greater 
 rliiinge proposed above without its disadvantages. '^ 
 
 METHODS OF EXAMINATION. 
 
 My time is up and I am forced to refer you to my last report, 1894, pages 29 to 
 . , J f'l"'.'/' ''lf^'\ '"'i^^'^d practicable than the written examination then we 
 sliould adopt It. Tlie Academic grants are not dependent on the results of this 
 examination, nor IS the grading, except where the teachers find it best from local 
 conditions So there is no strain here. Both academies and high schools are ex- 
 amined otherwise by visitation of the educational officers whose duty it is The 
 written examination does not examine in music, gymnastics, manners or even 
 reading and elocution. But there is by law a public examination, where and when 
 such subjects can be well tested by the trustees and others interested. Anrl these 
 are some of the branches which should be specially examined at such exhibi- 
 tions of the school work. 
 
 Then with respect to the preparation of the examination papers, the present 
 compiler would like very much to be relieved from the prcparatioA of about 80 
 different papers covering every subject. Those of you who have often prepared 
 examination papers for your own classes on the subjects which you have been teach- 
 ing so as fairly to coyer tlie ground of a year's wor may have some idea of the 
 work as you multiply one evening by the number of working evenings in three 
 months. Then the papers are to be made a fair average for the good schools of the 
 
 various sections of the province. One individual who vis,t.« thn»o from " ^x- — pr 
 
 and sees how such work is being done has an advanta,:?6 in that respect over i 
 
84 
 
 bo.ir.l of cxmiiiners which has not had such opportunity. Hut a Unw\ of ..xan.im^rs 
 couKl hear the rcsponaihility more composclly than a sinKJ.' nulivi.lual for 
 wh.-n DaiuMH are pre('an-(l from vear to year on .'Vcry Huhji'ct m Un'- whole .aucati- 
 onal ran''.., Nvhcn' a i.roiK^r avcVaj;. nuisl he struck, where no (luestion must he 
 reneatedlu.less it is with the desij-n uf impressing the importance of certain phases 
 of the suhject, wliere simple (piestions for the ht-ncHt of tlie slow and averaj,'e :an- 
 didate shall be properly balanced with others on whi.d. the abler students « .1 .e 
 able to show their power, where the ditticulty of a paper so constructed shad be 
 tempered d..wn with an optional .piestion or so, or when the subject prescnl.ea 
 (from the acei.b'nt of the dilhculty of the text book available) is rather extensive 
 and must be practically cut down by, sometimes, several optional .luostions equally 
 distributed oler the course,-for where and when all these and other points have 
 t(, be taken into consideration, and the questions themselves have to be kept in- 
 violably secret, printed perhaps a thousand m-ies away, before they come to he as 
 carefully iiut up into some two or three thousand parcels sealed, and it a single 
 one of these papers is by accident put into the wrong envelope, it may give 
 rise to most serious conq^lications, it can b" seen that the director ol tlie 1 rovincia 
 Examinations has a more dithcult time of it than the most thoroughly joluckea 
 
 c;indiihite. ,, i -^ ,f ti,„ 
 
 Notwithstan.ling the natural difficulties of the case, the P;;P"l'i>'ty of tl e 
 examination has been phenomenal. In round numbers, from 1,300 under tlie .jld 
 order, 1,500 presented themselves the first year of the new. The score rose to 1 , JOO 
 the second year, and this year t..uched 2,400. But with a this care and with 
 the words cif caution and recommendation to the different I'rovincial Examiners 
 whic 1 I shall quote from my circular to them, the two lower grades of candnlates 
 did n ^t do so well proportionately as they did at the previous examination, ihis 
 was to some extent due to a rush to be admitted to exandnation be ore the possible 
 imposition of closer restrictions on the admission, probably. Partly to the greater 
 youth of many of the candidates, partly to the fact that many teachers have not 
 by experience learned to discount the showing of a pupil in his room when 
 examined on the very poin'. • r. which most attention was given by the teacher 
 himself, in order to estima' J- mark likely to be made on the questions of an 
 extra-mural examiner. Pa- ■■, :he ca.e of grade 1) also, to our having this year, 
 for the tirst time, being abb.-, U. dispense with the special allowance made with 
 respect to the toleranc(; of a ..nrnmum lower than the normal 'lo. Also partly, m 
 many sections of the country, ;o the difficulty with which some teachers appear 
 to be able to accommodate themselves to the teaching of what they were never 
 drilled ill thoroughly themselves, as the examination answer papers now on file 
 abundantly prove. 'But much progress has been made, '^r.d the work in these 
 very "nides in manv schools in the province has been so satisfactory, that I teel 
 GUI' next examination will not only be more agreeabla to the examiners, but to 
 the leacliers and candidates more generally throughout the country. 
 
 The time has come for me to stop, before 1 have completed .ui outline, or 
 touched upon many points in which some of you are especially interested, l.nt i 
 have oi)ened the subject and have invited you heartily to join m the unprovement of 
 our system of correlation or of examination by the comparison of our ditterent 
 experiences and views. Any thing I can do to help you in this will be niy grea est 
 pleasure. For it is my work as it is yours, a wurk in which wo require the ull.st 
 information, the freest cooperation, and the heartiest sympathy with each other. 
 
 Discussion :-Rev. J)'. A. Chis.iolm, D. 1)., St. Francis Xnvier College: 
 You have heard with pleasure and, I have no doubt, with proht the admii.ibl> 
 instructive i.aperpist read by our acconq.lished Superinten. eiit of Kducation on 
 tlie "Correlation "of the Course of Htudies." In op.Miing the discussion on this 
 .subieet I do not iiresume to ha,-e so n)a.st.>red its various and complex details as 
 to be able to definitely settle upon a H. S. course that wil) be beyond criticism. 
 
85 
 
 But I liave some views on this matter of roir..Iation, whieli I hIu.H put I.efore vou 
 teehng, it ih true, that many of you pivliaMy know nioie al.uiit it than 1 do yot 
 de-sirous of helping the cause for which we arc ;,mtlicrc(l here toL'.-thcr. Thev 
 arc tlicrctore put forward for wliat they are worth and not with tlie idea that 
 they will by any mcauH constitute tlie last pronouneenient on a many-sided question 
 Oorrelution ui studies, tlie Superii.lcndent tells us, may mean such a Ljif.Ui.ini; 
 ot the various subjects of a hij,di school course, both as to siimiltaneitv .nid 
 succession, as will produce the best resuils in the case of the average student ; and 
 it lias a so been taken to mean such a grouping of subjects as will pla.'e those 
 obviously dependent upon or ministering to other subjects in the special catcory 
 or class ot these suhjects, thus causing some to disappear from the course as dis- 
 tinct subjects for study and consequently perhaps for examination. In the Hrst 
 meaning assigned to the word correlation it involves the discussion of the relative 
 merits of the " tandem " and "ahrcist " methods of the study of several l)ranches 
 According to the sec.nd meaning of the term, .Irawing e, g. would disappear from 
 Uie 11. t,. curriculum as a separate study, inasmuch asit would he rcarded as 
 introductory of or ministering to the study of geoniet--, botany, geogra'ijhv etc 
 and a knowledge of it would be necessarilv acquired '.t pursuing a c.'irse in 
 
 he.se branches. In the same way botany ...ight, to ..^r, extent, bo merged in 
 horticulture or agriculture. These two trainings do not exclude each other. In 
 tact tliG training of any ourse of studies will involve a consideration of the num- 
 ber and the best subjects to he placed together on the course f^r the same year 
 and from year to year, every circumstance being weighed, i. e il,e prol)al)le a."'e of 
 the student when he enters upon the work of the cour.se, his stage of mental 
 •levelopinent, Ins attainments, the relative merits of various subjects or groups of 
 subjects as mind developer.^ if I may so express myself, ami furthermore the 
 proper co-ordination and suboiilination of the Mibjects .so that the best results will 
 be produced with the Last expenditure of time and energy. 
 
 1 think you will agree with me that the SuperintendLmt has made a good case 
 tor the principle of the simultaneous as oppo.sed to the successive study of certain 
 subjects. .V careful perusal of his argument will leave few of us dispo.sed to doul)t 
 that in theory at least and within proper limits also in practice the principle he 
 contends for is sound. I say within proper limits, for it would be just as unsound 
 educationally to crowd, just to secure variety, too many siil)jects on the II S 
 student, so that he could only .study a little oif each and nothing well, as to "ive 
 him a surfeit of one branch. On this point, I fancy, there will be no difl'er "nee 
 ot opinion. The difterence will probably arise when we come to detine diat the 
 too many subjects" is. 
 
 No one who examines carefully our public school course, from the pre- 
 scriptions for the first year in the common school to those for the last 
 year in the High School, can fail to note the symmetry of the whole 
 the clearness of the instructions and suggestions it contains, and the perfect fami- 
 liarity, to the minutest details, with tlie best methods of teaching, which it 
 
 Ml T^^'i-^*^ '^ ^ ^^^^^^ ^^''^^' *" oiit''"'^ «nd definite in scope and purpose, and 
 will, I believe, remain a lasting moiuimeiit to the .Superintendent's skill in oi'cani- 
 zation and arrangement of material. On reading the celebrated report of the com- 
 mittee of ten, to which the Superintendent referred more than once to-day, I was 
 struck with the imber of points upon which our new course had anticipateil the 
 recommendations of that famous committee ; and I confess to havinu experienced 
 not a little pleasure in that we should have as the chief of our c bica'tional .system 
 one whose conclusions on many heads squared so well with t,,o lindin"s of the 
 weightiest document that ever issued from the press on secondary schools" I need 
 not give in detail the points I refer to, since the Superintendent has himself 
 drawn your attention to them. You will infer from these observations that I am 
 not one of tliose Vfho ste no good in our present course of II. S. studies The 
 fact is, I see much good in it, and I believe that with a few modifications which I 
 
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" 86 
 
 shall probably take the liberty of suggesting before I close, or at least before the 
 close of the conferences on tha H. S. curriculum, it can be made the equivalent of 
 that which the committee of ten pronounced t6 be the best and most feasible 
 course. 
 
 In framing a course of studies, one must not forget the purpose for which such 
 a course is marked out. That purpose is to enable the student to do twofold 
 ■work, i. e., to obtain information and to acquire power. In other words, its pur- 
 pose is to enable him to obtain an insight into the world of thought and matter, 
 and by the very process of obtaining this information or insighi; to acquire new 
 strength of mind, power to think new thoughts and grapple with new studies, 
 • new problems which in almost innumerable shapes and varieties will come up for 
 solution during the course of one's life. The information obtained and well- 
 balanced power developed, produces in time what we call the man of culture, the 
 foundation of which we begin to lay so srton as we place our child in the school- 
 room or even ef.<'lier. If Cardinal Newman's estimate of culture be just when he 
 speaks of it as, "the force, the steadiness, the comprehensiveness, the versatility 
 of intellect, the command over one's own powers, the just estimate of things as 
 they pass before us, which sometimes indeed is a natural gift, but commonly is 
 not gained without much effort and the excrci.se of years," then surely culture is 
 something worth striving after, something to be kept carefully' in view, when 
 framinc a course of studies for those who are to be the leaders in thought and 
 action in our country, such as our H. S. pupils to a great extent are expected to 
 be. And let it be ob erved that it is only on the ground of our doing a service to 
 the country as a vhole, that we can devote jiublic money for the encouragement 
 of education in any grade. We must therefore aim in our High Schools, aided 
 as they are so generously with public monies, at the best possible product, for 
 that product is in the ordinary course of events, to have much to do in shaping 
 the destinies of our country. 
 
 A writer of great weight in the mother country quotes, in a recent article in 
 one of our reviews, the works I have just read from Cardinal Newman, and mr'ces 
 this forcible observation of his own : " A man of culture is not necessarily a giant 
 in any sphere of intellectual effort, but he is a potential giant in many." And 
 then he goes on to say, — If this be the iwture of culture, surely it in the very 
 height of folly for anyone, hov/ever intolerant of anything which is not " practical," 
 to decry it as useless. It is, on the contrary, the most distinctly useful attainment 
 which a man can have, for it makes him master of himself and of all his intel- 
 lectual resources ; it teaches him to distinguish accurately what he knows from 
 what he does not know ; what he can do from what he cannot ; it gives him 
 powers and pleasures and sympathies which those who have not gone through a 
 similar discipline know nothing of ; it nuikcs him a complete man, not a mere 
 bread winning-machine. Goi\ernl culture, therefore, although not directly impart- 
 ing the special knowledge required for the exercise of any profession, makes a 
 man in tlie highest degree fit to receive it. He acquires it, too, at once more 
 easily and quickly and more thoroughly than those whose faculties are, as it were, 
 in a state of nature. Culture, in short, prepares the sod for any kind of seed that 
 may be sown in it, and supplies the fructifying influence which makes it grow 
 and ripen. To u.se the noble words of Milton, it fits a man " to perform justly, 
 skilfully, and magnanimously all the offices, both private and public, of peace and 
 war." 
 
 The whole difference between the man whose faculties have been developed by 
 training and one who is defective in this respect is thus summed up by Dr. 
 Coppleston, Anglican Bishop uf Durham : " A man of well improved faculties 
 has the command of another's knowledge, a man without them has not the com- 
 ™,,.,fj «f Y,\s. (^wn " which means that a man whose inind has been stren"thcn.ed by 
 exercise and training can acquire from books, by private study, the information 
 he needs to solve new difficulties, or to pursue any ordinary vocation or pro- 
 
87 
 
 fession ; whilst he whose mental training is defective will find himse f compara- 
 tively handicapped when brought face to face with new problems demanding 
 solution. Thus, to take a not uncommon example, we find intelligent men, wha 
 had never been in an agricultural school, become scientific farmers and acquiring, 
 if not wealth, at least a very comfortable sustenance through the reading and study 
 of agricultural books and periodicals. 
 
 These views, so reasonable in themselves and too important to be lost sight of, 
 in that they emphasize the necessity of securing mental power rather than inform- 
 ation on many heads, are shared by the committee of ten, as can be seen by 
 reference to their report This distinction is in fact the basis of all the pro- 
 grammes framed by them for studies in the high schools of the United States. 
 ^ Now it is here that the excellent paper read by the Superintendent, — par- 
 ticularly when taken in conjunction with our high school course of studies, which 
 has been formulated by liim, and may be regarded as expressing his views,— is apt 
 to create a false impression, an impression he probably never intended, but which 
 is likely to be produced all the same. He treats his subject in such a way as to 
 lead to the conclusion that the great thing is to acquire information, to know many 
 things, and that for the utility of it. He does not sufficiently emphasize the 
 vastly greater importance of time being given to assimilate into the fibre of our 
 mental being the information gained. He does not dwell upon the necessity of 
 giving prominence to those studies which for centuries have been regarded as the 
 best instruments for the development of mental power, and are still so regarded 
 by the best authorities of to-day ; nor does he point to the need for caution, lest 
 in multiplying the number of subjects studied we make it impossible for any one 
 of them to yield for us its training value. And that I do not misinterpret hia 
 views I have but to recall to you : 
 
 1. Where he urges us to study the classics besides the mathematics and natural 
 sciences, and not as options witli some of these. 
 
 2. Where he assumes that the proper thing for the clever boy to do is to take 
 more subjects for study than his less clever companion, whilst ordinarily the better 
 thing for him is to do mwe thorough work in the same number of subjects. 
 
 3. Where in comparing our course with the classical course in the German 
 Gymnasia, he points out that ours has no more subjects on it than has the German, 
 nor even as many, leaving the impression that ours is therefore no more crowded 
 than the German, i. e. not crowded at all. He fails to call attention to the impor- 
 tant fact that our course is completed in three years or at most in five. The 
 German Course requires nine for completion. One can readily conceive, how, with 
 so great a difference in the time allotted for completing the course, the principle of 
 tliorowjhness may be conserved in the German course whilst sacrificed in ours. 
 
 4. Where he almost goes the length of apologizing for what lie says is perhaps 
 too much of a "concession" to the classi'^al students, in that by making 75 p. c. in 
 Latin and Greek he may pass for his B with only 22 p. c ; on evcy other subject; 
 whereas in point of fact the same is true of an equal number of Matliematical or 
 Scientific subjects. Why then call this a " concession " when the clas.sics are con- 
 cerned and not when other subjects are in question 1 Have the classics no right to 
 be on our H. S. course ? Are they there by virtue of a special concession or privi- 
 lege ? Or rather have they not been put there by reason of their special fitness 
 for the various purposes of a High School Course '. Here then is in fact a reflection 
 on the classical studies, which I am sure was not intended, but which seems to 
 be the unconscious offspring of a mind much occupied with studies other than the 
 classics, and keenly anxious to maintain or enlarge the place these other studies 
 now hold on the course, and oblivious to the vast and preponderating weight of 
 authority in favor of the classics in any course of advanced study. 
 
 To return nnw in mv main point. The chief purpose of any course of training, 
 whether it be for a mechanic, a skilled artizan, a prize oarsman, or even a prize 
 boxer for the ring is the development of innate power. In regard of intellectual 
 
 i 
 
 \ i 
 
 M 
 
 ill 
 
 i:; 
 
88 
 
 power, tliis ilevelopment is brought about by imparting and acquiring knowledge 
 and by tho tiiinking necessary to this acquisition. Tlie information itself in detail 
 soon disappears ; it is forgotten. The development, the expansion, the enlargement 
 of mind remains, and it is really what we want. Now observe that this enlargement 
 of mind is not produced by the extent or variety of subjects studied, but by tlie sound 
 intense thinking done on these subjects. So that I will venture to say that the 
 young man's enlargement of mind is, within certain limits, not in direct but in in- 
 verse proportion to the extent or area of the vast Held of knowledge to which he 
 has devoted his attention. I say within certain limits, for \;ithout a fair number of 
 judiciously selected subjects the knowledge necessary to mental expansion cannot 
 be pursued. And let us not forget that whilst in the young, facts are stored up 
 with marvellous rapidity, the cultivation of a sound judgment is a slow process 
 and requires time. Hence, in conclusion, I say that the framer of a course of H. 
 S. studies must keep in mind a two-fold necessity, i. e., tlie necessity of a judicious 
 variety in the subjects placed upon tho course, and thus the necessity of giving 
 the pupil sufficient time to put upon each subject the work required to derive 
 from it the vigor of mind and maturity of judgment of wliich he ia capable. A 
 course balanced by the bearing in mind of this two-fold necessity ought to produce 
 the best possible results 
 
 In respect of the distinction I have drawn between iiiformation find training 
 this remark seems pertinent, that the C. S course has for its purpose primarily the 
 acquiring of knowledge. The child is yet too young for much mental training to 
 be going on. The habit of reflection is not yet sufficiently developed. In the 
 H. S., however, the state of things is reversed. The young pupil is now capable 
 of reflecting on tlia information acquired, and hence training begins to be the 
 primary end of the work done, whilst imparting information conies in as secon- 
 dary. It is with the H. S. course I have to deal, and I shall now turn my 
 attention to our own. In this course there are two clearly defined portions. Tlie 
 one is imperative and must be taken up by every young man or woman who 
 wishes to be regarded as a regular 11. S. pupil'and benefit by the grant to H. S.'s ; 
 the other is optional, i. e., the pupil may study, if he be so minded, and he prob- 
 ably will study it, provided he gets the time after doing the necessary work on the 
 impeiative subjects. Here the first thing to strike one is that the optio;;?' -ib- 
 jects occupy a position of inferiority as compared with the other subject:: .e 
 
 would therefore suppose that for working out the purposes of a H. S. <\ of 
 
 studies they were of secondary utility. The facts are, however, the other way, 
 and I shall claim your indulgence whilst I give a few reasons why ther.e subjects 
 should (jccupy the leading place on any course of H. S. studies. ' I refer particu- 
 larly to the Latin and Greek classics, and the reasons which I shall give for their 
 study I cull from Professor Howard Murray's excellent inaujniral address before 
 th. faculty and students of Dalhousie College on September 20th, 1894. This 
 address, by the way, I regard as marking a turning point in oar Provinces in the 
 discussions relative to the merits of classics as subjects for profitable study. And 
 I should like to see a copy of it in the hands of every H. S. teacher in the Pro- 
 vince. But to my reasons for the study of the cla.ssics : 
 
 1. One cannot realize fully the grammatical force of many usages and construc- 
 tions in his own language without comparing them with those of some second 
 language. 
 
 2. Our English vocabulary ov.es much — very much — to the classical languages, 
 and hence, to get at the exact meaning of thousands of words in our language, to 
 detect the diflerence in the shading of synonyms, a knowledge of the classics is 
 necessary. 
 
 3. The classics are the best models of literary style. And hence, if you ask 
 our modern masters of style, our orators, our poets or prose writers, our Burkes 
 Pitts, Broughams, or Newmans, or if you wish to go to the continent and. enquire 
 of Bossuet, Massillon, Bourdalons, Moli6re, Signori, and countless others, to what 
 
89 
 
 they owed the style which made their names famous, they will tell you it was an 
 assiduous study of the classics. 
 
 4. We must not forget that vvithout a thorough practical knowledge of Eng- 
 lish all other knowhidge becomes more or less useless to the II. S. student. Now 
 thJre is positively no t)etter exercise in English composition than translation from 
 a foreign language, under a competent ma.ster. In translation one ha.s to clothe 
 the thoughts of a foreigner in Htting English words. It therefore affords a con- 
 tinuous exercise in, ami a stimulus to, the choice of the most suitable English 
 words to express the foreign autiior's meaning. But the correct use of words 
 is the chief aim of all composition. 
 
 5. Literature, history and biography are perhaps the most useful of all studies. 
 They bring us into contact witli other minds and in doing so develop our own. 
 They put us in touch with the lives of nations and individuals and thus help us to 
 shape the destinies of our own. The classics are literature, history and biography. 
 They therefore broaden our minds, eidarge our sympathies, break down narrow- 
 ness, they make us acquainted with the means by which nations rose to greatness, 
 and the cau.ses that led to their fall. In a word they supply us with just that 
 tool of knowledge which is required to make intelligent, useful, good citizens. 
 And this is what we need in a country with rejivesentative in.stitutions, more per- 
 haps than men skilled in the industrial pursuits. 
 
 7. Language has an advantage over mathematics and science in the formation 
 of moral character, and here let me quote from Prof. Murray's address : ' In the 
 " literature of Greece and Kome are to l)e found the most memoral)le examples of 
 "all the virtues, examples of courage, of con.stancy, of endurance, of filial affec- 
 "tion, of love of country. The boy who reads of these, even in an English 
 " translation can hardly fail to be touched and influencted by them, but when read 
 "in the language of the people themselves they are fai more likely to enter into 
 "him and form a part of his iieing." Then he quotes from Dr. Thomas Arnold, 
 who \vrote to a former pupil as follows : " If one might wish for impossibilities, 
 "I might then wish that my children might be well versed in the pj^ysical 
 •"sciences, but in due subordination to the fullness and freshness of their know 
 *' ledge on moral subjects. This, however, I believe cannot l)e ; wherefore, rather 
 "than have it (the sciences) the principal thing in my son's mind, I would gladly 
 " have him think that the sun went round, the earth and that the stars were so 
 ^' many spangles set in the bright blue firmament." 
 
 8. The study of the classics is an excellent discipline for the mind. It gives 
 exercise to all the faculties brought into play by almost all the other studies 
 
 ■ combined, and it does so with thoroughness. This is very well brought out by 
 Trof. Murray, and any one who has taught the classics will bear him out. He 
 says : " Let us see what is brought into jilay in the making out of a Latin 
 ■" sentence. First there is the memorti in recalling the meaning of wortls previously 
 ■" met, then olservafion and comparison in noting the cases of nouns, pronouns and 
 ■"adjectives, and determining which adjective goes with which noun, in noting the 
 ■"voice, mood, tense, number and person of verbs, &c., then reamn am\ judijment 
 "in deciding for example why this noun is in the genitive case and that one in 
 " the ablative, why one verbis in the subjunctive mood and another in the infinitive, 
 " why one of the third personal pronouns is used in one clause and a different one in 
 " the next, why the same conjunction is followed by an indicative mood in one 
 "place and by a subjunctive in another; finally dtunimdnation and faxfe nmst be 
 "exercised in the choice of words and their arrangement in translating into 
 "Ilnglish." 
 
 The classics should therefore not occupy a position of inferiority on our course. 
 
 On the contrary, they should hold the place of honor. Listen to what the 
 
 Committee of Ten have to say as to the relative merits of courses which give a 
 
 prominent place to the classics and those which do not. " Although the com- 
 
 '" mittee thought it expedient to include among the four programmes, one which 
 
 f 
 
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90 
 
 "lan!Mm!f/;wl!!'l' ^'"''\\7' ^T'^' "'"' ""^ ''^'^'^' '"'*'"'>'"J only o„o foreign, 
 '%sSc S/ ' "'","""°"«."I'""';'» tl.at, under existing conditions in the Unite.! 
 41u ■ urtr''"'-""r\';r""'^^ .•OHpoctively Knglisl. and Modern lZ 
 
 itaits an. ndne. ^'" '''"''' ""■" '^''^'^'''*^'^ '"'^ '^''"""^'y ''^I'^^'nted). Tho 
 
 t^^t^^^l2^ :!!'''' '"'^■'^ ?"■■•"'■'" '" " oo„,pron,i«e, for other .swl.jeets too 
 
 d l.e 1 .•! ' ri;r^'^"tf.'«» "P"n it. What we want is a eonrse coni- 
 
 ^mf^t^1^'"'i''^''''f'^T'^\ ''' '"'"'^^ '" all as the student of average 
 
 re/'S of , ^""'' ;""' ''^ '■'"■"■'^ ^'" I"'«l''"''' " K""'l 1^««'>" upon. I» 
 
 g. 1 of the ,„vs,.n eours, I ..|ain.,- -and n,y elain> is has..! on aetual exp"ienco 
 
 "i":;^' "' •'" ^;'"'-'J;'f---«K^ '^Wlity -.".^t prepare a gooll l^^ 
 
 To ndl,-; It ;;;''' ''?" ^Y '''"l""'"'^ ^^-"''^ ^*" the in,perative sul-jeets. 
 
 1 nes , , ft 1 m"^" ' ''"f""" '" "'al^" «<'"". suggestions just to shoi tho 
 
 1 t hn ' ., M ""''^ '"?7'' •" """'ifvi"K tl»' course and not ne.=cssnrily 
 «i n tl ( I'.pe that all or any of them may l)e adopted. ^ 
 
 not ■invorv!"'tlw v "i*"" r'"' 7'"'' I"'*^^«''''^''fl '» Arith.nelie. Such suhjcK^ts as do- 
 on intiv S '" "'! 'V'";"' ';"""•'•''" "'• ■•"•'^ "f H^lcpractieal use, T should 
 E yW^^^^^^^ \"' ^•^">''I"S I «l»ould o,n,t tiuMd.apler on Incract UirM.n,, Cube 
 
 the Test of 1 ■ ="" .''^'7"''7""'"' 'i//<'-"«.v. No student who has n.astem 
 
 dffieultv n n^; ?. "" '"^^' 'r "'""'^"" ''^"litl.-ean have the slightest 
 
 h should nev,nf ^^ '^^'''' ''^ ''''"'^"'^' '^'"'"1'' '"' '"•■'' "^•"' tl"'"'- If 
 
 CoLn<^'sHu,oI "o T ^'" "%'*' ^T"'i'';! •"•"'^M'l'^-^ ^'<^ «"Klit to he tinishe.l in th« 
 aid s Ho: '^\r''''f "' ^h'' "'«•' «-l'ool ""Iv i" connection with, and to 
 
 tJus t a V H.r r S "''' •^'' ^''"«'''P''.V. «te. That there is enough time for 
 
 course Tho.iM-' ,"r"'' "'"^ "'"^''"''•^ '"■'"■''^''^> ^^''" l^^"k« "I> onr C. S. 
 ha n the ..H "'''"''IT'"^' prescribed for eight years. Who will .say 
 
 n • L- f . "^. " ''"•'"''''' ^*"»^'»''' tl'o pupil of our C. S. cannot grasn tho 
 
 S h^? Bu^^ o , rV"^ 'f"'^ "''^'*'^'''' '" ''"« M,hject-in our Common 
 ■5cn,ioi. i{ut we hope to have liim soon. We ought to take measures to lmv« 
 him as soon as possi We. We need hin,. Ho will sa^, us hXTof E nd , Z^ 
 
 Sin" S" m' "' f *""'"• r/ ''•''"^■>' '""^ •" ^«--l "f t^- ^;,tS ■ 
 save monev o fh '" ''""'n ''"" *''"'"''^^ "' ^''''^'''' <'f these s,.hjeets wo.dcl 
 adeauitoM P'-o^nce. Our present machinery is, however, totally in- 
 
 irto.l L r.^ "M''"'" ''^''•^''^'■"- «"'"«thing ought t; ],e .10 .0 to 
 
 place good me ho.ls of teaching Drawing an.l tho Sciences within more easy reach 
 of our prospective teachers. When that is done, a large part of the difiicul v of 
 provuhng a properly balanced IT. S. course will have vanished ^"^^ .!i"'"''^'>' «^ 
 
 anv onJ who IL "? "*^' f ^*'" 'T"^"''"' ^'''■'"'''' *"'"-'"^l''"S ^^^^i^nf Botany for 
 ad the H S b 1 '"f' ' '"■'^' ''\ '^'"''^'^ '^f ''• '=°"'^1 be studied in the C. S. 
 .Tone at a": ' ^'''' ^''"^ °^ ^'°'"^ ^^ '""^^^ "°^ ^1«' '^ ^t is to bo 
 
 subieot!'?'ri';f ;l"-"l'^ probacy be given by a reduction of the work in other 
 
 Sn/u,tJn^ r^£^^^^^ "■' 7n" '^'^'''' re-arrangement of subjects, without ' 
 iiiifMiimg me general emciency of the course. 
 
 5. If after iUl this relief has been afforded the H. S, Course it be still founr? 
 00 crowde. w.th other subjects to admit of a thorough stu.^y of Lme claScar 
 
 aitutwns, a« uctween some classical and some scientific or even some mathematical' 
 
Ul 
 
 subjects, or betwcnn hoiiip scinntifie niid iimtliniiintic.nl siiljjects. In this I alioiild 
 bo following tho HUKK'OHtion of tb(\ (^oinmittpn of Ten wluiii, oli pa^'e HO of their 
 report, thoy say : " Again the coiiitnereial and industrial subjects do not appear 
 "on these proRraniines, l)tit l{ook-keei)ingand (Joinmercial Arithnmtic are provided 
 "for by tho option for Algebra, Table III ; and if it were desired to provide more 
 "amply for subjects thought to have practical importance in trade or the useful 
 "arts, it would be easy to provide options in sucii sul)jects for some of the . Science 
 "contained in the third or fourth years of the Ktiglisli progranime." In thi; jdan 
 I've outlined the lil)erty whi(di is now allowed the pupil of treating some subjects 
 of the course as major subjo(as for study and others as minor or subsidiary, would 
 remain untouched. No pupil should be prevented, so far as the course goes, from 
 taking up a branch for study biMiause it would Ix! optional, The advisability of 
 his taking it or not would have to b<' decided after consulting with th(! local 
 authorities of each If. S., with whom it would be highly expedient to leave much 
 discretionary power in such matters. 
 
 These are the observations I have; to ii;ake on our present correlation of If. S. 
 studies. They are by no means revolutionary. They suggest 8inii)ly modifica- 
 tions of our present .system of correlation. They are (Jil'ered for what they may 
 be worth, and I trust they will be received by you all in the s|)irit in which they 
 are made, a spirit actuated by the desirti to be' helpfid, if I can, to my fellow- 
 teachers, — for I, too, am a teacher,— in tho important and anions work of forming 
 tho mind and character of tlu- youth of this province. 
 
 J. IJ. Calkin, A., M., Principal Normal School : i\Ir. President,— I almost 
 think that 1 have a grievance. I«.seem to be stnnmoned here without an object. 
 There remains not ft stalk of standing com, the sheaves are all gathered in, and 
 tho Held is bare. Would that some good angel had said to tho reapers, — Let fall 
 some handfuls for the gleaner. 
 
 ], B. Calkin, M. A., Principal, Nohmal School. 
 
 ^Without figurCj what should have been said has becu daid and it has been well 
 said. My presence here seems without sufficient cause. Hence you will pardon 
 
 4 
 
 »: 
 
02 
 
 r,!l\r''™^ """"."''"*'';"*''"'' '""" '^«"" "''''"''y «t"'^''' "'"• if in '"y extremity 
 
 l^!u:iz::;z. "'"•'" ■" '"'''''^ "'""^^ ^^""' ^'-"^ ^^'''•^•' '^-' •-- •-- 
 
 •reioi!'.fi,r;i.^^''" /'■■"'•"'""?' "' ^ '''".""'' "■'-^'■y true-hearted Nova Seytian muat 
 rejoice, m tlio e.lncutionul i,rogro.s8 ot ,Mir cuntry. EspedMlly, sir, durin" recent 
 
 Senior ''rr'"' ."""' '"■"''"'""-•'^'' '"•'' '"^"'f'y H'-^^vth in our lu^d. seliools a.ul 
 am It I :, /""■V";'"^"'','""'"'^ "; ^^"«'""l«'y <Mlueation is marked botl, as regards 
 
 t ewokdt""^ 'V"' '' ''"'«'^'' """• '"'*""'■ q'"'liH^"l teaching staff, and 
 
 n i, .1 ;!" . ; ^ •' '''"■^^''"'""« t'»' «l''"'^'»ts of progress in which wL sllould 
 rjoice s tl.at uniform, nnpnrtial, ai,d on the whole satisfaotor system of exami- 
 B rleiL^H'^ are test-nl the results of the work done in' o.fr high sehooll. 
 St n . ' " ""^?* ''''P'*"' ^''''^"'■•'' '^ ""''^' "'i^'' '^" "•'•■ advanceinent, there 
 tl e e s « r,,." t '"?'■"''' ^"'' r'"^'^''i"^' '•<-""^">'- It may he that at tin.cs 
 
 wo-Lvl 1 '*'"'".""'',''""• ""•■'^"«°""'''^' iu.pati-nce over the character of the 
 woik, which seen.s to those whose honest efforts are impugned like unmiti-Mted 
 querulousness. While the wo.kers should he awakened Ihmugh this cr t^ci^i to 
 En!'fr''"'"''r^''","' '^ ^''^"'^'^"- '''^^ ^"•' ^''•^ fa"lt-Huders%o remember h? 
 
 to t u ''V'"'"':/''' °'?"'!f '^ '^"'•'^ *'^"" construction, that it is alwavs easier 
 10 tear llieni down than to huild u|). 
 
 Tlie subject under discussion is many-sided and of commanding interest. Indeed 
 
 ^ZZTTf'^'^f '''!'^'''^' '" ^'^'^■'■'"'"'' ^^''"''t 1-rticular phase of it 
 c aims our chief attention at the- present time. While the term Correlatio-i of 
 
 diffe 'n/' ^"'"P'Y'^t'y.f-y "«»• i» Pi'dagoglenl litt^rature, it is used in somewhat 
 
 toZJ ^ """■'"' r"''""'"- *^y '"""'" '' '« "'"•'« interchangeable with 
 
 co-ordination, uniheation, and concentration. This looseness is not calculated to 
 p omote precision of thought. Co-ordination seems to imply a.ljustment of ele- 
 ZTfhl ^ 'V ^a ^^''-■"'•^h':"»o»i""« I'-sults. We may co-ordinate studies so 
 that tiieir combind inHuence shall secure well balanced development. Unification 
 
 ous W-lri'"^'/"'"" I ■°"^'' f""" f°"'"'°" ""'•'■••Jying principle. Thus the vari- 
 ous features of a country which might Hnd a distinct place under the various sub- 
 
 iTe ,;,!!f!^T"^"'"' '^' "'"r*°l°8J'' "V"""'°gy' l^«tany, zoology, ethnology, and civics 
 aie nihe.l m a geography lesson through their common relation to the civilization 
 Ho f" "''"'■''^^^^'•'^P,'.'^ °f ^h« '^•^""try. Concentration, again, consists in the selec- 
 tion of some one subject as a centre to which all other subjects are so related or 
 are suppose.! to be related, as to be taught through this central subject. Coneen- 
 ra u.„ IS un.hcat.on through the subordination of all other subjects to some one 
 fl r'^r'f -^ r . C^V^i"^'"" «^'^n'« t« ^ something different from any and all of 
 relato 1 f ''^" J"f ^''"t^ ^ave wuler range. It has regar.l to the studies as they are 
 elated to each other and as they are related to the learner, adapting them to his 
 eel" n"rf ' condition, to his environment, his mental development, and his 
 needs for life's practical work. 
 
 Proper correlation of high school studies must take account of the knowledcre 
 and mental condition of the pupil when he leaves the common school. There 
 ahoukl be a connection and a contiituity in the various steps, so that there shall be 
 no hiatus in passing over from one stage to another. There should be such a lo-i- 
 €al selec ion and aiTangement of studies for the various stages, that the beginning 
 
 areJrV"T i'"?,'^''^';"?^' '^^ »"ti«iP"t«^ '^y «" apperceiving intefligence 
 al.eady .leveloped through the work which has preceded. In other words the 
 
 .o M?.? ff !,'" "•" *^iffr«»t topi.*^« of -^ach subject should l>e so arrange.! and 
 so taught that the new may be adeqtiately interpreted !)y the old, and the old may 
 De luily untolded by the new. .' • ' '' 
 
 The unity of knowledge has been well shown by the Superintendent of Edu- 
 Inn:,-« 1 T^ P[°P.'^':^"^lof '"^"er in natural objects all knowledges are related 
 ana unified. Ihe dividing Imcs by which we separate them are in large measure 
 
93 
 
 nrtificial and iirliitiniy, adojitcd in adn])tntion to our limited capncit' s; Knowledge 
 is niuny-siik'd, Imt we should nut mistake its various aspects for distinct entities. 
 The host teachiuf,' is tliat which shoWs most fully and most clearly the lines of 
 coniact nt wiiich the various sides touch each other. Teachers often blunder hy 
 isolating,' the various subject.^ of the course of study, treating? them as .so many dis- 
 tinct and unrelated things, each complete in itself, instead of being a part of one 
 great whole. 
 
 1 stisjject that it is here that our departmental sy.stem has its chief weakness. 
 The one-man high school may make lich compensation for its wi-akness hy inspir- 
 ing its pupils to indtpendent eH'ort. This is indeed a true test of teaching 
 power, securing to our pupils the desire to know and the abdity to learn ; the 
 power of making ourselves u.seless to our pupils by making them independent of 
 our help. I5ut 1 was about to call attention to a weakness it our best equipped 
 liigh schools, arising out of the very fulness of their strength. Each teacher has 
 a .subject to himself, which it is his great aim to isolate and treat as if it were not 
 only the chief thing worth knowing, but the only thing to bo known. He not 
 oidy fails to recognize any broad responsibility in regard to the full all-round 
 education of his jjupils, but he is too much inclined to overlook the great iniport- 
 i.'ice of showing how his subject is related to other subjt.-cts and of teaching it 
 through the aid of these other subjects. This is wholly and ruinously wrong. 
 The uifferent teachers in the high school should each keej) his eye to the finished 
 product. Each should feel a responsibility for every subject in the course and 
 aim to givt direct aid in the teaching of all subjects. The teacher, unaided by 
 assistant-s is compelled to be ever on the alert, that he may make each subject 
 help every other subject, and see that all subjects fit in to each other as comjde- 
 nientary parts of one whole. 
 
 But, Mr. President, having said this much on unification of studies, I must add 
 a word in ex))lanation of my position. I may have seemed to be approaching 
 fatally near the all-engulfing whirijiool of concentration. 1 assure you, sir, that I 
 am under the infiuence of no such centralizing force. My craft is moving in 
 smooth waters, projielled in direct line by wind and tide and oar. I recognize no 
 study of such wide capacity or unifying force that it can take in without mutil- 
 ation all other subjects. We read that Aaron's rod, transmuted to a serpent, 
 swallowed up all the magician's snakes at a single meal. This 1 believe. But I 
 have no" faith in the educational python, call it correlatim, unification, concentra- 
 tion, or whatever else you please, which, under the guise of history, geography, 
 Robinson Crusoe, or any other member of the family, assume.' ' > embrace every- 
 thing within its encircling folds. We may, and we should, ilu i -te and enforce 
 each subject by other subjects. We shoulil show how various sul j'ects are related 
 to each other, and we may ( ften economically combine two or more subjects with 
 advantage to each. But to take anv one subject as a fixed centre and essay to 
 teach everything else through this as a primary subject is quite another thing. I 
 believe in concentration, but I would make each sidiject in its turn the centre, 
 wliile all others, for the time being, shall become subordinate. 
 
 In relating the work to the pupils' environment the same princijile of connec- 
 tion .should be recognized. Each locality has its own peculiar physical features 
 which should, to some extent, affect the selection, arrangement, and teaching of 
 the vaiious subjects of the course. Each place has a story of its owi> to tell of 
 mineral, plant, or animal, and the pu])il, by putting his ear close to nature; catches 
 her faintest whisperings and learns her most secret intimations. 
 
 A proper correlation of studies takes account of the environment of ideas as well 
 as of objects. It adapts itself to its historical as well as to its geographical setting. 
 The conditions of society are ever changing, and the objects of human interest 
 and sympathy have corresponding variations. PMucatioriniust chansre with the 
 ages. As already Virought before us through the opening pai)er, "the civilization 
 into which the child is born determines what he shall study at school." The 
 
 ■*• 
 
94 
 
 hSr f I r"^ ''"""''"'^ ^"' "" ^'I'-^ational course of one period in 
 
 the history of civilize.l life may i.ut ho udapte,! for unoth.-r perio.l. Tliis ul'c of 
 ours 18 iini.iiie for the -listinctive character of its knowh-dfrt.. Uur ohjects of 
 thought and uiterest have multiplied beyond what our fathers picture.l in the 
 highest soaring of tiieir imagination. 
 
 Armed with the microscope nothing is so minute as to lie below the range of 
 our observatu.n ; w „le aided by telescope and spectroscope we extend our scHirch 
 to the hnriters of inhnity. 
 
 I am in full sympathy with the views ex|.ressed by the Superintendent of 
 JiUiication on the importance of opening up to the pupils of our schools an outlook 
 to every point of the horizon. If our schools are to give their pupils that intelli- 
 gtnte which they w,ll need to understand the thought and meet the con.litions of 
 the world ,n which li.ey will soon be called on to play their part, they cannot 
 afford t .gnore the subjects thrust upon them by the civilization of the clo,sing 
 years of the nineteenth century. We hear much about cram and the multiplicity 
 ot subjects with which our course of study is crowded. Will the critics for a little 
 cease their destructive fault-finding and construc;t for us such an ideal course of 
 study as no one can find fault witii. 
 
 I maintain that our high schools must aim at broadness; may I not say at 
 broadness rather than profundity ? You declare this rank heresy. Think it 
 over Life is many-sided. It has many and varied interests which claim our 
 regard. 1 reparation for its duties requires a many-sided vision for these varied 
 aspects and a many-sided sympathy for these varied interests. It is true that 
 suceess demands thoroughness in some one department of knowledge ; but so inti- 
 maely are the knowledges related that no one thing can be known thoroughly 
 without some knowledge of the other things. The fully equipped m.n must know 
 
 frnof H"°f "r^'i'lr T^ r'7''V"" ""^ ««"""thing. The training of specialists 
 IS not the function of the high sehoo , and if it were, the pupil has no. yet arrived 
 at that stage of inte ligence and development when i.e is prepared to decide on the 
 yocation for which he may acquire special training. He needs the broad vision to 
 aid lum in this selection. Jurther, as the opening paper states, general intelligence 
 widens the field of .selection. The more limite.l course results hi the over-crowd- 
 ing ot two or three professions. 
 
 It has been customary to assign to education two distinct functions, one secur- 
 ing to the pupil ability to contend successfully in the practical affairs of life and 
 the o her securing mental discipline or culture. On this basis subjects of s'tudv 
 are classified as useful-knowledge subjects and disciplinary subjects,— the fir<it 
 named class being considered valuable chiofly as aids in fitting their possessor for 
 gaining those things which are needful for bodily sustenance and well-beiug, 
 while the latter are supposed to minister to our higher spiritual nature, leading 
 our thoughts away from the sensual and grosser material interests and awakening 
 stronger yearnings after a higher and nobler life. This distinction is too well 
 known to require illustration. I wish, however, to ask if we may not easily make 
 too much of it,--press it beyond its legitimate value? I readily concede tiie two 
 functions of education-utilitarian and disciplinary. But I cannot help thinking 
 that every study yields something of both results, and that a sharp distinction of 
 useful and disciplinary subjects is arbitrary and un.supported by well-grounded 
 reasons. It is ditftcu t to find any subject of which we can assert that a knowledge 
 of It has no appreciable bearing on practical affairs, and still more difficult is it to 
 name one the proper study of which is void of disciplinary effect. Culture and 
 humanism do not necessarily flow from the prosecution of the so-called humanistic 
 studies, nor do they come from this .source. A pupil may spend years in declining 
 I^tin and Greek nouns, in making crude translations, and in scanning classic 
 verses, and a ter all be a veritable Philistine. He may read volumes of the 
 choicest literature and yet derive no inspiration from its noble thoughts. Moral 
 development and religions culture are not ner.-^.snriiy secured by the memorizing 
 of moral precepts and the reciting of church catechLsms. On the other hand the 
 
96 
 
 'profane and woildly hipnil-and-ljuttcr siil)j(?cts niny exercisn a powerful influence 
 in (loterniining cliaracter. Kven aritlinietic, for example, barren as it is of moral 
 ■quality, Vjy its regard for exactitude and patience, may give ethical results of the 
 liighest value. The acquisition of science, too, may be vastly more than the per- 
 fecting of a machine for securing what we may eat and what we may drink and 
 wherewithal we may be clothed. 
 
 ^ In this connection there seems much force in the advice which Ralph Waldo 
 Emerson is said to have given his daughter when she asked him what studies she 
 should pur-sue at the academy which slie was about to enter. " Find out," said he 
 "who is the best teacher and study what he teaches." Professor Ladd,' of Yale' 
 in a recently published article, emphasizes the same truth. "The chief' need," he 
 says, " in effecting lil)eral culture is men. The character of its faculty is 'that 
 which determines the rank of an educational institution." The benefits of a study 
 as regards culture come not so much from the knowledge of the facts as from the 
 mental awakening that results from the effort of acquisition and from the sub- 
 sequent processes of analysis, comparison, and synthesis of these facta. As ii 
 sciplinary and cultural force the teacher is more than the suliject. 
 And yet, Mr. President, I do not mean to say that all sul),ject8 are alike in their 
 cultural influence, On the contrary, I believe that every study exerci.ses its own 
 special influence and leaves its peculiar mark on the character, and hence he who 
 neglects one field of knowledge lacks that .something which that portion of know- 
 ledge is calculated to secure. The all-roun<l, well-balanced man is developed only 
 by the broad education. 
 
 The subject of examination or testing for iiromotion and graduation needs from 
 me little consideration. All who have had experience in this work, or who "ive 
 the matter a little thought, must be convinced that no testing which human 
 ingenuity can devise will give universal satisfaction or be perfect in its results. 
 Young students, no more than other people, measure themselves by such rigid, im- 
 partial rules as enable then? to acquiesce with equanimity in judgments which 
 place barriers to their ambition. It may honestly be conceded, too, that the most 
 carefully planned system of testing has its limitations and defects. I believe that 
 for testing the comparative merits of a class no means is so accurate as the 
 
 . gradually developed estimate of the teacher, arising out of his long-continued daily 
 intercourse with his pupils. But most, perhaps all, teachers are liable to get into 
 ruts. They have their prepossessions and their prejudices. Through these in- 
 fluences they are apt in their teaching as well as in their examining to fall into 
 narrow grooves. Hence it becomes needful to break up their routine by .some 
 force from without. The system of examination provided for this province seems 
 as good as can be devised. The drawing up of the questions and the examination 
 
 ■of the papers are in the hands of experts,— men of ability and knowledge as well 
 as skill, acquired through Ion • '>xi>erience in their respective departments. 
 
 Inspector Maci.ellan au i ..e considered the High School course too extensive 
 for the average High School pupil. It, moreover, embraced imperative subjects 
 which for various reasons, parents often wished certain of their children to omit. 
 He coiLsidered that there should be a number of optional courses marked out for 
 pupils who had no intention of entering upon the teaching profession, and su""est- 
 €d classical, mathematical, scientific, literary and commercial courses. 
 
 The Supehintendent of Education said that there were objections to such a 
 plan. It was true that power might be developed by restricted courses though it 
 was questionable whether even in that respect a restricted course was as good as 
 the fuller course when taught on sound principles. But granting that power was 
 
 ■ developed it could not be utilized advantageously by tho.se who found themselves 
 hedged in by lack of knowledge of subjects which every one should know. And 
 in the great majority of schools, if not all of them, such an arrangement, instead 
 
 -of lessening the difficulties of teachers, would greatly increase them. 
 
 #j 
 
(nil arcuiiiit of want of time I'lof. KatoiiV paiirr was not mi.l. It i» here 
 pnlilislicd in it.s inopcr placf in tlio pioj^niiuini'). 
 
 THE CENERAL OIlAKAiTERISTICS OF A (iOOD 
 
 TE\T-H(MIK. 
 
 Uy K. II. Katon, M. a., Kentvim.e, 
 
 i| 
 
 Thi! (jnestion of tfxt-ljook.s is alwnys anil ev.Tywlieic in tlie mlniinistmtion of a 
 IMiliJu' 8clio3l sygtoni a (iidiciilt one to ileal witli. Fri.'(in<"nt rlian-jcs in unci 
 aiMitions to a iircsc-riht'il list, iiowcvcr carefully jiroparfd, are nciTSfJaiv' from tiujo 
 to time i(artly iiccaiisc nioilitications in tin; coursi. of stiuiy ri'iiuire such altenitions 
 to lu- mad.', ami partly IxM^aiise now Iuk '<s an; constantly appearing which nro 
 intrinsically hotter than the okl ones in nsr. 
 
