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the same space from Boston to Dedham, fifty times repeated? And yet is it not obvious that until a child can do this leisurely, at least, if not rapidly,-he is not at all prepared to begin the study of geography?

We put the question, this very day, to an experienced teacher, what is the probable number of pupils of our schools, who, when they commence the study of geography, are possessed of this preliminary knowledge? The reply was, hardly one in a thousand. We believe that even this proportion is too great. We doubt whether there is one in ten thousand, whose knowledge, of this sort, is at all accurate. The only individual we have known-and our experience has not been very limited, -who had any preparatory knowledge of this kind, when he commenced his geographical studies, worth naming, was exceedingly deficient in accuracy. His foot was the length of the foot of a common adult; and his quarter of a mile was nearly one hundred and twenty rods, and his mile, consequently, was about one third too large. Such imperfect ideas of distance may be a little better than none at all; but of even this, we are by no means certain.

It is the easiest thing in the world, to inculcate this sort of knowledge, if its necessity is once understood and felt. It may be done best by the parent; but, if neglected by the parent, should be taken up by the teacher. It is wrong-or would be, if the matter was correctly understood-to introduce a child to the simplest geographical work, till these preliminaries are settled. The following illustrations on this subject, were communicated for the Journal of Education in 1829, then edited by Mr Wm. Russell; and inserted in the last number of the volume for that year. As it is probable that few of our present readers were subscribers to that volume, and as we know not that we can render the subject more intelligible now, than we were able to do then, we have ventured to transcribe from that volume, with little variation.

I think the first lesson in geography should be to give a child a clear and distinct idea of an inch-perhaps it is unnecessary to descend to tenths or barleycorns. When able to judge of this distance pretty well, he should be taught to repeat the distance, until he had an adequate idea of an inch repeated twelve times. Afterwards, he might be told that twelve inches make a foot, six inches half a foot, &c. Then the foot might be doubled and trebled; this being done, he should be told that three feet make a yard. Thus we might proceed gradually, from step to step, till our pupil could understand the extent of a rod, a rood, a mile, a league, &c. The practice of talking to children about

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Preparatory Lessons continued.

rods or miles, while they have not the most distant conceptions of an inch or a foot, is bad indeed.

'I have amused myself by experiments on little children, who have sometimes called at my room; while they were ignorant of my object, and only supposed that they made me happy by their prattle. I have usually commenced by exhibiting some little object I had about me, as a pin-something I mean about an inch in length-and after a little familiar conversation which was calculated to arrest their attention, have told them it was an inch long. Now, I would say, you have learned what an inch is, have you not? They usually seemed to be pleased.

They were then shown other objects of the same length, but differing in breadth, thickness, shape, or color, and made to understand that these too, were an inch in length. Their faculty of judging was next exercised a little, by placing before them objects half an inch in length, and asking them to judge how long they were. By placing two objects, each an inch long, in a line, I would now show them how much two inches was, how much three inches, &c.

'Before I proceeded to repeat the inch oftener than three or four times, I used to show them my penknife, the handle of which was marked into a three inch rule, with other penknives, keys, pencils, crayons, combs, &c., and require them to judge of their various lengths;-thus proceeding, gradually and carefully, till they became able to judge, almost as accurately as myself, of any length or distance, not above twelve inches. When I had proceeded so far as to exercise their judgments on objects twelve inches long, I would tell them this was a foot. I have repeatedly pursued this course to the length of a yard, at a single conversation, and without finding the child fatigued with the process.'

This a specimen of the course which should be pursued by parents and teachers, in order to secure to their children that preparation which is indispensable, in the study of geography. Or, to speak more correctly, this is one method of illustrating the principle which we would inculcate, and press upon those whom it most concerns. But we have not yet done. There still remains a long process of instruction, much of which consists in making a practical application of the knowledge the child has acquired, to various objects, and to various heights, distances, &c. The following is another extract from the same source with the above, in continuation of the subject.

'No child should be permitted to attend to the more direct studies of geography, till he has gone through a set of exercises similar in principle to the above; but much more diversified and extended. He should be taken about to see brooks and rivers, hills

Practical Reflections.

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and mountains, shrubs and trees; and be required to judge of the breadth, height, &c., of these and various other objects. At the same time, he should be instructed in the art of drawing maps, beginning with the map of the room in which he is accustomed to dwell, and proceeding gradually to delineate the house, garden, homelot, &c., with which he is familiarly acquainted. Thence he might extend his survey of objects to the neighborhood or village; and ultimately be able to draw a tolerably correct map of the town where he resides.

'As the travels of very young children must necessarily, at least in the present state of human society, be limited to a very narrow tract of country, it would be impossible to give them accurate ideas of all the numerous divisions of land and water, by ocular demonstration. To supply the want of these, an ingenious parent or instructer constructs continents, seas, islands, and lakes, in miniature, without going out of the school room. Nay, there is scarcely a natural or artificial curiosity in the known world, which might not be ingeniously and naturally represented in accurate and suitable proportions.-I hesitate not to predict that all these objects, in miniature, will ultimately be deemed as necessary, in every school room, as books, slates and pencils. They will not, indeed, supersede the necessity, or at least the utility of travelling: children ought at the same time, to travel in company with their parents or instructers as much as possible.'

