To enter into a thorough explanation of the uses to which such lessons as these may be applied would make a volume of itself, which at present I have no time to write[A]; but it may be necessary, for the sake of teachers generally, to shew the uses to which a few of them may be applied, and leave it to their own ingenuity to go on is a similar manner with the great variety of lessons we have of this description, and which infants are quite competent to learn. Take the European costumes as an example. When the children are thoroughly acquainted with each of the representations, and can name them themselves, or if too young to name them, can point them out if they are named by the teacher, they may then be told that the Englishman is born in a country called England, and that London is the capital, and that capital means the greatest town or city. Care must be taken that every thing is thoroughly explained, and that the pupils understand the meaning of the terms used. You then windup this much by telling the pupils that Englishman means the man, England the country, and London the chief city; that England is the country they live in, if you are teaching English children. That Frenchman means a man that lives in a country called France, which is separated from England by a part of the sea called the English channel; that Paris is the chief town or capital. The teacher may here mention some remarkable events connected with the history of France, and tell the children that France and England have been often fighting against each other, but that they are now at peace, and that we should be as kind and good to Frenchmen as to any other men, because God likes to see all men live friendly with each other. The children are then told that Russian means a man living and born in Russia; that Russia is a country where there is much ice and snow, and which is very cold; that Petersburgh is the chief town, and that the people of Russia drive over the ice and snow in sledges, which are carriages without wheels. That Swiss means an inhabitant of a country named Switzerland, which is almost in the centre of Europe, and has no sea near it; that it is a very pretty country, full of beautiful lakes and mountains; that a lake is a very great pond of water, and that mountains are very high rocky places, and that the tops of the mountains in Switzerland are always covered with snow; that the Swiss people are very brave, and fought very hard for their freedom, that is, that no other people should be masters over them; that the capital or chief town of Switzerland is Berne. When the teacher comes to the Italian, he will say that he is an inhabitant of a country called Italy, which is a very beautiful place; that Rome is the capital, and was once the greatest city in the world. In speaking of the Scotchman, the teacher may tell the children that Scotland is not separated from England by any sea, but the three countries called England, Scotland, and Wales, all form one island, which is entirely surrounded by the sea; that the people who live in the north, and cold parts of Scotland, are called Highlanders, and are very brave and hardy; that Edinburgh is the capital. When the Welchman is under the children's notice, the teacher will tell them that he lives in a pretty country called Wales, which is joined to England, that is, no sea divides them, that the chief town is London, although London is in England and not Wales, because Wales has been governed by the same king as England for many hundred years, and the eldest son of the King of England is called Prince of Wales. When the teacher points out the Irishman, he may tell his class that he lives in an island near England, separated or divided from it by a part of the sea called the Irish Channel; that Dublin is the chief city, and that Ireland is governed by the same queen as England is. Speaking of the German, he may say that he lives in a country of which the chief town is Vienna. He may tell the children that the Turk lives in a country called Turkey; that it is a very warm place, and its chief town is Constantinople; that the Norwegian lives in a cold country called Norway, whose chief town is Christiana; that the Spaniard lives in a country called Spain, the chief town of which is Madrid; that many of the oranges we eat come from Spain; that the Prussian lives in a country called Prussia, the chief town of which is Berlin; that the Icelander lives in a very cold place, called Iceland, which is an island; that it is a place surrounded by water on every side; that there is a great mountain in Iceland which is called a burning mountain, because flames of fire often come out from the top of it. That the Dutchman lives in a country called Holland; that the people of that country are remarkable for being very clean, and that most of the dolls which little English girls play with, are made by children in Holland; that Amsterdam is the chief town or capital. The children are told that the Dane lives in a country called Denmark. The teacher may state that many hundred years back the Danes conquered England, but that a brave English king, called Alfred, drove them all away again; that Copenhagen is the capital or chief town; that the Swede lives in a country called Sweden, and that Stockholm is the chief town; that the Portuguese live in a country called Portugal, the capital of which is Lisbon; that the Corsican lives in an island called Corsica, the capital of which is Bastia; that the Saxon lives in a country called Saxony, the chief town of which is Dresden. In telling the children that the Pole lives in a country called Poland, the chief town of which was Warsaw, the teacher should explain to them that Poland has been conquered by the Russians, and taken from the Poles, and shew how unjust this was of the Russians, and also how the Poles fought very bravely to defend their country, but that the Russians being stronger, and having larger armies, they were at last overcome.

[Footnote A: I have since written a volume for juvenile schools; where the principles are carried out. This can be had of the publisher.]

Having in this manner told the children as simply as possible, a little about each country, the teacher should then tell the principal rivers; thus: The principal rivers of England are, the Thames, the Severn, the Trent, the Mersey. London, the capital of England, is is built on the banks of the River Thames; and ships from all parts of the world sail up this river, to bring us various things which we could not get without sending to other countries for them; such as tea and coffee and sugar. The principal rivers of France are, the Seine and the Rhone; the Seine is the river on which the capital of France, Paris, is built. The principal rivers of Russia are, the Wolga, the Don, the Nieper, the Dwina, and the Vistula. The Wolga is a very great river, being three thousand miles long. The Rhine, which is one of the largest rivers in Europe, rises in Switzerland. The principal rivers of Italy are, the Po, the Arno, and the Tiber; the chief town of Italy, Rome, is built on the banks of the Tiber. Rome was once the greatest city in the world. The principal rivers of Germany are, the Danube, the Rhine, and the Elbe; of Scotland, the Clyde and Tweed; of Ireland, the Shannon, Barrow, Boyne, Suire, and Nore. The capital of Ireland, Dublin, is built on a small river called the Liffey. The principal rivers of Turkey are, the Danube and the Don; of Spain, the Guidalquiver; of Portugal, the Tagus, on which the chief town, Lisbon, is built; and of Saxony, the Iser. In the same manner the children may receive instruction fitted for their tender understanding, concerning the other parts of the globe, always keeping in mind that, unless they are made to comprehend thoroughly what is given to them, it is quite useless to attempt to give them the lessons at all. When giving the lessons on African costumes, the teacher should explain in the simplest manner, that the Egyptian Bey is the chief governor of a country in Africa called Egypt; that Africa is one of the four great parts into which our earth is divided; that the Nile is a great river flowing through Egypt, which, at certain times of the year, overflows its banks, and that this fertilizes the ground, and causes the corn to grow, which, but for this, would be withered with the sun, because but very little rain ever falls in Egypt; that the cause of the Nile overflowing its banks is, the great rains which fall in the countries from whence the Nile flows: that the Ashantee is an inhabitant of another country of Africa, where the people are very ignorant, and do not know as much as the little children of an infant school: that the Algerine lives in a part of Africa called Algiers: the people there are very wicked and cruel, and used at one time to take the ships of every other country that they met on the seas, and make slaves of the people they found in them; but they cannot do so now, because the French have conquered them, and taken all their ships from them: that the Bedouin Arabs are people who rove about from place to place, amongst the great sandy deserts of Africa, and rob travellers who are passing over those deserts: the teacher should explain that these deserts are very large places, covered with sand, and the sun is so hot that no tree or shrub, or grass, will grow there, and there is no water to be had, so that travellers carry water in leathern bottles on the backs of camels; that camels are large animals, much larger than a horse, which are very useful in those warm countries, because they can carry very heavy loads on their backs, and go a great time without water. The Copts woman should be pointed out to the children, and notice should be taken of the large veil before her face. The Mameluke should be pointed out as belonging to a fierce tribe of soldiers. When speaking of the natives of Morocco, it should be mentioned that the Moors at one time had possession of Spain; that the Maltese is a native of an island called Malta; that Cairo (a picture of a native of which is in the lesson) is the chief city of Egypt. That the Bosjesman, native of Coronna, native of Namacqua, Caffree, native of Tamaka and of Ebo, belong to the savage nations of Africa, of which but little is known, who are of a black colour, and go with very little clothes on them, because the country is so warm.

From the lesson supposed to be at No. 12 lesson-post, a good deal of information may be given. The teacher may be thus supposed to address the children, pointing to each picture, as he describes it.

Little children, this is a picture of negroes: they live in Africa, but are often stolen from their own country to be made slaves of. Africa is a very hot part of the world, and the poor negroes are black, and have short black woolly hair, something like the hair on a black sheep; but we must not laugh at them for this; it was God who made them as well as he made you; and those poor negroes are very mild and quiet people, and like to amuse themselves by singing and dancing. You see the negroes in this picture; they are carrying a black lady in a kind of basket, called a palanquin: a pole goes through this, and they hold it on their shoulders. The next picture represents some of the people who live in a country called Otaheite; they are strong, stout people, and very mild and friendly. They are not black like the negroes; their complexion is of a pale brown, with black eyes and very handsome white teeth. The next picture represents Scotch Highlanders: they live in the cold parts of Scotland; they are very strong and healthy, and able to bear cold and hanger very well. They are fond of playing on the bagpipes. This is a picture of American Indians: they live in America, and are of a reddish colour; they build their huts in the thickest forests, as far from the white men as they can. The next is a picture of East Indians: their country is in the warmest part of Asia, and from it comes a great many beautiful things, such as ladies wear for shawls and dresses; there are a great many people in the East Indies, and twenty-five millions are subject to the Queen of England.

