LIBRARY 
 
 J OF THE 
 
 UNiyERSITY OF CALIFORNIA. 
 
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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
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EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 FREDERIC ALLISON TUPPER 
 
 Head-Master of the Brighton High School, Boston 
 
 'or TH€ 
 
 Of 
 
 califo 
 ■^ —•^syracuse, n. y. 
 
 C. W. BARDEEN, PUBLISHER 
 
 1904 
 
L(i.\6oT 
 
 f^^!^^ 
 
 mAL 
 
 COPYKIGHT, 1904 
 BY 
 
 Frederic Allison Tupper 
 
 All Rights Reserved 
 
tJ 
 
 DEDICATION 
 
 To THE Teachers, Pupils, and other 
 
 Lovers of Education with whom 
 
 MY WHOLE Life has been spent, 
 
 THIS Book is Dedicated. 
 
 |QOS^9 
 
PREFACE 
 
 It is the author's hope that this book, in spite 
 of its evident lack of consecutiveness, will be 
 read by all those who have at heart the highest 
 educational interests of our country. Although 
 very few Americans deny the supreme import- 
 ance of education, an astonishingly large num- 
 ber are dominated by educational superstitions 
 and fetiches, which they supinely accept as law 
 and gospel. The present grotesquely absurd ex- 
 amination system, the prevalent marking sys- 
 tem, the exaltation of the letter at the expense 
 of the spirit in so many of the most common 
 methods of teaching, may be instanced as illus- 
 trations of some of the evils which the author 
 wishes to combat. 
 
 The author takes pleasure in acknowledging 
 his indebtedness to The New England Journal 
 of Education^ The Boston Transcript^ The Bos- 
 ton Globe, The New York School Journal, to 
 the Revised Charter of the City of New York, 
 and to Boston School Document No. 9, 1903. 
 
 (5) 
 
TABLE OF CONTENTS 
 
 Educational Broth 9 
 
 The Marking System Nightmare - - 12 
 
 '' Team- Work " in the Eecitation - - 16 
 
 SpeUing 18 
 
 Latin as the Universal Language - - ^1 
 
 Teachers' Salaries - - - - - 25 
 
 Anent Diplomas 29 
 
 The Self-Limitation 'of the Elective Principle 
 
 in Secondary Schools - - - - 33 
 The Eequirements in College English from the 
 
 Standpoint of the Preparatory Schools 37 
 
 The School Magazine Club . - - 49 
 
 How to Build Up a Large Latin Vocabulary 53 
 
 Debating in Secondary Schools - - 66 
 
 Courtesy in Public High Schools - - 82 
 
 A True Philosophy ----- 88 
 
 Eeply to President Schurman - - - 97 
 
 A New Field for Private Beneficence - 106 
 
 The Advantages of an Alumni Association 114 
 
 Some Instances of Ancient Patriotism - 121 
 
 School Playgrounds 124 
 
 (7) 
 
8 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 New York and Its Public Schoor Teachers' 
 
 Eetirement Fund . - - - - 126 
 A Professor of Child Study - - - 133 
 Teaching Morality in High Schools - - 143 
 Manual Training ----- 151 
 A Plea for a Higher Civilization^and for the 
 
 Poetic Side of Life - - - . 159 
 High School Electives - - - - 170 
 
EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 The educational pot is now boiling. The faith- 
 ful teacher is making broth. Along comes the 
 superintendent. He tastes the broth. " It 
 ought to be thicker and slabber," remarks he; 
 ^' put in more psychology and the broth will be 
 all right." 
 
 So in goes more psychology, especially the 
 physiological variety. Ganglia flavor educa- 
 tional broth wonderfully. 
 
 Next comes a supervisor: " Your broth is too 
 thick, friend; there are too many ingredients. 
 Take out almost everything but manual training 
 and the broth will be famous." 
 
 Next comes a committeeman: '^ Worthy 
 teacher, your broth is all wrong. Put in some 
 of the-old-district-school-that-produced-so-many- 
 able-men. ' ' 
 
 The broth continues to boil and bubble. 
 
 A travelled parent next appears: ^'Are you 
 certain that Froebel and Pestalozzi would have 
 made broth just this way ? " 
 
 (9) 
 
10 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 And still the pot boils on. 
 
 A normal enthusiast puts in her appearance. 
 
 '^ You are failing in methods" says she. 
 " Now really, there is only one true way of 
 making broth of this kind. That way we all 
 learn at West water. Once master the broth- 
 nature and the syllabus of methods will at once 
 materialize to be cognized immediately by the 
 synthetic unity of apperception. Now the broth- 
 nature — " 
 
 At this point the broth begins to boil over, 
 and the normal enthusiast hastens away to get 
 help in subduing broth that acts so abnormally. 
 There are neither rules nor methods ready-made 
 that will cover all abnormal ebullitions. 
 
 A distinguished university president next 
 comes upon the scene. '^ My worthy secondary 
 teacher, ' ' he exclaims, ' ' your broth comes to my 
 table in a decidedly uncooked condition. It is 
 evidently underdone. Are you sure that you 
 cook it to the best advantage ? It seems to me 
 that, if you would cook it a shorter time, it would 
 be more palatable and much better done. You 
 evidently let it simmer too long over a slow fire. 
 We cannot digest it at New Camven without 
 
EDUCATIONAL BROTH 11 
 
 an enormous amount of pepsin in the shape of 
 private tutoring to work off entrance conditions. 
 Now in Germany, France, and Switzerland, 
 much better broth, much more easily assimi- 
 lated, is made by educational cooks in much less 
 time. I beg you to stop this everlasting sim- 
 mering." 
 
 Perhaps the teacher may here reply: ''All 
 things considered, we are making preparatory 
 broth about as well as you are making Univer- 
 sity floa^ting island or similar dishes." 
 
 But the broth keeps boiling, and the teacher 
 says in his heart : ' ' My broth is too thick, too 
 thin, too crude, too miscellaneous, too restricted, 
 too un-American, not foreign enough ; it is too 
 methodical; it is too haphazard, and yet it is 
 pretty good broth after all." 
 
THE MARKING SYSTEM NIGHTMARE 
 
 "Is this a dream ? Then waking would he joy. 
 I pray thee wake me, lest I dream again." 
 
 I once taught in a high school of excellent re- 
 pute, where for five years in obedience to the 
 directions of my superior, and with the help of 
 a friend in misery, I managed to live through 
 the following nightmare, or more properly incu- 
 bus, as it was not limited to ''the shades of 
 night ". The average number of pupils in attend- 
 ance was 150. All of these pupils had to be 
 marked each day in each recitation. At the end 
 of the month the average of these recitation 
 marks was computed. Then the averages thus 
 computed were copied and recorded in a large 
 record book. Of course, it was necessary to get 
 the marks of the other teachers, and record their 
 averages in the book. Then it was customary to 
 compute the record of each pupil in deportment, 
 and copy these averages in the book of doom. 
 The next step was the computation of the average 
 
 of the class averages, in order to get at afcnonthly 
 
 (12) 
 
THE MARKING SYSTEM NIGHTMARE 13 
 
 average^ which was copied on the pupils' cards. 
 In the meantime, for fear that the Saturday hoh- 
 day might prove too seductive in its influences, 
 at the end of each month an examination in 
 some subject was given. All the papers had to 
 be carefully examined, corrected, and marked. 
 Then the average was recorded in the large book. 
 
 You begin to see that, what with preparing 
 examination questions, correcting and mark- 
 ing the papers, and recording the marks, the 
 Saturday " holidays "could hardly be considered 
 occasions of extravagant merrymaking. But 
 to our averages. At the end of the term, when 
 the tired teacher had computed the averages for 
 the third time, it was the custom to make an 
 average of the monthly averages. Next, doubt- 
 less, as a gentle tonic, it was necessary to get the 
 average of the examination averages. Then it 
 was customary to compute the average of the 
 examination averages and the monthly aver- 
 ages. You will all be gratified to learn that this 
 last average was called a " term average ". 
 
 But this was not all. After the teacher had 
 made out the monthly averages ten times, the 
 examination averages twice, and the term aver- 
 
14 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 ages twice, he had to average the ten moDthly 
 averages, avey^age the final examination aver- 
 ages^ and then average the average of the ten 
 months and the final examination average, in 
 order to obtain what was pleasantly called " the 
 promotion average ^\ For the graduating class 
 one more average had to be computed, namely, 
 " the graduation average ". This was obtained 
 by averaging the yearly averages for the four 
 years of the course. 
 
 Thank heaven that nightmare is over now! 
 But does not a similar incubus brood heavily 
 over some of our best schools ? Might not Mr. 
 George T. Angeir direct a share of his wit, wis- 
 dom, and influence, against a system so fraught 
 with cruelty to teachers and to pupils ? 
 
'' TEAM-WORK" IN THE RECITATION 
 
 Now that governors and bishops attend the 
 annual foot-ball games between Harvard and 
 Yale, and indulge in the most frantic demonstra- 
 tions of their delight at ^'touch-downs" and 
 goals; now that " everybody who is anybody " 
 makes an athletic Mecca of Cambridge or New 
 Haven, there to wave a banner of crimson or of 
 blue, and to shout with the loudest at ''good 
 gains", — may not the educational philosopher 
 derive useful lessons from a game that attracts 
 twenty thousand or more persons at one time ? 
 
 We want more " team-work " in the recita- 
 tion. It is not enough to have brilliant individ- 
 ual scholars who can ' ' break through the cen- 
 tre ", or " get round the ends ", or " sprint 
 forty yards ", while the rest of the class, instead 
 of showing " clever interference ", pays not the 
 slightest attention to the progress of the lesson. 
 What we want is a " Deland flying wedge " or a 
 "revolving wedge" that will keep close to an 
 
 (15) 
 
 or 
 
16 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 idea, when once it has been '' put in play " and 
 never let it go until it is safely " touch-down ", 
 just over the " line ". Then let the " goal " be 
 kicked in such a way that every member of the 
 class — ^'eleven", I was going to say — may 
 profit by the result. 
 
 Of what avail is it that the brilliant " sprin- 
 ter " has hold of an idea, and is rushing with 
 all the enthusiasm of youth and health and 
 strength toward the enemy's goal, if the class 
 cannot keep up? The ''sprinter", so far as 
 class advantage goes, is sure to be unmercifully 
 ''tackled" and emphatically "downed" by the 
 opposing forces of ignorance. The class, while 
 made up of individuals, must be at the same 
 time a unit. A recites not for himself alone, 
 nor yet for the teacher, nor yet for the school 
 committee, nor yet for the other visitors. B 
 and C and D and all the rest of the class are to 
 be considered. 
 
 ^There must be no " off-side play " in the way 
 of cheating to get high marks, whispering ans- 
 wers to hesitating pupils, or " cribbing " in the 
 text-books. The " pony ", or " horse ", is usu- 
 ally like the Trojan horse, and contains within 
 
17 
 
 itself all the elements of its user's destruction. 
 What brings the victory ? Practice, patience, 
 perseverance, obedience, " team-play ", unity 
 in variety, attention, judgment, individual bril- 
 liancy supported by average capacity, a captain 
 who commands the love and confidence of the 
 class, and who knows just how to " handle the 
 team". With such factors when an idea is 
 " put in play ", you will hear of no '^ muffing 
 behind the lines ", but you will see every pupil 
 watch his chance and make a " fair catch ". 
 
SPELLING 
 
 A knowledge of the art of spelling is to be 
 gained by long and laborious efforts. The causes 
 of failure in this subject ditfer, no doubt, in 
 different cases, but there are certain well-estab- 
 lished, general causes, some of which may be 
 enumerated as follows : 
 
 1. Wrong methods of teaching. Absurd as 
 some of the old-fashioned methods were, they 
 still had the scientific merit of appealing to the 
 memory through the ear, as well as through the 
 eye. Oral spelling ought not to be abandoned 
 but ought to be practised in connection with 
 written work. The spelling match is not to be 
 despised as an educational method. 
 
 The spelling of words, like the words them- 
 selves, should be learned as we need it. It seems 
 very strange to store up long lists of words 
 mainly for some possible future reference, but to 
 be unable to spell the commonest words of every 
 day use. All facts of language are learned one 
 by one. Then why pretend to learn them by 
 
 the score ? 
 
 (18) 
 
SPELLING 19 
 
 Words entirely appropriate to pupils of one 
 stage of advancement may be entirely inappro- 
 priate to those of another. The spelling of the 
 vocabulary of each subject in the school course 
 should be insisted upon more rigidly. The pre- 
 valent idea that the spelling should be considered 
 as something only remotely connected with a 
 science or an art cannot be too strongly con- 
 demned. The spelling of the terms of physics, 
 for example, is an important part of a thorough 
 knowledge of the subject, and he who attempts 
 to pass as an expert in that subject, but who 
 constantly indulges in what (for want of a bet- 
 ter term) may be called Josh Billingsgate, suc- 
 ceeds only in making himself ridiculous. 
 
 In this age of elective studies too little atten- 
 tion is paid to some of the consequences of elec- 
 tion. To be an accomplished speller of English 
 one must know much of languages other than 
 his own. He who declines to study Greek, 
 Latin, French, and German declines to accept 
 the aid offered by these languages in the study 
 of his own. He who shuns mathematics may 
 expect to be ignorant of mathematical terms. 
 He who eschews science may blunder, naturally 
 
20 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 enough, about scientific terms. The pupil who 
 studies his Greek in a rational way will not be 
 likely to misspell demagogue. A student at 
 Harvard once spelt this word " demigogue ". 
 ^' What is a whole gogue ? " was the instructive 
 comment made by the professor in charge of the 
 course. The student might have answered this 
 query as a clever Boston teacher did recently : 
 " Why, all agog, of course! " 
 
 The pupil who has studied French will not go 
 wrong on the spelling of messieurs, if his atten- 
 tion has been called to the composition of the 
 word, namely, mes, and sieurs. 
 
 Transliteration plays no unimportant part in 
 this matter of spelling. Such words as laby- 
 rinth, Egypt, catarrh, and many others will 
 have no terrors for the student who understands 
 transliteration. 
 
 In closing, permit me to say of the late 
 lamented Noah Webster that, in my humble 
 opinion, he did an irreparable injury to the spell- 
 ing of the English language when he attempted 
 to spell words not according to good usage, but 
 according to his own private views of propriety. 
 And may I also say that I have but little sym- 
 pathy with modern movements for the mutila- 
 tion of English words beyond recognition. 
 
LATIN AS THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE 
 
 Instead of adding, year by year, to the list 
 of " universal language " failures, why not 
 make use of a language that will commend it- 
 self to so many persons in so many lands ? Let 
 us state the question in the form of a debate : 
 Resolved, That Latin ought to be adopted as 
 the universal language. 
 
 1. The preparatory schools, the colleges, the 
 universities of the civilized world, have for hun- 
 dreds of years given great attention to the study 
 of Latin. The adoption of this language as the 
 universal language would give new zest to a 
 study already extremely valuable and interest- 
 ing. Thus new vitality and interest would be 
 infused in this time-honored department of 
 learning. 
 
 2. Latin has already been tried as the lan- 
 guage of the learned, and has been found an 
 admirable clearing-house for the mental coinage 
 of those who are brothers in learning if aliens 
 
 (21) 
 
22 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 in government. Newton's Principia and num- 
 erous other works appeared originally in Latin. 
 The classical notes of many German scholars are 
 still written in that language. 
 
 3. That Latin, Spanish, Portuguese, French, 
 and Romaic, are substantially Latin languages 
 is a well-known fact. That Latin, as a living 
 language, is studied among the Hungarians, is 
 another well-known fact, 
 
 4. English and German are largely indebted 
 to the Latin language, not only for numerous 
 words embodied in these languages, but also for 
 many phrases and expressions taken directly 
 from the Latin and by long use assimilated. 
 
 5. The language of science, particularly of 
 classification, is Latin, with such an admixture 
 of Greek as can easily be Latinized. You have 
 only to consider the vocabulary of botany, 
 zoology, geology, physiology, and the hundred 
 other " ologies," to see the truth of this state- 
 ment. Law, medicine, and theology, including 
 services in Latin, together with libraries of 
 works in Latin, all reinforce this plea. 
 
 6. The custom of printing diplomas in Latin 
 has much to be said in its favor. Notwithstand- 
 
LATIN AS THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE 23 
 
 ing the frantic efforts of the anti-classical party, 
 the study of Latin continues to attract large 
 numbers of the ablest students in all nations. 
 Such students are glad to have a certificate in a 
 language intelligible to the learned world. 
 
 7. An international conference might well de- 
 termine the proper pronunciation of Latin. At 
 present English-speaking scholars are in the fol- 
 lowing absurd quandary: If we pronounce Latin 
 by the Roman method, shall we also pronounce 
 proper names and well-known words and phrases 
 by the same method ? Must Caesar be one word 
 in Latin and another word in English, until most 
 pupils in a desperate attempt to master two 
 totally different pronunciations are driven to a 
 strange conglomeration that is neither Roman 
 nor EngUsh ? 
 
 To understand the baneful effects of a double 
 standard of pronunciation you have only to 
 study the usual pronunciation of medical terms. 
 Probably such words as bronchitis, pericarditis, 
 and the like, are almost invariably mispro- 
 nounced. 
 
 The international conference meeting at stated 
 times might pass on the admission of new terms 
 
24 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 to the universal Latin language. For example, 
 telephone might easily become telephonium, and 
 other Greek compounds might be easily Latin- 
 ized. 
 
 How the preceding propositions may be re- 
 ceived by the learned world I know not, but for 
 myself I am most heartily in favor of the move- 
 ment. A broad, international spirit will easily 
 give up minor points of pronunciation and usage 
 for the sake of a symmetrical, world-uniting 
 whole. I will venture to say that the adoption 
 of my proposition will result in great gains to 
 the brotherhood of man, to learning, to diplo- 
 macy, and so to the welfare of the human race. 
 
TEACHERS' SALARIES 
 
 One of the most ludicrous results of solemnly 
 accepted methods of fixing salaries is shown in 
 the following incident. A master in a well- 
 known city, feeling that a European trip for 
 study and recreation would greatly benefit him 
 and his pupils, obtained leave of absence from 
 the school committee and went abroad. The 
 time was spent profitably. When, however, the 
 master returned refreshed and invigorated physi- 
 cally, mentally, and morally; when, filled with 
 enthusiasm, and eager to inspire and benefit his 
 pupils, he came back to his work, he found a 
 great surprise awaiting him. As certain men 
 have lost their shadows, and as others have lost 
 their refiections, and yet have not known why, 
 so the master found that he had lost his continuity 
 of service, and must resume his work at a much 
 lower salary than that which he had received 
 when considerably less efficient! ^' Lost his 
 continuity of service, ' ' had he ? And what, in 
 the name of common sense, if he had ? Where 
 
 (25) 
 
26 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 had he landed ? Was he more efficient or less 
 efficient? ' ' Woodenness " in education is al- 
 ways a perfect reductio ad absurdum. There 
 is no place for the foot-rule in dealing with the 
 most important of public interests. 
 
 And here I wish to ask why the American 
 people are willing to allow the teacher's profes- 
 sion to be less remunerative and less esteemed 
 than either law or medicine or theology ? Do 
 you say that the great law of supply and demand 
 will regulate the teacher's salary ? If you were 
 ill, would you employ a cheap doctor ? If you 
 became involved in legal difficulties, would you 
 retain a cheap lawyer ? If you wished for spirit- 
 ual aid and comfort, would you search diligently 
 for the cheapest clergyman ? And yet commu- 
 nities are generally willing and even eager to 
 commit the physical, mental, and moral inter- 
 ests of the children to the care of teachers 
 whose salaries are insufficient to satisfy the 
 most moderate needs. 
 
 All honor to that noble band of efficient teach- 
 ers who are yearly giving their hves to their 
 country ; who are in the truest and best sense 
 of the words public benefactors ; whose watch- 
 
or ^vW 
 
 TEACHERS SALARIE^«£»!i2&''^7 
 
 word is not " salary ", but " efficiency ". But 
 how many teachers do you suppose are f aihng in 
 this proud state of Massachusetts ? And why 
 are they permitted to fail ? Because they are 
 cheap ! You can hire them for less money than 
 the amount necessary for obtaining good teach- 
 ers. There are millions for palatial buildings 
 and thousands for decoration, but for the teach- 
 ers not even the compensation of third-rate law- 
 yers, doctors, clergymen, or business men ! 
 
 The public schools of Massachusetts are not 
 places to be used as training-schools for ineffi- 
 cient teachers, or snug harbors for superannu- 
 ated intellectual navigators. 
 
 There ought to be an immediate and a radical 
 change in this matter of salaries. Years of ser- 
 vice have their place, but years of efficiency are 
 the main issue. Sex has absolutely nothing to 
 do with the question. The profession must be 
 made so honorable and remunerative, that it will 
 attract and hold the best men and the best wo- 
 men of the land. When the young graduate 
 on his way to the practice of law or medicine 
 says to the community: " Let nte experiment 
 on your children. I will do it at very low 
 
28 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 figures, ' ' the community ought to reply : ' ' Hands 
 off! You shall not assume the duties of the 
 most difficult and important of professions, 
 even if your bungling services should be offered 
 free of charge. Economy in such matters is 
 akin to starvation to save provision bills. Go 
 about your business — that is, law or medicine ! ' ' 
 
 Eaise the standard, raise the salaries, raise the 
 efficiency. Exclude bunglers. The employment 
 of poor teachers has never been the means of 
 saving a cent. It is pure loss, or worse than 
 loss. The gain derived from hiring the best 
 teachers is absolutely incalculable. No. commu- 
 nity can afford to let such teachers go. 
 
 I believe that it is the solemn duty of all pro- 
 fessional and efficient teachers to agitate this 
 great question until the right shall prevail. The 
 greatness and the glory of our country depend 
 as much on the proper recognition of teachers' 
 services as upon any one thing. I call for united 
 action on this subject. 
 
ANENT DIPLOMAS 
 
 What do they mean — these more or less beau- 
 tifully engraved diplomas ? Here is a Latin doc- 
 ument before me. It reads : 
 
 Schola Latina Roxburiensis 
 In Republica Massachusettensi 
 Omnibus Ad Quos Hae Literae 
 Pervenerint Salutem 
 Notum Sit Quod — 
 Studiorum in hac Schola curriculum bene ac 
 fldeliter confecit, eique in rei testimonium Cura- 
 tores hoc diploma tribui curaverunt. 
 
 Datum, Bostoniae, Quinto Nonas Julias, A. D. 
 MDCCCLXXV . 
 
 Praeceptor. Curatorum Praeses. 
 
 You may fill out the blanks with such names 
 as the circumstances warrant. All very fine, 
 isn't it? ''Bene ac fideliter confecit" — yes, 
 but all the graduates obtained the same com- 
 mendation. The beneficent rain of compliment 
 fell on the just and the unjust with an impar- 
 tiality as striking as that of the sky. 
 
 (29) 
 
30 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Have you ever noticed in somewhat antiquated 
 diplomas the rhetorical flourish " with the high- 
 est honors of the institution " ? And have you 
 ever stopped to consider the fact that the diplo- 
 ma itself was " the highest honors of the institu- 
 tion ", and that all the graduates revelled in 
 those ^'highest honors"? The same kind of 
 generosity characterizes almost all of the diplo- 
 mas granted by secondary schools, until one is 
 forced to the conclusion that a sheepskin, like 
 charity, '' covers a multitude of sins ". General 
 Butler's somewhat startling assertion to the 
 effect that Harvard would do well to confer a 
 degree on him, on the ground that he was about 
 the only Massachusetts governor who could trans- 
 late the diploma, was, of course, one of those 
 playful exaggerations for which the general was 
 noted. It is an interesting fact, however, that 
 many holders of Latin diplomas cannot translate 
 them. An unusually " seedy " man once ap- 
 plied to me for help in translating his Latin 
 medical diploma. One can hardly help shudder- 
 ing at the results of such a " physician's " prac- 
 tice, had he succeeded in finding out what his 
 diploma meant. Such " practice " inevitably 
 
ANENT DIPLOMAS 31 
 
 suggests the '' target practice " at Manila and 
 Santiago. 
 
 Some universities and colleges, like Harvard, 
 for example, confer honors with distinctions and 
 differences. For instance, there are the plain 
 degree, the cum laude, the magna cum laude, 
 and the summa cum laude, degrees. Harvard, 
 like the partial father, says, in effect, " I love all 
 my sons alike — especially certain ones of them." 
 
 There would seem to be a consensus of opin- 
 ion that non-professional diplomas, like marriage 
 certificates, are not properly exposed to public 
 view. The status of professional diplomas ap- 
 pears to be somewhat different, probably because 
 the public demands some tangible evidence of 
 competency aside from the advice actually re- 
 ceived. 
 
 The foot-rule must not be applied to diplomas, 
 even if the '^magnificent distances" of the 
 present documents are too wildly imaginative. 
 Were the authorities to state in black and white 
 on an unfortunate pupil's diploma that he was 
 " very poor " in a certain subject, what would 
 such a certificate amount to as a source of joy 
 to the owner ? The " little rift within the lute " 
 
32 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 would spoil the whole scholastic symphony. 
 What, then, is a solution of the existing difficul- 
 ties ? Extend the elective system, state in the 
 diploma precisely what subjects have been stud- 
 ied, and how much time has been devoted to 
 each subject, and, then, if it be wise (and whether 
 it is or not, I do not know), note the various de- 
 grees of excellence by some such expressions 
 as '^ with the highest honor", ''with high 
 honor", and ''with honor". The diploma 
 without any qualification would merely indicate 
 that the pupil deserved such evidence of his 
 efforts, but that he did not deserve any particu- 
 lar commendation. 
 
 If an institution can be held to account for the 
 attainments or lack of attainments of its gradu- 
 ates, surely it would be fairer to the schools to 
 permit the diploma to mention the subjects 
 studied by the recipient. Diplomas based on 
 actual facts rather than on " glittering generali- 
 ties " would command and deserve much greater 
 respect. If " accuracy is the soul of scholar- 
 ship ", truth is the soul of accuracy. Let us, 
 then, have the truth, tempered only with regard 
 for the feelings of pupils and parents. 
 
