braamI CORRESPONDENCE AND DISCUSSIONS 253 



age to take spontaneous and natural interest. I go farther: 

 Some may think these the last things in which children should 

 take interest. It is true that we have had them: "Bands of 

 Mercy," "Mosquito Leagues," "Paper-Picking Associations," 

 et al.; and we may yet have a "Childrens' Smoke Consuming 

 Crusade." If it were not so serious from the standpoint of 

 time, economy, and taxes, one might laugh at it, take hold of 

 "the thing next at hand" and forget it all. Besides, what of the 

 effect of it all, on the children? What effect on mind and heart 

 of the millions of children has the advocated "free natural and 

 direct educational process." For, although it must be "ac- 

 curate, in detail, yet it must furnish point of view, and vigor of 

 personal initiative." 



In reading much of this, I ask myself continually: Is this all 

 for children of the grade schools? Must they seem to imitate all 

 sorts of civic concerns — and solve all sorts of sociological prob- 

 blems?. It is to me a strange phenomenon and one having little 

 good, this shifting upon children the responsibility of delivering 

 us from evil, while permitting at large adults who violate by 

 overt acts all laws of decency. We wonder at the fanaticism 

 of the middle ages, and stand aghast at the sacrifice of innocents 

 led forth to exterminate the moslem hordes, and yet demand of 

 our own babies that they shall do battle for us — for us grown- 

 ups — so that birds shall not be slaughtered for vanity, mosquitoes 

 not spread disease, our streets not be polluted, our forests not be 

 destroyed, our soil not wasted, our courts not be conniving, our 

 votes not be bought and sold, our cows not fed on slop, and 

 our men not get drunk. And, note now the logical indictment: 

 "So long as our public school does not turn out children who 

 can and do imitate these measures, so long it stands self con- 

 demned as a useless institution that ought to be summarily 

 dealt with. Therefore, go too now, ye teachers (some of you 

 'no doubt' are lax and lazy) — I say, go too now, and do raise 

 radishes or anything else that makes for a "center of interest." 

 Let go reading, writing and the inculcation of obedience to 

 authority. Let every thing be free and natural, and get initia- 

 tive in children. 



Let us look at this thing again. Children are children. As 

 such they are in the objective stage of. mentality. Much like an 

 animal — they see the thing, but lack power to trace it to its 