 Apart from tho ohjection to changes in text-hooks on acconnt of the expense 
 involved, it is difficult to secure unanimity of judj,miont as to the fittest selection 
 t() ho made. There is no feature of the system on which every teacher feels 
 himself so well (lualilied to pass judj,'ment and none in respect to which intlividiml 
 jiidjjment is so ajit to im warpnd and untrustworthy. J)aily contact with a hook 
 which a teacher dislikes is a constant irritation to him, iind its rt-al or fanciwl 
 defects are often made the scape jroat for unsatisfactory results when the fault 
 really lies in tlie -teaching itself. Besides, the constant attoi 'ion to little 
 thing's whicli is necessary in the conduct of daily los.sons has a temlency to 
 contract the view and fix the hahit of hasing Judgments upon details rather 
 than upon broader chnracteristic features. The consoiiuence is that real defects 
 of a text-book of comparatively small importance are often unduly magni- 
 fied while genuine merits of a comprehensive and dominating character 
 are lost sight of. Hence it is, that necessary or desirable changes in the 
 prescribed list are always more or less vigorously opposed, either on economical 
 grounds or from an habitual or constitutional conservatism that is satisfied with 
 
 nothing that is not stereotyped. To effect such changes as are deemed necessary 
 
 and only those that are necessary— avoiding as far as jHissiiilo in so doing excusable 
 irritation on the part of the taxpayer who is always jealous of expense that is not 
 voluntarily incurriul, so of the teacher who not infre-iuently considers the work 
 of familiarizing himself with a now text as an imimsition, is a task of such 
 delicacy as to require th> most reliable exjuTt advice and no little dijilomacy as 
 well. The wisdom of tno Ci.uncil of Public Instruciion is best shown under sucli 
 circumsfancos in not being unduly disturbed liy petty carping at books already 
 on the list and in hesitating to adopt recommemled substitutes, until assured that 
 a conciMisus of the best educational opinion is behind .lie cliango proposed. 
 
 I take it that it is in view of such conditions that the organizers of this meet- 
 ing's program have selected as one of the sulijects for discussion tlie one assigned 
 to me, in the hope that some suggestions may be thrown out in the paper i'tself 
 
 and in the discussion that may possibly ensue — some views expressed that will 
 
 be of service to the authorities in their efforts to improve our system of popular 
 education in this regard, and at the same time jirovide the teachers who use the 
 books with higher standards of criticism and a more rational basis for their judg- 
 ments upon them. 
 
 (96) 
 
97 
 
 t..I^tH:/;;:l;':!;;tt;;i:'''';;:';:ir'7' '; T'^'-'^^-"'' ^-'— ti.., ..ext 
 
 >vill.l.v..n.l.|.nv..v..r nwhirm^ "f"" ';"nstit..t..H a k-I text l,.,..k 
 
 Iwlgi. wn possess ..f tlio -.atiiri. of tl„. ,. r i . ''"'"'' "'"" ^'"' '""'W- 
 
 it8 activity an.I ,-r„vv L n if,' | f' ""m """■ '.""""^'""■^ '""l '"ws of 
 
 t.'ri,sti..H .■faK"".it..x l,o'k u, !?^^ '"'^ " " '"'•M-tlHMrharuc- 
 
 *i;st i„;orta,u... is'-i.,;t,/^'; !"',.: ..'T fht. 'T' "'•' ""v""^^'"" "^ 
 
 charge of .n.r sH.ools n.,t only witlM n i |^^ "!"' ^""'"" '» 
 
 with .•I..a> n...ptio„s as w, |1 • , ,' ■ '""' "'""'•'* "'"' """""■••« '"'t 
 
 «">-iv.'.l it? A^ vH t' i,/fl . V ''\'*7'''''^ 'J'"' '''•■ ''-"taiozxis have 
 Hd.ool is «o s.nl^tirX^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ or ha,I upon the 
 
 '-'"^-"•-- -t;;i„:5'';::..iu;:;;r:;. i;;..;^iy"'^;'-:-' -" ^-« -" 
 
 K. II. Eaton, a M.. Kkmvm.i.e. 
 
 What is the tlominntiii"', roculative foiv.^ in ti,-. „, xr 
 
 rocuto-aay? Oar. we say itts ot the text ook ThT ^^^ Scotia school- 
 controlling motive ? The exainination «S if i '"'' *'"-' "'°''* '^""'^'^t ""'l 
 
 text bookr With all o, r mX c ? of h ,^"''" "" '"^^ "^"t<^»ts of the 
 
 is not always ren.embemirt 'i ''t et li r Z^^'y^'T^^ ^^°^*""^^ '' 
 not to rowh : that under the insnirin.' rl Hv ^ * '.' *''"'^'^''' ^^ ^'^'-'^ «>»l 
 
 pupil .^o«/^l,econ>e a self '[^.U^i^SvSirZlt? ''^ ''" ^"^'" *!"^ 
 determining, therefore, what a text book si o ,1 . lit " "^"P"'? '"''•■™*- ^^ 
 
 to its proper place of subordination in th o . m lir "Ifi '"5 fT"..'^ 
 
 teacher but s>mply an inst.-ument to he skilfully u ■' b th . ; ) "^ *" ^ *^' 
 
 mg the high task to which h. sets himsT Tl^ nlvf ] ?" "'^^^^^^ 
 
 jmrime of the teaching ; whether it is tTfurnkh >,','', ,?"''*'? *'' ^^"l'' '« t^e 
 be deemed «.«/«/ infbnna^iJZC'l^'^^y!'^^^ ^f '''l^ "^-"d with what may 
 
 helping h..ental and morallife-to -^^t^^" :^^^Z:^tlS:; 
 
11 
 
 in' 
 
 98 
 
 both of these essentially different ends are to be kept in view ; the 
 method to be followed and the means to be used by which a child may be 
 stocked up with an adequate outfit of ready-made practical information with the 
 least exnenditure of energy on his and his teacher's part is to a great extent sub- 
 versive of the laws of healthy mental growth. At the same time it is undoubtedly 
 true that the common si:hool teacher and the text books he uses must in some 
 degree recognize the importance of such information through the loftier educational 
 aim must be kept in view. 
 
 In the third place it must be remembered that a text book for the primary 
 school must be essentially different in its general plan from one intended for High 
 school use, — not merely, however, in being more elementary and simple. In the 
 earHer period of school life, the object of teaching is to awaken the faculties into 
 life and activity, while later on is the period of discipline and culture. This 
 distinction the text book maker must clearly recognize. 
 
 Agf-in, a different set of faculties must be appealed to in the later stages of 
 common school education from those which in the earlier period the child obtains 
 his knowledge. In the first years of his school life, observatior, imagination and 
 memory of things and words,'are the coi necting forces of mental growth, and later 
 on, reason, reflection and will. Self-determined energy and above all the esthetic 
 and moral sensibilities, play a more prominent part. It follows then that the 
 methods of the teacher aud the characteristics of Ihe text book should correspond 
 in the respective periods, to these important differences in p.sychological condi- 
 tions. 
 
 Finally, the educative purpose of each separate subject in the school course must 
 be considered. The result aimed at in teaching mathematics for example, as a 
 factor in mind development is so different from that expected from the study 
 of history or of language — the kinds of mental power to be acquired in the different 
 departments of study, are so unlike, that in the nature of things the books them- 
 selves must be widely different in the essential features of the plan of their 
 construction. To recapitulate : — 
 
 1. A text book is to be in the hands oi a teacher who knows how to use it. 
 
 2. It must distinguish between knowledge and culture, and must recognize the 
 distinction in the arrangement and treatment of the matter it contains. 
 
 3. It must recognize the psychological differences between the child in the 
 primary school and the high school pupil. 
 
 4. It should keep in view the peculiar effects in culture that the subject treated 
 is adapted to confer. 
 
 BOOKS FOR THE PRIMARY SCHOOL. 
 
 For the purpose of discussion it has been convenient to adopt the not unusual 
 division of the whole public school period into two parts,— the Primary and the 
 Secondary,- the line between them being indeterminately located in the neighbor- 
 hood of the seventh and eighth grades. And having thus far endeavored to indi- 
 cate some of the considerations which are preliminary to the main topic of the 
 paper, and which are based upon generally accepted pedagogical canons, I shall 
 now pass on to some of the conclusions which seem to follow logically from them. 
 That the methods of the school-room should be founded upon laws of nature— and 
 that they shoulti conform to the teachings of psychology, no one will probably 
 hfzard a doubt. But, with the best of intentions, these teachings may be mis- 
 \mderstood and misinterpreted, a p-iori assumptions may control our opinions, 
 when wa fancy we are the most open-minded philosophers in the world. A 
 little while ago it was said that in the earlier school years of a child's life is the 
 period of mind awakening. Some forms of mental activity become earlier avail- 
 able to the teacher's educative efforts than others. This is so determined by the 
 laws of the child's being, and failure on the part of those to whose care his intellectual 
 life has been especially entrusted, to conform to this fundamental psychological 
 
99 
 
 fact must result disastrously. At this age the child i, not impelJPd to healthv 
 posi .ve inenta action so much by conscious an.l intelligent n.otive'^^s by tVZrl 
 wtT-\"'^^'l' "'"! r"''l""^' '""'^l' ''''^' ^^•'''-''' it« little world\sinve?lT 
 r,^al'lif' r'l '"'f V '","^ ^' 'T'^^ appropriates. Without that condi ion ht 
 ZXini f f "»d '"tunted. If, therefore, his school life is to supply the 
 
 Tl or. 1 '''"'^ ^' 'f '''"'^^^ "^"'^^ '^^^^^''^ •'^'l *'''"g« else be /«<«,../,•„; ' 
 
 There are many people who would l,anish books from the primary schools 
 entirely. I should say that -onld depend on the books. Next to the ll g^^^^^^^^^ 
 knowing people by actual personal intercourse with them, is the delicdit of k ow 
 
 Zu7u "\ '^"' '°°' '^"''' " ' ''''"•'" ""^^ ^ l»-«t i" learning wlawt'an 
 about things when we cannot come to a knowledge of then, by direct and perso.m 
 
 observation and experience of them. It is the purpose of larnatlvobirraZ 
 history and roma„ee of literature, in fact, to enla/ge the bounclary of mi inStte 
 experlencr"^ '"■ '' ' '""" through literature^vhat we canifot learn tlir'S 
 
 claSrof'eirrii/rr;f''''°H ^"^^l '" H^' rr^y ^^'^^^l' ^^"t they should be 
 c assiL» of child literature, the reading of which will stimulate their imaginations 
 and enlarge for them the world of interest and sympathy. There is no i^aso" 
 why the story book should be ' nished from the school\.oom to t le fireS 
 
 cti n; ''■'? ^'-•''°"^;r u "r- P"'"'^^^ Sr^^^^'^ ^^ould have for the no iial 
 
 child as n uch as possible the fascination of the story book. In such a book its 
 
 "bfes'statist'Je's' 't% ",'', '^'"1^^' "^*^«°"''^ '"^^^ classifications, analytic 
 tables, statistics and schedules would have no place. 
 
 Again to the child at least, nature does not classify or pigeon-hole herself It 
 
 ou M S'kn ow beltl 1 ''T '''fJ''' ''^ 7" P^^P"^*^' '-'^^'^ -hoolmS:; \vl o 
 sTv l.i tbo7 u\\ k'!. "' ^^"^ '*'*"'" *'""" ^°'' ''•'^ ^'''l'ir«»- B"t it is s^fe to 
 2 i ; t 1 had better see nature as she is, and not as the scientist and the 
 schoolmaster have made her over. I would therefore have the primary child en 
 
 T&ilZ ^T '"'"' *"'""^' "^'T'^'y '' ^y'^''' ''^ ^-^P^-te and ktinc^. 1 che" 
 of science, no grammar or geography as such ; but, rather let him learn from nature 
 ad from language his sc ence an.l grammar, without regard to the a tTficial dis 
 rra"dri%lt'r'^^^- '-' ''^''' ^-^-''-^-« - ^'-- ^'epartmenl be 
 
 fronlTf '"' 1" "''^'""'l ^^'"^ ^'^' ''''^^'"- «^ '''''''''' •^•'^» i" the main best be done 
 k ow fSle U:: ; "'*'"'" ''? '"tervention of the book, by the teacher wlio 
 Knows a little about science and a very great deal about teaching : and if such 
 teachers were a ways available, I would not be concerned if ther.r; n n t x 
 books for them to use ; but, in the case of unskilful teachers, or in any case to 
 upplement the object lessons. I would give them story book of natu e fo the 
 use of their classes, not for their own use. 
 
 wiJh "ntrl^"? '" ^l?7 '' *" ""^ Pr'''^'^'^' '^ •^^°"''^ tell the story of the pnst,^ 
 ^utll al the charm that personal adventure, dramatic movement and rom.nce 
 invariably have for children Dry facts, uninteresting details, and lliXi a 
 ables should not be part of it, and the language should l,e ^s nearly as posS 
 SZ^ "'''"' "''''" "" ^''"'^^ °^ ^'"' --l-honsion of those foi .llumi it 
 In brief with one or two exceptions, the books to be used in the primary 
 
 boorswrm^f"^' ''"^T' ""' °f the oixlinary disconnected, scrappy ty,bS 
 ooks written from cover to cover throughout the series with direct reference t 
 the cardinal necess ty of interesting the child in what he is to be ta, ^ Obv o'^l 
 
 IS needed It should be simply an Exercise book, without rules, .lefinitions, discus- 
 
100 
 
 BOOKS FOR SECONDARY SCHOOLS. 
 
 The i)iirpos(! of secondary education is, broadly, t<i cjive knowledge and discip- 
 line—knowledge that will he practically useful and knowledge lliat will serve as a 
 suitable foundation for subsequent study. The kind of discipline will depend upon 
 tiie nature of the subject. The text book provided must be adai)ted to this double 
 purpose, and the special characteristics appropriate to some of them at least will 
 come up for separate consideration. 
 
 Maihemaiii'x. — The purpose of mathematical study in the secondary school is 
 primarily to confer such a knowledge of elementary mathematical principles as 
 will serve as a foundaiion for advanced mathematical study and incidentally be of 
 use in the ordinary concerns of practical life ; secondly, the disciplinary purjiose 
 of this branch of school work is to develop — 
 
 1. The power to reason closely and accurately- -ti) originate demonstration. 
 
 2. The power of concise, exact and comprehensive expression in definition and 
 the statement of principles. To secure satisfactory results in discipline it is 
 obvious therefore that the text book should itself be a model of condensed and 
 pregnant statement. Terms should be defined with .scrupulous care, ami the 
 theorems proposed for demonstration in language that reveals no kind of vague- 
 ness, looseness or inadequacy. The student gains little power of independent 
 rejisoning by reading the demonstrations which some one else has elaborated. That 
 jiower will best be gained under efficient teachers liy the use of a text book which 
 contains as few as i)ossil)lc of .such elaborated demonstrations — only so many indeed 
 as will furnish the learner with an adequate outfit of models in form of proof and 
 statement. 
 
 The text books in geometry in common use in English speaking coiuitries have 
 all this fault, — that too many propositions are proven in full. Indeed it is only 
 recently that the practice of requiring original demonstrations has become general, 
 the study of the subject having been previously limited to reading and committing 
 to memory the proofs of tlie book. In this way the study has been deprived 
 almost wholly of substantial disciplinary value. Even now when the use of riders, 
 so called, is generally encouraged, the texts themselves do too .nucii work 
 that the students themselves should do. The ])iesent prescribed book contains 
 fewer defects of loose and inaccurate language than the book it superseded, and 
 its riders are more judiciously selected and arranged, but it adheres to the tradi- 
 tional number of fully demonstrated propositions, most of which had better be left 
 for the pupil to work out. The ideal text book in geometry would give the 
 enunciations only of most of the propositions with suggestive hints for some of 
 the more difficult steps. 
 
 Before beginning the study of geometry from such a book, or indeed in any case, 
 pupils should be familiarized with the more obvious properties and relations of 
 ])arts in the simpler geometrical forms by menus of a course in elementary 
 geometrical drawing. 
 
 Our larger arithmetic books are, for the most part, compiled with very little 
 apparent purpose. They add very little to one's knowledge of the science of 
 number and almost nothing to one's stock of practical information. The useful 
 matter they contain is, for the most part, a repetition of the contents of the 
 primary arithmetic, or else is matter that is to be repeated in the books on algebra ; 
 while much of the matter is useless lumber, making it an arithmetical curiosity 
 shop filled with musty relics of antiquity,— true discount so called, partnership, 
 alligation, partial payments, equation of payments, et hoc omne (jenus. It is true 
 that the solution of difficidt problems in arithmetic may have a fascination for a 
 few students, and that practice in this sort of work will add to their power in this 
 direction ; but life is too short and too precious to be spent in such exercises unless 
 they are strictly in the line of progress from the simpler to the higher mathe- 
 maticf). 
 
101 
 
 Arithmetic u.ni Algebra should not be carried along side by side, as separate 
 studies. The science of number is one and not two,— and it is unscientific to the 
 last degree to mnke two subjects of it— except in so far as it is necessary to give 
 every child a training in elementary properties of numbers and their application in 
 business operations, that fall within the range of ordinary life, whether he studies 
 algebra or not. The advanced arithmetic should go. An elcnientary arithmetic should 
 of course he on tlie list, but all that is not strictly practical should be eliminated no 
 matter if irreverence is done to the shades of mathematically biassed school-masters 
 of two hundred years ago. It seems to me a common defect in even the best of 
 our imblic school algebras, that they dutrunii princi|>les too much. They leave 
 notliiiig for the pupil to do but read the discussions and make the applications in 
 solving problems.— Thus it seems to me the learner gets only half the benefit from 
 the study that he should. The text book that elaborates every link in tiie chain 
 of reasoning by which principles are established, robs the study of much of its 
 power, as an effective disciplinary agent. 
 
 The fielil of mathematical study is a scries of wooded tablelands rising in suc- 
 cessive ranges, one above the other. On these heights there are bracing atmosphere 
 and glorious views, and the student who would gain the points from which lie can 
 peer into the unfathomable depths and sweep the boundless horizon or gaze into 
 the immeasurable infinities they reveal, must climb alone. The teacher' and the 
 text book tiiat do more than point the way and test the firmness of his foot hold 
 as he climbs, are guides to be discharged. 
 
 The German practice of having text and problems bound in separate books, has 
 something in its favor, — and yet this point does not strike me as being very material. 
 One thing iiowever is noticeable in German high and common text books— they 
 are generally nnich smaller than ours of corresponding grade. The reason is that 
 the subject matter is much less thinly spread out than in ours. In the mathemati- 
 cal texts, especially is this condensation of the u-atter in the way described above 
 carried into effect. 
 
 Science. — Our science text-books are for the most part too large. They 
 cover in the aggregate more ground than pupils of tlie High School can do in the 
 time allotted. Considerable reduction miglit be made in tlie scientific wonders of 
 the course without loss on educational grounds. Not all science subjects are equally 
 well adapted to give that peculiar kind of training which it is admitted the study of 
 science in general confers. Some are on the course because it is desirable for 
 every one to know something about them. Others are there mainly for their 
 effects in training the mind. For instance : the presence of physiology and hy- 
 giene in the course of study is to be justified almost exclusively on the ground 
 that some knowledge of these subjects is of practical importance to every one. 
 With this in view a text-book should be prescril^ed in which only the most 
 important features of both studies are presented. The work should be pleasantly 
 written in good style, with scrupulous fidelity, of course, to scientific accuracy in 
 every detail. A book about one-third or one-fourth the size of Huxley's physiol- 
 ogy formerly on the list would be quite sufficient for the purposes. In a similar 
 way what is called physiography — which should include physical geography, 
 meteorology, geology in jiart, astronomy so far as it relates to the relations to one 
 another of the parts of the solar system and parts of what goes by tlie name of 
 physics — constitutes a body of information which all people of very onjuiary edu- 
 cation should have,— such a book which would lie vahialile only for the interesc it 
 awakens in natural phenomena and for the direct knowledge it gives, and should 
 not exceed three hundred pages. 
 
 Physics and chemistry, botany and zoology, should all be taught in essentially 
 the same way— by the Laboratory Method,— the former two in the laboratory 
 alone, the latter two in the laboratory and the held. The purpose of these snl")- 
 jects in the High School course is two-fold — to give useful and desirable knowledge 
 and develop forms of culture and mind activity that other studies are not adapted 
 
102 
 
 to give. To meet the first of these requirements, tlie course of study should be 
 much less ambitious than it is now : much less work should be prescribed ; while 
 to meet the second, it is not a question of how much work is done, but how well 
 it is done. The text books, therefore, should be only guides to laboratory study 
 rather than treatises, and they should outline only so much work as can be reason- 
 ably expected in the circumstances under which High School work is carried on. 
 
 IIISTOUY. 
 
 It seems to me that the distinction between studying a subject for the training 
 it gives and studying it for the useful knowledge to be gained, should obtain in 
 the matter of history. The history of one's own country every one should know 
 in all its leading lines of development ; apart from any thought of the especial 
 culture value of the study of history in general. The book designed to give this 
 necessary knowledge should be at all odds readable — enjoyable as a piece of litera- 
 ture. It should be a work of the highest literary art possible for a book with 
 a didactia purpose, such that the beauties of its style may not lose -their charm 
 \yitli the frecjuent repetition necessary to fix indelibly the story of their national 
 life in the memory of the nation's future citizens. Incidentally, too, the 
 cultivation of a fondness for the study of history in general, would be best 
 promoted by the delight with which the charming literary (nudities of the first 
 book studied, might invest the subject. The penr/ianf for the study thus acquired 
 will aflord tlie condition necessary for the successful pursuit of history, when it is 
 subsequently followed as a means of culture. 
 
 GEOGRAPHY. 
 
 The current method of teaching geography and the te:;t books from which the 
 subject is taught are open to criticism. Too mucli time is worse than wasted by 
 high school students, in the etlbrt to memorize an enormous mass of geographical 
 statistics of no value as jjractical knowledge or as material of culture. Tlie know- 
 ledge of geograjihical facts essential to the proper information of well educated 
 people is of a very general ciiaracter. Facts of position should be learned from 
 outline maps. The general principles of physical geography should be taught 
 with, and as a branch of phsiography. Geographical statistics should be relegated 
 for reference to the gazetteer, while so so-called descriptive geography should be 
 presented in a literary form embodied in books to be read with interest rather than 
 to be memorized as uninteresting tasks. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 In this paper I have endeavored to emphasize the fundamental importance of 
 determining the type-features of school texts by the canons of a sound jiedagogy : — 
 Their mechanical features are of only less importance than the plan and treatment 
 of the subject -natter. Every book should be substantially and attractively bound ; 
 the paper stock should be of good quality ; and the typography bold, clear and 
 generally pleasing in its appearance. The subject-matter should be presented in a 
 manner 'vhich will conform to the main purpose of the book, whether that be to 
 convey the knowledge necessary for intelligent living, or to establish the rudi- 
 mentary foundations of future study in specific departments, or to confer discipline 
 and culture directly. Due regard must be had to the varying psychological con- 
 ditions under which the instruction is to be given, and as far as possible the books 
 themselves must olier neither pupil nor teacher any temptation to irrational 
 methods in school work with which books designed chiefly to furnish material for 
 examination stuffing abound. For vvaiit of cojiformity to such standards, many of 
 our prescribed books should speedily be replaced by others, 
 
5th session— THURSDAY. 
 
 For this Session the Association was divided into two sections. 
 
 Common School Section. 
 Inspector Morse presided. 
 
 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ART SPIRIT IN OUR 
 
 LAND. 
 
 By O. a. Smith, Instructor of Drawing, T^ormal School, Truro, N. S. 
 
 Verily it is true that man cannot Hve by bread alone ; no sooner are the bare 
 necessities for existence obtained than a desire for something more, something 
 greater manifests itself ; life becomes more and more a thing of the higher senses. 
 The lower animals may be, indeed many of tliem are content with a mere existence, 
 are satisfied with sustenance received through the mouth alone, but civilized men and 
 women must be fed through the eye, the ear, the mind and the heart as well. 
 Happily we cannot bring against the education of to-day the charge that it con- 
 cerns itself too much about what men in distant ages and with limited perceptions 
 have said and written and done with reference to the earth they inhabit, the 
 beliefs they held and the passing circumstances which surrounded them. Ours is 
 an intensely practical age, and the educators of to-day are heroically striving to 
 steer the educational ship safely and successfully past the shoals and quicksands 
 of prejudice, and old-time ideas into the broad ocean of a broader education ; one 
 adapted to the needs of the youth of our time ; an education in fact which has 
 for its aim the development of the whole being and not a part. 
 
 Of comparatively recent date is the introduction of drawing into our public 
 school curriculum. Let us pause just here and ask why this subject should be 
 thought worthy a place in a course of study already full to over-flowing 1 The 
 question admits of but one reply, I think, viz., that the conditions of the timea 
 demand its recognition, for it is universally acknowledged to be a necessary and 
 valuable element in education, and unless we are willing to fall far behind in the 
 march of educational progress we shall be compelled to give the subject of draw- 
 ing more attention than we have ever done heretofore. It is not enough that it 
 is one of the prescribed subjects, it must be made a licimj part of a great whole. 
 A child who cannot draw the forms of objects which his eye sees as readily as he 
 can write or repeat the words which his ear hears is only half educated, for only 
 half his natural powers have been educed. 
 
 At the Universal Exhibition of 1851 England found herself almost at the bottom 
 of the list among all the countries of the world in respect of her manufactures. 
 Only the United States among the great nations stood below her. At the Paris 
 ExpOttitiun of 18GT England stood among the foremost, and in some branches of 
 
 i 
 
 (103) 
 
104 
 
 wo3eSr;r^''^Tt"f "'.°^*r^'^*i'' nations, tl.us iu Icss than twenty years a 
 wo le.ful change ook place ... the ...oney value of the ..m..ufactures of K,,«land. 
 
 edge gamed throngh the International Exhil.ition, that it was not enough for the 
 
 on e"J.!r?r"'\'' "TV ^" «""' ^^"■^'«"'^"-"' '" ^P'"^'"^ ""'^'^ »f work b.t that 
 at Tar J f fT ^'^''f":'-k''- "^ «rt prh.ciples n.ust bo diffused a.nong the people 
 
 sar IWei toairr '^7!^ '''''' '' '"''^ *" *''^ '"'^^ l'"n-«e ; and this neces- 
 sarily led to a broade.iing of the new art instruction 
 
 «t.n nffi "*^ii''""'^'y '''^^Z ^'" •^'''"■'' K-^l'"«iti"» Massachusetts took the first definite 
 catfon Tn^. '"'M" '" ^'"'""^' ''"''"^' ''" '•-="«»iti"" of "rt i.. public ed a! 
 mated" Z: 7 f , '",'"' "'-'"■"'".^' ^" '■''-' ™""^''^ ^'■»"' that step cannot be esti- 
 mated the nulustrial advantages alone are .,ot to be stated in co.n.nensurable terms. 
 
 wJkr e'.i frtl^'f^' """ 'If° ^''°'" ^'"'■"'"•'"" ^-^P^"^'"^« «"^v that their country 
 was fai ],ea.nd the times .n the promotion of art, an.l that tliis materially affected 
 
 taceaTnT"' '"'"'''T'- "' '^" .""''""' ""'^ ''' ^^I'-acteras a., educated people Ts 
 traceable the move.nent in art ed.icat.o., in Massachusetts. These me.i redized 
 that the natural progress of manufactu.es and the accun.ulation of wealth by the 
 people requ.red increased skill in the workmen, that everv branch of itia nocture 
 
 s^tl Tf"t1 '''°'" T' '' "'^"'^"r^ ">•' ^'^^"' '^'^ *'-^^ •-'•-- «f "^- were 
 
 home If hey only had skilled designers. Accordingly a.. Act was passed by 
 
 e legis ature of that state, which made elemcitarv drawing a compulsory 
 
 subject of instruction m every public school in that state tompuisory 
 
 than terir,,!'^, I^IT"^ ,T.'" ft' *""' '""'"^ ^^'"^'» ^'^^ ^ poinilation of more 
 than ten housand, the additional duty of providing f.-ee instruct o.i for adults in 
 
 me,rfbe ;;TT' r ?' fr' "! ''"'?"■■■''' •^•••'^"''"^- ^^^ ^ '■-•'* of tins move 
 to^ \v I 'f , ! ''• t ^roughout the length and breadth of that great republic 
 
 to-day: .s felt to its remotest corner, and though onlv yet in its fnfa.icv is ar 
 influence in the la.id which will tell, must tell o^n the'next gene rat o.^utour 
 fncls across the border, realizing that a.t education from 'a strictly utilitarian 
 point of view^-noth.ng more or less than the gaining of commercial and industria" 
 advantages through a wide-spread facility in .Irawing, is too narrow a view, ml 
 commonplace an aim as viewed in the light of an enlarged experience, and h gher 
 educationa ideas with that progressive spirit which has ever characterized them, 
 have set themselves the task of enlarging it by giving the aesthetic side of art 
 more at ention. They claim, and justly, that there is something more to be 
 desired than just the material conditions of continued personal existence ; that 
 men are waking to a sense that there is more to be got out of life, than its 
 material necessities, that bodily continuance is not all that life has i.i store -The 
 plea IS a reasonal)le one, for life that is not enj.iyed, is only half lived 
 
 The aspiration towanls the higher enjoyment of life is every day impelline 
 abor to at once express it and minister to it, and thinking persons must ac>know- 
 iedge that there is an ever increasing ingenuity and skill in the expression, throuah 
 the crude material o the love of beauty. Let us take advantage if this to further 
 the development of the true art spirit in our land, for the present age is confessedly 
 give,i over to mater.alistic science, it is the age of machinery, an increase of the 
 spiritual element is needed to keep the balance true. 
 
 Let us emulate the example of our American cousins, and see to it that we 
 cultivate the aesthetic side of our nature while we neglect not the practical side 
 
 At present there is almost nothing being done for the promotion of art in this 
 beautiful broad Dominion of ours. Only recently was I deeply paine.l by the 
 answer which I was forced to give to the following question put by the President 
 oftheA't Association of Toronto: "Please tell me what is being done for the 
 promotion of art in the public .schools of Nova Scotia?" The nuestion was a 
 pertinent one, for it is through the children in the public schools that this work 
 must be accomplished. The children of all classes spend, during the most plastic 
 
105 
 
 penod of tlieir lives, nearly Imlf their wakin- h.nir.s in tlie schoolrocni, and :t is 
 there tliat wo must seek to surroiuul them witli refining inHuenecs, and instil into 
 Iheir very being a love for the heautiful an.l a desire for culture. It ean he done, 
 indeed IS heiiiK do»e in many European schools to-dav ; then let us no longer rest 
 content with bare school-room.s, nor yet with cheap chromos, poor prints of liack- 
 neyed mottos, put up simply for decoration, We want only the hed thii.L's in 
 art, just as vve \yant only the best text-books in our schools, 'a few reproductions 
 of acknowledged art value, some casts, and one or two busts of noted ,,ersons, 
 would do much to cultivate that individual love of beauty which should be reco.r. 
 nized as a no le.ss necessary part of the training of chil.iren than a cultivation of 
 a love of truth and goodness. 
 
 Having thus briefly referred to some of our needs, let me make a few sugges- 
 tions as to how 1 think tlipy may be met. 
 
 Never in the history of education was there so much attention given to child- 
 study as at the present day. Educators who have to do with the wo-'k of schools 
 Jiave studied the chdd on the one side, and nature, art and the social tendencies 
 on the other, for helps in solving tiie difficult educational problems which confronts 
 them. Its completion, it is needless to say, has not yet been reache.l, but it is 
 being sought after in the right direction. It is being .sought through briiiL'in.' 
 the child into more direct relations with his natural environments l''n.lin- 
 um to see more of the beauty and significance of the two worlds into which 
 he was born, nature and art. It is being .sought through the cultivation of 
 hi.s creative power.^ through encouraging his self-activity in creative work, 
 and also through the expression of his bi-ber nature in "vhat creative work. 
 As a means to this end the use of clay is strongly to oe commended. Col. 
 i-. VV. larger says of clay modelling, that it is the best means of .levelopiu" 
 the one predominating intellectual .sense, that of touch. Let us then -'ive 
 It a place m our elementary schools, and let no one say that time spent" in 
 modelling is time mis-spent, for besides the benefit to tin. child, the teacher is 
 helped by gaining an insight into the child's mind through the expression of its 
 Ideas in the clay. Children love to work with clay, and as it may be obtained in 
 almost every county m this province, there is no obstacle in the way of its use. 
 l^aper folding and cutting and the use of color are of much aesthetic value to 
 children, as all teachers who have used them can testifv. To quote Parker a.'ain 
 Porm IS absolutely indespensable to all study, all knowledge, therefore the sUidv 
 of form by drawing is of great im|,ortance." Some one has said that technical 
 skill shoiihl be preceded by faithfulness in observation and intelligent intimacy 
 ot perception In primary schools the perception of form slioiiM l)e the basis of 
 instruction. I would therefore carry modelling and drawing side by side in the 
 school room till the sense of touch and also the sense of form were well developed 
 Iroebelhas said "The world of Art is the visible revelation, and expression of 
 the invisible spirit of man." When we fully understand the meaning of this 
 statement we shall more clearly understand the bearing of art on seco:idarv edu- 
 cation V\ hat our young people need after they possess a fair amount of eleinontarv 
 knowle<lge, and have been trained to habits of self-expression and self-con irol, is 
 to bring them into a realization of the two worlds which surround them, the world 
 ot nature and that other world of art which has grown out of the spiritual life of 
 man. I know of nothing better calculated to do this than the study of historical 
 •ornament. 
 
 The study of art as the expression of men's spiritual development. How it has 
 grown through the centuries and has gradually expanded. The study of the 
 development an-l decline of ideals of beauty and truth, which is in fact needed to 
 interpret history, ^ot only since the beginning of history, but long before there 
 was such a thing as written record, when our forefathers were content to wrap 
 themselves m the skins of their prey, while they carved stramre devices out of the 
 -bones, for ornaments, the work of man's hands, his art, useful or ornamental or 
 
 il' 
 
 
106 
 
 both in one, lias been the natural outwaiil expression of liis life-experience Tho- 
 art of a peopl.i is found to be a true exponent of the life of that people' and if 
 our advanced classes arc to study general history at all, it should be done alonf? 
 the line of ethical ideas and ideals. The way to make the study of history most 
 inte igible and most valuable in these classes I believe, is to be reached through 
 a tuller realization on the i)ait of educators and teachers of the needs and onpor- 
 tunities of art instiuctinn. 
 
 Consider for a moment the mighty drama of humanity that is written down in 
 the art ot tlie people of southern Europe, and let us ask ourselves what we know 
 ol ancient Egyptian civilization, the earliest to which we have any satisfactory key 
 but wliat we have learned through a study of her temi.les, tombs, and sculiiturai' 
 nionuments ; from it W(^ have been able practically to re.'onstruct the whole fabric 
 ot t he most influential an<l advanced civilization of thousands of years a.'o I 
 might refer to the life of ancient Hreece and Konu', as read tlirough their aJ^t, but 
 enough has ])een said to siiow the value of the studv of art in connection with tlio 
 study of history Ornament is as old as tli.. hum.ai race, if we Inint for the 
 jeginning we shall be led back to Eden. All along down tlirougli the a-es, man- 
 kind has craved ornament. 
 
 In a civilized state of society, ornament is intimately connected with every-day 
 lite, It meets us in our homes, on the stic't an.l in our d.aily husiness transactions. 
 In iwverty or wealtii we come face to face with it. [n the business world, taste- 
 lul ornamentation is money in liie pocket of the carpenter, the cabinet maker 
 weaver, dyer, paper-stainer, potter, silversmith, blacksmith, and all <lealers in, and 
 producers of, the pro.lucts of these trades. Since it thus makes demands on all 
 classes of society, it should he studied by all, not that all may become expert 
 ( esigners but that all may know good designs from bad, and lie able to select 
 ilre,?s, lurnituiv and home embellisliments in accordance with the established 
 laws of good ta.ste. Here the study of hi.storical ornament is indispensable, for it 
 IS the grammar of all ornament. 
 
 In making the.se suggestions I have done so con.'icious of the many ob.stades 
 real or imaginary, in tiie way of their being carried out, but if in any degree 
 1 have succeeded m awakening the educat(n-s of our country to a .sen.se of our ""eat 
 needs, and al)ovo all to the importance of public art education, I shall have no"fear 
 tor Its promotion in the near future. A few Imn.lved doUars judiciouslv exiieiKleJ 
 vvould do much to further the work in this province, and would retuni value a 
 tiiousand fold. 
 
 In broadening the basis of education by the addition of the elements of science 
 and art, to the subjects of instruction in our schools, we give opportunities not 
 otherwi.se obtainable for reaching the faculties of peculiarly constituted minds, and 
 place within the reach of all the first steps of many usefiil careers, and thus -niard' 
 against a waste of human life, and at the .same time pave tlie way for greater intelli- 
 gence and refinement generally. 
 
 This paper was discussed by Mr. Andrews, iMiss Graham, Mr. McArthur, and 
 others. 
 
 f 
 
 if' 
 
 •M, 
 
107 
 
 /^ov. Normal School Staff. 
 
 PROK RnssEi.i,. 
 Prin. Calkin. 
 
 Normal School. 
 Miss Smitil Dr. Hall. 
 
 Pkok. Smith. 
 
 Prof. McDonald. 
 Miss King 
 
108 
 
 Miss H. M. KitiK, t(>ncli,.r of Klocutinn and Musio at th« Normal School, Truro, 
 road a paper on " JIusic in tliu riihlie Schools." 
 
 Of t)m paper the Halifax Hi-mld had the following n?port :— 
 
 '■ In dulcet tones, as musical as her sul.jeet, shH charmed the audience while she 
 showed wha could be accomplished hy aid of the tonic-sol-fa system of music in 
 
 oSr^ f',"'r'"\,"^ f'^' '=°""""" ■"'-•''"»''•'• '^''« ill-istrMtcd her method with a 
 nunibei of la.lies that ha.l n., previous knowledge of the subject. Her paper was 
 very intereHtmg and produced good ett'ect." J«l<-r«as 
 
 ladles^ ^''^'"" "^"^ '""«^'""t«^l ''y <! lesson in tonic-sol-fa given to a class of young 
 
 Miss King's paper could not he secured for publication Its pi 
 tore taken l)y a paper on Ton.c-sol-fa by Miss Burgoyne, in order to 
 unity of the programme. 
 
 ace is there- 
 preserve the 
 
 THE TONIC-SOL-FA SYSTEM. 
 
 By Mi.ss N. a. Buuooynb, VV[ndsor. 
 
 Let us examine the Tonic-sol-fa system before pronouncing judgment upon it 
 Some teachers say they do not like it, and on enquiry we find that they hnve 
 not taken tno trouble to look into its merits. Long ago doubts were entertained 
 by a part of the musical world as to the soumlne.ss of the system, but a areat 
 change of opinion in its favour has set in. Musical scientists are all on its si.le 
 and some of the most advanced staff-notationists loud in its praise. We could 
 quote the expressed opinions of many celebrated musicians such as Sir John 
 Stainer, Dr. Stannard, Henry Leslie, A. J. Ellis, F. R. S., Orton Bradley, Mrs. 
 Curwen, and hosts of others, and find them all giving nv ,,est commendation to 
 the ionic-sol-fa. 
 
 Mrs Curwen says (and there are teachers of note in Halifax and other cities of 
 ^ova Scotia who agree with her; that she advises a year of Tonic-sol-fa training 
 as preparatory to piano lessons. ^ 
 
 Sometimes the Inspector visits a school and sees staff music written on the 
 board. Well, that is all right. Either of the two systems is allowed bv the 
 O. 1 . 1. But you cannot show as good results with the old notation in the same 
 amount of time. 
 
 But what makes the tonic-sol-fa such a desiral)le system ? 
 
 Fir,t. Its simplicity. It is adapted to all, from the infant to the adult. 
 
 becomf. It IS a time-saving method. Music has been on our school course for 
 years, but a very small percentage of our children have been taught to sing Why 1 
 iiecause the stafl' notation required so much time to master it. But delinhtful 
 music may be in'oduced in a year by the tonic-sol-la method, without any undue 
 encroachments on the time allotted to the other work. 
 
 Thirdly. It gives infinite pleasure to the children. As there is no drudgery 
 connected witli it, they hail their music lesson with deliglit. 
 
 Fourthhj. It gives the children a power of expression 'and purity of tone as 
 nothing else does. Rote-singing is much better than none, but it has a tendency 
 to coarsen the voice. 
 
109 
 
 Fi/tlilji. It oils the iimcliiiipry "f »rli(Mil-lif(., and act» us nii incentive to good 
 work. lnsi)C'ctors .say tiiat .schools foiimi doin^' \^^w^\ work in nnisic, ure invariably 
 well up in their other .stndicH. 
 
 Sui/i/;/. It HtrenKtlien.s piipil.s in iiahits of attention and concentration The 
 hand sij^ns are very valiiaMc on tiiis account. 
 
 Secenthlij. The music which we are teaching,' the little ones is carried to their 
 homes, and the study is often taken up in the family and iiecomes a source of 
 ^'reat jileasurc to them all. 
 
 Kujhthlji. Much toni(!S(il-fa literati re can he ohtained iit a low cost. 
 
 Many more reastais could be given in favor of the iircseribed system, l)ut these 
 are enough to justify its us-e. 
 
 We do not e-xjiecl to make great .'^ingcr.'* like I'atti and Sims Reeves, any more 
 Uinn wc aim to make gr* at artist.s when we teach our cliildren to diaw ; yet there 
 is always a chance of discovering a talent u-liirh is worthy of cultivation, and our 
 
 Miss N. A. Bukgovne, Windsor. 
 
 notation will not block the way of one po.ssessed of this talent, but, on the con- 
 trary, will help him towartl his goal. 
 
 This notation is young in our wjuntry. In the United States it is a young and 
 vigorous youth. In the old countries it is more advanced in life, but increasing 
 in vigour and popularity all the time. In P:ngland. at the present time, over two 
 milliori school children are being taught to read music at sight by this methfxl. 
 Six millions, including adults, sing by it in the oh\ h.)me-country. Crystal Palace 
 concerts are given yearly liy several thousand children all singing by the tonic- 
 sol-fa system. 
 
 This method is wonderfully adai)ted to church music. The Church of Scotland 
 uses ten sol-fa copies of t. liymn book to one of tiie stafl'-notation. This R"Htfim 
 has found its way into nearly every part of the world. It is taught in the New 
 
J 10 
 
 Sb^MW Conservatory ^ Mlislc, in the Michijtnn Ini varsity, iiiul now wo liuvo it 
 in out l.oiYJmon SnhoolM of Sovu Scotia. 
 
 N-f»»Kr JinvinK consiclored the nieriU of thin beautiful notntioii (un.l hmutifnl \x 
 the word to aj ply to it, iw you l)ecorii() more and more (i(i|uaiiit.Ml with it, ami 
 '• ■• -q-ijnti., m love with it), ' ill we not take up the work with more courage 
 4: -.sftrfulnesa, ami ilinmiss the > .l.liie.SH ami lack of interest of the pas-t. Hut 
 liowiHrtJjJ wehegin? Lenrn a little well, tea.-*, it well, ami keep m-mewhat in 
 Odvoiw* ,,1 y,;ur p'lpils, ami you will be surprise,. ,.t the result. You will find the 
 aiil you need m " The Teachers' Companion " and " The Stan.lard Course." 
 
 Commence. Hang up a modulator, i-nd begin, fr)r the approach to a subject is 
 half the battle. Having begun, you and your j.upils will have a desire to go on. 
 1 hen preparing for certificates giv-M an excellent plan of work, ('ret ready for the 
 examiner, even if you do not expect him to come your way. 
 
 IJut what about those who cannot sing? Of those there are verv few ; and they 
 may give the smind from any simple instrument, such as a dulcinu r or concertina. 
 It there are teachers wit!i neither ear nor voice, they miut get some one to do the 
 work tor them and give .some teaching in exchange. JUit nearly every one who 
 can speak can he taught to sing. The same voice-box produces both speech and 
 song ; but the training must commence early. What a grand inthiencj for go.nl, 
 music IS ! How U softens and humanizes the worhl aiul helps it to hear the voice 
 ot Uod. Let us do our share in making the world better and leading it upward 
 thro the channels of music to God. 
 
IM 
 
 KINDERGARTEN-HOW (!AN ITS PRINCIPLES BE MADE 
 TO VITALIZE PRIMARY WORK? 
 
 By Mh8. S. 15. 
 
 l*ATTEnaON, DlIlECTOH OP TIIK MoDEI. SCHOOI. KiN'DKUOARTEN, 
 
 Tuuiio. 
 
 The intioiluotion of Froobf.'r.s educntional priiicipk's incur schools would involve 
 a radical clmuf^e, iiiati-rially affcctiiif,' oven our acadcniics and i illoi^'cs. A few 
 experiments perforniod hy the teacher at the, lie<,'inninp; of the tern, would not then 
 cover the sin of a whole yeai's course of cranuniiij,' in chemistry ; lor would our 
 collej,'o j,'raduatcs turn faint-hearted at the profpects of having to tiach a jtractical 
 lesson in mineralogy b(icauao of their inai)ility to repogni^o and inime common 
 specimens, of which tiiey possessed merely hook-knowledge 
 
 But the greatest change that would result from the adoption of tlifso so-called 
 " Kindergarten" i)rinciples would appear in the earlier iJcriods of scii i>l work. I 
 wouM like just here to call attention to the fact that many educii ionista are 
 undoubtedly prejudiced against such an innovation by the undue use < f the term 
 " Kindergarten," as applied to the jjriuciples of education indicated <\ Frcebel. 
 Without making a careful study of tlie matter, they hastily conclude tint because 
 play hohls a prominent place in the Ki.idergarten, therefore tlus ad'jjtion of 
 Kindergarten principles must involve an imaginary royal road to learning, and they 
 look upon the whole scheme as a sort of diluted, sweetened, and enervatii g course 
 of instruction. Their mistake arises, no doubt, from the compounding of laws 
 or principles with the methods of ajjplying them. The method suitei; to the 
 young child must be materially changed as he matures, else we would), found 
 sinning against the first great principle of seeking his development thro ^'h his 
 spontaneous self activity. 
 
 The play of the Kindergarten is embraced as a means, and not an end. J -'cause 
 it is the natural element in which the child lives, it is adopted to win bis at! ntion 
 and secure liis interest. Through it the little child's whole being, physical, r ntal, 
 anu moral, '^an be naturally developed. But "to everything there is a season and 
 though the love of fun remains with most of us to old age, yet the spirit of ch itlish 
 play gives way gradually to the growing desire for work of one kind or ani ther. 
 At first it is so mixed up with the jilay that only the thoughtful student of child- 
 nahiro can di.scern it, yet, if wisely fostered, this love of work becomes the most 
 powerful agent in the development of the human being. 
 
 Hand-work of different kinds is constantly made use of in the Kindergart.en, 
 but not in a desultory manner. It is given mainly for the purpose of afford. ng 
 the child the means of expressing the ideas which he has gained through the ise 
 of the logirally arranged sequence of objects with which he plays. The teacher is 
 thus enabled to judge correctly of the results of his instruction by the practiial 
 application which the child makes of the knowledge received. This work also 
 intensifies the impressions made upon the child' ind, by arousing his interest 
 and awakening certain old knowledge which is ted to the new, and which 
 ■combines with it. The iiumi and eye are also traineu lo serve the mind ehicientlv. 
 
 (Ill) 
 
112 
 
 ^Ve all know that tlie expression of iui i.lcu causes it to become more clear and 
 definite, and that expression by doinij is in njany cases more eflectual than by 
 speech. With children, doin<r is a .iiore easy and natural method of expression, 
 hrst, because of their lack of sufficient language to make known their thoughts, 
 and secondly, because of the vague and indeKnite character of their ideas. Doing 
 IS the most effective agency in the unfolding of thought. 
 
 Hand-work, such as clay-modeling, paper-cutting, weaving, cardlmrd modelinfr, 
 coarse sewing, tlrawing, painting, gardening, and wood-work, with collecting and 
 arranging of specimens, could all he introduced into primarv schools with excellent 
 results, in connection with nature-study, involving practical use of the knowledge 
 gained on sucii points as form, color, number, size, weight, density, measurement, 
 etc. The child would thus be prepared later on to take special studies with greater 
 intelligence, and time would be gained in the higher grades. 
 
 One of the greatest obstacles to this change lies in the prevailing sentiment, tliat> 
 until he learns to read the <;hild can make no advance worth mentioning in his 
 education. The feeling is that when this is attained the treasures o'" knowled<'e 
 are open to him. But we hold that he will be immensely better j,repared to 
 appreciate ami enjoy these treasured stores, if he lias had some nrevious experience 
 in personal investigation. 
 
 Nearly three thousand years ago it appears to have been discovered by that 
 wise king whose glory it was to "search out a matter," that experimental study 
 was the only basis of living knowledge. In his personal study of plants, of ani- 
 mals, of birds, of creeping things, of fishes, he found unity, saw cause and effect 
 read symbolic lessons for mankind, ami was led to exclaim of the Creator, " He 
 hath made everything beautiful in his time." This wise student and preacher has 
 written to us "excellent things in counsels and knowledge," not least among which 
 may be ranked the warning sent down through the ages that " much study," or 
 " readiiif/," as the marginal rendering gives it, " is a wearine.ss of the flesh." ' He 
 might have added that in many cases it is as unprofitable as it is wearisome. As 
 a means of conveying knowledge to cliiMren, the printed page is delusive. The 
 child's delight is in the world of things around him ; his curiosity is all alive, his 
 senses on the alert, his fingers nervously busy : but all these hints are passed over 
 in his sohool-life as apparently meaningless. 
 