THE SELF-LIMITATION OF THE ELEC- 
 TIVE PRINCIPLE IN SECOND- 
 ARY SCHOOLS 
 
 Considerable unintelligent discussion of elec- 
 tives in secondary schools has arisen from a par- 
 tial or complete misapprehension of the real 
 scope of the elective principle. Even if the en- 
 tire list of studies in secondary schools were made 
 elective, there would still be limiting elements of 
 great importance. In the first place, almost any 
 rational scheme of study involves an orderly 
 procedure from the elementary through the 
 more complex towards the most difiScult. For 
 example, a pupil could not ordinarily take the 
 second year Latin until he had mastered the first 
 year's work in the same subject. A similar 
 statement may be made about Greek, French, 
 German, mathematics, and other subjects. 
 Furthermore, a study like that of physical geog- 
 raphy is wisely preceded by astronomy, geology, 
 botany, etc. Astronomy and physics require a 
 good knowledge of elementary mathematics. 
 
 (33) 
 
34 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^" 
 
 Advanced bookkeeping presupposes a knowledge 
 of elementary bookkeeping. A student of draw- 
 ing who might attempt the most difficult parts 
 of the subject without taking the preliminary- 
 steps, would get but little profit from his work. 
 In every good elective system, then, the limita- 
 tion of natural order must always play an im- 
 portant part. 
 
 A second limitation is to be found in the num- 
 ber of teachers that the average municipality or 
 the average private institution can afford to sup- 
 ply. Within reasonable limits the question of 
 the merits of large, moderate-sized, and small 
 classes is a debatable one, and there is room for 
 enthusiasm over any one of the three kinds of 
 classes. It is generally acknowledged, however, 
 that our present danger lies in the direction of 
 too large rather than in that of too small classes. 
 But, as a general rule, it is safe to assert that 
 there is a limit beyond which a class cannot be 
 reduced with profit to the public. Meritorious 
 as individual instruction is, and beneficial as its 
 results are in many cases, no rational being 
 would ask a municipality to furnish private tu- 
 tors to every child. It is, then, perfectly fair 
 
THE ELECTIVE PRINCIPLE 36 
 
 that individual choice of studies must always 
 have as a second limitation the number of teach- 
 ers that can be reasonably afforded. 
 
 A third, and extremely important, limitation 
 is found in the secondary pupil's aims. If he 
 wishes to go to college, the number of his possi- 
 ble courses is at once restricted to such as will 
 fit him to meet the requirements of the college 
 of his choice. There is, it is true, a growing 
 tendency towards elasticity in these require- 
 ments ; and yet even Harvard, the great centre 
 of the elective principle, though allowing some 
 freedom of choice, still makes compulsory a 
 large amount of the work required for admission. 
 The pupil preparing for Yale, or for the Massa- 
 chusetts Institute of Technology, or for the Bos- 
 ton Normal School, or for the state Normal 
 School, or for the Normal Art School, must con- 
 sider most carefully the requirements of his 
 chosen institution, and must direct his studies 
 with a view to meeting those requirements. 
 
 Still further, absolute freedom of choice is 
 limited by the advice and the authority of par- 
 ents and teachers. In almost all of the institu- 
 tions of secondary grade in which the elective 
 
36 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 plan has been adopted, the choice of the pupil is 
 made subject to the approval of the Principal of 
 the school. 
 
 An additional limitation is to be found in the 
 prevalent ideas about the necessity of pursuing 
 certain studies. Many intelligent persons have 
 strong convictions about the value of particular 
 branches and the expediency of gaining at least 
 an elementary knowledge of them. Such con- 
 victions have been influential in creating a de- 
 mand for the study of mathematics and of Eng- 
 lish, to mention only two of the subjects under 
 consideration. 
 
 In consequence of such prevalent opinions 
 pupils wishing to take '' commercial " studies 
 invariably find bookkeeping, commercial arith- 
 metic, and, of late, stenography and typewrit- 
 ing, simply inevitable. 
 
 Further consideration might show additional 
 restrictions, but enough has been said to demon- 
 strate the fact that all rational elective systems- 
 in secondary schools are, and, from their very 
 nature, must be, to a large extent, self -limiting. 
 
THE EEQUIEEMENTS IN COLLEGE ENG- 
 LISH FROM THE STANDPOINT OF 
 THE PREPARATORY SCHOOLS 
 
 During the Boer war, now so fortunately 
 ended, there appeared in one of the Enghsh 
 comic papers a cartoon representing a cabinet 
 meeting. The eminent statesmen composing 
 the EngUsh cabinet of that time were evidently 
 sorely tried to find some plausible explanation 
 of the well-known British defeats in South Africa. 
 But Lord Salisbury with the Micawber hopeful- 
 ness of the average politician is represented in 
 the cartoon as expressing the following highly 
 gratifying opinion: " It doesn't make any differ- 
 ence what we say, so long as we all say the 
 same thing." Now whether Lord Sahsbury 
 had heard of the scheme of uniform require- 
 ments in English or not, I, for one, cannot state 
 with any degree of positiveness, but the senti- 
 ments which he expressed to the other members 
 of his cabinet are so harmonious with the spirit 
 of the American uniform requirements in Eng; 
 
 (37) 
 
38 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 lish, that his utterance hints at coincidence if 
 not collusion. 
 
 Before going any farther in this discussion, I 
 wish to formulate at least one basic principle of 
 the successful teaching of English, namely this : 
 That teaching of English which results in awak- 
 ening in the pupil a life-long interest in the 
 literature and the language of England and of 
 America, may be called truly successful. This 
 great principle of arousing a permanent interest 
 in a subject as a test of successful teaching in 
 it, is in no sense restricted to English; but it is, 
 I believe, indisputably and peculiarly true of Eng- 
 lish. And yet under the present ''storm and 
 stress" of college English requirements how 
 many pupils are roused to permanent enthusi- 
 asm for the best things in English literature ? 
 To go still farther, even after an extended course 
 in English literature at our best universities, 
 how general, pray, is a permanent enthusiasm 
 for English literature and appreciation of what 
 is best in it ? 
 
 I know a little girl who told me in confidence 
 that she always liked the Sistine Madonna very 
 much, until she had to study it in school, and 
 
REQUIREMENTS IN COLLEGE ENGLISH 39 
 
 that since that time she simply detested it. 
 And this reminds me of some curious doggerel 
 verses every stanza of which ended with the 
 words: " Do you know why ? " Brethren, con- 
 fession is said to be good for the soul, and in 
 the spirit of this great truth, I would ask : Isn't 
 there something extremely pedantic, unnatural, 
 unnecessary, and repulsive, about the present 
 system of college entrance requirements in Eng- 
 lish ? Is it in any sense strange that the most 
 distinguished of American Headmasters refers 
 to these requirements as that " loathsome thing 
 known as college English ^"^ ? Said an eminent 
 physician to me: ''Yes, my son, George, was 
 conditioned in English at Harvard, and I'm 
 mighty glad of it. Of all the senseless and 
 stupid ways of trying to get a boy to love Eng- 
 lish literature this dissecting and quizzing 
 method is the worst." By a parity of methods 
 a person should be unmercifully quizzed on 
 everything connected and unconnected with a 
 juicy sirloin steak, while the real thing for him 
 to do is to eat it. He will assimilate it, never 
 fear, and it will do him some good. He needn't 
 understand all the processes of digestion, or chase 
 
40 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 the steak back to the slaughter-house, " in order 
 to derive benefit from the course", as the col- 
 lege catalogues say. Some persons are very 
 sceptical about the educational possibilities of the 
 colored race, but personally I am fully persuaded 
 that the young negro who asked to be excused 
 from physiology on the ground that it made him 
 feel dizzy to think of his insides was on the 
 verge of rediscovering a great educational truth, 
 as applicable to college English requirements as 
 it is to physiology ; and this educational truth is 
 '" Let well enough alone." But the college re- 
 quirements say: '^ Cut well enough into small 
 pieces, dissect it, say numberless useless things 
 about it; prepare to meet your examiners! " 
 And this reminds me of the methods of the Sal- 
 vation Army in the rural regions : You are rid- 
 ing along in the country with a clear conscience 
 and a happy heart, drinking in with every breath 
 health and joy, when of a sudden on some 
 prominent bank near a tumbled-down barn you 
 see a design in paving-stones or leeks or some 
 such Puritanical material with the awful words : 
 
 " Prepare to Meet Thy God." 
 
 Of course, to you, being a good Christian, the 
 
REQUIREMENTS IN COLLEGE ENGLISH 41 
 
 thought is decidedly dehghtf ul, but some way the 
 sun goes under a cloud for a time. Now it is with 
 similar feelings that the pupils come up for ex- 
 amination in English. The process of tearing 
 thoughts up by the roots, to see why they grow 
 that way, may be radical, but it certainly leaves 
 the thoughts in bad shape. 
 
 I have said elsewhere, and will repeat with the 
 permission of The Journal of Education, some- 
 thing which has a bearing on the subject under 
 discussion: 
 
 It is highly probable that more time is wast- 
 ed in well-meant attempts to teach English liter- 
 ature than is thrown away on almost any other 
 equally important subject. The scope of this 
 remark is not restricted to elementary or to sec- 
 ondary schools, but applies most forcibly to the 
 colleges. Some years ago there appeared in Life 
 an excellent cartoon representing our old friend 
 Charon ferrying across the Styx that noted 
 American critic, William D. Howells. On the 
 opposite bank of the gloomy river the gigantic 
 shades of Thackeray and Dickens were making 
 most threatening gestures at the shade of How- 
 ells, who, it must be admitted, in spite of our 
 
42 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 national pride, in the presence of such giants 
 looked small indeed. '' Criticism is easy, art 
 is difficult, " say the French, an injunction which 
 all teachers of English might remember with 
 profit. It always struck me as strange that the 
 best writers of English appear to furnish college 
 rhetoricians with the most numerous and the 
 most awful examples of inaccuracy. Perversely, 
 enough, no doubt, the inference that I draw 
 from this fact is, that great writers Uke Shak- 
 spere, Johnson, Scott, George Eliot, Thackeray, 
 Wordsworth, Dickens, Jane Austen, and others, 
 often held up to the withering scorn of college 
 freshmen, allowed themselves reasonable free- 
 dom in their really beautiful use of the Enghsh 
 language. In using English as a vehicle of ex- 
 pression one is not obliged to sit bolt upright 
 everlastingly. In this century extraordinary 
 emphasis ought to be laid on the school library. 
 Instead of wasting precious hours in fatuous at- 
 tempts to show how Scott blundered, how Thack- 
 eray was mistaken, how Shakspere was not 
 very well-informed, and how Jane Austen ought 
 to have known better, the genuine teacher will 
 take measures to get his pupils to read the actual 
 
REQUIREMENTS IN COLLEGE ENGLISH 43 
 
 books themselves without very strenuous atten- 
 tion to second-hand notes or queer figures of 
 speech. 
 
 As a rule, foot-notes are not negotiable. Say- 
 ing things about authors and their books has very 
 little to do with creating a love of literature. 
 The average teacher whether in college or out is 
 a very poor competitor of the great writers 
 themselves. Many a lover of good literature 
 has been made such by having free access to a 
 good Ubrary in early childhood. If the masters 
 of poetry, fiction, history, and travel, cannot 
 hold their own in the minds of boys and girls, 
 what earthly good are quizzes, and examina- 
 tions, out-of-the-way information, and inter- 
 minable prating going to do? There must be 
 something radically wrong about a boy who does 
 not like Scott, that is, unless Scott is to be used 
 for purposes of dissection. Francois Magendie, 
 the eminent vivisector, on account of his experi- 
 ments on animals was called, perhaps unjustly, 
 ''the hellish Magendie". There are many 
 ''hellish Magendies ", literary vivisectionists, 
 among teachers of English, and of such is the 
 kingdom of college examiners. That is one 
 
44 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 reason for the fact that some boys prefer dime 
 and half-dime novels on which no questions are 
 to be asked, to the rarest products of the highest 
 genius which have to be '^ got up " for exami- 
 nation. 
 
 The editors of text-books in college English 
 have made, no doubt, a honest effort to meet the 
 requirements. Occasionally, to be sure, they 
 fall into the venial error of imagining that they 
 themselves wrote the English classics. For ex- 
 ample, the editor of an edition of Addison's 
 '^ Sir Roger De Coverley Papers" sent me a 
 copy with the compliments of the author^ a 
 thoughtful and delicate attention on the part of 
 Addison not bestowed on everyone nowadays. I 
 take at random one of the most recent of these 
 precious edited English Classics, and what do I 
 find ? Fifty pages of Contents, Prefatory Note, 
 Introduction, Cosmography of the Universe, 
 Maps, Individual Assignments for Research, 
 Suggestive Questions, Suggestions for Rhetoric 
 Study, and Study Helps; Ninety-one pages of 
 the actual classic, including the arguments of 
 other books ; Twenty-four pages of notes ; Nine 
 pages of Index. Many of these alleged notes con- 
 
REQUIREMENTS IN COLLEGE ENGLISH 45 
 
 sist merely of the injunction, '' See dictionary or 
 encyclopaedia "5 which is suggestive of the old 
 trick of writing on one page of the big dictionary, 
 ''see page 1093", in the hope that, when the 
 witless one turns to ''page 1093", he will find 
 the advice, "see page 505", and so on. Such 
 notes illustrate what may properly be called 
 "Will-o'-the-wisp" editing. To illustrate this 
 method still further, let me cite the note on line 
 572: 
 
 " Serbonian Bog. See International Diction- 
 ary, Standard Dictionary, or any encyclopaedia. 
 See Map of Egypt and Arabia, p. XXXIX." 
 
 Now it seems to me that this note is rather 
 hard on the authorities cited. Still the editor is 
 not without some good ideas, as, when he says: 
 " It seems to the present editor that a great 
 hindrance to the study of such poems as Para- 
 dise Lost is the practice of constantly calling the 
 pupil's attention from the study of the poem to 
 some parallel in Homer, Vergil, or Dante. Most 
 teachers will agree that this is likely to prevent 
 the eager following of the tremendous and often 
 headlong action of Milton's "mighty universal 
 drama ". And again when he says : 
 
46 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 '' In the study of these Unes, nothing should 
 draw the pupil away from the use of the imagin- 
 ation. Notes and references often serve to do 
 this. Study, not about the poem, but the poem. ' ' 
 
 I once knew an uneducated retail fish-dealer 
 who used to read " Paradise Lost " by the hour, 
 and who used to be so deeply affected by its gran- 
 deur, that he never read it without tears. I am 
 morally certain that he did this without benefit 
 of notes or comments. I have known persons 
 who read'' Pilgrim's Progress " with implicit 
 beUef in the verity of every character and the 
 truth of every incident. And they reminded 
 me of the words " Except ye become as a little 
 child, ye shall in no case enter the kingdom of 
 God." 
 
 And so my sympathies go out to the applicant 
 for admission to college who wrote on his paper 
 in answer to the question: " Who were Chaucer's 
 Contemporaries?" Chaucer had no Contempo- 
 raries. Nor do I think it very strange that an- 
 other applicant wrote in reply to the question : 
 " Who was Silas Marner, and what were the 
 causes of his unpopularity ? " : 
 
 " Silas Marner was the name of a poem by 
 
REQUIREMENTS IN COLLEGE ENGLISH 47 
 
 Coleridge. The cause of his unpopularity was 
 that he killed the albatross that caused the wind 
 to blow." 
 
 Nor am I surprised at the naive confession of 
 an athletic young man to the effect that the 
 wrestling match carried him through his answer 
 to a question on ''As You Like It ". 
 
 That rare and beautiful genius, Charles Lamb, 
 says in his famous Essay on " Mackery End, in 
 Hertfordshire ", speaking of his cousin Bridget: 
 
 '' Her education in youth was not much at- 
 tended to ; and she happily missed all that train 
 of female garniture which passeth by the name 
 of accomplishments. She was tumbled early, 
 by accident or design, into a spacious closet of 
 good old English reading, without much selec- 
 tion or prohibition, and browsed at will upon 
 that fair and wholesome pasturage. Had I 
 twenty girls, they should be brought up exactly 
 in this fashion. I know not whether their 
 chance in wedlock might not be diminished by 
 it, but I can answer for it that it makes (if the 
 worst comes to the worst) most incomparable 
 old maids." 
 
 '' What ? " the pedants will exclaim : " Turn- 
 
48 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 bled early by accident or, worse yet, by design, 
 into a closet of good old English reading ? No 
 examinations ? No written exercises ? No para- 
 phrases ? No figure-hunts ? No topical analy- 
 ses ? No parallel passages ? No notes ? No 
 indexes ? No introductions ? No exposes of 
 the author's weak points ? No comment on the 
 Serbonian Bog ? Why, look at the absurdity of 
 such a plan ! There would be hardly anything 
 left except what the authors actually wrote ! 
 How could the poor girl have known what to 
 do without a note saying : ' Eead over and over, 
 and try to image ? ' " 
 To all of which objectors and objections I reply : 
 " Please, don't come at me that way! Go at 
 Charles Lamb. I merely quoted him, but, to 
 tell the truth, I am persuaded that he is right." 
 
THE SCHOOL MAGAZINE CLUB 
 
 The great value of professional as well as of 
 general literature is becoming more and more 
 generally recognized. Eminent physicians club 
 together, and for a comparatively trifling ex- 
 pense get the benefit of all the best medical 
 magazines. Progressive teachers who really 
 desire to make their chosen calling a genuine 
 profession may profit by the physicians' exam- 
 ple. It is of no avail for teachers to say that 
 they can get all the best magazines at the public 
 library. Potential energy is not kinetic energy. 
 Magazines in the library are hot magazines in 
 the teachers' hands. Inertia is a force to be 
 reckoned with. Consequently, every corps of 
 teachers ought to have a local professional or 
 semi-professional magazine club. The teachers 
 should agree on the amount of money which 
 they feel willing and able to contribute. At a 
 meeting of the club early in the school year each 
 teacher should indicate his preference with re- 
 gard to the various magazines. As there is 
 
 (49) 
 
60 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 some danger at the present time that prof ession- 
 aUsm may encroach upon that broad humanity 
 so essential to the truly successful pursuit of any 
 large occupation, it is well to include in the list 
 of magazines some of the most meritorious of 
 those devoted to general hterature. It is a curi- 
 ous fact that some purely professional magazines 
 are almost as soporific as opiates. One stimu- 
 lating sentence is worth volumes of " dry-as- 
 dust " prosing. '' Pulvis et umbra sumus " 
 might well be taken as a motto by certain well- 
 meaning editors unfortunately devoid of a sense 
 of humor. 
 
 Education has become the absorbing master- 
 passion of American Ufe. Even the passion for 
 wealth pays reverent tribute to the passion for 
 education. And this great fact of our throbbing 
 American Ufe is imaged in the journals and 
 magazines of the time by their constant pubh- 
 cation of valuable articles on educational subjects. 
 
 Half-hearted recruits in the cause of education 
 must rub their eyes in astonishment, as they 
 observe the growing importance attached to a 
 caUing once ridiculed, if not despised. Said an 
 acquaintance of mine recently : 
 
THE SCHOOL MAGAZINE CLUB 51 
 
 ^' The teacher who can conduct a school as 
 it ought to be conducted ; who can leave the 
 mark of his personality upon all of his pupils, 
 is engaged in the highest of all occupations, and 
 is the greatest and best of men." 
 
 I commend this remark to some of the faint- 
 hearted ones who ^' hate children", yet still 
 continue in the profession of teaching. 
 
 If there are still teachers who say that they 
 can '' get no good from educational journals ", 
 and who still believe that the science and the art 
 of teaching '' come by nature ", they would do 
 well to consider the very easily substantiated 
 fact that the leaders in all the professions attach 
 great importance to the best current professional 
 literature. 
 
 By way of closing this article let me call at- 
 tention to a simple device to secure regular cir- 
 culation of the magazines among the teachers. 
 Blanks should be printed or typewritten in some 
 form similar to this . — 
 
 High School. 
 
 Magazine Club. 
 
 Received. Passed 
 
 Mr. Smith. 
 
62 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Mr. Brown. 
 Miss White. 
 Miss Gray. 
 Miss Blank. 
 Miss Fiske. 
 
 Magazines may be kept one week. 
 
 These forms should be pasted on each maga- 
 zine as it arrives. Each teacher records the date 
 of receiving and of passing the magazines. 
 
 This plan has been in successful operation at 
 the Brighton High School for the past few years, 
 and has proved to be stimulating and valuable. 
 
HOW TO BUILD UP A LAEGE LATIN 
 VOOABULAEY 
 
 Rev. J. H. Bacon, in his extremely valuable 
 " Complete Guide to the Improvement of the 
 Memory", calls attention to a most important 
 fact often disregarded in the teaching of Latin. 
 He says : — 
 
 '' The learning of a language comprehends 
 the learning of the v^ords of the language, and 
 the changes they undergo in construction and 
 arrangement. If, then, by a few simple rules 
 many of these changes can be pointed out, the 
 pupil will know thousands of words without the 
 wearisome task of learning them one by one." 
 
 Mr. Bacon then proceeds to show the relation 
 of certain English endings to the corresponding 
 Latin terminations. Following Mr. Bacon's ar- 
 rangement, I have made a partial list of Eng- 
 Ush words ending in ence, and have placed in a 
 parallel column the corresponding Latin words, 
 which can be given almost instantaneously 
 
 (53) 
 
64 
 
 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 whether the pupil ever had them before or not. 
 The rule is as follows : — 
 
 1. '' Most English words ending in nee or ncy 
 are made into Latin by changing ce or cy into 
 tia." 
 
 Mr. Bacon then gives two illustrations of this 
 rule, namely, patience, patientia, and clemency, 
 dementia. 
 
 Let us consider some further illustrations of 
 this rule for words ending in ence. I will give 
 the words, as they occurred to me : — 
 
 ENGLISH 
 
 1. Patience 
 
 2. Continence 
 
 3. Eeticence 
 
 4. Correspondence 
 
 5. Keference 
 
 6. Difference 
 
 7. Indifference 
 
 8. Pertinence 
 
 9. Evidence 
 
 10. Essence 
 
 11. Potence 
 
 12. Impotence 
 
 13. Permanence 
 
 LATIN 
 
 Patientia 
 
 Continentia 
 
 Eeticentia 
 
 Correspondentia 
 
 Eeferentia 
 
 Differentia 
 
 Indifferentia 
 
 Pertinentia 
 
 Evidentia 
 
 Essentia 
 
 Potentia 
 
 Impotentia 
 
 Permanentia 
 
HOW TO BUILD A LATIN VOCABULARY 66 
 
 14. Dependence 
 
 16. Independence 
 
 16. Incontinence 
 
 17. Superintendence 
 
 18. Prudence 
 
 19. Providence 
 
 20. Improvidence 
 
 21. Abstinence 
 
 22. Diffidence 
 
 23. Confidence 
 
 24. Inference 
 26. Conference 
 
 26. Affluence 
 
 27. Deference 
 
 28. Influence 
 
 29. Confluence 
 
 30. Afference 
 
 31. Existence 
 
 32. Consistence 
 
 33. Desistence 
 
 34. Impertinence 
 36. Circumference 
 
 36. Indigence 
 
 37. Imprudence 
 
 38. Eminence 
 
 Dependentia 
 
 Independentia 
 
 Incontinentia 
 
 Superintendentia 
 
 Prudentia 
 
 Providentia 
 
 Improvidentia 
 
 Abstinentia 
 
 Diffidentia 
 
 Confidentia 
 
 Inferentia 
 
 Conferentia 
 
 Affluentia 
 
 Deferentia 
 
 Influentia 
 
 Confluentia 
 
 Afferentia 
 
 Existentia 
 
 Consistentia 
 
 Desistentia 
 
 Impertinentia 
 
 Circumferentia 
 
 Indigentia 
 
 Imprudentia 
 
 Eminentia 
 
66 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 39. Prominence Prominentia 
 
 40. Persistence Persistentia 
 
 41. Insistence Insistentia 
 
 42. Resilience Eesilientia 
 
 43. Immanence Immanentia 
 
 44. Imminence Imminentia 
 
 45. Eloquence Eloquentia 
 
 46. Magniloquence Magniloquentia 
 
 47. Grandiloquence Grandiloquentia 
 
 48. Ventriloquence Ventriloquentia 
 
 49. Competence Competentia 
 
 50. Audience Audientia. 
 
 This list might be extended greatly. As soon 
 as pupils understand the corresponding termin- 
 ations, the Latin may be given for the English, 
 or the English for the Latin, with the great- 
 est ease. 
 
 There are, I am aware, several objections to 
 this scheme of increasing the vocabulary. It 
 may be said: — 
 
 (1) Some of the English words are not in the 
 English language. 
 
 (2) Some of the alleged Latin words are not 
 in the Latin language. 
 
 (3) Some of the Latin words are not classical 
 Latin. 
 
HOW TO BUILD A LATIN VOCABULARY 67 
 
 In reply to objections first, second, and third, 
 I would say : — 
 
 (1) There is no law forbidding well-formed 
 additions either to the English or to the Latin 
 language. 
 
 (2) Just as not all English words are Eliza- 
 bethan, so not all Latin words are classical. 
 
 I believe that such lists of words have great 
 value. Their value will increase in direct pro- 
 portion to the student's knowledge of English, 
 Latin, French, and other languages, especially 
 the Eomance tongues. 
 
 For example, each one of the fifty words 
 given above might well suggest not simply the 
 corresponding noun in Latin or in English, but 
 the verb, and its participle, often used as an 
 adjective, together with the various other words, 
 simple and compound, which naturally group 
 themselves about the same root. To the com- 
 parative philologist a mine of inexhaustible rich- 
 ness is at least indicated. The surprising cor- 
 respondences of the Greek with the Latin, to- 
 gether with the intimate connection of English, 
 French, Italian, and Spanish with one another, 
 and with Latin, offer a magnificent field for work. 
 
68 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Not only borrowed words, but also kindred 
 words will marshal their forces at the com- 
 mand of the general memory, aided by the lieu- 
 tenants. Attention, Arrangement, and Associa- 
 tion, '' the three A's," as Mr. Quick so aptly calls 
 them. 
 
 As many of the Latin words in English come 
 to us through the French, it will seem only 
 natural that with a very few changes of vowels, 
 or accents, the English of the list just given will 
 become French. 
 
