io82 The Cornell Reading-Courses 



One of our great teachers has said: "A man is worth to himself what 

 he is capable of enjoying. ' ' We cannot always enjoy books of equal depth. 

 Because we cannot on some occasions read a learned book, difficult to 

 understand, we need not refuse at such times to read a good book of fic- 

 tion, a bit of biography, or a poem. There are suggestions of the working 

 of a sieve when the newspapers, the short magazine article, the scrappy 

 reading often indulged in, are the sole occupation of the reader. When 

 books were fewer, men and women read them more slowly and more 

 often, and thought more about them. Their minds were not satiated 

 and they had capacity for enjoyment and for reflection. It is true that 

 this flood of reading may be made a blessing in that it furnishes a large 

 opportunity for a wise selection, but it is a blessing only when the 

 literary taste is sufficiently cultivated to be able to choose wisely. The 

 reading of a book may be accompanied by a notebook, but one should 

 read carefully and should become thoroughly satiurated with the subject 

 before putting anything into the notebook. 



Memorize good selections. — Our fathers and mothers cultivated this 

 habit more than their children have. In earlier days there was less read- 

 ing matter. More time was spent on standard works, and attention 

 was not dissipated by a large amount of scattered reading. Poetry was 

 read and committed to memory. Time was given to allow a thought 

 to enter the mind and to become absorbed before the reader rushed to 

 the next subject. The habit of memorizing may be easy or it may be 

 very laborious to acquire. It may be lasting or only transitory. Words 

 should never be committed to memory before the thought has been ab- 

 sorbed. Read a selection or a paragraph two or three times in order to 

 form the mental pictures. Close the book and recall them in their order; 

 never mind the exact wording. If the pictiires cannot be recalled 

 easily, take a paragraph or a verse at a time. Reread it until the entire 

 picture is before you. Then see how easily the words come in their 

 order. This method is not mechanical and it is delightful occupation. 

 Think of the pleasure to the aged person who, after eyesight has failed, 

 can recall incidents and sentiments that have been a pleasure in the 

 original reading. 



This cultivation of the memory for literature is aided by recalling events 

 and objects seen at a glance. All this helps one to be accurate in his 

 observations and in his routine of details. One great cause of inefficiency 

 in practical life is a lack of power to remember. A boy that forgets to 

 bring in the wood or to put up the bars, a girl that forgets to salt the pota- 

 toes or to sew a button on her father's coat, needs to train the memory. 



By practice in memorizing, power may be gained for much enjoyment. 

 The day's churning or a walk to the pasture will be much pleasanter if one 



