MENTAL DEVELOPMENT 475 



sound psycho-physiological principles, such as I have outlined 

 in the development of the structure and function of the brain. 

 The Board of Education in England, recognising the importance 

 of this work, issued, in October 191 2, a special report on the 

 subject by Mr. Holmes ; it is probable that the study by Mr. 

 Holmes of this system, the fundamental object of which is 

 self-education by the pupils themselves, a system in which 

 there is neither reward nor punishment of the ordinary kind, 

 and in which there are no time tables, no set lessons, and no 

 classes, led Mr. Holmes to write the book above mentioned — 

 What Is and What Might Be. 



The first stage in the Montessori system, as would be expected 

 from what I have just said, is the development of the senses, 

 mainly touch, then sight and hearing ; this is accomplished by 

 various sorts of games and by drawing the attention of the child to 

 the association of things, names, and ideas. Such operations are 

 preliminary to writing and reading, but naturally lead up to both. 



As Mr. Holmes says, the first impulse of the ordinary teacher 

 is to tell a child how to do a thing which it has never attempted 

 before ; the second is to rush to the child's aid, who having been 

 allowed to try his hand at something new, is confronted by a 

 difficulty and is in doubt as to his next step ; the third is to 

 correct his mistakes for him, instead of leaving him to correct 

 them himself. Dr. Montessori in Mr. Holmes's words has 

 " rediscovered " Froebel's master principle of "auto-education"; 

 the teacher is the director of the spontaneous work of the child, 

 " she is a passive force, a silent presence." Dr. Montessori 

 employs an extensive variety of apparatus suitable for educational 

 games by which the children are interested and stimulated to 

 acquire knowledge, and her educational system is an original 

 and practical expression of sound psychological principles ; these 

 principles are based upon the anatomical and physiological order 

 of development of structure and of function of the organ of mind. 



Little has previously been said in respect to the sense ot 

 smell and taste, but the cultivation of these senses is of more use 

 than many people imagine ; for they are a daily source of keen 

 gratification ; they frequently serve to revive pleasant associa- 

 tions and they are the best natural protector against unsound 

 food, unwholesome drink, and vitiated air. It is a remarkable 

 fact that most mineral and vegetable substances that are poison- 

 ous are acrid, unpleasant, pungent, or bitter, and readily excite 