 Herbert Spencer's dictum to the effect that we 
 must proceed " from the known to the un- 
 known ' ' in education seems to have been care- 
 fully avoided in most works ostensibly devoted 
 to the teaching of elementary Latin. To con- 
 tinue the building up a Latin vocabulary, let us 
 make one list of English words ending in tude 
 and another list of Latin words ending in tudo. 
 If by, merely changing e to o we are able to 
 give, off hand, a good number of reputable Latin 
 words, surely the gain is considerable. By such 
 a method we not only learn a larger number of 
 words than that usually mastered, but we ac- 
 quire these words without straining the memory. 
 
HOW TO BUILD A LATIN VOCABULARY 
 
 59 
 
 '^ Train, not strain,' 
 
 plies to every form of 
 
 Ei^GLlSH 
 
 1. Aptitude 
 
 2. Gratitude 
 
 3. Altitude 
 
 4. Latitude 
 
 5. Longitude 
 
 6. Lassitude 
 
 7. Desuetude 
 
 8. Solitude 
 
 9. Promptitude 
 
 10. Magnitude 
 
 11. Multitude 
 
 12. Solicitude 
 
 13. Attitude 
 
 14. Ingratitude 
 
 15. Inaptitude 
 
 16. Plenitude 
 
 17. Amplitude 
 
 18. Rectitude 
 
 19. Quietude 
 
 20. Disquietude 
 
 21. Similitude 
 
 22. Dissimilitude 
 
 ' is an aphorism that ap- 
 mental activity. 
 
 LATIN 
 
 Aptitudo 
 
 Gratitudo 
 
 Altitudo 
 
 Latitudo 
 
 Longitudo 
 
 Lassitudo 
 
 Desuetudo 
 
 Solitudo 
 
 Promptitudo 
 
 Magnitudo 
 
 Multitudo 
 
 SoUicitudo 
 
 Attitudo 
 
 Ingratitudo 
 
 Inaptitudo 
 
 Plenitudo 
 
 Amplitudo 
 
 Rectitudo 
 
 Quietudo 
 
 Disquietudo 
 
 Similitudo 
 
 Dissimilitudo 
 
60 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 23. Fortitude Fortitudo 
 
 24. Platitude Platitudo 
 
 25. Sanctitude Sanctitudo 
 
 26. Turpitude Turpitudo 
 
 27. Ineptitude Ineptitudo 
 
 28. Beatitude . Beatitudo 
 
 29. Mansuetude Mansuetudo 
 
 30. Consuetude Oousuetudo 
 
 31. Exactitude Exactitudo 
 
 32. Servitude Servitudo 
 
 33. Certitude Certitudo, etc. 
 Psychologists tell us that it is easier to remem- 
 ber two words having some connecting link than 
 it is to remember one isolated word. If we re- 
 member that e as printed looks like a broken 
 link, and o like a closed one, there will be no 
 difficulty in recalling the fact that the open link 
 is English and the closed link Latin in the case 
 of '' tude " and " tudo " words. 
 
 To a:pply these methods, we proceed next to 
 derive from our list of nouns the adjectives to 
 be remembered together with them. The fol- 
 lowing list suggests itself immediately : 
 aptus gratus desuetus 
 
 longus lassus magnus 
 
HOW TO BUILD A LATIN VOCABULARY 
 
 61 
 
 solus promptus ingratus 
 
 multus soUicitus amplus 
 
 inaptus plenus disquietus 
 
 rectus quietus fortis 
 
 similis dissimilis turpis 
 
 platus sanctus mansuetus 
 
 ineptus beatus servus 
 
 consuetus exactus latus 
 
 certus altus. 
 
 In connection with the thirty-three nouns, 
 taken at random, may be noted several interest- 
 ing facts: — 
 
 First, without any difficulty thirty-two Latin 
 adjectives may be recalled in connection with 
 the nouns. 
 
 Second, the reason for the fact that an adjec- 
 tive is not suggested at once for the noun atti- 
 tude or attitudo is this: ''Attitude" is really 
 another form of ''aptitude", hence it must be 
 referred to aptus. 
 
 Third, servus, it must be remembered, is an 
 adjective as well as a noun. 
 
 Fourth, inaptus and ineptus must be consid- 
 ered as practically the same word. 
 
 Fifth, platitude appears to have come through 
 
62 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 the French, but as that language is really a kind 
 of modern Latin, and as the word ' ' platus ' ' or 
 '' platys " exists in ancient Latin and in Greek, 
 platitudo may be permitted to remain in the list. 
 
 Mr. Bardeen, the well-known Syracusan, tells 
 us of a visit that he made to a place where 
 '' correlation " reigned supreme. As the various 
 grades of the schools were at work on the in- 
 spiring subject of ''goose", the singing teacher 
 had taken great pains to make the music har- 
 monious with the course of study. According- 
 ly, in place of the ordinary syllables the word 
 '' hunk ", (query, why not " honk " ?) the cry of 
 the goose, was used for the scale exercises. In 
 Mr. Bardeen's words: 
 
 ''The singing teacher was at a good deal of 
 pains to imitate the ' hunk ' of the goose and 
 had the children practise, until they got some 
 sort of an imitation of it. Then this ' hunk ' 
 was sung, first to the scale hunk, hunk, hunk, 
 hunk, hunk, hunk, hunk, hunk, and down 
 again; then to the major chord, hunk, hunk, 
 hunk, hunk; then to the minor chord, then to 
 certain exercises, very much like the usual 
 vocalization except that instead of the traditional 
 
HOW TO BUILD A LATIN VOCABULARY 63 
 
 ah, the children were to sing hunk, hunk, hunk. " 
 This anecdote illustrates to perfection the 
 natural results obtained by those unphilosophical 
 teachers who think that every general law of 
 mind must necessarily apply with unvarying 
 precision to all pupils alike. The French have 
 a proverb: " II n'y a pas des maladies; il y a des 
 malades. " ''There are no sicknesses ; there are 
 sick people. ' ' That is to say, each case must be 
 treated individually. 
 
 The result, then, to be derived from any edu- 
 cational principle, or from any method or device, 
 will depend almost entirely on the teacher's skill 
 in applying such principle, method, or device, to 
 the needs of the individual pupil. 
 
 To resume the main subject, the building up 
 of a Latin vocabulary, I believe that the English 
 side of Latin has been neglected too long. Take, 
 for example, the following group of words : — 
 
 1. 
 
 Victor 
 
 7. 
 
 Elevator 
 
 2. 
 
 Executor 
 
 8. 
 
 Eenovator 
 
 3. 
 
 Administrator 
 
 9. 
 
 Monitor 
 
 4. 
 
 Orator 
 
 10. 
 
 Eesonator 
 
 5, 
 
 Coadjutor 
 
 11. 
 
 Detonator 
 
 6. 
 
 Commutator 
 
 12. 
 
 Abnegator 
 
64 
 
 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 13. Negotiator 
 
 14. Cultivator 
 
 15. Personator 
 
 16. Imitator 
 
 17. Curator 
 
 18. Abator 
 
 19. Senator 
 
 20. Inventor 
 
 21. Inspector 
 
 22. Testator 
 
 23. Adjutator 
 
 24. Investigator 
 
 25. Manipulator 
 
 32. Eradicator 
 
 33. Navigator 
 
 34. Abrogator 
 
 35. Insulator 
 
 36. Emancipator 
 
 37. Associator 
 
 38. Auditor 
 
 39. Authenticator 
 
 40. Barometor 
 
 41. Barrator 
 
 42. Calumniator 
 
 43. Calculator 
 
 44. Capitulator 
 
 26. Demonstrator 45. Numerator 
 
 27. Depredator 46. Denominator 
 
 28. Depositor 
 
 29. Denunciator 
 
 30. Advocator 
 
 31. Radiator 
 
 47. Enumerator 
 
 48. Enunciator 
 
 49. Fascinator 
 
 50. Gesticulator, etc. 
 There are several things to notice about this 
 
 list: — 
 
 1. The words are all in the English language. 
 
 2. With certain reservations the words are all 
 in the Latin language. 
 
 3. " Tor " denotes the agent. 
 
HOW TO BUILD A LATIN VOCABULARY 65 
 
 4. A feminine form may be found for these 
 words in Latin by changing ''tor " to '' trix ". 
 
 5. In many EngUsh words we find the " trix '^ 
 form also. 
 
 6. In many English words ^^ tress" takes the 
 place of ''trix". 
 
 7. In French "teur"and "trice" replace 
 "tor" and "trix". 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 
 
 I wish to make a plea for the organization of 
 debating societies in all of our secondary schools, 
 and I am going to do this from the conviction 
 that such societies, if properly managed, may 
 be of inestimable value to our country. The 
 average American ought, in my opinion, to be 
 able to speak with clearness, ease, and effective- 
 ness before his fellow-citizens. His enunciation 
 and his pronunciation ought to be vastly more 
 correct than they are at present. His ability to 
 think on his feet should be greatly increased. 
 The powers of persuading, of conveying ideas 
 in effective language, of detecting fallacious 
 reasoning, of publicly maintaining the rights of 
 the people, cannot be given too much attention. 
 An experience of twenty-three years in connec- 
 tion with debating societies enables me to speak 
 with a certain posit iveness of conviction on these 
 subjects. It is my belief that too little credit has 
 been given the old-fashioned lyceum for the 
 extraordinarily excellent results sometimes ob- 
 
 (66) 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 67 
 
 tained under the so-called '' old education". If 
 we could interrogate the spirits of American 
 statesmen, lawyers, clergymen, and other public 
 men, there is abundant evidence to show that 
 they would attribute enormous importance to 
 the practice of debating. I am fully aware of 
 the fact that many otherwise intelligent persons 
 are strongly opposed to debating, whether in 
 secondary schools or in colleges. " I am tired," 
 say such persons, ''of hearing young men get 
 up and talk about subjects of which they know 
 nothing." But, Mr. President, if public debate 
 and speaking were restricted to those who know 
 all about any subject, what a profound and 
 deathlike silence would reign over the known 
 world ! Will not the interest stimulated by de- 
 bate, the study of authorities, the expression of 
 one's ideas, the successful or even unsuccessful 
 attempts to refute opposing arguments, develop 
 power and increase knowledge ? 
 
 It may be asked, in the first place. Ought de- 
 bating to be compulsory or elective? I have 
 personally tried both the elective and the com- 
 pulsory plans, with satisfactory results in both 
 <5ases. The principal objections to the elective 
 
68 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 plan are these : Fewer pupils are benefited, and 
 those who most need the training are very likely 
 to hold aloof. The most timid, who might with 
 encouragement do well, decline through fear to 
 take the course. 
 
 Ought the debates to be held during school 
 hours? Yes, because the work is as important 
 as any other part of the curriculum. Although 
 elective debating societies managed wholly by 
 pupils have great value, I am strongly of the 
 opinion that compulsory societies controlled by 
 a teacher are productive of better results. It 
 may mitigate the idea of compulsion to have the 
 time of the exercise taken from the regular 
 school hours. If compulsion, so-called, is made 
 sufficiently interesting, it will shade into election. 
 
 For the last twelve years it has been my prac- 
 tice to meet once a week throughout the school 
 year the senior and junior classes of my school. 
 These two classes organize themselves into a de- 
 bating society. The officers are a president, a- 
 vice-president, a secretary, a treasurer, and an 
 executive committee. The officers are elected 
 once a month in order to give as many pupils 
 as possible practice in presiding. The business- 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 69 
 
 of the society is conducted in parliamentary 
 form, and Robert's ''Rules of Order" is taken 
 as the guide of procedure. The society is divided 
 into six sections, and each section is subdivided 
 into affirmative and negative sides. Subjects 
 for debate are selected by the teacher in charge, 
 though pupils often suggest topics that are ac- 
 cepted, if suitable. There are admirable books 
 on the subject of debating, and some of them 
 contain specimen debates carefully outlined and 
 provided with valuable references. ' ' Briefs for 
 Debate ' ' by Brookings and Ringwalt, published 
 l3y Longmans, Green & Co., and Matson's ''Ref- 
 erences for Literary Workers ", published by A. 
 C McClurg & Co., are very useful. Of course, 
 it is hardly to be expected that every member of 
 the debating society should have these books, 
 though such possession is " a consummation de- 
 voutly to be wished". The ages, too, of de- 
 baters, and their stage of mental development, 
 must be carefully borne in mind. It is an inter- 
 esting and highly important fact that certain 
 subjects that are most stimulating and fascinat- 
 ing to the mature man, may have but slight at- 
 tractions for the growing boy. Hence, all books 
 
70 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 on the subject of debating must be supplemented 
 by a careful study of particular circumstances 
 and individual pupils. The interest in debating 
 depends very largely on a proper choice of sub- 
 jects for debate. Experience has taught me 
 that topics similar to the following will almost 
 always arouse interest among pupils of the last 
 two years of the high school — 
 
 1. Eesolved, That football is a brutal game. 
 
 2. Resolved, That high school girls bring more 
 credit to the school than high school boys do. 
 
 3. Eesolved, That imperialism is a wise na- 
 tional policy. 
 
 4. Resolved, That life is not worth living. 
 
 5. Resolved, That capital punishment ought 
 to be abolished. 
 
 6. Resolved, That all high school studies ought 
 to be elective. 
 
 7. Resolved, That prize contests are a benefit 
 to secondary schools. 
 
 8. Resolved, That the school year ought to be 
 shortened. 
 
 9. Resolved, That all executive duties in 
 American cities should be concentrated in the 
 hands of the mayor, and that his appointments 
 should not require confirmation. 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 71 
 
 10. Eesolved, That the United States ought to 
 restore the free coinage of silver at the rate of 
 16 to 1. 
 
 11. Eesolved, That debating is the most im- 
 portant exercise in the high school course. 
 
 Such subjects will almost invariably stimulate 
 interest, the handmaid of memory. While it is 
 well to allow pupils to do their own thinking, so 
 far as possible, still an outline, brief, or syllabus 
 of debate, either with or without references to 
 works connected with the subject, is a perfectly 
 legitimate aid. This outline or brief may be 
 prepared by the teacher in a suitable note-book 
 which is used by the pupils in turn. Each 
 speaker takes two points which he elaborates, 
 and to which he adds other points, as they occur 
 to him. 
 
 I will now give you my own outline of a de- 
 bate on the subject: '' Eesolved, That football is 
 a brutal game. ' ' 
 
 POINTS FOR THE AFFIRMATIVE 
 
 1. Many accidents and some deaths are caused 
 by the game. 
 
 2. The exercise is too violent. 
 
72 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 3. The muscles, particularly those of the 
 heart, get strained. 
 
 4. An entire eleven sometimes fall or jump on 
 one player. 
 
 5. Players try to disable their opponents. 
 
 6. Some players purposely strike opponents. 
 
 7. There is a tendency to cheat, when officers 
 cannot see the act. 
 
 8. There is a tendency to ' ' claim ' ' everything, 
 rightly or wrongly. 
 
 9. Bad language often results from football. 
 
 10. Players often lose their tempers. 
 
 11. The dishonorable nature of the game is 
 shown by the fact that so many players are pen- 
 alized for " off-side " play, " holding ", etc. 
 
 12. Players do not appear to care much, even 
 when members of their own eleven are seriously 
 injured, but continue to play, as if nothing had 
 happened. 
 
 13. The game as a whole may fairly be com- 
 pared with a prize-fight on a large scale. 
 
 14. Some prize-fighters maintain that football 
 would be more honorable, if each player should 
 single out and squarely fight one opponent. 
 
 15. (1) Much ill-feeling is caused by the game. 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 73 
 
 (2) Betting often goes on at football games. (3) 
 There is often a disposition to insult the referee. 
 (4) Most elevens would rather win dishonorably 
 than get beaten honorably. (5) Players who are 
 not members of any school sometimes play on 
 school elevens. (6) The game suggests the dis- 
 gusting brutality of the old Roman amphi- 
 theatres. 
 
 POINTS FOR THE NEGATIVE 
 
 1. About the worst physical condition a boy 
 can get into is one in which he is afraid to en- 
 gage in manly sports. 
 
 2. There are no more accidents or deaths, pro- 
 portionately, caused by football than by driving, 
 skating, polo playing, swimming, or bicychng. 
 
 3. Football affords just about the right amount 
 of exercise for producing good circulation and 
 strong bodies. 
 
 4. The muscles, particularly those of the 
 heart, gain great strength from use, and lose 
 that flabbiness that causes so much illness. 
 
 5. For every death caused by football a hun- 
 dred deaths have been caused by each of the fol- 
 lowing causes: (1) Staying in the house. (2) 
 Taking no exercise. (3) Overeating. (4) Lack 
 
74 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 of sleep. (5) Eating improper food. (6) Tobac- 
 co. (7) Alcohol. (8) Drugs. (9) Patent medicines. 
 
 6. Even if eleven players accidentally fall on 
 an opponent, he sometimes seems to be the live- 
 liest of the lot; hence, this occasional feature of 
 the game does not appear to be fatal. 
 
 7. Players, as a rule, do not try to disable 
 one another. Such action is regarded as dishon- 
 orable. 
 
 8. The striking of opponents is contrary to 
 rules. 
 
 9. Cheating is not tolerated by honorable 
 players. 
 
 10. In most elevens no objectionable language 
 is used. 
 
 11. One of the points of the game is to keep 
 the temper. 
 
 12. Many elevens are never penalized. 
 
 13. Among most elevens injuries to players 
 are always deeply regretted, and the injured are 
 cared for most thoughtfully. 
 
 14. The game cannot sensibly be compared 
 with a prize fight, as no such comparison has 
 any good ground. 
 
 15. So far from being brutal, the game is one 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 75 
 
 of high moral and intellectual as well as physi- 
 cal excellence. It trains : (1) The attention. (2) 
 The will. (3) The judgment. (4) It teaches 
 obedience. (5) Promptness. (6) Quick observa- 
 tion. (7) Team-play. (8) Sacrifice of self to 
 the common good. (9) Loyalty. (10) '^ Plain 
 living and high thinking. ' ' 
 
 You may say that my outlines are mere spe- 
 cial pleadings, and full of fallacies to the very 
 brim. But consider for a moment: have you 
 not heard even from well-educated adults very 
 similar arguments, and is it not wise for pupils 
 to hear fallacies stated, and to learn how to de- 
 tect them ? 
 
 It is, of course, the duty of the chosen speak- 
 ers to elaborate the suggestions, and to add 
 others derived from their own thought or read- 
 ing. It is well to establish a time limit of five 
 minutes for each speaker. 
 
 It is usually much better for the debaters to 
 speak from the platform, than from their desks. 
 The more nearly one can attain to ease in speak- 
 ing the better, but at first most pupils will need 
 the help of notes, and some will find it hard to 
 do much without written remarks. Probably 
 
76 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 the best way for the average pupil is to speak 
 from notes. The practice of committiDg a de- 
 bate tends to produce artificiaUty. It will read- 
 ily appear that one debate may be extended over 
 more than one day. When the regularly ap- 
 pointed speakers have completed their part of the 
 work, the question should be brought before the 
 entire society in open debate. This part of the 
 plan I regard as one of the most valuable and 
 important features, for it is in the open debate 
 that the powers are most rapidly and effectively 
 developed. A board of decision should be ap- 
 pointed for every debate, and should retire, when 
 the discussion has been ended. This board of 
 decision, after considering the merits of the de- 
 baters, announces its verdict by its chairman. 
 Sometimes it is well to have the society vote on 
 the merits of the question. Now, whether 
 pupils of high school age know anything about 
 questions of public interest or not, it is ex- 
 tremely interesting to notice how wisely they 
 vote on such matters. Per contra, it is also de- 
 cidedly interesting to note what perfectly 
 astounding views on public questions are held 
 by persons of great maturity and elaborate edu- 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 77 
 
 cation. And when I say " astounding views ", 
 I mean not simply views that differ from yours 
 or mine, but views for which no good reasons in 
 point of fact can be given. While experts, un- 
 doubtedly, occupy a most important field, even 
 though it is no uncommon thing to find them 
 on diametrically opposite sides of the same prob- 
 lem, still the curious fact remains that the best 
 method of settling questions of fact is the jury 
 method. 
 
 It is well to have a critic appointed for every 
 meeting of the society. This critic should be 
 generous, and, consequently, never hypercriti- 
 cal. As in all well-regulated parliamentary 
 bodies, no personalities or offensive remarks 
 should be tolerated. To make the meetings 
 more varied, entertainments, consisting of dec- 
 lamations, essays, and music, should be provided 
 at regular intervals. 
 
 It may be asked : Do pupils really care about 
 these debates ? I reply, I know of one boy who 
 went home and cried, because he thought the 
 verdict won by his opponents belonged justly to 
 him. I have seen a dozen pupils willing and 
 eager to speak as volunteers. In fact, it is 
 
78 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 sometimes easier to get pupils to speak than it 
 is to get them to stop speaking. 
 
 Possibly insuflficient stress has been laid on the 
 question of parliamentary law. Personally, I 
 regard a knowledge of this subject as of very 
 great practical value, and I have found such 
 knowledge of very great assistance on many 
 occasions. It is a great thing for any pupil to 
 learn how to speak clearly, easily, and per- 
 suasively. 
 
 Some may ask: Is it well for the teacher in 
 charge to take part in the debates ? In my 
 opinion, when the teacher in charge of the soci- 
 ety has selected the subjects, outlined them, and 
 assigned the points to the debaters; when he 
 has called attention to points of order, has aided 
 the president in deciding puzzhng questions, has 
 from time to time given the society informal 
 talks on parliamentary law and methods of de- 
 bate ; when he has given such additional aid and 
 comfort as may be required of him, — perhaps it 
 is better not to take part in the actual debate. 
 If a teacher takes part too strenuously and hap- 
 pens to speak on the losing side, he loses prestige ; 
 if he speaks on the winning side, there is no 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 79 
 
 glory in the victory. It is better to let the pupils 
 fight out their own forensic battles. It may be 
 well sometimes, after the debate and the decis- 
 ion, to point out to individual speakers the rea- 
 son for their failure or their success. For exam- 
 ple, it is no unusual thing for a boy to be able in 
 debate, but so offensively and raspingly right, 
 that he cannot hope for a favorable decision. 
 
 An important question upon which I have not 
 touched is this : ''Shall the debating society be 
 co-educational?" Why not? With the ex- 
 tension of the franchise to women, with the 
 wonderful growth of women's clubs, with the 
 countless opportunities for public and semi-pub- 
 lic speaking, why should not woman receive such 
 training as will fit her for the duties that she 
 must perform ? It is my experience that girls 
 can learn to speak as logically and acceptably 
 as boys, and that in no small number of cases 
 they have been known to surpass boys. If 
 Smith, Vassar, or Wellesley should challenge 
 Yale or Princeton to a debate, and the challenge 
 should be accepted, — well, all I can say is this: 
 I should tremble for the laurels of the sons of 
 Eli Yale and of the Princeton Tigers. Should 
 
80 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 the challenge be still further extended to Har- 
 vard, it is barely possible that the defenders of 
 the crimson might have a fighting chance. 
 
 I wish to speak of an agency which I have 
 found very useful in creating an interest in de- 
 bating societies, I mean the press. Yes, the 
 much maligned, misunderstood, misinterpreted, 
 abused, but carefully read newspaper ! The in- 
 strument of publicity has unlimited power. 
 Printer's ink, in which I have an abiding faith, 
 has all the magic power once ascribed to the 
 Black Art. Then let the people know what 
 your debating society is doing, who the debaters 
 are, who the volunteers are, what the subject is, 
 who spoke, or read, or sang, or played. The 
 local papers will give you column after column 
 of the best space, and your debating society will 
 be a feature not merely of the school, but of the 
 entire community. 
 
 Above all lower aims in this matter of debat- 
 ing, let there be one highest aim : To train our 
 youth to be useful in their day and generation, 
 to join our one and only aristocracy, the aristoc- 
 racy of service, to be stainless soldiers in war, 
 unflinching patriots in peace. 
 
DEBATING IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS 81 
 
 In those wonderful lines of Kipling's dedicated 
 to Wolcott Balestier's memory are the words: — 
 
 ** And ofttimes cometh our wise Lord God, master of every trade. 
 And tells them tales of the Seventh Day — of Edens newly made, — 
 And they rise to their feet as He passes by — gentlemen unafraid.'^ 
 
 The fearlessness and usefulness of the gentle- 
 man and gentlewoman should always be consid- 
 ered of primary importance in every scheme of 
 a rational education. 
 
COURTESY IN PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLS 
 
 Although the most valuable tuition received 
 by pupils of any age is undoubtedly unconscious, 
 and while courtesy by rule must always be piti- 
 ably deficient, still there must be certain princi- 
 ples on which true courtesy is based, and certain 
 methods of applying these principles to special 
 cases. Childhood and youth, as well as matur- 
 ity, crave attention and consideration. In some 
 instances the child's interest in its games or oc- 
 cupations is directly proportional to the amount 
 of attention it attracts. 
 
 A young man once said to me: ''When old 
 Smith wouldn't recognize me on the street, that 
 spoiled me. ' ' 
 
 Apropos of such a remark as that, it may be 
 said that the young man was easily " spoiled ". 
 Perhaps so, and yet hatred of a teacher, of 
 school, of learning, and of wisdom has been fos- 
 tered by the mere failure to recognize a pupil on 
 the street. 
 
 ''Why do all the boys raise their hats to 
 
 (82) 
 
COURTESY IN THE PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL 83 
 
 you ? ' ' asked a young teacher of his superior ; 
 "^they yell at me! " '^ Perhaps it is because I 
 always raise my hat to the boys," replied the 
 older teacher. 
 
 It is astonishing to note the nice gradations of 
 courtesy among college students. One professor 
 merely nods as he passes, a second bows, perhaps 
 coldly, a third bows and smiles unaffectedly, a 
 fourth touches his hat, a fifth raises his hat, and, 
 curiously but naturally enough, each professor 
 gets paid in his own coin. If an impulsive boy 
 raises his hat to his professor or schoolmaster, 
 and gets in return either no recognition at all, 
 or a mere nod with no soul in it, or a patronizing 
 soulless smile, or even a touching of the hat, 
 that boy, consciously or unconsciously, will feel 
 cheated „ 
 
 " Why do you raise your hat to that man, and 
 just touch it to the minister? " asked one ragged 
 urchin of another. 
 
 ' ' Because I raised my hat to the minister 
 once, and he only touched his, but that other 
 man always takes off his hat to me," was the 
 reply. And a good reply it was. It is only the 
 churl and the nouveau riche who cannot under- 
 
84 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 stand the everlasting reciprocity of courtesy. 
 