The Laplanders live in a very cold country, called Lapland, in which the ground is covered with snow all the year round; they are very happy notwithstanding, for God gives every people means to be happy, if they are good and love him; they have nice little huts to live in, and sledges to travel with, which are drawn by rein-deer—we will read about the rein-deer by and by. The Laplanders are kind to strangers, and are very brave, although they are the smallest people in the world.

This is a picture of Greeks: they were once a very great and powerful people, but afterwards the Turks conquered them; they have now, however, a king of their own.

The Persians, of whom this is a picture, live in a country of Asia called Persia, from whence the most beautiful silks, carpets, leather, gold and silver lace, and pearls, are brought. The Persian women are very handsome, and wear the most beautiful clothes of any women in the world—we should not like them the better for this, for handsome faces and fine clothes will not make people good or happy, unless they try to be so themselves.

This is a picture of the natives of the Sandwich islands: they are a very friendly people, and live together without fighting or quarrelling; they make mats and canoes, and the women make cloth.

The Turks (this is a picture of some of them) are very fine handsome people; they wear very long beards; and they shave their heads and wear white turbans instead of hair; they are very fond of drinking coffee and smoking from great long pipes.

The English are represented in this picture: you are English children—England is a very great country, and the Queen of England has many ships in every part of the world; and a great many places, many thousand miles away, belong to England.

This picture represents the Swiss: they are a very brave, honest, good people, and their country is very beautiful; a great many clocks and watches are made in Switzerland.

This is a picture of the Chinese: they wear very curious dresses; and the ladies in China squeeze their feet very much, in order to make them small, which they think a great beauty. Tea comes from China, and is the leaf of a small plant.

This picture represents the Dutch: they are a very clean and industrious people, and the little children there are never idle.

The last picture represents the Tartars: they live in Asia, and wander about without any fixed dwelling, not staying in one place longer than while it gives them food for themselves and their horses, of which they have a great many. Horses are wild in Tartary.

The reader will at once perceive what a feast is afforded to the young mind in these object lessons; the objects are accurately copied from nature, and the costumes from the best sources, so that the infant mind is expanded by viewing a proper representation of the real thing through the fit organ, the eye. It is astonishing what infants will learn through the sense of seeing, and it is remarkable that our systems of education for young and old, should not have been founded on a knowledge of the high importance of this medium for communication and information; the youngest child may learn to distinguish one object from another to an endless variety, and I could produce children who could point me out a thousand objects, if I called them by their proper names, who perhaps could not themselves name twenty of the objects out of the thousand; by this it will be seen we first give them the object, and language itself follows in due course.

Whenever a clear idea or notion is given to the mind by a picture or object, it is then easy to impart the information that is naturally connected with it; and this will then be most strongly retained, according to the law of association, which is one of the most important principles to be kept in view in imparting instruction to both young and old. Lead on FROM something known TO something unknown, is a golden rule,—a most valuable axiom that all teachers should ever bear constantly in mind. What important lessons may be given in a field, wood, or forest! How much better is the thing itself for a lesson, than the representation of it! And what a class of teachers are wanted for this work? Yet sure I am that in due time the Great God will raise such up from amongst his people, to the glory of His name, and the benefit of succeeding generations. May greater minds than the humble writer of this, be called to work in this blessed vineyard for the good of the species, and for the diminution of crime; and, oh! may they be able to dive into the recesses of the wonderful works of God, to grapple with the difficulties therein found, and bring to light some of the hidden mysteries, for the instruction of mankind!

When this book was first written, thirty-two years ago, some of the ideas were universally scouted, yet I have lived to see the day that the very men who sneered at the views first made known in this book, adopt precisely the same principles, and even go much further that I ever intended, or even thought suitable for infant minds, and quietly puff this off as a new discovery in infant training; so much the better, portions of the public will hear them, and they would not listen to me; and if the end is answered, it is of little consequence through what means that end is gained. It is satisfactory to know that the principles first developed in the infant plan are found equally applicable to older children, and I have had the pleasure of seeing those principles carried out in many schools throughout the country, too numerous to mention individually.

It will be seen from what has been said that the plan of the children marching from one post to the other, is the very thing for infants, as exercising and developing their locomotive powers, a thing exceedingly desirable for young children. The great error of the old infant system, or in other words, the dame-school plan, was the keeping the pupils rivetted to their seats; here they are marching from one place to another, and get ting food for every sense. Take as another example the picture of the trades; the monitor says to his little pupils as they come up. What does a fishmonger sell, the answer is, fishes of many sorts, such as salmon, cod, herring, and mackerel. Q. What does a mason do? A. Cut stones into their proper shapes, polish some sorts, and cut ornaments on others. Q. What does a hatter sell? A. Hats, for men, women, and little children. Q. What does a cooper do? A. Mend casks and make them. Q. What does a butcher mean? A. One that sells beef, mutton, pork, &c. Q. What do they call butchers in Scotland? A. Fleshers. Q. What does a blacksmith mean? A. One that makes different things from iron, and sometimes shoes horses. Q. What does a fruiterer mean? A. A person that sells all sorts of fruits, such as apples, pears, plums, cherries, gooseberries, strawberries, &c. Q. What does a distiller mean? A. A man that makes rum, brandy, whiskey, and other liquors. Q. What does a grocer mean? A. A man that sells tea, coffee, sugar, spices, and many other things. Q. What does a carpenter mean? A. A man that cuts up wood, makes benches; it was a carpenter made our gallery. Q. What does a turner mean? A. A man who makes snuff-boxes, bed-posts; It was a turner who made the balls on our arithmeticon. Q. What does a tallow-chandler mean? A. A man that buys and sells candles of different sorts. Q. What does milliner mean? A. A person that makes ladies' caps, tippets, and things for little children. Q. What does a dyer mean? A. A man that dyes cloths of different colours. Q. What does a druggist mean? A. One that sells drugs of different kinds, such as nutgalls, alum, bark, &c. Q. What does wheelwright mean? A. A man that makes carts, wheelbarrows, &c. Q. What does a shoe-maker do? A. Makes shoes for men and women and little boys and girls. Q. What does a printer do? A. Print lessons for little children to read; newspapers and books for men to read. Q. What does a coach-maker make? A. Coaches, gigs, omnibuses, cabs, and things of that sort. Q. What does a bookseller do? A. Sells books of different sorts, pictures, paper, sealing-wax, &c. Q. What does a bricklayer do? A. Builds walls, the brick part of houses, &c. Q. What does a linen-draper do? A. Sells linen to make shirts, printed calico to make frocks, and many other things of that kind. Q. What does a cabinet-maker do? A. Makes tables, chairs, and presses, and other things to furnish houses with. Q. What does a brewer do? A. Makes ale and porter. Q. What does a painter mean? A. One who paints insides of houses, doors, window shutters, and such things. Q. What does a bookbinder do? A. Puts covers on books.

These lessons being all supplied by me, more explanation in this place may be unnecessary, but as a further guide to teachers of infant schools, I subjoin a synopsis of a week's course of instruction which has been adopted in many schools.

* * * * *

SYNOPSIS OF A WEEK'S INSTRUCTION.

TIME.—Mornings. School to assemble at nine o'clock, and to leave at twelve.

Afternoons. School to assemble at two o'clock, and to leave at four in winter, and five in summer.

MONDAY.

Morning. When assembled, to offer the appointed prayer, after which a hymn is to be sung; then slates and pencils are to be delivered to the children; after which they are to proceed with their letters and spelling. At half-past ten o'clock to play, and at eleven o'clock to assemble in the gallery, and repeat the picture lessons on natural history after the monitor in the rostrum.

Afternoon. Begin with prayer and hymn as in the morning; picture lessons on Scripture history to be repeated from the lesson-post, and to be questioned on them afterwards in the gallery.

TUESDAY.

Morning. Usual prayer and hymn. Letters and spelling from the lesson-posts. Play. Gallery; repeat the addition and subtraction tables.

Afternoon. Prayer and hymn. Multiplication table; the monitor asking the question, and the children answering. Reading lessons. Play. Gallery; numeration and spelling with brass figures and letters.

WEDNESDAY.

Morning. Prayer and hymn. Letters and spelling. Play. Gallery; master to teach geometrical figures and musical characters.

Afternoon. Prayer and hymn. Practice pence and shilling tables. Play. Gallery; master to give lessons on arithmetic. Extempore teaching on men and things, &c. &c.

THURSDAY.

Morning. Prayer and hymn. Letters and spelling. Division, weights, measures, and time, from the rostrum. Play. Gallery; same lessons as Monday morning.

Afternoon. Prayer and hymn. From the lesson-posts epitome of geometry and natural history. Gallery; brass letters and figures. Extempore teaching on men and things, taking care that all such teaching shall be illustrated by substances.

FRIDAY.

Morning. Prayer and hymn. Letters and spelling. Tables in arithmetic, at the master's discretion. Play. Gallery; lessons on geography, maps, globes, &c.

Afternoon. Prayer and hymn. Scripture pictures on the lesson-posts, and questions on them in the gallery.

SATURDAY.

Morning. Prayer and hymn. Letters and spelling. Tables of arithmetic from the rostrum. Play. Gallery; lessons on the transposition frame, and on geometry from the brass instrument. Religious instruction should have a prominent part in the business of every day, and especially so every Saturday morning.

