158 THE FARMER AND THE NEW DAY 



in its point of view in the teaching of pupils and in the 

 narrow range of its influence upon adults. John and 

 Mary have been treated as individuals; the instruction 

 has had comparatively little regard to the relationship 

 of John and Mary to other folks, and yet it is the rela- 

 tions of life that constitute its problems. Teaching 

 the pupil to think is good, but to think about what? 

 Himself? His own interests alone? Or his obliga- 

 tions to other people, the common good and interest? 

 It is well for the school to give knowledge, but what 

 sort of knowledge? The knowledge that has to do 

 only with profit and loss? Shall the school not seek to 

 impart a love of the beautiful in literature and art? 

 Shall it not also give the knowledge of what races and 

 nations and communities have done and are doing and 

 want to do ? Moreover the average citizen has never 

 thought of the school as intended for any one except 

 children. It took a long while to persuade our people 

 that the high school should be maintained at public ex- 

 pense. In some parts of our country to-day, there is 

 no public opinion in favor of the publicly supported 

 college or university. So when we begin to talk about 

 the relation of the school to the adult people of a rural 

 community, we are not understood, and it is doubtful 

 if the old-fashioned district school with its meager 

 equipment, its one room, its poorly paid teacher, can 

 do very much for the adults of the community. But 

 a consolidated school, with several teachers, a properly 

 trained principal interested in rural affairs and remain- 

 ing in the community until his leadership is proved, a 

 school house with an audience room that will seat the 

 people of the community give us these and then we 

 begin to see what the school may do for the adults. 

 And what may it not do? Our idea of the education 