 What is that gentle, yet compelling and irre- 
 sistible force that raises the caps, even ragged 
 ones, and brings out pleasant smiles and grace- 
 ful bows ? That force is not arbitrary power. 
 The schoolmaster who covered the blackboards 
 with ''Shalt Nots", that in number outdid 
 Sinai's, was compelled to spend most of his time 
 correcting pupils for improprieties not included 
 in the schedule. 
 
 A lean, anxious-looking schoolmaster once 
 said to me: " In my school I will have order, if 
 I have to kill some one." No doubt; but what 
 kind of order, and who is to be killed ? 
 
 One Fourth of July years ago, one of my 
 neighbors, at whose house I was " celebrating ", 
 tried to force me to say ''Yes, sir", instead of 
 "Yes ". True to the spirit of the day, I declined 
 to do so. My "yes" meant no discourtesy. 
 Furthermore, I declined to plead guilty to the 
 charge of discourtesy, and the required altera- 
 tion would most certainly have been an admis- 
 sion of guilt on my part. I sincerely hope that 
 I am not vindictive, but the injustice of that 
 neighbor's attempt still rankles in my mind. I 
 
I 
 
 COURTESY IN THE PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL 85 
 
 have also stored up against him another circum- 
 stance certainly not of national importance, 
 namely, that he ate noisily. To this day he is to 
 me the man who tried to force me to say " sir" 
 and who ate noisily. Probably he had some 
 excellent qualities. Quien sabe ? Not I. 
 
 To return to this matter of recognition of 
 friends, are adults so very different from the 
 young ? Said a friend of mine not long ago : — 
 
 " Dr. Blank recognizes me one day and is very 
 pleasant; the next day he 'cuts me dead'. I 
 am through with him. " 
 
 ''Ah! but I am near-sighted; besides, I get lost 
 in thought", some one will say. So be it, but 
 you will have to take the consequences. But 
 why not use your glasses, and lose yourself in 
 thought o£ others' feelings ? 
 
 The scope of courtesy in schools as in all other 
 forms of society is boundless. It is both spoken 
 and unspoken, acted and unacted. A teacher's 
 entire usefulness is sometimes destroyed by the 
 purely unconscious assumption of social superi- 
 ority. The teacher must remember that ' ' there 
 is but one aristocracy in this country, — the aris- 
 tocracy of service." How utterly petty, then, 
 
86 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 in the public school, whose very watch word is 
 equality, to assume a social superiority that is. 
 often entirely imaginary ! True social superior- 
 ity is invariably marked by the absence of 
 assumption. The " thoroughbred " is recognized 
 even by the Bowery boy. 
 
 The form and spirit of addressing pupils is of 
 vast importance. " Young rascal," " Now then^ 
 young man," ''Say, boy," and such uncoutn 
 salutations must be dropped. Personally, I ob- 
 ject to calling high school girls by their first 
 names or pet names. The title '' Miss " should 
 be prefixed to the girl's last name. Some may 
 say that ' ' Miss ' ' makes girls old before their 
 time. It may make them grow several inches 
 on the first few applications, but it does not add 
 to their age. Society accords the title of " Miss " 
 to girls of high school age, and school is merely 
 a part of society. Over- familiarity quickly de- 
 generates into unmixed vulgarity. 
 
 I once saw, with feelings of disgust, be it ad- 
 mitted, a well-known teacher lay not violent but 
 directing hands on a young lady's shoulders to 
 guide here to her place among others on the plat- 
 form. ''Hands off!" was my thought. Yet 
 
COURTESY IN THE PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL 87 
 
 thousands of teachers have not yet learned that 
 the pupil's person is as sacred as the teacher's. 
 In " the brave days of old ",1 know, the mas- 
 ter spent much time in the delectable occupation 
 of flogging fellow-beings into submission and 
 possibly into love of learning. Yes, but how is 
 it that high schools know corporal punishment 
 no more ? And how is it that they were never 
 so successful before as they are to-day ? 
 
 High school boys should be called " Mister ". 
 Why ? Because they are entitled to the applica- 
 tion, just as the girls are properly called " Miss ". 
 To call a boy of high school age " John " or 
 " Johnnie " or " Smith " may be tolerated on ac- 
 count of the teacher's tone and manner, but if 
 the tone and manner are bad, such forms of ad- 
 dress may be singularly offensive. If boys are 
 not of " Mister " size at first, they soon grow to 
 such proportions. Some boys may laugh at the 
 title, but they soon accept it as a matter of 
 course, and enjoy it. It is, like " Miss ", a 
 badge of equality. But, whither in a discussion 
 like this ? Is not the conclusion of the whole 
 matter, 
 
 " Kind hearts are more than coronets"? 
 
A TEUE PHILOSOPHY 
 
 The practical results of most philosophies 
 have been seen not so much in the addition of 
 new and useful facts to the sum of human 
 knowledge, as in a sharpening of the wits, a de- 
 veloping of intellectual muscle, an increasing of 
 mental power. And these results are in no 
 sense small or contemptible. Still, just as many 
 of us have longed for a universal language, so, 
 there has always been in the human heart a 
 lurking belief in " Islands of the Blessed " far 
 beyond the tangible straits of Gibraltar; in a 
 genuine " pot of gold " at the end of the philo- 
 sophical rainbow; in magnificent castles, and 
 real ones, too, in the Spain of philosophy. Emi- 
 nent historians of philosophy, have, to be sure, 
 outhned the doctrines of the ever- appearing yet 
 ever-disappearing schools, until, as one exam- 
 ines the multitudinous half-truths of the rolling 
 years, he feels like one who looks with curious 
 interest into the tube of a kaleidoscope, admires 
 the beautiful and ever-changing designs, but in 
 
 (88) 
 
A TRUE PHILOSOPHY 89 
 
 his '' heart of hearts " knows that the elements 
 of each gay picture are but bits of broken glass. 
 As the news of the fall of Troy was flashed from 
 mountain to mountain by fire after fire that 
 leaped to life at the signal of each preceding 
 blaze, so, on the mountain peaks of time in that 
 rare atmosphere, beloved of philosophers, one 
 brilliant philosophy after another has flashed the 
 glorious message that man is free to think. And 
 yet, almost all philosophers, before kindling the 
 light of their own signals, issue most grave and 
 serious proclamations to the effect that, however 
 much of the former signal-lights may have been 
 true, a large part of all of them was false. 
 Critics show us how one school was developed 
 from another, point out the well- wrought chain 
 of evolution with hardly a missing link, and 
 even show what schools the future may produce. 
 In the meantime, we mortals are still looking 
 for that '^ philosopher's stone" to transmute 
 the base metal of our daily lives into the gold of 
 a well-rounded, rational, happy life. For, be it 
 known, all normal men are Eosicrucians, and 
 those are indeed degenerate in some corner of 
 whose hearts there is not to be found abiding 
 
90 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 faith in the good intention of the Creator, and 
 firm belief in the " increasing purpose " of the 
 ages. Stevenson says that all boys have been 
 at some time treasure- hunters, — and the man 
 that is not a boy at heart is pitiably old. 
 
 In harmony, then, vs^ith this constant search 
 for truth, I wish to examine the philosophy of 
 Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, partly because 
 every teacher ought to be familiar with the 
 " Thoughts " of this philosopher, and partly be- 
 cause it would seem that, in spite of the numer- 
 ous works written upon this great man, and his 
 singularly impressive and valuable " Thoughts ", 
 the peculiar value of his philosophy is not ap- 
 preciated at the present time. For many years 
 Alaska was considered a barren region, chiefly 
 valuable as a most instructive lesson in the folly 
 of making purchases of foreign territory, yet in 
 process of time it appears that this Alaska, so 
 far from being barren, is a rich, magnificent ter- 
 ritory, teeming with untold wealth, and that the 
 purchase of it was a piece of great, good luck, 
 or the practical demonstration of gigantic finan- 
 cial ability. There are philosophical Alaskas 
 needing only careful '' prospecting " to develop 
 
A TRUE PHILOSOPHY 91 
 
 gold-bearing veins of thought, and even " Klon- 
 dykes " of wisdom. 
 
 Life, by some regarded as simple, is really a 
 most complex thing. And yet complex as the 
 details may be, there is a chance for simplifica- 
 tion, classification, and arrangement. For ex- 
 ample, one is helped in the consideration of his 
 duties by the classification often given by phi- 
 losophers : — 
 
 1. Our duties to God. 
 
 2. Our duties to other human beings. 
 
 3. Our duties to ourselves. 
 
 A classification like this is in no sense com 
 plete in the sense of being final, for the connec- 
 tion of the three classes of duties appears at a 
 glance. The formal reference, however, of a 
 specific case to such a classification undoubtedly 
 has its value. 
 
 It is my purpose, then, to give the answers of 
 Marcus Aurelius Antoninus to some of the great 
 problems of life. In the words of William R. 
 Thayer, " To every one of us, even the dullest 
 or shallowest, come joy and grief, sin and fail- 
 ure and death, each with his challenge, ' What 
 do I mean to you ? ' " 
 
92 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 What does the great emperor emphasize as of 
 vital importance in education ? 
 
 1. " Good morals and the government of one's 
 temper." 
 
 2. " Modesty and a manly character." 
 
 3. " Piety, beneficence, and abstinence not 
 only from evil deeds, but even from evil 
 thoughts. Simplicity in the way of living. ' ' 
 
 A. '^ Liberal expenditures upon education." 
 
 6. '' Endurance of labor, the habit of want- 
 ing little, manual labor, minding one's own 
 affairs, hatred of slander. ' ' 
 
 6. " Not to busy oneself about trifling things, 
 freedom from superstition, freedom of speech." 
 
 Y. ''Dislike of showing off, readiness to be 
 reconciled." 
 
 8. " Freedom of will, undeviating steadiness 
 of purpose, to be always the same, in sharp 
 pains, on the occasion of the loss of a child, and 
 in long illness." 
 
 9. '' A benevolent disposition, a life conform- 
 able to nature, the toleration of ignorant per- 
 sons." 
 
 10. " To refrain from fault finding. Not 
 frequently, nor without necessity, to say to 
 
A TRUE PHILOSOPHY 93 
 
 anyone, or to write in a letter, that I have no 
 leisure ; nor continually to excuse the neglect of 
 duties required by our relation to those with 
 whom we live, by alleging urgent occupations." 
 11. " The love of kindred, of justice, of truth. " 
 Were it possible to guide our lives by maxims, 
 and if we desired to find proverbial truth for all 
 occasions, Marcus Antoninus is able to furnish a 
 wise saying for every day of the year, and to 
 express his wisdom in terms of unexcelled felic- 
 ity. For example: — 
 
 1. " One thing here is worth a great deal, to 
 pass thy life in truth and justice, with a benevo- 
 lent disposition even to liars and unjust men, " 
 
 2. " When thou wishest to delight thyself, 
 think of the virtues of those who live with thee ; 
 for instance, the activity of one, and the modesty 
 of another, and the liberality of a third, and 
 some other good quality of a fourth." 
 
 3. " Every man is worth just so much as the 
 things are worth about which he busies himself. " 
 
 4. ''It is royal to do good and to be abused " 
 (quoted from Antrathenes). 
 
 5. ''To have contemplated human life for 
 forty years is the same as to have contemplated 
 
94 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 it for ten thousand years. For what more wilt 
 thou see ? " 
 
 6. " Because thou hast despaired of becoming 
 a dialectician and skilled in the knowledge of 
 nature, do not for this reason renounce the hope 
 of being both free and modest and social and 
 obedient to God." 
 
 7. " The perfection of moral character con- 
 sists in this, in passing every day as the last, 
 and in being neither violently excited nor torpid 
 nor playing the hypocrite. ' ' 
 
 8. " There is nothing good for man which 
 does not make him just, temperate, manly, 
 free." 
 
 9. " Everything exists for some end. For 
 what purpose, then, art thou ? " 
 
 10. '' Do not in life be so busy as to have no 
 leisure. ' ' 
 
 11. " He who fears death fears either the loss 
 of sensation or a different kind of sensation. 
 But if thou shalt have no sensation, neither wilt 
 thou feel any harm; and if thou shalt acquire 
 another kind of sensation, thou wilt be a differ- 
 ent kind of living being, and thou wilt not cease 
 to live." 
 
A TRUE PHILOSOPHY 95 
 
 12. '' Men exist for the sake of one another. 
 Teach them, then, or bear with them." 
 
 13. '' If any man has done wrong, the harm 
 is his own." 
 
 14. " He who follows reason in all things is 
 both tranquil and active at the same time, and 
 also cheerful and collected." 
 
 15. " For in the same degree in which a man's 
 mind is nearer to freedom from all passion, in 
 the same degree, also, is it nearer to strength; 
 and as the sense of pain is a characteristic of 
 weakness, so also is anger. For he who yields 
 to pain, and he who yields to anger, both are 
 wounded and both submit." 
 
 16. " The pride that is proud of its want of 
 pride is the most intolerable of all." 
 
 Such are only a few of the nuggets to be 
 found in this great mine. As a guide of life, 
 the " Thoughts " of Marcus Antoninus are in 
 some respects unsurpassed. In sorrow or in joy, 
 in prosperity or adversity, in all the vicissitudes 
 of life, you will find the good and great emperor 
 a genuine friend and true comforter. If every 
 teacher in our country could be persuaded to 
 study, ponder, and practise the principles laid 
 
96 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 down in the ''Thoughts", it is my belief that 
 very great good would result. 
 
 [The quotations in this article are from George 
 Long's version of the ''Thoughts".] 
 
REPLY TO PRESIDENT SCHURMAN 
 
 The president of Cornell University, in his 
 lecture on '' State Education ", delivered before 
 the Twentieth Century Club of Boston some 
 months ago, won the unenviable distinction of 
 making the most unreasonable and most un- 
 called-for attack on the teachers of our public 
 schools ever allowed to pass so long unchallenged 
 and unanswered. Incidentally, the schools also 
 share in the unfavorable criticism of the univers- 
 ity president, but the teachers appear to be the 
 chief objects of his condemnation. The corner- 
 stone of President Schurman's critical structure 
 depends on a purely metaphysical distinction be- 
 tween morality or righteousness and religion. 
 
 If righteousness is not the most important part 
 of any enlightened religion, why did the founder 
 of Christianity lay so much stress on it ? 
 
 Does any sane person deny that morality or 
 righteousness is taught in our public schools ? 
 On the contrary, does not every competent in- 
 vestigator know that these schools are one of 
 
 (97) 
 
98 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 the most important means of promoting right 
 thinking, right speaking, right acting, right 
 living ? 
 
 Are the proper reading of the Bible and the 
 singing of hymns of no value ? Are the ex- 
 hortations of masters and assistants without 
 effect ? Are the denunciations of wrong-doing, 
 followed by wise and just penalties, useless ? 
 Do not the regulations about promptness, regu- 
 larity, neatness, industry, honesty, truth-telling, 
 perseverance, temperance, self-control, and all 
 the other virtues, regulations, I say, carried out 
 in a liberal, but painstaking, way by all good 
 teachers, entitle those teachers to more respect- 
 ful consideration than they received at the hands 
 of a university president who evidently knows 
 very little about either the public school problem 
 or its solution ? 
 
 In reply to the singular allegations of Cor- 
 nell's president, let me avail myself of the New 
 Englander's privilege of answering a question 
 by asking another, namely, " What is righteous- 
 ness. ' ' I turn to the authority which President 
 Schurman himself would undoubtedly invoke, 
 namely, the Holy Scriptures, and I read (James 
 
PRESIDENT SCHURMAN ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS 99 
 
 T. : 26, 27) : " If any man among you seem to be 
 religious and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiv- 
 eth his own heart, this man's rehgion is vain. 
 Pure rehgion and un defiled before God and the 
 rather is this, to visit the fatherless and widows, 
 and to keep himself unspotted from the world." 
 Then morahty or righteousness is clearly the 
 most important element of religion. 
 
 And now who of you knows of schools pro- 
 viding 'intellectual training " without moral 
 training ? Personally, I have yet to find such 
 a school. And who has 'Hhe necessary apti- 
 tudes or credentials ' ' for this moral training, if 
 teachers have not ? If there is a more worthy, 
 a more competent, a harder worked, a worse 
 paid body of workers for moral improvement 
 than the great body of American teachers, I 
 know not where to find it. 
 
 In asserting that the great body of American 
 teachers have neither the aptitudes nor the cre- 
 dentials for giving moral instruction, Mr. Schur- 
 man not only insults the teachers — possibly 
 they may in time get used to the criticisms of 
 men and of women who could not do the work 
 of these teachers anywhere nearly so well as the 
 
100 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 teachers themselves are doing it — but he also 
 insults the great army of those who have gone 
 from these very public schools into positions of 
 national and of international importance. 
 
 But notice, if you please, Mr. Schurman's in- 
 consistency: " I am firmly persuaded that chil- 
 dren are trained in goodness not by any study 
 of ethical text-books, but by contact v^ith good 
 men and v^omen, and also through the awaken- 
 ing of the sentiments of duty and righteousness 
 hA means of direct religious teaching. ' ' Is the 
 Bible an ethical text-book ? If it is not, is it 
 not the basis of such text-books ? Have not 
 text-books on moral science a similar basis, and 
 have they not a value in education ? But this 
 ''contact with good men and women", where 
 are the millions of American children to find it, if 
 they do not find it in the schools ? Can it pos- 
 sibly be that our critic means that righteousness 
 is the result, not so much of moral text- books,, 
 or direct moral instruction, but of personal con- 
 tact with good men and women, and that tho 
 American teachers are not good enough to pro- 
 duce desirable results in the way of righteous- 
 ness ? 
 
PRESIDENT SCHURMAN ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS 101 
 
 But Mr. Schurman says that the American 
 teachers have neither '' aptitudes nor creden- 
 tials " for this spiritual vocation. Where is his 
 evidence ? The school, the church, the state, 
 society, the home, each in its own way, is re- 
 sponsible for the moral training of youth, man- 
 hood, and age. If faults are found in this train- 
 ing, why let four of the five responsible agencies 
 go scot-free, and lay all the blame on one ? 
 "Why omit all mention of the stupendous and 
 unsurpassed results obtained by the public 
 schools in this very department of moral train- 
 ing ? It may be true that the difficulties of the 
 American teacher's problems are greater than 
 those of any other teacher in the world ; it may 
 be true that his materials are more varied, more 
 complex, than those of any other country ; it may 
 be true that his critics are more exacting and more 
 theoretical than those of any other nation; be 
 it so. It is likewise true that no other teachers 
 in any other country, or at any other age, are 
 meeting and have met so well the needs of their 
 day and generation. The measure of the Amer- 
 ican teacher's difficulties is also the measure of 
 his success. 
 
102 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 And what about those vague credentials, 
 which our university critic deems essential to 
 the complete identification of a teacher of right- 
 eousness ? I desire to say in all seriousness and 
 with all possible earnestness that it is my delib- 
 erate conviction that in accordance with the doc- 
 trines of the fatherhood of God and the brother- 
 hood of man, the great body of American 
 teachers hold their credentials for doing good 
 directly from God Almighty. 
 
 Mr. Schurman says in effect: Take from the 
 teacher his highest function, degrade him from 
 his lofty estate; strip him of his proudest in- 
 signia; break his sword of righteousness t 
 Transfer his most important duties to the 
 clergy of the community, and make the free 
 public school subordinate to the private, sec- 
 tarian church. Was ever a more unreason- 
 able proposition advanced by an intelligent man ? 
 The plan amounts to the one stated, disguise it 
 as you may. And even the author of the sug- 
 gestion has his doubts about it. He says : '' The 
 question will be asked how, in practice, such a 
 scheme may be worked out. I shall not elabo- 
 rate a plan now, and indeed, I cannot imagine 
 
PRESIDENT SCHURMAN ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS 103 
 
 that I have even thought of all its essential fea- 
 tures." I share Mr. Schurman's uncertainties 
 about his plan, v^hich, as I have stated, involves 
 the transfer of all religious and moral training 
 from the teacher to the clergy of the neighbor- 
 hood. 
 
 And now, let me call attention to another 
 error of President Schurman's, namely, the one 
 involved in his statement that no state or city 
 has made any provisions in its statutes for moral 
 training in the public schools. But you all 
 know, if the president of Cornell does not, that 
 the statutes of Massachusetts say most clearly 
 that teachers shall at all times, " exert their 
 best endeavors to impress on the minds of chil- 
 dren and youth committed to their care and in- 
 struction the principles of piety and justice, and 
 a sacred regard to truth , love of their country, 
 humanity, and universal benevolence; sobriety, 
 industry, and frugality; chastity, moderation, 
 and temperance ; and those other virtues which 
 are the ornament of human society, and the 
 ba^sis upon which a republican constitution is 
 founded." Rhode Island has a statute. So has 
 Washington. And the reading of the Bible 
 
104 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 appears to be the rule rather than the exception 
 throughout the United States. 
 
 It has been my great privilege lately to estab- 
 lish a shrine of national and of local patriotism 
 in my school. I have placed in a very promi- 
 nent position in one of the broad corridors a 
 case, and in that case I have put on the right in 
 the place of highest honor the beautiful national 
 flag presented to our battalion by the School 
 Committee of Boston. And on the left I am 
 collecting from the various victorious captains 
 who won them, the prize banners awarded to 
 our companies in competition with our brethren 
 of the other district high schools of Boston. 
 And, furthermore, I am placing in this case such 
 trophies as our athletes win in the various fields 
 of athletic activity. I am sure that good results 
 have come already from the silent, but power- 
 fully eloquent, lesson of that trophy-case. 
 
 In the heart of the American teacher there is 
 a shrine of righteousness. Material equipment, 
 intellectual activity, physical health, a hundred 
 aims may share the teacher's devotion in a 
 greater or a less degree, but more than any 
 other of these separately, more even than many 
 
PRESIDENT SCHURMAN ON PUBLIC SCHOOLS 105 
 
 of them together, if lacking " the one thing 
 needful", the true teacher has placed as the 
 object of his devotion in his secret shrine of 
 righteousness the development of his pupils in 
 nobility of character. 
 
A NEW FIELD FOR PRIVATE BENEFI- 
 CENCE 
 
 Our universities, colleges, academies, and pub- 
 lic libraries, not to mention charitable organiza- 
 tions, are constantly receiving so many tangible 
 tokens of confidence and appreciation, that one 
 cannot help feeling surprised at the comparative 
 neglect of our public schools by generous bene- 
 factors. An impression is prevalent that, when 
 the taxpayers, through their duly constituted 
 authorities, have provided school buildings, 
 teachers, janitors, supplies, and elementary ap- 
 paratus, the public schools are well equipped, 
 and, consequently, may be dismissed from the 
 minds of those who have money to give away, 
 and who are more than willing to give it. 
 
 Here and there, it is true, there are marked 
 exceptions to this rule, as, for example, in the 
 case of many academies, which in accordance 
 with their founders' wishes, have been made 
 free to the pupils of certain towns, and which, 
 in consequence of such liberal provisions, have 
 
 (106) 
 
A NEW FIELD FOR PRIVATE BENEFICENCE 107 
 
 been fully enjoyed by the public. It is also true 
 that the alumni, the various classes, the teach- 
 ers and friends of some public schools are con- 
 stantly making efforts to beautify buildings used 
 for such purposes with works of art. In some 
 instances the women's clubs have helped mater- 
 ially in this important work, and on somewhat 
 rare occasions even individual benefactors have 
 given hberal gifts. 
 
 In spite, however, of all these commendable 
 instances of public spirit, applied where it will 
 do the most good, the public schools, as a rule, 
 afford a field of unexcelled promise for the wise 
 application of private beneficence. For, first 
 and perhaps foremost, no school, public or 
 private, ought to be considered in any sense 
 adequate or suitable unless it possesses a gen- 
 erous playground. Although the best medical 
 and educational authorities are unanimously in 
 favor of this doctrine, it appears to have escaped 
 the notice of the general public. The objection 
 is often raised, when this subject is brought up 
 for discussion, that there is no land for play- 
 grounds in the places where buildings are most 
 needed, or that, if there is any land, the price, 
 especially to the city, is prohibitive. 
 
108 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 In reply to the first part of the objection, it 
 may be said that the city of Paris, in order to 
 secure proper approaches to some of its pubUc 
 buildings, found no insuperable difficulty in the 
 fact that numerous structures had to be torn 
 down to secure the desired results, and that 
 other great cities have had a similar experience. 
 
 The notorious fact stated in connection with 
 the second part of the objection, namely, that 
 the price of land is frequently higher to the city 
 than it is to an individual, is disgraceful to the 
 persons who grow rich dishonestly and meanly 
 at the expense of the geueral public, and who 
 are, consequently, one of the chief hindrances to 
 the health and well-being of the children. For 
 many years to come it seems likely that private 
 beneficence must afford the means for public 
 school play-grounds. 
 
 That every public school should have a well- 
 equipped gymnasium with suitable facilities for 
 bathing would seem to be a self-evident fact, 
 and yet how numerous are the buildings without 
 any equipment of the kind! The attempt to 
 educate children under conditions unfavorable 
 to health is one of the grimmest tragedies in the 
 
A NEW FIELD FOR PRIVATE BENEFICENCE 109 
 
 economy of modern civilization. The men and 
 women who by their generosity will make the 
 surroundings of the pubhc school children con- 
 ducive to health instead of health-destroying 
 will deserve well not only of this generation but 
 of all the generations to come. 
 
 In connection with this topic of health it may 
 be just as well to state that comparatively few 
 buildings in the United States, in point of 
 health, ventilating, water supply and sewerage, 
 are up to the standard demanded by the laws of 
 health. It becomes evident, accordingly, that in 
 respect to this one matter of sanitary science in 
 schools, enlightened private beneficence has a 
 magnificent field for usefulness. Before dismis- 
 sing this part of the subject it is entirely proper 
 to state that the average cheap luncheon offered 
 public school pupils is extremely unpalatable 
 and unhygienic. It is often called ^* hygienic ", 
 but its name suggests that principle of nomen- 
 clature observable in the case of cold " hot 
 waffles ". 
 