N.B. If visitors wish any particular lessons to be gone through, and the children appear disposed, the master is not bound to adhere to the above rules, neither at any other time, if the children appear particularly disinclined.

* * * * *

There are a few other matters, on which, before concluding this chapter, I must speak, as claiming the attention of infant school conductors. First attend to

CLEANLINESS.

Although we have referred to this before, yet, as it is of considerable importance not only to the children but to those around them, it may not be amiss to take up a little more of the reader's time, and to state the different plans that have been devised, in order to make the children as clean as possible. In one case, a trough was erected, and a pipe provided to convey the water into it; but before it had been up a month, it was found, that instead of answering the end intended, it had quite a contrary effect; for the children dabbled in the trough, and made themselves ten times worse than they were, by wetting themselves from head to foot; besides which, it frequently caused them to take cold, of which the parents complained. Some took their children away without notice; others came and gave the master what they called "a good set down." It was, therefore, thought necessary to forbid the children washing themselves, and to wash all that came dirty. But it was soon found that the dirty children increased so fast, that it required one person's time to attend to them; besides which, it had another bad effect, it encouraged the parents in laziness; and they told me, when I complained of their sending the children to school dirty, "That indeed they had no time to wash their children; there was a trough in the school for that purpose, and the persons who had charge of the school were paid for it, and ought to do it." In consequence of this, the trough was taken away, and it was represented to the parents, that it was their duty to keep their children clean; that unless they did so, they would be sent home to be washed; and if they persisted in sending them without being washed, there would be no alternative left but to dismiss them from the school altogether. This offended some of the parents, and they took their children out of the school, but many afterwards petitioned to have them readmitted. I mention this merely to prevent others, who may be concerned in the establishment of infant schools, from incurring an unnecessary expense, and to shew that the parents will value the school equally as well if you make them wash their children, as if you did it for them.

The plan that we have acted upon to enforce cleanliness, is as follows: As soon as the children are assembled in the school, the monitors cause them to hold out their hands, with their heads up; they then inspect their hands and their faces, and all those who are dirty are desired to stand out, to be examined by the master, who will easily perceive whether they have been washed that morning; if not, they are sent home to be washed, and if the mother has any sense of propriety, she will take care that it shall not often occur. But it may be found, that some have been washed, and been playing with the dirt, when coming to school, which some children are very apt to do; in this case they have a pat on the hand, which generally cures them. There is much trouble at first, to keep the children quite clean; some of their parents are habitually dirty, and in such cases the children will be like them; these will, therefore, require more trouble than others, but they will soon acquire cleanly habits, and, with proper management, become as cleanly as any of the other children. As soon as a child is taken into the school the monitor shows him a certain place, and explains to him, that when he wants to go into the yard, he is to ask him, and he will accompany him there. Of course there are separate accommodations for each sex, and such prudential arrangements made as the case requires, but which it is unnecessary further to particularize.[A]

[Footnote A: This is a subject of the highest importance in moral training, and deserve the serious attention of committees as well as teachers: inattention to these matters, may demoralize every child that enters the school. In many schools throughout the country I have seen great want of attention to this subject, the seats were too high, the circular holes too large, causing fear on the part of the infants, and also bad habits. The seats should be the same height as the seats in the school—six inches, and nine inches high, the diameter of the holes seven inches and nine inches—the teachers should constantly visit these places, inculcate habits of delicacy and cleanliness. Such habits formed in childhood are never forgotten. Superfine dressy teachers, will be too proud, and too high, to attend to these things—but the judicious mother or matron will at once see their importance and act accordingly—"as the twig is bent the tree's inclined."]

2. NEVER FRIGHTEN CHILDREN.

It is common for many persons to threaten to put children into the black hole, or to call the sweep to take them away in his bag, when they do not behave as they ought; but the ill effects of this mode of proceeding may be perceived from the following fact. I knew a child, who had been to one of those schools where the children of mechanics are usually sent, called dames' schools, which was kept by an elderly woman, who, it seems, had put this child into the coal-hole, and told him, that unless he was a good boy, the black man would come and take him away; this so frightened the child, that he fell into a violent fit, and never afterwards could bear the sight of this woman. On the mother getting the child admitted into our school, she desired me to be very gentle with him, relating to me all the above story, except that the child had had a fit. About a fortnight after the admission of the child, he came running one day into the school, exclaiming, "I'll be a good boy, master! master! I'll be a good boy." As soon as he caught sight of me, he clung round, and grasped me with such violence, that I really thought the child was mad; in a few minutes after this he went into strong convulsions, and was such a dreadful spectacle, that I thought the child would die in my arms. In this state he remained for about twenty minutes, and I fully expected he would be carried out of the school a corpse. I sent for the mother, but on her arrival I perceived she was less alarmed than myself; she immediately said, the child was in a fit, and that I had frightened him into it. I told her that she was mistaken; that the child had only just entered the school, and I was ignorant of the cause of his fright; but several of my little scholars soon set the matter to rest, by stating the particulars of the fright, which they observed when coming to school. It seems that a man was in the street, who sweeps chimneys with a machine, and just as the little fellow passed him, he called out, "Sweep;" this so alarmed the child, that he thought the man was going to take him, and was affected by his fears in the way I have stated. The child, however, getting better, and the mother hearing what the children said, begged my pardon for having accused me wrongfully, and then told me the whole particulars of his first fright and the woman and the coal-hole. I had the greatest difficulty imaginable to persuade him, that a sweep was a human being, and that he loved little children as much as other persons. After some time, the child got somewhat the better of his fears, but not wholly so. He had but one fit afterwards. This shews how improper it is to confine children by themselves, or to threaten them in the manner described. Many persons continue nervous all their lives through such treatment, and are so materially injured, that they are frightened at their own shadow.

It is also productive of much mischief to talk of mysteries, ghosts, and hobgoblins, before children, which many persons are too apt to do. Some deal so much in the marvellous, that I really believe they frighten many children out of their senses. I recollect, when I was a child, hearing such stories, till I have actually been afraid to look behind me. How many persons are frightened at such a little creature as a mouse, because the nature of that little creature has not been explained to them in their infancy. Indeed, children should have all things shewn them, if possible, that they are likely to meet with: and above all, it should be impressed upon their minds, that if they meet with no injury from the living, it is most certain the dead will never hurt them, and that he who fears God, need have no other fear. It is also common with many persons, to put a disobedient child into a room by itself. I cannot approve of this method, as the child is frequently frightened into quietness without improving his temper in the least; if it be day time it is not so bad, but if it be dark, the consequences are often serious, and materially injure the constitution of the child. The more I reflect upon this subject, the more do I see its impropriety. I would rather use the rod, in moderation, and mercy. I am sure it is better for the disobedient and unruly child, and more according to the dealings of the Creator with us all. I can truly say my punishments, which have not been slight, have done me good. As children we cannot see these things; as men and thinkers, we can. Yea! and kiss the rod.

3. GUARD AGAINST FORGETFULNESS.

The circumstance I am about to mention, shews how necessary it is to teach by example as well as precept. Many of the children were in the habit of bringing marbles, tops, whistles, and other toys, to the school, which often caused much disturbance; for they would play with them instead of attending to their lessons, and I found it necessary to forbid the children from bringing anything of the kind. After giving notice, therefore, two or three times in the school, I told them that if any of them brought such things, they would be taken away from them. In consequence of this, several things fell into my hands, which I did not always think of returning, and, among other things, a whistle belonging to a little boy. The child asked me for it as he was going home, but having several visitors at the time, put him off, telling him not to plague me, and he went home. I had forgotten the circumstance altogether, but it appears the child had not; for some time after, while I was lecturing the children upon the necessity of telling truth, and on the wickedness of stealing, the little fellow approached me, and said, "Please, sir, you stole my whistle." "Stole your whistle!" said I; "did I not give it you again?" "No, teacher, I asked you for it, and you would not give it to me." I stood self-convicted, being accused in the middle of my lecture, before all the children, and really at a loss to know what excuse to make, for I had mislaid the whistle, and could not return it to the child. I immediately gave the child a halfpenny, and said all I could to persuade the children that it was not my intention to keep it.

However, I am satisfied that this trifling mistake of mine did more harm than I was able to repair during some time; for if we wish to teach children to be honest, we should never take anything from them without returning it again. Indeed, persons having charge of children can never be too cautious, and should not, on any account whatever, break a promise; for experience has taught me that most children have good memories, and if you once promise a thing and do not perform it, they will pay very little attention to what you say afterwards.

4. OBSERVE PUNCTUALITY.

A little girl, whose mother was dead, was often absent from school. She was never at a loss for excuses, but from their frequency I was at last induced to suspect their truth. None of the children knew where she resided; so I was obliged to send the eldest boy in the school home with her, to ascertain whether or not her stories were true. I gave the boy positive directions to make haste back; but, much to my surprise, I saw no more of him for six hours. When he returned, he told me that the little girl refused to shew him where she lived; and had taken him so far, that he at last determined to leave her, but could not find his way back sooner. In the evening I went myself, according to the direction I had entered in the admission-book, but found that the family were removed, and the persons in the house could not tell me where they had gone to reside. I saw nothing of the child for the five following days, when a woman who had the care of her and her little brother in arms, came to inquire the reason why the girl came home at such irregular hours, stating, that sometimes she came home at half-past eleven, at other times not till two, and sometimes at three in the afternoon: in short, often an hour after school was over. I told her that the child was frequently absent, and that it was five days since I had seen her. The woman appeared quite surprised, and told me, that she had always sent the child to school at the regular time; that when she came home before the usual hour, she said her governess had sent all the children home a little sooner; and if she came home after the time, then she said that there had been some ladies visiting the school, and that the children had been kept for their inspection.

