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THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



spaces. But examples of false syntax are 

 given in an appendix, for teachers who pre- 

 fer them. 



In the High-School German Grammar of 

 W. H. Van der Smissen and W. H. Fraser 

 (D. Appleton & Co.), while the lessons and 

 exercises have been made progressive as far 

 as possible, each separate subject is fully 

 treated before being dismissed. Care has 

 been taken that no grammatical point shall 

 occur in any sentence on which the pupil has 

 not been previously instructed, and that the 

 principles of past lessons as well as of the 

 current lesson shall appear in every exer- 

 cise. Supplementary lessons, designed mainly 

 for reference, are devoted to special cases of 

 grammatical usage. Those points in which 

 German differs from English usage, particu- 

 larly with regard to the prepositions and 

 their puzzling idioms, the use of participles 

 and the construction of participial clauses, 

 and the order of words and construction of 

 sentences, are explained. The vocabulary 

 gives such meanings of words as occur in 

 the exercises ; and the index is full. 



American educators now have offered to 

 them the Systems of Education of Prof. John 

 Gill (Heath, $1.10). The work is a history 

 and criticism of the educational principles, 

 methods, organization, and discipline which 

 have been in use in England, and consists of 

 lectures which it became the author's duty to 

 prepare, as Professor of Education in the 

 Normal College, Cheltenham. The first man 

 whose ideas produced an important effect on 

 English education was Roger Ascham, and 

 his " Scholemaster," though dealing prima- 

 rily with classical teaching, yet contains prin- 

 ciples which are applicable to all school 

 subjects. Comenius, Milton, Locke, and Vi- 

 cesimus Knox are the other educationists 

 whose teachings have been influential in 

 shaping the grammar schools of England. 

 The Edgeworths and Pestalozzi are credited 

 with most strongly modifying the develop- 

 ment of the common school. Oberlin, Wil- 

 derspin, the Mayos, and Froebel are the 

 most prominent names in the history of in- 

 fants' schools. In the conduct of the ele- 

 mentary school, designed for pupils whose 

 education will not proceed far. Dr. Andrew 

 Bell, the founder of the monitorial system, 

 has the earliest place. Joseph Lancaster, a 

 contemporary of Bell, employed substantially 



the same methods. Without displacing the 

 monitorial organization, there grew up after 

 a time what was called the intellectual sys- 

 tem, which made the culture of the inteUi- 

 gence its special aim. A further advance 

 in the same direction was made by David 

 Stow, who devised the training system, which 

 is here presented with especial fullness. The 

 book closes with a chapter on amateurs and 

 helpers, who, though not professional teach- 

 ers, have had more or less influence in de- 

 veloping systems of education. 



In the Report of the Commissioner of 

 Education for 1886-'87 (Government Print- 

 ing-Office), the commissioner, Hon. N. H. R. 

 Dawson, states that the bureau has under- 

 taken to investigate the history of American 

 education, beginning with the sections of the 

 country whose educational history is com- 

 paratively unknown. Monographs on Will- 

 iam and Mary College and the University of 

 Virginia, with sketches of other Virginian 

 colleges, have been prepared. The com- 

 missioner devotes considerable space to tell- 

 ing the condition and needs of education in 

 Alaska, where he has personally made a tour 

 of inspection. Since his appointment, he 

 has simplified the organization of the bureau, 

 and has succeeded in hastening the publica- 

 tion of the annual reports. The volume con- 

 tains the usual information about the schools 

 of the country, and an index to the publica- 

 tions of the bureau, from 1868 to 1887, with 

 a list of the same. 



The second of the " Contributions to 

 American Educational History," now being 

 published by the Bureau of Education, is on 

 Thomas Jefferson and the University of Vir- 

 ginia, by Prof. Herbert B. Adams, and con- 

 tains also authorized sketches of Hampden 

 Sidney, Randolph, Macon, Emory, Henry, 

 Roanoke, and Richmond Colleges, Washing- 

 ton and Lee University, and Virginia Mili- 

 tary Institute. Jefferson's efforts in the cause 

 of education, and the history of the estab- 

 lishment of the University of Virginia, are 

 given with much fullness. An interesting 

 chapter in the account tells how the example 

 of this university over sixty years ago aided 

 the birth of what is now called " the Harvard 

 idea." The record is made more valuable 

 by numerous illustrations, part of them, in- 

 cluding a portrait of Jefferson, being bor- 

 rowed from a recent article on Jefferson in 



