are chosen from the clerical profession, and in many cases these reverend gentlemen know little or nothing of the question.

The advocates of non-sectarian religious instruction point to Holland, Italy, England, France and America, where no religion is taught in the schools, and they claim that a real gain in religious spirit is made, while their opponents declare that the absence of such instruction promotes impiety, unbelief and even atheism. It is a burning question in Germany, and few teachers are satisfied with the present method of teaching religion, though, as already remarked, none wish to do away with the subject. Most teachers also agree that sectarianism is carried too far, and not enough time and attention given to the value of moral principles. The feeling between Catholics and Protestants is also very strong and it is undoubtedly fostered by emphasizing these religious distinctions.

The study of any system of education is of little value unless it is possible to take it out of its environment and judge of its worth under differing circumstances. This should be the object of every American teacher who comes to Germany to investigate the imposing structure of their school systems, and it behooves them to adopt only those features which are demanded by their own conditions at home. We would all probably reject the subject of sectarian religious teaching, but the study of the Bible might advantageously be taken up as the German teacher pursues it and a real gain made in the spiritual as well as intellectual development of the child.

We can also learn much from their excellent method of teaching gymnastics, though we would at once criticise them for not including girls in the class, and the frequent walks and short excursions which the teacher makes with his children are undoubtedly sources of great educative value. In these walks each subject is illustrated by practical observation, the fauna, flora, the geological formation and the surface of the country are studied and everything is made entertaining for the children. The universal love of n

ture and the patient investigation of her secrets by the learned men of Germany, must be grounded upon this excellent practice begun in early youth. The dependence upon nature as a source of rest and consolation and the development of innate love for her must be awakened in childhood to gain hold upon the character, and in the attainment of this result the German educator has been most successful. It has been observed that no nation so loves to be out of doors as the German, and it is equally true that in no other country do we find such deep attachment to native scenery. The German loves his forests as the Swiss his mountains, and this must be attributed partly, if not entirely to this early insight into nature's mysteries. The German language is exceptionally rich in poems descriptive of natural scenery, and it is said that school children choose these in preference to all others.

Another lesson may be learned from the wave of nationalism or imperialism which has swept over Germany and penetrated into every artery of the Empire. School, church, industries, all feel the influence of this awakening of national pride, and there is no more powerful factor in developing the feeling than the school. The subject has been taken up by pedagogues and made to enter into every possible study. Instead of devoting time to the myths of the Greeks and Romans, the legends and sagas of the early Germans are studied and every opportunity taken to develop pride in the history of the fatherland. It is related that certain teachers, thinking to flatter the Emperor, made the history of Germany begin with the rise of the House of Hohenzollern; and this coming to the ears of the Emperor so angered him that he caused these luckless pedagogues to be publicly censured. Local history is now taught first in the primary schools and from this nucleus the circle is enlarged till it embraces the history of the world. Much more attention is also now paid to local customs and traditions. Geography is also affected by this national cult; the children study the configuration of the earth's surface from their own particular

corner of the Empire; the growth and development of their province are insistently dwelt upon, and every effort made to impress upon them the value of growing their own food products and supporting themselves upon their own manufacturies. In short, all means are employed to make them independent of every foreign power. Dates and measurements are also imprinted upon their memories by comparison with local and well-known facts, and the characteristics of each part of the country emphasized.

This tendencv, which is very strongly marked in present educational methods, can be traced directly to the policy of the Emperor, whose boundless energy is devoted to lifting Germany up to a first position among nations. It is out of place here to discuss the ethics of the question, only to indicate how markedly it has entered into the science of pedagogics. The tendency is undoubtedly a healthy one, if not carried too far, and we may learn much from observing its development upon the characters of the school children.

Patriotism on general lines is common enough in the United States and love of country also, but it has no such enduring

foundation in the patient study of local characteristics, national myths and songs as in Germany. We have not, of course, their background of thrilling myth and fascinating legend, but a beginning can be made with what we find and the effort to learn the history of our own town, county and state will lead, as it does in Germany, to an interest in broader things. Our history will be found to be quite as inspiring, if not as romantic as that of any other country, and, short as it is, sufficient material lies within the teacher's hand.

Every system has its faults, but there are few which are as well adapted to the needs of the people and the social fabric. of the nation as the primary school system of Germany; and, if we bear in mind that . we are to take only what seems peculiarly fitted to our own country, we may learn much from examining it. We are now a great world power, and our national pride and patriotism should be based, not as heretofore upon glittering generalities, but upon that knowledge which comes from the patient and loving study of our own resources, our history and our institutions.