Here I must acknowledge, that I have frequently detained children a little while after school-hours, when we have had visitors, but since it furnishes the children with an excuse for going home late, I think it would be better to discontinue the practice; and would hint to those ladies and gentlemen who feel inclined to visit such schools, that they should come between the hours of nine and twelve in the forenoon, or two and four in the afternoon. I have only to observe, that the child I have been speaking of came to the school very regularly afterwards.

There is another subject too important to be passed without notice; I mean the punctual attendance of the pupils. If the teachers are firm, and determined, to secure this, it can be done. In Ireland, where the value of time and punctuality is least understood, the thing was accomplished,—whilst no better lesson can be given to those who have to work for their daily bread, than punctuality. If a child cannot attend school at nine, how can it attend work at six in the morning? Be firm, and the object is gained.

5. BE STRICTLY ACCURATE IN YOUR EXPRESSIONS.

One day when the children were assembled in the gallery, having none of their usual lessons at hand, I took from my pocket a piece of paper, and promised them that if they would answer me every question I put concerning the paper, I would at last make a paper boat. I proceeded in the following manner: "What is this?" "What colour?" "What is its use?" "How made!" "What made of?" &c. These questions being answered according to their different views, and having folded the paper into a variety of forms, and obtained their ideas upon such forms, I proceeded to fulfil my promise of forming it into the shape of a boat; but the children, seeing me at a loss, exclaimed, "Please, sir, you can't do it;" which proved the fact, as I had forgotten the plan, and was obliged to make the confession. "Then, sir," rejoined one of the boys, "you should not have promised."

In the course of my observations I had frequently enjoined the children to make every possible use of their thinking powers, but it appears I had at the same time forgotten to make use of my own, and consequently had been betrayed into a promise which I was not able to perform.

I remember some other instances:

One of the children happened to kick another. The injured party complained to the person who then had the charge of the school, saying, "Please, sir, this boy kicked me." It being time for the children to leave school, the master waved his hand towards the gate through which the children pass, thoughtlessly saying, at the same time, "Kick away;" meaning that the complainant was to take no more notice of the affair, but go home. The complainant, however, returning to the other child, began kicking him, and received some kicks himself. A friend was present, and seeing two children kicking each other, he very naturally inquired the reason. "Please, sir," replied the children, "master told us!" "Master told you," says the gentleman, "that cannot be; I'll ask him." He accordingly inquired into the truth of the affair, and received for answer, "Certainly not." "Yes," said the child, "you did, sir; did not I tell you just now that a boy kicked me?" "Yes," says the master, "you did." "Then, please sir," says the child, "you told me to go and kick away!" The master immediately recollected that he had said so.

This fact shews how improper it is to say one thing to a child and mean another. These children were under the influence of obedience, and in the light of truth, and being in that light, they could see from no other, and very naturally concluded the master meant what he had said.

One day some visitors requested I would call out a class of the children to be examined. Having done so, I asked the visitors in what they would wish the children to be examined; at the same time stating that they might hear the children examined in natural history, Scriptural history, arithmetic, spelling, geography, or geometry. They choose the latter, and I proceded to examine the children accordingly; beginning with straight lines. Having continued this examination for about half an hour, we proceeded to enter into particulars respecting triangles; and having discoursed on the difference between isosceles triangles and scalene triangles, I observed that an acute isosceles triangle had all its angles acute, and proceeded to observe that a right-angled scalene triangle had all its angles acute. The children immediately began to laugh, for which I was at a loss to account, and told them of the impropriety of laughing at me. One of the children immediately replied, "Please, sir, do you know what we were laughing at?" I replied in the negative. "Then, sir," says the boy, "I will tell you. Please, sir, you have made a blunder." I, thinking I had not, proceeded to defend myself, when the children replied, "Please, sir, you convict yourself." I replied, "How so?" "Why," says the children, "you said a right-angled triangle had one right angle, and that all its angles are acute. If it has one right angle, how can all its angles be acute?" I soon perceived the children were right, and that I was wrong. Here, then, the reader may perceive the fruits of teaching the children to think, inasmuch as it is shewn that children of six years of age and under were able to refute their tutor. If children had been taught to think many years ago, error would have been much more easily detected, and its baneful influence would not have had that effect upon society which at this day unfortunately we are obliged to witness.

At another time I was lecturing the children in the gallery on the subject of cruelty to animals; when one of the little children observed, "Please, sir, my big brother catches the poor flies, and then sticks a pin through them, and makes them draw the pin along the table." This afforded me an excellent opportunity of appealing to their feelings on the enormity of this offence, and, among other things, I observed, that if the poor fly had been gifted with the powers of speech like their own, it probably would have exclaimed, while dead, as follows:—"You naughty child, how can you think of torturing me so? Is there not room in the world for you and me? Did I ever do you any harm? Does it do you any good to put me in such pain? Why do you do it, you are big enough to know better? How would you like a man to run a piece of wire through your body, and make you draw things about? Would you not cry at the pain? Go, then, you wicked boy, and learn to leave off such cruel actions." Having finished, one of the children replied, "How can any thing speak if it is dead?" "Why," said I, "supposing it could speak." "You meant to say, sir," was the rejoinder, "dying instead of dead."

It will, of course be understood that in this case I purposely misused a word, and the children being taught to think, easily detected it.

6. WATCH AGAINST THE ENTRANCE OF DISEASE.

It may, probably, be considered presumption in me, to speak of the diseases of children, as this more properly belongs to the faculty; but let it be observed, that my pretension is not to cure the diseases that children are subject to, but only to prevent those which are infectious from spreading. I have found that children between the ages of two and seven years, are subject to the measles, hooping cough, fever, ophthalmia, ringworm, scald-head, and in very poor neighbourhoods, the itch—and small-pox. This last is very rare, owing to the great encouragement given to vaccination; and were it not for the obstinacy of many of the poor, I believe it would be totally extirpated. During the whole of the time I superintended a school, I heard of only three children dying of it, and those had never been vaccinated. I always made a point of inquiring, on the admission of a child, whether this operation had been performed, and, if not, I strongly recommended that it should be. If parents spoke the truth, I had but few children in the school who had not been vaccinated: this accounts, therefore, for having lost but three children through the small-pox.

The measles, however, I consider a very dangerous disorder, and we lost a great many children by it, besides two of my own. It is preceded by a violent cough, the child's eyes appear watery, and it will also be sick. As soon as these symptoms are perceived, I would immediately send the child home, and desire the parents to keep it there for a few days, in order to ascertain if it have the measles, and if so, it must be prohibited from returning to school until well. This caution is absolutely necessary; as some parents are so careless, that they will send their children when the measles are thick out upon them.

The same may be said with respect to other diseases, for unless the persons who have charge of the school attend to these things, the parents will be glad to get their children out of the way, and will send them, though much afflicted, without considering the ill-effects that may be produced in the school. Whether such conduct in the parents proceeds from ignorance or not, I am not able to say, but this I know, that I have had many parents offer children for admission, with all the diseases I have mentioned, and who manifested no disposition to inform me of it. The number of children who may be sick, from time to time, may be averaged at from twenty to thirty-five, out of two hundred, we have never had less than twenty absent on account of illness, and once or twice we had as many as fifty.

Soon after I first took charge of the establishment, I found that there were five or six children in the school who had the measles; the consequence was, that it contaminated the whole school, and about eight children died, one of my own being of that number. This induced me to be very cautious in future, and I made a point of walking round the school twice every day, in order to inspect the children; and after the adoption of this plan, we did not have the measles in the school.

The hooping-cough is known, of course, by the child hooping; but I consider it the safest plan to send all children home that have any kind of cough; this will cause the mother to come and inquire the reason why the child is sent home; and it can be ascertained from her whether the child has had the hooping-cough or not.

With respect to fever, I generally find the children appear chilly and cold, and not unfrequently they are sick. I do not, however, feel myself competent to describe the early symptoms of this disorder, but the best way to prevent its gaining ground in the school is to send all the children home who appear the least indisposed.

As to the ophthalmia, I can describe the symptoms of that disease, having had it myself, together with the whole of my family. It generally comes in the left eye first, and causes a sensation as if something was in the eye, which pricks and shoots, and produces great pain: the white of the eye will appear red, or what is usually called blood-shot; this, if not speedily attended to, will cause blindness; I have had several children that have been blind with it for several days. In the morning, the patients are not able to unclose their eyes for some time after they are awake. As soon as I observe these appearances, I immediately send the child home; for I have ascertained, beyond a doubt, that the disease is contagious, and if a child be suffered to remain with it in the school, the infection will speedily spread among the children.