 Notwithstanding the example and warnings of the Preacher, and of those occa- 
 sional great minds who have sought to guide teachers to more natural methods of 
 development, custom has rlecreed that the first thing of importance in the educa- 
 tion of a child IS tiiat he should learn to read ; and scarcely is his babyhood over 
 before he is "put to his book." He may have very little definite knowledge of 
 anything, and does not possess sufficient language to express that little, but it is 
 confidently believed that these defects will all be remedied through the use of the 
 magical book. He has had no systematic training in observation ; lines have had 
 no special interest for hiin, and he cares neither for straight nor curved ; lie cannot 
 decide without careful consideration which is his loft hand and which is his right; 
 but through all difficulties he must struggle towards this great end. And when 
 he has spent days and weeks in the effort, what has he attain..'d 1 Simply the 
 ability to recognize words as such, and to rea.l off stupid sentences which are as 
 husks to his hungry, growing mind. In reality this gain is at the expense of 
 mental power, for the mechanical difficulties in learning to read are so great that 
 his whole attention must be given to the task of overcoming them, while the lack 
 of interesting ideas in tlie reading matter presented is so evident that he gradually 
 but surely falls into the fatal habit of reading without looking for thought. Em- 
 erson warns us that " books are good only as" far as a boy is readv for them," and 
 he thoughtfully add.s, " He sometimes gets ready very slowly." 
 
 This preparation, or " getting ready," should consist in the development of the 
 observational powers, through the experiniontal study of objects and phenomena 
 of nature. It should also include the cultivation of language through conversation 
 
113 
 
 concerning tliese. By conversation I mean tlie int^-rrlmngo of thonght tliat arises 
 naturally from mutual interest, and in a h..me-like atmosphere, and which is 
 represse.l by formality and constraint. Tliat lea.tl.ing is defective which does not 
 80 captivate the c aid that he is eager to ask questions, and to express liis own 
 opinions on the subject in hand. And this can only occur where the subject is in 
 touch with his previous experience or desire for knowledge. 
 
 Ihe place of lienor, therefore, should be given to those studies which treat of 
 tilings torming the child's immediate environment and with wliich his interests 
 are naturally connected. JJis early reading Je.ssons should relate t.. these ol))ects 
 ot interest, and should be composed from his own thoughts coiicernim,' them. Tiio 
 use ot tins method for a time would tend to such originality of tliought, and iwwer 
 ot inve.st,gation as seldom conies to "heads replete with thoughts of .)tlier men." 
 ilie chids. studies would in suchca.se, exemplify a natural' interconnectedness 
 with each other ; and they would have a more .liirct and practical bearing on his 
 lite outside the school-room. 
 
 The principle of concentration in education is of much value, but in its aiipli- 
 cation It requires a living centre that will not " perisli with the using," and that 
 adapts itselt alike to the needs of primary school and academy, and to th<! devolop- 
 ment ot body, mind and soul. Concentration in school-work becomes a hobby 
 When we select as our centre some feature that properly belongs to the " circum- 
 terence of thought," some feature of inconsiderable importance around which we 
 tantastically arrange more valuable sources of knowle.lgc, imagining we see in it a 
 tixcd, immovable support, with arms stretcdiing in all directions, whi(di in truth is 
 but a sort of mental clothes-reel to wliich we may pin our rags of thought. Our 
 minds are dwarfed and cramped by constant stooping to such low ideals ; we 
 bec'ome dizzy and our vision is contracted in the rounds of such small circles. 
 
 ^Nature-study, on the other hand, piesents a centre whose circumference is ever 
 widening, stretching out to meet tlu; slu.res of spiritual truth. As in Home all 
 roads converged so in nature all things guide to the Creator for those who have 
 eyes to see, and hearts to follow. 
 
 " Nafare is but a nanie for an effect, 
 " Wliose cause is God."' 
 
 " Xot a flower 
 " But shows some touch in freckle, streak or stain 
 " Of His unrivalled pencil." 
 
 ^^ We shouhl lead the child unconsciously to love and reverence the One who 
 giveth u.s all things richly to enjoy," and "in whom we live and move, and have 
 our being. Instead of shutting out as far as possible from the school-room all 
 thought ot the child's spiritual being, we should recognize in it the most important 
 part of his nature, to which all else suljserves. As a recent writer has aiitly re- 
 marked, " troebel's plan of education is not merely concentric, but spiral, and not 
 inerely spu'al but vertical," wo find it n it only widening around its centre, but 
 always maintaining the clo.se.st connection with it, ever ascending, never inert. 
 
 1)iscu.ssion:-Mus. Condon calleil attention to the fact that, at present, the 
 Jvindergarten and the Iniversity, although at the extremes of our Educational 
 .System, were, in .yjirif, more closely allied than any of the intermediate links 
 between the two. 
 
 By Aim.— Since while the Ideal University contains within itself facilities for 
 prosecuting work in every department of Literature, Art, .Science and Philosophy 
 the humble beginning of a// these are to lie found in the Kindergarten. 
 
 iiy Methods.— Personal oKservation, original research and neat-handed dexterity 
 being common to Iwth. ■' 
 
 8 
 
114 
 
 Bv Results. — Harmonious development of all tlu^ powers of the indiviilual ; 
 the desire and ability of self-culture ; tlie pure love of knowledge for its own sake ; 
 the ability to form clear judgments unbiassed by authority. 
 
 The Kindergarten, in its own quiet, modest way, aims at all this, and, if its 
 principles are carried into our Primary Schools and its methods skilfully applied, 
 the chain, now ilisconnected at so many points, will become continuous, and make 
 our public school system a coherent, vital organism. 
 
 The discussion was followed up by Miss Hamilton and Dr. Hall. 
 
 AIDS FOR PROGRESSIVE TEACHERS. 
 
 NATURE STUDY AND ELEMENTARY SCIENCE. 
 
 GUIDES FOR SCIENCE TEACHING prepared under the direction of the Boston 
 Society of Natural History. Contain aids and suggestions in different depart- 
 ments of Natural History, each book prepared by a specialist. 
 
 Hyatt's .About Pkbbles. 2(i pages 
 
 (iooDALB's A Kkw Common hLANTs. 01 pages . . 
 
 Hyatt's Commkrcialasdotiikr Si'onuks. IUus- 
 ti atecl. 43 pages 
 
 AoAssiz's KiBST Lkssonh in Natural History. 
 Illustrated. t)4 pnges 
 
 Hyatt's Corals AND EcHi.NouEKMs. Uluetrated. 
 3'2 pages 
 
 Hyatt's .Molli'sca. Uliistrated. 65 pages 
 
 Hyatt's Worms axd Cristacka. Uliistrated. 
 U8 pages 
 
 Hyatt's I.nsecta. Illustrated. 324 pages. Cloth. 
 
 t'Bosiiv's CoMMO.N .Mi.NKHALs AM) UocKS. Illus- 
 trated. 200 pages. Paper 
 
 Kkhard's Kibst Lts.'oss i.n .Minerals. .W 
 pages 
 
 10 Bowditcii's PiiVFioLOHT. S8 pages 20 
 
 •20 Clai'I'sSO Obskrvatio.n Lessons in Mi.nkbals. 
 
 80 pages 30 
 
 20 PiiENix's Lhssons :n Chemistry. 41 pages. 
 
 Illustrated 20 
 
 25 Rice's ScihN( e Teachino in tub Schools 25 
 
 With courses <.f instruction in science for 
 ;;0 the lower grades and higher schools and 
 
 30 in the German gymnasia. 73 pages. 
 
 Paper. 
 30 Rick's Natukal History Oh.iect Lessons — 15ft 
 I 25 Supplies information on plants and their 
 
 products, on animals and their uses, and 
 40 givesspecimen lessons. Fully illustrated. 
 
 332 pages. 
 10 
 
 NUMBER AND ELEMENTARY ARITHMETIC. 
 
 Badlam's Aius TO N'lMUER. First Series 40 
 
 Teachers' edition. Consists of 25 cards for 
 sight-work with objects from one to ten. 
 
 Hadlam's Aiiis TO Nlmheb. First Series 25 
 
 Pupils' edition. Supplements the above 
 with material for desk work. 5(1 pages. 
 Scjuare 8vo. Leatherette. 
 
 Hadlam's Ains TO NiMBKR. Second Series 40 
 
 Teachers' edition. Teaches sight-work with 
 oigects above ten. 
 Baulam's Aids to Number. Second Series ... '25 
 Pupils' edition. Supplements above with 
 
 material for desk work from 10 to '20. 36 
 pages. Siiuare 8vo. Leatherette. 
 Sloane's Practjcal Les.soss is Fractions .... 
 
 Fraction Cards, per set ok six 
 
 This book treats the subject from a purely 
 practical standpoint, l)eing the result of 
 Be\ eial years of class-work. Accompany- 
 ing the book is a set of fraction cards the 
 circles on which are divided into fractional 
 parts to be cut by tlie child ren themselves. 
 118 pages, hoards. 
 
 25 
 10 
 
 DRAWING AND MANUAL TRAINING. 
 
 TiioMl'soN's .Manual iRAiMNa, No. 1 25 Thomson's Drawisu Manuals. 
 
 Treats of Clay Modelling, stick and Tablet Prepared to accompany the Thompson's 
 Laying, Paper Folding and Cutting,Color, Drawing Series, but invaluable to any 
 and Construction of Geometrical .Solids. teacher of drawing. 
 Illnstrated. (W pages. Large Svo. Paper, Primary Free Hand. 114 pages. Paper 
 
 .Thompson's Manual Tkainino, No. 2 25 Model and Oiuect. 84 pages. Paper 
 
 40 
 35 
 60 
 75 
 
 of 
 
 
 Cutting and Patting. Illustrated. 70 
 pages. Large Svo. Paper. 
 
 Ill addition to tlie above, we publish free lists of te.xtbooks in neiiily all departments 
 scliool work, as well us many other teacliers' aids in all these subjects. 
 CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
 ZD O. HE-A-TTT <Sc OO., publishers, 
 
 Bosoroisr 
 
20 
 30 
 
 20 
 25 
 
 25 
 10 
 
 40 
 35 
 60 
 75 
 
 High School Section. 
 Principal Calkin presided in this section. 
 
 THE CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH THE STUDY OF 
 
 NATURAL SCIENCE BEIMES A BETTER \mTAL 
 
 DISCIPLINE THAN THE STUDY OF THE 
 
 CLASSICS. 
 
 By F. R. 
 
 Hai,ev, M. a., Professor of Physics, Acadia College. 
 
 inJdTh"s'oniiror,'T!''"lTL'"^'-P'''''' '" '''''' "I^"" ' f"" ''''''''■ °f the conflict- 
 ing cl.ui.b ot th.. classics and the sciences, or to attempt a final decision in a question 
 
 pon which so many eminent doctors still disagree^. I!ut there n ay beToo ° 
 
 this time, while presenting little of a polemicaf nature, to conside rU e of the 
 
 principles involved in the .piestion and upon which its final settlement nii^/pt^ 
 
 The claim of any branch of study to a prominent place in the curriculum of our 
 schools, mus he tried by a two-fold criterion- theS.ractical ntilivTf 'nfo 
 niation which it conveys, and its power to attbrd an effective mental cH^iltj 
 The most obvious part of the value of science teaching, the mere ii.forn atio. w di 
 I imparts, speak, f.n^ itself. It is surely no small part of ednca n t T pu 
 possession of the most important and most interesting facts of the univer e so h" 
 he world in which we are appointed to live ma; not be a sealed ook to t 
 I .8 eqnally important that we shoul.l understand the value of scientific in trtion 
 as a disciplinary process. In too many minds there lingers the sup ^rst i tha 
 the study science must be juirsued only as it increases "our fund o use 1 know 
 edge, and that no studies are disciplinary except languages and the i3 eiu Ucs 
 I desire to show what I believe to he true, that there's ^nnething in 1 1 , o^/ ' 
 If not n the subject-matter, of the sciences which renders theiiTof ^cu iar and 
 distinctive value as instruments of mental discipline pecuiiai and 
 
 The age in which we live is one of rapi.l social variation. There i« contest of 
 opinion 1,1 nearly every field of thought, a struggle between ohl a UewXdtl 
 in religion in politics, ,n social life. It is a period of strong socialis ic te ide d^^^^ 
 distrust ot auhority, questioning of long-established institutions ndtS' 
 Secure in our lit le province the rush and whirl of the great world I.eyS m ,v 
 not be strongly f.dt, In.t even here we are often l.rought fa'e to face with tl e , s^t 
 conflicting opinions and the most diverse party cries. With the incrt-^s of ree on 
 as come the increase of individual responsibility. The youn-^ vote -of to dn" 
 thrust into a ina.e of problems, political if not social. If ^^Z^,^ t nv 
 stuff in It, he feels that these problems ought to be settled apart rom h own 
 personal or amily interests, or his individual prospects of ga n o I'r 
 Ho IS called upon to form conclusions a|,a.t from his own feelim's nd 
 prejudices,-conclu8ions bused upon what lie believes to be the iiUere^ts 
 
 (115) 
 
116 
 
 of society at large. And liow are riglit coiioluaions, so important in these, as 
 in all times, to be formed 1 It is obvious that they must be based on a clear know- 
 ledge of facts luid an appreciation of tlieir sequence and relative significance. The 
 facts once classified, once understood, the conclusions based iijwn them ought to 
 be independent of the individual mind that examines them. 
 
 Now if tliere is any field of action or study outside the spliere of citizenship, 
 in which there is frequent use of the method of observing and cliissifying facts and 
 l)asing conclusions upon them, it cannot fail to be one of the best training grounds 
 for the work of life. Tiie obs(.'rvation and the classification of facts are i)eculiarly 
 the scope and method of modern scien(.'e. The iiabit of ilrawing conclusions from 
 facts unl)iassed by personal feeling is characiteristic of what is termed the " scientific 
 habit of thought " or " frame of mind." Of the several ways in which this frame 
 of mind can be cultivated, none, we claim, can compare with the careful, methodical 
 study of some branch of natural science. Tiie insight into correct methods and 
 the habit of careful investigation, which follow from the proper study, of even a 
 small range of natural facts, will give the mind nn invaluable power of dealing with 
 other classes "of facts as the occasion arises in after life. 
 
 F. A. Haley, M. A., Prof. Physics, Acadia College. 
 
 It ii 
 
 I have used the terms " .scientific habit of thought." " scientific methods " Wliat, 
 a little more precisely, are the methods? The j)hy.sicid and natural sciences, includ- 
 ing physics, chemistry, physiology, botany, zoology and astronomy, form a group 
 known as tlie inductive sciences. Tl.ey are broadly characUnized by the extensive 
 use <if methods known as inductive logic. They begin witii olwervatioiis and 
 experiments, advance to generalizations called hypotheses or tiieorie.s, and finally 
 proceed to establish or overthrow those generalizations by deducting from them 
 necessary consequences wliich are tested by further observation or experiment. 
 Tlie method involves inductive as well as (hdnctive logic, and herein we find its 
 peculiarity. Any subject \vhi(th can furnish u really bnmd and .■*ound training of 
 the mental faculties is certiiiniy wortliy of llie most seriuus iHiiiMderatiun, and by 
 virtue of their ?;)e^/'0'Mhe inductive scieni'cs miiy cliiiin tu do this. Observation 
 
117 
 
 and experiment ; inference and generalization, that is to say, induction ; deduction 
 and verification by further experiment if need be ; can you mention another instru- 
 ment of education in breadth like this ? 
 
 The mathematics occupy an honorable place in our schools and colleges, but 
 their peculiar educational value is held to consist, broadly speaking, in the enforce- 
 ment of purely deductive reasoning. The mathematics are of unqiiestioned value 
 in helping the imagination to grasp abstract relations, and in forming habits of con- 
 tinuous attention by dealing with trains of proof. But they do not afford a com- 
 plete exerci.se of the reasoning powers. They begin with .self-evident truths or 
 establislied principles and proceed to conclusions by a process, each step of which 
 is an intuitive certainty. It so happens, however, that in our dealings with the 
 experiences of life, the first and most difficult thing is to get the data or premises 
 from which to reason. The most important question is " What are the facts 
 which bear upon the enquiry ?" Until this necessary and primary question is 
 settled ouv reasoning is vain. You will remember in this connection the estimate 
 put upon the mathematics by Sir William Hamilton : " If," said he, " we consult 
 reason, experience, and the common testimony of ancient and modern times, none 
 of our intellectual studies tend to cultivat(! a smaller number of faculties in a more 
 partial or feeble manner." Good authorities consider this a slightly exaggerated 
 statement provoked by the insistence of certain writers on the exclusive value, in 
 a logical point of view, of mathematical studies. 
 
 While it may be granted that the sciences are of pecular educational value because 
 of their enforcement of inductive as well as deductive logic ; it may be urged that 
 the inductive method is no longer the exclusive property of .science but has become 
 the true method of inquiry in many other branches of learning. We hear much 
 in these days of the scientific Tuethod in psychology, in history, in philology. Even 
 in the lower grades, such stuilics as geography are being gradually infused with the 
 same scientific spirit and method. Why may not these subjects suffice as well to 
 give the neces.sary mental discipline ? Why claim the benefits of this method 
 exclusively for the sciences ? The argument fails to satisfy, and for this reason. 
 If the method has educational value whenever used, it has its highest value in 
 those subjects which first gave it exerci.se and are best adapted for it. The princi- 
 pal reason why science is better adapted than other branches of study for teaching 
 the inductive method is that this method liogins with facts based upon personal 
 observation and experiment, and facts of this sort are more abuTldant and more 
 trustworthy in external nature than elsewhere. The modern laboratory is a work- 
 shop in which natural conditions can be imitated and controlled. In all cases we 
 know that we can trust the opevations, because the conclusions to which it has 
 led have been found true liy subsequent trial. By such exercises we may hope to 
 qualify ourselves for distinguishing truth in cases where there does not exist the 
 same ready Tueans of verification. 
 
 The mental advantages to be derived from a thorough study of science have 
 never been more strongly presented than in the address of John Htuart Mill, to 
 the University of >St. Andrews. His views on the subject are so clear and impres- 
 sive, as to justify extended <juotation : 
 
 "The most incessant occupat'on of the juimnn intellect throughout life, is the 
 ascertainment of truth. It is not given us all to discover great general truths that 
 are a light to all men and to future generations ; though with a better general 
 education the number of those who could do so would be far greater than it is. 
 But we all require the ability to juilge between the conflicting opinions which are 
 offered to us as vital truths, to choose what doctrines we will receive in the matter 
 of religion, for example, to judge whether we ought to be Tories, Whigs or Radi- 
 cals, or to whaf length is it our duty to go with each ; to form a rational conviction 
 on (^lestions of legislation and internal policy. And the need we have of knowing 
 how to diseriuiinrtic utiLh, is not confined to the larger truths All through life 
 it is our most pressing interest to find out the truth about all the matters we are 
 
118 
 
 II 
 
 couceriUMl with Now, lioweverditt.Tont these searclios for truth may 
 
 look, nnd, however unlike tliey really are in their subject-matter, tlie methods of 
 gettuij,' at truth and the tests of truth, are in all cases much the same. There are 
 but two roads l)y which truth may be discovered ; observation and reasoning • 
 <)l)servation, of course, includiiif; experiment. The process by which truth is 
 attained, ol)servation and reasoning, have l)een carried to their greatest known 
 perfection in the physical sciences. These furni.sh the most perfect types of the 
 
 art of thinking The logical value of exjierimental science is com- 
 
 liaratively a new subject, yet there is no intellectual discipline more imjwrtant 
 than that which the experimental sciences afford. Their whole occupation consists 
 in doing well, what all of us, during the whole of life are engaged in doiii" for the 
 most part badly." " 
 
 While attempting to present somewhat fully the claims of scientific instruction 
 as an effective means of mental discipline, there is no disposition on my part to 
 undervalue the study of the classics. The question of the respective merits of the 
 classics and the sciences has been a perennial theme at teachers' associations and 
 conventions, and the zeal of opposing i)arties has often made them equally intoler- 
 ant of those who stand on middle ground. Nevertheless there are some who 
 believe that the truth lies I)etween the extremes, aiul that both parties to the dis- 
 pute are in the right. " The question whether we should be taught the classics or 
 the sciences," says Mill in the address already referred to, "seems to me very like 
 a dispute, whether painters should cultivate drawing or coloring, or to use a more 
 homely illustration, whether a tailor should make coats or trousers. 1 can only 
 reply by the question ; Why not both ? Can anything deserve the name of a good 
 euueation which does not include literature and science too 1 If there were no more 
 to be said than that scientific education teaches us to think, and literary education 
 CO express our thoughts, do we not require both ? .... As the physical 
 sciences furnish the most perfect types of the art of thinking, so does cla.ssical 
 literature, the most perfect type of the art of expression. Is not he a poor, maimed 
 lop-sided fragment of humanity, who is deficient in either? 
 
 "The results of a purely scientific education." says a more recent writer, " is a 
 discipline of mind as much more thorough and accurate than the classical training 
 as the laws of nature are more invariable than human language and thought. But 
 Avith all its novel modern powers and practical sense, one is forced to admit that 
 the scientific bTain is miserably mechanical. For pure sentiment, for all that spon- 
 taneou.s, joyous, Greek waywardness of fancy, for the temperature of passion, the 
 subtle thrill of ideality, you might as well look to a storage battery or a wrought- 
 iron derrick. Science found education blundering peacefully along, cultivating 
 half the man with most charming results, and letting the other half die of disuse. 
 The danger is that it may substitute a new sort of half man for the old one." 
 Surely an important ]ilaco must ever be reserved in our schools for those branches 
 of learning \yhich bring the student into communion with the great minds of other 
 ages, which impart to him a knowledge of tiie most refined languages ever used by 
 man, and which interpret for him the development and use of his own tongue. 
 ^ It is true that other results than the.se are often urged in behalf of the sludy of 
 (ireek and Latin. The claim has often been put forth that the grammatical 
 acquisition of the dead languages affords r. superior training to the mental faculties, 
 — that the process of acquiring them puts demands upon the memory, inculcates' 
 the habit of close concentration, and gives a valuable exercise to the judg- 
 ment and reason. That the acquisition of words exercises the memory is, of course, 
 true, but, as has been pointed out by many writers, the memory cultivated in the 
 common acquirement of language is of the lowest kind. 
 
 The relation between words and the objects of which they are the signs is, in a 
 large measure, arbitrary. Philology nay pretend to trace certain relations between 
 words and the things they signify, but few will claim that we succeed in doing 
 this in the ordinary study of Greek and Latin. If it is desirable to task the 
 
110 
 
 memory by a dead pull at arbitrary facts, then what nioro is reiiuircd tlian the 
 facts of aciiuice re<,'ar>lIos.s of their relation ? Tiiere is not tinio to discuss the other 
 claims put f^rth by classical teachers. It lias been clearly shown liy a score of 
 eminent authorities that, while it is true that the i^rammatical diill of the classics 
 assists in traininj,' the judgment and the reason, the results secured by this jirocess 
 are obtained at too great expiuiditure of time and labor, and could be more easily 
 and more naturally reached througli the medium of the sciences. In matters of 
 language stuily, as in other educational matters, I am a firm believer in the prin- 
 ciple of expending the least force which will accom])lish the object in view. If a 
 language is to be learned, let us teach it by the easiest known method and at an 
 age when it can be easiest learned. Perhaps there is no course in education .so 
 universally and strongly condemned by independent thinkers as the folly of sjiend- 
 ing so many years in the study of grammar. The classics, if tauglit at all, ought 
 to be taught on such a plan as will render them easier of ac(iuisition and, there- 
 fore, pleasanter to all young students. 
 
 Let us consider, brieHy, some of the conditions which must be fultilleil in order 
 that the mental discipline afforded by the .sciences may be made more effective. 
 ■The acquisition of scientific knowledge, we have seen, does not in itself constitute 
 scientific culture. Nor is the ability to reproduce such knowledge for a eomi)etitive 
 examination any real test of scientific power. It is not to be questioned that in 
 the great majority of our schools the sciences are still taught as funds of useful 
 information. If information is the eml to be attained, the best method of securing 
 thcj desired result is to present the facts in such a way as will interest the student 
 and thus secure the retention of these facts by his memory. It is a very serious 
 mistake to teach science wholly by memoritor recitations from a text-book. This 
 method at once makes the subject a task, and if, in addition, the ]ireparation for 
 an examination is tlie great end in view, it is wonderful how little is left to the 
 student after the work is done. There are always present in our cla.s?es those 
 amazingly expert pupils who succeed in "getting up" a sul)ject of which they 
 ■would find it impossible the day after examination to give an intelligible account. 
 " For such as these," says President Walker of the Massachusetts Institute of 
 Technology, " a special organ, the examination organ, seems to become developed, 
 ■which is as specific as the water sack attached to the stomach of h camel, intendeil 
 only to carry a certain amount of refreshment over a very dry place for a very short 
 time." We must never forget in studying methods of science teaching that facts 
 are never fully learned until the learner is made to understand the evidence on 
 ■which the facts rest. The boy who reads in his astronomy that the earth 
 revolves about the sun in a year, learns what to him is only a form of words unless 
 he connects this fact with his own observations upon the mighty precision of the 
 fixed stars. So the student who reads that water is composed of hydrogen and 
 oxygen has acquired no real knowledge until he has seen the evidence upon 
 ■\vhich this conclusion rests, 
 
 The success of science teaching in our high schools will depend much upon 
 how well and methodically the pupils arc taught in the lower grades. Observation 
 lessons should begin the instant a child attends the primary scliool. By the 
 power of observation is not meant simply the ]iower to hear, to taste, to smell 
 ■with delicacy, but the power of so concentrating the attention on what we observe 
 as to form a definite and lasting impression. Much of the nature study in our 
 lower grades is as ineffective as it is, chiefly because it stops with merely visual 
 observation. An observation lesson may become a valuable mental exercise, or it 
 may be a species of diversion or amusement, only a little less pleasing than 
 marbles or kites. It is a useless exercise unless the image product I on the retina 
 arouses mental activity of an orderly and worthy kind, unle.ss it bears fruit in 
 accurate statement and intelligible description. Since plants offer the most 
 abundant material for study and also attract the attention of children at an early 
 age, it is well to begin the course of instruction with them. There is no study 
 
120 
 
 which can easily ha imuh; to furnisli so adininiblc a disciph'no in observation as 
 the study of })Otany Tlu; material is to he found everywhere and in al)unihince, 
 and the work may he made neither too easy nor too difheult. Hand in liand witli 
 observation should <,'o discipline in describin;,' and drawint,' the thiii<,'s observed. 
 Accurate descrii.tions serve to check the inaccuracv of the observations and to give 
 the pujid a valuuliie exercise in the use of words. This kind of teachinj,' will 
 prove a capital aid to instruction in the mother tongue, and in a way for which 
 there is no substitute, for it is a kind of direct translation out of nature into one's 
 own speech. 
 
 In the higher grades of the schools it may reasonably be assumed that the 
 reasoning faculties are more fully developed than in the lower grades The obser- 
 vation and description of forms may here give place to studies in which the rela- 
 tion of cause and effect is emphasized. The student is now prejiared to study 
 science a little more scientifically. Hut the danger is that he may be required to 
 study not too few but too many sulijects Unless he s'lows a special aptitude for 
 science he ought to be limited to not more than two or three subjects. Our object 
 should be, as [ have already said, to impart a training in' ),iet/io<f, and this 
 IS tar more readily achieved by concentrating the stu<lent's attention on a small 
 range ()f phenomena than by leading him in rapid and superHcial survey over 
 wide fields of knowledge. If 1 may lie peimitted an expression of personal opinion 
 in a matter upon which science teachers are i)eifectlv agreed, I may state my 
 belief that at some period or other a boy or a girl should become acquainted with 
 at least three branches of science. And it seems to ine desirable that of these sub- 
 jects one should be such as will best elicit the power of observation, and the others 
 such as will admit oi immediate veriHcation by experiment. Botany for the lower 
 grade-s, i)hysics and chemistry for the higher, appear to be the sulne'cts best posses- 
 sing these qualiHcations. 
 
 We should attempt to teach fewer subjects in our high schools and to teach 
 them better. [In the opinion of the writer the whole (Irade A iirogramme mi<'ht 
 be properly reserved for a portion of the college course.] Much of the so-caflecl 
 science teaching in our schools is a shallow fraud— a mere dead pull on the 
 memory and of no other educational value whatever. Our pupils must have time 
 to come into more direct personal contact with nature and discover facts for them- 
 selves. We must cultivate in them, the habit of independent investigation. They 
 should be set to solve problems, each in its way a little step in research, and 
 involving simple quantitative work. 15y only such exercises as these mav science 
 hope to effect its proper discipline. 
 
 JhscuHSios :--Rev. a. Thompson, D. D., of St. Francis Xavier College : Before 
 entering upon the subject now under discussion, permit me to thank the learned 
 professor who has just preceded me for the scholarly manner in which he has dealt 
 with the (piestion. The importance whicii many eminent educationists attach to 
 the subject whicil he has been treating is very great. It is no exaggeration to say 
 that It IS fast becoming, if it has not already become, a crucial question with many 
 I *'',V i"']?'''^ thinkers of the present day. It is therefore only natural that w'e 
 should gladly welcome all fair discussion tending to solve a knotty problem which 
 affects so deeply the intellectual development of our young men and women. 1 
 feel sure, then, that I am l)ut voicing the sentiments of this assembly when I say 
 that we are all very grateful to Prof. Haley for the ligiit which he has thrown 
 upon it. 
 
 It must be admitted that however much we may desire to see this educational 
 problem solved, it is still far fruiu solution. So much honest doubt still exist* 
 among the learned as to the relative merits of the classics and the natural sciences 
 that no one can reasouiibly feel safe in making any flogmatic assertions extollincr 
 the merits .of one of these groups of studies to the detriment of the otlier. Much 
 
121 
 
 k"S8 shouM ^^■u bo JustiKe.l in treating with iiciimony or contempt tl.o opinions of 
 those who may see Ht to .litlbr from ourselvos in such a matter. ^ 
 
 1 !nnst express my re-n't that I have heen tiriahle to mve to the present .liscus- 
 
 It wa.s not until a few days a<,'o that 1 saw the possibility of my atten,linu this 
 
 xS;"finT'w';-- '"'" r"^' 'r- '"'^^ "•'''""«•' '^y co,;i:ati;..i;^ho; 
 
 ccSrtt .S '*f l"'«^T"">, I'as enabled n,o to f..rm son.e opinions eon- 
 
 ccrn . K he rela ve importanee of a ..lassical an.l a scientific training-, yet yon will 
 lave to bear with whatever defects in order and nmde of expression nmy have 
 been occasioned by lack of immediate preparation ^ 
 
 as farar.-nhirt "TV" f ''""''"" "^ "'*-' '''''^' "^ ''"y ^^'-'l^ "'' ""'""I' «f «t"'li«« 
 sileiatioVn in T'^'^'?""'.;*^'^""'^^'''''''''' ^ve should always take into con- 
 
 ex i^c^d fr^ '[ ^''?, "■«"-'\»n«">'-'i"f,' itself, but also the intellect which is 
 iXb fl "T^',' '•''"' '*•• ^" ""•-' ^^<"'l. ^^I'^-'i judMinsof the utility of any 
 blanch of knowledge m training the mind, account should be taken of indivi.lual 
 
 i 
 
 Proi-, 
 
 A. Thompson, D. D., St. Francis Xavier's Couleoe. 
 
 ^te 3 W In, rV ' ''"''^' ''"' ""^' '^^ "'°^^ ''^»^«^''»J -"1 -"'^"-ve 
 te.e 1 « / ^ ''"* "^.""^ 1^'^'''°" ""^y ""t ]ie so for another. Experience 
 teaches us that many whose minds .seem specially fitted for a study of the sc ences 
 hndin the classics but little stimulus for mental exertion, and nVe 'e'tvi^^^N^^^ 
 sho lid wo be surprised at this divrsity of talent which w; meet in o choolT 
 It not conhned to the intellectual world. It i. a factor to be met and rec^ I 
 
 wo king of human society depends upon variety of talent. We have but to take 
 a glance a our social sy.stem to see the beneficial effects which result lo.^ach 
 
 ; o ; 1 !""/"^'-':l/^'"'- ^^ 'h.n-ffu-d of this fun.lamental law would result in 
 
 ; Lr 'T" ''TfZ It af.|,ears to me therefore, that, in detern i in" 
 
 eo e e ,,,'! ^^es calculated to arouse an.l develop the htent talents of you g 
 
 ;;;V „':,"?"" J!"'«"!'^"S''>- '■'--•'""« the mental capacities ^ the 
 a 1 ■^'^'''- ^ '''^•^'•'^t ngam, thai what may be best for one m-.y not be 
 
h 
 
 122 
 
 Starting from tlm fiiii(liiiiiont;il iiriiiciplc tlnit tlic aim of odufation slimild lie to 
 oncoiirag(!, imt to I'ramp or iiiidiiiy restricts much ics.s to destroy, tla- fioil-giviui 
 individual talent which each child possesses as hi.s or her liirthright,' it may be asked 
 how such an aim may he best aeeomiiUsheil. In this as in other matters it is 
 easier to make general suggestions tlian to propose a detailed scheme wliich would 
 be in every respect satisfactorv. This leads me to remark that wliile using our 
 right of freely criticising courses of study, we should not bo unmindfid of nor fail 
 to apj)reciate the amount of labour that is entailed, and the many dilhctdtii^s that 
 have to be overcome by those upon whom the task of drawing them uj) devolves. 
 Our educational authorities will, I am sure, understand that our suggestions are 
 otrered in no carping spirit but rather in the spirit of friendliness and sympathy. 
 This, by the way. To return to the subject uniler discussion, while holding that 
 educationi.ots should discriminate in prescribing studies for different persons, I do 
 not wish to be umlerstood as maintaining the jirinciple enunciated as the oidy 
 one wliich should command our attention. To U])hoId it as an exclusive jjrinciple 
 would be equivalent to advociiting jierfiM'tion in one or two branches and total 
 ignorance of all others. The pernicious effects of an educational system which 
 would encourage such a state of affairs would be patent to all. It would result in 
 loss of mental equilibrium and would mould our rising generation into a nation of 
 narrow-minded intellectual Ijigot.?. 
 
 The perfection of an educational system would seem to consist in i, ibiiiing 
 general culture with specialization in some branches. To accomplish this, our 
 educational authorities should insist upon imparting an elementary knowledge of 
 those subjects, an ac(juaintancft with which is essential to the well-being of every 
 citizen. Among these should 1)(! mentioned reading, writing, aiithmetic, grani 
 mar, and rudiments of history and geograpiiy and an elementary knowledge of the 
 nature of ])hysical phenomena. Object lessons in nature would serve to .stimulate 
 the minds of the children for a deeper knowledge of the natural iiciences, while 
 judicious selections in literature and an elei 'ontary knowledge o; jiatin would 
 pave tlie way for an acquirement of that mental culture to which the patrons of 
 the classics attach so much imjiortance. 
 
 Jjut when once the requisiteamOunt of elementary knowledge has been acquired 
 and the natural desire for selection has been awakened, a large amount of choice 
 should be given the student. To sum up, I think that but little good can result 
 from discussing in the abstract the relative claims of the classics and of the 
 natural sciences, to superiority as far as the development of the intellect is con- 
 cerned. The question for each student to ask himself 's a very concrete one, 
 namely, "what is best for me?" And no satisfactoi'y answer can be given 
 without consulting his own intellectual bent. 
 
 Dr. Chisholm defended the classics. He thought that the high school course 
 niight be extended to 4 or 5 years, and the necessary amount of time to the 
 different subjects thus given. The study of classics resulted in plain, concise 
 English. 
 
 Phin. \y. T. KENXEny comjilimonted Prof. Haley on his very able paper but 
 claimed tliat according to his own observation the same results in mental discipline 
 and mental development had not followed the teaching of science as had been 
 obtained from the study of classics. Yet the difference was due not wholly, or 
 possibly not even in part, to any inherent' superiority of classics as a nieans of 
 mental culture and development, but rather to the excellent manner in which 
 classics as a rule is taught, and to the amount of earnest private study which is 
 required of the student in ])reparing his work for the class-room. Speaking gen- 
 erally there is no subject, in high schools and colleges, taught as well as classics, 
 and there is scarcely any other .subject in which tlie teacher can get the same 
 amount of personal effort from the pupil ; and tliis is a matter which has a tremend- 
 ous bearing on the question under discussion. The exeelh-nce of ihe teaching is 
 
123 
 
 l«rtJy due to the deh.il.. u,,.! .listin.t u.Une nf ||„. snl,j..r.t itsolf nn.| p.nly to the 
 
 ye.i s It has attractcl aiwl df^veloj^tl the very best class „f tuaclHis It 
 no labonou.s lu.ur.s of lal.orutoiy wcik to pet ready for the lectiin', 
 
 ro'juires 
 till' case 
 
 „f ,1 , •, ,'•/ ■' '"■'"■ '■" K' >- '■<""'> lor inn iectiii/', ami in tlic case 
 
 of tiu.M, .V ho arc tl...mn<rh|y ac<iuaintc,l with th- lanHUnKc not n.tich If.mu pre 
 
 S •m"'^:.,^:::' -^ ■'"■::';r:"'^- "••"- ^''" ^--'''•"' - p-i-ci for each ieio„ 
 
 fuihi 
 
 rt; on 
 
 ssoii 
 
 ,1 i £■ ,1 1 . I • .^.ouii 1.-. ,.i-,i mu^ui. Any 
 
 I the i,art of the pupil to ,!o the proper .piot.iin of ho -vork i,s ea.sily 
 
 J5ut ni science all this i. .litferent. The siihject is a cnii.parativelv 
 iiew one in our curnciihi an.l the nnk an.! tile of those who tead, it ,lo not teach 
 
 an.I it almost follows as a natural coi.se.pp.nce that the le.vson'isweli tau-iit." 
 
 lart of the pii 
 detected. I5ut in science all this i.i ditfereiit 
 
 i^ of „ll t! 1 ■ , ' """' """ Lcacn u no nol teacn 
 
 t at all. Some who teach other snhjects well are perfect novices in this. And, 
 indee.l specialists who are votaries of science are not alway.s good teachers. The 
 
 ;:;::'':';: ^'i^:!iz.r'''^7 "^'--i^i^ /—•' "-• I'-'i^ investigation is ofte,; 
 
 too much self-absorl)od, 
 
 not to .say selfisl>, or has too much oriyinality 
 
 )f a peculiar 
 
 PRIN. W. T. Kennedy, Hai.iia.x Academy. 
 
 kind to he efficient in drilling a class of students. And the wonderful faculty 
 
 ,npn wn it^'l ^''%''^ '^ ""•' "^ ^••I'l""^ through the han.ls of such 
 
 men would shock and astonish those who have never observed such things closely, 
 lint notwithstanding all this, it is more than possible that when .science-masters 
 <lo the .sciences the same justice which classical masters do the classics ; when note- 
 hooks, and written exercises, an.l carefully p.epared statements of observations of 
 similarities and difleiences, and discriminating reductions made in good En<dish 
 and repetitioiLS, and reviews become the Hxe.l rule; in short, when some of the 
 hard and fast methods by which the best workers get the best work done in other 
 subjects obtain al.so in this ; then, and not till then, need cla.ssics fear M,e rivalrv 
 ot science m those Heids where the brain-building business is carried on 
 
w 
 
 12* 
 
 m 
 
 Prin. D. M. Soloan, B. a , New OLAsciow Hum Sciiooi,. 
 
 pRiNfiPAi, Soloan, of New Glaagow, saiil that tliere iit-vor liad hccii any diftl- 
 ciilty in (loin;,' the science work in I'ictoti academy when \>\: Mackay was tliere. 
 He tlionj,'lit we siioidd consider tiio difl'erent temperaments of teadiers, and that 
 tiie pupils have to study too much. He regretted that classics had been put in 
 a subordinate position. 
 
 PnoKESHou P^ATON thought that the comlitions umler which natural science was 
 a. better trainini;,' obtained only in a few schools. He felt that the course as at 
 present constituted was too heavy. 
 
 Dh. Mackay thought the work could be done by proper correlation. 
 
 PaiNCirAi, CAMPnEi.L of Truro thought that the standard of admission of ])iipil.s 
 to the acailemies was being lowered. Admission was too easy. From this reason 
 the work was too iianl all through. 
 
 [The following i)aper by I'kok. Andrews was jnepared as a continuation of this 
 discussion, but it was not read — not having been received in time to arrange for it.] 
 
 Phof. W. W. Andrews, ^l. A., Sackville College :— There are two ends to be 
 set before us in all educational work, viz., training to skill and molding to culture. 
 If we arc to decide upon the educational value of studies, we nuist consider tl em 
 as to their possible results along tliese two lines. Pres. Hitchcock has said that 
 the aim of the new education is not to i;ive men facts so much as farultji, and 
 adds that " ho only is great of intellect who can stir the world with a great thought ; 
 he ordy is great of heart who can tiood the world with a great affection ; and he 
 only is g^-eat of will who can do something to shape the world to a great career." 
 (Jne part of our work is to make our students men of resource, of ready adapta- 
 bility, men who can bring their minds to liear fruitfully on any problem, men of 
 skill, who are fitted to fulfil the obligation resting ujion all to serve usefully the 
 interests of tiie world. A truly " liberal " system of education will be planned to 
 imfKift the elements of, at least, the fullowing kinds of skill, because tiiey are the 
 
IfS 
 
 kinds n'i|iiin'il in iiPiintiniMit lines nf inlcllcctiiiil iisi.fuln.'Ms in thi; world, viz., skill 
 in olwcrviition, io^jical .xkill, .skill in niiini|>ulati(>n nnd n.^ixM-iniciitiifion, and skill 
 in PXprcsHinn- lirHt tlirongh lanj,'na;,'c, liy ton^'nc ami pen, and tliioiia), f,,iiii.>4, liy 
 meann of |ieiieil or liiu.sh or t.iol. All tiiese lornis of expression lo lie used f.ir 
 the sake of thi-jr • 'aetions on the mind, for all ellort at expression results in ^^reater 
 de(lnile;iesH of i,l,.a. Let irs not exalt one kind of skill too much ahove another 
 for snpposed value in education, for, a.s I'rof. JV-trie lia.s lately saiil, "the excpiisite 
 nrt and the nolilo arehiteetnru of Myeenae, thn nndyin;,' .son"; of Homer, the ex- 
 tensive tra<le of the hronze i\^<', all i(e|on},'ed to a peiijile who could neither read or 
 writo." To teach skill in choice of wonls for writing; or for .speech, to develop 
 skill in that lo,i,'ical analysis which dcjiends upon veihal distinctions, the study of 
 the classics must ever he the lini'st instrument, <'xcept in that ranj;e of words 
 expressive of phy.sical forms, ipialities, aii.l enerj,'ies. In written lani,'uni;e, om- of 
 the hif,'hest jiroducts of civilization, we leive, within its proper ran^'e, an unrivalled 
 educational instrument. 
 
 I'.y culture we mean ail those tastes, fcelin<rs, ideals and .sentiments which ^o to 
 make the <,'entleman, the .scdiolar and the reverent man of moral i urpo.se. This 
 educational end has heen finely described liy Lowell in an address .lelivered at the 
 •JoOth aninversary of Harvard : "Let us hope to nuike a f,'entleman of every 
 youth who is put under our (tharjje ; not a conventional ^'eiitleman, hut a man of 
 culture, a man of intellectmd resource, a man of jaililic spirit, a man of refinenu-nt, 
 witli that noinl taste which i.s the conscience of the mindan<l that con.scii.'iice which 
 i.s the f,'ood taste of the soul. Thi.s we have tried to do in the past ; tids let us 
 try to do in the future." 
 
 The whole educational prohlem then is to |uoduce the man of power and the 
 man of just and tine feeling' : to make skill i,'reat and to make life great. The 
 finest skill can only he founil when allied with tine culture, and culture lo.ses one 
 of its finest elements, viz., the noble sense of service, if it cannot express itself by 
 tool or brush, by tongue or pen. 
 
 To make men great according to their measure by making them at once men of 
 efficiency and men of culture is the educational ideal. 
 
 We all know .something of the culture and skill which are the product of classi- 
 cal training. To read Homer's fresh descriptions is like taking a look at nature 
 it.solf, to see life and nature through the eyes of the great (Greeks is no small 
 privilege, to be drilled to make the fine distinctions in thought, which the study 
 of their language demaud.s, does rnrich the mind and add to its power. What has 
 science to oiler I It nuist in fairness be .said that those who teach the sciences do 
 not always have a distinct conception of the possiliilities of the instrument they 
 are using, and almost as fretpUMitly they are at a lo.ss to see how the.se possibilities 
 niay be realized. This is in a great m-iasure due to the fact that the educational 
 instrument has come into the schools at a date within the memory of many pro- 
 sent. Science teaching is in a nascent rtate as yet. It has had to compete with 
 an instrument perfected by centuries of practice. The new subject matter has 
 called for new methods and has awakened new ideals. AVe are .still experiment- 
 ing.^ 
 
 Yet even in these conditions the st'ely of tin; clas.sics has not been able to hold 
 its own against the claims of the lu^s- knowledge. It is somewhat certain, how- 
 ever, that the sciences will not be able to wholly dispossess the classics, because 
 for some minds they will always remain ilic nuist effectual instrument, and for pure 
 mental discipline they will probably always lead among the language studies. It is 
 I)robab]y safe to say that if they were once wholly out of the schools, it would be 
 a long time before they would 1)0 able to win their way back again, except as 
 special studies. Science has won .so far because an exclusively classical education 
 cannot repel the charge of Dean Farrar, himself a classical teacher for thirteen 
 years, who states that it is his most deliberate conviction, arrived at in the face 
 of every possible opportunity for reaching the opposite conclusion, it " ne"Iects 
 
 «; 
 
w 
 
 12G 
 
 all of the powers of some luiiuls and sonic of the powers of all minds." The two 
 classes of study are to he u^ed each as the complement of the other. ".More mind 
 will he developotl out of a f,iven school hy the use of hoth instruments than by 
 the use of one alone. 
 
 The full i)0wer of the science studies will never be realized until they are made 
 to do some of the work done by the classics. Along with the patient observation 
 the relentless sifting of ap[H'aianees, and the careful forming of conclusion-s there 
 should always be the accurate description of appearajices, the statement of the reason- 
 ing and the final result, in as el-,gant a form as possible, a!ul outline sketching of 
 the forms, which elude exact description by means of language. The study ot"the 
 classics can never train a student in the use of the language, which deals with 
 physical properties and which is the basis of all description and of all metaphor 
 which is the soul of all language. Homer can never teach the difference betweeii 
 transparent and semi-translucent, or between bluish green and emerald "reen 
 
 I'Roi'. W. \V. Anurews, .M. a., .Mr. Ai.i.iso\ Coi.i.ec.e. 
 
 except as cm]ity terms which will rest in the mind until the appropriate idea has 
 been gathered from experience with some body e.vhibiting these properties. We 
 have not made enough of science as means of (Irill in the use of language. School 
 collections of specimens shouhl be made for the e.xprrss purpose of illustrating the 
 meanings, which are properly attached to descriptive woids. Beside tlie"oral 
 description of the class room there slioidd be constantly demanded the writing 
 of descriptive notes and es.says, and the detailed account of experiments, and the 
 statement and analysis of lines of inductive reasoning. It is said that the tran.sla- 
 tion of two lines of Virgil re(piires 40 distinct acts of the judgment. This descrip- 
 tive work demands tiie same comjiarison of word with word, idea with idea, which 
 is the chief mental operation in the act of translation, and definite word with defi- 
 nite phenomenon or aspect of a phenomenon In Botany and in Blowpipe Analysis 
 the acts of judgment follow each other as rapidly as in translation, and they exact 
 as much from the student. In I'liysics ami ciiemistry results are reached more 
 
127 
 
 slowly, but tlie acts of jmlgment are iikik; iiniiortaiit an<l tlio held for invention 
 iiuieli greater. Tlie sciences call into play nianiitulative skill, meclianieal invention, 
 ami tlie judgment at kiiwt hand of form and force, of color and dimension. The 
 drawing wliidi is necessary for the l)(;st work in Physics and Botany and the con- 
 struction of simple forms of apparatus train to skill in tiie forms of manual ex- 
 pression, for whicli theie is no place in classical study. Scime forms of genius the 
 cla.ssics can never awiike or train. Make the analysi.s of thougiit and the^ciioice of 
 words as k';en as in translation and science with its immediate contact with 
 nature and truth and its own peculiar di.scipline, will be undoubtedly the finer 
 educational instrument. 
 
 But it is as an instrument of culture tliat .science study is supposed to be the 
 weakest. 
 
 It must be admitted that most of the culture ascri!)ed to the studies of .school 
 ami college, is due to the per.sonal influences which make themselves felt with 
 augmented power in these circum.stances. It is possible to study history ur.der a 
 teacher and from an author and never come into vital contact with the heroism 
 and other noble human (luality, which .seen and felt, forms the culturing power of 
 the study. It is possible for a grou[» of scholars to study under the lead of a 
 ;'live" teacher, a fanuly of spiders or a bed of flower.'^, and be touched by tho.se 
 influences which come most powerfidly from the iiuman history. A mere fact- 
 grubber may tndn to skill, but can never imiiart culture through the study he 
 teaches. To listen to an Agassiz is to liave every study turned to poetry, and 
 every fact sinks not into tiu' mind only, lint into the heart. 
 
 There are some elements of culture which scientific facts will impart on their 
 own account. A delight in the beauty and wonder of common thing.s, a sense of 
 law, the feeling that the forms of nature constitute a language, and an increased 
 .sense of the worth and the insignificance of human life. If research methods are 
 followed, the .student is not long in finding that if he is to succeed lie must be a 
 truth-seeker, and tiiat any sophistry means certain defeat and failure. He 
 unconscit)Usly learns to work in that mood, and he becomes habitually watchful 
 against self-deception. 
 