 The adornment of public school buildings 
 with photographs, engravings and casts has not 
 yet received proper attention. The educational 
 
110 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 power of such adornment in several ways is be- 
 yond question. It refines the taste, kindles the 
 imagination, broadens the mind, stimulates curi- 
 osity to see the world, and quickens loyalty and 
 public spirit. But if this adornment might con- 
 sist of paintings in addition to photographs, 
 statues of marble in addition to casts, and origi- 
 nal mural decorations by our best painters, a 
 new world would be brought to the pupils' view. 
 Evidently school decoration affords an extra- 
 ordinary opportunity for all those who wish 
 American children to come under the influence 
 of art. 
 
 It is a lamentable fact that many public 
 schools, even though equipped with sanitary 
 surroundings and suitable buildings, are deplor- 
 ably lacking in apparatus essential to proper in- 
 struction in the various subjects. Astronomy 
 without a telescope, biology without micro- 
 scopes, history, literature, art and the sciences 
 without a stereopticon, are flagrant examples of 
 the difficulties with which both pupils and teach- 
 ers frequently struggle. It is a curious and ex- 
 tremely interesting fact, that, in some respects, 
 some of the old-fashioned academies were better 
 
A NEW FIELD FOR PRIVATE BENEFICENCE 111 
 
 equipped with apparatus than are many modern 
 high schools estabHshed in buildings of great 
 magnificence. The prevalent idea that the 
 school is the school building, must give place 
 to a much broader conception of the word 
 school. This new conception must include 
 the pupils, the teachers, the school officers, 
 the parents, guardians, and friends, especially 
 the alumni, the building, the apparatus, the 
 adornment, the playground, the school activities, 
 whether in school hours or out of them — in a 
 word, the school and its relations. From this 
 newer point of view a thousand opportunities 
 for private beneficence become apparent. 
 
 Although public libraries are becoming more 
 and more numerous, and although their connec- 
 tion with the public schools is growing closer and 
 closer, still every public school needs a library 
 of its own. Reference books and collateral 
 reading for every subject taught in the public 
 schools, together with some standard works in 
 the principal departments of human thought, 
 are extremely useful to the young students. 
 Reading rooms provided with the best maga- 
 zines, periodicals and journals are well calculated 
 
112 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 to add human interest to the somewhat monoto- 
 nous routine of some schools. 
 
 Manual training, including wood- working, 
 turning, carving, iron work, pyrography, book- 
 binding, basketry and many other subjects, af- 
 fords not only an admirable method of training 
 the hand, the eye, the brain, and the mind, but 
 also a most desirable relief from the wearing 
 effects of constant book work. Idleness badly 
 directed is the cause of almost all school mis- 
 chief. Manual training offers an excellent solu- 
 tion of the problems of idleness. In every 
 school, therefore, at least one large room should 
 be devoted to the various kinds of manual train- 
 ing. If the taxpayers say '' no ", the philan- 
 thropist should say " yes ". 
 
 The claims of domestic arts and sciences may 
 be presented in a similar manner, and these 
 claims may be substantiated on the ground that 
 the self-respecting ability to earn one's own liv- 
 ing is, and, from the nature of the case, must 
 be, not only a most honorable and creditable 
 thing in itself, but also the real foundation of all 
 progress in the higher arts and sciences. 
 
 Attention might also be called to the beauti- 
 
A NEW FIELD FOR PRIVATE BENEFICENCE 113 
 
 fying of school grounds, to school excursions, 
 school gardens, and to other important phases 
 of the new education, but the limits of this arti- 
 cle permit reference to only one more of the 
 numerous opportunities for philanthropy. Al- 
 though grave objections have been raised by 
 some educational writers to the plan of giving 
 prizes, scholarships, or other pecuniary rewards, 
 the fact remains that the system of giving such 
 rewards has long prevailed in the best schools 
 and colleges in the country. And, when one con- 
 siders that some of the ambitious boys and girls 
 on the thorny path of a self-earned collegiate 
 education have to maintain not only themselves 
 but other members of their families, whatever 
 anyone may think of the prize system, surely 
 he will not object to the more general establish- 
 ing of scholarship funds for the benefit of the 
 most deserving. But enough has been said ta 
 prove that the public schools furnish one of the 
 best fields for the active benevolence of public- 
 spirited citizens. 
 
THE ADVANTAGES OF AN ALUMNI 
 ASSOCIATION 
 
 Ladies and gentlemen of the Quincy High 
 School Alumni : 
 
 Your president has asked me to talk about 
 eight minutes on ' ' The Advantages of an Alum- 
 ni Association ". "On such a subject," in the 
 words of Cicero, " it is more difficult to get to the 
 end of a speech than it is to find a beginning. 
 So that not so much abundance of material as a 
 proper hmit has to be sought. ' ' 
 
 When to the surprise and gratification of 
 the citizens of Eochester, Madame Janauschek, 
 the great actress, began her starring tour at that 
 place, one of the pleased citizens said to her: 
 ^' Madame Janauschek, will you kindly inform us 
 why you saw fit to honor Eochester so highly by 
 beginning your tour here ? " " Mein Gott, ' ' re- 
 plied the great actress, whose English was not 
 absolutely perfect, ' ' I must begin some vare. ' ' It 
 is just so in making a speech, one must begin 
 somewhere. And so plunging into the midst of 
 
 (114) 
 
ADVANTAGES OF AN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 115 
 
 the subject, I would say that alumni associations 
 are valuable in the first place, because they sus- 
 tain and renew old friendships. When all has 
 been said and done, are not these old school 
 friendships among the richest of our posses- 
 sions ? In nearly the words of Frederick W . 
 Loring, Harvard, class of '70: 
 
 " Shall we forget each other's truth, 
 When May yields to December ? 
 Dear friend, pray God preserve our youth. 
 And grant that we may e'er remember. 
 
 In years to come, we'll form new ties, 
 
 Yet leave the old unbroken. 
 When to our children's lips arise 
 
 The words that we before have spoken. 
 
 Nor need we ever fear to see 
 
 Death come, this knot to sever ; 
 A High School friendship ! It shall be 
 For life, dear comrade, and forever. ' ' 
 It seems to me that all of us might make 
 this world a pleasanter place to live in, if we 
 should try to do our best in a social way. Most 
 of us in this respect " have done those things 
 that we ought not to have done, and have left 
 undone the things that we ought to have done, ' 
 
116 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 even if our daily work keeps us constantly em- 
 ployed. Still, the busiest people are always the 
 ones that can do the most in every department 
 of activity. 
 
 Secondly, our association forms a connecting 
 link between the older graduates and the more 
 recent ones. Such pleasant associations with 
 the constantly renewed classes of graduates i^ 
 profitable in the extreme. It keeps us all young. 
 Have five, ten, fifteen, twenty, or more, years- 
 slipped by, since we were graduated ? It can- 
 not be: these blooming young faces refute the 
 slanders of time. We can say with Holmes: 
 '' Hang the almanac's cheat and the catalogue's 
 spite ! 
 
 Old time is a liar! we're twenty to-night. "* 
 
 The fountain of perpetual youth is found in 
 just such associations as ours. To be with the 
 young is to be young. If I might venture to 
 add a beatitude to that sacred list I would say : 
 Blessed are the young in hearty for theirs is the 
 Kingdom of earth and of heaven. 
 
 Third. We teachers need the encouragement 
 that you, and you alone, can give us. The teach- 
 er's life is not a bed of roses without thorns 
 
ADVANTAGES OF AN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 117 
 
 We are not ' ' carried to the skies on flowery beds 
 of ease. ' ' So wearing is the profession of teach- 
 ers, that one of our poets has said : 
 
 '' Uneasy lie the heads of all that rule, 
 
 His most of all whose kingdom is a school. " 
 
 And so I say, we need the encouragement 
 of our alumni. We like to feel that we had 
 something to do with your success in life ; that, 
 while we may not hope to acquire riches in our 
 profession, we may yet be as useful, and so, as 
 respectable, as the members of any other calling. 
 We like to feel that whatever dreams, ambitious 
 dreams, we may have had, that we are sure of 
 realities like your sympathy and your warm re- 
 gard — realities, I may say, vastly more real and 
 more desirable, than countless aims supposed by 
 many to be more practical. Practical — the very 
 word has been so abused that its mention sends 
 a shudder down one's spinal column, as we think 
 of that tremendous but practical man, Mr. 
 Gradgrind, in Dickens's^' Hard Times", " In this 
 life, ' ' he says ' ' we want nothing but Facts, Sir, 
 nothing but Facts, ' ' but the Angels of Love, and 
 Beauty, and Truth, teach lessons far difl^erent 
 from this. 
 
118 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Many years ago it was my privilege to hear 
 the late Bishop Brooks of glorious memory. I 
 was a sophomore at Harvard then, so that you 
 may easily understand, that all this was long 
 ago. But I remember the text ' Son of Man, 
 stand upon thy feet. ' And, oh, what a bracing, 
 manly sermon it was. I have thought of it a 
 hundred times, and always with profit and pleas- 
 ure alike. And, so, it seems to me that you 
 graduates ought to come back to our school from 
 time to time to catch again the inspiration of 
 former days. If you were proud of your school 
 in the past, you have still greater reason to be 
 proud of it now. It stands to-day among the 
 best schools in New England, and it is a real 
 honor to be a graduate. Its success has attracted 
 very wide attention, and though it has increased 
 170 per cent in five years, it is still going for- 
 ward " conquering and to conquer." 
 
 And last, for I must not exceed my time, 
 our association is valuable from the fact that we 
 members have duties as well as privileges. It 
 is our duty to stand as a unit for the interests 
 of higher education in our grand old historical 
 city ; to stand for the best and most liberal meth- 
 
ADVANTAGES OF AN ALUMNI ASSOCIATION 119 
 
 ods of disseminating the truth, with enthusiasm^ 
 without favoritism, without prejudice. 
 
 At this point, Mr. President, it was my in- 
 tention to conclude my remarks, but to-day I at- 
 tended the Norfolk County Teachers' Convention, 
 where I heard sentiments expressed that I can- 
 not permit to pass by without an emphatic pro- 
 test. My friend, the Secretary of the Connect- 
 icut State Board of Education, in his address on 
 'High School Kef orm,' advocated the elimina- 
 tion of Latin and Greek from the High School 
 course. Mr. President, knowing the high dis- 
 ciplinary, linguistic, and literary value of those 
 languages, I offer an energetic protest against 
 any such inconoclastic and anti-civilizing 
 proposition. 
 
 At some future time, it would give me pleas- 
 ure to discuss at length the classical question 
 before this association ; to-night I will say only 
 this : Is it not a strange coincidence that a very 
 large proportion of America's literary men of 
 the first class have been classically educated, and 
 that a college education has so often proved the 
 stepping-stone to national greatness ? 
 
 And then Mr. Bailey, the much admired 
 
120 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Scituate humorist, made some grave strictures 
 on the lack of enthusiasm in High Schools. He 
 may have been unfortunate in his experience. 
 Certainly, so, far as our Quincy High School is 
 concerned, the charge is as false as it w^ell could 
 be. Is it lack of enthusiasm that crowds our 
 halls v^ith 425 pupils, that supports our Golden 
 Eod, our Debating society, and every subject 
 taught in the school ? Is it lack of enthusiasm 
 that sends the gallant boys of our foot-ball team 
 through the rush-lines of their opponents ? Is 
 it lack of enthusiasm that supports our prize 
 contests, and our school orchestra? That sends 
 our boys and girls to Harvard, to Technology, to 
 Eadcliffe, to Boston University, and to the Nor- 
 mal schools ? If all this is lack of enthusiasm, 
 let us have some more ' lack ' just like it, for the 
 highest enthusiasm itself could do no better. I 
 thank you for your very kind attention. 
 
SOME INSTANCES OF ANCIENT 
 PATEIOTISM 
 
 Patriotism is an essential element in the true 
 greatness of a nation. Turn to Greek history. 
 The Trojan war and the prodigies of valor per- 
 formed in that contest offer examples of noble 
 patriotism. Hector and Achilles, Diomedes and 
 ^neas, Menelaus, and the two Ajaxes, not to 
 mention a host of less famous vanguard fighters, 
 played their parts manfully in that great drama. 
 The mind reverts to Marathon. On the one side, 
 ten thousand Greeks ; on the other, the count- 
 less hosts of Persia. But the patriotism of 
 Athens was more than a match for the brute 
 strength of the invader, so that the defeat of 
 the Persians was overwhelming. Leonidas and 
 his three hundred made at Thermopylae an 
 everlasting name. The simple grandeur of the 
 inscription on the monument erected in their 
 honor tells its own story: " Stranger, tell the 
 Lacedaemonians that we lie here in obedience to 
 their orders." Artemisium, Salamis, Platae and 
 
 (121) 
 
122 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Mycale, each has its splendid story. Eoman 
 history also offers striking instances of patri- 
 otism. Horatius Codes who " kept the bridge " 
 so well ; Lucius Cincinnatus, who left the plough, 
 and seized the sword to the consternation of the 
 ^quians ; Manlius, who thrust the Gauls from 
 the Capitoline Hill; that other Manlius, who 
 killed the gigantic Gaul, and won the surname 
 Torquatus ; the self-immolation of Publius De- 
 cius Mus, both father and son ; Mucins Scaevola 
 who let his right hand burn in the fire of the 
 altar, to show that a Eoman 's soul was superior 
 to pain; Maximus and Marcellus — what list of 
 Roman greatness would be complete without 
 these names and the noble patriotic deeds with 
 which they are associated ? The annals of Rome 
 are bright with glorious memories. Regulus by 
 his magnificent self-sacrifice added a lustre to 
 the Roman name. Caius Julius Caesar never 
 hesitated to risk his life for his country. Cicero 
 spoke with all the eloquence of patriotism. Not 
 only^were the great generals animated by patri- 
 otic impulses, but their hardy soldiers were sim- 
 ilarly inspired. 
 
 War heroes are likely to receive more than 
 
INSTANCES OF ANCIENT PATRIOTISM 12S 
 
 their share of praise, for mihtary success usu- 
 ally meets with most signal instances of recog- 
 nition. And yet the patriot in civic life contri- 
 butes his full share to the glory and stability of 
 the nation. The orations of Demosthenes and 
 of Cicero are beacon-lights of patriotism. The 
 literature of Greece and of Rome are lustrous 
 with the fire of patriotism. " The best omen is 
 my country's cause," says Homer; " Dulce et 
 decorum est pro patria mori^^^ says Horace; 
 Virgil cries : ' ' Pulchrumque mori succurrit in 
 armis,^^ and Cicero sounds the trumpet-call in 
 the words : 
 
 " Sit denique inscriptum in fronfe unius cujuS" 
 que, quid de republica sentiat.^^ 
 
 " Let each one's sentiments about the com- 
 mon welfare be inscribed upon his forehead," a 
 sentiment which has stood the test of nearly 
 twenty centuries, and which bids fair to last 
 forever. These are only a few of the almost 
 countless instances of noble deeds and noble 
 sentiments among the ancients, yet few as the 
 instances cited may be, they are sufficient in 
 number and quality to show the true nature of 
 patriotism in the olden times. 
 
SCHOOL PLAYGROUNDS 
 
 It was my good fortune to obtain my pre- 
 paratory education at the excellent old Roxbury 
 Latin school. Now no one can justly accuse the 
 friends of that time-honored institution of ex- 
 travagance in their ideas about the building and 
 its equipments. In fact, the building has been 
 regarded for years as a model by all those who 
 have an abhorrence of " Persian frippery " and 
 other signs of un-Spartan luxury. In spite of 
 the severe plainness of that old wooden building, 
 the school has always rejoiced in an ample play- 
 ground. No institution is more deserving of a 
 fine, modern building and a playground, too, 
 but if both cannot be obtained, it strikes me 
 that great wisdom has been displayed in insisting 
 on the playground. 
 
 If we start with the premise that the health 
 of the pupils is of vastly more consequence to 
 all concerned than any possible acquisitions at 
 the cost of their health, and if we, further, ad- 
 mit that the school playground is one of the 
 
 (124) 
 
SCHOOL PLAYGROUNDS 125 
 
 most powerful aids in maintaining the health of 
 the pupils, how can we avoid the conclusion 
 that, wherever such action is possible, more 
 money should be used in buying land, and less 
 in somewhat luxurious equipments ? 
 
 Well-kept, untrodden school lawns are beauti- 
 ful and appropriate, but girls and boys aglow 
 with health are much more attractive. As a 
 detached house with suitable grounds will always 
 be superior to the most luxurious apartment 
 house without grounds, so, even a severely plain, 
 though not necessarily ugly school building, well 
 equipped with a playground, will always be 
 superior to the most magnificent school build- 
 ing deprived of its proper playground. And so 
 it appears to me the part of wisdom to consider 
 health before luxury, rational development be- 
 fore the one-sided reactionary attempts at devel- 
 opment that arise from ignoring the laws of 
 health, and, finally, to make our school build- 
 ings not merely school-houses, but school homes 
 with grounds that can be used by the pupils. 
 
NEW YOEK AND ITS PUBLIC SCHOOL 
 TEACHERS' RETIREMENT FUND 
 
 Section 1092 of the " Provisions of the Re- 
 vised Charter ' ' of New York reads as follows : 
 
 '' The Board of Education is hereby given the 
 general care and management of the public 
 school teachers' retirement fund created for the 
 former city of New York by chapter two hun- 
 dred and ninety-six of the laws of eighteen 
 hundred and ninety-four, and of the public 
 school teachers' retirement fund created for the 
 former city of Brooklyn by chapter six hundred 
 and fifty-six of the laws of eighteen hundred and 
 ninety-five, and said funds are hereby made parts 
 of the retirement fund of the Board of Education 
 of the city of New York created by this act. The 
 comptroller of the city of New York shall hold 
 and invest all money belonging to said fund, and 
 by the direction of said Board of Education shall 
 pay out the same. The Board of Education 
 shall have charge of and administer said retire- 
 ment fund as it shall deem most beneficial to 
 
 (126) 
 
 I 
 
NEW YORK teachers' RETIREMENT FUND 127 
 
 said fund, and shall make payments from said 
 fund of annuities granted in pursuance of this 
 act. Said board shall, from time to time, estab- 
 lish such rules and regulations for the adminis- 
 tration of said fund as it may deem best, which 
 rules and regulations shall preserve all rights 
 inhering to the teachers of the city of New 
 York and the city of Brooklyn as constituted 
 prior to the passage of this act. And the comp- 
 troller of the city of New York shall report in 
 detail to the Board of Education of the city of 
 New York, annually, in the month of January, 
 the condition of said fund, and the items of the 
 receipts and disbursements on account of the 
 same. The said retirement fund shall consist of 
 the following, with the interest and income 
 thereof: (1) All money, pay, compensation or 
 salary, or any part thereof, forfeited, deducted, 
 reserved or withheld from any teacher or teach- 
 ers in the public schools of the city of New 
 York for any cause in pursuance of rules estab- 
 lished or to be established by the Board of Edu- 
 cation. The secretary of the Board of Educa- 
 tion shall certify monthly to the comptroller the 
 amounts so forfeited, deducted, reserved or with- 
 
128 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 held from the salaries of teachers during the 
 preceding month. (2) All moneys received from 
 donations, legacies, gifts, bequests or otherwise 
 for and on account of said fund. (3) Five per 
 centum annually of all excise moneys or license 
 fees belonging to the city of New York and de- 
 rived or received by any commissioner of excise 
 or public officer, from the granting of licenses 
 or permission to sell strong or spirituous liquors, 
 ale, wine or beer in the city of New York, under 
 the provisions of any law of this State authoriz- 
 ing the granting of any such licenses or permis- 
 sion. The comptroller of the city of New York 
 shall hold such moneys, together with any other 
 moneys belonging to said fund, and by direction 
 of the said Board of Education shall have charge 
 of and administer the same as hereinbefore in 
 this section provided. (4) All such other meth- 
 ods of increment as may be duly and legally 
 devised for the increase of said fund. On and 
 after the passage of this act the Board of Edu- 
 cation shall, by amending its by-laws relating to 
 the excuse of absence of teachers with pay, so 
 provide that the aggregate of the several sums 
 deducted or forfeited on account of absence from 
 
NEW YORK teachers' ^lETIREMENT FUND 12& 
 
 duty shall be fully adequate to meet the de- 
 mands made upon the public school teachers^ 
 retirement fund for the payment of annuities as 
 herein provided. On the recommendation of 
 the city superintendent, said Board of Education 
 shall have power, by a two-thirds vote of all its 
 members, to retire any member of the teaching 
 or supervising staff, including the members of 
 the Board of Examiners, who is mentally or 
 physically incapacitated for the performance of 
 duty, and has been engaged in the work of 
 teaching or school supervision for a period aggre- 
 gating thirty years, twenty of which have been 
 in the public schools of the city of New York. 
 And the Board of Education may retire from 
 active service any member of the said teaching 
 or supervising staff who shall have attained the 
 age of sixty-five years and shall have been en- 
 gaged in the work of teaching or school super- 
 vision for a period aggregating thirty years, 
 twenty of which shall have been in the public 
 schools of the city of New York. The said 
 Board of Education shall also have power by a 
 two-thirds vote of all its members, and after a. 
 recommendation to that effect shall have been 
 
130 EDUCATIONAL BROTH j 
 
 made by the board of trustees of the normal 
 college stating that the teacher is mentally or 
 physically incapacitated for the performance of 
 duty, to retire the female superintendent and 
 any female tutor of the normal college and the 
 female superintendent and any female critic 
 teacher of the training department of the nor- 
 mal college or training department or in the pub- 
 lic schools during a period aggregating thirty 
 years. The said board of education, upon the 
 recommendation of the trustees of the normal 
 college, may also, in its discretion, retire any 
 such teacher or teachers upon her or their own 
 application after the like period of service. All 
 money, pay, compensation or salary or any part 
 thereof forfeited, deducted or withheld from any 
 female superintendent or superintendents or any 
 female teacher or teachers of the normal college 
 and training department for and on account of 
 absence from duty for any cause shall be turned 
 into the teachers' retirement fund by the board 
 of trustees of said college. Any teacher, prin- 
 cipal or supervising official, including members 
 of the Board of Examiners, so retired shall 
 thereafter be entitled to receive as annuity one- 
 
NEW YORK teachers' RETIREMENT FUND 131 
 
 half the annual salary paid to said teacher, prin- 
 cipal or supervising official at the date of said 
 retirement, not to exceed, however, in the case 
 of a teacher, the sum of one thousand dollars 
 per annum, in the case of a principal fifteen 
 hundred dollars per annum, and in the case of a 
 supervising official two thousand dollars per 
 annum. And in no case shall such annuity for 
 any teacher, already retired or hereafter to be 
 retired, be less than six hundred dollars. The 
 said board is hereby given the power to use both 
 the principal and the income of said fund." 
 
 It appears from this section (1) that the retire- 
 ment fund receives all deductions for absence ; 
 (2) that five per centum of the excise moneys 
 go to the fund; (3) that annuities may go as 
 high as $2,000 for a supervising officer, and as 
 high as $1,500 for a principal; (4) that no an- 
 nuity shall be less than $600. 
 
 Comparisons are said to be odious; but, be 
 that as it may, they are often extremely in- 
 structive. The city of Boston, it is true, pays 
 for the services of the city treasurer in connec- 
 tion with the Boston Teachers' Eetirement Fund. 
 Furthermore, the Legislature has given the trus- 
 
132 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 tees of that fund power to purchase bonds of 
 the city of Boston at par. Even with these two 
 excellent concessions it has not yet been possible 
 to pay annuitants more than $168 per annum. 
 One thousand five hundred and forty-four Bos- 
 ton teachers and supervising officers are assessed 
 $18 per annum in order to make even the an- 
 nuity of $168 possible. The Boston fund re- 
 ceives no additions from deductions from teach- 
 ers' salaries on account of absence. BostoiL 
 teachers under the present regulations are now 
 allowed to attend the funerals of relatives with- 
 out loss of pay. The city of Boston sets apart 
 no portion of any receipts for the maintenance 
 of the Boston Teachers' Ketirement Fund. Is 
 it any wonder that such comments as the follow- 
 ing from the Journal of Education are becom- 
 ing common : 
 
 '^ New York City maintains her pace as the 
 educational leader. Her salaries are the highest 
 in the world. They are secured by statute and 
 charter. They (New York City) have the best 
 pension scheme for teachers." 
 
A PROFESSOR OF CHILD STUDY 
 
 As my life work was destined to be carried on 
 in the United States of America, I was very- 
 careful to get as much of my education as pos- 
 sible in Germany. For, you know, or, at least, 
 ought to know, that Germany is the country 
 where any man possessing the proper qualifica- 
 tions, has the facilities for spending the best 
 years of his life in the serious and undisturbed 
 contemplation of a frog's leg. No doubt, a man 
 might do something similar in other countries, 
 were it not for the somewhat laboriously ascer- 
 tained fact that the German frog's leg has quali- 
 ties not yet observed in the legs of less highly 
 evolved frogs. In fact, it would seem that with 
 an inadequate knowledge of the frog-leg nature, 
 one cannot hope to understand the child nature. 
 On the completion of my course in Germany, with 
 great credit, too, if you will pardon an exhibi- 
 tion of pardonable pride, I returned to the land 
 of my birth, fully equipped for the work of 
 child study. Owing to the prejudice and stupid- 
 
 (133) 
 
134: EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 ity of the authorities my promotion to a full 
 professorship of child study was not so rapid as 
 I had good reason to suppose it would be. As I 
 think of the slowness of my progress, I am 
 more and more convinced that the university 
 authorities deliberately and wilfully disregarded 
 my own wishes in the matter. Their lack of 
 taste and judgment merely made more hideously 
 prominent the already noticeable deficiencies in 
 their education. But, then, poor fellows! they 
 had not enjoyed such advantages as had fallen 
 to my lot, and could not be expected to excel in 
 matters of taste. Some of these educational 
 moguls, if you will believe it, went so far as to in- 
 timate that there are things that can be learned 
 without the slightest regard to the German 
 frog's leg ! The poet Lowell evidently had refer- 
 ence to just such persons typified under a New 
 England name, when he wrote ; — 
 ^' John P. 
 
