News and Notes 



Mr. R. W. Guss took the position of school Garden Super- 

 visor in Cincinnati, Feb. i. 



A Correction — In Miss Barret's article on the Most Useful 

 House Plant, in the January Number, p. 19 about middle of the 

 page, "But unfortunately flour contains a ferment" etc., should 

 read "But fortunately," etc. The error was the editors not the 

 author's. 



The Committee on Course of Study for the United States Indian 

 Schools recently convened by the commissioner of Indian Affairs, 

 Cato Sells, after several weeks' work in conference at Wash- 

 ington has completed a course of study which will give to the 

 Indians the best vocational training offered by any school system 

 in the United States. 



As these schools must train Indian youth of both sexes to as- 

 sume the duties and responsibilities of self-support and citizen- 

 ship, this course strongly emphasizes vocational training. 



It is divided into three divisions. The first is the begining stage 

 the second the finding stage, and the third the finishing stage. 



During the first and second periods the training in domestic 

 and industrial activities centers around the conditions essential 

 to the improvement and proper maintenance of the home and 

 farm. The course outlined in the prevocational division is unique 

 in the fact that in addition to the regular academic subjects 

 boys are required to take practical courses in farming, gardening, 

 dairying, farm carpentry, farm black smithing, farm engineering, 

 farm masonry, farm painting and shoe and harness repairing, 

 and all girls are required to take courses in home cooking, sew- 

 ing, laundering, nursing, poultry and kitchen gardening. 



This course not only prepares the Indian youth for industrial 

 efficiency but at the same time helps them to find those activities 

 for which they are best adapted and to which they should apply 

 themselves definitely during the vocational period, the character 

 and amount of academic work being determined by its relative 

 value and importance as a means of solving the problems of the 

 farmer, mechanic and housewife. 



Non-essentials are eliminated. One-half of each day is given 

 to industrial training and the other half to academic studies. 

 All effort is directed towards training Indian boys and girls 



136 