 Science teaching when rightly conducted leads the student to look at the facts 
 and to be guided by consiilerations drawn from the nature of thing.s. It therefore 
 IMochices a radical tone of minil, which is a deliverance from the bondage to the 
 tiaditionary, the arbitrary and the accustomed, into which we all .so readily fall. 
 The study of letters tends to produce the opjiosite qualitv of mind, because the 
 mind in this study is constantly asked to accept the arbitrary, winch has been 
 sancti()ned by custom ■■^i/iiph/ ln-rauni' it Ikih been xo Kaiirtioni^d. The Chinese, the 
 most literary nation in tiie world, and with the most e.xten.sive alphabet and most 
 arbitrary orthography, are the most conservative. Years of such study must kill 
 out the exploring impulses of the mind and the faculties by which a man adjusts 
 himself to now truth. The exclusive stu.ly of institutions has the same e'fiect. 
 The scientific spirit is e.s.sentially revolutionary. It asks not " Wliat has been 1 " 
 but "Wiiat is rational?" "What will work weU?" Therefore it is ready for 
 any reform demanded by rea.son and practical considerations, such as the adoption 
 of phonetic spelling and the metric .system, against which there is 1:0 rational argu- 
 ment. Witness the facts, that while the literary classes of Germany Indd to tlu'ir 
 sight-destroying type, all scientific books and iie'riodicals are printed in the Roman 
 type, and that among English speaking ciiennsts the fonetic spellint; is bein-' 
 rapidly adopted. i » o 
 
 In this respect also, the two classes of studies are the complements of each other. 
 Without the study of letters or of institutions the man of science is apt to break 
 too rea<lily with the past. Without scientific study the man of lette.s is in danger 
 of becoming the slave of the past. ' ° 
 
 To no other age of the world was the world so wonderful and so .sublime as 
 modem science has made it to us. Its mystery and its grandeur has been increased 
 
 ll 
 
 t 
 
lit 
 
 128 
 
 a tlionsand foM over that of tlu; vision of any prophet or seer of otlier days. 
 TIkj years of Imnum iiistory liave been swallowed u]) in the vast and toilsome ages 
 of geology, and these are l)econie hut as a point of time, in the de])ths of the limitless 
 aeons of astronomy. The sky has been opened up for us and we are allowed to 
 look into vast realms where the creator has not yet rested from his lal)ors, and the 
 nelndous spaces are seen (;nrHling into world systems like our own. The flowers 
 and their leaves have h)st none of their symmetry, and their blossoms have lost 
 none of their colour and perfume, since the days the older jioets looked u|ion them 
 and .sang, l)ut the form and the jierfume and colour have a now meaning, for every 
 pan of the delicate structure of tiie little plant, tells of ages of successful struggle. 
 As the .scion of an ancient family it wins a new regard anil the complexity of the 
 mechanism by which the jRirposes of its life are fulfilled make it a new wonder. 
 Since J)avid's or Homer's day, the rosy dawn has lost no tint, and the solemn 
 music of the winds through the pines has lost none of its anthem-like quality, 
 but the modern theories of sound and light have added a new thrill of intellectual 
 interest and sublimity to these phenomena. The modern conceptions of law, of 
 gravitation and of the conservation of matter and energy which make this universe 
 an infinitely sensitive thing, responsive everywhere in orderly ways to movement 
 anywhere, so that the story of any change in any world is told to all the stars, are 
 poetic conceptions of the highest quality. 
 
 Beside these conceptions, the tripping goddesses of Homer and the longwinded 
 bluster of his heroes, seems very trivial. These culture-elements of science may 
 not be so effective for producing the conventional scholarly culture, but they do 
 tend to jiroduce the culture demandeil in that realm of our life where the only 
 politeness is adoration and the oidy perfection is love. And science teaching niu.st 
 not become mere "fact-grubbing" or fizz and bang experimentation. These' 
 culture-elements must be made the most of, and it is oidy as these inspire the 
 teacher and mould his methods will science teaching show its full ])ower to touch 
 the heart and enrich the life. If 1 were asked to make a choice between the two 
 I should certaiidy choose the skill and culture to l)e obtained from faithful scien- 
 tific study and vital science teaching. But the exacting study of language should 
 form the complement of science study, and the study of .science should be called 
 in to train the jiowers neglected by language study. 
 
 He who studies the classics only, becomes a foreigner and a stranger in our 
 modern life. He who .studies nature only, as far as his culture is concerned, is 
 without an ancestry. H science be studied and our great literature be read care- 
 fully and lovingly, no consideralile gap need be found in any man's culture, even 
 if the cla.ssics arc neglected. 
 
WHAT QUALIFICATIONS SHOULD THE HEAD MASTER 
 OF AN ACADEMY POSSESS ? 
 
 By Prof. A. G. MacDonald, M. A., Xormai. School. 
 
 The subject which has been assigned me for a paper at tliis Convention, is, as 
 niay be seen by the programme, "What qualifications should the Head Master of an 
 Academy possess ? I regret that the preparation of a paper on such an important, 
 and, indeed, dithcult subject, did not fall to the lot of some more capable person — 
 some or. ., possessing a greater constructive ingenuity and a wider grasp of details 
 than myself. 
 
 Before proceeding farther, let me state my conviction that, on the whole, Nova 
 bcotia may feel justly proud of her Academies and High Schools. In no other 
 branch of the educational service has there been, for some years past, a healthier 
 am more satisfactory growth. Many rf our more progressive towns take special 
 and justihal)le pride in pointing out the rapid strides made bv them in secondary 
 education, and put in evidence, as conclusive as it is creditable, their fine hiah 
 school buildings and academies, and their efficient principals and associate teachers. 
 _ Last year 1 had the pleasure of assisting at one of our district conventions liekl 
 m a town one of whose chief buildings is a beautiful, large and well-appointed 
 common and high s.liool edifice, built in brick, with stone trimmings. A certain 
 prominent rate-payer who had, atone time, been opposed to the construction of so 
 expensive a building, wag heard to say, on the occasion of the convention, that it 
 was a pity, after ah, it was not wholly built of stone ! When our hicdi schools 
 gather arouml them the warmth and the sustaining confidence and patronacre of 
 the community in this way, we may be sure that their work is deserving of aunre- 
 ciation. ^ ^^ 
 
 I have no reason whatever to suppose that the subject of this paper was su<'- 
 gested by any piessmg or special dissatisfaction, on the part of the i)eople, with 
 present high school work ; nor do I believe that any radical change in the quali- 
 fications of prospective head masters is in immediate contemplation. Apart from 
 the tact that the subject is an important one in itself, and highly suitable for 
 investigation and discussion at a gathering of this kind, it is to be borne in mind 
 that educationists should always maintain, in their sphere, the attitude of respon- 
 siveness to the suggestions and experiences of the past, the opportunities of the 
 present, and the needs and possibilities of the future. 
 
 The question to be treated immediately prompts the inquiry ; What are the 
 duties of a head master ? These are so various and so complex,— so hard to define 
 and yet so real,-collectively so important in their results, and, singly, so appar- 
 ently trivial, -so difficult of that performance which is the ideal of the education- 
 ist, and yet so lightly undertaken, in many cases, by the inexperienced gra.hiate,— 
 that the task of adequately defining them all seems indeed beyond one's power. 
 Surely the witty frenchman wlio said "that the art of defining belongs to the 
 gods, must have had in his mind, potentinlly at least, the difTRuIty of stating all 
 the qualifications of an academic head master of our day and veneration ' 
 9 (129) 
 
i^ 
 
 W 
 
 
 130 
 
 The subject might, perhaps, he host approaclied from iinother side — from a sliort 
 study of tlie relation of the high sciiool to society. It is umU'iiiahle tiiat the great 
 majority of those who attend tlie High School pass from its jirecincts to the groat 
 school of the world, which is to he the better Ijy the acquisition, if these schools 
 be not a failure. Let me quote from the Report of the Committee of Ten in 
 support of this staieiuent : "The secondary schools do not exist for the purpose 
 of jiroparing boys and girls for colleges. (Jnly an insignificant percentage of the 
 graduates of these schools go to colleges or scientific schools. Their main function 
 is to prepare for the duties of life that small proportion of all the children in the 
 country — a proportion small in number but very important to the welfare of the 
 nation — who show themselves able to itrotit by an education prolonged to the 
 eighteenth year, and whose paren.ts are able to support them while they remain .so 
 long in school." Shall society be made happier, noliler, more intelligent, by the 
 annual increment from these schools? Shall the standards of moral rectitude 
 and of public and private virtue be raised? Shall honest labor be dignified'? 
 And shall man's energy and faculties be more wisely and lieneficently directed by 
 and through the agency of these institutions? These are the questions that 
 furnish the true key-note to the duties of a head master ; — they are questions of 
 the greatest moment to society ; and if they can be answered in the affirmative, 
 then°priceless, indeed, becomes the high school, and enduring its place in our social 
 economy. And the desiderated answers are to be determined by the quality rather 
 than by the (piantity of the work done, — by the powers rleveloped and the habits 
 formed, rather than by the amount of knowledsre stored up, during the three or 
 lou.' years> of high school life. It is what the graduate can do and not merely what 
 he knows that will make him valuable to society. Does he possess good common 
 sense ? Can he use his eyes ? Can he think clearly and reason correctly ? Can 
 he ada\'L iiimself to new conditions ? Has he learned how to study ? Has he 
 formed habits of thoughtfulness, self-reliance, — nay, self-denial ? Have his intel- 
 lectual tastes, indeed, all his natural endowments, been awakened and disciplined, 
 according to Iiis years? Does he possess a vigorous health, and a knowdege of the 
 laws by which it' can be conserved ? And, does he possess the power, not only to 
 disce) n and to will the right, but to do it ? The up-building of character, the for- 
 mation or rather formulation of such habits and powers in the prospective citizen 
 aa are indicated in the foregoing queries, are the all-important object of the high 
 school, — of all teaching, indeed. The office of the arlilicers, chief among whom is 
 the academic head master, wdio are to preside over and direct the metamorphosis 
 of "the whining school-boy creeping, snail-like,- unwilhngly to school" into the 
 good citizen, clear in thought, capable in action, righteous in conduct, is truly a 
 great and a responsible one. 
 
 Now it goes without saying that the adequate discharge of the varied duties of 
 this important ofhce, presupposes in our high school and academic teachers, scholarly 
 attainments of a high order, intelligent professional skill, formally acquired or 
 otherwise, and a dominant and sympathetic personality, which will enable them to 
 do their work to the very best advantage, and with the least possible waste of 
 energy, either on their own part or on the part of those whose teaching they are 
 <Sirec'tly to conduct or to supervise. And this is eminently true with regard to 
 the head master, for he is to the school what the engineer is to the engine, the 
 master to the ship, the commander to the army. Buildings, school appliances, 
 attendance may be all that can l)e desired, but wanting a capable person at tlie 
 head, and failure inevitably results. It is not enough that his work may never fall 
 to the level of the dead-line— it nuist be up to the level of greatest productiveness. 
 His intentions may be the very best, his character irreproachable, —he may be the 
 possessor of nuich parchment, and give proof of his intense zeal by working after 
 hours for the benefit of his .school, yet if he achieve l)ut mediocrity he is datively 
 incompetent. He must be courteou.s, keen to estimate the real value of a recitation 
 and ready to see what is wanting in the way of repression or encouragement, and 
 
131 
 
 he should he capahle of testing quickly the true stiindins,' of his school by driving 
 down deeply the ploughshnro of iiiterrogntinn into the ostensible attainments of 
 each pupil. He should l)e judicious in his analysis of ])reaches of discipline, 
 diplomatic in concealing his judgments, and suppress misconduct medititely by 
 removing or modifying its cause rather than immediately, by ajiplying correctives. 
 He should have a clear understanding of the principles and^iietliods of education, 
 be fanuliar with its iiistory and progress, and with the jihilosophy of teaching. 
 He siiould be a master in the subjects which he teaclies ; his lange'of scholarship 
 should embrace a generous knowledge of all the subjects of tlie course of studies, 
 and having due regard to their educational and practical values, he should be able 
 to make an intelligent ciioice of that sequence of studies, and that time-allotment 
 for each stuily, which would be most advantageous to the school as a whole. 
 
 Prof. A. G. MacUonai-I), M. A., Nohmal Sciiooi,, Tru 
 
 RO. 
 
 This outline of a head master's qualitications, though Udt by any means exhaus- 
 tive, is, perhaps, sutfit.ientiy full to form a basis for the practical (luestion of 
 considering what tests should be applied by the Council of Public Insti'uetion to 
 candidates for a head master's license. SatisKed thougli I am that the [iresent 
 tests for licensing academic teachers are not all that should be desired, yet, I 
 confess that when 1 undertook to write this paper J shrank from the difficult and 
 delicate task of stating what, in my o|)inion woukl be better tests. I felt that 
 my opinions, or for that matter, the individual opinions of anyoiie, on a matter of 
 this kind, would not carry with them much weight unless supported by arguments 
 irresistibly strong and convincing,— arguments that are always difficult to advance 
 in sui)port of any moot question. Under these circumstances I ventured to adopt 
 •another enurs<\ T undertook to get tlie opinions of as large u number as possible 
 of leading educationists in our province ; — indeed, I was seized with the ambition 
 
132 
 
 oi gettin;,' tlie qu'istiou treated in tho Syinposiuiii style. Aceoi.lin^'ly, I sent a 
 note and circular s'.ip containing a few queries, calculated to elicit detfnite state- 
 ments on tile subject in iiand, to sixty persons in all, includin<; all our school 
 inspectors, all or nearly all our academy and high school principals and some of 
 their associate teaduH-s, representative professors of all our 2s''ova Scotia colleges 
 and of Sackville college, and two or three others prominently engaged in our 
 educational work. The note and queries sent were as follows : 
 
 "Having lieen requested to write a paper for the foithcoming Teachers' Conven- 
 tion, on the subject: ' What qualifications should Head Masters of Academies 
 possess?' and having consented to do so, I take the liberty of asking you, as one 
 of the educationists of Nova Scotia, to answer as fully as possiljle the 'queries on 
 the enclosed circular slip. 
 
 " ^ly object is to elicit the opinions of as large a number of our leading teachers 
 and educationists as i)ossiblc, with a view to deducing therefrom general conclu- 
 sions which may be helpful in further advancing academic education in our 
 province. There does not seem to be any reason why the names of persons 
 answering the submitted queries should lie matle public or indicat('d in any way; 
 and in no case shall publicity be given the names of writers marking their replies 
 ' confidential.' 
 
 "Hoping to hear fiom you at your earliest ccnvenience, 
 
 " I remain, respectfully yours, 
 
 "A. G. Macdonald. 
 
 " Scholarship Requirements for Head Masters : 
 
 "(1) Possession of both classical and .scientific 'A.' 
 " (2) " " either with a University degree. 
 
 "(3) U neither (1) nor (2) what would you suggest / 
 
 " Professional Requirements : 
 
 "(4) Four years' mrress/ul experience in doing actual 'B' or academic prei)ar- 
 atoi'v work. 
 
 " (5) A first rank Normal School diploma and two years' subsequent experi- 
 ence as in (4). 
 
 " (6) Tliree year.s' experience as in (4) succeeded by successful examination, 
 written and oral, on professional subjects, and English Language and Literature 
 
 "(7) If not (4), (5) or (6), give outline of what you would consider good 
 prejiaratory training for position of Head Master. 
 
 " (8) Woidd you favor a law constituting Head Masters and Supervisors, in 
 incorporated toivns, members ej' ojfii'io of the town school committee? 
 
 " (9) Should towns which are the seats of the larger academies provide Head 
 Master witii residence and garden ?" 
 
 Of the sixty to whom the circular was sent, forty-five, or exactly seventy-five 
 per cent., sent me replies. To these 1 wish here to oifer, most cordially, my sin- 
 cere thanks, and to record my keen apjireciation of their kindness towards myself 
 personally, anil of their public spirit, and laudable interest in the cause of second- 
 ary education. Many of these replies treat the subject with great fulness and 
 ability, and all of them v/ith clearness and vigor. 
 
 As I consider they form a distinctly valuable contribution to our literature on 
 secondary schools, I shall take the liberty of handing to the secretary for pul)lica- 
 tion, with the minutes of the proceeilings of this Convention, copious, and gene- 
 rally verbatim, selections which I have made from them. It is true that they 
 were not written with a view to publication, but this fact does not detract, to say 
 the least, from their value as a criterion of the trend of tliouirht amongst those 
 who are in the best position to think clearly and intelligently on the subject. That 
 
188 
 
 diversity „f views oUains, pnrticularly as to the best means for encompassing cer- 
 
 oX w^:!';' •%?;'''-"■' "'r''"' •'" *'■•' ^^•'^°''^' «>''-t""tial a.a-oen>cnt'exists,-i^ 
 local iffi , Si '•« «xpecte,l ; personal predilections, pecdiarities of environn.ent, 
 
 tiam.ng, are liable to cnlor if not to warp tbe judt;ment of the best of people 
 
 Ihese replies have afforded one u very interesting Held of study. The spectacle 
 of earnest, capable men and women striving for the a.lvancemel.t of a gr nd a d 
 bet for".'l '""" ",' '°'"'"''";''. ""^''^ ''^l"'iratiun. The conclusions which have 
 
 nob^tM ;i "''""'"'. ^^'■" "''f'^ ''"^'y "^ these communications would seem to 
 p nt out for our acadenne teachers a somewhat different training from that which 
 
 wh c ui;;;;k will Tt t^'ir"'""::^ ^°. ^"'" ^*'^"> ">• •» ^ ^-^ P-positiont 
 
 w u, 1, I th.nk wdl b.. foun.l l,y those who shall have read these selections to be 
 fair, mouerate, and legitimate deductions. Of course mv own views on !and 
 acqua.n ance with the subject have entered .somewhat into tbe shaping i the e 
 p opos t ons. Ami ,n order to simplify matters, I wish to be permitte/to divide 
 the cademies of our province into two cla.sse.s, smaller and larger academies the 
 smaller employing only one academic tea.rher, and the latter two"or more. ' 
 1 . Ihe smaller aemlemies shouhl not do any work bevoud grade XI, together 
 
 ^^v^n^lh? /'" ^""•' ■""'•J^'^t^-Latin, French, advanced chemistry and 
 advanced botany, for options. ^ 
 
 -r A curriculum for a new grade " A " should be adopted, covering such parts 
 
 the present b.dateral " A" as would.secure a scholarly and effieient^r.as tefyof 
 the subjects of such grade Xr. "i- in.isi-ciy oi 
 
 vi' ^'''' """'"'."'" Prof^.^-sional requirements for this A should be two or three 
 
 EiiJSe'hoMi^r'^^^^S^;:"^" - ''-' '-' ^--^ «^-i '^ip^o- 
 aX i:r:r;tesmi;lsi- s!''^^^^^^ s- t:S!:;!t:r = 
 
 ome college of recognized standing, or one of the present A's, with one or two 
 subjects on the cla-ssical and two or three subjects on the scientific side supp^e.s.! d 
 
 ort^f , T "''^"'''''T'*' ''°''^ ^ ">i"i"nnn A, and a degree with an honor 
 
 01 past graduate course in the subject or group of subjects he is to teach. 
 
 for tb.?'' !''"^'^''T" *'r"!"^' ^"'' ''°^'' ^"^''^ ^''' ^'^'"•^'' aca-Iennes to be tlie same as 
 add tt, ""'" ^' '""• •""' '''■'^''''"" '''"' ^''« ^'"''^ '"'-'■^ter should have an 
 
 th h "r ^'T" f-^l"^^''^"^^' '' P""^^iP'''I «f a miscellaneous school of not less 
 tlian tfirec; departments 
 
 wJlrr'i^rH'.""/''" "'i-'imum a has thus two roads open to him, cither of 
 whih leads tx, the lower position in the larger academies ; but if his dm is th 
 head mastership he cannot long hesitate as to which road he sliould take. 1 have 
 tudiously made the road to the highest academic position through the colle'I 
 the certificate of .scholarship that qualifies one for it .should not be obtainable ter 
 S:;;:SaUo::^^"^^ -^ '''-''- study, cramming, or the contingenc.S 
 
 finf^.r"^""'' ^"W't '''^^''•'^"^"f following teaching as a profe.ssiou, should 
 
 ts , nn ?'"''"Tf ^ ^"""' '''^''^ '''^''' '''''''^'' '" ^'^'^'^'^ to unduly retard 
 his promotion while securing in those holding academic licenses more Uirou<.h 
 
 r^vs "r 'J ",,.""? r' '''i'''''' *!'"" "'° "-««-"il.V implied by .such licenses, a 
 piesent. I shall not here refer to the difficulty, with regard to degrees which the 
 existence of .so many colleges in our province' present,s,^as the sul.ject has be a 
 an leipa ted and a solution offered or outlined, by, at least, one leari'.ed correspo - 
 tlent, wliose communication 1 shall pr.-sentlv read to you 
 
 Nor shall I enlarge on the value of culture, which a good college course can 
 be.st give, to those who would aspire to the e.xalted offic.: of traini".g our you ^ 
 m.n and women for the higher po.siti.n.s and duties of life, as herc^ I ani It 
 mitieipated by several correspondents. I take the libertv, however, of quotii^a 
 strikingly beautiful passage on the subject from the pen of the late gifted a'nd 
 learned Sir Morrel McKenzie, published, not long since, in the "New Review^ 
 
134 
 
 He says ;— "Culture is not the possession of ii stock of facts or ideas, literary^ 
 :;ientific, artistic, or iilulosopliical ; it is a condition of the intellect, or rather 
 
 scien 
 
 of the whole nncrocosm; analogous to that state of physical perfection which athletes 
 strive to attain to hy training. Culture itni)lies strength, sureness and flexihility 
 of nund, and the develo|)nient of all its facidtii-s to the higliest possible degree, so 
 that they can be concentrated without dilliculty on any subject tiiat may present 
 itself. 
 
 "Culture, therefore, being a condition of intellectual efficiency of mental health 
 comparable to the state of bodily well-being when all the organs work harmoniously 
 together, tiie practical (piesticn arises, how is tin's most desirable object to be 
 attained? Culture is notan innate (piality or a lieaven born gift ; every man has to 
 acquire it for himself by laborious and i)r(.tracted effort. There is only one way 
 of bringing the mind to full functional perfection, and that is by cultivation. It-i 
 different faculties must be disciplined and increased in jaiwer bv exercise ; in one 
 word, they must be carefully trained. As for the instruments ot'culture, by which 
 I mean the special stu.lies wbieli serve best for the ac(piisition of it, I confess I 
 am strongly in favor of the older discipline by means of which so many generations 
 of men of the highest cndnence, both in the world of thouglit and that of action, 
 have been made what they were, namely, cla.ssical and mathematical studies. The 
 mind that will not be made accurate l)y conscientious study of the dose-linked 
 chains of mathematical reasoning, and by nunute analysis of the grannnatical 
 structure of the ancient languages, will iiardly have its congenital deficiency 
 remedied by any other means. It is this whicii makes classical studies so extra- 
 ordinarily valuable, even though 'small Latin and less Greek' remain as a 
 permanent possession in after life. The facts themselves may be forgotten, but 
 the mental vigor gained by striving to mister them will not he'lost." 
 
 (^)uestion (8) also received a fair share of attention from tiioso who answered 
 my circular. Some took strong ground in support of it, while about an equal 
 number as vigorously opposed it. It was seen that if there was some way of 
 making universal, what is now the general practice, of having head masters'and 
 principals present as wlrixorii momliers of the board, when discussing school matters, 
 that there would be no need for any legislative enactment on the subject. And I 
 suppose the practice will not become universal until school boards become educated 
 up to the fact that the assistance of the head master in dealing with school affairs 
 is as indispensable as that of the lawyer when dealing with legal matters. 
 
 Question (9) fared like its i)redecessor ;— for the present, at least, if school 
 boards practice reasonable liberality in paying their head masters, the profession 
 can well afford to leave the subject in abeyance. 
 
 Those who will read the subjoined selections from my kind correspondents, will 
 find these questions, as indeed all the other topics, discussed in an exceediiiHy 
 interesting and intructive manner. " 
 
 [The following replies to Prof. MacDonald's circular given here are typical of 
 all. Some others appear in the Appendix. The figures on the left hand margin 
 refer to questions on page 132.] 
 
 (1) 
 With -.'egard to the .scholastic requirements of head masters, it seems to me to 
 be almost imperative that the master should not only have a general acquaintance 
 with the principal subjects taught in the schools under his charge, but also be a 
 master in the subjects which he is to teach. In calling attention to the need of 
 a general knowledge; of the subjects of a school curriculum, I wish not to recom- 
 mend a sjiecialist's knowledge of all tliese subjects. He may, I think, have had no 
 training in some of the less important subjects ; but in" such eases his general 
 intelligence and his developed power of acquiring knowledge quickly, wiTl soon 
 render him, in some degree, master of the subject. For example, a well educated 
 
 
135 
 
 iiKiiin a very short time ina> make himself muster of sucli sul.jeetsas hook-keenincr 
 nii.l some of the suhjeets whose eiem^.'nt8 alone, are taut,'ht in our sehools. Such 
 aeciui.intanee as this is quite r ' ..ent for tiie head master's work, which is here 
 ussiinied as one ot suiiervision. 
 
 _ Ijut the heml master, in fact, evMuy leadin- teacher, should be thorou-dily trained 
 HI the subjects that he teaches. He sliould not be merely a few steps in advance 
 onus pupils. Assuming, then, that the head mast -r should U: a specialist in the 
 miDject he teaches, and also bo sufficiently acquainted witli the subjects of the 
 school curricu urn to do effective supervisiuK, what regulations are best adapted to 
 stv'Ui'c these objefts. 
 
 _ The thorough mastery of any oik; suljject or group of subjects cannot be acquired 
 in my opinion, from a eour.se of study in any of our academies. A university 
 course seems to be necessary for this, an.l furthermore, not a pass course but a 
 specialized or lionour eour.se. Accordingly I sh.nild deem a university degree with 
 honours on .some suojcct.s, or its equivalent (the e(piivalent being accepted upoa 
 good reasons being shown) an indispensable requirement. 
 
 Unfortunately all university courses and degrees do not imply the same stand- 
 ard. Consequently tlie C. P. L, on the advice of the Superintendent, must either 
 select a iuiml)er ol universities who.se courses are satisfactory (a plan in .some res- 
 pects the most satisfactory) or confess their inability to select and rec.uire of all 
 candidates who have taken their degree with distinction an additional test. Per- 
 liaps tlie most satisfactory test under tlie.se conditions is an e.Kamination on many 
 subjects of e(iual degree of .lifficulty ; l)ut rather an advanced e.Kamination in the 
 subjects, e. g., mathematics which the candidate intends to teach ; and thus accept 
 the university degree for the remainder of the subjects. Our present Grade A 
 (cla.ssical or .snentitic), examination does not test high attainments in any one sub- 
 ject or group ot subjects, but rather a general knowledge of several subjects. This 
 general ac(piaintance iniglit be a.ssumed to be possessed by tiiose who hold univer- 
 sity degrees, hor tlie degrees represent mucii more than knowledge.—they repre- 
 sent training, whicii the prescpo e.Kamination .loes not necessarily imply. 
 
 With regard to the pro:. -Monal re(iuirements of head masters, the first tiring 
 necessary to be sure of is that those who are to hold the foremost positions in the 
 teaching profession are not only learned but have the capacity to teach. 80 I 
 should re, pure something more than certificate of success in passing e.xaminations 
 in professional subjects. 
 
 _ Now what is the best test of this capacity to teacli? Experience in teachin" 
 IS thought to l,e a test,-but who are the judges? If the failure is complete o7. 
 the succes.s very marked the public Hnd it out, but in the great majority of cases 
 there IS notlungtorely upon except public rumor, and this very often is misleadin<' 
 A long period ot service iiMifferent places may sift out the chaff; but if several 
 years of successfu experience, four 01 more, are required by law, the good man or 
 woman who is we 1 qualified at the end of one year's service, and who is acknow- 
 ledged competent by all, is kept out of the good positions, greatly to the detriment 
 of the profession and the public. For in all probability such a man will leave the 
 profession and other goo.l men will be deterred from entering it. The profession 
 then only becomes a sfepjun^/.^^foTie for good men and the refuge for the incompe- 
 tent and unenterprising, who, by virtue of importunity, attain unto the highest 
 positions. . o " 
 
 Some other test must be devLsed. The best seems to l:,e a course in some pro- 
 fessional school or .Normal School where frequent opportunities for teachin- and 
 frequent criticisms of such edbrts are given. Here competent judges have an 
 opportunity to form an opinion. i j o 
 
 Furtiiermore, I have been going on the assumption that teachers are Ijorii, not 
 made, bortuiiately tins assumption is not entirely true. Courses in professional 
 training sciiools not merely test the candidate's capacity for teaching, but also 
 instruct hun in tlie art. " Homini,, dum docent, discunt." Such instruction 
 
186 
 
 t 
 
 conios host. It sp.-nis to mo, thrn„<rl, ,ct,ml tnad.in- un.I.r tl... Miporvi.ion, criti" 
 cism ami 8.,p...tum „t an ..xp,.,.i..n.M..l Unu-h,r. llfuc. I .slmul'l roKar.l much 
 prac K-al w,.,k as ,„ost important for tl,.' f.-ntinK an.l training of the can.li.late. 
 miw. '. ? Masters shoui.l 1.. intelligent toa.h.Mr.-that i., shoni.l „«t 
 meicly he al)le to teach well, but know the how ami why of th..ir art. This ia 
 l-nrtienlar ly important wh^re the Master is afterwar.Is ,.alle,l upon to supervise. 
 
 ileneo I think they slu.uld heeome familiar with the best literature upon e.luea- 
 tioiial theory. i • 
 
 Here I should con.sidor not the rule,, ami tricks of instruction the more imix.rt- 
 ant, but the general principles an.l objects of teaching. Accomingly 1 consider a 
 course m some professional school in which there is an abun.laiwe' of practice, and 
 a good coimse ,n the priiyiples and objects and methods of teaching, an indispen- 
 sablo condition not me.v y for testing the candidate's capacity for teaching, but 
 also for training him and instructing him in the principles of his art. 
 
 Unfortunately, however, thi.s test is not always .piito satisfactory. It is one 
 ttuug to teacii a single class in a department under the control of the regular 
 teacher and another thing to keep two or three classes working smoothly and 
 well,— to dmw up a time table and keep everything working smoothly, etc., etc. 
 ^ome men do excellent work with a single puiiil or group of pupils, but fail when 
 given charge of a school. 1 he tutor and the schoolmaster are quite ditterent. The 
 ■only way in which one can be teste.l and trained in this respect is by Iv-in- "iven 
 «onipk>te charge of a school. Hence 1 should recommend a year's experiimce in 
 aiUhtion to the course in die training school. 
 In conclusion I may sum up for — 
 Scholastic : University degree with honours from a recognized university, or 
 
 If necessary an examination (advanced and .lifficult) in the subjects to be taimht 
 by the candidate— /« adi/ifhn. ^ 
 
 Professional : Course in training school and one year's experience. 
 8. .Supervisor.s, yes. Head musters, no. 
 
 Note.— &7<r./rt*>/«V- requinnnent^ for head master in Scotl.-.iid— a university 
 degree with honours from any Scottish or other recognized university 
 
 Profe.ssional— a course of lectures on teaching, 3 mimths, teadiing 2 hours per 
 diem in some public school, and the favorable report of the supervisor. 
 
 (2) 
 
 1. Tliore should be some hea.I masters holding classical " A's," some scientific 
 and some holding both. Perhaps one or two or (^en more subjects might be 
 dropped from the present " classical," three or four from the " scientific." and yet 
 more from the .syllalnis of the graile in which both are combined. 
 
 2, There should be a university degree, covering two or three classical papers, 
 and two or three scientific ones. Our county academies should not do any " A " 
 work. I would not ab,solutely shut out non-university men as academic teachers : 
 nor would 1 grant " A's " to any one without a government examination. 
 
 * :, },?^' Y'"' ^ Sovernment examination on professional subjects, all candidates 
 for A to be examined at the Provincial Normal School, examinations to extend 
 over eight days and to include laboratory work, determination of plants, etc 
 
 5. A good substitute for what I have outlined in (4.) 
 
 6. Not needed. 
 
 7. Already covered 
 
 8. Certainly not. Head masters and supervisors should be present as advisors 
 not as c.r offirio members. ' 
 
 - ^; • ^^;^ ^'^y ^"™ *'* sufficient salary and let him be supposed capable of selecting 
 tor himself a sanitary and pleasant home. " Residence and garden " is a survival. 
 
137 
 
 Concerning' tlic present division of aciuloniic licenses into cIiisHiciil and scientilie, 
 I have no syniiiatiiy with either, us liiey ar ■ at iae.>,ent. Katiier wonld I favor a 
 rotnrn to the old ^'rade A, with its soniev, hat wider syllahus, than the present 
 hifureatures. ( »n its face it may not in.licate its superiority to tiie present 
 classieiil A, but tlie far more seurchinj; character of tlie examination neci'ssary to 
 obtain it, made its attainment imimssible to one who can get the present A clas- 
 sical with minimum a<,'i,'rcj;ate oidy. 
 
 The one, who could obtain the old ;,'rade A was almost of necessity a college 
 man, but to-day those who are little more than children are getting it "from some 
 of our academies, and in how many cases do they really knvw the subjects on 
 which they have passed. As an academic teacher I can easily answer as to that. 
 Let us suppose for a moment, and tiie supposition is an extr.ivagaut one, that they 
 possess a good knowledge of those particular books specihi'd in classical grade XII. 
 la that a sufficient qualitication for the teaching of those works? A much wider 
 knowledge than what is implied by the ability to ^lam in these works is necessary 
 to teach them. Therefore, if the present conditions continue to hold, the posses- 
 sion of a college degree must be made imperative, if oidy to save us from a crop of 
 immature ami half-educated teachers. 
 
 I do not think much of our scientific " A,"-- its pretentions are great, tJie results 
 small,— but even if it were otherwise it is a superfluity in a public euucational 
 system. One who knowh as much science as is specified in the grade XII require- 
 ments, would almost be fit for a Harvard professorship in .science ; and the field 
 for til- exercise of all thi.s seience in the public schools of the country wouhl V)e 
 limited indeed. In the first place there is no demand for scientific A. In the 
 second place there is not now, and cannot bo for many yeur.s, the means for 
 teachnig its subjects. In the third place it is not public school but university 
 •work. 
 
 But when we consider that, as in the case of classical A, a half-knowledge only 
 is necessary for the attainment of scientific A, the case becomes much worse, for 
 there are few things more dangerous and more incompatible with the spirit of true 
 education than a half knowledge in the field of science. As thing.s are at present 
 in this and other matters we are, I am afraid, leai)ing after the unattainable. 
 
 Failing anything better, I would suggest a return to the old grade A, with its 
 mixture of classics and science- of the latter, not very much,' but known tho- 
 roughly, in the true scientific spirit — together with a coUi'ge degree. 
 
 As regards the jirofessional training I would favor jwrts of (4) and (5) along 
 witli (6), i. e., the .successful experience, first rank Normal School diploma, and 
 the examination mentioned Ijefore those who are recognized authorities in such 
 matter-s, and especially would I lay stress on the candidate's being thoroughly 
 practised in the teaching of academic subjects during, at least, a year of Normal 
 Scho<3l attendance. For it seems to me that, though skill in teaching, per se, is 
 the most important factor in primary work, yet a solid, far-reaching knowledge of 
 the subject taught is of equal weight in academic work, and nothing tests this like 
 teaching. 
 
 To (8) I would give an unqualified assent. 
 
 With respect to (9), mucii as I would like to see such a reform carried out on 
 account of its securing greater permanence of position, yet I liardly think our Pro- 
 vince sufficiently educated up to the advantage of such a step. 
 
 1. The possession of either A (CI.) or A (Sc.) should be sufficient for any liead 
 ma-it^^r in o\ir Province, as the classical side will give .sufficient science for ordin- 
 -ary requirements and the scientific side sufficient classics for all ordinary students. 
 
' 1 
 
 188 
 
 2. If tlioic was an ostal.,;mli('.l FruviiK'ial iinivorsity, not a toiicliinc Init aik 
 cxuminiiiK l""l.y, an.l all tlio ,.o11,.k...s f.,ll„w..,l tl... same (M.rneiilmn, rtl.ink a 
 univurHity ;,'ni.Inat.) hIk.uI.I he cntitlcl to r...o^;niti..u n« an "A" teacher, but only 
 HO far as hcIi.. ar.sl.ip is .M>nccnie,l. As things an- I think th(! i-rcsent system tho 
 best. 1 am also of oi.inion that none of the aeademi.is slioujd sociwl their strength 
 inpuHhinK thrnuah " A" students. This work should be done by our univer- 
 sities. •' 
 
 V ■'' i^^'."'!' ''''^"''''"''' ^" Pi'"f'wi"iial re(iiiireinents I am of tiie opinion that no 
 .Normal .Seii..ol can, for laek of lime, ^ive the reijuired training, and tiiat tin; liest 
 a liea(l niaster can obtain is by actual teaching in i-reparatory work. The tiino 
 unit of f(Mir years is perhaps too ^ivat. 1 would oppose any universjiy Kraduat.; 
 takiiif,' a head master's position until he liad attended Xorinal .Sehooi for a full 
 year, unless lie had previ,.us|y atten.led such a school, or at h-ast could -mvc evid- 
 ence of three years' siiccssful experience as teacher. My opinion is that a short 
 time say „,ie year, .spent m teaching, preparatory to attemliii^- Noimal School, 
 would be more beneficial than olitainiiif,' a .li|>l..ma first and then teachin- Tho 
 tramiii- m the first instance would -ive the diploma hi-ber merit. Head ma.'^ters 
 should have formal training, but it slionld, I think, be h.ul while holdinu a H 
 certihcate. * 
 
 With reference to (8) I can .say yes, except that it iniKht be injudicious to dve 
 them voting powers m Hnan.mil matters. In all other matters pertaining to .schools 
 I t link they .should have a vote. As a general thing the Head Master is appealed 
 to by the hoard m such matters, and it would give him a better status if he were 
 recognized by law as one of the IJoard. This principle is followed in all the 
 denominational academies aii.l eolh-giate schools, their principals being members 
 of tho senate exemitive. 
 
 As to (9) I hardly think this ufm/ could be adopted in „ur nrovince It cei- 
 t.uiily woul.l give the Head Mastei a better standing linanciallV, ami possihly a 
 more lively interest in the institution in every way. But I hardU think we have 
 arrived at that stage of advancement yet. 
 
 There are other matters of imporfance to be considered in this connection, and 
 one especially is this : Ifow is a Head Master to teaeli snccessfullv all the sulnects 
 ot the three grades when he is entirely alone? .Another; Should these smalk-r 
 Academies be obliterated and the larger ones take their students? And, are there 
 not too many such High Schools and Academies ? 
 
 (5) 
 
 The head master shoul.l have all the rpialifications included in (1) ind (2 ) But 
 of course he may have all these parchments— and in (2) they mav really be all 
 they seem— and yet the holder may be utterly unfit for the position. And he 
 may be splendidly fitted for the work, without having any sheepskin at all. 
 
 4. (iood, very good, capital. 
 
 5. Would depend altogether on the value of a first rank Normal School 
 diploma. 
 
 6. Good -if the examination is such as tf- test— not mere cramming ability, 
 but sound, thorough, systematic and sympathetic knowledge of language and litera- 
 ture. The " professional subjects " do not interest me at all. 
 
 7. Four or five years as a student in a high school taught by good teachers 
 who did not think that their chief duty was to prepare their pupils for such an 
 examination as the N. S Provincial examination. Then a year or two years' prac- 
 tice at teaching in the same or a similar school,— ami all" the time live for and 
 work at some special subjects—say two or three— oiu- of which ought to be a 
 science, and one a long, broad and deep course of readin'^ in Englisli literature 
 I am thinking of the reality now and not of the form at ..11. Of .'ourse a real 
 
130 
 
 t'duciition mill ii retil ciiltiirc ami u leiil pniimnition nmy bo covered liy a ilc^^ruo 
 mill IV Niirtna! Si'lmol (li|)li(inii, I'ti'., liiit iiiy olHiu'vatioii IcadH mti to tliiiik that as 
 a gciioral nili' in tliin lunviiict! at Icusi -"^lU'li in nut tlii^ (.awL'. 
 
 8. Don't tliiiik. 
 
 9. Haven't dcciikHl. 
 
 ((1) 
 
 Without Koinj,' into detail.-* of i(naliK(;atioii8, I may sny tliat what you want in a 
 head Miast(U' in tlic warm, ^'I'niid, niin,'n(!tii', domiii.int inuidiood whii'h .<.\viiys and 
 mmilils yonn^' minds towanls nil tiiat is ^ood. (li-t a man su cndowi'd, till him 
 full of all manniT of knowlod^'i', j,'ivi! him a fri'i- iinnd and put him in i'liarj,'e of a 
 Hchool : then you will have education. 
 
 (7) 
 
 1. Yes, if he has assistauts who can tiike up tiie ntlicr side of the work. I 
 helieve that every head master should lie a cuileije i,'radiiate. 
 
 2. Successful e.\pei'ience in pi't'|)aiatoiy or Sf/i i/rit'li' work is not sufficient for 
 head master. He should have some experience iti high school work as well. 
 
 .■}. No one. preparing' for the position of head master should receive njirnt rank 
 Normal School diploma until he has ijuarantecd to a certainty tiiat Ik* eau teach. 
 Having done .so, it would he inmaterial wiiether he had the suhseiiuent experience 
 or not. 
 
 •t. A l)etter way would he to have a head iiiiister's diploma, or in faet, a diploma 
 for grade A awarded only after successful teaching. Awarding the diplomas hrst 
 and getting the successful expinience afterwanls is very iisky. 
 
 "). Written e.miii.i. are a poor test of fitness to handle a school. Every teacher 
 should have (iractical experience under the supervision of some experienced head, 
 and should have handled a school with goo(l success before promotion to head 
 mastership. 
 
 6. Yes, the lack of tliis i-^ 'tie of the weaknesses of our system. In no other 
 way can the IJoanl be kepi in r-, uqiathy with the teachers and in to ,, h with the 
 workings of the scln" 1 A business company would scarcely meet to consider 
 their affairs and arrange for successfully eondu(;ting their business without having 
 their manager with them. Yet school boards meet to discuss school matters 
 without having with them any on(! who knows anything of the details of the 
 school work. 
 
 7. 1 think head masters would prefer getting reasonable salaries and providing 
 their own i-sidences. 
 
 (8) 
 
 1. I regard the possession of Itoth classical and scientific "A" as a good 
 scholastic equipment for head masters. 
 
 2. One of the A's with a university degree may not be any better, and in 
 many cases will prove not equal in value to (1). One must be pretty good all 
 round to pass in classics and science and come out trong in (I), but a specialist 
 may slip through a university, being strong enough to pass on one of these and 
 pretty weak in tlie other. 
 
 3. At the present time with the facilities we have at hand for prejiaring 
 teachers and with the demand for the best, I would not set up a standard lower 
 than (1) or (2). 
 
 ■4. This training for some wxmld produce a pretty good teacher ; for many 
 others it would not prove sufficient, and in no case would it be equivalent to, or 
 tike the place of some training U!i;'.i v gjicciali.st-s in tho tnt, and .some exi^crience 
 in teaching. 
 
140 
 
 5. This meets the case pretty well; but I would put one veiir's teaching 
 before attendance at tiie Normal School. " 
 
 6. I do not think that anything can or should take the place of some Normal 
 bchool traming if we would produce the hcst teaciier.s. T\u: three years' experience 
 might, prove of some value, but in that time the teacher might get into wrong 
 habits and methods in some particulars that would never leave him, and still 
 prepare himself to pass a pretty gocd examination. 
 
 7. One year's teaching folio w.mI by one year's attendance at the Normal School 
 find again followed by two years' teaching. I would then ad<l th.; examination as 
 in (b) 111 order to be assured that the teacher is keeping up his readin" and 
 possesses an active and vigorous mind. "' 
 
 8. I can see an advantage, indeed many advanto ,es, that wouM result from 
 such a law. 
 
 9. No. Instead of tiiis make the salary suHicient, and let them choose their 
 own residence. Much however can be said in its favor. 
 
 (9) 
 
 I do not think that it would be at present opportune to exact any further 
 quahhcations for head masters; but as a hypotlieticnl affiiir, I beg to point out 
 what may in the course of time be considered desirable. And for convenience I 
 shall divide all our academies into two classes— one class supplying one academic 
 teacher, and tlie other, two or more. The former I shall designate\is the .■^^naUer, 
 the latter as the hayfr academies. 
 
 The teacher employed in any one of the smaller academies cannot, for sheer 
 want of time, follow the present high school course with anytliing like thorou'di- 
 ness. As it is not advisable to attempt the impossible, he sho'uld tench thoroughly 
 such parts of the curricuhim as best meet the needs of the section and i)upils as a 
 whole. This will determine the character of his work as cla.ssical or scientific, and 
 determine the choice of the school board in engaging a head master. Hence, A 
 <cl.) or A (sc), as the case may be, will be suthcient for the smaller academies, or 
 rather, good work can be done by either, even if he were not able to make time 
 tor all the subjects of the course. In the larger aca.lemies it would certainly be 
 desiral)le that the liead master should hold a scientific and a classical A, for he 
 would thus be able to effectively supervise the work of ail his subordinate teachers. 
 
 But for these institutions it seems to me that (2) would be, on the whole 
 preferable. A university degree with all that it implies, i. e., a ri|)e scholarshii') 
 audn mindljroadened ami cultivated by contact for a considerable number of 
 years with highly educated men, ought to be worth more than the qualifications 
 implied under Iroth " A's." 
 
 With regard to professional requirements, I think either (•!,) (5,) or (6,) ought 
 to be sufficient, and .some one of three, or an e(iuivalent, should be C(J1isidered 
 necessary. I believe that experience, if successful, is more valuable than Normal 
 school training only, as a preparation for head mastership. The management of 
 the .school as a whole— teachers as well as pupils— requires experience which ho 
 Normal school, from the nature of things, can give. 
 
 8. Yes, most certainly. 
 
 9. No, let the town provide the salaries. Individual tastes and local conditions 
 should be allowed free exercise in such matters. 
 
 (10) • • 
 
 With regard to requirements as to scholarship, what we want in a head 
 master is a thorough knowledge of the subjects he is to teach and a general 
 knowledge of the subjects to be lauglil i)y bis subordinates,— meaning bv 
 knowledge not of course the mere possession of a stock of information bift 
 
141 
 
 a living, powoiful knowledge. I do not tliiiik that tlie possession of both " A " 
 certiticatos, or of one of tlie A'a with a university degree is an adequate guarantee 
 of the possession of the knowh'd<^e specified above. In my opinion the best 
 guarantee would l)e the eertifieate of a teacliing university of good repute and 
 sufficently iqujppcd, to tiie effect that the candidate for head masterslup lias pur- 
 .«ued a course of study, including advanced work in tlie department he is to teach, 
 and work in representative subjects of the department, Uie teaching of which he is 
 to supervise ; and, of course, thnt he has pursued this course of stuily with earnest- 
 ness and success .Such certificate would usually tab; the form of a degree with 
 honors. 
 
 As answers to the (3) therefore I would suggest : — A degree from a good teach- 
 ing college representing advanced work in the department to be taught and a well 
 selected course of study in the main subjects of the department to be supervised. 
 
 With regard to professional requirenu.'nts what we want in a head master is that 
 he should be a good teacher himself and alile to stimulate and assist his subordi- 
 nates. A man may be a good teacher himself without any formal study of 
 education, though most men would be the lietter, much tlie better of it. But such 
 formal study seems to be a necessary condition of the efficient assistance of sub- 
 ordinates. A head master therefort;, whatever his natural gifts, should I think 
 have pursued a coiu'se of study of (vlucation, historical, theoretical and practical, 
 either at a Normal School or at the education department of a university. The 
 practical study should include lioth teaching under critical supervision and criti- 
 cism of teaching carried on in his presence. If a (candidate is put through a suffi- 
 cient amount of such practical work, his teachers can easily form a judgment as 
 to his ability or his promise as a teacher and as a supervisor of other teachers. If 
 his teachers can certify only to promise as n teacher, it would, I dare say, bo well 
 for him to untlertake subordinate work before that of a head master. But if his 
 teachers can certify to ability as a teacher and promise or ability as a critic of 
 teaching, I think he might well be jjermitted to undertake head nuister's duties at 
 ouce. To condemn him to four or three or two years at subordinate work as a 
 preliminary seems to me to involve no gain and much loss — at any rate little gain 
 and much loss. I would myself have much more confidence in a recommendation 
 from the teachers of a Normal School, provided, they had had suthcient oppor- 
 tunity of judging of a man than in the recommendation of a head master or a 
 school board, even after years of e.Kperience, 
 
 With regard to (8), I think it undesirable that a head master or supervisor sho\dd 
 be a full member of the school committee or board, but desirable that he should 
 meet with such committee regularly and have the right of taking part in their dis- 
 cu.ssions. 
 
 As to (9) the more attractive the position of a head master cuu be made the 
 better. But I should th'nk that most men wotdd [U'efer the amount of the rent 
 of the house and garden to the house and garden themselves. There would <lu\ibt- 
 less be advantages however in having a residence for the head master near the 
 school building, and the provision of such residence would perhaps add to his 
 dignity, or rather his office, in the esteem of the comnuuiitv. 
 
 Discussion ; — A lively discussion followed as to whether a head niaster should 
 be a college gradup^o or not. Professor P^aton held that college graduates should 
 not be kept on the same footing as others. They might pass on professional sub- 
 jects only. 
 
 Inspector jMACLEUiAX protested against the proposition to shut out from high 
 school preferment all but college graduates. It would prevent all but the sons of 
 the comparatively wealthy from the attainment of honorable position in the 
 t(!aching profession. Some of our best and most successful high school ieachtis of 
 the past had not been college graduates. Many of tne best at the present time 
 
142 
 
 were not. He believed in settin-,' a hijrh standnr.l of scliolarship, Init not in 
 specifying tlie means by wiiidi it shoul.l be attained. The pnblic could in general 
 be relied upon to form a correct estimate of tlie value of a teacher, even if unstamited 
 l)y a college. 
 
 Inspector Ciuio :— I am the last person who would deprecate in any way a 
 college training, but 1 am surprised that Prof. Katon would advise the revival of a 
 system of licensing in this province, wiiich, when it was tried, threatened to impair 
 the efhciency of the high school work. Wlicii the law was in force admitting 
 college graduates to an academic license by passing on professional subjects 
 alone they came in by scores. 
 
 The education de])artment, seeing the danger of allowing such a loose .system of 
 selection in force, revoked the statute ; and lo .' the result, not a dozen appeared the 
 ne.xt year for the grade A examination, and f.'w of these were graduates. 
 
