OF EDUCATION 5 



nature of the child. Through the years between in- 

 fancy and the school age, the child shows us in a de- 

 cided way the direction in which nature impels him 

 and guides his activities, and hence, the direction in 

 which we ought to help him to go. To the child, the 

 sky, the great blue dome which bends over the land- 

 scape, is a real canopy directly over his playgrounds. 

 Here he is delighted all day long in every object of 

 sense — in every novelty of sound, color and form, in 

 every bird, beast and insect, in the beautiful forms 

 and colors of plants and flowers, in the moving clouds ; 

 and even the solid earth and sand and pebbles he 

 treads upon — all are objects of interest, objects of 

 study, and of wonder. Here in the realities of the 

 world, so near at hand, are the perfect lessons for 

 intellectual and moral culture, infinite in number and 

 variety, created and perpetually renewed by Infinite 

 Wisdom, for infinite good. 



Something of every science and art should be 

 learned by children as soon as they can put it to use. 

 This is the best, if not the only way of making facts 

 permanent and always available. It is the child's 

 nature to observe, and as soon as he can talk he wants 

 to tell every detail of his observation and experience. 

 This oral report seems to be an essential part of his 

 life. He continually brings the words he has learned 

 into use, and this gives him complete success in ex- 



