26 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



in observation will secure a full development of the powers of abstract 

 thought. This matter is very fully and clearly set forth in Mr. James 

 Sully's new work, " Outlines of Psychology." " In the second place," 

 continues Mr. Sully, " the whole scheme of training should conform to 

 the natural order of development of the faculties. Those faculties 

 which develop first must be exercised first. It is vain, for example, to 

 try to cultivate the power of abstraction before the powers of observa- 

 tion (perception) and imagination have reached a certain degree of 

 strength. This self-evident proposition is one of the best accepted 

 principles in the modern theory of education, though there is reason 

 to apprehend that it is still frequently violated in practice." 



The course of study for boys until they are eighteen years old 

 which conforms to these principles would be as follows : Since sensa- 

 tion is the first faculty to be born, the first lessons should consist in 

 presenting to the child objects on which he can exercise this faculty. 

 This is the method of the Kindergarten, and has sufficiently demon- 

 strated its wisdom. Gradually the child should be led to make more 

 and more minute and complete observations, and plants, animals, and 

 minerals should be put within his reach for comparison and classifica- 

 tion. Next he should be set to discovering the physical properties of 

 matter and the laws of force, and after this the chemical properties of 

 matter should be investigated to some extent. Human physiology 

 and hygiene should also form a part of the course. These subjects 

 should be so arranged that a part of the pupil's time throughout his 

 school course would be devoted to the scientific method of studying 

 things, which is a far different matter from committing to memory 

 the pages of the ordinary text-book on science, or sitting passively 

 like a pitcher under a spout while the teacher pours information into 

 listless ears, perhaps showing experiments and specimens, and telling 

 the pupils what to see. The benefits of scientific culture have been 

 often and ably stated. One of the most important is that it prevents 

 the disastrous credulity which prevails even among those accounted 

 well educated according to the ancient standard. If the opponents of 

 science had been familiar with the scientific method of getting at 

 truth, as exemplified, for instance, by the classical experiments, of 

 Sir Humphry Davy on the electrolysis of water, they would not have 

 so eagerly published their understanding of the " Berlin report " with- 

 out a single attempt to eliminate sources of error. 



The study of language also should run through the whole school 

 course. The process of learning to talk should be continued in the 

 school, the pupil's discoveries about things furnishing the subject- 

 matter on which to exercise his powers of expression. He should 

 begin early to write a part of what he has to say, and may thus be 

 introduced to Composition without knowing the dread which that big 

 name commonly inspires in the minds of school-children. Elocution 

 should receive some attention, and the derivation and composition of 