 Sir, as long as college graduates show incompetency by failing to pass tiiis " A " 
 test, and every college has had its rpiotii, they siiouid be treated as ordinary mortals 
 and be subjected to the same treatment. 
 
 Had we one central teaching university it would be different, but with several 
 colleges having different curricula it would bo most unfair and very detrimental to 
 our educational system, especially tiie liigher ilepartmeuts, to return to such a plan. 
 
 Tlie leading academies of this province are principaled l)y men who have never 
 lind the advantages of a full college course, and do ycm believe that the public 
 opinion is in error, when it commends these men to great positions of trust I do 
 not say that those men would not liav.- been the l)etter of a college training, but 
 the circumstances of their early life precluded sucii a course ; and would you say 
 tiiat these men ought not '.o enter the competition who, by their own dint of 
 perseyerarce, have reached the top of their in-ofession, a place their own intelli- 
 gence and energies have commanded ! 
 
 Inspector Roscoe argued that as many men who had got through on i)rofessional 
 sulijects only, had failed, they should be tested both in scholarship and in teachin" 
 ability. ^ 
 
 '(I 
 
 i', •■ 
 
 UoilEKT MacI,E!.I.AN, Esq., I'UiNCil'AI I'ICTO" ACAbE.MY. 
 
Otii xemon—THUJiSDA Y. 
 
 NATURE STUDIES IN THE SCHOOLS THE BEST PDF 
 PARATION FOR INDUSTRIAL 0(;(JUPATIONS 
 
 By W. R. Campbell, II A., Truro Academy. 
 
 educati: . tT mre Th rt " P 7«f T' ^^ mve a good con.mon scl.ool 
 
 to «uit the likes of tl.' tlde^'t't" void"^ Hf^Sikir ''t''' '^'T' 
 
 •specially for nonf ,S ll "were sllS nTf ^/°^•'^^ ^'"''^'■°"^ '''"•' 
 from them, but for the ment«l S L , °'; ^''" '^''''^ ''""''^'^ 'l<^"^'ed 
 such a cour e ma ■ be wfcan ot oLtni H f '^^ /*^''^'">- ^"^'^'"-"^^ *>« 
 forth some of our bes tt link s Tt fl . H' "''^ f-'O'" these schools came 
 
 large number of subjefts "ue of tlit , .ll' 7''", /'T '^■'^'''°"' ^'°"''^'' "^"''-^"'^^ 
 that a teacher who Ins tiJen bk *^'^,^"' ^^.^^^^''^ ••<- "^d, others widely diversified, so 
 
 has only touched u,t Tl^; ut ^ S^'S'^i^^^^^lS'''' ft ""' '''' ^•^"'■^«' 
 accomplished a small part of his work \ '"•'""to d duties and has as yet only 
 
 jects on the cou.se ' 's uly o „ „ di-^^l 3e ori"' '"'"'"^ "'*. •^'•^^'''^" •^"'' 
 were rea.lin", spellin- cmmlZiZ vK i- f ^^''' common schools. These 
 
 analysing, g^n^;, fet^ S hS^'::J::::i;f ^ J'""?">^'-' i--"n, 
 music. From this he ],ropeP,)n,I fn ', li' ^*'''"'"!'''y' '"''thmtitic, nature studies, 
 
 ordinary chil . To ' S |t nvir?H .% ''\°''™'''^ °^ '^'"^^ =' '^""'•«« f^^ the 
 at least in a practical en M.v7h '' '" ^'^' """""" "'•"•"* ^'^^ >"'^tter 
 
 responsible („,■ thfe, 1 „, °,, S ,vi |J,,I ' 1'"? """ ""!""' '^'"'''■'- "'«' »" 
 
 i. .i..» subjects is 1.4" w™u.: ' t^„ :s:;;rsi?i„','^ '' "'""' 
 
 attention are being neglected and tbnf „,„•■' J'^V V -^ '^'^'^^'^"'° "'°''*^ 
 prepared than fornunTy^ S Z,, "^^rSl^T. '''"^^''^ '^''^ "•«'''^^' 
 creditably ,,ass tbe entrance to trOH. a 'ia T .'°""*''>' ''^'^«"1« ^^ho can 
 
 Thei,. .,. .;,e. o,™tr il°„t S'l^wr s:iir™s,.|»" !r,' -""'j 
 
 ...utl,e»»t,c. shew. „ marked falling „«: The ,liHlc„It,, ho^everis' nol t '"{1 
 
 (143) 
 
144 
 
 The prinmry object of all education shoukl be to j;ive the child such a tiaininp 
 as wil enable hnn most easily to secure the necessary con.forts of 1 fe .and tZ 
 sanie t.me to be of most «ood to his feliow-citi.ens and the comnn.nity i, gj e af 
 Hence he three R's should form the basis of all prin.ary educatioa It % Uth 
 this end in vujw tha; ^Jre state undertakes the education of the child and says 
 
 S:SSt;^t';;:t:;?ldf"a:!'^'''^"'^''^^ ^...clre,uiriesthe child tobS 
 The fundamental duty, then, of each teacher should be to see that every child 
 can read, write and speak good English readily and correctly; and that he has 
 such a knowle.lge of arithn.etical operations a/ will enable 1dm to pe f^,rm the 
 rmhnary business operat bus of daily life with reasonable accuracy. ThesT Ire 
 he most valuable educational acquisitions which a boy can carrv with him into- 
 active life and having these, he is well ecpnpped for the duties of every day .fe 
 It 1. a matter of regret that so many of our young people of to-day le'ave school 
 
 W. R, Campdeii., B. a., Pkincipai, Truro Aca 
 
 DEMY. 
 
 Mthout being able to write a paragraph of good English or to apply their know- 
 ledge of .nathema ics to the ordinary affairs of business life. There is another 
 du y equally devo y.ng upon the teacher, and one which he should never loose 
 ■sight of, naniely, the moral and patriotic duties, the forming in his pupils of fixed 
 and honorable character, the implanting in their minds of a sense of right and 
 wrong, and the cultivation of that love of study and that generni intelligence which 
 will enable tiiem in after years fitly to discharge the duties of citizens. 
 tl.„ .T"i f! 'o^^-f-y"'. J'as a secondary or si)ecial aim. namely, the presenting of 
 the whole held of knowledge and providing tne student with the means of 
 properly ex..rcising a 1 his powers, mental, moral, aesthetic, manual, physical. A 
 glance a the diversihed nature of these subjects will shew that no one subject or 
 set of subjects can give the required training, but that the whole field (.f knowledge 
 must be .scanned, and that studies the most widely diversified must enter into the 
 course To accomplish this, the student must follow an extensive range of 
 subjects, many of then, widely diversified and indeed bearing no relation what- 
 
 ,, nl " 'r ' . ■ If *" '"'•' ^"'^"'^''' ^'^'^"'y' ««%"'>Pl'y, language, ancient and 
 node.n, literature, mathematics, .science, philosophy, physical cfilture, manual 
 training, music, drawing, painting, modelling, and perhaps some others. I am not 
 
145 
 
 course'of our public '20"' is tide £"' , ofTh ^'T'' ''^ ^^^'^^^^ "" ^'- 
 lonal value in themselves not on Iv tllZ ■ ^'''"" '''"''' ? certain e.lucat- 
 
 individual in after life Init a so Jom the Cn? ol" ""'^^'^^y r^ be to the 
 pupil receives from a thorough Z7\l!^ \ \ I '"''"'''' 'liscipline which the 
 It is further evident\tn;f'h S^T^^^t^l!^''' ''^T'"'-''^''^'^- 
 even from the standpoint of mental lisciDlinp%li f"'"' ''^"''^*'^" ^■'^l"" 
 deeper interest in the pupil than o hpv .n. "^ ""," ^"bjects, too, awaken a 
 
 and thus are more VShhToJ^^Tn^Z] TV""-^^^^^ 
 
 study should be to deve C po we. i th" Ir " l^'T' ^^' "''""^'« «"^1 "^ «" 
 for himself in whateve/^dTlabo he mlv ^ ' ''"''' '' ^"''^ '^^""^ ■'^^^It^ 
 ^ think intelligently, and to expTei' ^^j^lf ^"^^^^^^^^^ 
 
 Now the power develonedbv thp if, „l,,„f properJy either in word or act. 
 
 or in other words the power develop /.? any subject must of necessity be specific 
 to another subject rrnTi^^STaUire^T^^ ""h '"'J*^'* '''' "°' b/tranfferted 
 good linguist does not Tke a c'fo.lsc tist or'tl " ^"""i '^'''T^ ^^°'" ^^•"g « 
 not necessarily produce a L'ood .r hV . ' i / P°'''"'*^"^'='* ^""on' both does 
 power, however,'wil IbegeS Una much asi'/T' 7 ''''' '"''vt-'-matician. This 
 and accurate forms of ex^Sn 1? hL , '^«^«'°P« careful habits of thought 
 an extensive and varied m re of st k v even f"^.,'"? ^^'' '''''' *'^''^" another for 
 schools it is found inthis act tint t"^^^^ ^he lower grades of our common 
 developed, niany-sided, irberatmlnlS ll.ra^rw^L'n"'"' ^° ^"'"^^ ^'^ ^""^ 
 
 fui];i;^:j^s\:nr;;t:;!;e?tf .r A^'7- \ ^i^-^ t '^ «°- -^^ 
 
 must be specialists, that to givep' lstne;al I.s is "but to ' '° h' '^"""^'"^ ^^^ 
 mg of the subject, to make them flin.>nnt n f !u \ *° ^'"'^ *'^'''" '^ «matter- 
 
 in their ideas.' Better ttn m ich kEed<^^^^^^^^^ °^ "'"^'^ ^"^^ ^""'=^''t'-'^ 
 
 to express oneself accuratelyTrnd^^S; /^^^^ '^ think intelligently, 
 
 question that, if all subiects ^irp n^f ' 7 ^ , P^^'r'y- This leads to the 
 
 proportionof timeshoui; Segi^, to each ' Prof H '" Wf''' '''''''' '^'^^^ 
 best authorities on educationaUaue classifies the v.ln""' . .."" riJ'*'' °"^ °^ '^'^ 
 somewhat as follows • Lan-ua 'e liter vh.ll " "^ ''° '^'^'''''' ^"bjects 
 richest in incentives, dcve o"p nit nVpt !' ^7 '"'^ philosophy, being 
 permanent habits of ^3 anT action Tl'"'^ '^T'^'^ interest ' develop! 
 the highest educational value Of 2e other \- '">'"'' ^^"^ accordingly 
 science, manual training, have «; sochd ^r etl^ca inf '' ^f^hematics, natural 
 but a feeble educational value It's notmv „; "!'='"^'^'f «"^l consequently have 
 educational values, but, i? t va u of a sK W S? Y" ^^^P^P^^^o discuss these 
 in incentives, surely those sulyect which il' 1 n^ . T'"''''''^ ^^ ''' "-^'^"^^^ 
 subjects in which pupils may exnmi, e 'be u^ if • ^ '''' ^"'' ^^ ^''^^'^ "''^h nature, 
 at least to be as riih n incS^ti- es i ^-0.7 ^f "' f '^"'''^ ""^^ "^"^'^ l"'^"-^- ""g^t 
 educational value. Naturrst, die^ hn w ^ philosophy and consequently of equal 
 refer n.ore particularly to he m^onX^Hl;' ^'?"'," ''''""^^^ ''^ "'" ^'^hoofs (I 
 tive injury to the schL. krhar S i 'I, T "l^ '?'}^'^''' ^"* ''''•« ^ P°i- 
 teaching in many of our high schools a ui co .1. "'"'S 1 '^'' '""-''^^''^ ^'^^^■'tific 
 of the student is more n.atu ed ?n.l nVn ''"''tf ''^'^ ^^«'"' hut in these the mind 
 influences which may re"S." lT 'n "ourie / t ^^.^P^ble to any injurious 
 ^ure^iessons which are ^^n^^or,/ ^^^ ^l::l/:^^t:;^Z 
 
 ^^'^zis'z^:^^:^^::^ 1 tir t r "'^^ '"^^ ^^^'^^ ^^ — 
 
 required their pupils in the six h s^^enth "nd etbt "'"1 "^"' '^^^''"'^ h^''^^ ' 
 after lesson in Huxley and Yeoman's nhv^o^ni^.. -^ '' *" memorize lesson 
 studies^ Better no teaching Zr:j!'^^^,,':^'::;^^^^ 'f ^"^^"^'^ 
 to the pupd, butthe mind is being over strained by tryi,:^ Vg^l^^f ,;1^ Jl^J 
 
Iff 
 
 146 
 
 ideas. The ordinary liealth reader, whi' should form the basis of very valuable 
 lessons to classes, is beinf{ debased to the same end. 
 
 Another method and one more common than the last, is that of dictating a large 
 number of facts on a given subject and requiring the class to write them down and 
 then memorize them. It proves superior to the last, in that it may be a very good 
 «xercise in dictation, but beyond that there is no difference ; very clo.eely allied to 
 this is the method of telling the class everything. If pupils do not remember from 
 the first telling, it is told again until they are forced to remendjer from frequent 
 repetition. The defence for such a system has always been, we have not time to 
 investigate, we have not time for research The course is too elaborate, too many 
 subjects, too mnch work. The evil is rather within ourselves. What we want is 
 not to teach many things, but to teach well ; better a few lessons well taught than 
 much stuff poorly taught. There are many teachers but few trainers, many who 
 know how to tell, but few who know how to get the child to ol)serve, reason and 
 understand. It must be evident to every one that a large number of teachers 
 grossly incompetent in the matter of teaching nature studies and in fact any sub- 
 ject, ccmie forth each year; teachers who have no special idea of what is re(iuired 
 of them, and who have nc natural ability to adapt themselves to the requirements 
 of their pupils. One has but to spend an hour in many of our schools and hear 
 pupils repeating parrot-fashion, words of which they do not know the meaning 
 much less the ideas. They give to their classes what they have themselves received, 
 words without knowledge, the shadow of education without the reality. So long 
 as men and women are allowed to enter the profession without any guarantee of 
 their ability to teach, so long will this state of affairs continue. During the year 
 ending 1894, the last for which we have any official returns, there werr 2,351 
 teachers employed in the province. Of these only 432 or not one-fifth had been 
 over 10 years in the ])rofession ; 950 or two-fifths had been 5 years and over in the 
 profession ; of these 288 were new teachers. Wlien we consider how few of the.se 
 ever had any special training or in fact ever attended a good school we cannot 
 wonder at the results. 
 
 (1) To remedy these evils we must have better training on the part of teachers ; 
 not until new teachers are put under a thorough course of practical teaching under 
 skilled supervision, can we look for better results. Model schools or district 
 institutes, should be established at different centres for a part of each year, leaving 
 to one central normal school the advanced training. By grouping large numbers 
 of students at one centre it is impossible to give each student that personal 
 attention which is necessary to secure a skilled teacher. By slight modifications 
 of our course of study, many of our high schools aided by the inspector could give 
 candidates a professional training, which woidd be productive of immense good 
 throughout the schools of the province. 
 
 (2) Better supervision over those engaged in teaching. Country schools suffer 
 most from lack of proper supervision. City and town schools have a system of 
 inspection either through their supervisor or principal, which does much to remedy 
 this state of affairs. New teachers too, learn by contact with the older and more 
 experienced ones. Our inspectors are doing excellent work for the country schools 
 but with their one ot two visits a year, t.iey cannot accomplish what is necessary. 
 If district supervision could be added to inspectoral visits much good would be done. 
 
 (3) Fewer text-books in our schools. With many teachers, text-books are Tised 
 as a means of avoiding work. Pupils are made to memorize everything without 
 regard to its practical use or their ability to understand or apply it. It is easier 
 for teachers to sit down and hear pupils recite than it is to handle and teach the 
 lesson. Such teachers are false to their trust and dishonest before God and man. 
 I hope the day is not far distant when there will not be a text-book in the common 
 school course but reading, spelling and problems in arithmetic. 
 
 4. More interest on the naic of teachers. Many teachers feel that when school 
 is dismissed their work is done until to-morrow. It is one thing to lock up the 
 
147 
 
 vorrre, of tl,c school at the eii,l of ll,o ,1,,,. it |s „„„,|,„ ,,,i„^ ,„ ,, . 
 
 rephec I l.ave not time. It takes all my evenings to Lrrau-^e n v work so as to 
 
 ha f of t r"!:: r °' '•" ""'^ '°^ "^^* ^••^y-" ^^«^' 1 -" -^fe in a 7ing that o,: 
 half of our teachers never give any forethought to the lessons rer.uired for thechv 
 and don t even know in the morning whether their lesson s all b on plant^' 
 old X The" dS h " '^''Tir''''^ °f -location is from the simp^to £ 
 
 nnHl'tl^l ^1 / , '". P™^'''' knowledge of the object comes names and not 
 n 1 the chdd .s famdiar with the object is the name of any significance Sen " 
 tion, observation imagmation, are as well developed in the child as hi the man 
 Memory, except in its simplest form, is not developed. To exe ctse m c o " ' t 
 
 teaching of science is void and of none ..{feet, nay, that it i^ worse U at ih.snn 
 actively injurious effect on the mind, which' it deadens with m an ut^ ^ 
 
 caii3 absurd aie the ideas children acquire of things of which thev are told hnt 
 ^vh,ch they have never seen or handled. Let us turn childr n out ^ the n .5 c 
 
 choo^ Ignorant, if need be, of many things that are taught ^J tlieni now iS t 
 thu dea be rooted ,n their minds, that this worhl is made up of red h^nlr and 
 
 US ur her Idea that words are worse than useless unless they ca be 3i'ed"n 
 Thel J •"' f '""'■"' '° ''f "n^'«rstood objects of sense anrthought » 
 vlou V '"" «^"f »r«/t"dies should be to cultivate habits of corr ct obser- 
 
 dpil in" '"'' '" ^"y"''"' ^'^'^ ^^' •"^^'^'''^^^ often quoted of masters who had 
 deve oped the power of observation in their pupils to such an exLnt tha t pv 
 could tell everything that was exhibited in a .shop window wherinnir^msit^ 
 Observation in itself liowever may be of very littlJ worth. May c"le hive tit 
 power of observing even to the minutest -letails things in which hey afeinlJIested 
 without deriving any practical value from it. Such .>bser Vt oi^ou i ,^8^!^ 
 developed in many animals. It may be nothing more than load ig o tl7m i d 
 with disconnected facts none of which have any bearing upon the oUier Ob er 
 vation to be of any real value must be organized. It must relate ont thinrto 
 ano her and interpret one thing by another? It must find rel. ions o^cau^ !, d 
 Winatlr^'"" '"""'' °'"^^"*'°" "^"^^ ^« ^^"--'l by thought, rLon'^Jnreven 
 
 notbel_mve that it is;^ the love of wilful destruction that^mX.s hid tear to 
 
 P ob-iVly tlZl': f ""• . 'I 7 '""^- ^'" ^^"^•^'"" "f t''^' infant niiud we ^uld 
 probably see that a desire to hnd out something was the prime cau.e It is 1p 
 duty of the teacher to guide these desires and direct these'in esti'a ions i i Icco, 
 dance wih nature and not kill out all such desires by try n^To Stem nd 
 with words without meaning, and facts which to thenf hav nc real" y Ce 
 In^nVTf"''' ''" i.nagination; especially that imaginatio^^ whi Zenabks t I'e 
 pupil to deduce general principles from particular occurrences. BraTystei"' c 
 
148 
 
 1 
 
 study of nature, Labits of carefulness are formeil, carefulness in making observa- 
 tions, in performing experiments and in drawing conclusions. It '.vill consequently 
 lead to more accurate fo'insof expression and hence forms an excellent training in 
 the use cf language. 
 
 Nature studies then in brief may be said to develop the power of observation, 
 encourage habits of investigation, stimulate the imagination, quicken the power of 
 thought, secure more accurate expression, give tlie pupil a deep and abiding love 
 of nature and lead him from nature up to nature's God. 
 
 [Halifax Herald Report.] 
 
 Discussion : — " This paper was well received and aroused a spirited discussion. 
 
 Principal McVicar was on his feet at once when the speaker took his seat. 
 He considered this association as the best he had ever attended, and that he knew 
 was the general belief. He thought the need of the time was better teachers. 
 Let textbooks be discarded. They were oftener a ' indrance than a help. He 
 believed that district institutes would greatly improve matters. 
 
 Principal Smith, Guysboro, found the work too severe, and the time too short 
 in order to get over the work of the high school course so far as it relates to the 
 })rofessional qualifications required of those who write for license. He conteiidoii 
 that most of the teachers would come from the h-;h schools for years yet. The 
 time taken at the normal school for professional work was far too long. 
 
 Professor Haley, of Acadia College, gave an illustration of a model lesson by 
 a New England teacher, to illustrate the teaching of geography. His idea was 
 that if we used right methods the trouble would not be to get children into the 
 schools but to keep them out. He advised geographical excursions, etc. 
 
 Professor Eaton asked if that sort of lesson was on the line of concentration. 
 
 Professor Haley said ihe trouble was with the teachers. They required several 
 years of thorough trainuif;;'. They should go into teaching to stay and not drop 
 out in six months ; permanency was required. 
 
 Professor Eaton fully agreed with Professor Campbell. He agreed in the 
 practical abolition of text book'; for the common schools. 
 
 Professor Smith, of the Provincial School of Agriculture, thought the last few 
 speakers had been soaring. He thought if the common school teachers were so. 
 poor, it was the faulc of the high schools for not making them better. They did 
 not teach as they preached. If they did their duty the common school teachers 
 would be all right. 
 
 Principal Kennedy came to his feet. He at once threw the blame on the 
 normal school. He did not believe that teachers were so bound down to the text 
 books as had been stated. If it were so, there was need of some heavy missionary 
 work. He did not believe it. He struck a humorous vein and convulsed the 
 audience by his apt illustrations of bad teaching through compelling pupils to 
 memorize. 
 
 Inspector Maclellan said he had heard a grade B teacher, who was also a 
 ^Tf^^mal School graduate, decline to give a language lesson when asked to do so, 
 . ..ause there was no text-book to be found in the school room. A second search 
 resulting in the discovery of a book, this teachei sat down, opened it at the 
 first page and asked in all seriousness, " what is a word " ? To this enquiry 
 came the prompt reply : " A word is a significant combination of articulate sounds 
 capable of being represented by written characters " The speaker wished to 
 emphasize the fact that, although the teacher referred to had come from the 
 
149 
 
 \V. E. Maclellan, L.I.B., Inspector OK Schools, Pictou. 
 
 Is^'ormal School, yet tliat institution was no longer turning out such work. He paid 
 a high compliment to the efficiency of its present services in the training and im- 
 provement of teachers. He thought that its influence for good would socm 1)g still 
 more widely fell. A well trained, competent and enthusiastic teacher left his murk 
 on a section for many years. He knew of one section in the county of Pictou 
 where the beneficial effects of the work done by a teacher of some twenty years 
 ago could still be distinctly traced on that and a number or adjoining sections. 
 Teachers who contented themselves with the hearing of recitations from text 
 books could accomplish no such work as this. He believed in minimizing the 
 memorizing of the text books, and, in increasing as much as possible the time d- - 
 voted to actual teaching in school. Text books should be mainly regarded as 
 oooks of reference. 
 
 Phincipal Forrest asked if it would be permitted for an old fossil like himself, 
 who was in danger of being pinned up as a specimen, to speak, fo.' a few minutes! 
 He would just like to say that there was just a little danger of "gushincr." He 
 asked how a teacher in Maitland could go to the head of tiie Shubenacadie°river to 
 show how a river takes its rise, or where a teacher in Halifax would go to find the 
 source of tlie Atlantic ocean. He believed that a school could not be well taught 
 without memorizing something. Memorizing was necessary as well as other things. 
 The geography was too diffuse. Geography could be taught all right, right in the 
 school room. He thought the discussion was in the right direction, but, said he, 
 •our fatbers knew something after all. 
 
 Dr. Haley said his remarks were really in the way of a suggestion. He told 
 that at the Sheffield high school the boys, taught without the text books, even in 
 the case of as abstract a subject as geometry, were better able to do good indepen- 
 dent work than those who had used tiiem. The Yale college examiners had told 
 him so and he did not doubt it from his own experience in that line. 
 
 " Dr. Haix said that from his observation in the German schools the use of the 
 text book should be limited just as far as possible. 
 
THE IDEAL l^RODUCT OF THE (JOMMON SCHOOLS 
 
 GRADES. 
 
 Ai.iiKKMAN \V. J. Stewari', Es(^, Chairman Hai.iia\ Sciiuui, Uoakd. 
 
 [Halifax IIerai-d Report. | 
 
 " Commissioner Stewart of Halifax was to liave read a'pajier on the " Ideal 
 product of the common schools <;rad(>s," and Commissioner McKerron of Halifax 
 was to speak to it, but he took Mr. Stewart's place in introducing the subject. He 
 instanced a case in the Halifax schools where he had visited a scliool room and asked 
 
 (150) 
 
 i 
 
151 
 
 a toficlier to teach a lesson. She snitl there were to he no Ipsaona this morning. Well, 
 t,'ive nie a lesson ymi iiave taught, he .saiil. She then got a text book anil heard a 
 lesson in geography, lie thought also she was m>t alone. In flowing sentenee-s 
 he " went for " the teachers and the schools in most seveie terms. He seemed to 
 think there were few honest teachers. Said he, are the teachers giving value 
 for their salaries? Let every teacher solemnly lay his or her hand on his or her 
 heart and ask whether he is or she is honestly doing the work which .should he 
 <lone. He thought the answer woidd he in the negative. After thoroughly rating 
 them for their inetiiciency and in many cases dishonesty, he undertook to show 
 how the work should he done. He showed how reatlily children learne i and 
 remembered a little rhyme like " He learned to Ki.ss ^'um Vum," and thoi.ght if 
 some such method was used, jiruper results would be obtained. After tinishing 
 
 VVm. McKtRKON, Esq., Commissioner of Schools, Halifax. 
 
 his exposition of methods, he asked why teachers were not more permanent in their 
 positions, or in other words, why they were so itinerant. Was it because they 
 were not paid, or what was the reason ? But turning to the question, the ideal 
 product was a thorough man. He urged greater moral training, and urged it 
 strongly. He gave a long disquisition on the vast importance of moral training 
 to the youths of the land, and shew ' d how it could be accomplished. Morality he 
 considered of more importance than any other thing the schools could produce." 
 f We regret not being able to procure a fuller report of Commissioner McKcrron's 
 able speech.] 
 
152 
 
 h 
 
 sram was 
 course of 
 f,'iven all 
 tiiiter and 
 
 D18CUSHION :— Phincii'ai, Iav, AniluTHt Acmlcmy : Idenls are very nnsatig- 
 factory tliinKs to write nl)o>it, very fhisive things to reach for, except hy novelists 
 and poets, iin.i they are on safe ground, for they manufacture not only' tlie ideal, 
 hut the forces that produce it, and according to "their skill can correlate them. In 
 this jjresent discussion we have the forces in heing, very complicated forces, and 
 out of a very vast and varied display of products, we are supposed to he looking 
 for an ideal. Will we find it, or, if the present s[)eaker dors so, will it ho at all 
 after the fashion of anything on the earth or in the sea of his neighbor's imaginings? 
 I have had a good opjuirtunity of seeing the products of our C. S. system, for as 
 pupil an' teacher I have known ii "ince its inception, hut up to the time of the 
 annmuRiiiient of this paper, I am doubtful whether I had seriously thought of any 
 particular being or character as it product. Jn common with my fellow teachers 
 of similar length of service, 1 have foliowed many ami varied careers in the persons 
 of old pupils. The \n\\\^\t, the bar, medicine, the farm, tlif ocean, the merchant's 
 office, and even, a very unique experience, the convict's cell, have sent me tokens 
 of recognition as an old teacher of some occupant, and never did I think of their 
 condition as the [)roduct of forces I was superintending. I acknowledged the 
 force of the home, of companions, of heredity, but not of the schoolroom, in these 
 products, but after all there may be floating about the direct product of our school 
 system. 
 
 But let us try to gather from our subject what the compiler of this jr 
 seeking for when he evolved the title, and to do so we must study th'' 
 study. Prominent there, we find the time-honored trio, which has 
 students the privilege to coninuuid the whole field of knowledge, and to 
 possess if he jileases. 
 
 Our ideal reader is not only able to niad to his own satisfaction, but to please 
 his listener, for his training has given him something of elocutionary skill, and 
 added to that, a tact for seeing the meaning readily, together with a taste for the 
 most profitable kind of reading. Antl he is going to revise the good old custom in 
 the winter evenings, of reading aloud to the assembled family circle, instead of 
 selfishly burying himself in books, or newspapers. Does our course make such 
 readers? Is the source of the pupil's reading such as to give him a taste for good 
 and beautiful literature? Is this spending of a year at a reading book that does 
 not contain as much as a good daily newspaper, often perhaps familiar beforehand 
 through the reading of the last class, this repeating and re-repeating of old lessons 
 until the time comes for a new book, to profit? Do those books contain the most 
 judicious kind of reading ? Are our teachers getting the kind of training that will 
 enable them to produce our ideal readers ? 
 
 Then our ideal pupil is a good writer. No flourishes, but a plain honest hand 
 that tires no one's eyes or patience, but lies level, black and upright before you on 
 the page. His copy-books have been so well graded, his teacher's watchfulness 
 so ever present, that he is a good writer, and prides himself upon it. He knows 
 when he writes a letter, just how to fold the paper to fit the envelope, instead of 
 thrusting it in a bundle. The address, looks fair from ea.st to west, and is plain 
 enough too to run the risk of the dead letter office. He knows that his writing 
 is the first testimonial he will present to the world which he is eager to enter, and 
 he is not afraid of its inspection. 
 
 He is able to perform the fundamental rules of arithmetic correctly and neatly 
 rather than quickly. There is no more chance of making a mistake in the addition of 
 a lengthy column than of a dwarf one. His knowledge of fractions wdl enable him to 
 add or substract 3 and two thirds and 4i without reducing to improper fractions 
 and finding the C. D., and there is no chance of his misplacing the decimal point. 
 He can tell you the number of cords in a pile of wood, the number of bushels in a 
 bin of grain, the thousands of shingles or feet of boards necessary to cover a build- 
 ing. He may not know how much above cost to put the price of his father's hay 
 or butter or beef, so that a certain per cent may be dropped, and the old man still 
 
153 
 
 rmko a profit of nnotlier rortnin prr cent, hut lif is nl.lo to tell tlio cdst of Imtter or 
 bonf, or hiiy, iind whether ruling pin'os are giving him a profit or not. He .loos not 
 griove if lie isignornnt of tlio metiicHystiMu even, for liis fiitiicr lins told liini how 
 «asily the pupils of a former generation dropjied into tiie use of S's anil ots. when 
 their use was made a necessity, although tin.' hovf and girls were not educated up to 
 it by years of drill in the arithnielic. He is mitisfied that when the government 
 calls upon men to use metro and kilogiam, that they will pick tliem up as easily as 
 their fathers did the $'« and ets. and that necessity after all is the onl' '(chool- 
 nmster that educates people up to the point of adopting the new for the old. He 
 is not (piite sure about true discount l)Ut he can calculate the interest on a note 
 correctly. He can keep a correct account of his doings with his neighbors. It 
 may he, all done in one liook, |)referabiy a m^h book for he reached that point in 
 ethics which reipiires him to owe no man anything, but that book shows him his 
 standing, and can yield him just as plain a balance sheet as if he knew all al)out 
 ledger ami 1. 1\ , and all the multifarious rules of journalizing. He can write you 
 a note, if necessary, without leaving out the essential parts, and can give a receifit. 
 His knowdedge of drawin', enables him to draw the plan of the interior of a 
 house, and a fair elevatior n it. He cannot perhaps, draw a cone in different posi- 
 tions, but he can sketch ■. maze (u i nuntry roads to the untravellod stranger. Ho 
 is not goo.l at ornamer a! l-wignft, *ait he can sketch to the carpenter what he 
 wants in door or bookt c^e, ■nn drav a field or garden i»!ot, perhaps nu-asur-j its 
 angles and estimate its are.- Wha' Httle manual training he received has been in 
 connection with this, so th»t 'aa iaiife, at the least, can follow his pencil [uan, and 
 his designs show in relief as .veil as on the flat. He can fold and tie a parcel neat- 
 ly, can give a good point to a lead pencil, and .io many a little thin:; that only a 
 ■careful tea>;her fees can be made useful in his training.' 
 
 His careful attention to form and frequent re-writing of common words enable 
 him to spell the ordinary words in a letter, while his teacher's care in drilling him 
 in the use of a dictionary keei)s him from making a dash at the extiaordinary ones. 
 He is still hoping for the spelling reform, l)ut his teacher tells him it seems to be 
 farther away now than a decade of associations ago. 
 
 GRAMMAR. 
 
 I am afraid a rigid examiner would find his parsing and analysis a little out, and 
 his definitions not always correct, He has forgotten many of the rules of syntax, 
 and forgotten page after page of etymology, liut his faithfulinstructor has cultivat- 
 ed his ear so that it is pained by bad syntax, and has so carefully watched his play- 
 ground English that he .speaks correctly. We understand his meaning, spoken or 
 \yritten, which is more than we can say about our text books on grammar some- 
 times, and we thank our school system and take coorage, since he has been enabled 
 to steer clear of the giant despair of formal grii- .ir, and in spite of him walk 
 €rect before his castle clothed in the armour of honest Anglo-Saxon. 
 
 I would like to see tlie exiieriment tried of putting the text book on grammar 
 •out of the schools for 3 or I years, and then a careful examination made to see 
 whether our ideal speaks and writes the Plnglisii language more or less correctly as 
 the result. Will he be any more apt to say he "laid in bpd too long" anu to tell 
 his dog "to lay dowi ' than he is now? When lie hears that they are going to 
 begin the study of grammar again, will he be any the less likely to say " I ain't 
 -going to study no grammar," 
 
 As to composition our grade VIII. describes it well. "Pupils at this 
 stage should be able to express themselves fluently and with fair accuracy 
 in writing for all ordinary purposes," though how t'liey are at this particular 
 stage to do so is not, perhaps, quite so plain. But all along the way advice 
 has been given and principles laid down involving a boy who can write an 
 interesting letter home about school or scenery, — not the ones in the comic 
 j)apers, they are written by grown up boys who are paid for it,— but a description 
 

 154 
 
 that tells us plainly what the writer wishes us to know. And he has not forgotteir 
 his punctuation marks, for he has })een taught to get along fairly well with comma 
 and ])eriod, and a question mark if he needs one. The capitals are all in their 
 proper places, and if he has been taught to paragraph, the divisions are as patent 
 to the eye as to the mind. 
 
 GEOOBAPHY. 
 
 He leaves in his text book, instead of his head, the heights of mountains, lengths 
 of rivers, latituile and longitude, l)ut is able to sketch from memory a fairly correct 
 map of his country, his province, and even of the continents, lie knows a good 
 deal about the surface of his native country, the direction of its rivers, the slope 
 of the land, facilities for farming or manufacturing or mining, and has some 
 general idea of the same in foreign countries. He has pretty shrewd notions of 
 the effect of situations, slope and surroundings of a place on its climate and even 
 its soil, and can figure a little on early frosts or drought in such a locality. As 
 you see, a good deal of bis geography has been lesmed out of doors. He has 
 traced a brook to its source, and watched its work ; has seen the work of the 
 stream in bringing down its tidal sediment and wearing away the land, enough for 
 )um to understand something of what these forces have accomplished in the past. 
 
 HISTORY, 
 
 He does not know a great deal about history, but he has had enough interest 
 aroused in his niind on the subject in the school room to determine him to read up 
 as soon as be can get the books. What he has learned about the colonization and 
 discovery of his native province has whetted his curiosity about his forefathers 
 and their history, and what he has gathered about government, is going bye and 
 bye, to set him seeking into the politics of other countries. His past relations with 
 his neighbors have given him an interest in i)resent ones He has heard much 
 interesting l)iography and heard from his teacher. The lives of the true and the 
 brave have been brought near to him, and he is going to emulate tbem. He 
 knows about the government of the school section, who the members of the county 
 council are, how they are elected, and what are their duties. Ife knows who goes 
 from his county to Halifax every spring for the session of parliament, who sends 
 him and wliat he goes for, ditto about the greater personage that journeys to 
 Ottawa. In short, altiiongh not great at dates or genealogies, his human interest 
 with the rest of the big family of man has lieen touciied, and he is a better mem- 
 ber of that family, and better equipped to take his place in it, and help shoulder 
 it along the path to progress. 
 
 NATURE LESSONS. 
 
 These have been so numerous and so varied that it is hard to say just li>. w our 
 ideal pupil is equipped by their aid, but the teacher's faithfulness and the help of 
 the course cannot have been in vain ; he mi ,t have imbibed a strong love for 
 nature. He has forgotten, or perhaps, never heard the botanical terms, but he 
 knows the Rose F. and Heath whenever i . meets one of their numerous offspring, 
 n"d this acquaintance begets interest. He knows an annual from a perennial weed, 
 -tru he knows whether it is necessary to destroy the root or not. He knows some- 
 thing about grafting and sets, and altogether, his knowledge, although not very 
 bookish, is of the nature that leads to ])ractical results. And then he has learned 
 a little about soil and plant food, not much, but enough to tell him the difference 
 between hungry and fertile soil, between the food necessary for the pea and for 
 the potato. 
 
 MINERALS. 
 
 He knows a piece of quartz when he sees it in other ways than by its colour, can 
 tell limestone from plaster, gold lOui pyrites, is quite sure about iron ore, and 
 
155 
 
 certain that he won't mistake any variety of it for manganese. He would not 
 prospect for coal along the granite coasts of Guysboro, nor for gold in a Cumber- 
 land free-stone quarry, and although some of tiiis is the result of later experience, 
 the lessons of the course have had important place in obtaining this knowledge. 
 
 He knows the life history of an insect, can recognize the injurious ones, and 
 knows a little about tlieir poisons, will not kill the lady-bug and the ant along 
 with the aphis, but will recognize them as friendly fellow-destroyers. When some 
 new maggot attacks his carrot." or onions, he knows it is a larva, patiently tracks it 
 to its propogating home, preserves it till the insect appears, sends his information 
 to the man of .science from whom he receives the compliments due a di-scovercr, 
 and who sends a learned discpjisition b}' some simple formulas, conductive to cue 
 future welfare of onion and carrot crop. 
 
 E.J. Lav, Esq., PRiNriPAi. Amherst Academy. 
 
 He understands the use of the barometer and thermometer, can tell you the 
 danger of bad ventilation, learns its signs and some simple wiiys of overcoming it. 
 His simple health lessons iiavo taught him th(> danger of narcotics, the advantage 
 of exercise, necessity of care in eating and drinking, care of his teeth, how to stop 
 bleeding in case of accident, what to do in case of drowning accidents, etc., or scald- 
 ing, till the doctor arrives. He may not be able to give an exact definition of 
 loyalty or patviotism, but he feels both. His lessons on the old flag, the greatness 
 of the motherland, and the future of his native one, the stories of those who have 
 battled for what he now enjoys, have started in him a IHtle plant of patriotism 
 that is bound to grow, and has made liim a loyal son of Canada, and when he comes 
 to manhood, whether he be grit or tory, and the ideal boy is going to be largely 
 grit, he will see that his country's l)irthday is going to be a school holiday. His 
 words have not been neglected. He hiis lieen taught to love purity and truth, to 
 be honest in everything, respectful and gentle to all, .scorning a mean action, 
 delighting to help the weak, doing a good day's work for his neighbor as for 
 liimself. The.se are sonK' of his tipiipmenls, lail not all. 1 trust that along witii 
 them the true end of this training is not lo.st, the power has been put in him of 
 
].56 
 
 acquiring new knowledge. His eye and haril and mind liave been taught to work 
 together, not to pile up truths in his memory that others have hewn out of the 
 rough, but to pick up their untouched or discarded blocks, and by his own 'prentice 
 liand discovering what is hidden, to use his mind, his eye and his hand in observinc^ 
 the visible world around him and in judging according to evidence. ° 
 
 Now, I flatter myself I have sketclied quite a delightful young jierson, and one 
 whom you are all glad to know, and you all know him, for he is not the product of 
 our common school system ; i. e., the ideal product. If not, where lies the fault? 
 In the course ? Assuredly not, for it has everything down in l.laok and white 
 that I have mapped out, and a good deal more. Does the course then demand too 
 much ? You would be loathe to think so, after accepting it unreservedly for so many 
 years. You would be throwing a grave reflection on your judgment. Are our 
 boys and girls not of the make up ^) digest this food ? You reject that. Again, 
 our teachers themselves are the r;oduct, and presumably the best product of this 
 course, for it all leads up to the teaching syllabus. This increases our perplexity. 
 V\ here then is the difliculty ? It must be in the teaching ; these good appliances 
 must be misused. In what other way can we explain it, if our ideal is not to be 
 fouml, or if so rare us to be a museum curio? My own opinion is that the teacher 
 in the mass must be blameable, but he has not to bear all the blame, the heaviest 
 part of that rests on the system that calls an unskilled workman to perform skilled 
 labor ; that puts into the hands of the raw apprentice the costly tools and delicate 
 material that should fall to the lot and leaves it there. But the workman must 
 serve his apprenticeship ! True. He v.uist make mistakes 1 True again. We are 
 forced to employ this unskilled labor ! But the terrible truth is that the apprentice 
 takes possession of the shop, and although he remain an apprentice ( 11 his .lays, he 
 stays there. Even after a normal school training, he is but an apjirentice, his^min- 
 ner of approaching his work a little more confident, his tools a little brighter, l)ut 
 perhaps not more skilfully handled when he comes to use them from 'inder the 
 eyes of his master. 
 
 And I am here to testify, that in scores of hamlets in Cumberland and Colchester, 
 when those jjolished tools, that went so smoothly through the carefully prepared 
 material at Truro, struck against the rough knots of the law material that they 
 were thrown aside with the terrible disappointment of failure, often never to be 
 resumed. 
 
 The trouble then is, that the apprentice does not go on " from more to more," 
 mainly because his training ends too soon. Where is this after help to come from ? 
 There is the rub. I have my own opinion about it, but that is another matter. 
 
 I may ])e allowed a word of explanation here. I took the liberty of changing 
 the title announced for my paper. It should be not The, but My ideal product of 
 the Common School Course. The ideal product of my idea cf a course might present 
 more striking peculiarities. I do not want its shoulders to he burdened by more 
 than it has to bear. 
 
7th smion—FRIDA Y. 
 
 THE PART WHICH THE SCHOOL PLAYS' IN MORAL 
 
 EDUCATION. 
 
 Bv Prof. W. C. Ml- ay, M. A,, Dalhousie College. 
 
 no.-al Education 
 (n) Its r-i-oblein. 
 
 Among the many notewortliy changes whicli have recently 
 taken jilace in the interests of the eihicational public, is the revival 
 of interest in the moral anil politica) bearings of education. As 
 evidence for this, one m-ght mention the several text-book.< on Practical Ethics 
 and Civics, intended for iise in schools, which have been published within the last 
 cwo or three years, also the recent outburst, in this eouatry and Great Britain, of 
 popular interest in religious instruction in schools. For the strength of the 
 demand for religious instruction in public s".hocls lies in the belief of its advocates, 
 that religious beliefs aie vitally important for cwic as well as for private virtue. 
 
 This in,^reased interest in. moral rnd civic instruction is, however, a revival 
 The recognition of the moral and civic value of education is as old as the ancients. 
 .No one, so far as I know, has attached more importance to moral education than 
 Plato. In the •' Republic " we have perhaps the best discussion of the object, the 
 methods, an 1 the instrumentb of iiu.ral and civic education.* 
 
 h\ our great P^nglish clasiico, the same prominence is given to the moral side of 
 education. According to Miltor,, the object of education is " to repair the ruins of 
 our first parents." (Tractate on P^ducatioi.). Locke also says, "that which every 
 gentleman desires for his son, besides the estate he leaves him, is contained in 
 these four things. Virtue, Wisdom, Manners, and Learnimj * * * * I place virtue 
 as the first and most necessary * * * * I put learning last ..:id think it ^he least 
 part."t 
 
 The partial eclipse of moral education in this century was no doubt due partially 
 to the spell which science, with its nnivellous discoveries, has cast upon the 
 men of thi? time and tlie consequent magnification of the importance of know- 
 ledge in education. Ifc is also in lome small measure due to the gradual 
 disappearance of the private and boarding schools. The* schools professedly put 
 morals and Uianners first and knowledge secoiid. The public schools with their 
 large numbers and short hours, their inevitable examinations and their inspections 
 cannot give as much attention to moral training. 
 
 The present day enthusiasts lor moral edr.eation have unfortunately too often 
 identified the objects of moral and of intellectual education. They seem to think 
 the object of each is increase of knowledge ; in one case it is increase of 
 knowledge of nature, and of man, his occupations and his history ; in the other it is 
 
 '[Note. 
 
 Of Nettleship's essay on tlie " Theory of Education in the Republic of Plato " 
 
 ' — 1--1- - 1 ..1 .. tic statement of 
 
 treatises on the 
 
 (published in Hellenica by Longmans), which is little more than a systematic statement of 
 Plato's theory, Prof. Laurie says it is "the most admirable of all modern tr< 
 
 Philosophy of Education."" 
 
 ( t THOuauTS OH Education, f } 134, 13ft, 147, (Quick's edit.)), 
 
 (157) 
 
U ) 
 
 158 
 
 increase of knowledge of right and wronp, of the good and had, of tlie nohle and 
 base. Accordingly they attenii)t to use the same means and methods for leacliing 
 morality that have proved successful in teaching knowledge. To this want of 
 discrimination b(!tween the objects of moral and of intellectual education we must 
 attribute the use in the schools of te-xt-books in morality. 
 
 But the objects are quite different. Moral education is concerned with conduct, 
 action. Intellectual education has for its object either increase of knowledge, or 
 increased capacity for acquiring knowledge. Moral education lias not done half 
 its work when it has oidy imparted correct ideas of right and wrong. It has not 
 formed the desired hal)it8 and hence has not developed character. The mere 
 possession of knowledge of right and wrong does not necessarily lead to virtuous 
 conduct. There must be not merely knowledge of the right, but a disposition to 
 do the right. 
 
 The great difficulty of moral education is to produce their willingness to do the 
 right — the will inclined unto righteousness. Any theory of moral training which 
 does not recognize that the disposition towards virtue is the first thing to be 
 aimed at, and that knowledge of virtue is only of secom' iry importance is already 
 doomed to failure. 
 
 But some may ask, is not action influenced '..y knowledge and may not the 
 piesentation of moral truths be the most effective way of securing good conduct? 
 The difficulty of moral education, it is said, is to supply effective motives, and is 
 not knowledge of right one of the most effective motives to v'rtuous conduct? 
 Ye&, we may answer, knowledge may be the most effective motive for the t/ooil vion. 
 But we are concerned with boys and girls, with children whose powers of grasping 
 moral truth are limited and whose characters have only begun to develop. How 
 appeal to them ? Ho.- incline them towards right doing? 
 
 We cannot disjiose them to right action by appeals to reason, let us see if we 
 can attain the desired end by appeals to their instincts. 
 
 Are children naturally bad ? Do tlu-y begin life predisposed to 
 ^*^ '^o"""'*' evil ? Some of you no doubt feel inclined to smile at these quo 
 tions. They ha -e a strong theological flavour about them ; and 
 they seem to be of no vital importance to him who is interested chiefly in the 
 easiest way to prevent mishievous boys and talkative girls from turning the school 
 into a pandemonium. Yet this question of the natural disposition of the boy or 
 girl is a most important one for any theory of moral traiiiing. The parent or 
 teacher makes certain assumptions about the lioy's propensities and forthwith pro- 
 ceeds to devise ways and means for expressing or developing those natural 
 inclinations. If the child be predisposed to evil, the only course to pursue is to 
 eradicate the bad. The nethod adopted is usually one of punishment, or an appeal 
 to his fears. The teacher or [larent endeavors by liberal and frequent castigations 
 to readjust the balance of pleasures and pains in favor of right doing. Moral edu- 
 cation then becomes a kyid of birch cure for inborn depravity. 
 
 In the Tractate on education Milton says, that the task of education is " to 
 repair the ruins of our flrst parents." In other words, the parent or teacher must 
 recast the boy's nature. This belief in the total dep.avity of the boy is not merely 
 distasteful to those who like children, but is sadly discouraging to the earnest 
 teacher. Well may the teacher ask himself in tones of despair, • How can I 
 succeed, if upon my shoulders rests the great task of recasting the child's nature.' 
 ' There would be some hope of success, if my work were merely to guide and 
 direct a nature already pre-disposed to goodness.' 
 
 Not only is this belief in the native depravity of the child sadly discouraging, 
 but it t3nds to defeat every ettbrt made to make the child better. Experience has 
 taught us all that lioys and girls generally act up to the opinion which we form of 
 them. If we are suspicious of a boy's truthfulness or honesty and let him .see 
 our suspicion, too often he will lie to us or deceive us. On the other hand, if he 
 
159 
 
 ' -nows tliat we trust him he will seldom wilfully deceive us. If I)oys come to the 
 conclusion tliat they ure to have a liad name, they seem disinclined to forego tiie 
 delights of law-breaking ; hut if they feel that they stand well in the esteem of 
 ■others, they delight in maintaining their reputation. 
 
 Now, if a teacher looks upon his pu|)ils as little tieiids or demons, who are quiet 
 only becauce they cannot help themselves, very soon tho.se active little fellows 
 unconsciously will set about exerting tiiemselves in accordance witli the teacher's 
 expectations. I say 'unconsciously ' ; for they are quite the victims of suggesti(jn. 
 The teacher l)y word or act lets them into his fears or anticipations, and that 
 •thought takes possession of then- active little minds, and no sooner is it in pos- 
 session than it sets the small boy in motion. 
 