A TEACHER'S EXPERIENCE.

The following shows briefly a teacher's thought of that which determines the work in the grades, and its application in history as carried out by a seventh grade.

The main notion of the school is those acts of the child which are due to purposes formed because of his change from selfishness to unselfishness, and from ignorance to intelligence.

He learns to act with wisdom, because he has impulses that lead him out from himself. He has the impulse to be at one

with nature. He has the impulse to be at one with people in what they are working out in the various forms of society, as in the family or government; and in art or architecture, sculpture, painting, music, literature, he has the impulse to express in oral and written language and in other concrete forms his thoughts concerning nature and man.

At birth these impulses have the education of heredity. As he passes through the grades they receive the education from the best that the race has developed.

Because of these impulses he studies the sciences, history in its two aspects as shown in the institutions of society and in art, and language, and embodies his thoughts in concrete form.

When the child reaches the seventh grade it is thought that he has passed through the somewhat passive stages where exists in various degrees blind obedience to authority. He is now in that phase of the self-active stage when individuality is very strong, and the conscience is aroused to a marked degree. Now, because of his constant growth, he studies the discoveries of Columbus, the exploration of Raleigh in the new world, and the establishment of homes and other forms of society in this new country. Finally he lives with the English colonists in their conscious resistance to the selfish acts of people in a foreign country.

The main thought of history is supposed to be man's proposed struggle to go from his real condition which binds him, to an ideal condition which gives him greater freedom. He does this by means of the institutions of society.

It seems then that a fact in history has two phases-the outward act performed by the people, and their spiritual condition which exhibits itself in this act. The latter, that is, the condition of mind, is more important because it is this which determines external action.

The pupils in studying a fact in history were led to look for these three points: The mental condition which is manifested in an outward act; the outward act itself (this alone is usually considered the event), and the condition of mind due to performing the act. While performing the act the mind is changing, and after the act is completed, in contemplating it the mind changes. This change of mind was inferred by the pupils by drawing upon their own experiences and by thinking about the next event of the same nature as the one last studied. An illustration of this may show more clearly the thought.

After studying the outward act called. the smuggling of the colonists the pupils referred to the act, writs of assistance, in order to see the change of mind of the

English officers as they contemplated the smuggling of the colonists. The pupils saw that the one act did not immediately follow the other; but that time elapsed during which the English officers thought about the smuggling of the colonists and how they might overcome it; and finally decided to have writs of assistance. Then the use of writs of assistance was made legal. This last was the outward act on the part of the English officers that arose from their contemplating the smuggling of the colonists.

In this way pupils may learn how to study a fact in history. They will also see that a people's right to become greater makes it necessary to put aside laws through the people when the laws no longer give them the freedom suited to their stage of development. But greatest of all, each child is learning that his deed is his own; that no one by any restriction whatsoever can in the true sense take from him his changed mind in thinking about the act he has performed growing out of his purpose. Such pupils will develop into reliable men and

women.

With these thoughts in mind the teacher worked out a series of assignment, one of which was:

HISTORY, 7A.

I. Try to think out again1. The disposition and purpose brought out in the minds of the king and his party by the smuggling of the colonists.

2. The external act resulting from this.

II. Consider carefully

1. The way in which the minds of the colonists were affected by the writs of assistance.

a. The reason for this.

2. The degree of freedom shown by this for making their institutions or different forms of society more wise. (Show with a definite example. Write.)

Select references if needed.

Below are inserted papers as first written by the pupils. There is also given one by the teacher, prepared that she

might encounter the same difficulties as the pupils in order to help them and to do it more sympathetically.

The institutions were kept from becoming more wise because of the writs of assistance.

For example, a smuggler's house was broken into and searched for smuggled goods.

If any were found he would be put in prison for smuggling.

His family would be left to earn a living as best it could so the children would be kept out of school to work.

When they grew up they would not know anything and so could not set up a substantial government or have an elevating religion. Their society would be undeveloped and less wise because they had not been educated when they were small.

Thus the institutions were not as wise as they might have been if the writs of assistance had not existed.

The freedom of the colonists was limited still more when the king gave the officer the right to have the "writs of assistance." So it would be still harder to make their institutions more wise. As in business, if a man was keeping storehouse he would be in constant fear of the officers, even if he did not have smuggled goods, because if they wanted to they went in and went through his goods and sometimes dishonest people would get a writ of assistance and take whatever they wished in the storehouse. This would lead this man to think more of his business than more spiritual things. This case would hold with many other men. Thus they could not have bettered this institution because of the wrong work of the king.