As children are frequently apt to burn or scald themselves, I will here insert a method for adoption in such cases. It is very simple, yet infallible; at least, I have never known it to fail. It is no other than the application of common writing ink. One of my own children burnt its hand dreadfully, and was cured by immediately washing it all over with that liquid. Several children burnt their hands against the pipe that was connected with the stove in the school-room, and were cured by the same means. One boy, in particular, took hold of a hot cinder that fell from the fire, and it quite singed his hand; I applied ink to it, and it was cured in a very short time. Let any one, therefore, who may happen to receive a burn, apply ink to it immediately, and he will soon witness the good effects of the application. Thirty-three years' experience has proved to me that stoves in any school are a nuisance: the common fire place is better than heating with hot air, hot water, or stoves of any description that I have yet seen. The grate being low, as at railway stations, is an improvement and answers well. Had theorists seen the white faced dull eyed children that I have seen, where stoves are used, and felt the head aches which I have felt, they would soon banish them from every school.

7. NEVER CORRECT A CHILD IN ANGER.

8. NEVER OVERLOOK A FAULT.

9. IN ALL THINGS SET BEFORE THE CHILDREN AN EXAMPLE WORTHY OF IMITATION.

* * * * *

I should recommend the adoption of the following resolutions of an intelligent and zealous committee, and that a copy of them be sent to each master and mistress.

"That as this infant school is established for the express purpose of carrying into the fullest effect the system of Mr. Wilderspin, which the committee are convinced is practicable and excellent, the master be desired to make himself perfectly acquainted with it, in its physical, mental, and moral bearings, by a study of Mr. Wilderspin's works on the subject, and particularly of the last and most complete edition.

"That the rules as printed be strictly adhered to by the master. That children who are ill, having hooping-cough, ringworm, or other contagious disease, be refused admission until perfectly restored. That the business of the school begin precisely at the time appointed, and that during the shortest days the signals for leaving school be not given till four o'clock precisely.

"That except during the time given, according to the system, to play, the whole be occupied by the mistress as well as the master in the instruction of the children, and that the plan laid down in Mr. Wilderspin's book, be followed as nearly as possible, so that the apparatus already provided may be gradually brought into action, and the children have all the advantages of the system; the master and mistress so dividing their labour that all the children may be occupied.

"That the master and mistress pay the utmost attention to the children learning to read.

"That when a child is absent a week, the master state the cause to the treasurer, to prevent mistakes as to the payments, and that when a child declines attending or is excluded, immediate notice be given to the secretary of the ladies' committee.

"That the master be desired to go on with the business of the school when visitors who are members of the committee are present, and only to pay particular attention to those who may be strangers, and who require information.

"That all applications from the master be made to the committee through the secretary.

"That all orders from the committee to the teachers be conveyed through the same channel."



CHAPTER IX.

GALLERY TEACHING—MORAL AND RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION.

Original intention of the gallery—What lessons are adapted for it—Its misapplication—Selection of teachers—Observations—Gallery lessons an a feather—A spider—A piece of bog-turf—A piece of coal—Observations on the preceding lessons—Scripture lessons in the gallery—The finding of Moses—Christ with the doctors—Moral training—Its neglect in most schools—Should be commenced in infancy—Beneficial effects of real moral culture—Ignorance of teachers—The gallery most useful in moral training—Specimen of a moral lesson—Illustrations of moral culture—Anecdotes—Simpson on moral education—Observations—Hints to teachers.

There is no part of the infant system which has been more misunderstood, than the system of giving lessons in the gallery; and hence I have thought it necessary to devote a larger space to the subject, than I did in the former editions of this work. The gallery was originally intended by me, to give the children such lessons as appealed directly to the senses, either orally or by representative objects: thus the teaching arithmetic by the frame and balls, inasmuch as it appealed to the eye as well as to the understanding, was suitable for a gallery lesson. The same observations hold good with respect to a Scripture picture, or the representation of an animal, a tree, or any object that can be presented to the eye. We have also found it very useful in teaching the catechism, or anything that is to be committed to memory, and this part of our plan has proved so useful and successful, that it has been adopted in many schools for older children of both sexes, I mean in the Normal schools of Glasgow and Edinburgh, the Corporation Schools of Liverpool, and the government Model Schools at Dublin. In the two latter the arrangements, both in the fittings up of the play-grounds, galleries, and school-rooms, were made under my especial inspection, and I have no doubt that the use of the gallery, when it becomes more generally known in large schools, will become universal.

The taught should see the face of the teacher in these lessons, and the teacher should see the face of the taught: it establishes a sympathy between both to the advantage of each. The face is the index to the mind, and at times shews the intention, even without words. Some animals can read this index: the horse, the dog, the elephant, and many of the higher order of animals. Children can always read the countenance of the sincere, the wise, and the good. Yea! mere infants can. Reader! Don't smile! were this the time and place, I could demonstrate these opinions by facts. This is not a book for controversy and metaphysical disquisition; but for use to teachers. When the children and teachers see each other, as in the gallery, the effect is highly beneficial. This may be proved by any teacher. As to the cause for this effect, it would be out of place to argue it here. I therefore simply state it is true. Sympathy is a power destined to be of use in teaching, and hereafter will be better understood.

Many friends to infant education, and casual visitors, having found these erections in infant schools, have concluded that the children should always be sitting on them, which is a fatal error, and deprives the children of that part of the system which legislates for the exercise of their locomotive powers, such as the spelling and reading lessons, and the method of teaching object lessons, as described in another part of this work: the consequence has been, that the schools have become mere parrot-schools, and the children are restless and inattentive. And this has not been the only evil that has attended a misapplication of the gallery; for the teachers, for want of knowing the system properly, have been at a loss how to occupy the time of the children, and scores of teachers have ruined their own constitutions, and also the constitutions of some of the children, by the perpetual talking and singing, which, I am sorry to say, too many consider to be the sum total of the system: and I may state here, that the children should never be more than one hour at a time, or, at most two hours, during the day, in the gallery. All beyond this is injurious to the teacher, and doubly so to the little pupils. The forenoon is always the best time for gallery lessons; the teacher's mind is more clear, and the minds of the children are more receptive. After the children have taken their dinner they should be entertained with the object lessons, a small portion of spelling and reading, and the rest of the afternoon should be devoted to moral and physical teaching in the play-ground, if the weather will at all permit it. The more you rob your children of their physical education to shew off their intellectual acquirements, the more injury you do their health and your own; and in the effort to do too much, you violate the laws of nature, defeat your own object, and make the school a hot-bed of precocity, instead of a rational infants' school for the training and educating infants. I have been blamed, by writers on the infant system, for that which I never did, and never recommended; I have been made answerable for the errors and mis-conceptions of others, who have not troubled themselves to read my writings; and, in their anxiety to produce something new and original, have strayed from the very essential parts of the plan, and on this account I am charged by several writers with being unacquainted with the philosophy of my own system. I thought three-and-thirty years ago that if I could arrest public attention to the subject, it was as much as could be expected. I knew very well at that time that a dry philosophical detail would neither be received or read. My object was to appeal to the senses of the public by doing the thing in every town where practicable. By this method I succeeded, where the other would have failed, but it by no means followed that I was unacquainted with the philosophy of my own plans, merely because I preferred the doing of the thing to the writing about it. Believing, however, that the time has now arrived, and that the public mind is better prepared than it was then, I have thought I might venture to go a little more into detail, in order to remove some well founded objections, which, but for this reason, would not have existed. The infant mind, like a tender plant, requires to be handled and dealt with carefully, for if it be forced and injudiciously treated during the first seven years of its existence, it will affect its whole constitution as long as it lives afterwards. There are hundreds of persons who will not believe this, and those persons will employ mere boys and girls to teach infants. Let them do so if they please; I simply protest against it, and merely give it as my opinion that it is highly improper to do so. If ever infant schools are to become real blessings to the country, they must be placed under the care of wise, discreet, and experienced persons, for no others will be fit or able to develop and cultivate the infant faculties aright. I have felt it necessary to make these remarks, because in different parts of the country I have found mere children employed as school-masters and school-mistresses, to the great detriment of the young committed to their charge, and the dishonour of the country that permits it. No wise man would put a mere child to break his colts; none but a foolish one would employ an inexperienced boy to break in his dogs; even the poultry and pigs would be attended by a person who knew something about them; but almost any creature who can read and write, and is acquainted with the first rules of arithmetic, is too frequently thought a fit and proper person to superintend infants. I know many instances of discarded servants totally unfit, made teachers of infants, merely to put them in place; to the destruction of the highest and most noble of God's creatures! which I contend infants are. To expect that such persons can give gallery lessons as they ought to be given, is expecting what will never, nor can take place. The public must possess different views of the subject; more rational ideas on the art of teaching must be entertained, and greater remuneration must be given to teachers, and greater efforts made to train and educate them, to fit them for the office, before any very beneficial results can be seen; and it is to produce such results, and a better tone of feeling on the subject, that I have thus ventured to give my opinion more in detail. Efficient gallery lessons—efficient teachers must be made. They do not at present exist in large numbers, and can only be made by a suitable reward being held out to them, and by their being placed under the superintendence of experienced persons acquainted with the art. The art of teaching is no mean art, and must, sooner or later, take its proper rank amongst the other sciences. It is a science which requires deep study and knowledge of human character, and is only to be learned like all other sciences, by much perseverance and practice. In another work, on the education of older children, I have given some specimens of gallery lessons; in this I shall endeavour to give a few specimens of what I think useful lessons for infants, and shall also try to clothe them in language suited to the infant apprehensions; and I sincerely hope they may shew in a plain manner the method of giving this species of instruction to the children, and that teachers who were before ignorant of it, may be benefitted thereby. I shall not pretend to give my opinion as to whether I have succeeded, but will leave this point entirely to the judgment and candour of my readers; for I know by experience that it is a very difficult thing to put practice into theory; and although this may seem paradoxical, yet I have no doubt that many have experienced the very same results when trying to explain theoretically on paper what they have with ease practised a thousand times.