 Let me quote from a very suggestive work on education by Guyau. "The 
 state of the child at the moments of its entrance into tiio world is more or less 
 comparable to that of a hypnotised subject. It is peculiarly open to mij(/esfw?i. 
 Everything the child perceives will therefore he a suggestion. This suggestion 
 will give rise to a habit which may sometimes be [)rolonged through its lifetime, 
 just as the impressions of fright instilled in children l)y nurses are, as we know, 
 perpetuated. The moral art of suggestion may be defined as the art of modifying 
 an ii'.diviilual by persuading him that he is or may be other than he is." Again 
 he says : "It is often enough to tell children and young people or otherwise lead 
 them to believe that we assume this or that good quality in them, to induce them 
 to exert themselves to justify the opinion. To assume in them depraved senti- 
 ments, to reproach them undeservedly, to treat them badly is to produce the 
 contrary result." " All education indeeel should be directed to this end, to convince 
 the child that he is capable of go(jd and incapable of evil in order to render him 
 actually so." * 
 
 What is the true view of the <hild's nature ? Though we must reject the idea 
 that the child is naturally depraved, we cannot take leave of common sense and 
 fiy to the other extreme and believe in the perfect goodness of children — a belief 
 eloquently ','t;iended by Rosseau. Yet, if one were compelled to choose between 
 " total depravity " and " perfect goodness," one would prefer " perfect goodness." 
 There is more hope and I believe more truth in it. 
 
 But a middle course is open to us. The child is by nature neither entirely good 
 nor bad ; but we believe flie ijoivl in him predominates. He is susceptible to 
 appeals of love, of justice and of honor. In fact the boys who are full of energy 
 and are likely to turn out great men are more easily moved by such appeals than 
 by those of fear and of self-interest. The boy is a bundle of possibilities- — possi- 
 bilities for good and for bad. The issue of those possibilities dc[)ends largely upon 
 'ais surrounnings and his early training. If his surroundings evoke the bad within 
 him, tiie bad side of his nature will develop at the expense of the good. If they 
 appeal to his better nature, the bad will be suffocated and '.[.". boy will grow up 
 strongly disposed towards goodness. 
 
 The enviromnent plays the important part it does in tlie child's 
 ^"^er'vironineiit.*" "'0™1 development because of its suggestions The young child 
 is a bundle of uesires and impulses. He is always doing or trying 
 to do something. He is overflowitir; with energy. He requires nothing t*.. urge 
 him to be up and doing, but he dnco want something to do. Tlnre is no settled 
 purpose in his actions. He is active simply becausf ''C delights in being active. 
 The objects, the movements and remarks of person.; .ibout him suggest tc iu.u 
 
 actions, and instinctively he acts upon the suggestion, 
 strongest instincts, imitation and curiosity. 
 
 They appeal to two of ius 
 
 How man h»8 Some One may ask how has it come about that these instincts 
 
 become so respon- , . , - 
 
 alve to environ- which 
 
 Rscnt, 
 
 make a child so responsive to his surroumlings, are so 
 strong and play such a large part in the child's life ? 
 
 liH 
 
 * Education and Hbreditt, p.p. chap, I, sect III. 
 
 A -^ *■ ' 
 
in ' 
 
 100 
 
 ill 
 
 I'^very one is more ( ■. less familiar with that j^reat fact first studied scientifically 
 by Maltluis, nr:.! ■ :"u r-.vards inmle liy Darwin tlio. chief idea of Iiis explanation of 
 evolution. lift '■■■ ■■■.. airuggle, a keen coniiietition in wiiieh that type of being, 
 human, animal or ^i; mt, succeeds best whidi conforms most readily and completely 
 to its conditions of existence i. e., its environment. That type of being which d,»:ri 
 not conform to its enviro!.>aent sooner or later disappears. For exam}i!c (lie 
 weavers of tiie early part of the century found tiieir environment suddtiily an'l 
 greatly changed by the introduction of machinery. Those wlio reailily (hhipteii 
 tliemselves to the new conditi(.ns nnd learnt how to manage machinery, proHjiered,. 
 but those who persisted in following the "Id methods, soor- expe .eiiced t!i,: Ml 
 effect of poverty and gradually the class of weavers disappeared. \\ e huve at the 
 present time a good illustration of the pressure which enviwnment puts upoi, ibe 
 class and the individual in the case of the Tmk. The Turk is trying to go\ern 
 his kingdom by ancient methods— methods, mo! e; ver, quite acceptable to the world 
 two centuries ago. Unfortunately for the Tuik, times have changed. The old 
 environtr.i Jit has passed away. And now unless he conforms rec^ily an(' com- 
 pletely U) the pressure of his environment, he too will disap'K'nr fium' tbe active- 
 scene of iii;-'-' .'trngglc for life. 
 
 Th" operation of this law which requires ready and complete aduptation to 
 to envireinnent, has eliminated the u^.ajority cf the stiff-necked an 1 tiiose who 
 defiantly resi.'<t tiio deuibcd? of t},r>ir surroundings. Perliaps this work of elimin- 
 ation has been considerf.'.h' wctl r.iteil in iieent times by the great increase of 
 liberty. For more liberty nseuMis, as niay readily be seen in the case of liberty 
 of trade, mmv effertivo comprii'':7'r., a ^ti>'Ht'7- struggle for success. 
 
 The result tlien of the operuliMi, of this law which eliminates the stifil necked is 
 to brill,.' about tlic survival of those who 'ire su.sceptible to the pressure :<v sugges- 
 tion.sof environment. The civilized nations are growing more social, boauvolent, 
 charitable i. e., more susceptible to the appeals of the environment. 
 
 If any one here has not already noticed iiow very susceptible he or others are to- 
 the influence of < nvironment, let him recall how his feelings, his thoughts, and 
 very often his acts have changed as he has passed from one environ me at to- 
 |:i>other. Sometimes (he change excites disgust with self, and we lament our 
 instability. These changes are however but the workings of the instinct of 
 conforming to our environment. — This instinct is a legacy of our successful 
 forebear.-;. 
 
 The ihajority of our methods of social reform rely upon this instinct. Tiiey 
 cannot ro.;ipel a man to become lietter, but they can surround him with good, 
 influtiices and trust to his responsiveness to the better surroundings. 
 
 Moral training The child ill early life is largely under the sway of its instincts- 
 if"^"v*^ironment °^ ^nutation and of curiosity— instincts which render it peculiarly 
 responsive to the suggestions of its environment. The child's 
 conduct may accordingly be influenced by the teacher through mgnfMum, which 
 calls the instincts of imitation and curiosity into activity. Hence the moral art of 
 control is the art of suggestion. The suggestion, however, is through the environ- 
 ment. Accordingly, the art of moral training consists in so manipulating the- 
 child's environment that certain actions follow and are repeated until the acts 
 develop a habit. 
 
 The School and the , ^^^^ ^^'^'^""^ P'^^^ "l'°" ^^^^ child's life through his environment. 
 boy's n'orai de- The importance of tJie school in the moral development of the 
 ve opment, j^gy ^^.jj; (^^pp^j „pQ„ jj-g importance as a factor in the bo"'s en- 
 
 vironment. Is the school a prominent factor in the boy's environment? a'' 
 it influence the boy as no other factor does? In other words, does the ache- 
 a hir<ie part in the boy's life and does it play a new part? 
 
 By environment we mean much ;r, -e than the material object., ith . 
 person is surrounded. His associat -is books, and the opinions. 
 
 
 ch a 
 
 cial„ 
 
 political and religious, of those aboUu n.m, are included in the meani,: ■ •': the termi 
 
101 
 
 School vs. Home 
 Environment. 
 
 environment. In fact, persons, books and opinions nre the important elements in 
 one's environment ; material objects are almost unworthy of notice. "With this 
 conception of environment before us, let us look at the change the school brings 
 into the boy's environment. 
 
 Jiefore school life begino, the boy moves in a very limited 
 circle of friends and compani.ms. He knows little of anything 
 beyond the home circle. The school atmospliero is quite different 
 from that of the home. In the home afediod reigns. The atmosphere is friendly. 
 Consideration for one another prevails. Hcyond tlie home, rompetition reigns. 
 Every one has to stand on his own merits. Love roigns in the home ; Justice in 
 the school. The petted boy, the Hellish boy, the mean boy, who imposes on every 
 one in the home, meets with little considemtion and often unfriendly treatment at 
 the hands of his school-fellows. He begins to find that he cannot impose on 
 others witli impunity. If he wishes to share in the enjoyments of others, he must 
 show himself ready to contribute to the enjoyments of others. 
 
 The school is a society in miniature. JS'ot only is a l)oy taught justice in a good 
 school, but he finds that dishonesty, untruthfulness, all meanness and every dis- 
 honorable act are detested and often severely punished. And perhaps the severest 
 punishment which he receives— the punishment which he dreads most—is the 
 disapprobation and contempt of his fellows. 
 
 Is not the strict code of justice and honour, which rules English gentlemen, 
 largely the product of their great public schools? 
 
 No doubt at first th(; boy feels a great difference between the kindly air of the 
 home and the somewhat chilly air of justice which pervades the school. So great 
 was the chill which tiie .sensitive John Locke experienced when he entered the 
 school of the flogging Kusby, that he ever aftc^r condemned public schools. Yet 
 Busby's school fortunately is no more, and the days ,if Busbys and of young savages 
 are past. And now even the shy boy soon feels at liome and ex]>eriences the ex- 
 hilaration of a new life when those strong social feelings of comradeship, of loyalty 
 and affection for school and its associates begin to a.ssert themselves. No better 
 preparation for citizenship is possble for our boys and girls than a course; in a 
 public school with a healthy moral tone. There we learn independence, fairness, 
 honour, friendsbip and loyalty. These we have impressetl upon us in a way that 
 moves us,— how much others detest meanness, treachery, unfaithfulness and dis- 
 honesty and how affection and kindness call forth their kind. 
 
 Doubtless many of you wtio are anxious to do the best for 
 your boys and girls are becoming somewhat restless under these 
 general remarks, and would like me to .say .something al)out the 
 part the teacher can play in this training in morality and citizenship. Can you, 
 I ask, do anytliing more tiian direct and control the'boy's environment? Should 
 not your first care be to secure a good healthy tdiie in the school— a healthy con- 
 tempt for unfairness, meanness, untruthfulness, dishonesty, treachery and tale- 
 bearing? Boys are particularly sensitive abo it points of honour, meanness, fair 
 ness and treachery, and are very ready to respond to high appeals. (By appeals I 
 do not mean lectures, talks. Boys loathe such things. But expect good things 
 of them, trust them, show your contempt for unfairness, etc., when such matters 
 arise in the daily intercourse of the boys one with another.) 
 
 Does not the whole problem of the moral training of the boy lie in the control 
 of his environment ? The teacher's task is not to recast the boy's nature, but to 
 direct it, to influence it as it develops. If you attempt to do more than' prepare 
 the soil, sow the seed and keep away destructive intruders, your boy grows up a 
 weakling, without self-reliance, wanting in resource, or he grows up a youn^ savage 
 who broods over his bondage and meditates all manner of excesses when "the day 
 of liberty arrives. 
 
 11 
 
 The Teacher and the 
 Boy's Moral Devel' 
 opment. 
 
162 
 
 It 
 
 tl 
 
 l\ 
 
 \ V 
 i 
 
 Does this method l'fiiliai)s some may think that this limitation of the, teacher's 
 the "xwheV'T" ^^''"''^ ^" ^'''^ control of the boy's environment is a serious limita- 
 Power? tion of hi.H powers. But is it? 
 
 . The control of the hoy's environment is the most effective way 
 
 of influencing^ the hoy's con.luct. What you wish to do, is not so mucli to fill the 
 boy 8 miiul with knowleilrre, as to prompt him to act, and to make liim responsive 
 to the appeals of what is <-ond. Your'tirst care is to secure ^'ood acts, then to de- 
 velop right feelings, and l.ustly to fill the mind with knowledge. Now control of 
 his environment appeals tn the stronge.st instinct of the boy ; namely, the instinct of 
 imitation. You suggest by act, or word, he imitates. He is constantly endeavour- 
 ing to repeat what lie sees in those whom he likes. Unti.' his aatagonism is 
 aroused, he is like a person half hypnotised He trusts you ; v;oiisciously and un- 
 con.sciously he imitates you ; you are. ever in his thought. 
 
 The great merit of this method of suggestion is that it does not interfere with 
 the hoy s spontaneous activity ; it does not constrain, compel him. Jt merely opens 
 up lines of activity which he follows because he is kindly disposed to his surroun- 
 ings. 
 
 Nor must you imagine that this method of suggestion regards the boy as a kind 
 ot mirror, "i ou present the object, and the boy mechanically sends back the 
 reHection. Tins appeal to imitation does not imply that the boy is a mere repeat- 
 ing machine. Prof. Koyce, -.f Harvard I ■niversity," recently published' a report of 
 his e.Kpenments upon imitation. The one thing tl'iat he was convince<l of was that 
 mutation was not m.'chanical, but implied first, interprdatloii and second ivpro- 
 iiurhon of the idea in the p(!rson's own code of movements. In fact simple 
 imitation did not differ greatly in outline from that which a boy does when he 
 writes out on his slate an extract dictated by his teacher. He must interpret the 
 teachers spoken words and then reju-oduce their meaning in written symbols. 
 
 Again, we should not conclude that tiie boy's environment is of trivial importance. 
 It includes not merely the persons he rubs against, but also the the ideas, opinions 
 upon moral and religious questions of those about him, and the opinions of the 
 books which he reads. In countless ways can the parent or teacher who 
 restricts himself to the control of the boy's environment, influence his action. 
 If you control a boy's reading, his companions, iiis ideas ujion right and wron^, 
 tlic noble and the true, there is little to fear of the boy's future. 
 
 Text Books in Ethics,, "'!"' ^''' ^''''"''"' "'. text-books may be innline.l to assert 
 for Schools. tliat tliere is an opjiortuiiity for text-book work. " May not," he 
 asks, "good text-books be used for teacJMng these i(]ea.«, these 
 opinions which form an important part of tlie boy's environment." J!ut J ask wny 
 be so rea.ly to i)ut yourselves uniler the thraldoin of a text-book. Of all subjects, 
 morality is least fitted for text-book teaching. A science or a theory of n'lorals 
 may be taught from a text-book, but jn-actical morality never. Our boys are too 
 young to learn a theory of ethics— a subject sometimes' beyond college graduates— 
 but they are never too young to learn the jiractice of morality. 
 
 ^Vhy is morality, you ask, the least suitable of all subjects for text-book teach- 
 ing 1 Text-books are little more than epitomies of theories and condensed des(;rip- 
 tions of facts. The only thing a boy can get from text-books is information ; 
 seldom do they excite his enthusiasm ; still more seldom do they prompt him to 
 act. Is morality a kind of knowledge— a mass of instructive facts 1 Is it simply a 
 code of laws? Or is morality something more than knowledge. A moral man is 
 no more one whose knowledge of moral laws is great than a just man is one whose 
 knowledge of law is great. The ignorant savage, who stick.s by his companions in 
 times of danger, is more moral than the university graduate, Holmes, who.se 
 knowledge of what is right and wrong, is the ecpial of that of his contemporaries. 
 JMorahty means more than knowledge. It means character. Can character be 
 taught from text-books ? 
 
163 
 
 riotlves to which 
 Doctrinal Teach 
 Ing of riorallty. 
 
 What do we iiiean liy cli si meter'/ It is not kiiowlcdj,'^, and ycit it in in a acuao 
 dependent on it. The ciinmctBr of Cromwell's Isonsides was in sojjio de;,'reo 
 
 dependent upon their religious and i al opinions. Still, knowledge in not the 
 
 central thing in charaiUer. Xor is feeling--the individual sentiments ahout moral 
 matters— chnruet'T ; and yet feelings, moral sentiments enter into character. Still, 
 sentiments are not the central thing in character. Is not character primarily a. 
 bundle of habits, and including a habit of forming habits of a. certain kind. 
 Knowledge, feeling, arc accessories Imt habits of will are tlie main things. 
 
 Can hai)it8— habit.s »3f honesty, fairness, trutiifulness, kindness, etc., lie formed 
 from te.\t-books ? I think not. Text-book teacliing, Siige lectures ami talks on 
 right and wiong, too often repel and drive boys into the very habits wliich the 
 teacher wishes them to. avoid. 
 
 The key to the formation of hal)its lies in the use of suggestion. An act is 
 suggested, and the boy instinctively imitates. Kach response to a suggestion makes 
 the suc(!eeding resjjon.se more ready and certain. Kvery repetition of an act tends 
 to confirm tlie habit. 
 
 Now the first condition to the success of suggestion is the favorable disjiosition 
 of the l)oy towards tiio teacher who suggests. The healthy contempt which all 
 boya have for moral lecturings and dry unintelligible lessons on abstruse .subjects, 
 such as arc to be found in text-books on ethics, makes impossible the first condition 
 of successfvd suggestion. 
 
 And this brings me to the last debatable question, viz., that 
 of tlie motives to which teachers of dogma too often appeal. 
 Doctrinal teaching in morality attempts, as we have saitl, 
 to influence conduct through increase of infornuitiou lint in order that in- 
 creased knowledge may inHuence conduct, there must be not only willingness but 
 eagerness to follow the path wisdom jioints out. Unfortunately this necessary 
 condition is too often ab.sent. Teachers and parents have felt the usefulness cf 
 mere doctrine, and liavi; attempted to make doctrine effective by resorting to 
 penalties and reward. The greater sucha teacher's desire to inHuence conu ict, the 
 more he has come to rely on appeals to fear and a " lively .sen.se of favours to come." 
 
 Such moral teaching is almost without a redeeming feature. It makes use of 
 the meanest motives. It <levplops either cowards or. contemptible self-seek i ■.. 
 Further, xur/i re Ki/nffiii doen not tmcli ne//-;/()ivni}iiimf. As soon as the restraint is 
 removed, or the fear is gone, the mean (le'sires and cowardly fears hitherto allowed 
 free development in one direction burst out and run riot in the soul. 
 
 SuKKestions '^^^ ""^•^' "'"''"' "K'tives Worthy of the work is love, gratitude, 
 
 and in its train come honour, justice, charity and all that en- 
 nobles and refines. This motive cannot l)e elicited by dogma. It is oidy /jrrxomd 
 intluencos that call it forth. Living jier.sons are necessary for the young whose 
 imaginations are as yet in ti.e bonds of the present. Vov the more mature the 
 thoughts and deeds of those persons who have lived and lived wortiiily mav 
 suffice to call forth devotion and gratitude. 
 
 Wh(!(i we wish to imj)art clear and correct information of right, and wrong to 
 children let us not re.sort to the dry abstruse and abstract statements of a l-'t-book, 
 but let us rather present these ideas in tin: concrete in the lives of those aijout the 
 children, , in .stories, in biographies, and in histories. When moral truths come to 
 (!hildren in this form they not merely enlarge and rectify the child's knowledge 
 they al.so strengthen his desires to imitate. They inHuence his conduct as much 
 as they increase his knowledge, and the effect upon conduct is the desire<l object. 
 
 It is the opinion of the. writer that, the most effective way of teaching morality 
 and citizenship is not by lessons upon our duties to others and to the state but by 
 surroundi," ,ie growing boy with a good moral environment and by seeing that in 
 his dail'- 'r course with his companions due regard is paid to the rights of other.s. 
 I urtiier, ijiiu the direct instruction in morality, wliicii may be necessary, should 
 be conveyed through concrete examples presented to the boy so as to excite his 
 
164 
 
 interest, e. ^., in the form of stories, liioj^rnpliies and histories ; nnd such liternture 
 should oficiipy a niori.' prominent place in o\ir coninmn school courses and should 
 he studied not for ts philological and granimntical value hut for its moral and 
 patriotic teaching. 
 
 The teacher, still more the parei t, and above all the state, should see that our 
 children "do not grow up amid inii'vo)? of moral deformity as in some noxious 
 ))astvire and there bmwse and fee 1 npi^n many i baneful herb ;uid flower day by 
 day, little by little, until they il^'i Jy ga.'" festering mass of corruption in their 
 own soul . . . but dwell in a land ol liealth, amitl fair sights and sounds and 
 receive the good in everythii.i; ; and beauty, the ellluence of fair works, shall flow 
 into the eye and ear like a Ir alth-giving biceze from a purer region and insensil^ly 
 draw the soul fnjm earliest years into likeness and sympathy with the beauty of 
 reason."* 
 
 I 
 
 Vv. C. Murray, M. A., Prof, of Philosophy, Dalhousie College. 
 
 ' Plato's Rbpublic. Jowett's Translation, 3rd Edit., § «01. 
 
166 
 
 NoTK — To uvoiil undue misappin nsioii, I winh to stnte tlmt moral truiiiing 
 conducted ns sketched aliove is not ■ ouiplete. There nre ut least two Htnges in 
 moral development. Only the first, or the atu^e of uncritical and habitual morality, 
 is considered al)ove. No better description of its i)rocesiH, methods, anil results can 
 be desired than the following taken from Nettleship's Kssay on tlie Theory of 
 Education in the Repul)lic in Hellnnka : 
 
 " Literature and the Arts, by presenting to tlie »»oal the true principals of human 
 life in the sensuous material which it is al)le to assunilate, jirepare it unconsciously 
 for assimilating those principles when presented at a later stage in a more ritional 
 form. They teach it how to live by telling how divine beings and great men 
 live and luive lived ; they teach it what to love by surrounding it with what is 
 really lovable ; they foster its acquisitive instincts by encouraging the cjuiiik and 
 accurate use; of the senses, they develop its tendency to f)rder and law l)y acrus- 
 toming it to recognize severe symmetries of sound and form ; ami Hnally, they 
 introduce it to manhoc' endowed with a!i instinctive cafiacity of doing and saying 
 tiie right thing at the right time and witli an instinctive [lerception of what is 
 right and wrong in tlie deeds and words of others." 
 
 In the second stage man begins to criticize his conceptions of right ami wrong 
 and to attemi)t to .justify them. Moral opinions and sometimes practices are put 
 in the crucible of doubt. Such self-examination and testing, however, should be 
 postponed until the young an- beyond tin- " puppy dog stage,"t i. e., beyond the 
 teens at least. Even then xious and timorous orthaloxy may a(T.use the 
 teacher of corrupting the morals of the young, as they did in the case of Socrates, 
 the first great teacher of morality, in the philosophic or second sense, to the 
 Athenian youth. 
 
 Discussion : — Prof. Macdonald emphasized the importani c of the teacher's 
 having faith in the goodness of his pupils, and trusting them if he would secure 
 that most desirable product of instruction — the formation of a sound moral char- 
 acter. 
 
 * 
 
 Prin. Calkin expressed his entire sympathy with the statements made in Prof. 
 Murray's excellent paper, and illustrated in a very happy manner the effect of 
 environment on boys. 
 
 I> -PKCTon Maclei.lan thought that the first lessons on moral and patriotic 
 duti might well be given in connection with the every-day life and affairs of the 
 schou. ooni. More time shoidd be spent in inculcating the duty of politeness, in 
 teaching nuuiners and establishing habits of honor and fair dealing. Patriotism 
 ought to begin with the schocjl-house and its surroundings. The child's public 
 duties commence with the school. Each pupil, therefore, should be stimulated 
 and encouraged to do all in his or her power to further the interests of the school 
 attended. Each one should l)e induced to contribute to thf> common good by 
 doing soniclliing towards tli improvement or adornmc of the ?"hool-room and 
 grounds. The pupils should be encouraged to take an interest in school-meetings 
 and to exert their influenci^ with parents or guardians to r ."ire iiberal votes of 
 money for school purposes. The school should be set before liiem as the prototype 
 of the state, for the promotion of whose interests it ought to be a pleasure as well 
 as a duty o labour. The speaker begged to suggest as a question worthy of 
 consideration whether something might not be accomplished in this direction as 
 well as in the direction of promoting a broader loyalty and patriijtism, by offering 
 a flag, say the British flag, for competition in each inspectoral district, to be 
 awarded ntiuually to the teacher and pupils 'if the section in such district accom- 
 plishing iir it in the way of improvement liy their own efforts. 
 
 t RiPUBLic, § 5!i9. 
 
ii 
 
 166 
 
 Pkin. Kennkdv wishwl to einplmsize one or two points. From Prin. Calkin 
 •wo have lenrni-d soinctliing in tliu inunngt'iiient of a sdiool, — k> call in tiie go(-i 
 will of the Vioy himself to aid in the government ot the school room. He suggested 
 in nililition that some of these multitudinouH things he used as olijccts tiimi whieh 
 lessons may he taught. That will change the articles gathered up by the hoy for 
 nmusi'Mient into objects from which instruction may bo drawn and useful knowledge 
 giyen. Mr. Kennedy ])aid a very high compliment to I'rof. Murray. He was a 
 living proof of the truths contended for in liis.i^i:j](jrulid paper and no man was bet- 
 ter capable of having written it. 
 
 Prin. McLeod :— I agree with all that Prof. Murray has said in his very excel- 
 lent jmpcr. I l)elieve every boy hn'^^ ^onie gooil in him to wliich the teacher can 
 appeal successfully Jt is a mistake to think that harshness :uid the rod will do n. 
 boy gotnl. Let the teacher be a triu; nuui liimself ; let him set a good example, 
 and show tliat he has tiie welfare of his jnipiis at heart, ami he will have notroulile 
 with incorrigible jiujiils. If a school has an incorrigible pupil it is tiie teacher, not 
 the pupil, that should be sent to the reformatory. 
 
 Lectures on morality, or against the use of tobacco or strong drink, by teachei'^ 
 who do not {iractice what th(>y preach always do more harm than good. Bettor 
 not lecture at all than to preach and not practice. 
 
 Principal McKay of Parrsboro, gave an incident in his experience where mild 
 measures had succeeded when severity had failed. In this case the pupil hatj 
 threatened to waylay the teacher with an axe ; the teacher however had a friendly 
 aird confidential talk with the boy and result success. 
 
 ^Nfiss BuROOVNE asked how teachers were to record the number of minutes 
 spent weekly if they only gave lessons on moral and patriotic duties incidentally. 
 She supposed that no conscientious teacher allowed opportunities for incidental 
 teaching to slip by unused ; yet there were many desirous of knowing some good 
 methods of imparting regular instruction in this branch so as to be able to give an 
 exact report of the time thus spent. 
 
 The President replied that it was not supposed to be a time table subject, but 
 that teachers would embrace every opportunity as it occurred for the imparting 
 of instruction in moral and patriotic duties, and report approximately. 
 
 Misa Graham thought that a good rule among children is what does not hurt 
 anyone is right, what does is wrong. She advocated the formation of societies for 
 the prevention of cruelty. 
 
 Prin. S.mith, (.Juysborough, referred to experiments, such as the killing of l)ird8 
 and insects before the class, as having a tendency to lower sensibilities and do injury. 
 
 Prin. Campbell believes in ornamenting school rooms with jiictures and stat- 
 uary, and drawings made by children themselves with colored crayons. 
 
 Prix. O'Hearn wanted to know what about the environment of the pupils at 
 iiome. He wished to direct attention to Mr. Miller's piiper. He thought it hail been 
 passed over with too little discussion. He disiigreed with Prin. Miller in the idea 
 that there should be one central institution for incorrigible pupils. He thought 
 there should be several small institutions— two at le^st'for the city of Halifax. 
 
 Miss Partridge, of Sydney ; Miss Hamilton, of Darthioutli kintergarten, Mr. 
 Andrews and others spoke on the different features of this paper. 
 
THK CHARACTERISTICS OF THE EDUCATIONAL 
 PERIODICAL BEST CALCULATED TO AID THE 
 
 TEACHER. 
 
 Uy I. C. Craig, Esq., Inspector of Schoolh, Amhehht. 
 
 Tlio task is laid upon me within the limits of a brief paper to ilescri»)e an ideal 
 scliool uiagazini', and the einV)arras8ment it brinxs to mo must be apparent to every 
 person wlio is conversant witii journalism, especially this particular department. 
 
 To aid me in the preparation of this sketch 1 have consulted the columns of 
 twenty or thirty papers published either in Canada or the United States, that I 
 miKht find what was best in each. The forms assumed by them are so manifold 
 that it is dilFicult to discover clearly any one ideal toward the realization of which 
 they are tendinj,'. It is less difficid't to discern that one idea pervades all, and that 
 is the improvement of the teacdiinf; profession. 
 
 Nothinc; pretending to be a medium of the teacher's ideas, wants or progressions 
 was known in these provinces until 1858, when Dr. Forrester, the pioneer in so 
 many educational fields, published a paper known as the Journal of Education and 
 Aqrirulture. Tiiis continued to be issuc.l until 1860 ; if later I have no oppor- 
 tunity of learning. True, we have hail a Journal of Education as long as many of 
 us can rememlier ; published two years after the inception of the Common ^chool 
 Act it has come down to this time in thrye series, with" but a single break in 1877-78 ; 
 but being the official ofgan of the Council of Public Instruction it gave but little 
 more information than the regulations emanating from that body, with the names 
 of the teachers engaged in the Province and the Sections supporting them. 
 
 A Journal which at one time was largely patronized in this Province was pub- 
 lished in Toronto and was known bV various name.s, as suited the various manage- 
 ments under which it was published and edited. Ihit not being in sympathy with 
 our local wants it failed to command the Maritime Provinces as a constituency, so 
 that we may say that we were without representation until the " Review " came 
 into the field. What it has done for the promotion of education in these Provinces 
 and the creation of an esprit de corps among teachers I need not state. Founded 
 in June 1887, by Dr. MacKay, then Principal of the Pictou Academy, Principal 
 Hay, of St. John, and Principal Anderson of Prince of Wales College, its succesa 
 was assured. How far it has fulfilled the mission projecte-l for it we are able to 
 testify. , 
 
 To quote its first issue,— Have its aims been in the interests of the teachers of the 
 Maritime provinces? Has it furnished us with improved methods to supple- 
 ment deficiencies of text-bo'^ks ? , Have its criticisms of educational systems been as 
 bold as we wished ? Hiivo the (discussions on management, discipline and methods 
 been helpful. I believe I car answer, yes ! for its many readers present without 
 being too presumptuous. But what of the journal of the future ? " It must be a 
 journal of civilization. Along the main lines of culture represented in school work 
 it must keep its readers well informed. Without claiming to be a journal of 
 
 ' (167) 
 
168 
 
 JiSuS :l s'Xt^: ^h^ii^'crif r'^" ^^'^'""'^^ - ^° -^^«^ ^3 best i„ 
 
 as to what Ks truest and nulst pi CiT^t '^^^^ advance, in science 
 
 IS to be a paper of the professiori "u i uteJul ^l' "T^^'''"^ ^""'^ti"'^ 
 sympathy of all cultivated peop e e e^i eTf^ itf .'' "uV'V^*^"'^"^^^ *''»* ^^e 
 made not to leading teachers ;UoLb,rtal"to^^^^^ T^^ ' ""^' *''*^ appeal be 
 
 who are interested in the pTogr^s and metho 0^'^.''^ ^'^'^^ ^^' ^''^^'^'^'^ 
 IS especially necessary that it' sill ," n L l^^ ", t"^ '"'"'>' ''"^«- I* 
 school section. The ostensible scheme f .n vL T /'L*^'" ^"'"^'^^^ «f every 
 when only the teacher enjoys it Sou o?tenetIeT ^'S^T' '' '''' ^^^^^-^ 
 carry out the instruction of a course re dert^ 1 T'^'f^ ^'""'^ ''"^"^ P^'^n^ to 
 
 unsympathizing unlettered Board of Trntees To 1^. •^; ""-' •"^'^^^'^'-enee of aa 
 in a certain district assuming duty at the S of H. T' " P'^S^^^'i^o [teacher 
 
 to ntroduce the vertical systen/o^^etnarh.^ thetT ff' '>'' '' ''^^''^ 
 
 I iifi scnooi. bhe was met at 
 
 J. C. Craig, Esq., Inspector of Schools, Amherst. 
 ^thlJaSoTs'on^^^^^^^^^^ ''-^'^ - -^P'-tic. No , from those who should 
 
 on'lS:^ ^tr:;'iS:i^;;^;^,;fc;;?hr 'r^^tio^ ^^r ^^ '^ p^>-^ ^^ 
 
 suggests the change to the trustees u^.o.ln f "'''^' ''."''" ^''*'"- ^he teacher 
 the course of study, ospecialy thoV 'ortt^^^^^^^ ^. ' "'''""^ *° ^''"'"^^ ^'^^ »^«' 
 school under their supeSon S7Sr fnl r"u" "P?" ^^^ ^^^"^^ «f ^he 
 " Review "the arguments for nnd . n" ' Vm ? *^" '^'"''^ ^"^^^ been reading in the 
 prejudical to tL' tTn f r^.Twa^a 1. ^--^^'^'^r ''^ l^ though 
 
 enough to yield to the march oi prog es S te cYer ?: H ''" '"'^'^ "'^^"'>"'' 
 but in the other all ambition is stifled RnM ''"'^", ' *!"« ^ase is supporte.l ; 
 keep them enlightened upon the c. rre t hiltor- J f^V" '^'^ '^'^ '"^™e» ^ 
 
 It would be almost impossible to hive sn • h { '^''''^r' P'"<^8ress ? 
 I suggest that the organ if th J t^^-- ^^LsJi^tS ^':^^:[l£'t^^ 
 
169 
 
 mmmmm 
 
 the besr;"^! nl'^'I'vplV" H '"'f ■''^' T'^'^ ^''"' '* '^"^^'^'"^"^ ^«Pit''l *« command 
 
 su^ Set .Jtz^tt =i;;i ^^Jr"' - --^ ^^ ^ -^-- 
 
 Next it murir''"'"° "l'' '^'^ t^'*'^^'' ^^ ^^^''''^^y established, 
 the wo k orthV '=°"'P''^\'«'«>^c journal. It must undertake to represent all 
 
 ween he^e and theT";;;;" \ ""f "^°' ^""''^^ '^^^ ^"^ «'-"«^'-'» t^- •^o- b I 
 iween mese ana the iiigher educational institutions of these orovinces Thero i« 
 
 iiiiipiiiiil 
 
 •S : s sH"d 'allt't'hiS f r^" ^^■•^"Z" ^"" '^^l'"^^'^ ndseellaneo;; 
 
 ■te^i::^as;-Sr 
 
 ■ in Sources tr;r.trrr''' ""' " ^^°"°' ^^•■°"-" teachers most prolific 
 tLrelve foridZl^f h ^'1°'"'°"' '""^'^'^^ of childhood must look beyond 
 
 .lie 01 tlie taim. This will prove its practicability and tend to undo much mi« 
 "Svew h v"V"'''^'' or series of articles widch have evei aopeaed n the 
 
 .educatipl power of this :ubjectji^eTt?a'd^rd 
 
 Itt. '" "'' ""^'f'' "^''•"'y •'^ "" educational basis, and is "'ird;d by edu 
 ■caters as a means of expression which deserves the hld.oHt nml- " T? i • 
 
 dustrially is more fully recognized than ever beforwhlfitvL eductLtl)^ 
 
 considered as far out-reachin" its indu^frial vab.n " tJ isan *i eaucationalJy is 
 
 -of you^^teach^s, I attemled a ;;^nei™ir;:tion^;;.rtr ^fl^^rS? 
 
 Waxu.r .,u„oh heia out to us the merits of this subiecL ^Vith'manv f^lio^; 
 
 •teachers, I went back with my modicum of knowledge, determuied to do my iel 
 
 m 
 
p 
 
 170 
 
 resSfof\H^'r '"'''" P"''"^^ ^"'^ ''^^^ ''»^'^«"'=«« have we n.acle? I thi„k th^ 
 orrrel with ih ^"'''"'"'T ^'^f' '-'«"«" g've a most decided answer. I have no 
 r; ; Le ved YeT";;""' ^"/ ^f:?'! ^^ ^^^^^ ^^^ candidates whom I knew, all 
 S!a\vstl or^hl wanf T™ '?^^ so m,„y s,,o„id suffer through the f^ult 
 
 oi a system oi the want of an interest on the j)art of tlie teachers in the snhiprf 
 
 is: " wtr°s:™;"i""i.t? '"""';. !" ■" '""y =•""""' "^ ^^' 
 
 "lereoii. H niior h.trgant In " Primary Kiliicat on " ot Sentembor oivm -ir, «« 
 
 Herein could be given the best examples of architecture suited to country schools 
 t'TZuTT'^'frV^ "'""^ ™°'"''' ™«^^ --'"^'y --t-1. which n%iter7e 
 
 iatini £ iSl r,"''^" ^^'^'"":, "''""* *" ^^^^'^^^ ' "''^^•-'l^ of heating and venti- 
 lating, best adapted to country and town rooms. There is an immediate need of 
 
 TnUb^'"' ,'"" '';""' ? ''"^ '''''''''' "^ ^he scliool rooms of thi prov n e o the 
 health and comfort of another generation is depending in a meLure o wlnt kind 
 
 let c'me'Tnto fore ""'f;, V' T '''"'' '^ ''''■' ^^ the "ominon c' ool 
 g^eatei um ; of , ' * '.'• *""'' ^'''' y'''' ^°"^^^"'« '■"'' ^he erection of the 
 
 fnfiecr a uT °i-t ] H '"t ^T"''''' ^'"' '^'^ ''' ^^^^ falling into .lisuse 
 In 1,1 l£'. " ^' ^''°'' "'^'"'^ supersede them in the next two or three vears 
 
 bhcn Id be a great advance upon those of the past in every respect 
 
 ated tXS .!rth;l"r^'""' "" f '""^ -">>'--^ionors of the thirty or more incorpor- 
 S. «Ive t le es ' of '?' 'I r' "'' ^""Hnd'°''^ attendance law is most needed 
 n ? e mini. '^''i^^^{ 't^ adoption, and any improvements that could l;e made 
 
 oid^r nt th '^ 'f ''rT''"^ *° I'"^ '^ '"*« "P^^'-'ti""- Thus a live journal 
 
 wjli;"hi't'airof"H/'''/''TT r","?' interests of an educational magazine. 
 
 g ve the e 1 o ial r ' ^' """l^- '" 'l^^'^^^""' J°"''""'« "^ ^^is continent it 
 fh,Z\Z'Ji ! .rare opportunities of embellishing its columns with th^ 
 
 thmights of the most distinguished educationists. 
 
 Ihe future journal must be liberal in its views. While giving a stronsr 
 
 i" gooTi^ V:UoT"'r f 'h' '' "P"^^"^*^^' '' -^* ^^ read/to Tec dewha? 
 L ni 'he school system of other countries and demand it. The iournals of all 
 
 tste "oi'f Krh"V''°? f? "'"','"" ""^'' ^" 'h^'^ respective' ihes A 
 1 asteur o a Koch have but to make some discovery in niedicine when it t« 
 
 W.o„e.l tothe whole civilized world that humanitv^nay beneS by i 
 
 na ;;';fne":i h^'tlS Z/''^ "'r-'^' "l ""T'^'^ ^^-"^ I^'- ' '»^« eZel^Sallo. : 
 nai in line with other professional journals of authority. . 
 
 1 lie editor of such a paper should be a teacher of teachers-a leader One who 
 
 I u\n: :?t:rve r"''' ^'^ '"°'!^"'?,"' r' ^^'^« ^--^ >' f-^^^' -- -^ h:. 
 
 b Tympathetfc helnfid'^Th-T ,"' '^ '^'' ^''''^''^''""^ "^ ^'^ "'"''««' 'hat he may 
 oe sympathetic, helpfu . While he alone must edit the paper, the contributions 
 
 1 'ersified , aJh Wl nf T" "'T'l '-I^^ ^^'^"'^ «f « profession \vith so many 
 « crh?lf? 'ii ; '^* ^ '"''^^ ^^'' '" ''""'& some fellow teacher has not the 
 
 Sht m? ff"l """''"'^ ^''"^ ""^^"' *^"'' '"«'''"- y-' have as the result of 
 Sv Vnnf '"'f'^'" '" >"^^'-««^'i"g your class in a lesson in Canadian 
 to the tst nu hfr "'", ' P?''"^' '' '"' '"'"^^^ '" y"" '-•« '^ "«^^ ''is-^overy with reganl 
 
 desc be tie m ri'"T 7'^' !" ""'"''"^' '>• ^^'^'^ ""' «'' ^"^-^ i" the evening^am 
 Zl..il '^"""^'h^*' *'"'PJ"yed in presenting it for the benefit of your fellows there- 
 by casting something into tl. ^ treasury for the common good. It may be of use to 
 others and the very act of describing your process will be^elpful o^ou. T acher» 
 
171 
 
 as a class are too slow to make known their professional wants, and too modest t6 
 auvanee new tlieories. 
 
 «.,Kf '"i^"'*!!^ recojjnized scope of school journalism of to-day, there are many other 
 subjects wh,ch I m.ght have noted. I have cited those first which I believe a 
 good journal should give prominence to. That it has a power to make these 
 
 nre31 7' '' "° ''^^ ?'' ^T^ authority it is stated that the erlurathmal 
 pre has a larger creulation than the religious press, or the medical and legal prfess 
 un.ted and is as influen lal as any other department of journali..m. It is the lead- 
 
 ^\\^XTlZr TT r^^'^'! *°"'''y '"'^ '''°"''' ''^^^^•^« ^'"« recognition from 
 all who are interested- in humanity. 
 
 ,,'Sl.f?-'^.'-^''^''- ^^,y""^^ ^vished to corroborate Inspector Craig's opinions 
 the ctn.e^ n« very excellent paper. Our review should give us information as to 
 he changes taking place m the world about us. It should be fuU-a large paper 
 It should be disconnected with the educational department. ^ 
 
 Inspector Roscoe thought it a subject of interest to every teacher. Most 
 tbonlT >' r 1 f\ '""'^ the journal and criticized it, and perhaps justly so. He 
 
 ought It did no go ar enough. If all teachers were trained there would not be 
 the necessity for the •' httle things " that appear in the Educational Review. Thfe 
 
 fnTlvl't nrnn'-'^f-'' 't "•' " ^^ TjV ""'"'^ '''''^'''' ''' recognizing its usefulness 
 or f ]l'T, '■ a^ ■" ""''^ ^'''P^"' *" *'■' ''^"•""«'' ^^'h" enters the school room 
 tor the hist time, without training and vrithout experience. 
 
 ofn^'^^f "u^'m"^''?' ^''°"^'^* *^'^ ^"'^"'■' J""''""^ •"'^""I'i P''y more attention to the 
 simiy 01 child nature. 
 
 hJZ'l'. ,^^;|;'«^;-V''"""''> "If J* ''''' ""^^"- t« '^^I>«<^t men, who have th*ir own 
 SP Zl . ''"' 'A, ' *" ^"' "''"■ *'"^' ""^ ''""'^ ^«' ""thing to the editing of a 
 ?f r l' r'' J\ P«Per were put into the hands of every teacher in the country 
 t woul.l be able to secure the best effort of able men, because it would be able to 
 pay lor it. 
 
 m 
 
 "A TEACHERS' PROTECTIVE UNIOK" 
 
 Bv Miss M. Graham, CENxiiAL Eccsomt. 
 
 It .seems to me tJiat the time hm com. when we tea<;iier8 should organize 
 mirc^elves into some sort of a union, siniibi- t., ti.e societies existing in the medical 
 legal and other professions Tliesc societk^s have their code of ethics, etc whv 
 should not we do likewise ? There is a lack of professional honor aB,^ng tea'chero 
 that would, I am sure, be remedied l.y „ ,mi.,n where we were pledge,! to help and 
 stand by each other instead of working against each other l.y " underbidding " 
 for position., as teachers now do. And surely the miseraldy J.nv salaries now pnid 
 to tea.:hers mighf ),e improved if we iiad a minimum rate fixed by the uni.m 
 Ihis IS a matter tliat touches our eHwt.y pocket books as well as our full hearts" 
 There are many ways in which a T-'^-cheis' Protective Tnion " would benefit 
 the profession, and therefore everyf.*i#r flse indirectly, but I leave it to wiser 
 heads to discuss the matter further." 
 
 A. McKay Supervisor of HAi,(r*x School.^ -The teaching profession like 
 the other piotessions should have a union, at least („r defensive purposes About 
 two years ago, m the columns of the " Educ.itional Review," I cLlled attention to 
 the National Union of teachers m England and advocated the formfltlun of a 
 
172 
 
 that would Svent u S 1 r '"'*''''^ P'-»">;'l«ate a code of professional ethics, 
 
 macristrate knpw fl,.f '^"'^'^ ^^^^^^ would be of less frequent occurrence if the 
 
 frieLL'et^ ;td" Ir.lnf';/"''" ^'^^^^^^ '" '^"''^ teachers cultivate a habit of mutual 
 professbns •"^^P^"^'^^^^' '^"^l ^ '^^'"•"ou interest in the noblest of all the 
 
 Inspector McLellan followed in an earnest, rapid speech in favor of a union 
 He emphatically condemned the lack of esprit de .w^« which pemitted teSrs 
 
 t^ SLio; Tu::Zn]f' r'^'f:r' ^ -^-^^ding tife"te:rers5:^rdy 
 
 h/l-^ * , ''•' ^^'"""""^y o»st them and secure the position for themselves 
 
 He knew of cases where the dollar was actually split in tendering fLrZtio; 
 
 oas to underbid the present occupant without much pecunia ylss A ui on 
 
 would do much to rectify this wretched state of affairs. P''""""^ ^''''- ^ "'""'^ 
 
 Mr. Congdon of Morris Street school, spoke in favor of the formation of such a 
 upon »ach,rs m „oe„t ,e.r, Je,„„„clea g,,atc,- oom|,e„»t "„ T^aS h^wle, 
 
 thfLt^Ji™ '" '"°" "'■"*• '■"'~"''' «"• ■^'" •-' 8»»<J» .lw«ys bring 
 The resolution passed, one only dissenting. 
 
8th session— FRI DA Y. 
 
 SUPERANNUATION OF TEACHERS. 
 
 By Peter O'Hearn, Princii-al St. Patrick's Boys' High School, Halifax. 
 
 At the meeting of tlie National EducRtional Association held in Philadelphia 
 in i^ebruary 1891 the department of superintendence passed the following resolu- 
 
 " Resolved, that justice, as well as the hest public service, requires the retirement 
 and pensioning of teachers after a service of thirty years and upon carefullv devised 
 conditions. A\ e recommend the enactment of laws in the several states to permit 
 and to' regulate the retirement and pensioning c f profe,-^sional teachers " 
 
 There are systems of pensioning teachers in Ireland, Scotland, and partially in 
 l^>nglan.l. France, Spain, Denmark, Germany, Sweden, Jv^orway, Hungary and 
 other European countries pension their teachers. The province of Quebec also 
 pensions its teachers. In England efforts are being made for a system' of "enerd 
 pensioning. A Inll was introduced into parliament some years ago to that" effect 
 and was largely supported. In some of the countries named the governments pro- 
 vide ti'e pension fund. In others the teachers are taxed. 
 
 It s,eonis to be an accepted fact tiiat a system nf superannuation is a good thine 
 for te,;chers. Do we desire such a system in this province? If we do why not 
 have \\ 1 I am sure most teachers desire it. How can we have it 'I I think onlv 
 by taxuig ourselves. We shall need the help of the government, but only in i 
 small way. AVe would need a sum, not a large one, to make a lieginnincr The 
 government would be asked to guarantee this sum. It would all or nearly all be 
 paid back in a few years. The government might also he asked to continue the 
 government grant to teachers wiio had taugiit thirty or thirty-five years If a 
 teacher became disabled before that time, and that his\lisability was occasioned by 
 nothing inconsistent with the school law and his duties as a teacher he ouaht to 
 receive a part of the grant proportional to his service. This wouM not Ije a\kincr 
 much of the government, and in case it were granted it would lie liicely all that 
 would be asked. It would not mean that every teacher who had taught thirty or 
 thirty-h ve yea ^ would be then superannuated. Many teachers viio had served tint 
 long would prefer to serve longer, that is, to keep earning a larger stipend than 
 superannuation would afford. f r, h ^n>^im man 
 
 In 1887 in Prussia there was one for every forty-two male teachers in active 
 service on the pensi, .. roll and one female teacher for every nine in active service 
 There were 144 male and 103 female teachers on the roll.' This shows that there 
 were iiiany moro male teachers than females. The average iiension of the males 
 was $354 and that of the females was $118. As far as I can learn the teachers 
 were not taxed to suport the pension fund. There was also a widows' and orphans' 
 fund. * 
 
 In Norway teachers after having taught a certain number of years received a 
 pension amounting to two-thirds of salary. Salaries range from f214 to $1600 
 Besides m many places teuchera had house rent free 
 
 (173) 
 
 Ifil 
 
-174 
 
 anJtwillu!h/ P[7'^f /''^^«^fy teache: having reached his sixtieth year, 
 ;; ' V T^ K ^ ,,'"''^ twenty.tive year*, shoalcl receive 50 percent ofhis 
 
 cu y i.ieii stipe lor nmepvs. Tliey receivu 10 nep I'ent for 10 vean'^i.rvi.-B t,...Hr 
 for t»-c„l, ,e,r. service ; iifty for twenty-live' ve.rs' service , O^.e "e™t foi 30 
 years, leache,, are not require,! to coiitrib.ui to lliis f„m Imt irc oMi.el ,1 
 
 5i^if''r^s™ri;::rs,rs™:'':^i;s:r:^-"s;^t:j';:' 
 
 n. t^h^e nK.tter of elen.entary schools. Her expenditure for each inhabiJant Iv^ra^S 
 
 III Quebec the system of superannuation now in force was assenferl fn ;„ issr 
 Not only the common school teachers but also inspTcto" a d m^fesso s ami 
 teache- (,i normal schools are superannuated. ana piotessois and 
 
 P. O'Hearx, Esq., Prixo,,..,. sr. Patkuk-s Hovs" Hkm, School Hamfax. 
 Any othcer of primavy instruction who has reached the age of fifty-six vears and 
 
 Mt eth.s of such ..alary ,f he nas served eleven years he receives eleven-fiftieth "• 
 an, so on adding one-fiftu.th for each a.lditional year up to thirty-fiv Mears ' 
 
 lluis thirty-hvc Kftieths or seven tenths of liis^...!.,.-,- ;. fi.l "^ "vi jeais. 
 eanbe received as a pension. ^ ^' " *'" ''^''''''''^ '"""""^ ^hat 
 
 Xo one can receive a pension on asalaiv exceed in <r >i^1->nn ti • i 
 highest pension 81050. ^"-'iv excuUmg.sioOO. fins makes the 
 
 After ten years' service everv officer wli-itovor l.n i,;= , 
 sion when a serious iniu,^ or 'enfl^bled t^hh'' J m'' •f^.S;;?'?^^';/;7- 
 
175 
 
 •continuo such service, provided such accident or ill-health has not arisen throi'sh 
 any conduct forbidden by law or against good morals. Such officer (who may be 
 an inspector or teacher in a school under control of Government) must provide 
 a physician 8 certificate before receiving any pension, and the pension is stopped 
 when the cause which gave rise to it ceases to exist. 
 