If this is sufficient to afford hints on what we have called the study of preparatory geography, and to lead our readers to reflect on its importance, our object is, in part, accomplished. We do not believe we have exaggerated; on the contrary, we believe our estimate of the value of this form of instruction, as made above, is quite too low. There is as much difference between him who enters upon life with such a knowledge of geography as our principles would secure, and that of him who is a mere parrot, as can well be conceived. A person who thinks, can scarcely read a paragraph in a newspaper, without finding a large demand for this preparatory knowledge. He who has it not, sees with eyes but half open; and takes in but half the sentiments which words are intended to convey, whether verbal or written. There is a great work to be done at the threshold of life; and which can, as we have already intimated, be best performed by the parent. But if omitted by the parent,—and omitted it usually is, and is likely to be for centuries to come, we fear-let it not be omitted by the teacher. Let him not dare

Let him be

to proceed a step in the usual humdrum manner. gin the work at the right end; and then, and not till then, will he have the pleasure of seeing prosper, in the highest degree, the work of his hands.

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Profound Silence in School.

CONFESSIONS OF A SCHOOLMASTER. No. IX.

DISCIPLINE AND PUNISHMENT.

So well satisfied were the proprietors of the school, which I had lately taught, that, notwithstanding the complaint to the grand jurors, (see page 86,) and the opposition I made to the meeting of the schools, (see vol. VII. page 125,) I was, the next fall, unanimously invited to take charge of their pupils again. But I was so circumstanced, as to be unable to teach school that winter, at all.

This I was at

The following year, another invitation came. liberty to accept. Accordingly I repaired, once more, to the scene of my former labors; and by most of the pupils, was received with a hearty welcome. I taught here, not only this, but the next following winter.

All went on these two winters-with few exceptions-very smoothly. I heard no complaint about severity; because I 'whipped' nobody. I believe it was my boast, and the boast too of some of my pupils, that we had no whip in the school room during the whole of one of the winters. And yet it was commonly reported, that such silence was preserved in the school, that you might, at almost any time, have heard a pin drop.

I believe these reports were substantially, nearly correct; and yet I can assure the reader I have very many doubts whether I governed the school as well, either of these winters, as I did the first one. I will present the reasons for this belief.

In the first place, I think such unnatural silence, in a school of thirty pupils, is wholly unreasonable; being procured at too great a sacrifice. There is not that freedom of action among the pupils, which I deem indispensable to progress. I like to have a still school; but I prefer a little of the hum of business, to that stillness which is procured at the expense of business.

In the second place, the pupils did not appear to regard me as a parent, so much as formerly. There was more of distance and reserve; and less openness of conduct. The reasons of this will be seen presently.

Although, thirdly, I succeeded without the rod, it cost an effort-and of the kind too, which might have been very happily exchanged, even for the rod. I mean by this, that in scrupulously avoiding what is called whipping, I reduced myself to the supposed necessity of using other modes of corporeal punishment, which are far more injurious.

There is no error of my life—as a schoolmaster-upon which I look back with more pain, than the one to which I am about

General Abuse of the Rod.

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to advert. Sometimes the reflections are attended with so much pain, that I can hardly compose myself. Would to heaven it were possible to erase-as pencil marks from paper-some of the worst of our past errors. But no: they are impressed with ink which is indelible. They are not merely printed in the common way, they are stereotyped.

What a sad mistake do parents and teachers make, who avoid the rod, as with a kind of superstitious awe, and yet do not scruple to box the ears, strike the heads, shake violently, or beat or kick their children! And yet nothing hardly is more common, than to shake a child with violence, or box his ears.

Such parents or teachers may rely upon it, that these blows upon little children, are attended with far more danger than the blows usually inflicted by a rod of moderate size. It is not improbable that the intellectual faculties of children are sometimes seriously injured in this way, and that some have been made idiots by it. Yet you cannot find one instance in a thousand, of even a severe use of the rod, where any permanent injury is done.

Should these pages meet the eye of any parent or teacher, who is accustomed to make it his boast that he is not so vulgar or old-fashioned as to use the rod; and yet does not hesitate to box the ears, and otherwise beat or strike the tender brain-pan of his child or servant, let him pause, ponder, and in the fear of God, and of a judgment to come, beware.

I am not for encouraging the indiscriminate use of the rod.Nay, more; I verily believe, that in fortynine cases in fifty of its use, it does more harm than good. But there are cases, occasionally, which in my own view, demand its use. They are cases, too, in which a judicious application of this instrument would be likely to accomplish the end in view, better than any thing else.

Let me say again, I am not for encouraging the indiscriminate use of the rod, either at home or at school. I go farther. If parents and teachers were truly wise, always, from the very first, I have many doubts whether there would be a necessity for using it at all. Children would, undoubtedly, do wrong, but not maliciously or obstinately; and it is only in cases of malice or obstinacy, as I understand the matter, that corporal punishment is required. A moderate share of sound common sense, if parents and teachers would take time, would, in my view, prevent what it is often difficult to any person-but particularly so to those who are so unwise as not to take time for preventionto cure or eradicate.

But neither parents nor teachers will take time to discipline