These oral lessons on real objects ought to be given in pure, simple, and plain language, level to the understanding and capacity of children. It may be well at times to use words of a more difficult or scientific character; but these should always have the proper explanation given; the words used most frequently in common life, in ordinary and proper conversation, ought to be most strongly impressed on their memories. It may, perhaps, be retorted on me—why then teach the difficult and scientific names of geometrical figures. The answer is very simple. Most of them have no other, and where they have I always give them also, as sloping, slanting, inclined, for oblique. The geometrical figures are the elements of all forms, and the simplest objects which can be presented to the young. I have found them always learned with the greatest ease and pleasure. Pestalozzi, I have understood, was led to the use of them by observing the wants of the young mind, in a similar manner that I was myself. This is, therefore, one of the many coincidences in thought and discovery by minds wholly independent of each other, which have been directed to the same subjects. This is an evitable result. If two men look at the moon, both must see that it is round, bright, and mottled; and if two minds far apart, turn their attention to similar subjects, the probability is that their views will coincide. The most powerful mind will of course make the deepest and simplest discovery.

Object lessons should be given chiefly on such things as fall under more constant observation and are daily coming before the sight, and then useful knowledge will be accumulated, and frequently reimpressed upon the memory by the seeing of the objects.

GALLERY LESSONS ON A FEATHER.

We will suppose the children all properly seated, the little girls on one side of the gallery and the little boys on the other, as represented on the plan-plate. If the morning is fine and clear, a lesson may be given on an object that the children are not frequently in the habit of seeing; but should the weather be hazy, and the atmosphere heavy, then a lesson must be given on some object which they all frequently see, say, for example, a feather. The feather must be held up in the hand, or placed in a small niche on the top of a pointer, so that every child will see it, and it must be moved about in various directions to arrest their attention. The first lesson should be pure development, which is to get every idea from the children relative to the object before you. Explain to them yours; as for example,

"What is this?" The universal shout will be, "A feather." You may then ask them, What are its uses? Some little creatures will say, to blow about; others will say, to cover birds; others will say, to stuff pillows and beds to sleep upon. Having got all the information out of them you can in their own simple language, you have acted according to nature's law, and it is now your turn to infuse additional information into their minds, and, give them the benefit of your superior knowledge; which may be done as follows:—You have told me that feathers are useful to cover birds, it was for this that they were made by God; they keep the birds warm just in the same way as your clothes keep you from being cold; and as the poor birds cannot make themselves clothes as men can, God has given them feathers that they may not be cold when the bad weather comes. The feathers are useful to the birds also in flying; the long feathers in a bird's wing keep him in the air, which he could not fly through if he was covered with any thing else, because feathers are very light. Seven of the large feathers out of the great eagle's wing would not weigh more than two halfpennies. The wings of a bird make him able to fly, and the tail guides him through the air, just as you may see the men steer boats with the rudder; and if you pulled the feathers off his tail, he would not be able to fly near so straight or fast as when they are on. When the rain falls on the feathers, they are never soaked through with it as a piece of rag would be if you threw water on it, because they are covered with a sort of oil which does not let in the water. If you ever look at a duck dive into the water, you can see it when it comes up quite dry; but if you dipped you head into the water it would wet it all over. When little birds, such as the sparrow and canary, come out of the egg, they have no feathers on, but the old ones cover them with their wings to keep the cold away, and the feathers soon grow, and then they can fly away and find food and make nests for themselves; but large birds, such as the goose, turkey, hen, and duck, have a sort of soft down on them when they come out of the shell, and little ducks will go and swim as soon as they are hatched, as I suppose some of you have seen.

Some birds' feathers are much prettier than others: the goose has not such pretty feathers as the swan, nor the swan as the peacock; but we must not think ill of the goose for this, for its flesh is better to eat than either the peacock or swan. I am sure many of you little children like roast goose. The peacock has very pretty feathers indeed, and so has the pheasant, and the drake, and the cock; but some birds that live in countries many hundred miles away from this, have much prettier than any bird that lives in this country. This feather that we have for our lesson is the feather of a goose; it is not very pretty, but if we examine it well we shall find it is very curious, and all the men in the world could not make one like it. Goose feathers are the most useful; the small ones make stuffing for pillows and beds, and the large ones make pens to write with. Birds change their feathers often; they drop off and they get new ones; this is called moulting.

Having thus given the children as much information on the subject as they will be likely to be able to digest properly, you may then get it back from them by question and answer; as for instance

Q. What have we been talking about? A. Birds' feathers. Q. Do they do the birds any good? A. Yes, keep them warm. Q. What more good? A. Make them able to fly. Q. Who gives the birds feathers to make them warm? A. God. Q. Are feathers very heavy? A. No, very light. Q. What is the reason that they are very light? A. That they may fly easily. Q. What part of the body does a bird fly with? A. Its wings. Q. Is no other part useful in flying? A. Yes. Q. Do you remember what part? A. Its tail. Q. Of what use is its tail? A. To guide it. Q. What do you mean by guiding it? A. Turning it any way it wants to go. Q. What is the reason that birds' feathers do not get all full of wet when the rain falls on them? A. Because there is an oily juice that makes the rain fall off. Q. When little birds, such as sparrows and robins, come out of the eggs, have they got feathers? A. No, they are naked. Q. Are they very long naked? A. No, in a few days the feathers grow. Q. Is it not curious that the cold does not kill the little birds while they are naked? A. So it would, only the old ones sit over them and keep them warm. Q. Are ducks and turkeys and hens naked when the come out of the shell? A. No. Q. What are they covered with? A. A sort of down. Q. Do you know of any bird that has very pretty feathers? A. Yes, the peacock. Q. Is it prettier than the goose? A. Yes. Q. Is it so useful? A. No. Q. What do the goose feathers make? A. The feathers in the quill make pelts? Q. What do the small ones make? A. They make stuffing for pillows and beds. Q. Where do the prettiest birds live? A. In very warm places, far away from this. Q. Do the same feathers always remain on a bird? A. No, they drop off, and new ones come. Q. What is this called? A. Moulting.

Such lessons as this will never be forgotten by the little ones. They will learn to adore the great God at the sight of any thing he has made. It is hoped they learn to love to read Nature's book when they grow older, as every correct notion obtained by a child, through a natural object, which it is frequently accustomed to meet with, can never be entirely effaced; and what is more, it prepares the way, at some future time, for a larger amount of knowledge as to God's revealed will.

A spider, a living specimen of which may be easily procured, may be made a very instructive gallery lesson; it may prevent the fears and foolish prejudices against ugly yet harmless insects, which often remain through life. Part of a bush may be procured with a real web and spider upon it, so that its beautiful and highly curious web may be also exhibited to the children, its uses may be also pointed out, and a short history of the little animal's habits may be given, but not before their opinions have been taken on the object, which may be done in a similar manner as that which we pointed out in the former lesson, and then the teacher may proceed thus:

You have told me that this little creature is called a spider, and some of you think it very ugly, and say you are afraid of it, but sensible children will not be frightened at a spider, because they will remember that they are very harmless little things, and have not got a sting as the wasp and bee have. They are very ugly, to be sure, but every ugly insect is not to be called a nasty creature, for some are very useful, notwithstanding their not being as handsome as others; and spiders are very useful too, although very few people know how to make use of them; but they little think that the poor little insect which they brush off the wall, and trample under their feet, can tell them what weather they are going to have, as sure, and surer than a weather-glass. When the weather is going to be fine it peeps its head out of its hole, and stretches out its legs; and the farther its legs and head are out, the longer will the fine weather stay. When the weather is going to be very bad it goes farther back; and when very dreadful and stormy weather is going to come, it turns its back to the door of its hole and its head inside. In winter, when frost and snow is going to commence, they make their webs very fast, and by this you may know the frosty weather is coming; so you see, children, that spiders may be useful to know what kind of weather we shall have.

Spiders are very cunning; they live on flies; but they could never catch them, only they are able to weave a strong web, which they do in a place where the flies often come; and when a poor fly gets into the web, the spider runs out and soon kills it, and then drags it up to his den, where he eats it at his ease, and hides the wings and skin, that the other flies may not see them; but if an enemy stronger than itself comes to his web, the spider remains in his hole till the danger is all over. Some spiders that live in countries far away are a great deal larger and uglier than our spiders; but we need not be ever afraid of a spider, because they can neither bite nor sting us, and are very curious insects. Q. What have I been telling you about? A. The spider. Q. Are you afraid of it? A. No, you told us it would do us no harm. Q. Are spiders very ugly? A. They are. Q. Should we think badly of them for this? A. No. Q. Who made the spider? A. God. Q. Does he not make every animal, whether handsome or ugly? A. Yes. Q. Can spiders be of use? A. They will tell us what weather we are going to have. Q. When it is going to be fine what do they do? A. They put their legs and head out of their hole. Q. When it is going to be bad weather what do they do? A. They turn their heads round and go into their holes. Q. When the weather is going to be very cold and frosty what do they do? A. They build their webs very fast. Q. What do they live upon? A. Flies. Q. How do they catch them? A. By making webs. Q. When a fly gets into their web what do they do? A. They kill it and eat it. Q. Are the spiders in other countries larger than ours? A. Yes, in some places they are much larger and uglier. Q. Who teaches the spider to make its web? A. God. Q. Could any man in the world make a spider's web? A. No, no one could do it.