 When the amount of an officer's pension is being established the years are 
 counted from the age of eighteen, if the pensioner began teaching at that a<'e 
 Any years spent in an normal school after having reached his eighteenth birthday 
 aim count. •' 
 
 ;Die widow of a teacher receives half pension as long as she remains a widow. 
 
 When the Act of 1686 was passed an arrangement was made, if I am correctly 
 informed, by which teachers who, at that time, had been for a number of years 
 employed in Government schools, could by paying what are called " stoiip'ac/ps" 
 lor years previous to 1886, receive the full pension for the years they had tau.-ht 
 Ihe arrangement was such that teachers paid part before 'receiving any pension 
 and part from their annual pensions. 
 
 The pensions are provided for in this way : 
 
 1. A reduction or stoppage is made from the salary of each officer of two per 
 cent, per .annum. 
 
 2*. A stoppage of two per cent, is made yearly on the amount of pension to 
 each officer. 
 
 3. A stoppage of two per cent, is made annually out of the common schools' 
 fund. 
 
 4. The Government of the Province allows an annual grant of $1000. 
 
 . If the interest on the amounts thus received does not suffice to i)ay the jien- 
 sions applied for, the teachers may be taxed on their salaries, not exceeding four 
 per cent, altogether, and the common schools' fund is lialile to the same iiercen- 
 tage. 
 
 All the foregoing is a meagre outline of what is being done elcswhere in tiie 
 matter of pensioning The question now is do we the teachers of this i)rovince, 
 desire to have any sucii a scheme, and if so how can we have it. The former part 
 of the question n.ust Ije answered by the teachers. We here assembled, may "ive 
 an expression of our own opinions. ° 
 
 As to how we are to carry out any scheme of superannuation I am not fully pre- 
 pared to say. I would suggest 'lat the legislature be asked : 
 _ 1. That the Governini'iit (iiaiit, bo continued to male teachers after their hav- 
 ing served thirty years and to female teachers after having served twenty-five years, 
 should tliey then retii.; from active .-.ervice. 
 
 2. That a male teacher, having taught fifteen years or more, or a female having 
 taught twelve years or more, on Ijecoming incapacitated to perform his or her duties^ 
 be entitled to a part of the Governm-nt grant proportional to years of service, pro- 
 vided that such incapacity is not the result of any conduct 'forbidden by law or 
 against ftiorals. (It would be well to have the grant in regard to iiensions a fixed 
 sum, say $120 for B's, $90, for C's, and $— for A's.) 
 
 3 That inspectors and all officers employed liy the Government in connection 
 witli public school work leceive this grant according to the grade they jiold on the 
 same footing as teachers, the years spent in teaching to be added to the years si>ent 
 in other(luties in connection with the public schools. 
 
 Tlie Government could do this either by voting a special sum for that purpose, 
 or by taking it out of the sum now at tlieir disposal from year to year, when neces- 
 sary to pension. The latter way would of course make the individiud government 
 grant less and would be a direct and varying tax on teachers in active employment. 
 
 m 
 
 on v-.'^r- nrTv'rl'.llfJ!^ -^'■- -''.'''' i*t? ''1'' l"''^' '" '"''"" f'"'" "" Pf'siouers or only from thoso payii.ir stoopagos 
 nn \ ,..ir~ prri ,ons to n- [ttssiBg of tnc Act. . i r 5 
 
176 
 
 ill 
 
 This would secure to every teacher a fixed sum under the conditions. But this 
 would be a small au,..unt, and not sufficient for superannuation. Any further 
 lam must, I think, b.. provided by the teacliers as.sessing themselves. Now the 
 teachers received in salaries last year, in round numbers !«!652.000. Two per cent 
 of this would be.S13,040. I am not prepared to say how far this woulS go oV 
 what It would do for us. There are several things to be considered. 
 
 1. Whether teachers remaining a short time in service would receive back a 
 portion or all of their annual assessments. 
 
 2. Whotlier pensions would be granted to teachers in good health, retiring 
 before having served twenty-five or thirty years. ^ 
 
 3. Whether pensions would l)e continued to those dependent on pensioners. 
 
 4. U liether there would be a system of commutation. 
 
 In conclusion I would respectfully suggest that we first give an expression of 
 our views as to the desirability of superannuation. If we favor it, then we may 
 appoint a committee to draw up a scheme. ■ 
 
 Discussion :-Mr. Andrews opened the discussion by expressing himself as 
 strongly in favor of such a scheme. He thouglit the teachers should help them- 
 selves-they were not beggars. Let them tax themselves 2 p. c. of their salaries- 
 to make a fund for this purpose. 
 
 Prin. Miller moved the following resolution : 
 
 Eewlmf, That this Association approve of the idea of a superannuation sclieme 
 tor teachers and that a committee be appointed, consisting of members of this 
 Association to collect information on tliis subject to formulate a scheme suitable 
 to the condition of educational aff"airs in this country. 
 
 Pkin. Kennedy seconded the resolution, and spoke in favor of the sciieme 
 statistics sliow that ministers live longer than any other profession ; that teachers 
 come next in longevity. It was important that soinetliing be done, if possible to 
 secure some degree of security for declining years. 
 
 Com. McKeuron spoke next. He referred to men grown grey in the service 
 wlio had nothing ahead of them save age and want, that "ill-matched pair," and 
 indulged in considerable arithmetic to show the amount to be derive.l from a 21 
 p. c. rate on the total salaries of teachers. The fund would be self-sustainin" • 
 
 Principai. McLeop :— I believe such a sclieme would be an inducement for 
 tcacliers to remain in tiie profession and, therefore, would prove beneficial to the 
 cause ot education. Those in other professions can earn to the end of their days 
 It IS not so in tiie teacliiiig jirofession. The strain is so great that the teacher has 
 to retire when con)paratively young. Witii his small salary he cannot make pro- 
 vision for sickness or old age. Unless, tlierefore, iirovision is made b-y the state 
 our system of education will continue unsatisfactory in its results. ' 
 
 Principal McVicAR thought the older teachers who were committed to teaching 
 as a lite work would be willing to subscribe to such a scheme. 
 
 To ensure success it needed the support of tlie wliole profession. It mi^ht be 
 arranged that all ])ersons enrolling as teachers after a certain date would be^taxed 
 a small percentage on salary tt)wards the support of the annuity fund. 
 
 Sucli contribution, however, should be optional with those who were now 
 teachers, and it was largely a question of generosity on the part of youn^rer mem- 
 bers whether they would surrender a portion of their salary to support a fund front 
 which they might not reaj) a benefit. 
 
 The resolution passed unanimously, 
 
?lll 
 
 IBishop McNoil was chairman of the spe.ial c,„nmi„ee whi, h revise.l ,hc Course of S.udy.) 
 
177 
 
 A .■oiniuitteo WHS appointed to formulate a ..cIkmul. of sui.cninmmtion for teachers 
 ana report to the next nioetinf,' of the association. 
 
 Connnittee:--Snp,.rvi.or McKay, Halifax; I'rincipal O'Hearn, Halifax; Princi- 
 Acaden.''' '"""''""'' ^ ""^'I'"' '''y. Auduist ; Mr. C. Moore, B. A, I'ictou 
 
 The PiiEsiDENT stated that the I'. K. I asnoeiation wished to unite its meetinc 
 with that of .V.v;, Scotia, an.l said he thought tlu- next interprovincial nssociation 
 would he held iii Halifax next year. 
 
 Principal R()«s, Alhro street school, n.uvcd that the tinic of meeting of the 
 ^ova Scotia 1 rovmcial Association I)e in future at this tiin<- of the year. Carried. 
 
 The meeting also decided that Truro be the place of meeting next year. 
 
 iNSPECTon RustoE moved the reconsideration of the above motion, seconded by 
 Inspector Morse. Reconsideration carried. 
 
 Moved by Principal Miller ami sei' nded \>\ 
 meeting be left to tin- executive, which was can 
 
 Coiigdon, that .he place of 
 uii.iiiimously. 
 
 The meeting then proceeded to the election of officers. 
 
 While ballots were ])eing taken Frof. MacDonald, the Normal School, 
 
 moved the folio wmt,' resolution : — 
 
 Resolved, that this Association record in its minutes their high esteem of and 
 a.tmiration t,,r the many "nnnent virtues and great services rendered to the cause 
 ot education by the late Inspector Condon of Halifax, not only in the inspectoral 
 
 12 
 
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 district in which he so ably discharged hia duties as inspector for 23 years, but in 
 the province at large. 
 
 Alio, resolved, that a copy of this resolution be sent to his bereaved family. 
 
 In seconding this resolution, Principal Kennedy said that a jirince, a mighty 
 man, in the educational work of our province had fallen. His heart was in his 
 ■work and he always carried the work in his heart. He was ever fresh and 
 enthusiastic. Neither rain nor cold — and he w:is intimately acquainted with 
 both —could dam])en his ardour nor cool his zeal. The children love<l him, and 
 what better evidencie can there be of his getuiine kindliness of heart? In his 
 presence they felt an inspiration ami always did their best. He luiver failed to 
 carry the sunshine of cheer into the school-room, and many teacliers and more 
 pupils date their first real enjoyment of cla.ss-room work from the jieriod of one 
 of his visits. But hdw he has entered into his rest, and much good work is going 
 on whose inception w:is due to his words and example. 
 
 This resolution j)as.sed with a standing vote. 
 
 The Pkehmient then left the chair in order to allow those favoring a Teaciieu's 
 Protective Union to organize. 
 
 Inspeotou Koscoe was calleil to the chair, and Princii)al Millm- was a[ipointed 
 Secretary. 
 
 Phin. Kennedy, of Halifax Acailemy, was the first speaker. Ho took stiong 
 ground in favor of a protective union. Teachers taken singly are a " rope of 
 sand, weak and easily demolished ; luit teachers united in a single body, such as 
 tlij union pro]iosed, would piesent a very diffen.'ut face to any attempt at oppres- 
 sion or persecution. He would be protected by the whole strength of the union, 
 and would l)e sure of fair play in any event, llie question of salaries ought to Vie 
 kept in the background for the present at least, and the question of protection for 
 teachers in all nuitters of dispute brouglit ]irominently to the front. Let the ques- 
 tion of salaries wait. Let us first strive to develop an e-yjnt </e rarjin that will 
 prevent teachers from any attempts to displace and underbid each other. He 
 ended by moving that a protective union be formed for the mutual help and im- 
 provement of teachers. 
 
 Miss Graham ceconded the motion, which was unanimously carried. 
 
 Prin. O'Hearn moved that the meeting proceed to elect a President, Vice- 
 President and Secretary, and an Executive of five members. Carried. 
 
 Supervisor MoKay moved that Prin. Campbell, of Truro ; Prin. O'Hearn, of 
 St. Patrick's High School, and Inspector Craig be a nominating committee. 
 Seconded by Prin. Kennedy and carried. 
 
 The nominating committee retired, and after some time reported the names of 
 the following gentlemen : — 
 
 President — Inspector Maci,eli,an. 
 Vice-Premlent — Inspector Craio. 
 Sej rftartz-Treamrer — Principal Kennedy. 
 
 Ej-ecuticp Committee — Principals O'HEAiiN, Halifax ; McKeen, Sydney ; Lay, 
 Amherst ; Inspector Morse, Digby ; Miss Burgoyne, Windsor. 
 
 The report passed without change. 
 
 !Moved by Principal O'Hearn that the Executive be instructed to draw up a 
 constitution and frame by-laws for the Union, seconded by Supervisor McL iy, and 
 
 carried. 
 
 The meeting then adjourned, subject to the call of the President. 
 
179 
 
 t^ Zdl''" ^"""''"" "^^ """"•^'^ •'^- ^''^' P'-'^-'^' »^- ^J-Kay again 
 
 10"':-"°""'''* *''"'""''' "^ ^''' '^'''''' "^"'^^''■^ forthefollowiuyyearasfol- 
 
 Sv ^- 5°'^coe, M. A., Inspector, Wolfville. 
 
 V '^ \.'^""'^'^y' Prin'^'P'il Halifax Aca.lcniv. 
 
 A. G. MaeDonald, M. A., I'lof., X„nnal School. 
 
 Bertha B. liebb, B. A, Piinci!.al High Sdiool, Maitla.ul. 
 
 Miss Bertha B. Hebb, R. A., Pk.nci..ai. Maitlanu High School. 
 
 ^" i-^\¥''y',?''' ^^- -^•' l'""cipal Annapoli.s Academy. 
 
 W, L. Maelellan, Ll. li, Inspector, Pictou. 
 
 L. S. Morse, M. A., Inapector, Dicrby. 
 
 A. McLeod, Principal Kentville Academv. 
 
 \\ m. McKerron, Conimissioner of Schools, Halifax. 
 
 «/«t!£*^'"'""^''°^''"^*^''"'''*°P''^'''^ ^'^■'^'^^ '"^'^^tJng adjourne.l 
 
 A. McKAV, Serretary. 
 
 I 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 I 
 
 NORMAL SCHOOL ASSOCIATED ALUMNL 
 
 " During the meeting of the Educational Association, one of the most significant 
 features was tiie re-organization of the Associated Ahunni of tlie Provincial Normal 
 School. Several meetings were held during the week, and this important organi- 
 zation was once more placed upon its feet, where it is hoped it will continue to 
 stay The re-organization this year was chiefly due to the efTorts of Dr. Hall, 
 Principal Calkin, Prof. McDonald, and a few others interested in the work of this 
 great institution. Officers were appointed for the ensuing year : — 
 
 Premleiif—J. B. Hall, Ph. D. 
 Secretary-Treasurer— A.. G. MacDonald, M. A. 
 
 Executil-e Connnif fee— Messrs. M. J. T. McNeil, E. H. Nichols, J. N. Creed, 
 E. T. McKeen, W. R. Slade, and Misses Hamilton and Mack. 
 
 \Vm, McIsaac, B. a., iN'^^rrcTOR, Antioonish. 
 (180) 
 
ISl 
 
 " It was ileciiled on vote tliat all former students nt the Normal School, all 
 teachers with a professional experience of at least three years, all school officials 
 in general, be eligible for membership. Initiation fee w.is'deelared to be twenty- 
 five cents. It was also decided by tiie society that medals be offered for competi- 
 tion essays on subjects to be announced later. The following well-known 
 educationists were appointed a l)oard to s.dect subjects for essays : Inspector 
 Creighton, Prof. Macdonald, Principal Calkin and Supervisor McKay. The fol- 
 lowing were appointed judges : Princi|mls Soh.an, Lay, Kennedy, 6'Hearn ami 
 Miss Hobb, of Maitland. Winners are to lie announced and medals awarded at 
 Jueeting of next Provincial Association. Those eligible for competition are all 
 Normal School graduates and all teachers with a professional experience of three 
 years. All those eligible may Imconie menilicrs at anv time by remitting the fee 
 and handing in their names to Prof. >racdonald, Truro!"— /fa/z/ax Herald. 
 
 . 11 
 
 The Superint(indent of Education held two evening sessions with High School 
 teachers and Inspectors. The second is reported as follows in the Halifar, 
 Chronicle : — 
 
 FRIDAY EVENING SESSION. 
 
 Dr. McKay took the chair at 7J o'clock, and Secretary Congdon read the 
 minutes of the previous meeting. >;' 
 
 The following resolutions were passed at the previous meeting : 1st, that the same 
 books in literature be prescrib&st for D and C work, introduced by Principal 
 Campbell ; 2nd, that the 6th Ko^il Header be taken off bjie " iourse" for examin- 
 ation purposes, introduced by Prin. Lay. No. 2 did not pass, but an amendment 
 moved by Prin. Soloan that the selections be reduced one-half passed. 
 
 On the request of the President eaeK one present furnished to the Secretary 
 his name and residence. The following is tlie list : 
 
 James F. Putnam, B. A., Upper Selma. 
 
 Murray McNealy, A (sc), Hantsport. 
 
 G. J. Miller, A (cl.), Dartmouth. 
 
 Isaac Cr( nbie, U. A., Kingston. 
 
 C. B. Robinson, B. A., Pictou. 
 
 J. B. Calkin, M. A., Normal School. 
 
 P. O'Hearn, A (cl.), Halifax. 
 
 H. M. Vaughan, (B), Summerville. 
 
 Rev. D. A. Chisholm, D. D., Antigonish. 
 
 James Little, Truro. 
 
 L. C. Harlow, Great Village. 
 
 E. B. Smith, B. A., Guysboro'. 
 
 R. MacLellan, (A), Pictou. 
 
 Wm. Maclsaac, B. A,, Antigonish. 
 
 E. J. Lay, (A), Amherst. 
 
 S. A. Fulton, (B), Lower Stewiacke. 
 
 G. P. Mackenzie, (B), Bass River. 
 
 J. F. Barteaux, (B), Maitland. 
 
 I. B Longley, B. A., Dighy. 
 
 W. M. McVicar, M. A., Annapolis. 
 
 T. C. McKay, B. A., Parrsboro' 
 
 W. C. Murray, M. A., Dalhousie College. 
 
 E M. McKenzie, M. A., Truro. 
 
 David Soloan, B. A., New Glasgow. 
 
 A. G, McDonald, M. A , Normal School. 
 
 May Tweedie, M. L. A.^ Truro. 
 
 T 
 
182 
 
 E. T. Mnekecn, M. A., Sydney. , 
 
 I. C. Craig, Amherst. 
 
 C. L. Moore, B. A., Piotou. 
 
 Ida M. Benson, I'.ear River. 
 
 Inspector Morse, Digtiy. 
 
 John N. Creed, (H), I'ort Ilawkesbury. 
 
 Wni. A. Creelnian, A (cl.), Nortli Sydney 
 
 M. J). Heninieon, H. A., Truro. 
 
 A. .\[cLeod, (A), Kentville. 
 
 Colin \V. Roscoe, U. A., Wolfville. 
 
 Graham Cieighton (A), Halifax. 
 
 W. W. Tnrey, (A), Springhill. 
 
 A. McKay, Supervisor, Halifax. 
 
 W. T. Kennedy, (A), Halifax. 
 
 W. K. Maclellan, Lu R, Pictou. 
 
 W. R. Campbell, M. A., Truru. 
 
 G. CREiJiiTON, Esq., Inspector, Halifax. 
 
 I 
 
 The discus.«ion on the « Course of Study" was then resumed and the followinc 
 recommendations were passed : 
 
 That Ualgleish's composition be discarded in favor of a better book. 
 
 That arithmetic be struck out of the 3rd year (B). 
 
 That arithmetic for D and C remain as it is for this year. 
 
 That geometry for D end with Prop. 32, Book 1. ' 
 
 That the B geometry be reduced to the end of Book 4. 
 
 io^« "Y'^l^?^ recommended that the geometry of this year bo terminated at Prop, 
 ly. Book VI, with two optional (Juestions. This was satisfactory to all. The 
 prescribed mathematics then came up and was rather severely handled. The book 
 is to be re-written and improved in several respects, and in the meantime seven 
 questions, two of which are to be optional, are to be 3et ui Provincial examinations 
 
183 
 
 That the chemistry for C be reduced to, at least, 25 p. c. of the prescribed book 
 (Williams'), wliich was also satisfactory to the meeting. 
 
 That the British American history be omitted from Grade I*. 
 
 That we ask the C. P. I. to limit the number of subjects at the Provincial 
 examinations to 4 papers a day, and that 1^ hours be given candidates for each 
 paper. 
 
 Amendment. 
 
 That the work be confined to 4 one hour papers a day, with an intermission of 
 ten minutes between papers. 
 
 Amendment passed. 
 
 It being by this time Hi p. m., and the convention having a pressing engage- 
 ment at the Prince of Wales Hotel, it was resolved to leave those proposed 
 changes in the hands of the Superintendent, in whose ability and good will to 
 have them carried out as far as possible the convention expressed entire con- 
 fidence. 
 
 III. 
 
 The Faculty of the Normal School entertained the Inspectors, High School 
 Teachers and Professors at the Prince of Wales Hotel. The following report is 
 also from the Chronicle : 
 
 " It was midnight, cold, and with half a gale of wind in their teeth, when the 40 
 members of tlie Convention marched in solid column under the arc lights, through 
 the streets of Truro, to tiie Prince of Wales Hotel, There was a far-away look 
 in every hungry eye and a half whisper of " oysters" passed through the ranks. 
 When the hotel was reached there appeared the handsome IJr. Hall, of the 
 Normal School, standing to welcome the members of the Convention in the name 
 of the faculty of the college, upon whose invitation they were jiresent. Tho 
 dining hall was immediately invaded by the hungry crowd, and oyster stews for 
 40 was the order. The room, [)residcd over by Principal Calkin, presented a gay 
 and festive sight, (irrave and solemn looking professors, inspectors and teachens, 
 who had for four hours previous been splitting educational hairs over the subjects 
 of the "High School Course," were now devouring oysters, laughing, joking and 
 having what is connnonly termed a " high old time." Toasts were next in order. 
 The "C. P. I. and the Education Office," proposed by Prin. Calkin, and responded 
 to by Dr. MacKay. "The Colleges," responded toby Rev. Dr. Chisholm, St. 
 Francis Xavier ; Prof. Murray, Dalhousie College, and Prof. Haley, Acadia Col- 
 lege. "The Academies and High Schools," proposed by Prof. McDonald and 
 responded to by Prin. Miller, Dartmouth ; Inspector Roscoe and Prin. McLellan, 
 of Pietou Academy. Dr. Hall proposed " The Press," responded to by H. S. 
 Congdon. " The Ladies," responded to by Prin. Soloai,, New Glasgow High 
 School, and Prin. McKeen, Sydney. By this time it was drawing perilously near 
 the " we sma' hour ayont the twal," and as many of the guests would require to 
 take an early train next morning, the Convention broke up by singing with sten- 
 torian lungs the national anthem." 
 
 IV. 
 
 CORRECTING A MISTAKE. 
 
 In copying the reports of discussions from the newspapers I inadvertently 
 included on page 124 a remark attributed to Principal Soloan of New Glasgow 
 High School regarding the teaching of science in Pietou Academy, an institution for 
 which he has the highest regard. As subsequently explained by Principal Soloan, 
 the remark was never made. I refer to it here simply because it might be misun- 
 d erstood . — Secretary. 
 
184 
 
 H. H. Mackintomi, 1-:s(,i,, iNrsi'F.croK ok 
 Schools, Lunenhuri;. 
 
 H. McKitTRicK, Ks(.)., H. A., Princiiai, 
 
 LUNENIIUKC. ACADKMV. 
 
 y. 
 
 UKPLIK8 TO PliOK. MacDONALD'S CIRCULAR. 
 
 [H.-tni on pajro i;U au.l continued from pa^e 141. For explrnation of fi^ 
 
 (11) 
 
 see pag 
 
 riirpH 
 
 I ahou.d not consider it indispensa})le that in order to I)e cdicient a head 
 master of an academy sliould hold a classical and scientific "A." Successful 
 experience 1 consider the most important qualification, and tlie want of it cannot 
 bo compensated for by the higlirst classical and scientific attainments 
 
 The management of luindrods of young pupils, of the most diversifie.l senti- 
 ments, sympathies and inteUectual character, -tlie gaining of their confi.lence,- 
 the stimulation of their ambition, tlie .lirecting of their energies in the school-room 
 cannot be successfully peformed by any hea.l master unless he lias been in close 
 contact witli young pui)ils, as teacher, for a number of years in some lower grade 
 _ Ihe most vahiable training after acquiring the necessary schohirship is to know 
 tluit special department of human knowledge-boy-nature-and which cannot be 
 efficiently studied in books. It can only be studied in the class-room and on the 
 play ground. The teacher who does not make boy-nature and girl-nature a special 
 study can never become a successful head master no matter how brilliant his 
 scholastic attainments. 
 
 I regard therefore, a four or five years' experience in doing actual "B" work as 
 a hrst qualification of a heatl master. 
 
 _ I do uot attach much importance to examinations, either oral or written aa 
 indicating special fitness, though they have their use as a test of scholarship 
 The possession of either classical or scientific "A " with good general scholarship 
 such as would be assured by having a university degree, ought, in my opinion, to 
 ..y" woT ™™Pared with Successful experience of four or five years of 
 
 8. Yes, after the expiration of the first years' incumbencv 
 
 9. Doubtful. •'■ 
 
185 
 (12) 
 
 *J. YcH, prcfornlily tlu' cliiHsical A with a univciHity di'f^n'c in Arts To my 
 tiiiiid Mill HciiMititic " A " iiml ili'^'ivc of H. He, mo obtjiiiuMl witlimil tlu-ir pnsHCHHor 
 it'ct'iviiiK' tlio cnltiirc .li'iiviiMc from tlic stU(li<!s tiikfii for cIiisHical A and li. A. 
 
 7. If tilt) sclioIarHliip nM|iiiri'mt'iit,s :\n^ natiHliciI, tin' prolVKsional will hooii 
 follow. Ill study in:; for tin- former tlm Htiidi-nt has, for the iiioHt part, t'oiiic under 
 toiicliDrH of (ixiierieiice, and therefore, presiimaMy, good teaeheiH, lirnt in IiIm pre- 
 paration for eollej»e and afterwards in his eollef^'e earecr. Tho nicthcMls of thi> 
 ilieiul master of the academy and those of the college [irofessors will make their 
 impresH on him, and, to a larg(> extent, will, in the I'asc of a collexe-hred man, 
 supply what a normal school is supposed to "ive. This e(piivalent then, with one 
 yeiir's successful teaching in almost, any grade, tits a man for doing high school 
 ■work in the Hinalhu' academies, in tho larger academieH I helieve it essential for 
 the head master to have served two or three years on the staff in n suhordinafn 
 position. Thin in the preparatory training iK'eded. In addition he must lie 
 po8.se.ssed of executive nhility, and poHsess (puilities that make good teachers in tint 
 ilower grHd".s. 
 
 8. Yp8. 
 
 9. No. 
 
 (13) 
 
 I helieve the ideal scholarship for a head master can he best attained in reipiir- 
 ing possession of holh classical and .scientific " A." 
 
 (2) Would he acce|)talile had we hut one provincial university conferring 
 •degrees, and this under the authority of the Council of Public Instruction. Ah long 
 as our provincial colleges confer degrees upon graduates who fail to pass the " A " 
 test, their degrees should never he ret'ognized. 
 
 1 do not think that a special S(.'rvice in academic |)reparatory work counts for 
 more than a particular ajititude to teach either in primary or intermediate grades. 
 For professional etpiipment, I would suggest four years' successful experience in 
 •common scliool work with a first rank normal .school diploma. 
 
 (8) It would serve no interest to have head masters members (px ('(firio) of the 
 school board. They are now invited, in this district, to attend meetings and to 
 give information and ubsistance, when mntbirs pertaining to the schools come up 
 for conaiderntion. Occasionally the principalship itself has to be discussed, and, 
 under such cireumstauces the pr<;sence of the princijial, i)articularly an rj- officio 
 iinember of the board, would become unpleasant to oil concerned. 
 
 9. A ijnod salary is the equivalent of a fair salary and residence. 
 
 (14) 
 
 Without a university training I cannot well sec how a person could fulfil all the 
 requirements of Head Master except by holding A (cl.) and A (sc.,) more especi- 
 ally in our "mnUer academies where one teacher is required to teach all sub- 
 jects. I should consider (2) even perferable to (1) in consequence of the broader 
 scope of training involved. 
 
 Under professional tequirenienis I should consider (5) the ideal : only that the 
 experience therein referred to should include the correct principles and jiractice of 
 grading classes other than those umler the teacher's own immediate instruction. 
 In lieu of (5) I should consider (4) or (6) a fair substitute. 
 
 8. I cannot see the real advantage that would accrue from this enactment, since, 
 if the head master has the confidence of the committee the latter will show defer- 
 ence to his opinions and wishes in whatever pertains to the "enera! "ood of the 
 fichool as a whole, and if he has no. that confidence he will not Idfig hold his 
 
I8(j 
 
 poaitioii, anil ,.v.>ii if he ,li,l, l,is influence even as an c.r ,iffiri„ nienilier of com- 
 niitteo woiilii lie nil. 
 
 (15) 
 
 As to scholarship nMiuircnients I should incline to say yoH to query (1), hut 
 woui.l mve preference to scientific A with a decree. This woul.l necessitate a study 
 of both science and classics. I would attach very nuich importance to a univer- 
 sity tle^rree, because during' the three or four years spent at college the student 
 attends the lectures of learned and skilled teachers, and has the use of a wt'll- 
 e(iuii)|.ed library. Besides he knows that his course will take him a certain num- 
 ber of years and he. will therefore be more thorough in his work than he would bo 
 If he hoped to f/et throuf,'h by " phiv'Kinj,'." On the other linnd were classical and 
 scientihc " A " alone required candidates for academic licenses, in many cases, would 
 attempt to olitain licenses by private study. They would have no opportunity 
 lor doniR i)ractical or laboratory work, nor would their minds receive that broad- 
 feiiiii]^ which university studies and life wouM confer. 
 
 With respect to professional traininj; I would prefer (5) or (G) to (4), for I think 
 that scliool Insj.ectors would be very ajit to be lenient in their reports, charitably 
 hoiani,' for improvement in teachers' skill, with time and practice. Besides in (5)- 
 or (()) the candidate really has to stand two tests. Not only must he secure u 
 favorahle report from the Inspector, but he must also in the' one case, stand tho 
 scrutiny of the Normal School faculty, which I know by experience to be a very 
 trying,' ordeal,- oron the other receive a jiass-mark from' equitable examiners who- 
 know not candidates' iianer.«. 
 
 8. V,.s. ' ^ . 
 
 ( )f doubtful utility. 
 
 (If.) 
 
 A " scientific or of 
 
 2. Yes, but in many cases the po.«sessi(in nf a s{r,:de 
 grade "A " classical would bo sufficient. 
 
 T). Yes, a good preparation. 
 
 H. No, at present in nearly all incorfiornted towns the principal of the academy- 
 sits with the school board as an wlrimrii member. 
 
 9. No, as a bachelor it would be of no use to me. A good salary is enough. 
 Let the selection of a house be one of tlie optional subjects with the head master. 
 
 (17) 
 
 As to scholarship, I know of some whose success would not be doubted, and 
 whose only (pialitication was classical A ; and I know of some very scholarly men 
 wiio were failures as teachers. I think a grade A of either branch, or a college- 
 degree, or .some equivalent, a sufficient evidence of scholarship. 
 
 With regard to professional preparation, other things being equal, one who has had 
 the advantage of experience in an academy as assistant will make the best principal.. 
 1 think that some natural qualities, too, are necessary : one must have patience, 
 common sense, quick perception and above all not to be addicted to fads. 
 
 As a minimum test I should prescribe grade A of either braneli, a couple of 
 years of University residence, and at least thiee years' successful and progressive 
 experience as assistant, and let the school board be compete;it to look out for the- 
 rest 
 
 8. No, not as school boards are now constituted. 
 
 9. Yes. 
 
 (18) 
 With regard to schol.-ir.ship requirements, I wonld say, by all means let them 
 
187 
 
 hnve II univfirHity denrfo uiul ((itlicr a Hciontific or claHHicul A ; it iiiutt<'i« not wliinh. 
 I (!(tiisi(l(;r the di'j^ri'i' iif iimn^ valin! tliiiii tlm prrstMit " A " liccnsf, lint' it iH hcttiT 
 for iMitli t<i go t()j,'i'lli(>r. A iHTHon attitiuliiig a ('(illcj^i' has iiuu'o lulvaiitagt'H tliaii 
 oucattcinlinga lli^jh Sfliooi, or working liy liiiiiHclf, has: Ik- i'oiiu'h daily in cnnlact 
 with the lit'st (if tcaclu-rH, and must almost of iiccrMwity gain good idi'an of tcachitig 
 alwayH HuppoHing tliat h(! liax thi- teaching proftission in view ; the knowledge lio 
 ga'iiH it' likely to lie more deeply seated, for Ik! is not so apt to cram, inasmiieh as 
 tlic allotted time has to lie passed in eoll)>ge ; meeting and mingling with so many 
 varieties of students must have u widening etleet on the mind, nnist give one a 
 dee|K!r insight into eharacter, and shotdd surely make him a wiser man and lii'tter 
 fitted for taking charge of a school wlici'o he has to deal with so nuiny dispo- 
 sitions. After such a course, preparation for an " A " exandnation is simply a 
 reviewing, a gathering together of previous work, which tends to settle it more 
 firndy in the inind. 
 
 With regard to professional re(piirementH I f<iund it somewhat dillicult at first 
 to decide hetw(U'n (4) and (8). After some consideiation liowever I would give 
 first place to (5). 
 
 At a Normal School one should get (Urerth/ the best tncsthods of teaching. Ono 
 who has not received training in such a school, generally, only arrives at those best 
 methods after a sc^ries of experiments on his pupils. 
 
 8. Have not considered it suliici(!ntly to pass an opinion. 
 
 9. There would ho the advantage of giving greater permanence to tlie head 
 master's engagements. 
 
 (19) 
 
 1. Yes, decidedly. But hy the possession of A (cl.) and A (sc.) I wouM 
 understand possession of the qualification and not merely of the parchment, and 
 therefore the proof or i-riilenrc of such possession though, <if course, all-imiiortant, 
 might depend largely on circumstances. The man ocpnpped with the qualitications 
 implied in (2), for instance, might he known to you as the su[)erior of the one 
 holding (;r<!d(!ntials under (1), or rirc iwrxa. 
 
 Speaking generally, then, and other things heing eipial, (or unknown) I would 
 exact the possession of the (pialiHcations indicated under (1). 
 
 4, 5, G. As to these, it seems to me that the jioints are so widl taken that it is 
 hard to make a choice. For all that I can see, without the assistance of discussion, 
 the three might well be made optional, and I think there is but little room left to 
 go outside of them. 
 
 8. It seems to me that the position of head master woidd l)e incompatible with 
 that of member of the school committee, as they stand in the relative positions of 
 school teacher anil trustee ; Vtut I would decidedly favor a law, if such coidd be 
 framed, that would require the attendance of the head master at all meetings of 
 committee held for the consideration or di.scussion of tlie purely educational 
 interest and gov ij.r.ent of the school, even to the employment or dismissal of 
 subordinate ora 'ti'iary teachers. Whether or not he .should have a vote on such 
 matters I am not prepared to advi.se ; but many reasons [iresent themselves to me 
 why the advantage of his 'I'lperior knowledge of school government should not be 
 lost to the committee. 
 
 9. I am not at all prepared to discuss this point ; and shall simply say that it 
 would be a fine thing (especially for the \\ M.) if it could be brought about. 
 
 ¥ 
 
 (20) 
 
 It appears to me that the recjuirements for both classical and scientific " A,'^ 
 would be unnecessarily rigid. 
 
 1 think that a person who receives a classical " A " at one examination, and a 
 
i 
 
 ViB 
 
 8<:i('ntiH(! " A " nt niuitliiT ahoiiM Iw^aiitcil mi " A " clnssicn' niul soiontific. A 
 univnrsity ilcKrc<« slioiild Ix- fully t-qiiiviilcnt to " A " cl'iH.sical. 
 
 I tliiiik thai (^itlicr four ymrn siirdCHsful cxpcriciu'c in .liiiii;,' " It" work, which 
 shoiilil l.e (;oii«i.|(«ml ('(luiil to thn Noinial Scliool tniiiiiiif,' for " A," or u tirst riiiik 
 tliploi'ia ami a shorter iieriod of cxiM'riciice would ho HiilHcieiit aa profcwioiial 
 reciiiircMiicDts. 
 
 I think that a full course of traiiiiiij,' at a uuivcr.sity of rcco>,'niz«'d stan.ling 
 Bhoiildhc n-ijanlcil as partly iM^uivalcnt to a Xorninl School traiiiiuj,',-— that is, a 
 person holding; a university de^'ree should not lie recpiin-d to have so lonj,' actual 
 expeneiice in tuaehiug or so lou;,' a course of Normal School training as one who 
 does not hold a de^,'ree. 
 
 I would favor a law such as is indicated in (piery 8. 
 
 As to the desiraljleness of (D) I am doubtful. 
 
 (■21) 
 
 As re;,'ards (1) I think that a distinction niij,dit he made between the casein 
 ^yhich the hea<l master is the only teacher in thi' school, who possesses an academic 
 license, and the case in which there are other teachers with f,'rado "A " scholarship. 
 In the former event it would be almost nece.ssary for the head master to possess 
 both scholarships. He has to teach pupils of various natural emlownients and 
 talents ; and he should j-.os.se.ss the necessary retiuirenients to enable him to be the 
 teacher and <,'uide, not only of Jio.sc whose preferences may lie in the direction of 
 classical training, br.t also of those whose natural ben' inclines to the study of the 
 natural scicsnces. If the head master's knowledge and training lie one-sided, so to 
 speak, his usefulness will be conHned to a certain nnndjor of his jinpils, while tlio 
 others will have to grope for themselves. Whether it would be advi.sable, umler 
 present circum.'itanccs, to make the (lualifications indicated under (1) compul.sory, 
 is of cour.se another question. 
 
 As regards the second hypothesis, while it is desirat)le that the head master 
 should ])osse.ss both scholarsbijis, in order that he may supervise the teaching of 
 his nmfn'rin in their separate branches, it does not app ar to be ab.solutely neces- 
 sary. As a matter of fact, in colleges and universities, the principal is nit often 
 tlie peer of the professors in tlieir resi)ective fields of labor, and is reasonably 
 satisfied in leaving to them the direction of all that pertains to the subjects which 
 they teach. 
 
 As regards (2) I think that a university training would be a very di'sirable thing 
 for head masters, though I must confess that at present I should not like to see it 
 made compulsory. 
 
 With regard to professional training I think that (6) would serve as a very 
 effective guarantee, though the end sought seems to be attainable by any one of 
 the others. 
 
 I should be in favor of (8). There is no doubt that, ordinarily speaking, the 
 head master it better informed in matters connected with the school law and 
 academic work than the members of our school boards, as at present constituted. 
 
 I think tiiat the time is hardly ripe for adopting (9) 
 
 (22) 
 
 3. Would suggest either a classical A or a University degree as sufficient for 
 scholarship. 
 
 7. Training ia teaching the subjects prescribed in grade VIII is good, but I 
 believe no person shoul.i be licensed as a liead master who has not had experience 
 in teaching the subjects prescribed in grade IX, X and XI. The good head master 
 is born, not made, and I think it would be a good thing if applicants for the posi- 
 
180 
 
 ti<m wiTo rnquireil Id niipL-ar, in pnnn-ia jiemona before ii conipeti'iit lloanl of 
 Kxaiiiiiirrs. 
 
 H. Yen, most certainly. 
 
 y. YcH, hut the idiui is Utopian. 
 
 ^CK>O<><X><><>C<>0<>(><><>0<><><H><>O<><K>000<>0<K><>O<><>0<>00<>-C 
 
 Web$9ter's International Dictionary 
 
 Siim'nnnrii/ iiii"V)uihri:t'iril :• lavttlurt. in OiBce, School, ami Home. 
 
 Mtsndartl of lh» T. H. Suprrmft Co'irt, nf tln> I". S. OOTt I'rinllnii Offlre, anil of 
 ui^'iriy all Sctaooltioolu. t nuuneni.j>l by M HUM Bchool SupcrfntetiUrnU. 
 
 THE BEST FOR PRACTICAL PURPOSES 
 
 BCCAUSC 
 It !• e—y to find the word wanted. 
 
 Wurdii are given tlir - 'r.'«ri alphabetical ;><*c«,a«cli one Ixdnning ft paraKrarh- 
 It U ca*y to ■(certain the pronunciation. 
 . I ..».«. , The pruniim-liitlonUlndlcaVM by t)i« ordinary dlacrtuoally markwl Ivturauaea In i 
 II V*IS*''v the iUioolboolu. 
 
 It la easy to trace the growth ' f a word. 
 
 The etymoloRlea are fiUl, anil ttie different meanlnfi are glren In the order of tbelr J 
 I development. 
 
 It la eaiy to learn what a word meant. 
 
 The ilrflnltlunK are clear, explicit, and full, and each li con'alned In a aeparate , 
 puragruiib. 
 & C. Merriatn Co., Pnbllatiera, SprlnKfleld, Mas«. 
 
 jr^ Hpeciiiieii pii^eH, etr.. seiu mi .tppllcatinn. 
 
 (^3) 
 
 1, Yes, or (2), 
 
 7. Several years' surcessful tcacliiiij,' in the coninion ungraded schools w'th 
 Normal training, followed liy several years' suceessful teaching as a subordinate in 
 an academy, doing high school w(uk, 
 
 8. No, but think they should be consulted in all things relating to the educa- 
 tional ail'airs of the town. 
 
 9. Such a provision would tend to give the position a stability which it now 
 lacks, but I think its adoption would have to be left to the discretion of the differ- 
 ent towns. 
 
 (24) 
 
 3. 1 would cla.ssify .^cho! istic attainments under two heads, ordinary " A " and 
 sujierior " A." Orilimir;/ A to be equivalent to both the present classical and scien- 
 tific " \," Siij/erior A, University degree with oih' year Post graduate in larger 
 university in addition to "A." 
 
 7. (a) One year's successful experience in 
 successful experience in more advanced work. 
 Diploma. 
 
 H, Yes. 
 
 9. Yes. 
 
 (25) 
 
 2nd. Yes. 
 
 5th. Yes. 
 
 8th. Supervisors, by all means. Head masters, no. 
 
 9th. I think that nuich might be said in favor of this, but I am afraid that we 
 are not ready for it yet. 
 
 (26) 
 
 primary work. (!>) One i/tcir's 
 (c) First Kank Normal School 
 
 I would favor either (1) or (2). I think also that (5) would be a good prepar- 
 
190 
 
 ation. My only objection is that the candidate would perhaps be too much in the 
 power of the- Inspector. Besides th.-se officials differ very much as to what consti- 
 tutes successful work. 
 
 8. No. 1 hold that teachers should Ije free from all public offices. 
 
 9. Ves,— if it would not discriminate in favor of those who would accept a 
 smaller salary in consideration of j,'<'tting the use o{ a residence. It might be the 
 means of debarring single men from the position of principal. 
 
 McKay, ."^urRi; visor of Halifax 
 Schools, Secketarv. 
 
 H. S. CoNC.noN, Esq., Assistant 
 Secretary. P. E. A. 
 
 (27) 
 
 In answer to the first three questions of your printed circular, I would say that 
 the candidate should possess either classical or scientific A, or a degree from some 
 good university, or some equivalent to one of these— nothing more. 
 
 As to professional requirements I would say that any mcresx/ul experience of, 
 say, one year should be asked — nothing more. Let the value of the Normal School 
 diploma, if the candidate has one, be estimated by the school board which has an 
 appointment under consideration. The conditions suggested under Xos. 4, 5, and 
 6 would be accepted by no graduate of a good college : he would simply decline to 
 have anything to do with tlie business of teaching. He would, by all means, 
 choose something better, which would not be difficult under such conditions ; and 
 the country or rather the schools would lose the service of such persons. 
 
 8. Yes. 
 
 9. Yes. 
 
 (28) 
 
 I think Llie idea of providing a residence for the head master a particularly good 
 
1»1 
 
 ToWn (^ 'Sc 
 
 •*^128-130 Gfapville Street, N- 
 
 h:.a.li:f-A-x:, it. s. 
 
 Our Manufacturing Dejiartment is one of the largest and most complete 
 in Canada. We make a specialty of 
 
 Class Rings and Badges, Sporting and School Medals, 
 
 Designs furnished on application. 
 
 We have a very large stock of carefully selected 
 
 Gold, QoM Filled <& Salver Watches, 
 
 suitable for Tf^ACHERS or anyone wishing a first-class time piece at a moderate 
 
 price. 
 
 We make Copper Plates for Visiting Cards and all other kinds of Engraving. 
 
 o'"""b- 
 
 Electro-Plating: in Gold, Silver and Nickle. 
 
 Old and worn Table Ware refitted and replated to 
 look and wear as good as new. 
 
 10% special Disccunt. 
 
 P. S.— When ordering pleftse refer to this Report. 
 
19-2 
 
 TAN LEY, 
 
 iS and 41 Inglii §tpeet, 
 
 This popular resort is situated witliiu two minutes walk of Railway- 
 Depot, and in close proximity to the Banks, Post Office, and principal 
 Business Houses of the town. 
 
 The Stanley has of late undergone extensive repair, which has 
 placed it in the front rank of provincial hotels, and is acknowledged by 
 its comn '.rcial and other patrons to be the neatest and most homelike 
 hotel on the road. Its Sample Rooms are the finest in town. 
 
 A. STANLEY MURPHY, 
 
 Proprietor. 
 
 ■ f 
 
 I- 
 
193 
 
 MILLER BROTHERS, 
 
 MANIKACTI'RERS' AQBNTB FOR IIIUII GRADE 
 
 Viz : THE KARN, REIMER'S, 
 
 WEBER, N. Y., BEHR BROS'., N-.^Y.. 
 
 PIANOS and others, etc. 
 
 Don' t fail to write for Catalogues and Terms, 
 e'tc'^T tTNING and REPAIRING done by 
 experienced Workmen. 
 
 .^150, £ol^ AS^i\*5 ^or 
 
 The NEW RAYMOND, 
 
 NEW WILLIAMS, and 
 WHEELER & WILSON 
 
 euaaJ^ShaS 
 
 ^eWiiig Machine^. 
 
 All kinds of Sewing MacMne needles and parts supplied. 
 
 SEWING MACHINES OF ALL KINDS REPAIRED 
 BY FIRST-CLASS MACHINISTS. 
 
 101-108 BARRINGTON STREET, HALIFAX, N. S. 
 
 ssta.'biisrb.ea. ises. 
 
 Teleplion.o "733. 
 
 one. It would be a great boon to a man with a family ami would tend to give 
 permanence to one's position. 
 
 I think that the principal should hold both A's, but I should like to .^oe them 
 given in three examinations, and an average of 50 per cent, and not GO per cent. 
 be accepted. 
 
 There is too much strain, particularly for girls, a.s the A e.xaminaticns are now. 
 
 For professional equipment I should be in favor of eitlier (4) or (5). 
 
 I am not prepared to give an opinion on query (8). 
 13 
 
yc:!^Ml<il^'^ . 
 
 #1 1 
 
 194 
 
 'i 
 
 , (-29) 
 
 IFeail mastors sliouM have either scientific or classical "A" and a university 
 degree. Ilcatl masters who have tiiis qualification are easily obtained and would 
 ])resunial)ly bo better .tfui/mfn, which means in a large degree, the true spirit of 
 teaching. 
 
 It seems to me (4) and (")) are synonymous. He who has had four years 
 successful experience in actual academic preparatory work should certainly be the 
 equal of one having first rank ^'ornlal School diploma with two years' experience. 
 I am fully convinced, however, that no one, no matter how distinguished in 
 scholarship, should be employed as head master, unless po.ssessed of either of these 
 professional requirements. 
 
 8. Yes, emphatically. 
 
 9. No. 
 
 (30) 
 
 I would consider the possession of "A" scientific and classical enough under 
 scholarship requirements. 
 5. Yes. 
 
 8. No, not head masters The teacher should avoifl coming into collision with 
 any body of the citizens in civic questions, and he could not possibly steer clear of 
 these conflicts if on school board. I see no such objections to supervisors acting 
 as such. 
 
 9. Would be very agreeable to me ; and I cannot see why it would not be a 
 good measure in any case. 
 
 Labopatopies. 
 
 ^-**-«-^ 
 
 GHEMICAIS, 
 
 APPASATCS, 
 Re- Agents, &;c., 
 
 Supplied to Teachers and 
 Schools on favorable terms, 
 
 PHYSICAL APPARATUS 
 
 Imiior^ed to Order. 
 
 i^j^j-iXJd'Jk.:^. 
 
10.5 
 VI. 
 
 I 
 
 FINANCIAL STATKMP:NT FOR 1890-1. 
 Keceii'Ts; — 
 
 Fees •J''* '"'O 
 
 Oovernment Grant 6G 88 
 
 EXPENDITUHE : — 
 
 Deficit from 1889 H Oi5 
 
 Janitor ^00 
 
 Printing, N. 8. P. Co 27 7.1 
 
 Advertising Ed. Review 7 oO 
 
 " Recorder 9 00 
 
 Ciironicle 9 00 
 
 " Herald 8 '•'> 
 
 Stationery 1 "iO 
 
 Postage J '"^O 
 
 Allowance to Secretary 50 00 
 
 ^■1-2') 38 
 
 134 2.5 
 
 Deficit .S8 87 
 
 The Mutual Life Insurance Co,, 
 
 OIF ITE'Vsr TTOIilC 
 
 RICHARD A. ncCURDY, President. 
 
 ASSETS OVER - ■ S-22i ,200,000. 00. 
 
 ^Q nat^gcst Cott)pai)ii it) tl)c Wlorid. 
 
 ANNUAL INCOME OVER - - $48,500,000.00. 
 
 This is over fourteen million dollars more than the total 
 Revenue of the Dominion of Canada in 1895. 
 
 PAID TO POLICY HOLDERS C& A ^ 1 R(^7 B7B 7Q 
 SINCE ORGANIZATION, cP^ 1 1 , t-)U 7 ,0 i <^. i c?. 
 
 J. A. JOHNSON, 
 
 General Agent, Halifax, N. S. 
 
 ■OFFiCE-COR, GEORGE & GRANVILLE STS. 
 
196 
 
 VII. 
 
 PROVINCIAL EDUCATIONAL ASSOCIATION. 
 