 Robinson, he 
 
 Sez they didn't know everything 
 
 Down in Judee." 
 But the world moves and American universi- 
 ties move with it. After twenty-five years of 
 
A PROFESSOR OF CHILD STUDY 135 
 
 continuous and faithful service, after the pubh- 
 cation of many monographs on subjects of the 
 most vital importance to students of the child — 
 were it not for my characteristic modesty, I 
 would willingly insert here a complete list of my 
 educational writings; I really cannot refrain 
 from mentioning my widely read theses entitled : 
 
 1. '^ The Evolution of ' Old Barp ', or Why 
 Children Are Afraid of The Dark. ' ' 
 
 2. " Why Large Teeth Frighten Children And 
 The Moral Obligation Upon Persons Possessing 
 Such Teeth Of Changing them for Smaller False 
 Ones." (Commended by Doctor Thorberg of 
 Berlin as unangreifhar or '' unassailable ".) 
 
 3. " Should Over-Talkative Children Be Muz- 
 zled, And Are Infant Prodigies In Any Case 
 Whatever To be Allowed To Perform Before 
 Company?" (Also commended by Thorberg.) 
 
 But I will not give a complete list of the in- 
 tellectual ^'good things " with which I have 
 made the tables of editors groan, and will merely 
 remark in resuming the shghtly tangled thread 
 of my discourse, that, as I was just on the point 
 of saying, I was made full professor of child 
 study. 
 
136 EDUCATIONAL BROTH j 
 
 Persons that have not enjoyed advantages Uke 
 mine, can have no adequate idea of the difficul- 
 ties surrounding a full professor of child study. 
 It may not be generally known that the children 
 themselves are the chief hindrance to the proper 
 pursuit of a subject confessedly dedicated to 
 their own interests. Time and again I have 
 known children to refuse absolutely to come into 
 my laboratory. In some cases there have been 
 not only refusals but singularly grotesque grim- 
 aces, motions that in older persons might seem, 
 positively insulting, and language that, had its 
 full import been grasped by the childish minds, 
 might have been fairly regarded as vulgar. The 
 lack of specimens for the higher grades of 
 work has always been a menace to the complete 
 success of child study. Indeed, I have known 
 young boys to walk miles for the purpose of 
 playing ball, when by merely stepping across 
 the street to my laboratory, they might have 
 inhaled hundreds of different odors. 
 
 Startled and grieved by the morbid reluctance 
 of parents and children to contribute to the in- 
 terests of science, I resolved that were I ever 
 blessed with a child, he should be brought up in 
 
A PROFESSOR OF CHILD STUDY 137 
 
 the true, scientific, and happy way. I may say 
 that my promotion to a full professorship made 
 it possible for me to think of marriage, and that 
 after four or five temporary disappointments I 
 succeeded in winning the hand of Miss Minerva 
 Blaustrumpf , a most exemplary woman of strict- 
 ly Teutonic origin. The birth of my first and 
 only child was to me an occasion of the hearti- 
 est congratulation. How fortunate young Thor- 
 berg was! You see, I named him for that 
 learned, discriminating, world-famous admirer 
 of my thesis. While almost all other children 
 must inevitably grow in the most haphazard 
 way, my son had every opportunity of securing 
 a rigidly scientific education. For example, if 
 Thorberg thought he ought to be spinning a top 
 at the time of life and the season of the year 
 when he ought to be playing marbles, it was my 
 sweet duty, and his precious privilege, to see 
 that the proper game was substituted for the 
 improper one. This illustration will go far to- 
 ward showing that I am in no sense a gloomy 
 or morose man. The sports and games of chil- 
 dren, if pursued in the right order (see my 
 paper entitled, " Why the Double-Runner or 
 
138 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Eipper must have existed before the Single- 
 Sled''), and if the emotions caused by such 
 games be noted and recorded, furnish a most 
 valuable method of detecting any lurking faults 
 in the elementary education of the child. 
 
 In spite of my deep interest and even delight 
 in Thorberg, he early manifested a species of ap- 
 parent dislike for me amounting almost to re- 
 pulsion, although, of course, it is not at all 
 reasonable to suppose that such was really the 
 case. In fact, my approach even in the most 
 stealthy and sly manner was almost always 
 marked by an accession of violence in the cries 
 and abnormal screams of my unscientific child. 
 Even my physical measurements of Thorberg 
 called forth not only almost demoniacal howls 
 (noted for the first time in my text-book on 
 '' Infants' Abnormal Animal Cries as Indicative 
 of Descent from the Howling Monkey "), but 
 even an abortive effort at doubling up of the 
 fists, and shaking them in a most threatening 
 manner. I was at a loss to understand these 
 actions of the boy, for my teeth are not above 
 the average in size, and hair is not superabund- 
 ant upon my countenance ; my face has none of 
 
A PROFESSOR OF CHILD STUDY 139 
 
 these deformities that might inspire fear or re- 
 pulsion of any kind. In fact, as one of my 
 young lady friends once told me, my face is 
 strictly average and normal. Hence it seemed 
 to me that a child who had no text-book reason 
 for his actions was certain to be something of a 
 trial to a really scientific father. To avoid all 
 complications, and to secure a place of absolute 
 quiet removed from the seemingly constant 
 howls, shrieks, and yells of my son, at consider- 
 able expense I had a small building erected on 
 my grounds, and thus secured a place for record- 
 ing and tabulating in peace and quiet, and at my 
 leisure, the phenomena manifested by my son. 
 This building also afforded me a safe retreat for 
 sleep and study. I was thus enabled to pursue 
 my child study with renewed zest and vigor, 
 whereas almost any other arrangement would 
 have resulted inevitably in nervous prostration. 
 And I may state here, that, in my opinion, un- 
 less a child turns out to be a genuine text-book 
 child, methodical, regular, systematic, rational, 
 normal, such a child as, I am sure, in our pres- 
 ent advanced state of knowledge on this subject, 
 I might have been, nay in all probability, was, 
 
140 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 — I have discovered that the more immediate 
 care of it should be intrusted to a woman, since 
 she, though confessedly less able to note, weigh, 
 and compare the phenomena, has been known in 
 not a few instances to manifest a certain capac- 
 ity for counteracting abnormal, irregular, and 
 unauthoritative actions to which no text-book 
 gives the slightest countenance. 
 
 As soon as Thorberg became manageable to 
 the slightest degree, I began a most systematic 
 course of experimentation. I am proud to state 
 that at the age of seven he had enjoyed more 
 sensations of touch, taste, sight, hearing, and 
 smell, than would be likely to fall to the lot of 
 thousands of ordinary persons, even if their 
 lives were prolonged to the most extreme old 
 age. In fact, my son at the age of seven had 
 been through the physical sensations so thor- 
 oughly, and had so carefully reviewed his work, 
 that the rest of his life, to be at all enjoyable, 
 had to be devoted to the phenomena of more 
 purely intellectual knowing and willing. And 
 the result was, in truth, exactly what I had 
 planned, for I had carefully prepared a tabular 
 view of Thorberg's life, and fully intended that 
 
A PROFESSOR OF CHILD STUDY 141 
 
 he should Kve up to it. My plan was this: His 
 life should be devoted to an exemphfication of 
 A. Perception ; B. Conception ; 0. Ratiocination ; 
 D. The Synthetic Unity of Apperception. Par- 
 don the omission of the numerous sub-headings 
 which anyone worthy of the name of philoso- 
 pher can supply. My scheme, though seemingly 
 complete from the first, grew with the growth 
 of the child, until I discovered that child study 
 and adult study are indissolubly connected. To 
 make a complete outline study of the child, 
 then, I evidently should be compelled to keep 
 Thorberg in my laboratory during years, if not 
 for his entire life. In case of my prior death, 
 which seemed a more or less probable phenome- 
 non, the completion of my study might be left 
 as a special privilege to him who had been my 
 specimen for so many years. As my manuscript 
 (still unpublished) grew larger and larger, my 
 affection for Thorberg as an unconscious bene- 
 factor of generations yet to be, became more 
 and more scientifically deep. But alas for the 
 hopes of man! Pulvis et umbra sumus — my 
 poor Thorberg paled and sickened and died. No 
 one regretted his death more than I did, for we 
 
142 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^ 
 
 were in the very midst of a most beautiful ex 
 periment. And, furthermore, the cause of his 
 untimely death is entirely unknown to me. Even 
 our family physician, who was thoroughly fa- 
 miliar with the entire course of Thorberg's short 
 but beautiful life, was so puzzled that he did not 
 venture to assign any cause of death other than 
 that of general debility. I cannot help recalling 
 the last words Thorberg spoke to me: '' Father, 
 wouldn't it have been better to try a little more 
 love ? ' ' The poor boy must have known that 
 love was much farther along in our syllabus, and 
 that we should have come to it in a compara- 
 tively few years at the most. 
 
TEACHING MOEALITY IN HIGH SCHOOLS 
 
 Modern views of morality, in my opinion, 
 need a great deal of clarifying. For example, 
 an ingenious editor has made a schedule of 
 stealing in the following terms : 
 
 Taking $1,000,000 is a case of genius. 
 
 Taking $100,000 is a case of shortage. 
 
 Taking $50,000 is a case of litigation. 
 
 Taking $25,000 is a case of insolvency. 
 
 Taking $10,000 is a case of irregularity. 
 
 Taking $5,000 is a case of defalcation. 
 
 Taking $1,000 is a case of embezzlement. 
 
 Taking $100 is a case of dishonesty. 
 
 Taking $50 is a case of thievery. 
 
 Taking $25 is a case of total depravity. 
 
 Taking one ham is a case of war on society. 
 
 And, let me add, even this remarkable sched- 
 ule must have exceptions like to the sands of 
 the seashore for multitude. For if none of 
 these acts get found out, respectability still 
 reigns supreme, and even if some of them do 
 get found out, only the supersensitive seem to 
 
 (143) 
 
144 EDUCATIONAL BROTH y- 
 
 care. There are otherwise respectable people 
 who boast of smuggling, who cheat about their 
 taxes, and who consider it moral to unload worth- 
 less stocks on their confiding friends. There 
 are other more or less respected persons who 
 can cheat their grocers and provision dealers, 
 and yet hold their heads high. In this remark-, 
 able diversity of opinion it is clearly the duty of 
 the High Schools to teach constantly, effectively, 
 and without fear or favor the rule of right. It 
 is my firm belief that the corner-stone of any 
 High School is the moral spirit pervading every 
 rule, regulation, and exercise of that school. 
 
 Consider for a moment how deep are the foun- 
 dations of some of the commonest of our school 
 regulations. Moral scientists tell us that '' a 
 fixed time for an assembly, a meeting of a com - 
 mittee or board of trust, or a business interview, 
 is a virtual contract into which each person con- 
 cerned has entered with every other, and the 
 strict rules that apply to contracts of all kinds 
 are applicable here. Failure in punctuality is 
 dishonesty." Similar remarks may be made 
 about regularity of attendance as involving not 
 only one's own interests but those of the class 
 
TEACHING MORALITY IN HIGH SCHOOLS 145 
 
 and the school. The reading of the Scriptures, 
 in spite of what some say about it, can certainly 
 do no harm, and properly conducted may do a 
 great deal of good. The singing of those grand 
 old hymns must certainly have strong moral 
 tendencies. Addresses whether given by the 
 master or by others often produce good results. 
 The orderly passing from room to room, the self • 
 control required in a modern High School, the 
 constant courtesy to teachers both in school and 
 out, are all important elements in forming char- 
 acter. The upright and downright views of 
 teachers on all questions involving morality or 
 its opposite such as stealing, cheating of all 
 sorts, lying, forgery, and similar acts, are a con- 
 stant inducement to right action. The estab- 
 lishing of a school spirit that will not tolerate 
 such sins is a work of immeasurable importance. 
 The personal influence of a teacher of high 
 character, pleasing manners, excellent attain- 
 ments, and teaching power, cannot be overesti- 
 mated, just as the evil influence of a dishonest 
 teacher is bad beyond description. And by a 
 dishonest teacher I do not mean one who is nec- 
 essarily consciously dishonest. You have all 
 
146 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 known teachers who give dishonest and evasive 
 answers, when '' I do not know " is the only 
 true answer in a particular case. You may 
 have met teachers who despise their own pro- 
 fession, but who are perfectly willing to remain 
 in it and draw their salaries. By far the most 
 important influence exercised by the teacher in 
 his relations with his pupils is what Bishop 
 Huntington has so happily called " Unconscious 
 Tuition". 
 
 It is my belief that all the forms of physical 
 training employed in High Schools may be made 
 instruments of moral training- Last year, as I 
 had been informed that basket-ball teaches self- 
 control, I was somewhat surprised to hear my 
 girls screaming vociferously over their games, 
 but this year I was perhaps equally surprised to 
 observe the quiet that characterized the game. 
 I was puzzled to account for the complete change, 
 until my teacher of physical training explained 
 that screaming was counted a " foul ", and that 
 quiet was consequently at a high premium. The 
 subordination of self required in really success- 
 ful military drill is a powerful instrument of 
 moral training. In this department as well as 
 
TEACHING MORALITY IN HIGH SCHOOLS 147 
 
 in all others I have found it wise to make regu- 
 lations to this effect. 
 
 " On and after such a date no pupil whose 
 character, conduct and scholarship are unsatis- 
 factory to the Head-Master shall hold office in 
 any of the military, athletic, or social organiza- 
 tions of the school. All persons interested will 
 kindly take due notice." I believe that every 
 Head-Master of a High School ought to have 
 €Ourage enough to enact and enforce a similar 
 rule. Furthermore, I am firmly persuaded that 
 the terms of service of some masters would have 
 been much more enjoyable and much more last- 
 ing, if they had shown more moral courage in 
 this matter. One evening during my sopho- 
 more year at Harvard, I went to hear Phillips 
 Brooks preach. He took as his text " Son of 
 man, stand upon thy feet ", and then he pro- 
 ceeded to give one of those bracing discourses 
 for which he was so much noted. " Son of 
 man, stand upon thy feet ! " That is a good 
 text for all Head-Masters. Did you ever hear 
 of schools run either by the subordinate teach- 
 ers or by some one so-called subordinate teacher ? 
 Did you ever hear of the entire policy of a school 
 
148 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^ 
 
 dictated by one incompetent trustee ? '^ Son of 
 man, stand upon thy feet ! ' ' The moral atmos- 
 phere of the entire school must be permeated 
 with the personahty of the Head-Master. What 
 ever concerns the welfare of the school is his 
 business. The choice of officers of the military 
 companies, the appointment of editors of the 
 school paper, the complete supervision of that 
 paper to the extent of reading every word of 
 copy and every word of proof, the approval of 
 the officers of the athletic organizations, may 
 well come under his care. His presence on the 
 play-ground is a powerful agency for good, and 
 puts an effective quietus to coarseness, profan- 
 ity, loafing and kindred faults. The Head-Mas- 
 ter's influence over his school is in direct propor- 
 tion to his interest in his school. You have got 
 to be interested in your boys and girls, if you 
 expect to influence them for good. The law 
 says that the teacher stands in loco parentis 
 towards his pupils ; he also stands in the place 
 of a brother, of a friend. You have all heard 
 the story of Professor Felton's younger brother 
 " who stood very high in his class at Harvard, 
 but once forgot himself so far as to use profane 
 
TEACHING MORALITY IN HIGH SCHOOLS 149 
 
 language, an offence, it may be remarked, of 
 relatively greater heinousness then than now. 
 Young Felton, in consideration of being the pro- 
 fessor's brother, received the mercy of private 
 instead of public admonition, and the professor 
 himself was commanded to administer it. He 
 called the youth to his room and said: '^ John, I 
 cannot express to you how horrified I am that 
 my brother, in whose character and scholarship 
 I had taken so much pride, should have been re- 
 ported to the faculty for this vulgar and wicked 
 offence." John said with much contrition: 
 ^' I am exceedingly sorry. It was under cir- 
 cumstances of great provocation. I have never 
 been guilty of such a thing before. I never in 
 my life have been addicted to profanity. ' ' 
 
 " Damnation, John! " interposed the profes- 
 sor, '' how often have I told you the word is 
 prof aneness and not profanity ? ' ' And the 
 veracious Chronicler adds: ^' The admonition 
 ended there." Of the value of such an admo- 
 nition you may draw your own conclusion, al- 
 though, in my judgment apart from its one 
 somewhat glaring error, it had its merits. Al- 
 though I fear that I have already exceeded the 
 
150 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 time allotted me, I wish to state in closing that 
 I am a firm believer in the moral training of at 
 least two comparatively recent innovations in the 
 High School : I refer to the Elective System and 
 Manual Training. 
 
MANUAL TEAINING 
 
 There is an impression prevalent among the 
 uninitiated that the study of certain subjects 
 is almost invariably accompanied by certain re- 
 sults, and that, consequently, all pupils should 
 take so much of this and so much of that, in 
 order to have a liberal education. What, then, 
 is the inquiring student to say to such answers 
 as these actually given by various pupils : 
 
 1. The blood in the body is taken by means of 
 tubs to the heart and there detained. 
 
 2. A volcano is a burning mountain that has 
 a creator and throws out melted rooks. 
 
 3. I came sore and conquered. 
 
 4. The night rat came rolling up ragged and 
 brown. 
 
 5. His brain was teething with grand ideas in 
 all directions. 
 
 6. If the earth did not revolt^ we should al- 
 ways have equal nights and days. 
 
 7. Stored in some trouser house of mighty 
 kings. 
 
 (151) 
 
152 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 8. The lungs are organs of execration, 
 
 9. The base of a triangle is the side we donH 
 talk about. 
 
 10. The apex of the heart is placed downwards 
 and slightly upwards. 
 
 11. Eapids are pieces of water which run 
 with great force down the middle of rivers. 
 
 12. Excommunication means that no one is 
 to speak to some one. 
 
 13. The north and the south poles mean that 
 if a ship comes near one and looks for the farther 
 one she can't see it. 
 
 14. Polynesia is a group of small islands in 
 the Pacific which are under the protection of the 
 British, otherwise seem very quiet and peace- 
 loving. 
 
 SELECTIONS FROM SCHOOL EXERCISES 
 {From the World's Work) 
 
 " Apherbility is the state of being an apher- 
 bile." 
 
 " Afferbility is the state of being insane on 
 one subject only." 
 
 " Serenade, a greeness as of grass." 
 
 ' ' Reverberation is when it is made again into 
 a verb." 
 
MANUAL TRAINING 153 
 
 " The equator is a menagerie lion running 
 around between the north and south pole." 
 
 " They climbed Vesuvius to see the creator 
 smoking." 
 
 ''We celebrate the Fourth of July because 
 Jesus bid us. ' ' 
 
 " Vengeance. Def'n, a mean desire to pay 
 back. lUus'n, ' Vengeance is mine ; I will repay, 
 saith the Lord.' " 
 
 " Ingenious, a stupid person, from in, not, 
 and genious, a smart person. ' ' 
 
 '' Discretion, a difference of sex between ani- 
 mals." 
 
 '" The early Briton wore a skin, he tied it at 
 the waist. He wore legions on his legs. He 
 had eyes of a blue shade which plainly showed 
 his semi-civilization. He wore on his feet 
 mocassions or scandals." 
 
 " Grand opera. The only Grand Opera know 
 is Wang." 
 
 '' The Te Deum is a Grand opra." 
 
 " The British museum is the principal build- 
 ing in Paris." 
 
 " Aristides was a god ; he was the female god 
 of Phoenicia." 
 
164: EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 '' Hannibal was an early Greek explorer who 
 wrote a book called Heroditus." 
 
 " Virgil was a Vestal Virgin." 
 
 '^ As I roamed in the deep woods I saw a herd 
 of greyhounds hunting for prey." 
 
 '^ Julius Caesar was the mother of the Grac- 
 chi." 
 
 Now some will say that such illustrations are 
 of no value, because, in the first place they are 
 made up to amuse people, and, second, even 
 if they are true, they simply prove that some 
 pupils are careless. But, gentlemen, such of 
 these illustrations as are true, and none of 
 them are impossible, have a deeper meaning 
 than that. They prove the excessively slight 
 value of little bits of information, in no sense 
 assimilated, carelessly written, and, happily, 
 sometimes promptly forgotten. So much has 
 been said about the value of certain standard 
 subjects that it is time to call attention to their 
 lack of value in certain circumstances. If inter- 
 est is the mother of attention, and attention the 
 mother of memory, then interest must be the 
 grandmother of memory. Did you ever hear 
 of a boy who could do nothing with languages 
 
MANUAL TRAINING 165 
 
 and yet delighted in mathematics ? Have you 
 ever known boys whose uneasiness made them a 
 constant annoyance, and whose heedlessness 
 made them pretty nearly complete failures in 
 the studies of the course, but who afterwards 
 became efficient and honored citizens ? Have 
 you not deplored the constant dwindling away 
 of pupils year by year in the progress from class 
 to class ? And yet boys and girls are the great- 
 est utilitarians in the world. They are eager to 
 learn something that will do them good. Such 
 is their constant cry. 
 
 At the annual meeting of the Head-Masters of 
 the United States President Pritchett of the In- 
 stitute of Technology mentioned four requisites 
 of efficiency in life, namely : 
 
 Character, 
 
 Intelligence, 
 
 Industry, 
 
 and Fellowship. 
 
 And now, Mr. President, let me get at the 
 main point of my remarks. In view of my ex- 
 perience with other subjects and observation of 
 results obtained, am I not fully justified in stat- 
 ing that manual training properly taught, fos- 
 
156 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 ters character, intelligence, industry, and fellow- 
 ship, quite as much as do the other studies of 
 the curriculum ? Manual Training is individu- 
 alism systematized. Poor, slipshod work cannot 
 be concealed. The results are perfectly tangible. 
 There is no such being as an unintelligent yet 
 efficient workman. The very subject implies 
 intelligence and initiative. And as for industry, 
 why it seems to me as if my manual training 
 room were the busiest place in school. " They 
 act," said a man to me, '^ as if they had a gov- 
 ernment contract." Furthermore, isn't there a 
 good deal of fellowship in this idea of rich and 
 poor, boys and girls, working away together, 
 and getting results that may be compared and 
 talked over ? And isn't it a superb lesson in 
 humanity for the little petted darling of the 
 aristocracy to find out that there are certainly 
 some things which he cannot do half so well as 
 the poor boy from the section where the rich call 
 only when '' slumming " ? 
 
 And so I say that Manual Training justifies 
 its existence quite as well as any other subject, 
 and I am glad to say that it is so popular at the 
 Brighton High that our main difficulty is not to 
 
MANUAL TRAINING 157 
 
 get students to take it, but to find accommoda- 
 tions for the ever increasing numbers of those 
 who are eager to pursue this subject. I am 
 thoroughly convinced that this subject is keep- 
 ing in school today many boys who would other- 
 wise have left, and I am equally convinced that 
 the Manual Training is proving itself to be a 
 most valuable part of our High School course. 
 President Pritchett says that an important 
 part of Chinese training consists in learning sev- 
 eral thousand proverbs which are to be swapped 
 on meeting friends, and used in the various exi- 
 gencies of hfe. He has a translation of a Chi- 
 nese book containing several hundred of these 
 proverbs. During the recent excitement in New 
 York, President Pritchett, being interested in 
 the political affairs of the modern Babylon, be- 
 thought him that it would be a good idea to con- 
 sult his Chinese proverbs in order to find some- 
 thing appropriate to the occasion. Nor was his 
 search in vain, for this was what he found: 
 ' ' He who rides a tiger cannot dismount. ' ' 
 Now, gentlemen, I fear that this is also true 
 of him who rides a hobby, and so with thanks 
 for your courtesy in inviting me to this dinner, I 
 
158 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^- 
 
 am going to dismount while I can. But even 
 now I begin to appreciate the truth of the prov- 
 erb for I cannot resist mentioning certain rea- 
 sons for the Manual Training Course in High 
 Schools, reasons which I found not only in my 
 own experience, but suggested in The Educa- 
 tional Review : " Manual Training is not only 
 illustrative, and recreative, but it is valuable for 
 its practical utility and its formal training. Still 
 farther being an agency for the revelation of 
 life to the child it belongs in the same rank with 
 the humanities and science." I will now dis- 
 mount in good earnest. 
 
A PLEA FOE A HIGHER CIVILIZATION AND 
 FOR THE POETIC SIDE OF LIFE^ 
 
 Mr. President, Ladies^ and Oentlemen : 
 
 The present occasion seems to be a fitting time 
 to discuss certain questions which receive too 
 Uttle attention in the confusion of our busy hf e. 
 Compared with other lands our country is very 
 young. On the 3d of September there will be 
 celebrated at Sandwich the 250th anniversary of 
 the founding of that town, and recently there 
 was dedicated at Plymouth a monument in 
 honor of the Pilgrim Fathers. Sir, I need not 
 say with what eloquence of utterance, with what 
 poetic beauty, with what words of patriotism 
 that monument was dedicated. I need not say 
 how sectionalism was ignored, and race-preju- 
 dice forgotten, how the most polished oratory 
 and the most brilliant poesy vied with each other 
 in doing honor to our sires. And what is the 
 meaning of that monument ? As one has said: 
 
 * An address made at the Ashfield Dinner, Mr. Charles Eliot 
 Norton, presiding. 
 
 (159) 
 
160 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^^ 
 
 " The principles of the founders of the colony 
 are represented by a group of figures — Morality, 
 Education, Freedom and Law, with Faith tower- 
 ing above them in the centre, resting one foot 
 on Plymouth Eock, holding in her left hand an 
 open Bible, while the uplifted right arm points 
 heavenward. ' ' Sir, all honor to the spirit of our 
 Pilgrim sires. Your ancestors were among them 
 and so were mine. The spirit which neither 
 love of home, nor kingly power, nor ocean 
 storms, nor unknown shores could quell; the 
 spirit which neither the savage Indian, nor hard- 
 ships, nor even starvation and death itself could 
 subdue ; the spirit that embodied itself in Moral- 
 ity, Education, Freedom, Law, Faith, the Bible, 
 and Heaven — that spirit might well deserve a 
 lasting monument. 
 
 There let it stand beside the sounding sea. 
 There let it greet the rays of morning hght 
 and bid farewell to the departing day, there let 
 the dews and rains of later years fall with sweet 
 influence on one of the grandest memorials of a 
 glorious past. 
 
 Sir, follow if you will that spirit through the 
 three great epochs of our country, the colonial. 
 