The teacher may then add thus:—Thus you see, little children, that every living thing has some merit of its own, and can do many things which we cannot do, although God has given us the means to become so much wiser than they; and be sure you are not frightened at them, nor put them to unnecessary pain. Some other day I will tell you what is the shape of the spider's web, and shew you what a number of regular figures the spider's web is composed of.

Almost every object, however simple it may be, will form an instructive gallery lesson; thus for example, you may take a piece of bog-turf, and after submitting it to the inspection of the infants, you may inquire, What is this? If it be in a country where turf is used, a general exclamation will inform you of its name; if not, you may find a better and more familiar object for your lesson. When you have got the name, you may then ask its uses, and will soon find that the children are well acquainted with them. You may then proceed to give your own information on the subject in something like the following words, taking care that you use no word that the children do not themselves understand, or that you have not explained to them.

Little children, look at what I hold. You have told me it is a piece of bog-turf, and it is used to make fires. In Ireland turf is more used to make fires than coal, because it is very plentiful there, and many of the poor people in Ireland build their houses of it, and when they keep them well mended and covered, they are very warm and comfortable, and they burn good turf fires in their turf houses; but some of them are lazy, and do not keep their turf houses mended, so the rain comes in, and they are very miserable, and so will all idle lazy people be. I hope no little child here will be lazy, Now I will tell you where they get all this turf, they dig it out of the bogs. There are bogs in England; they call them mosses or fens, and in Scotland there are bogs, but the bogs in Ireland are much more plentiful. Some of them are so very large that you cannot see across them, and a great many birds live amongst them, such as wild ducks, and geese, and cranes, and herons, and snipe, all of which I will tell you about some other time. Those great bogs are very wild, lonesome, dreary places; no person can live on them, because they are so wet and soft, and they are full of great deep holes with water in them, which are called bog holes, and if any person fell in they would be drowned. Sometimes in the middle of this great bog you will see a pretty green island, where the land is firm and strong, and the grass is nice and sweet, so that the poor people make a dry path across the wet bog to these islands, that they may drive their cows, and goats, and horses to feed there; and some of these islands are very pretty places, and look so green in the centre of the black bog. Those bogs which are now such wet, black, nasty places, were once forests of great trees, as large as any you children ever saw, and pretty bright rivers ran through those forests, and nice birds sang in the branches, and great stags eat the grass underneath; we will read about the stag at some other time. This was many hundred years ago, and there were very few people living then in Ireland, and by degrees, when the trees got very old, they began to fall down into the rivers and stopped them up, so that the water could not flow on, and the rivers overflowed all the nice forests, and the trees all fell, so that when some hundred years passed they were all down, and the branches rotted, and the grass and clay became wet, like sponge, and the whole of the nice shady forests of great trees became what we call bogs, and the remains of those pretty branches and leaves, where the birds used to sing so sweetly, has become turf, like this piece which we have for a lesson; and when men are cutting this turf out, they often find the great trunks of those trees, that many hundred years ago were so green and beautiful, quite black and ugly, but still so hard that they can scarcely be cut, and these old trees are called bog-oak, and the cabinet-maker buys them and makes them into beautiful chairs, and tables, and presses, and many other things, and they are quite black, and when polished you little children might see your faces in them. Thus you see, my little children, that there is nothing which God has made which is not very wonderful and curious, even this piece of bog-turf, which you would not have heard about if you did not come to the infant school to learn about so many useful and curious things.

This will perhaps be enough of information for one lesson; and having thus infused it in an agreeable form into their minds, you may proceed in the manner before mentioned to get it back from them, in order to impress it more firmly on their understandings; and if this be always done in the proper manner, they will become as familiar with the subject, and learn it as quickly as they would the tissue of nonsense contained in the common nursery tales of "Jack and Jill," or, "the old woman and her silver penny," whose only usefulness consists in their ability to amuse, but from which no instruction can be possibly drawn; beside which, they form in the child's mind the germ of that passion for light reading which afterwards, in many instances, prevents an application to any thing solid or instructive. Being in themselves the foundation stone on which a huge and useless mass of fiction is piled in after years, the philosophical mind will at once perceive the advantage of our system of amusement mingled with instruction, and perceive that upon its simple basis a noble structure may be afterwards raised; and minds well stored with useful lore, and capable of discerning evil in whatever shape it presents itself, and extracting honey from every object, will be farmed, which, when they become numerous, will cause a glorious change in the moral world, the first germ of which will be traced to the properly managed gallery lessons of an infant school. Having asked the children if they are tired, the teacher, if he receives an answer in the negative, may thus proceed:—

Q. What have we been hearing about? A. Turf. Q. What is the use of turf? A. To make fires. Q. What other use is sometimes made of it? A. To build houses. Q. Where do they build turf houses? A. In Ireland. Q. Are they not very cold? Q. No; if they are kept mended, they are not. Q. What do you call people, when they like to sleep in the cold rather than mend their houses? A. Lazy. Q. Is it bad to be lazy? A. Yes; very bad. Q. What do we call it besides being lazy? Q. Being idle. Q. Are idle people very happy? A. No; they are always miserable. Q. Right; and I hope no little children will be ever idle; they should always try to be useful, and do all they can to help their friends. Now tell me, where is the turf got From? A. From bogs. Q. What are they called in England? A. Mosses and fens. Q. Are the bogs in England larger than in Ireland? A. No; the Irish bogs are the largest. Q. What animals live in the bogs? A. Some sorts of birds. Q. Do men and women live in them? A. No. Q. Why not? A. They are too wet and soft. Q. What very dangerous places are in some parts of them? A. Bog-holes. Q. What are they? A. Deep holes full of water. Q. What did I tell you were in some parts of these bogs? A. Nice green islands. Q. Are they of any use? A. Yes; the people put cows and horses to feed on them. Q. How do they get across the bog? A. They make a kind of rough road over to them. Q. What do they cut the turf with? A. A sort of spade with two sides. Q. What is this called? A. A Slane. Q. When the turf is cut, what do they do next? A. Put it in heaps to dry. Q. What were those great bogs many hundred years ago? A. Beautiful forests of fine large trees. Q. What flowed through those forests? A. Nice bright rivers. Q. What sang in the trees? A. Pretty birds. Q. What eat the grass? A. Fine large stags and deer. Q. How did those beautiful places become ugly black wet bogs? A. The trees, when they got old, fell into the rivers and stopped them up. Q. What did this cause? A. The water flowed over the banks. Q. What harm did this do? A. It made all the nice grass wet and marshy. Q. What more? A. It rotted the roots of the trees. Q. What happened then? A. They all fell down. Q. In some hundred years, what did all those forests become? A. Great bogs. Q. Are any of the trunks or bodies of those old trees ever found? A. Yes; many hundreds are yet far under the bogs. Q. Are they of any use? A. Yes; they are useful to make chairs, tables, and presses. Q. What colour are they? A. As black as a piece of coal. Q. When they are polished, do they look nice? A. Yes; so bright you can see your face in them. Q. What is this wood called? A. Bog-oak. Q. Will you all try to remember this lesson? A. We will. Teacher. That is right; for little children should always remember the pretty things that their teacher takes such trouble to tell them.

In places where coal is most burned, a piece of it may be made the medium of a very useful and instructive lesson, being so familiar an object, their attention will be arrested by its being made the subject of a lesson; and their curiosity aroused to know every thing about it. When the teacher asks what is this, the simultaneous shout, of "a piece of coal," will convince him that he has arrested their attention; and a few questions will exhaust their stock of information on the subject—they will tell him its uses are to make fires to boil up their dinners, &c. &c. He may then proceed as follows:—You see, little children, this piece of coal; look at it attentively; it is black and shining; and you all know will burn very quickly. The places from whence all coal is brought are called coal mines; the men who dig it out of the ground, and the ships that carry it over the sea, are called colliers, and the place where the coals are got is called a colliery. The coal mines are deep holes made very far under the ground, in order to get at the coal; some of them go under the sea. The colliers live a great part of their life, in those dark holes, in order to get us coal to make us fires to dress our food, and very often are killed, either by the falling in of the roof from above, or from a sort of air called fire-damp, which, if touched with any fire, will blow up like gunpowder, and will kill any person that is near it; the poor colliers are also often smothered by the bad air that is in those damp, dark holes; so you see, little children, what dangers they go through, in order to get us coal, which we could very badly do without.

How very good God is to us; he made this coal under the earth that we might have nice fires to dress our food, and warm ourselves by in cold weather; we should be very thankful to him for all his great blessings, and should never do anything to make him angry with us; he is very sorry when he sees a little child naughty, because he has done every thing to make us happy, and we never can be so if we are naughty and bad. Bad boys and girls are never happy, and God does not love them when they are so, and it is very sad to make God angry with us.