 The Thirteenth Annual Convention of the Provincial P^ducational Association 
 will be helrl in the Assembly Hall of the Provincial Normal School, on the 14th, 
 15th and 16th of October, 1896. 
 
 A. McKay, Secretary. 
 
 viii. 
 
 SUMMER SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AT PARRSBORO, NOVA SCOTIA. 
 
 TENTH SESSION FROM JULY 9tH TO THE 24tH, 1896. 
 
 President, Principal A. Cameron, County Academy, Yarmouth. 
 
 The Summer School has done much for teachers. They have learned many 
 facts in science. They have seen the best methods of teaching it. And they 
 have gained health and pleasure from the scientific excursions. Parrsboro is a 
 charming place and the President can be depended upon to make the time pass 
 pleasantly as well as profitably. 
 
 to ^ranais ^^avier^s ^olloge^ 
 
 ANTIGONISH, N. S. 
 
 "Lfas Q. ju,Ll Eommercial Q.nj -^l ass -100.1 ■^o'uvse, aTvol 
 L poweTS "bo coT\,jer degrees ii-u iKe vario-us faculties. 
 Sloo-ai'lo-n,, Vdce E-ali-UT-e arid £nsirum,ervtal TiA^'usi© 
 are "kat-igKi "unaer good TTiasiers. Term,s ver-y reason,- 
 ccTole. 5^or "^alen-ijar ar\,d vn,form,al-Lon, a-p-ply -to 
 
 D. A. CHISHOLM, Rector. 
 
 TRURO CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC, 
 
 for Piano, Violin, Sing'ingr,.Org:an and Harmony. 
 
 Director— F. R. MACLEAN, - (Teacher's Certificate from Professor Ehrlich, Berlin.) 
 
 QUEEIV BllE.]>i:VG, 
 
 PRIIVGE STREET, . . TRURO, IW. 8. 
 
Your Education is not finished until you know -.vhere to buy your books, ami 
 how to buy theiu. 
 
 Q. O. FULTON, 
 
 Wholesale S' detail Bookseller ^' Stationer, 
 
 TRTJUO, IT. S-, 
 
 Can post you on those points. 
 
 He has the School and College Prescribed Text Books, in stock or obtains 
 them at short notice, and supplies them at Students' rates. 
 
 ALSO A FULL LINE OF 
 
 Haps, Globes, Mathematical Instruments, Compasses, Protractors, 
 
 Rules, Velvet Lead Pencils, and Erasive Rubber, 
 
 Colored Crayons, etc., etc. 
 
 All attending the Teachers' Association or Normal School, should call on 
 G. FULTON, and get his prices before buying. 
 REPORT OF PROCEEDINGS OF THE TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION, 
 Held at the Normal School, Truro, Oct. 1895. Containing 19-t Pages,— with 
 forty Portraits of Leading Educationist^^, for Sale, Price 2y cents. 
 MAIL ORDERS PROMPTLY ATTENDED TO. 
 
 STANDARD SCHOOL and OOLLEBE TEXT BOOKS, 
 
 The CANADA PUBLISHING Co., (L'td.) 
 
 9 WELLINGTON STREET WEST, TORONTO. 
 
 SXTS-XjISZX. 
 
 Royal Canadian Readrrs, Consisting of— 
 
 Primer 
 
 First Headinsr Book 
 
 Second Heading Book 
 
 Third Reading Book 
 
 Fourth Reding Book 
 
 Advanced Reader • •• ■ ■ • • y i',i' '':''' 
 
 tSSample copies of lioyil Cmaiii'in Benders mailed ttochtrr. on receipt of half price. 
 
 William's Composition and Practical English 
 
 Chase's Notes to Old 4th Reader 
 
 Ayres and Armstrong's Orthoepist 
 
 Seath's High School Granmiar 
 
 The Public School Grammar 
 
 Abbott's How to Parse. 
 
 Tl^pi-^S^.^^'SoSthey's Lile of Nelson.- with Notes by H.i; Strkng,' b; A. and ¥. r ' L Am,- 
 The lid'yof t^'ui^e^and Rip Van' Winkle witii' Notes,' etc.",' by'T.'c.L; Armstrong. M. A., L.L. B 
 
 Rip Van Winkle with Notes, etc \- ; ■ : ■ ■ j • ■ ■. ■ ■ L ' ' 'eJ "i' u' ,.'„'o 
 
 Burke's French Revolution, with Notes and Introduction by E. J. Fa>ne 
 
 Morrcll's Manual of Spelling . , «, ^ , o. 
 
 Milton's Paradise Lost, Books I and 11, with Notes by Storr 
 
 Scott's Lady of the Lake, with Notes by R. W. Taylor 
 
 Scott's Marmion, with Notes by T. C. L. Armstrong, M. A 
 
 William Goldsmith's Traveller and Oray's Elegy ..■■ ,■■;-,•••■,■■;; ' ' ■■ ' 
 
 Cowper's Task, Book IIL Goldsmith's Deserted Village. Sir Roger UeCoyerley t.sa.NS. 
 
 With Introduction, Lives, and copious Notes by William Williams, H. A 
 
 Connor'3 F.!enieiita of English Etymology 
 
 PublioSchool Drawing .Manual, by Ur. J. H. Mot'aul. 
 
 In one Volume. 
 
 10 
 
 15 
 30 
 if> 
 (to 
 76 
 
 50 
 25 
 35 
 7.T 
 25 
 «0 
 30 
 
 .',0 
 50 
 •20 
 40 
 30 
 35 
 50 
 «0 
 50 
 
 M 
 30 
 
 50 
 
 u 
 
 _^33_y. 5,5 tlio a."boTre 'teoolca aaaotilea. on receipt of price. 
 
Ifi 
 
 University of Mount Allison College, 
 
 DAVID ALLISON. Ll. D , 
 
 President. 
 
 I V' ^'.^!,'y'''f^'^I',''^-, ^^'1'' 't« Associate Institiitioiis, tlio l.ADlJvS' iOl.U'MK ami the 
 ,, ^'^^l'"^"'" AI-LISON' ACADKM Y, constituti's (nio «f the most ixteiiKive and symmetrical 
 Kiluoalioiial K.stiihlisliineiits in tiie Ddininiim. Students are admitteil without distinetioii 
 of K".\ for eitiiei- the Full Alts Course or the Selected Special Courses. Youn^; F.adjes 
 enrolled as University Students find an ek'Kant domestic home in the Ladies' Collei-e, in 
 close proximity to the University Class-rooma. 
 
 THE NEW UNIVERSITY RESIDENCE 
 
 la replete with every Comfort and convenience. 
 The Fir.st Term of the Colleuiate Year lS!l(i-7 he^^ins September 2Uli. 
 For full information as ti> tiie Courses of Study, Terms, Scholarship, Prizes, DeKrees, etc.. 
 address Til K I'KKSIUKXT for a Calendar. > a , , 
 
 iDouDt? illlison Ladies' College, 
 
 OWEN'S ART INSTITUTION & CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC, 
 
 Rev. B. C BORDEN, D. D, 
 
 Principal 
 
 J ORTV \E.^RS of Progressive Educational Work have given this Institution an unrivalled 
 position in the pubi 'j confidence. Instruction is imparted on subjects ranging from the 
 Primary English Branches through the whole University Curriculum. Y'ouiig Ladies study, 
 iiig for the Teaching Profession may here combine the accomplishments with the thorough 
 drill necessary to their calling. 
 
 THE CONSERVATORY OF MUSIC 
 
 Employs .Six Teachers, all eminent in their profession, four of whom are graduates of 
 German Conservatories. Courses in Piniio. Vocal Culture, Pipe Organ, Violin, Musical 
 History, Harmony, etc., are provided. 
 
 THE OWEN'S ART INSTITUTION, 
 
 Lately transferred from St. John, furnishes the opportunities for an Art Education 
 unexcelled in Canada. Pupils may here enjoy the tuition of one of the leading Artists of 
 America, as well as the educative influences aflForded by the Paintings of the noted Artists 
 found in the (iallery. 
 
 SHORTHAND AND TYPEWRITING ARE ALSO TAUGHT. 
 
 Special attention is give to the cultivation of refined taste and lady like manners. 
 "" I NXT PAL for Catalogue. First Term, 1896-7, begins .September !)rd, 
 
 Apply to PRi: 
 
 Mount Allison Wesleyan Academy 
 
 /eND eOMJVIEf^ClAb eObbEGE. 
 
 JAMES M. PALMER, M., A. 
 
 Principal. 
 
 "THIS is one of the Oldest and Best .Schools for BOYS in the Dominion. The Courses of 
 Study comprise : 1st, (Jeneial Elementary Education ; 2nd, Preparation for Matricu- 
 lation : 3rd, A Full Bu.siness Course, 
 o-i.-nfj^'w']!?.,"',',".!!,'!.'"""''' '^*'"'' "'"■'"' '"' ' """■"' i'll'iieiices, tliorough education, and a eoii.foitaWe home. 
 
 First Term Opens August 27th. Write for Calendar. 
 
 as^Y'uung Ladies are adriiiited to the Co'nmercial Department. These may reside at the 
 Ladies' College. First Term, ISOti-'T, begins September 3rd. 
 
Yf&TORIA S^HOOh 
 
 (Established in 1887, Queen's Jubilee Memorial.) 
 
 Tlie I'liiK'ipiil MISS K. N. KVANS teaclies, 
 
 FREEHAND and OBJECT DRAWING, CRAYON ; PAINT- 
 ING,- OIL and WATER COLORS ; DRAWING 
 PROM LIFE, STILL LIFE. 
 
 No TIME IS WASTKI) IX COFYINC; PICTUKKS. 
 
 MODELLING, TEACHERS' CLASSES. 
 
 Mechanical Phawixg 
 Akchitectuhal " 
 
 J. T. Laukin, Enyinpfr. 
 C. H. IToi'rtox, A)rhiU"i. 
 
 These Classes are free to apprentices. 
 
 Assistant Teaclier of fltject Drawing, - MISS M, GRAHAM. 
 
 Free Scholarships offered for Competition, to Schools outside of Halifax, 
 — tvt/o for Common Schools and two for Academies. 
 
 If succet<sfiil coiididates do very ^ood work tho first year 
 they ai-e admitted the second year without charge. 
 
 FEES very low. For particulars apply to 
 
 A. McKay, Secrtta?y, 
 
 Halifax, X. S. 
 
! ■ 
 
 ACADIA DRUG STORE, 
 SOUTH END PHARMACY, 
 
 Corner ILvdOORrtlS aaad. 3PILiE.A.S.A.N"'I' STE^EETS, 
 
 StI'DIOS : 
 
 TRURO, N. S., (Headquarters.) 
 NEW GLASCiOW, N. S. 
 ANTIGONLSH, N S. 
 WINDSOR, X. ,S. 
 WOLFVILLK, N. S. 
 RAILROAD I'HOTO CAR. 
 
 IiEWIg ^ICE, 
 Pl^otograpl^ep. 
 
 Special Rates to 
 TEACHERS and NORMAL STUDENTS. 
 
 Studio: PRINCE STREET, TRURO. 
 
 p. O. BOX 418. 
 
 34 i:«GI.IIi »iTREET. 
 
 Jfl]VIES ]V[. ]V[IIi]S[E, 
 
 Fine Cloths, Excellent Pit, Superior Workmanship, 
 
 Perfect Satisfaction. Orders Promptly Executed. 
 
 ^PaPIDg REJSPECT TJIE mm TE^CJIER.*^ 
 
 OXFORD and INTERNATIONAL 
 
 WE carry a larf,'e stock of Bibles.— the larirest in tlie Maritime Provinces, and believe we can suit anyone 
 We ifive here a partial, condensed list ; 
 POCKET BIBLES (cheap) at 20c., i5c., 30c , .'iSc, 4,'ic., and .Wc. 
 
 POCKET BIBLES, in better bindings (with and without references) at »0c., 65c., Toe, 90c 81 00 
 
 $1.10 and Jl.il. . » • . 
 
 TEACHERS' BIBLES with all the Helps for Bible Study, at 81.20, ai, 35, gl.fiO, 81.75. S2 25 S' 75 
 
 S3.00, #.i.70, $4.00, .JU.(K) and upwards. i,v.^, »-.,a. 
 
 LARGE PRINT BIBLES (no references), for the aged and for family use, ateOc. 81.20, $1.25, Jl :>0, 81 «0 
 
 and upwards. 
 PULPIT BIBLES, plain leather bindinsr, large print, etc., at *n.OO. ••JS.^O, 86.00, gii.riO and SIO.O^ 
 BIBLE and METHODIST HYMNS combined, in choice bindings, at «<l.50, $1.80, $2.50, *2 7) $3 00 
 and upwards. • > ■ 
 
 The above is only a list of a few leadin« lines. We have a large varietv of other stvles and prices 
 Wholesale and Retail. Send for our rnmpletni atal.-gne, Li>»ral ijiisccmnt to Teachers: 
 
 s. F. :hxtbstis, 
 
 Methodist Book Room, Halifax, N. 8' 
 
"T)AI:H0USIE ^J.L'EGE. 
 
 mjPlLIF-jPlx:, isr. s. 
 
 SESSIOlSr 1806-'7. 
 
 FACULTY OP LAW. -Session begins Sept. 2nd, 1896. 
 
 FACULTIES OF ARTS AND SCIENCE. -Session begins 
 September 9th, 1896. 
 
 FACULTY OF MEDICINE. -Session begins September 
 30th, 1896. 
 
 The following Bursaries -.viU he cTored in September, 1896 ■. -5 Bursaries 
 of $40, 2 Scholarships $120. Mackenzie Bursary of $200. 
 Hew Brunswick Alumni Prize of $50.00. 
 
 tajntno- full mrtifnl-ir<! of thf otHir^e? of iiistriictioii, c>:i!;i!!!ation». rp^'nlnHons, 
 L aluf othL pr™eJ may be ob^ by applying to the P.e,We,>t. The .resident 
 
 gS" The Calendar uon 
 ■ exhibitions, bnrsaries, medals, and other prizes, 
 •will be glad to correspond with any student wishing information 
 
y/ctona 9guare, Truro, N. S. 
 
 Crockeryvvare 
 
 . ANII 
 
 CZL 
 
 Glassware . . 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 \Vc iinixirt (liivct fn.ni Pnttoifs in Kii«IaiKl, France, flenimny 
 iiml A'lsti'iii, lui I Mil' slinwiii^' the Lnrp-^t I-iiic in town, iunl 
 yon (lie rcspcctfnily invitcil to visit our sliow-roonis whcthur 
 wL-hin;,' to pnnliiisc m' ni.t 
 
 IK9*Crockery Show-room on second flat. 
 
 Dinner Sets . . . 
 
 In French, English, ami Austrian make^. Src onr S|).(;inl 
 
 Set at- $7.50. 
 
 Tea Sets . 
 
 In French, English, German an.l Austrian Ciiina. Tea 
 Sets in Knylisli ami Froncli I'rintud Stoneware . . 
 
 Toilet Sets . 
 
 A very lari,'e range. All prices. 8eo ouv Special Toilet Set, 10 
 pieces, only $2,00. (Jrcat I'.argain 
 
 Ice Cream Sets, Lemonade Sets, Carbarets, Fruit and Salad Bowls, 
 
 Egg Stands, Cruets, Fancy Cups and Dishes too 
 
 numerous to mention. 
 
 Piano Lamps, Banquet, and several mak -s ar.cl - 1 yles.- 
 
 Q lass ware. 
 
 French an<l English Cut Tumblers and Goblets, Custards, Jelly 
 and "^■Vine (ila.sset., American makes Table Ware, and tite 
 *. !:inadian makes, very low 
 
T[1E PEOPLE'S STORE, 
 
 ()8, 7() and 72 Gottioa^i) St., Hnlitax, 
 
 has already won the a.lmiraiio,, of all for it. CRYSTAL FRONT imH.I.IANT UCHT 
 ami SPACIOUS ROOM. To-day it stands ahead of all the niodern Dry <.oods. Stores m 'he 
 Maritime Provinces. 
 
 The thousands that have helped to launch it on its ministry o Hood values to all nmn- 
 kind, have been loud in their praise and lilieral in their patronage, .sunn;,' i he proprietors 
 that their efforts to meet the re(|uireinents of these .lays are heartilv appreciated. 
 
 Their strictly Cash System, preventing losses, that all other iiouses have to account 
 for when marking iheir goods, gives this popular resort for Cash Hu.N -s a clear lea.l, saving 
 their patrons fron. five to tifteen cents on the dollar. 
 
 Their House Furnishins Department has hcen v. y largely patr.mized, 
 giving aa they do spcrial low prices in Carpets and Oilcloths. 
 
 No house shows as many Lace Curtains and .piotes si h close prices. 
 
 They are made expressly for tHK PKOl'LKS .STORK hy the I t mannfacturer.s m 
 Nottingham. 
 
 Men's Furnishings ..ccupy a large space in the New S re, and otter every 
 week diHerenl lines at special (irices. 
 
 i!„vers acknowlcdL'e this to he the hest all round Dry Goods Sto e, and daily add to 
 rapidly increasing memher^, individuals ami families, that discover they can save money by 
 purchasing here. 
 
 IMaii Orders, accompanied hy Cash, secure prompt attention. 
 
 Samples sent on application. 
 
 H'o -vfiuhi in>-if" "" ""'■ Teachers and friends of Education to take in this 
 advanced store when visiting the citv. or l.cttr,. s.nd them a mail , der accompanied 
 by Cash, believing McPHERSON & FREEIVIAN will give entires: usfaction. 
 
WM. STAIRS, SON & MORROW, 
 
 IMPOKTKRS AVX) DEALERS JN ALL DESCRIHTI0N8 OP 
 
 HEAVY and SHELF HABDWABE, 
 
 PA/fl/rS, OILS, VARNISHES. 
 
 -^ELECTRICAL OUTFITS, 
 
 Speeial HUention given tc this Department. 
 
 Hour^ehold MMm. 
 
 COMPRISING HIGH CLASS CUTLERY, OF DIFFERENT MAKERS. 
 
 Mail Orders Carefully and Promptly attended to. 
 
 170 to 192 LOWER WATER STREET, 
 
Shorthand is Fascinating. 
 
 .as Riding a Bicycle. 
 
 Perhaps you have noticed how few 
 rode the awkwai'd hif^fli bicycle ; but 
 liow many now ride the improved 
 " safety ?" 
 
 There is as much difference in short- 
 hand systems as in bicycles. Some 
 are hard to learn and harder to use — 
 like the old-fashioned high wheel. 
 One system seems to be perfect— the 
 World's Fair Committee said it was 
 the BEST SHORTHAND for general use 
 and awarded it the Gold Medal and 
 Diploma 
 
 We can teach you shorthand by 
 mail, just as well as though you came 
 here to the college. It isn't a bit of trouble ; while you can study a few 
 minutes or more, when convenient to yourself. This improved short- 
 hand is as simple as A. B. C. It is the ijuickest shorthand Ave kuow 
 anything about — quickest. to learn and fastest to write. By writing the 
 vowels, as in this s^'stem, makes it ea.sy to learn and easy to read at any 
 time. In fact, you can learn the Pernin-Snell shorthand in one half tlie 
 time required, if you follow .some of the difficult systems — while it is 
 better in every way. 
 
 This is justly considered a high price school. But good things cost 
 more than cheap — and are worth more. V\e have improved methods for 
 teaching — take capable young men and women right into a large busi- 
 ness office, where they learn practically, by doing " actual business," just 
 as it is done by other men in business. This gives real business experience 
 and explains why graduates are in demand by the more forward business 
 and professional men. This is supposed to be the only school of the sort 
 in Canada. 
 
 We offer Advanced Instruction in Practical Busines.s Affair.o, in the briefest time 
 ])ossible and at tlie least possible cost. We start with the rudiments in each course : 
 Shorthand, for office work and professional reporting; ; English ; Typewriting ; 
 Ponmanship ; Book-keeping and Actual Business. Kon't you know that this 
 knowledge is the stepping stone to high positions of lionor and trnst ? The better 
 you are qualified, the larger salary you command and the easier to get employment. 
 
 We teach shorthand by mail for $10 — time unlimited. Personal instruction, 
 specially low rates during the summer, $20 for three months, after that .$5 a month. 
 A short, sharp, thorough course in three months for a diligent student Books $1 
 to $5. Board S3 a week ; ladies 82.25. We can help a student save one half the 
 usual cost because we have short methods, work hard, long hours and try to help 
 them get along rapidly. 
 
 We are in real earnest and invite you to write for any information 
 desired, or better — come here a week entirely free on trial. 
 
 Snell's BUSIKES.S College, Truro, r<\ S. 
 
fl 
 
 07 BARRINGTON STREET TO mi 
 
 jviAHori epos., 
 
 IMPORTERS. 
 
 The Largest Betail J)py &oois House 
 
 CO 
 
 Cl3 I r 
 
 t31 
 G ■ 
 
 § o 
 S 6 
 
 CO Sf 
 .$a (0 
 SO 
 
 Z 
 
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 IlSr THE OITY". 
 
 IL 
 
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 Q. 
 12 
 111 
 
 H 
 
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 €3 
 CO 
 
 CO 
 
 .22 
 
 CO 
 
 
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 III o 
 
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 O '(: 
 
 -I 
 
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 (0 
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 Ul 
 
 ■ 
 
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 18 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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 •H 
 
 TEACHERS from the country invited to insoect. 
 
Largest Retail l\/lillmery House in IV ova Scotia. 
 
 Ikl^IL ORDERS SOLICITED. 
 
 Pn TiOY C123 
 
 HALIFAX, N. S. 
 
ASSESSMENT SYSTEM. 
 
 MUTUAL PRINCIPLE. 
 
 UIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIU 
 
 i It leads I 
 
 = where others 
 
 il)utual l^cscpw Fui)d 
 
 Life ^ssociaMoi), I '""'"'■ \ 
 
 ihe largest I^atapal pFemiarrp ^ife^gsoeiatioij^ 
 
 in tipe wopld. 
 
 E. B. HARPER, Founder. F. A. BURNHAM, President. 
 
 "^'^ '!:;:r.S^itS:r;;:\^:' Good work at Honest Cost. 
 
 True economy and not its shadow. Fifteen years completed. 
 
 AN INCREASE IN ASSETS, 
 AN INCREASE IN NET SURPLUS, 
 AN INCREASE IN INCOME, 
 I AN INCREASE IN BUSINESS FORCE. 
 
 DEC. 31st, 1895. 
 
 Insurance in Force $308,059,371 
 
 New Business AVritten . . . 69,025,895 
 
 Claims Paid, 1895 4,084,075 
 
 Total Claims Paid 25,000,000 
 
 Gross Assets .5,661,708 
 
 Eeserve Emergency Fund. 3,435,026 
 
 IT lias saved our policy holders over 
 *■ forty millions of dollars they 
 would have been obliged to pay the 
 high rate old system Companies for the 
 same amount of insurance. 
 
 It has built up its vast volume of 
 business under tlie most adverse critic- 
 cism and against tiie opposition of a 
 long established anil powerful mono- 
 poly system, whose combined efforts 
 have been directed to prevent its progress 
 and dep.ti'ov its busiupss. 
 
 Our Five Year Combination 
 Option Policy 
 
 is a model of brevity and good English. 
 
 It covers all the essential points of 
 insurance at 40% beiow old system 
 rates. Buy your insurance in the 
 
 and do your own investing, and you will 
 realize about double the results for your 
 money. 
 
 Excellent positions open for live men 
 who will find the Association popular 
 and easy to work for. Teachers and 
 students can add largely to their income 
 during vacation. Further information 
 will be given by application to 
 
 W. J. MURRAY, 
 
 Qpu. Manager, 
 Metropole Building, Haufax, N. S. 
 
 Branch Office : — St. John, N. B. 
 
Gage's Vertical Writing Books. 
 
 ^mn smmn edition. 
 
 For Sale ly all the leading Booksellers in ITova Scotia 
 
 A National Series . 
 
 A Practical Series . 
 
 Reading and Writing taught simultaneousl y. 
 
 Geographical and Historical Information about Canada given in head-lines. 
 
 PROOF OF THE SUPERIORITY OVER ALL OTHERS. 
 
 Although these books have only been issued about one year, they have already been 
 adopted in nearly every part of the Dominion. 
 
 They are now nml in a /arf/e nnmhe.r of I ha hr.t/ S'choo/'< of Oii/ario. 
 
 lined in a lanje numher of the best Schoo/'. o/ A^ora yrotiri. 
 
 Used in the Schools of Prince Edirard Islai.d 
 
 A uthorizedfor t-xclnsive use in the Schools of Maniloha. 
 
 Authorized for exclusive use in the Schools of the North West Tirrilories. 
 
 Authorized for use. in the. Schools of lirili^h Columliia. 
 
 Authorized for use in the Schools of Queliec. 
 
 :froi»i 3srov-A. sootia.. 
 
 In OTory reipset highly sJtlsiaetory. 
 
 Inteiidirijf to intioiliice the vuiticul system of w ritinj; 
 into oiir scliools, we have exiiminea Gimes Vertical 
 Writing boolis and find them in every particular hixhly 
 uatiiifactory. 
 
 Angus MoLkod, Princpul ■ Kentvilte, A'. .S 
 
 E. HARf Nichols, Aatdemic Deit't. 
 
 J. W. Robs, 
 
 BuRPKK W. Wallack, Prep'trntnnj Dipt. " 
 
 Claka VVii,lht, Iinermeditiie liepl. " 
 
 HE98IK Hamilton, Aihancetl Primary Dent " 
 
 J. E. Booas, Primary IJept. 
 
 Adopted for list. 
 
 At a meeting of our School Board on the 1st instant 
 the following- resolntion was passed, viz :--•■ That the 
 Vertical System of Writinj? ho adopted for use in the 
 public schools in the first Ave grades, and that the use 
 of either sjstem he optional with the scholars in the 
 other grades— for the present the change to be made 
 when the copybooks now being used in the school are 
 completed, and that the Gage copybooks be urilrreu 
 used for AoM systems.— F. C. Gardner, Ctinirmim y,ir- 
 inouf/i Scfiuol Boiiril, A'. A'. 
 
 I have no hesitancy in saving thatyourserics is nnich 
 superior to Jackson's. Inqlis C. Ckaio, /nspectur 
 Cumberland County Schools, JV. S. 
 
 SVe have decided to adopt them at once — VV K 
 McLKLLAX, LL. H , J,i>pe-I„r ,./ .V/„„,/,v, Pu-tou, \, s. 
 
 I have no hesitation in sa,\ingtliat r consider these 
 books much superior to anything tluit I have vet seen 
 in that line, -U. ,;. Uii.lkii, .>«/».,■,•,,>„,■ D.'irlnumth 
 rtc/tuols, iV. •>. 
 
 I am pleased with your system of Vertical Wiitinir 
 ~I. M. LosoLBV, Prnmpal D,.jl,y f.,., A.adnmj, A. \ 
 
 I coiLsider then, niperior to the Vertical copv-b.ioks 
 we are using. -J. W. Hem.kkson. /'r.napal Mtlhr/.n 
 jc/iaol, A . .N. 
 
 Seems to me to be a flrstclass series in every respect 
 
 Stl^'l "''■"''•''"''>■ "'t^Pt"! to use in our (^ommnn 
 Schools than any others I have ever seen --I) II 
 CAMl'HKLL, J'nncipiit lliij), S-hioi, Aric/iHl, A'.'.S. ' ' 
 
 My associate teachers, eight in number, are ol the 
 
 ell as for the conception of what N'ertioal Writ ng 
 means, jour set .s mu,l, superior to any we have seen 
 amUhose now used. -,T. A. Smith, W.m/sor Amd.my, 
 
 ■ I 
 
 I shall have much pleasure in recommending the' i„ several rc^i.o,.*.. o.i • . 
 
 use of your series -M. J. T. MacNk.l, //r7«r w ./ \.e no'^, is, '^^r™,'.^ T 
 Sdiooh, Kaer ISouryeois, C. li. • -l-ademyY s '"■^°^^«- « • I'. Cami'BKLI,, Trim, 
 
 The teachers are eager to introduce them. -J. Mc- 
 KiNNOs, Kc/iimI InsfKclor, Wnynicumitli, C. li. 
 
 I 'hink they are agreat improvement on the ones we 
 now have in use.— Colin W. Roacon, /..inrctor if 
 idiMls, WolfmUe, N. S. I "< J 
 
 the Pr ml; "."^ ^'""' "'"' suggestive, and I like 
 
 vinv /. * "'""•''i'' Partlcul.uly well. W. T. Kbx- 
 NKD\, Priiii;p„l Aankmi,, ll.ihfiu Cty. 
 
 thL!"**!' "? [imitation in expressing my approval of 
 them.- K.J, Lav, rnnapat Amheist Arwtimi/, A'. N. 
 
 The W, J, GAGE COMPANY (Ltd,). - TORONTO, 
 
CANADA ATLANTIC 
 
 AND . . 
 
 PLANT STEAMSHIP LINES. 
 
 Shortest and most direct route between all points In 
 
 Nova Scotia, Cape Breton and P. E. Island, 
 
 . . jPi-ND . . 
 
 OOBa^ON . 
 
 AM> Ml. I'dlNTS IN TriK 
 
 TJ3SriTEX3 STjSii.'riSS. . 
 
 S. S. HALIFAX. 
 
 The Steamers of this Line are the fastest and most magniflceutly fitted. 
 
 A delightful trip— sailing along Nova Scotia coast by daylight. 
 
 NO CHANGES. NO TRANSFERS. 
 
 H^»t> 
 
 .«iC=«.- 
 
 Teachers, Clergymen and Scholars desirous of obtaining rest or for 
 holidays, should take a trip on one of the well-known Steamers of this line.-an ocean 
 trip that braces and rejuvenates you. 
 
 ir») 
 
 For Folders, Booklets, etc., giving full particulars of Sailings, Tours, and full in- 
 formation, write or apply to 
 
 B. P. BLAKE, A. G. PAGBNT, H. L. CHIPMAN, 
 
 217 Washington Street, 
 Eoston. 
 
 B. W. WRBNN, - - - ra.s.sengi;i' Trallic .Manager 
 
 Canadian Agent, 
 
 Halifax, N. S. 
 
1, 
 
 r for 
 cean 
 
 1 in- 
 
 k. s. 
 
 A Talk about Teachers' Pensions, ^^zbb«-^ 
 
 Text "STICK TO YOUR LAST;" 
 
 This iulvice to lliu cohliler suits us all. I'ichoIilts 
 slioultl lid the preacliiii^', Tfiicliers should do the 
 loachiTig. 
 
 Si'i! that your family, your home ami your old agi! 
 arc provided for hy estalilished eouipanies who luakc 
 that their special liusiiiess, and he content. 
 
 Ol'R WORK is to assure your family of protection 
 in the event of your early death, and to provide you an 
 Annuity or 
 
 PENSION FOR OLD AGE. 
 
 TEACH Y0UK8KLF to save money systematically 
 and safely hy taking an Endowment Policy in the 
 FKDKRAL iJKK. This will protect your children 
 wiiile you are teaching ours. If you live until the 
 Policy matures we will give you aUuaranleeil Annuity 
 for Life, luider (iovernment inspection. Safe as a 
 (loverninent Hond. 
 
 THE FEDERAL has for some years carried Fifty 
 Thousand Dollars insurance on the lives of Halifax 
 Teaciiers. 
 
 CALL DURING HOLIDAYS, or drop us a card and we will call upon you. 
 
 Knfjuire about our 
 
 GUARANTEED 4- INSURANCE BOND, 
 COMPOUND INVESTMENT POLICY. 
 LIFE RATE ENDOWMENT POLICY. 
 ACCUMULATION INSTALMENT POLICY. 
 
 AnnultleM lor TerniH of If ear* or lilfe. 
 
 EMDOWMEWT POLICIE^i FOR «;HILDREM. 
 
 These Policies, issued w'thout insurance, secure in an easy manner a certain provision 
 for a daughter's dowry, or for the higher education of young people. 
 
 The fedefal Life Assurance Co,, 
 
 Head Office HAMILTON. ONTARIO. 
 
 Capital and Assets, - - 
 Surplus to Policy Holders, 
 
 
 MY PAPA HAS A POLICY IN THE 
 FEDERAL LIFE, 
 WHAT HAS YOUR PAPA GOT?" 
 
 /';<:siVZ.;H,'-JAMKS H. KKAT'l'V, 
 (Pres. North West Transportation Company.) 
 
 Vke-PreMenl -RKV. A. BURNS. I). U., 
 Principal Hamiltoii Ladies' College. 
 
 Manaijimi y^iVcr/oc- DAVID UKXTKH. 
 Amomj our Dirtclorsart 
 Hon. <i. K. FosTKK, Minister of Finance. 
 Hon. J. M. GiiisoN, Prov. Secy, of Ontario. 
 Rkv. John Potts, D. D., Supl. of Kducation, 
 
 Toronto. 
 \Vm. Dkysdale, P^sy., Bookseller, Montreal. 
 
 M. B. HUESTIS, General Agent, 
 
 30 Is^etropole ^■ULild.iane'- 23D.d. IF'loor, 
 
 Its' Do you want an Agenuy during holidays. 
 
I 
 
 I 
 
 
 (J > C^' 
 
 ^4 
 
 .s 
 
 Plans, Specifications, &c., for all kinds of Buildings at short notice. 
 
 56 Barrington Street, - - Halifax, N. S. 
 
 Special attention given to School-house and Church Architecture, nttinjr up of 
 . modern Science Rooms, Scientific Ventilation, etc. 
 
BaST-A-BLISHBD 1822. 
 
 Gordon ^K^:iTH,llaiirax,II.S. 
 
 Btta-ntifacturexB and Qeaiera in 
 
 Kuri)iturc, C^rpcte, f)'ousc Kurt)i5l)ii)gs. 
 
 -BRANCHES- 
 
 TRURO, N. S.^ 
 
 f Gai*P^*ts in every grade, 
 Fiii'fMtiirc in all 
 
 PiMiM)s, best makes. 
 
 -^NEW GLASGOW, N. S. | 
 
 A. R. COQ8WEI.L. 
 
 Speeia.1 Rate to TeaeHers, 
 
 GEO. H. WHEELER. 
 
 A. R COGSWELL ^ Co. 
 ^^Pl)ot'ogMpl)CPS,j44^ 
 
 Electric Studio. - - 253 Pleasant Street, 
 
 Next Door to Academy of Music, Halifax, N. S. 
 
 TEACHERS WANTED. A large number of 
 Competent Teachers are wanted by us to fill va- 
 cancies in Nova Scotia Schools for the coming 
 term. Send stamp for particulars. 
 
 Maritime Teachers' Ageney, SHEDIAC, N. B. 
 
 J. WILMOf ANQWIN, D. D. 5. 
 
 Graduate of Phila. Dental College, 
 
 Successor to late Dr. Geo. Hyde. 
 
 Office opposite Nopmal School, Prince Street, Tpupo, N. S. 
 
 Office Hours: 9 to 12 m., 1 to 5 p. m. 
 
 ^® 
 
 141.4 ^'' 
 
 Designers, lllustratoFs, proeess Enpavers, 
 
 99 PRINCE WILLIAM STREET, 
 
 ^ST. JOHN, N. BM 
 
 ^ For samples of Work see majority of Cuts in this Report. 
 
Tl)c gwcdisl) or Lipg gptcn) 
 
 OF 
 
 As taught by the late Baron Nils Posse, K.G.V., M.G., 
 
 Graduate Royal Central Gymnastic Institute, Sweden, Director 
 Posse Gymnasium, Boston, Mass. 
 
 Medals for Methods r-^nnHtoii, '92; Ciiicago, '9.'$; Antweris '9-i. 
 
 MISS V. Ho HOLMSTROM, 
 
 Graduate Posse Gyinnasium, Boston, Mass., and late Instpuctop 
 
 at the Gymnasium, late Leetupsp Mount Hope Insane 
 
 Hospital, Halifax, N. S., 
 
 And Instructor of Teachers, Halifax Public Schools. 
 Classes ill Gyniiiastii's^ 
 
 iNCE OCTOBER '9(;, END MAY, '97. 
 
 SPECIAL HOURS and TERMS FOR TEACHERS. 
 
 M 
 
 Miss Ilolinslriiiii is ])rci)avod to accej.L engagements to lecture on the science 
 of Gymnastics to any Normal School, College or Academy, not too far from 
 Halifax, as well as to give instruction in same. 
 
 Press notice :— " One of the modern wonders is the spread of enthusiasm for 
 Swedish Gymnastics in America. It seems but as yesterday that Baron Posse 
 came to this country bringing the gospel of the Ling System of Swedish Educa- 
 tional Gymnastics, gathering a small class of Boston jirincipals in a small hall for 
 instruction, under the patronage of the late INIrs. Mary Ilemenway. Already his 
 private institution has a large alumni list, and two editions of his eloquent volume 
 on the Swedish System of Educational Gymnastics havi; been exhausted."— 
 Journal of Edwation, 
 
) 
 
 OP 
 
 17. 
 
 IS. 
 
 nee 
 foni 
 
 for 
 
 osse 
 
 uca- 
 
 for 
 
 Ins 
 
 mne 
 
 EDUGRTIOH Teachers Rttentitn. 
 
 1.' Asstura (' Compniiv 
 
 IS 
 
 Any Invostmeiit Poliry in tlin North AniciKiu 
 better than a ponsimi. KcaHi.n why. It provi.ics 
 tliviili'iul and n'servc payment pcriodH niv<-s 
 
 Results larger than any Savine:s Bai k 
 
 Investment. 
 
 For proof of results roail the following fmni a Ifa.Iiiif; pliysieian of Slratf.-id, 
 
 STiiA'TtiHn, May Isr, 1896. 
 
 To The North American Life Assurance Co., 
 
 TORONTO, ONT. 
 
 'Tarn t!i'day in receipt of advice in respect to n.y life, T') Years' Investment I'oliey, 
 which has just matiucd. Of th,. four options e'-eved, I i-ref.-r the hrst, viz.: to 
 take the cash vahie. This vahie, *t i:5.1)-2, I fuel is more than th." total premiums 
 paid by me ; my contract has therefore atlorded me protection for h) years, tor 
 !«!1000 and returned me all tlie premiums paid with an addition tiirMyto. So satis 
 factory is the result, that I have applic.l to your Company for another policy, and 
 trust it will prove as <,'ood an investment as tliat inatuivd. In contrasting your 
 casii value with that which 1 would have icmuvcI liad 1 ii.surc.l under a similar 
 form of policy in three of the lar-est American Compani.'s doiuy. bnsnie.ss m 
 Canada, 1 find a very v idc difierenee in favor of the North Ai"ori..in Life, not- 
 withstandin.' that your niium rate was *-2.Cr) les^s per annum, per mOO, tiian 
 the rate of all of the tiuce companies referred to. If this annual difrerenee of 
 $•2 05 were imi-roved at the moderate rate of HA per .•eut. for the investment term 
 of 15 years I lind tliat it would amount to $48.46, which added t.. the cash value 
 of your p. liey would make an a-f,'n'Kat<' of *4G-J,.'?8. Tiie cash value of the three 
 con)i)anies ref.ure.l to are iglJoS.OOO, S.'JHO.OO. and y^'.m.->r> resi.eetively, or an in- 
 crea.se in your favor of .'51 per cent., 20 per .Tiit,. and 2o i)er cent respectively. 
 
 No ..ther Canadian Life Insurance (Jampany, 1 understand, has paid ivsults 
 under 15-year investment policies, and therefore 1 am unable t() c.mtrasl our 
 result- with what theirs mi<^ht haVe been if they had eommeneed the investment 
 form of insurance at the .same time that the North American Life did. 
 
 Youis truly, 
 
 J. A. ROBERTSON, M. D. 
 
 The above is but one of hundreds of hke results. , ,, v .1 * • r if a 
 
 Teachers employed during vacation to solicit biisiness for the iNorti. Ai.ie.ican Lite. A 
 larce number of tlie professors have policies in the North American Life. 
 " Apply to, 
 
 (iKO. K. LAVKR.S. 
 
 Provincial Manager, Union Bank Building, Halifax. 
 
 iq:ovjPs. SCOTIA. 
 
 BOOK OINO^RV, 
 
 Gor. SackVille ^ Qi'iii}V\\\c Sts., 
 
 First Prize for Superiority of Binding Provincial Exhibition. 
 Books bound in-CAl-F, MOROCCO, ROAN, ETC. PAPER RULING. PERFORATING, 
 PAGING and NUMBERING. 
 
 made to Order in all Styles of Binding.,^— "bss^^ 
 
f 
 
 REARDON'S ART 5T0RE. 
 
 40 6t 42 Boitrington St. 
 Headquarters for Artists' Material of Every Description. 
 
 WiiiMiir .t Ni'wtoii'H Oil iind Wiitfi- colors, V'lirniHlieH, <)iln, M'idiiims, Wiiter (Jolor 
 l/i(|iiiilH, Ui'iiuiii^ pi'iii'ilH, Drawing pupor, &l', 
 
 MinliiMii) Vogtm'M ( 'fk'l)ralf(l .stmlitH, ML'tiiilic ("olorH, 'SpiingleH, nr>)CH(los, PhhIbI 
 (Viiyoiis, Onyoii Sauce, Krencli (Jhaicoiil, ChareiMil puper, kScc,, &c. 
 
 Artists' Brushes of every description. Oil and Water Color Boxes. 
 
 iPs-rtiats' Canvas Stretched, to Order. 
 
 I'aiiitlos, I'liiL'iincH, I'iiiK'is. &c. ArtixtH" Cliiiiii Wiiic, I'aiiits, Briislifs, &n. Mathe- 
 matical Instrument* in Cases, from 40c. up. 
 
 Protractors, ConiiKisscs, I'unillcl Kiiics, Scaies, 'riiunulfH, T. Siiuiues, Xo. 
 EngravinKs, Photos, Prints, &c. 
 
 J>iCtlir^ rran^ii\2 8i iV\oUldiii\25 a Specialty. 
 GLASS STORE, - - i6 i8 & 20 Argyle St. 
 
 Leaded Art Qiass niiule 1.0 criler. Kvery description of (ilass kept on haiiil or 
 procured at shortest notice. 
 
 FRANK REARDON, Halifax, N- S. 
 
 The Largest, Oldest, and Best Equipped^ 
 
 (fOLMMERGIAL ^LLEGE 
 
 — i3sr — 
 MOT 4 NCOTIA. 
 
 A Diploinn from this College ^Ives the BEST CHANCE for 
 a (food Situation. 
 
 Bookkeeping; Writing:. Arithiiietin. 
 
 Shorthand I'itinan ami I'eiiiin avsteins. 
 
 Typewriting .Smitn I'leiniur, Keiiiiiijjton and other 
 Htariilard writers 
 
 Correspondence. SpelliiiK, I'unetuation. 
 
 SUMMER COURSE FOR TEACHERS. 
 Sund for Catalogue to WHISTOJ4 & Ft^HZEE, 
 
 QS Barrirjttin St., Halifax, N. S. 
 
 If you require^ ■ ama^ts ^ 
 
 FINE PRINTING of any description, call on . . 
 
 4W]vi. ]vi/\ei^AB,N- 
 
 »ti, - - - 
 
3RE. 
 
 on. 
 
 , Water Cdliir 
 lIUUiIun, I'liHlel 
 
 lor Boxes. 
 c. Mathe- 
 
 SijimreK, fit:. 
 
 i St. 
 
 jpt un hand ur 
 
 mnii. 
 S. 
 
 »«COTIA. 
 
 if Sr CHANCE (or 
 
 61118. 
 
 in);ton and other 
 :tiation, 
 
 rcB. 
 
 lACHERS. 
 
 inZEE, 
 Blifax, N. S. 
 
 1/7 .. . 
 
 Ei)i:cATi:i) PKori.E 
 
 BUY THE BEST GOOD; 
 
 WK I III' Kit 
 
 Table (?utkry at)d ^arwrs 
 
 III Uii/.eiis mill Pairs, iiml in silk liiii'il (mxcs, whiili maki' liaiiilsuine 
 iiiiil iisf'fui inesciit.s. Thi'sc art' sclfi't I'll finm ilic tMifniics uf 
 
 JOSKIMI IKMiKHS .V SONS, Cutlcis i" II.m Majesty. 
 
 (iKO. IM'TLKH .V ('(»., MaiiiifaL'tiinTs ot ih.. (•..l..l.rMt<.l •' Alt" Ciitli'iy ; and 
 
 •KHIN ASKIIA.M .V S(iNS, of •• Wipacul" taiMc. 
 
 Write li >(■ descijpln >iii, mid pnco'-, cm chII i>ii 
 
 j^. 2v£- BEX.I-. dz: CO-, 
 
 
 ►t>. 
 
 in Canada has reached its 
 
 ^•-^H flghest Development-^ 
 
 . . IN THE . . 
 
 Halifax Ladies* College and Conservatory of Music. 
 
 (Ill iilfilmtiiJii \iitli l)alli<ni.si(' I'liiversity.) 
 
 -SUBJECTS OF STXJDY. - 
 
 I. lilTRKAKY and SCIEMTIFIC. -Knglish Matliematies, Sci^iift;, Kitiiicli ami C.erinaii, 
 
 Latin ami (iieek, Klnciitioii, ("aliHtheiiics. Shorthand and 'ryuewritiiig. 
 n> PINE ART. — Di'iwing, Water UoIoik, Oils, China Painting, Modelling in ("lay. 
 III. MUSIC. - I'iaiioi )itf playing, Vi(din, Singing, I'lieoiy of Music. 
 
 All departinents of the Colluge and Conservatory are fully equipped. The instructors 
 are the l)e.sl that liaii lie seeiired. It is the aim of (iovernors and Faculty to inakR this in- 
 stitution of learnint; the tirst in every respect in which excellence in a Ladies' College is 
 desirable. Applications for aiVniission, for Calendar, and for other information, address 
 
 QB%# o#>DeDnr ■ aiiu/^ iui a b»«»iw<»..* 
 
,* 
 
 ti 4 
 
 Blanehard, Bentley & Go. 
 
 JAfholesale and Retail 
 
 Dj-y Goods jpipoftefs, 
 
 TRUK-O, nsr. 3. 
 
 Hcispcctfully solicit your patvoiia^i!, citlicr when in Tiiiru, oi- 
 . . . tlir()uy;li the Mail ... 
 
 T Ulail Order Easiness >v 
 
 Is a voiy iinportaiit one. Shall hv \i\in\ to .send yon .samples 
 at anv time.. 
 
 Yon will tind after coniparin^jf (pialities and prices that we are 
 Ileadcpiarters for. 
 
 DRY GOOD 
 
 ^^"'^feii(M®jtl^(?^*^ 
 
 No need to send outside of Nova Scotia for one dollar's worth 
 of Dry Goods 
 
 If unable to call and see us, send us a trial order which shall 
 have prompt attention, .... 
 
 ^m^ PVE ^T^ICTLY ejME PI^ICB^Jc- 
 
St Go. 
 
 tefs, 
 
 ill Ti'iiro, or 
 
 you samples 
 
 tliat vvc are 
 
 )llar's worth 
 
 which shall 
 
 :iCE*- 
 
 QET THE BEST 
 
 School Map 
 
 MOUNTED ON ROLLERS AND VARNISHED. 
 
 Till' l>i)iniiiinn nt' Cmiai 
 
 a, iucliiiliii;^' N'cu't'iiuiiil 
 
 laiKJ. 1 
 
 ilirador, 7 ft 
 
 ><'t in. 
 
 
 l),y 4 fl. 7 ill. (I.( 
 
 a) 
 
 lifiillv colored) 
 
 
 
 
 . .?r, -)0 
 
 Tlif World, ill IltMiiis 
 
 ilicics, (2 X '>0 ill. 
 
 
 
 
 ■i 50 
 
 Tin; 1 »()mini(in iif Ciiii.ii 
 
 a. - 
 
 
 
 
 1 50 
 
 Kuslcni IIoiiiis]ili('i'c, 
 
 
 U H 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 WcsliTii !■ 
 
 
 H 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 Xortli .AiiiciicM, 
 
 
 H II 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 South 
 
 
 " M . 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 Imii'o|i('. 
 
 
 .1 II 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 IJriti.sh Isles, 
 
 
 M ,, 
 
 
 
 
 1 50 
 
 I'^igiaml, 
 
 
 .1 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 Ireliiiiil, 
 
 
 " H 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 .SfotliUld, 
 
 
 n M 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 -Asiii, 
 
 
 II II 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 Al'iica, 
 
 
 M tl 
 
 
 
 
 4 50 
 
 Novii Scotia, -10 X :ii 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 •J 50 
 
 Maritiiiip Provinces, ." 
 
 
 
 X (M . ' . " . 
 
 
 
 
 5 1(0 
 
 TABLE STANDARD GLOBES. 
 
 The Standards, Horizon Holders and ^^eridians are of niet^tl, lii<,ddy iwlislied 
 and nickel-iilated. The Stands iiave Rubbei* Feet whiuli prevent tiiem from 
 ulii/iiii/ or Diarn'ii;/ the talile, and makes tiiem pe.rfectly )i(ii>!rlcss. This is a f,'reat 
 improveinentover all otiier metal stands. These we lielieve to he the best CHobe.s 
 ever oifered for the .school or home. 
 
 12 inch full mounted . . . 
 
 1- " semi-meridian .... 
 
 i) .. II 
 
 K^ ASK FOR DISCOUNT LIST. 
 
 !?10 00 
 
 7 00 
 
 4 50 
 
 •2 50 
 
 T. C. ALLEN & CO., ■ - HALIFAX. N. S. 
 
I 
 
 f 
 
 h i 
 
 i^:E3u^iDQ-ur^f^:Ka:E]is s 
 
 M>r; 
 
 ol K )( >1 l^upi )lios, 
 
 2v£.-a^:e=S, -: 
 
 :- C^X^OEES, 
 
 chool ApparatiBS, 
 
 VMi \ It I.I I.ISK I i|- IIIF- 
 
 Prescmbed Tex:t Books. 
 
 CATALOGUES AND PRICES FURNISHED ON APPLICATION, 
 
 A. & W. IWAGKINliAY, 
 
 ±35 and. IST" O-ran^rilie Street, 
 HALIFAX. N. S. 
 
V