156 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



in the school. 5. Exemplarity : this is connected with the impressive- 

 ness of a punishment ; all the solemnities accompanying the execution 

 increase this effect. Bentham, however, did not sufficiently consider 

 the evils attending too great publicity, which have led to withdrawing 

 punishments from the gaze of the multitude ; it being simply intimated 

 that they have been carried out. 6. Frugality : or making punish- 

 ments less costly to the state, as when prisoners are employed produc- 

 tively. 7. Subserviency to reformation : by weakening the seductive 

 and strengthening the preserving motives ; as in giving habits of labor 

 to the idle. 8. Efficacy in disablement : as in deposition from office. 

 9. Subserviency to compensation : as by pecuniary inflictions. 10. 

 Popularity. Bentham lays much stress upon the popularity and un- 

 popularity of punishments, whereby the public sympathy may work for 

 or against the law ; when a punishment is unpopular, juries are reluc- 

 tant to convict, and public agitation gets up for remission of sentence. 

 11. Simplicity of description : under this head Bentham comments 

 upon the obscure and unintelligible descriptions of the old law, as 

 capital felony^ proemunire. 12. Hemissibility, in case of mistake. 



Punishments must go deeper than words ; indeed, the efficacy of 

 blame depends on something else to follow. Bearing in mind what are 

 the evil tendencies to be encountered in school discipline — want of ap- 

 plication being the most constant — we may review the different kinds 

 of penalties that have been placed at the disposal of the schoolmaster. 

 The occasional aggravation of disorder and rebelliousness has also to be 

 encountered, but with an eye to the main requisite. 



Simple forms of disgrace have been invented, in the shape of shame- 

 ful positions and humiliating isolation. As appealing to the sense of 

 shame, these are powerful with many, but not with all : their power 

 varies with the view taken of them by the collective body, as well as 

 with individual sensitiveness. They answer for smaller offenses, but 

 not for the greatest ; they may do to begin with, but they rapidly lose 

 power by repetition. It is a rule in punishment to try slight penalties 

 at first ; with the better natures the mere idea of punishment is enough ; 

 severity is entirely unnecessary. It is a coarse and blundering system 

 that knows of nothing but the severe and degrading sorts. 



Detention from play, or keeping-in after hours, is very galling to the 

 young ; and it ought to suffice for even serious offenses ; especially for 

 riotous and unruly tendencies, for which it has all the merits of " char- 

 acteristicalness." The excess of activity and aggressiveness is met by 

 withholding the ordinary legitimate outlets. 



Tasks or impositions are the usual punishment of neglect of lessons, 

 and are also employed for rebelliousness ; the pain lies in the intellect- 

 ual ennui ^ which is severe to those that have no liking for books in 

 any shape. They also possess the irksomeness of confinement and 

 fatigue-drill. They may be superadded to shame, and the combination 

 is a formidable penalty. 