Coal is very useful for other things besides making fires to dress our food, and to warm us. Many things that are very useful could not be made without it. The gas that lights the streets is made from coal, and when the gas is taken from it what is left is called coke, which makes a very bright warm fire.

The teacher that properly enters into the spirit of these lessons, may find in the simplest objects, a never-ending source of pleasure and instruction for his infant pupils. No person who is not qualified to give proper and really useful gallery lessons is by any means fit for a teacher of infants; to learn the mere routine of an infant school is not very difficult, but this will be of no avail if the teacher have not qualifications of a much higher order, which will enable him continually to pour instruction clothed in simple language, into the minds of his pupils; simplicity is the life and soul of gallery teaching; without this, the breath is wasted, and time is spent in vain. To teach infants we must reduce our language to their tender capacities, and become, in idea and words, one of themselves. Having given the children your information on a piece of coal, you now proceed to get it back, as follows

Q. Little children, what have we been speaking about? A. About coal. Q. What colour is it? A. Black. Q. Is it anything besides? A. Yes; shining. Q. What are the places called from whence coal is got? A. Coal-mines. Q. What are the men that dig it out of the ground and the ships that carry it over the sea called? A. Colliers. Q. What is the place called where the coal pits are made? A. A colliery. Q. What are coal pits? A. Deep holes dug to get at the coal. Q. Are the colliers in danger down in these deep pits? A. They are. Q. From what? A. From fire-damp? Q. What is it? A. A sort of air that blows up like gun-powder. Q. From what more are they in danger? A. The roofs falling in. Q. From what more? A. From bad air which often smothers them. Q. What is made from coal to light the streets? A. Gas. Q. What is coal called after the gas has been taken from it? A. Coke. Q. Does coke make a good fire? A. Yes; very bright and strong. Q. Who made the coal? A. God. Q. What should we be to him for it? A. Very thankful. Q. How can we shew we are thankful? A. By being very good. Q. Is God glad to see a child naughty? A. No; he is very sorry. Q. Does he love naughty children? A. No; he does not. Q. Are naughty children happy? A. No; very unhappy. Thus every lesson may be made not only a vehicle for conveying instruction, but also of instilling into the infant mind a reverence, a sense of gratitude and love towards that great Being who called us all into existence; this should be never lost sight of, in giving the child those primary sentiments, reverence and gratitude towards its God, you lay a basis on which doctrinal religion may be afterwards built with more advantage. The child thus early trained in such feelings, conveyed in a manner so admirably adapted to its tender mind, can scarcely fail, unless it possesses a heart of great natural depravity, of becoming a good man, and it is thus that infant schools may become a great and lasting blessing to the country. But where this is overlooked—where the vital principle of the infant system is rejected, and the mere mechanical parts alone retained, as to any great and lasting benefit, it will be a complete and unhappy failure. That the grand object of the infant system may be accomplished, namely, of raising up a generation superior to the last, both in religious, moral, and intellectual acquirements, an immense caution and great experience in the selection of teachers is required; till proper teachers are universally provided the infant system will never be really successful: success does not merely consist in universal adoption and extension, if it did it would be now really so. But another thing is wanting before it can be called successful, that is, it must be understood.

None can understand it but thinkers, and deep thinkers, and thinkers in the right direction. Merely to glance around and gather scraps of knowledge from the various, "ologies" in existence, which the "march of intellect" has brought into being, and which were unknown to our forefathers; and then to force them on the young memory at random, may be to teach what was not before taught, but it is not to display any new method of teaching; any more efficient way of communicating knowledge. Those who would truly understand the infant system, must think for themselves, and observe the workings of the young mind, mark the intellectual principles which first develope themselves, strive to understand the simple laws of mental action; and all this that they may know how to teach in accordance with them. When this is fairly done, perhaps the whole that is recorded in this book, may be thought more valuable than it is at present, and be found a not unworthy subject to devote a whole life to become acquainted with and elucidate both practically and theoretically. Others then will, perhaps, not be quite so audacious in unjust plagiarisms. When Columbus had made the egg stand on an end all others could then do it. When he had discovered America, every one said they might have done it also. All great and important truths are simple, and when presented to the mind, although unknown before, seem as if they had been well known, there is such an accurate consistency between the mind and them. This leads me to suppose that there is simple and useful truths in my volumes, as every one seems to take them for their own. I can only say that they have cost me many and many an hour of close observation, and deep and independent thinking. I have devoted my whole life for the good of others, and have injured myself and family, that I might do so. To rescue little children from vice and misery, and to have them placed under physical, intellectual, moral, and religious discipline, has been the delight of my heart, and the object of my life. After this labour, to have my inventions pirated, my plans made use of in part, and in the rest spoken against; to have others to reap the fields that I have sown, and at the same time traduce and injure me; to be thus thrust out as it were from my rightful employment, and left in comparative obscurity as old age begins to draw on; requires a spirit stronger than that of man, and a heart more than human, not to feel it, and feel it deeply. I care little for myself, but regret most to see spurious systems of infant education palmed upon the public by ignorant persons, and thus deprive them of a great benefit which they might possess.

Facts recorded in Scripture may be given orally as gallery lessons, taking care to exhibit some picture representing the subject proposed for the lesson—take, for example, the finding of Moses—which represents the daughter of Pharaoh coming down to bathe with her maidens, and also the infant Moses in the ark, cradle, or boat, which was made for the purpose. The subject is then to be propounded to the children as follows, and the teacher is to take care to repeat it clearly and distinctly in short sentences, and to be careful that all the pupils repeat it as distinctly after him; by thus means the essence of the story is infused into the minds of the children, with the addition of their being taught to repeat all the words distinctly and properly, which will assist their pronunciation very much when they begin to read the lesson described in another part of this work.

"And the daughter of Pharaoh came down to wash herself at the river, and her maidens walked along by the river's side, and when she saw the ark among the flags she sent her maid to fetch it, and when she had opened it she saw the child, and behold the babe wept. And she had compassion on him; and said, This is one of the Hebrews' children. Then said his sister to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee? And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Go; and the maid went and called the child's mother. And Pharaoh's daughter said unto her, Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give thee thy wages; and the woman took the child and nursed it, and the child grew, and she brought hum unto Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son, and she called his name Moses: and she said, Because I drew him out of the water."—Exodus ii.

Q. What does this picture represent? A. The finding of Moses. Q. Who came down to wash herself at the river? A. Pharaoh's daughter. Q. Who was Pharaoh? A. The king of Egypt. Q. What is Egypt? A. A country in Africa. Q. What is Africa? A. A part of the earth on which we live. Q. Where did her maidens walk? A. They walked along by the river's side. Q. When Pharaoh's daughter saw the ark amongst the flags, what did she do? A. She sent her maid to fetch it. Q. And when she opened it, what did she see. A. She saw the child. Q. What was the ark? A. A sort of boat made of rushes, such as grow in the river. Q. Would not the water get into this? A. No; it was kept dry inside by pitch and slime. Q. What were the flags that the ark was among? A. A sort of plant that grows in rivers. Q. Did the child laugh? A. No; it wept, and she had compassion on him. Q. And what did she say? A. This is one of the Hebrews' children. Q. What did his sister say to Pharaoh's daughter? A. Shall I go and call to thee a nurse of the Hebrew women? Q. What is meant by his sister? A. The sister of Moses who stood to watch what would become of him. Q. What did she ask to call a nurse for? A. To nurse the child. Q. What did Pharaoh's daughter say? A. Go. Q. Who did the maid fetch? A. The child's mother. Q. When she came what did Pharaoh's daughter say to her? A. Take this child away and nurse it for me. Q. And what did she say she would give her? A. Her wages. Q. Did the woman take the child? A. Yes; and nursed it. Q. What became of the child? A. It grew, and she brought it unto Pharaoh's daughter, and it became her son. Q. What name did she give him? A. She called his name Moses. Q. What for? A. Because she drew hum out of the water. Q. Look at this picture, what is the girl holding over Pharaoh's daughter's head? A. A sort of umbrella. Q. What is she holding it up for? A. To keep away the heat of the sun. Q. Were there slaves in those days? A. Yes. Q. Is the little girl holding the umbrella meant to represent a slave? A. Yes. Q. Do you know what a slave is? A. A person who is taken from his home and made to work for nothing and against his wills.

Christ with the doctors in the temple, forms, when given as explained, a good gallery lesson—thus:

"And it came to pass that after those days she found him in the temple sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them and asking them questions; and all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. And when they saw him they were amazed, and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? Behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? Wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business. And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them; but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart: and Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man."—Luke ii. 46-52.

Q. Where did they find him? A. In the temple. Q. Sitting in the midst of whom? A. Of the doctors. Q. What was he doing there? A. Hearing and asking them questions. Q. And they were astonished at his, what? A. Understanding and answers. Q. What did Jesus' mother say unto him? A. Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? Q. What more did she say? A. Thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. Q. What did Jesus say unto her? A. He said, how is it that ye sought me? Q. Did he say anything more? A. Yes; wist ye not that I must be about my father's business. Q. What is the meaning of wist ye not? A. Know ye not. Q. When Jesus went with them, where did they come to? A. To Nazareth? Q. What is Nazareth? A. A town in Asia. Q. His mother kept those sayings, where? A. In her heart. Q. In what did Jesus increase? A. In wisdom and stature. Q. What do you mean by increasing in stature? A. Growing larger.