As these men were in this state of mind in business they would not spend much time with their families, and when they were with them they would talk more of business than of spiritual things. This would tend to make the children narrow minded in that they would think more of that than anything else.

In the school the children would tend to be excited and they would think more of the smuggled goods and their father's business than of their lessons. This would keep them from being as well educated as if things were calm and peaceful.

If they were excited in their school they would tend to be that way in the church. They would meet at the church to converse about this matter and perhaps the minister would preach to the people about it. This would all tend to make them think more of their business than of the church, which was more spiritual.

The colonists would have a very angry, rebellious feeling in the state because England was very unjust. And they would have the tendency to want to get their freedom. They were not making this institution more wise because they were not calm in their thinking.

As both the poor and the rich were in this state of mind in state they would tend to be more on a level in society and go together to discuss these matters. This institution would become more wise in one way and in another it would become less wise in that they were not calm in their thinking.

The writs of assistance gave the colonists less freedom so that the institutional life could not be made more wise.

For an example: A man in the south had the business of raising cotton and sending it to some other colony or to England. One of the restrictions hindered his business so much that he tried to smuggle goods so that he could go on in his business, but the writs of assistants stopped this, as the officers could find the smuggled goods and would try to stop the smuggling system. The man could not carry on this business any more and so would have to find another business. A great many men would be this same way and the business could not be made more wise as no line could be made very good if they changed from one to another.

The father thought about his business so much that he did not have time to talk with his wife and children on more spir

itual things, so the home life was less wise.

The children had to be taken out of school, if the father could not find work and had to go to work. Thus the school was less wise and it would also be in the future, as the uneducated children would not be good teachers.

If uneducated these children would not make good citizens, as they would not even be good voters. So the government would be less wise as so little freedom was granted them.

The colonists' ideas of the church were narrow and the uneducated children would not develop broader ones and would not accept each other's ideas, but cling to their own. The minister would not give the people correct ideas if uneducated and so the church would not be developed into a more wise institution.

Society would be less wise as it would be crude if of uneducated people. Also the colonists could not mingle with people of other nations as they could if commerce was carried on.

Suppose Mr. A., a man of family in Boston, is engaged in the mercantile. trade. A custom house officer who dislikes him says he carries contraband goods and hides them in his warehouse and in his home, to be sold at the earliest opportunity.

This officer fills out a writ of assistance with the name of Mr. A., and with a list of costly goods known to be justly in his possession, then hands it to an unprincipled subordinate officer with the order to attend to the matter at once.

This officer, after securing help, goes to the home of Mr. A., forces an entrance, seizes the goods he wishes, then goes to the warehouse of this merchant and acts in like manner.

Mr. A. and family think that the privacy of the home, which is the natural right of every individual, is outraged. If the outward act were continued the home would become less wise.

He thinks that by the seizing of his property, which he has a natural right to accumulate honorably, no protection is given him due to him as shown in the

English constitution and in the colonial charters, as well as because of the natural rights of man. If the outward act were continued business would become less and less wise, for man would be a slave.

The treatment of this man is typical of that of many if the outward act be not suppressed.

Soon the news spreads throughout Massachusetts and into all the colonies. At once the people begin to think definitely of their colonial relation with England, what it is, the justice of it, and if unjust, the means for overcoming it. Before acting on any question of state they will consider the point carefully. Henceforth they will be conscious in all their acts that their rights as human beings and as Englishmen must be maintained.

This influence will tend to lead classes of society into greater harmony with one another because they will talk about what should be done. Getting acquainted thus they will become more lenient toward one another.

It will stimulate the people to think more broadly on all questions. This will show itself in the questions of church and school.

We have seen an act starting in Mr. A.'s family, and the change of mind. which it stimulated we have seen become universal in institutional life. The immediate tendency is to hinder the wise development of the institutions, but the colonists are stimulated to think how they may overcome this hindrance in their difrerent forms of society. This will lead to better acts.

(The external acts resulting from this we shall study later.)

In connection with the series of lessons indicated by the above, investigation was made in two other lines: First, the influence of the many little sheltered harbors on the people in their act of smuggling. Second, the nature of their ideals, found out through their architecture and the literature they produced.

By these means it was hoped that each member of the seventh grade was becoming more unselfish, more intelligent and therefore better in purposes and acts.