THE STUDY OF CHILD-NATURE. 787 
his pupils morally. If anyone does his work less well than 
he is able to do it he is acting immorally. ‘“ Whatsoever 
thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.” The child's 
individuality, however, must not be sacrificed, for one result 
of such repression is to weaken character and destroy will. 
Man’s will is man himself. A teacher, in order to be 
thoroughly equipped for his work, must have at least some 
elementary knowledge of Psychology, a science whose pro- 
vince it is to inquire into how the mind acts during the 
various processes to which it is subject. To obtain this 
knowledge, we must examine our own minds, for no one can 
examine another’s mind in the direct way in which he can 
investigate his own. To do this is a difficult task, but that 
it can be done is evident from the fact that we give names 
to different states of mind. These introspective glances are 
naturally only momentary, as by the very act of introspec- 
tion we alter our mental state. Memory is a better way of 
self-investigation, as we can recall and examine the same 
thing as often as we like. As, however, no two minds are 
alike, it is dangerous to generalise from one’s own, besides 
which memory is apt to be treacherous, and personal bias 
destroys the true proportion of things. Therefore, we must 
supplement the knowledge of our own minds by the exami- 
nation of other people's by indirect means. The minds of 
young children afford the best means for this purpose, as the 
child is more natural, and less able to conceal his feelings, 
than the adult. Mr. Card has already told us that at an 
early age he had learnt the lesson that language and facial 
expression were given to us to conceal our thoughts; but 
I think we must conclude that this awful example of infant 
depravity is an exception to the general rule. It 
is only within our own day that the study of 
childnature has received anything more than a 
superficial attention on the part of educational authorities. 
It is not so long ago since it was considered that all a man 
needed in order to be able to teach was a knowledge of his 
particular subject. But the century which has recently 
closed, justly regarded as the century of' scientific investi- 
gation, has witnessed the first steps of a movement in the 
direction of education, based on sound principles of 
Psychology. To this end the increasing knowledge of the 
science of Physiology has contributed a valuable share in 
placing on a logical and scientific basis the special needs 
of child-life, the necessity of healthy sanitary conditions, of 
lofty and well-lighted rooms, of spacious playgrounds, and 
of a due admixture of rest and recreation. 
