THE MUSCLES. 33 



who, in times of danger, are the quickest to act and the 

 most certain to do so with judgment. 



22. Physical Culture. That form of exercise which 

 interests and excites the mind, will yield the best results ; 

 but to some persons no kind of exertion whatever is, at 

 first, agreeable. They should, nevertheless, make a trial 

 of some exercise, in the expectation that, as they be- 

 come proficient in it, it will become more pleasant. In 

 exercise, as many sets of muscles should be employed 

 as possible, open-air exercise being the best. Parlor 

 gymnastics, and the discipline of the gymnasium are 

 desirable, but they should not be the sole reliance for 

 physical culture. No in-door exercise, however excellent 

 in itself, can fill the place of hearty and vigorous activity 

 in the open air. 



23. Gymnastic Exercises for Schools and Col- 

 leges. In the system of education among the ancients, 

 physical culture predominated. In ancient Greece, physi- 

 cal exercises in- schools were prescribed and regulated by 

 law, and hence these schools were called gymnasia. At 

 the present time, on the contrary, this culture is almost 

 wholly unknown, as a part of the course of education, in 

 our schools and colleges. In a few of our institutions of 

 learning, however, physical exercises have been intro- 

 duced, with manifest advantage to the students, and they 

 form a part of the regular curriculum of exercises, as 

 much so as the recitations in geography, grammar, or 

 Greek. The good effect of the experiments, as shown in 

 improved scholarship as well as increased bodily v^gor, in 

 the institutions where the plan has been tried, will, it is 

 hoped, lead to its universal adoption. We should then 

 hear less frequently of parents being obliged to withdraw 

 their children from school, because they become exhausted 



22. What kind uf exercise yields the best results ? What advice is given ? 



23. Physical culture among the ancients ? In Greece ? In schools and college? 

 at the present time ? Result to the body and mind ? 



2* 