A PLEA FOR HIGHER CIVILIZATION 161 
 
 the Revolutionary, and the era of the civil war. 
 Its glorious presence is at Plymouth Eock, at 
 Lexington, at Gettysburg. Its mighty influence 
 sports with Time, and smiles at the boundaries 
 of states. But, Sir, grand as were the achieve- 
 ments of our sires, heroic as was the uprising of 
 '61, wonderful as is our material progress — are 
 there no dangerous tendencies in our civilization ? 
 We hear on every hand of so many miles of rail- 
 road, so many factories, so many millionaires 
 (I class them with the material things), so many 
 millions of population. We hear on every hand 
 the question " How much is he worth ? " but 
 that question means something far different 
 from what the words imply. Public opinion^ 
 like a very sphinx, asks each passer " How much 
 are you worth ? " and, if the answer falls below 
 the million dollar limit, woe to the poor traveller ! 
 We boast of our civilization, yet the air is full 
 of realism in painting, in sculpture, and in liter- 
 ature. Men tell us of bushels of grain and 
 tons of freight, and ask us in aU seriousness 
 " What have we to do with abroad ? " 
 
 Until we have eclipsed the intellectual attain- 
 ments of the Old World, we have much to do 
 
162 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^^ 
 
 with abroad, and even when that happy time 
 shall come, a decent gratitude would make us 
 cherish teachers of the olden time, a love of the 
 noble would make us linger fondly round the 
 scenes of a noble past. Men speak to us of the 
 Holy Land, and they do well, but there is many 
 a spot not called by that sacred name, that has 
 been made holy land by holy deeds and holy lives. 
 
 Our civilization cannot be measured without 
 comparison. As the weight of water is the 
 standard of specific gravity ; as the metre is the 
 basis of scientific calculation ; so, in civilization, 
 in intellectual, and, in many respects, in moral 
 questions, the civilization of Athens is the stand- 
 ard of the nations. Says Dr. Galton in his work 
 on " Hereditary Genius " : 
 
 '' The ablest race of whom history bears record 
 is unquestionably the ancient Greek, partly be- 
 cause their masterpieces in the principal depart- 
 ments of intellectual activity are still unsur- 
 passed and in many respects unequalled, and 
 partly because the population that gave birth to 
 the creators of these masterpieces was very 
 small. ' ' 
 
 Mr. President, there have been great Ameri- 
 
A PLEA FOR HIGHER CIVILIZATION 163 
 
 cans, but in what period of 100 years has our 
 country ever produced such a record as this of 
 Athens, small as she was in population ? 
 
 '' Statesmen and commanders, Themistocles, 
 Miltiades, Arisfcides, Cimon, Pericles. Literary 
 and Scientific men, Thucydides, Socrates, Xeno- 
 phon, and Plato. Poets, Aeschylus, Sophocles, 
 Euripides, Aristophanes. Sculptor, Phidias. ' ' 
 
 There is Dr. Galton's list. Furthermore, as 
 he states: '^ It follows from all this that the 
 average ability of the Athenian race is, on the 
 lowest possible estimate, very nearly two grades 
 liigher than our own — that is, about as much as 
 our race is above that of the African negro. 
 This estimate which may seem prodigious to 
 s me (and which I would say can have no possi- 
 He reference to us in Massachusetts, we are 
 all so much above the average) is confirmed by 
 the quick intelligence and high culture of the 
 Athenian commonality, before whom literary 
 works were recited and works of art exhibited 
 of a far more severe character than could pos- 
 sibly be appreciated by the average of our race, 
 the calibre of whose intellect is easily gauged by 
 a glance at the contents of a railway book-stall." 
 
164 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Mr. President, my plea to-day is for a higher 
 civihzation. Self- satisfaction must shrink back 
 appalled at the thought that we of to-day are,, 
 in some respects, as regards the Athenians at 
 their best no better than the African negro. 
 Sir, when I consider the intemperance, licen- 
 tiousness, and materialism of the times, I turrt 
 with pleasure to the picture of Athens at her 
 best. Under the soft blue sky of Attica, within 
 hearing of the music of the Aegean, I see with 
 my mind's eye the Parthenon of old. 
 
 " Earth proudly wears the Parthenon, 
 As the best gem upon her zone. ' ' 
 
 And with that masterpiece of the ages I asso- 
 ciate that wise self-control which made the build- 
 ing possible, that genius and nobility of mind 
 which could conceive such a structure. 
 
 Sir, it was my pleasure and privilege nearly 
 ten years ago to attend your lectures on the his- 
 tory of ancient art. Most of the principles 
 which I have stated to-day I think that you 
 stated then. Whether or not I learned my les- 
 son well, I must let you judge. 
 
 But how shall we attain to something of that 
 higher civilization that once bloomed with so 
 
A PLEA FOR HIGHER CIVILIZATION 165 
 
 much splendor under Grecian skies ? It is no 
 easy task, for there are many factors. I will 
 emphasize but one: the cultivation of the poetic 
 side of life. '* Familiarity breeds contempt," 
 says the old adage, yet familiarity with the best 
 ought to breed the highest admiration, the deep- 
 est reverence, the fondest love. 
 
 There is beauty all around us and men pass it 
 by. Mr. President, there is a beauty of nature, 
 a beauty of art, a beauty of thought, a beauty 
 of word, a beauty of motion, a beauty of ac- 
 tion. You have but to lift your eyes to see on 
 every hand mountains towering towards heaven, 
 clad with a wealth of forest and a profusion of 
 flowers. Climb these mountains, and all around 
 you rise other mighty peaks, that fain would 
 lose themselves in the haze of the distant blue, 
 while far, far below glisten the silvery streams. 
 The land is living with thoughts of beauty and 
 of grandeur. After one has struggled upward 
 through bush and briar, over stones and cliffs to 
 the very summit of some majestic peak — when, 
 breathless, he sees for the first time that loveli- 
 ness that can be seen only from the mountain 
 lop, when the soul feasting on such a scene feels 
 
166 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 no thought that is not noble, breathes no aspira-- 
 tion that is not high, then thick and fast corner 
 rushing in the impetuous full flood-tide of ex- 
 alted emotion surging billows of resistless long- 
 ing that all the world might be as pure and high, 
 as the thoughts inspired by Nature's lofty^ 
 heights. 
 
 You have been, perhaps, in the valley. Day 
 after day the rain has fallen — the thick clouds of 
 mist hide all things but the beaten track, and 
 even that is uncertain. Yet when the rain 
 ceases, and the sun begins to illuminate the^ 
 welcoming land, you have seen the mist fade 
 away, like ghosts at dawn. The rugged base of 
 the mountain with its forests fresh as from a 
 bath in the fountain of immortal youth, first 
 discloses itself to view, and then every breath of 
 the freshening breeze presents to your sight 
 some new splendor, until peak after peak, each 
 decked with verdure, and blushing with flowers,, 
 stands revealed to the gazer and all nature 
 smiles with the rare, genial smile of love. Once^ 
 a band of Hungarian exiles reached the summit 
 of a mountain in Lenox. They stopped to gaze 
 upon the view. Their knowledge of English waa 
 
A PLEA FOR HIGHER CIVILIZATION 167 
 
 limited, but it was sufficient— for with one con- 
 sent they exclaimed, " Beauty, beauty." 
 
 But not only from the beauty of nature may 
 we rise to a higher civilization. One has wisely 
 said : 
 " Beauty is truth, truth beauty, 
 
 That is all we know and all we need to know. " 
 
 We are too prone to forget our indebtedness 
 to the poets, the painters, the architects, the 
 sculptors of all time. The subject is a vast one. 
 As one who wanders through a collection of pic- 
 tures, no matter how many " phantoms of de- 
 light ' ' may be presented to his view, no matter 
 how rich the warmth of color, or how true the 
 grace of form, bears away with him only vague 
 remembrances of many dimly remembered 
 scenes, unless he has determined to keep his at- 
 tention on only a few pictures, so in the vast- 
 ness of the subject before me I will not speak of 
 Homer the majestic, or of Dante the divine; I 
 will not speak of Shakspere. 
 
 '' Who still unmeasured sits," of whom it has 
 well been said : 
 
 '' The men who Hved with him became 
 Poets, for the air was fame." 
 
168 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 The '' Swede Emanuel " shall have no meed 
 of praise to-day, nor yet the genius of that 
 mighty Goethe whose 
 
 " Finger wrote in clay 
 The open secret of to-day." 
 
 Phidias may rest unpraised beside his ' ' awful 
 Jove"; Eaphael with his Madonnas — I will 
 speak of one who, to my mind, of all Ameri- 
 cans has most of that higher civilization, of that 
 ^' bard and sage ", 
 '' Who in large thoughts, Hke fair pearl-seed, 
 Could string Monadnoc like a bead." 
 
 Oh you who seek the higher civilization, go to 
 him who loved the " beautiful disdain of mu- 
 sic ", who " through the wild-piled snow-drift " 
 saw " the warm rosebuds below ". Go to him 
 who felt that '^ man in the bush with God may 
 meet ", who felt that '' beauty is its own excuse 
 for being, " to him who saw " only what is fair, " 
 sipped " only what is sweet ". Go to him who 
 knew the mystery of blossoms, and the language 
 of birds, who learned the " lore of time ", who 
 knew that " South winds have long memories ", 
 who where'er he went, " heard the sky-born mu- 
 sic still," whose trumpet note for all time rings 
 clear and true : 
 
A PLEA FOR HIGHER CIVILIZATION 169 
 
 " So nigh is grandeur to our dust, 
 
 So near is God to man, 
 
 When duty whispers low. Thou must^ 
 
 The youth rephes, I can,^^ 
 Mr. President it is appropriate that in your 
 beautiful new building there should be portraits 
 and medallions of benefactors and friends. It 
 gave me great pleasure to see that recognition 
 of pubhc spirit and devotion to the higher civili- 
 zation. It has been said that the Academy is 
 the best thing in the town of Ashfield, but bet- 
 ter than the Academy is the academic spirit, that 
 lofty ideal tone of mind, and who possesses it to a 
 higher degree than Mr. Curtis, whom, as one has 
 said, " I would rather hear than the sweetest 
 music," or Lowell who has spoken some of the 
 noblest words ever uttered by an American, or 
 Longfellow " whose choicest verse is harsher 
 toned than he,'- or you, Sir, America's admira- 
 ble Orichton, peerless as an authority on art, the 
 friend of scholars, because a scholar, and withal 
 as genial as Sophocles ? 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 
 
 Mr. President^ Ladies and Gentlemen of the New 
 Jersey High School Teachers'' Association : 
 
 As a very liberal system of electives has been 
 introduced into the Boston High Schools, and as 
 Boston High School Head-Masters are now able 
 to give the results of practical experience in this 
 direction, it may be a matter of coDsiderable 
 interest to others to learn precisely what the 
 Boston system of electives is, what led to it, 
 how it works, what improvements are desirable, 
 what faults it may have disclosed, and what ad- 
 vantages it possesses over other systems. 
 
 I quote School Document No. 9, 1901, Eevised 
 1903. 
 
 1. The High Schools are in session five hours 
 a day for five days in the week. The sessions 
 may be extended not exceeding two hours, pro- 
 vided no pupils are therebj^ required to attend 
 school more than five hours daily. 
 
 2. Of the five hours a day, a quarter of an 
 hour is given to opening exercises, and half an 
 
 (170) 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 171 
 
 hour to recess. The rest of the time is divided 
 into five or six periods of not less than forty 
 minutes each. 
 
 3. In the first three years, two periods weekly 
 are required to be given to physical trainingy 
 one to music or to some study substituted for 
 music, and one, for a part of the year, to hygi- 
 ene, including the special instruction required 
 by law. 
 
 4. Of the remaining periods, fifteen or, in 
 some cases, sixteen, are given to studies chosen 
 from the lists of elective studies. The other 
 periods are called study periods. 
 
 5. In the fourth year, gymnastics, military 
 drill, hygiene, and music are no longer required* 
 The regular amount of work this year in the 
 elective studies is sixteen periods. 
 
 6. A pupil may be permitted or may be re- 
 quired, for reasons satisfactory to the parent or 
 guardian and to the Head-Master, to take less 
 than the full amount of work in the elective 
 studies, and this reduction may be made at any 
 time in the school year. 
 
 7. A pupil of good health and ability may, for 
 good reasons, be permitted to take more than 
 
172 EDUCATIONAL BROTH _^ 
 
 the full amount of work in the elective studies. 
 
 8. A change from one elective study to an- 
 other is not regularly permitted after the end of 
 September except when such a change is made 
 necessary by the discontinuance of a class. 
 
 9. Pupils who intend to enter the Boston 
 Normal School make their choice of elective 
 studies in accordance with the requirements for 
 admission to that school. Pupils desiring to 
 prepare for college or other higher institution of 
 learning are advised as to their choice of studies 
 by the Head-Master and teachers of their re- 
 spective High schools. 
 
 10. At the end of any year, pupils not receiv- 
 ing diplomas receive certificates of proficiency 
 for those studies in which their year's record 
 has been satisfactory. These certificates show 
 the number of points credited towards a di- 
 ploma. 
 
 11. Pupils are admitted to advanced standing 
 and receive certificates in one or more elective 
 studies on presenting satisfactory evidence of 
 proficiency therein. 
 
 12. Diplomas are granted for quantity and 
 quality of work, represented as follows : 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 173 
 
 (1) The amount of work represented by one 
 period a week for one year in any elective study 
 counts as one point towards winning a diploma. 
 Two periods of unprepared recitations or labora- 
 tory work are considered equivalent to one period 
 of prepared work. For physical training three 
 points, for music or the study substituted for 
 music one point, and for hygiene one point are 
 allowed for each of the first three years. 
 
 (2) The number of periods a week, or diploma 
 points, assigned to each elective study is three, 
 four or five, as determined by the H^ad-Masters, 
 each for his own school, with the approval of 
 the Board of Supervisors. 
 
 (3) The points assigned for each study or ex- 
 ercise are all won or all lost on the whole year's 
 record of recitations and examinations in that 
 study or exercise, and the standard used for de- 
 termining whether this record be satisfactory or 
 otherwise is such as has been approved by the 
 Board of Supervisors. 
 
 (4) A full year's work is credited with twenty 
 points, five for required exercises and fifteen for 
 elective studies in each of the first three years, 
 
174 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 and sixteen for elective studies in the fourth 
 year. 
 
 (5) The First Diploma is awarded to pupils 
 who have won sixty points, which usually re- 
 quires three years' attendance at school; and the 
 Second Diploma is awarded for seventy- six 
 points. 
 
 13. Copies of this Course of Study together 
 with such suggestions as to the choice of studies 
 as may be useful to pupils intending to enter a 
 High School and to their parents and friends are 
 distributed annually in the month of April to all 
 members of the graduating classes of the Gram- 
 mar Schools. 
 
 MORAL TRAINING 
 
 A part of the time assigned to the opening 
 exercises is used in giving instruction in morals 
 and manners. Teachers will, at all times, " ex- 
 ert their best endeavors to impress on the minds 
 of children and youth committed to their care 
 and instruction, the principles of piety and jus- 
 tice, and a sacred regard to truth ; love of their 
 country, humanity, and universal benevolence; 
 sobriety, industry, and frugality ; chastity, 
 moderation, and temperance; and those other 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 175 
 
 virtues which are the ornament of human so- 
 ciety, and basis upon which a repubhcan consti- 
 tution is founded." — Extract from the Oeneral 
 Statutes of Massachusetts. 
 
 MUSIC 
 
 Instruction in music is regularly given one 
 period a week to all pupils who w^ish to take it. 
 Pupils who do not take music are required to 
 give the period to reading, or to increase by one 
 period the time given to elective studies. 
 
 The Elective studies are arranged in four lists, 
 corresponding to the four years a pupil is sup- 
 posed to spend in school. 
 
 The first list contains the studies open to the 
 pupil's election in his first year. The second, 
 third, and fourth lists contain the additional 
 studies open to his election in each of the fol- 
 lowing years respectively. 
 
 Eoman numerals appended to the name of 
 a study indicate the successive years of work in 
 that study. In general no pupil is allowed to 
 take an elective study for which his previous 
 studies have not prepared him. 
 
 Programmes of study made up by the Head- 
 Masters and showing the number of periods a 
 
176 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^ 
 
 week assigned to each elective study must be 
 approved by the Board of Supervisors before 
 being used in any High School. 
 
 FIRST YEAR 
 
 English I. English classic authors^ Gram- 
 mar, Composition, Reading, and Speaking. 
 
 History L Ancient history, chiefly that of 
 Greece and Rome, to the fall of the Western 
 Roman Empire. 
 
 Latin I. 
 
 Freyich I. 
 
 German I. 
 
 Algebra I. Elementary algebra, including 
 quadratic equations. 
 
 Geometry I. Plane geometry. 
 
 Biology I. Botany and zoology."^ 
 
 Drawing I. 
 
 Bookkeeping I. Bookkeeping proper begun, 
 together with commercial arithmetic, penman- 
 ship and commercial forms. 
 
 Phonography and Typewriting I. 
 
 SECOND YEAR 
 
 Any study in the first year's list not already 
 
 * Pupils preparing for the Normal School are expected to take 
 Biology I and II andThysiology^ 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 177 
 
 taken, or Dot successfully completed, may be 
 taken this year. 
 
 English IL As before. Grammar ended and 
 rhetoric begun. 
 
 History IL Mediaeval and early modern his-^ 
 tory, to A.D. 1700. 
 
 Greek L 
 
 Latin LL, 
 
 French LL, 
 
 German LL. 
 
 Spanish L. 
 
 Algebra LL, Advanced topics and methods. 
 
 Geometry LL, Solid Geometry. 
 
 Biology LL, Required as the one suitable prep- 
 aration for physiology. 
 
 Physics L, 
 
 Chemistry L, 
 
 Drawing LL, 
 
 Bookkeeping LL, 
 
 Phonography and Typewriting LL. 
 
 Commercial Geography, 
 
 LLousehold Science and Arts, 
 
 THIRD YEAR 
 
 Any study in the earlier hsts not already taken 
 
178 EDUCATIONAL BROTH - 
 
 or successfully completed may be taken this 
 year. 
 
 English III, Literature, rhetoric, and com- 
 position as before. Pupils preparing for college 
 read the authors or books prescribed by the col- 
 leges for that purpose. 
 
 History III. Modern History, from A. D. 
 1700. 
 
 Civil Government. 
 
 Greek II. 
 
 Latin III. 
 
 French III. 
 
 German III. 
 
 Spanish II. 
 
 Mathematics III. 
 
 Physics II. 
 
 Chemistry II. 
 
 Physiology. To follow two years' study of 
 biology. 
 
 Drawing III. 
 
 Phonography and Typewriting III. 
 
 Commercial Law. 
 
 Household Science and Arts. 
 
 FOURTH YEAR 
 
 Any study in the earlier lists not already 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECllVES 179 
 
 taken or successfully completed may be taken 
 this year. 
 
 English IV, A study of the history and for- 
 mation of the English language and of speci- 
 mens of the earlier literature. Chaucer. 
 
 History IV. The political history of the 
 United States under the Constitution. 
 
 Economics, The elementary definitions and 
 principles of the science with such illustrations 
 as are appropriate to a first reading of the sub- 
 ject in High Schools. 
 
 Greek III, 
 
 Latin IV. 
 
 French IV. 
 
 German IV. 
 
 Spanish III. 
 
 Mathematics IV. 
 
 Physical Geography. 
 
 Astronomy. 
 
 Drawing IV. 
 
 A summary shows the following facts: — 
 
 English, 4 years. 
 
 History, 4 years. 
 
 Xiatin, 4 years. 
 
 Greek, 3 years. 
 
180 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^ 
 
 French, 4 years. 
 
 Spanish, 3 years. 
 
 German, 4 years. 
 
 Mathematics, 4 years. 
 
 Science, 4 years. 
 
 Bookkeeping, 2 years. 
 
 Phonography and Typewriting, 3 years. 
 
 Household Science and Arts, 3 years. 
 
 Drawing, 4 years. 
 
 Spanish, 3 years. 
 
 Commercial Geography, 1 year. 
 
 Commercial Law, 1 year. 
 
 Economics, 1 year. 
 
 Any study in a previous year not already 
 taken may be taken in a following year. 
 
 That, Mr. President, reduced to its lowest 
 terms is the Boston system of electives. And 
 what led to it ? The discussions in our Head- 
 masters' meetings developed the fact that the 
 previous courses of study, though liberal in 
 many respects and of undoubted value, were 
 insufficiently flexible, imposed unnecessary hard- 
 ship on teachers and pupils, and failed to meet 
 the wants of the separate communities. Why, 
 for example, should a pupil without any taste 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 181 
 
 for drawing be compelled to take that subject 
 for years to the positive injury of himself, his 
 teacher and his class ? Why should not book- 
 keeping, typewriting, shorthand, and other valu- 
 able commercial subjects be given a place in the 
 High School course ? It must be remembered 
 that in our large cities, at least, the public High 
 School is subject to the closest scrutiny and the 
 fiercest competition. Private schools of high 
 ^excellence, able to obtain remarkable results 
 from the efficiency of their teachers and the 
 smallness of their classes must not be left out of 
 the consideration. To ascertain the educational 
 needs of your community and to meet these 
 needs effectively, are problems that demand suc- 
 cessful solution. 
 
 You may have observed that manual training 
 was not mentioned in the list, but you will be 
 glad to learn that this subject also is offered in 
 the Brighton High School. The other day when 
 I was taking Professor Hanus of Harvard Uni- 
 versity over my building what, do you suppose, 
 roused his enthusiasm most ? The Manual train- 
 ing benches and tools side by side with the tables 
 and apparatus of the physical laboratory. The 
 
182 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 Manual training has now been authorized and 
 it has so many friends on the School Commit- 
 tee, that, in my opinion, it has come to stay.. 
 But, some one may say " Your system is all very 
 good, but it is not sufficiently explicit, and does; 
 not tell us how many times a week the subjects 
 come, or how much the different subjects count/' 
 That is a just criticism of the surface appear- 
 ance of the plan, but, in reality, the omission of 
 such details is a great blessing for this reason :: 
 the discretion of the Head-Master must be used 
 in the arrangement of details. Some people im- 
 agine that the doctrine of High School electives 
 implies that you must put every subject on the 
 same footing. Only a few days ago two of my 
 respected colleagues in Boston tried to " deposit 
 me in a cavity ", as our learned Doctor Everett 
 used to say in Congress, because advocating 
 High School electives with all my might for 
 years, I advocated a difference in the value to 
 be assigned to typewriting and Latin. Now I 
 have never understood that the elective system 
 implies the absolute equality of all subjects. 
 To my mind there is a real difference in a lesson 
 requiring an hour's preparation and one that re- 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 183^ 
 
 quires none — a difference that must be recog- 
 nized later if not sooner. An hour of labora- 
 tory work in the opinion of many should not be 
 assigned the same value as an hour of recitation 
 in science. Fortunately, however, large liberty 
 is accorded the Boston Head-Masters in the ar- 
 rangement of all such details. To draw up a 
 course of study that will meet the needs of the 
 varying communities of a great city, is a most 
 complex educational problem. With the in- 
 creasing number of pupils and the additional 
 subjects it was soon ascertained that either the 
 school day must be prolonged or the subjects 
 must be given less frequently than is desirable 
 on the principle of concentration, or the recita- 
 tion periods must be somewhat shortened. My 
 own solution was to shorten the recitation peri- 
 ods to about 42 minutes and to give the subjects 
 or most of them as frequently as possible up to 
 five times a week. Some of the High Schools 
 have tried the experiment of extending the 
 school day to 3 or 4 o'clock, but in one instance, 
 at least, this plan proved unsatisfactory, and 
 was abandoned, while the method of shortened 
 periods was adopted with complete success. 
 
184 
 
 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 The addition of six periods in the week is a sub- 
 stantial help towards the solution of the pro- 
 gramme difficulty, and it is found entirely prac- 
 ticable by this system to arrange double periods 
 for drawing and science. 
 
 Under the plan of six periods a day my 
 scheme of studies for next year may be illus- 
 trated by the following schedule for the entering 
 class : 
 
 English, 
 
 5 hours. 
 
 4 units. 
 
 History, 
 
 3 hours, 
 
 3 units. 
 
 Latin, 
 
 5 hours, 
 
 4 units. 
 
 French, 
 
 5 hours. 
 
 4 units. 
 
 German, 
 
 5 hours. 
 
 4 units. 
 
 Algebra, 
 
 5 hours. 
 
 4 units. 
 
 Biology, 
 
 3 hours. 
 
 3 units. 
 
 Drawing, 
 
 3 hours. 
 
 3 units. 
 
 Bookkeeping, 
 
 5 hours. 
 
 4 units. 
 
 Phonography 
 
 and 
 
 
 Typewriting, 
 
 7 hours. 
 
 5 units. 
 
 Manual Training 3 hours, 3 units. 
 
 You may ask, why give English five times 
 
 and count it only four units ? The answer is : 
 
 Because by introducing six periods a day instead 
 
 of five the length of the period was shortened. 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 185 
 
 Consequently, the five short periods were equal 
 in time to only four longer bnes. It is my belief 
 that the arrangement of six periods is very much 
 better than that of five not simply on account 
 of the greater ease of making out the pro- 
 gramme, but on account of its results in the 
 way of securing animation and actual work. 
 The better programme insures wider choice and, 
 consequently, greater interest. The greater fre- 
 quency of recitations is fully in accordance with 
 the principle of concentration, and meets specif- 
 ically the requirements of our best higher insti- 
 tutions. It is in complete harmony also with 
 the recommendations of the American Philo- 
 logical Society. Furthermore, it affords more 
 frequent exercise by the change of classes, an 
 interesting fact in view of the perfectly natural 
 uneasiness of many boys and girls, in the atmos- 
 pere of the average schoolroom, an atmos- 
 phere, Mr. President, which in nine cases out of 
 ten is demonstrably drier than that of the desert 
 of Sahara, and, consequently, conducive to 
 catarrhal, throat, and lung diseases in addition 
 to general discomfort. It is an important fact 
 that several of our Boston High Schools have 
 
186 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 practically been compelled to adopt the six period 
 plan to meet the exigencies of the elective sys- 
 tem. It is a still more significant fact that those 
 Head-Masters and teachers who have actually 
 tried the scheme like it much better than the 
 old plan of longer recitations. Still further evi- 
 dence on this subject is found in the experience 
 of the good old Roxbury Ijatin School w^hich 
 has adopted the six period plan not so much in 
 consequence of the elective system, for the insti- 
 tution is primarly a fitting school for Harvard, 
 but simply on account of the marked superiority 
 of the plan. 
 
 Extreme conservatives have called the elective 
 system some very hard or very easy names ac- 
 cording to the point of view. " Go-as-you- 
 please," '' let-down- the-bars," '^chocolate-eclair 
 back-bone," and other hard and soft expressions 
 have been used, but have these conservatives, 
 whose motives I would be the last to impugn, 
 carefully weighed the natural self -limitation of 
 the elective principle ? Electives in Boston are 
 about as free as they are anywhere, but that 
 admirable freedom at many turns runs up 
 against the nature of things. If some of the 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 187 
 
 functions of a great public High School are the 
 fitting of pupils for college, scientific school, 
 professional school, normal schools of various 
 kinds, as well as for business, and always for life, 
 is it not perfectly evident that a student's choice 
 must be governed by the requirements of the' 
 institution to which he wishes to go, or, in some 
 measure, by the requirements of the position 
 which he wishes to fill ? Furthermore, almost 
 any scheme even of elective studies by the very- 
 nature of things involves an orderly procedure 
 from the elementary through the more complex 
 towards the most difficult. A pupil cannot take 
 the second year of Latin until he has mastered 
 the first year's work. The same statement may 
 be made about Greek, French, German, Span- 
 ish, and other subjects. Although there is room 
 for wide difference of opinion about the order 
 of studies, in the opinion of many physical 
 geography may wisely be preceded by astrono- 
 my, geology, and botany. Astronomy and phys- 
 ics require a good knowledge of elementary 
 mathematics. Advanced bookkeeping presup- 
 poses a knowledge of elementary bookkeeping. 
 A student of drawing who should attempt per- 
 
188 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 spective and figure drawing at the first step 
 would not be likely to profit much by his efforts. 
 
 Still further, another limitation is to be found 
 in the number of teachers that the average mu- 
 nicipality can afford to supply. Within reason- 
 able limits the question of the merits of large, 
 moderate sized, and small classes is a debatable 
 one, and there is room for enthusiasm over any 
 one of the three kinds of classes. It is gener- 
 ally acknowledged, however, that our present 
 danger lies in the direction of too large rather 
 than in that of too small classes. But, as a 
 general rule, it is safe to assert that there is a 
 limit beyond which a class cannot be reduced 
 with profit to the public. Meritorious as indi- 
 vidual instruction is, and beneficial as its results 
 are in many cases, no rational being would, at 
 present, ask a city to furnish children with pri- 
 vate tutors. Consequently, the individual choice 
 of studies finds another limitation in the num- 
 ber of teachers that can be reasonably afforded. 
 
 Still, further, absolute freedom of choice is 
 limited by the advice and authority of teachers 
 and parents. In almost all of the institutions of 
 secondary grade in which the elective plan has 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 189 
 
 been adopted, the choice of the pupil is made 
 subject to the approval of the Head-Master of 
 the school. An additional Hmitation is found in 
 the prevalent ideas about the necessity of pur- 
 suing certain studies. Many highly intelhgent 
 persons have very strong convictions about the 
 intrinsic value of particular branches and the 
 expediency of gaining at least an elementary 
 knowledge of them. Such convictions have 
 been influential in creating and maintaining a 
 demand for the study of English, mathematics, 
 and Latin, to mention only three of the subjects 
 under consideration. The quality of the teach- 
 ing, and the natural taste of the student have 
 received too little attention in the discussion of 
 the abstract value of subjects. Prevalent opin- 
 ions are also responsible, in a measure, for the 
 widely spread behef that such studies as book- 
 keeping, commercial arithmetic, stenography, 
 penmanship, and typewriting, furnish an import- 
 ant part of a good training for commerce. In 
 many instances, too, it will be found that the 
 limitations of the school building are also, to 
 some extent, limitations of the elective system, 
 while the restricted amount of apparatus may 
 
190 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 also prove to be still another limitation. It will 
 be perfectly clear, I think, from the statement of 
 these limitations, that all the forms of elective, 
 namely by subjects, by courses, or by groups, 
 will be found in any High School in which a 
 genuine attempt is made to meet the needs of 
 the community. 
 
 It is my desire to anticipate some of the ques- 
 tions that will occur to any intelligent inquirer 
 about the system. 
 
 Do the numbers of the pupils increase under 
 the elective system ? Yes. So far as my own 
 experience goes, both in Quincy, Massachusetts, 
 and in Boston, every extension of the elective 
 system has resulted in an increased attendance. 
 In Quincy, you will pardon me for the personal 
 reference, the High School increased 172 % in 
 seven years, and the extension of the elective 
 system was almost as great as the increase in 
 the number of the pupils. In the Brighton Dis- 
 trict, Boston, the increase has been marked, 
 although the competition with the Boston Latin, 
 the Girls' Latin, the Girls' High, the Boys' 
 English High, the Mechanic Arts High School, 
 and numerous excellent and very accessible 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 191 
 
 private schools, tends to delay so extraordinary 
 an increase as occurred in Quincy. 
 
 Is the attendance as regular ? Yes. Is the 
 falling off in numbers during the year greater 
 or less ? Considerably less. Is the interest dis- 
 played in recitations as great as formerly, and 
 is the merit of the work done equal to that un- 
 der former conditions ? In my opinion, both the 
 interest and the merit are much greater than 
 before. Does it appear that immature pupils, 
 possibly children of parents who have enjoyed 
 few formal scholastic advantages, choose their 
 subjects wisely ? I frame that question as un- 
 favorably as possible, because I have heard it 
 put in just that form so many times, and because 
 it embodies one of the most frequent objections 
 to the elective system. My reply is again: Yes, 
 as a rule, the pupils choose wisely, and further- 
 more there is considerable difficulty in choosing 
 with that absolutely abandoned folly which is 
 supposed by some to be characteristic of adoles- 
 cent choice. It is my solemn conviction that, if 
 a child has not developed some judgment by 
 :the time he is fifteen years of age, it is high 
 time in educational quarters, at least, to give 
 
192 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 him something on which to exercise those 
 atrophied areas up to that age unused to activi- 
 ty. The exercise of choice is one of the most, 
 characteristic and noblest attributes of human- 
 ity, and the sooner it can be trained by actual 
 use, the better. The graduate of the High 
 School is not fitted for college, if he has never 
 exercised any choice in preparation for a higher 
 institution where electives are becoming yearly 
 more free. In fact, my ideas on this subject 
 coincide with those of President Eliot of Har- 
 vard University, the great apostle of election, 
 who would have electives not only in universi- 
 ties, colleges, and high schools, but even in the 
 upper grades of grammar schools. And this, 
 opinion, which to many may seem extremely 
 radical is based upon the scientific fact that the 
 age for the beginning of foreign languages to the 
 best advantage precedes the usual high school 
 age. 
 
 Is it proper to bring pressure to bear upon 
 pupils to induce them to take subjects which 
 you regard as highly important for them ? To 
 a certain extent, yes, although I once heard 
 one of the most noted superintendents in tho 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 193^^ 
 
 United States say that while he had given pupils 
 a great deal of advice about their subjects, he 
 now took it all back, because he thought they 
 could choose better for themselves. There was 
 considerable truth as well as poetry in that 
 remark. Are not the students inclined to choose 
 the easiest subjects in consequence of innate 
 laziness ? I am not prepared to say that no 
 pupils follow the lines of least resistance under 
 the elective system, but that such a tendency 
 is characteristic of any large number of stu- 
 dents my experience would emphatically deny. 
 I have observed a tendency to take too many^ 
 hard subjects rather than to take too few easy 
 ones. Furthermore, an honest attempt is made 
 to secure some uniformity of difficulty in the 
 various subjects. For example, the business 
 subjects, in some schools considered unduly 
 easy, are deliberately made reasonably hard. 
 In short, it is expected and intended that all the 
 subjects of the High School shall offer suitable 
 exercise for intelligent industry. 
 
 Do you find that many pupils wish to change 
 their subjects, after choosing them and finding 
 them more difficult than they had anticipated^ 
 
194 EDUCATIONAL BROTH __. 
 
 and how late in the school year do you ordinarily 
 allow such changes ? Still, further, what re- 
 sults have you observed from a refusal to grant 
 requests for a change of studies coming after 
 the time-limit set for such changes ? 
 
 The requests for such changes both on the 
 part of pupils and of parents are very much 
 fewer than they were under compulsory or semi- 
 elective plans. In fact one of the most pleasing 
 features of the elective principle is the remark- 
 able persistency of choice. It is a curious fact, 
 observable best under strictly compulsory sys- 
 tems, that in a long series of years nearly all 
 the studies of the High School curriculum have 
 been branded as " useless " by some more or 
 less intelligent parent. And it is a still more 
 curious fact that, in spite of the natural feeling 
 of indignation that one feels on hearing so 
 seemingly absurd a statement, that there is, 
 so far as individuals are concerned, a modicum 
 of truth in it. There is nothing so complex, 
 so baffling, so unamenable to rules other than 
 its own, than the human mind. The French 
 have a theory of diseases: II n^y a pas des 
 maladies, iln^y a que des malades : There are 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 195 
 
 HO diseases, there are only sick people." Or, as 
 the boy translated it : " There are no diseases, 
 there are only sicks. ' ' This proverb I have quoted 
 before, and in my opinion it is good enough to 
 quote again. In other words, each case of every 
 disease presents its own peculiarities. A similar 
 statement may be made with equal truth about 
 each case of health. Just so with the human 
 mind : what is one pupil's meat is another pupil's 
 poison. And a very good reason for this differ- 
 ence is found not only in the natural and in- 
 herited tastes of the individual, but also in the 
 rate of moral, mental, and physical develop- 
 ment, which is astonishingly different in various 
 individuals. And so instead of saying " mathe- 
 matics cultivates the reasoning power, lan- 
 guages cultivate the memory and the taste to- 
 gether with the power of expression, sciences 
 cultivate the powers of observation; " say rather 
 different pupils cultivate the mental powers by 
 pursuing different studies, and at different ages. 
 Strange as it may appear, a poor mathematician 
 may become a good logician. One may develop 
 from the study of Greek a kind of observation 
 not to be derived from science. Another may 
 
196 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 cultivate his imagination better by higher math- 
 ematics than he can by poetry, although the 
 mental development due to the study of one 
 subject is generally somewhat restricted to that 
 and kindred subjects. Dr. Hinsdale, for exam- 
 ple, has shown that the Indian, while at home 
 in the pathless forests, is vastly inferior to the 
 ordinary street-boy in the mazes of London. 
 And so the educational doctors who prescribed 
 one study to secure good reasoning from all 
 pupils, and another to cultivate the powers of 
 observation, and another to train the memory, 
 and a cast-iron curriculum for the general good 
 of each and all, were not unlike the worthy pro- 
 prietor of a country store, who used to empty 
 medicine from returned bottles into one common 
 receptacle, bottle up the result, and sell the com- 
 pound for a complication of diseases. A cast- 
 iron compulsory curriculum is undoubtedly mado 
 up of studies that, properly taught, are good for 
 individuals, but the compound, if swallowed for 
 a complication of diseases, may be worse than 
 the diseases themselves. An irate congressman 
 once remarked that for his fellow congressmen 
 as individuals he had the profoundest respect 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 197 
 
 and affectioD, but that, taking them collectively, 
 he regarded them as the worst combination of 
 rascals he had ever met. Mr. President, for the 
 individual studies of the strictest required 
 .course, I have the profoundest respect and affec- 
 :tion, but taken collectively and forced indis- 
 .criminately upon unwilling pupils I cannot re- 
 :gard them so highly. With regard to forcing a 
 istudent to continue a subject which he finds he 
 does not care to continue, even though he chose 
 it, it may be said that such action has been 
 .attended with no very gratifying success in my 
 rexperience. The number of such cases, how- 
 .ever, is extremely small. The skill of the 
 teacher who presents a part at least of the 
 .charms of a subject, before he shows many of 
 its difficulties and hints of worse ones to follow, 
 €annot be too highly commended. Some in- 
 structors appear to take an almost insane delight 
 in perverting the ways of wisdom from those 
 of pleasantness to those of horror, and the 
 paths of peace to those of an internecine guerilla 
 warfare. 
 
 It must be remembered in connection with 
 another part of the last question that, while 
 
198 EDUCATIONAL BROTH _^ 
 
 most pupils naturally wish to take their diplo- 
 mas with the rest of their classmates, there is. 
 no stigma attached to those who, for good 
 reasons of their own, prefer to take a longer 
 time in getting their diplomas. It sometimes 
 happens that the parents of growing boys and 
 girls think that the college requirements are 
 getting altogether too strenuous, an opinion 
 which Professor Ladd of Yale shares with them 
 most heartily. Such parents are glad to avail 
 themselves of that most reasonable privilege of 
 extended time, say, one or more extra years, for 
 obtaining the diplomas. Another privilege, 
 which is, of course, to be carefully guarded, is 
 that of special pupils who wish to take certain 
 subjects but who are not candidates for diplomas. 
 How do you arrange a programme, when the 
 subjects are so largely elective ? Some Head- 
 masters wait until the subjects are actually 
 chosen before making out the programme, but 
 I have always found it wiser to make out a pre- 
 liminary programme of the subjects that are 
 practically certain to be chosen, and put that 
 programme into effect at the earliest possible 
 time in the autumn. The size of the classea 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 199 
 
 and the necessary number of sections may be 
 ascertained by careful inquiry at the end of the 
 school year. Corrections, extra divisions or 
 consolidations may be arranged when school 
 actually opens. Thus comparatively little time 
 is lost for want of a working programme. Has 
 it been found in actual practice that the popu- 
 larity or unpopularity of teachers affects the 
 choice of subjects ? From what I have already 
 said on this topic it will readily appear that, 
 however necessary good teachers are under a 
 compulsory system, they are still more necessary 
 under an elective system. For lack of skill, ig- 
 norance of the subject, crabbed disposition, bad 
 manners, want of personal magnetism, and lack 
 of interest in one's work, are always likely to 
 repel human beings from subjects of even con- 
 siderable value. But we all know that poor or 
 indifferent teachers have no reason for continu- 
 ing in the profession under any system what- 
 ever except that of political pull or misguided 
 pity. Better a thousand times to pension off all 
 teachers who have outlived their usefulness than 
 to keep them in service to the loss of their own 
 self-respect, to the detriment of the childen, and 
 
200 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 to the ridicule of our honorable profession. 
 
 Why do you not require English for at least a 
 part of the course, if not for all ? 
 
 Now that question is always asked with a 
 jaunty confidence that seems to imply that the 
 advocates of electives in spite of their cunning 
 are caught at last. With all due respect to the 
 teachers of English throughout the United 
 States and with full appreciation of the excel- 
 lence of their work, I cannot help saying that, in 
 my opinion, at least, an untold amount of their 
 labor, possibly through no fault of their own is 
 thrown away or worse than wasted. When a 
 young man of average intelligence wrote in re- 
 ply to these questions on College English: " Who 
 was Silas Marner and what was the cause of his 
 unpopularity ? '' " Silas Marner is the name of 
 a poem by Coleridge. The cause of his unpopu- 
 larity was that he killed the albatross that caused 
 the wind to blow " — when such answers, I say, 
 are possible after several years of High School 
 English, a portion of the objections to making 
 it elective may be met. Frankly now, do your 
 pupils fall in love with Burke on " Conciliation ", 
 or do they laboriously ' ' get it up " for college 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 201 
 
 examinations, and thank their stars, when the 
 test and the book are gone from them forever ? 
 And isn't it a singular fact that most of our 
 rhetorics cull all of their atrocious errors in Eng- 
 lish, weeds of speech from the rhetoricians' 
 point of view, from the best writers of the lan- 
 guage ? However these matters may be, even 
 English was made elective in Boston. 
 
 How do the different subjects offered as elect- 
 ives vary in popularity ? 
 
 Now, although figures are extremely tiresome, 
 they have in some way won a reputation for ver- 
 acity not always deserved by them. The follow- 
 ing figures, however, will give some idea of the 
 comparative popularity of different subjects, 
 though their value for other schools with differ- 
 ent pupils and different teachers can be only 
 problematical. It must also be remembered 
 that, as certain subjects are not open to students 
 of all the years, while other subjects are, the 
 figures in some instances do not furnish any basis 
 of comparison. 
 
 Enghsh 290 
 
 Latin 104 
 
 French 110 
 
202 EDUCATIONAL BROTH ^ 
 
 German 44 
 
 Greek 19 
 
 History 213 
 
 Civics 23 
 
 Algebra 96 
 
 Physics 16 
 
 Botany 74 
 
 Stenography 120 
 
 Bookkeeping 134 
 
 Typewriting 99 
 Commercial Law 35 
 
 Economics 16 
 
 Drawing 119 
 
 Chemistry 36 
 
 Geometry 62 
 
 Astronomy 14 
 
 Physiology 40 
 Manual Training* 40 
 
 As the total number of pupils was about 300, 
 the relative popularity of subjects and the per 
 cent of pupils taking them may readily be ob- 
 tained, that is for such subjects as are on the 
 
 *The number of pupils taking Manual Training has steadily 
 increased at the Brighton High School, until it has now reached 
 170. 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELEOTIVES 20^ 
 
 same basis or are given the same number of 
 years. 
 
 From these results it appears that among the 
 most popular subjects are: — 
 
 1. Enghsh, 
 
 2. History, 
 
 3. Bookkeeping, 
 
 4. Drawing, 
 
 5. Stenography, 
 
 6. French, 
 
 7. Latin, 
 
 8. Typewriting, 
 
 9. Algebra, 
 10. Botany. 
 
 Do you beheve in the practice of allowing pu- 
 pils to come only to their recitations, and to do 
 their studying mainly at home ? Although 
 these privileges are allowed in some schools, I 
 have grave doubts about the wisdom of extend- 
 ing them to all. I am old-fashioned enough to 
 believe in the educational value of coming to 
 school regularly and promptly at the same hour 
 every morning. The opening exercises, too, if 
 properly conducted, must be of some value, al- 
 though the perfunctory manner some teachers 
 
204 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 display when they read the Scriptures, would 
 seem to indicate that whatever faith in the value 
 of the exercise others had, they personally had 
 none. It seems to me also that the school build- 
 ing ought to be the best place for the average 
 student to do a considerable portion of his study- 
 ing. With its reasonable rules and regulations, 
 its freedom from interruption, its reference 
 books, maps, and apparatus, with its teachers 
 ready to extend proper help, the school would 
 seem to offer large advantages over the homes 
 of very many of the pupils. In connection 
 with this subject which is more closely con- 
 nected with that of electives than it would at 
 first sight appear to be, I wish to emphasize the 
 importance of the reference library. As you 
 all know, an important part of the value of cer- 
 tain subjects depends on the use of suitable ref- 
 erence books and collateral reading. With the 
 introduction of additional subjects this necessity 
 increases. Very fortunately a happy solution of 
 this problem may be found in every city possess- 
 ing a good public library. At the Brighton 
 High School, our reference library is practically 
 a sub-station of the great Boston public library. 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 205 
 
 Books of reference and for supplementary read- 
 ing are delivered at the school building at suit- 
 able intervals and freely used under proper re- 
 strictions by pupils and teachers. This reference 
 library is under the highly efficient supervision 
 of one of my assistants v^ho appoints and trains 
 pupil librarians and manages the library v^ith 
 complete success. The spirit of courtesy and 
 accommodation manifested by the authorities of 
 the Boston Public Library give one an insight 
 into the causes that have made that famous 
 library so admirably useful. 
 
 To continue the questions: If you believe so 
 thoroughly in electives, why do you have any 
 required work whatever ? In other words un- 
 der a system of educational free trade, why in- 
 sist on certain protected industries ? Are not 
 the educational industries beyond their softly 
 cradled infancy to such an extent, that they can 
 now stand alone on their own feet and their own 
 merits ? In reply to this perfectly natural 
 question I must quote from our Boston course 
 of study and from the Revised Statutes of the 
 State of Massachusetts : 
 
206 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 PHYSICAL TRAINING 
 
 Physical training is regularly given at school 
 by means of gymnastics and military drill; and 
 no class or pupil, during the first three years of 
 the course, is allowed, without good reason, to 
 omit these physical exercises. Moreover, teach- 
 ers will guard the health of their pupils, or bet- 
 ter, will instruct them how to observe the laws 
 of life and health. Sound advice with regard 
 to diet, ventilation, exercise, rest, dress, and 
 regular hours will be given; and the require- 
 ments of the following law of this state will be 
 observed: " Physiology and Hygiene, which, in 
 both divisions of the subject, shall include special 
 instruction as to the effects of alcoholic drinks, 
 stimulants, and narcotics on the human system, 
 shall be taught as a regular branch of study to 
 all pupils in all schools supported wholly or in 
 part by public money, except special schools 
 maintained solely for instruction in particular 
 branches." 
 
 Probably many of you have observed that it 
 often happens that pupils, who need physical 
 training most, are least inclined to take a proper 
 amount of it. Some educational problems are 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 207 
 
 like certain algebraic problems that admit of 
 several answers. Only sometimes the problem 
 has to be reconstructed to make the answer hold 
 good. Other educational problems admit, as a 
 rule, but one answer. One of these problems is 
 that of physical exercise. Unless there is good 
 evidence that a pupil in consequence of some 
 pecuharity or weakness will be injured by physi- 
 cal exercise, it appears to be generally admitted 
 that all pupils should take some form of it. But 
 when you get something generally acknowl- 
 edged in Boston, you must look out for a storm 
 centre. Even in the case under consideration, 
 although the value of physical exercise is very 
 generally acknowledged, materials for discussion 
 still remain in the form, the extent, and the 
 methods of the exercise. There is a well-rooted 
 and growing belief that physical exercise that is 
 devoid of real interest to the participant can 
 have very slight value. Consequently, there is 
 an increasing tendency towards introducing 
 really interesting games. 
 
 With regard to the instruction in hygiene, 
 you will observe that the letter of the law leaves 
 us no option in the matter, although I strongly 
 
208 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 suspect that local option is very commonly 
 adopted in this matter by the high schools of 
 Massachusetts. The required work in music, is 
 not rigidly compulsory, and other work involv- 
 ing an equal amount of time may be substituted 
 for it. 
 
 Do pupils by the elective system get so good 
 an " all-round " secondary education as they 
 do under the compulsory plan ? That question 
 has an extremely plausible sound, and so pre- 
 possessing an appearance, that it looks danger- 
 ous, but what does it really imply ? It implies 
 that some persons used to know or still know 
 at the present time which studies are necessary 
 to secure for most students an " all-round " 
 education. Now if this impression be true, it is 
 a matter of the highest educational importance 
 to find out who those persons are or were; 
 whether they lived in former ages or are living 
 now, and, above all, which the necessary sub- 
 jects are. The earnest seeker after truth finds 
 on careful investigation that those who are gen- 
 erally acknowledged to be the educational ex- 
 perts of the world at different stages of its prog- 
 ress have utterly failed to manifest that harmony 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 209 
 
 of opinions on which a rigidly compulsory course 
 of study would naturally be based. For many 
 years Greek, Latin, and mathematics, were su- 
 preme. For many years, too, theology was given 
 a prominent place. It was a long time before 
 science, modern languages, and art, could get 
 their pressing claims acknowledged. Business 
 studies, sociology, physical exercise, domestic 
 science, and other subjects, have been still longer 
 in obtaining proper recognition. Perhaps all 
 the experts of bygone days and of the present 
 are both right and wrong. Perhaps each age 
 needs its own curriculum, and possibly that of 
 the future will be very different from that of the 
 past and of the present. So be it. I for one 
 desire to welcome every study that can advance 
 the wisdom and the highest interests of any 
 considerable number of pupils. Put each sub- 
 ject on its own merits. Even though in the 
 opinion of some, certain subjects even as Latin 
 and Greek in the opinion of that eminent experi- 
 menter. Doctor G. Stanley Hall, are as worthless 
 as the human race after the fall of Adam. It 
 must be remembered that the human race, 
 though totally depraved, according to the old 
 
210 EDUCATIONAL BROTH 
 
 theology, was still deemed worthy of redemp- 
 tion. Just so with these numerous subjects of 
 the elective plan, no matter what this specialist 
 or that intellectual bigot may say against this, 
 that or the other subject, the logic of events, the 
 needs of the age, the efficiency of the teacher, 
 will tend to redeem studies that to some have 
 seemed unnecessary, unfruitful, or even injuri- 
 ous. ' ' What is the use, ' ' said a good doctor 
 of divinity to me not long ago, '' of teaching 
 typewriting in the High School, when any intel- 
 ligent person can learn all there is to the art in 
 thirty-five minutes .^ " 
 
 " What is the use," I might have replied " of 
 teaching logic in colleges and divinity schools, if 
 doctors of divinity are going to ' beg the ques- 
 tion ' at that rate ? " I have in mind a highly 
 accomplished teacher, known by reputation, at 
 least, far and wide, who appears to be utterly 
 and sublimely unconscious of all subjects ex- 
 cept her own and those kindred to them. If the 
 heavens fall, justice and more than justice must 
 be done her lessons, while the unrecognized 
 branches must get studied as they may, or may 
 even wither. Let me utter a solemn warning 
 
HIGH SCHOOL ELECTIVES 211 
 
 against such intellectual prejudice as that. Our 
 ancestors came to this country to secure liberty 
 of conscience. It is the duty and the privilege 
 of us, their descendants, to maintain and increase 
 our heritage of intellectual liberty. 
 
 Mr. President, Ladies, and Gentlemen, I have 
 addressed these remarks to your professional 
 skill, your ability, and your sense of justice. For 
 five pleasant years New Jersey was my home, 
 and perhaps this fact together with the memories 
 of the great kindness of my New Jersey friends, 
 had something to do with my coming here to- 
 day. I wish in closing to thank you for your 
 very courteous attention, and to extend to you 
 my best wishes for continued success in your 
 great work. ^^^^TTTa'^ ^ .. 
 
 or THE 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 ^^ 
 
UNIVEKSITY OF CALIFOENIA LIBRARY, 
 BERKELEY 
 
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 Books not returned on time are subject to a fine of 
 50c per volume after the third day overdue, increasing 
 to $1.00 per volume after the sixth day. Books not in 
 demand may be renewed if application is made before 
 expiration of loan period. 
 
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