Maech 19, 1897.] 



SCIENCE. 



467 



room. The charge that the sciences are 

 not comparable with linguistics in educative 

 value, by virtue of their inaccuracies, is not 

 without foundation. If a student in Latin 

 should be taught that the third personal 

 ending of the verb is t, or some letter in 

 that vicinitj', the college entrance examina- 

 tion would disclose marvelous results. This 

 is only a fair sample of the lax approxima- 

 tions accepted by the teachers of physics 

 in much of their experimental worii. ISTo 

 piece of mechanism is too exact to demon- 

 strate physical law, especially if we are to 

 demand that the colleges accept work in 

 the sciences as equivalent to the languages. 



An interesting discussion followed con- 

 cerning the usefulness of home-made ap- 

 paratus, both sides of the question being 

 advocated. Dr. C. H. Sharp, of Cornell 

 University, thought a well-equipped work- 

 shop should be one of the first essentials of 

 every physical laboratory, and a means of 

 providing many well-constructed pieces of 

 apparatus. It was agreed, however, that 

 the quality of the teacher is of higher mo- 

 ment than the apparatus, the good teacher 

 being always superior to his instrument. 



Dr. William Hallock, of Columbia Uni- 

 versity, stated that the ' new curriculum,' 

 which goes into effect with the beginning 

 of the year 1897-'98, permits the student 

 to offer, instead of Greek, an equivalent in 

 the physical sciences for entrance to Colum- 

 bia. Hence this desirable step in the ad- 

 vancement of sound education is no longer 

 untakenor uncontemplated in this State. 



Speaking as a teacher in college he ad- 

 vocated the early study of physics. Me- 

 chanics is particularly well adapted to the 

 training of the young mind to see, to think, 

 and to express itself freely. If the pre- 

 paratory school can teach the scholar to see, 

 to think and to express his ideas; certainly 

 the instructors in college will be very well 

 satisfied with such a preparation, and will 

 have the work of the further cultivation of 



science greatly facilitated. As a preparation 

 for college it is not desirable that the stu- 

 dent be initiated into the mysteries (?) of 

 the ether and the electro-magnetic theory of 

 light and other similar subjects; these, if 

 ever taught, should be taught in college ; 

 recondite theoretical discussions are out of 

 place in an elementary course; higher math- 

 ematics is also superfluous. It is possible 

 to give a student a very comprehensive 

 knowledge of even the more abstruse facts 

 of physics without requiring a knowledge 

 of mathematics beyond the rule of three. 

 College professors have all been teaching 

 elementary physics because their students 

 came to them with no knowledge of science, 

 but with a loose way of thinking and writ- 

 ing, which is very hard to correct at that 

 stage of their mental development. 



As a general educational course for those 

 who do not go to college, the course in 

 physical science is of undisputed value. 

 Here also the mechanical-physical side is 

 preferable to the chemical side, as being 

 simpler, more easily grasped, and more 

 readily and generally applicable to every- 

 day experience. The necessary apparatus 

 is not extensive, complicated or expensive. 

 The course should include a well-selected 

 series of experiments which should tend to 

 a gradual development of the powers of 

 observation, of thought and of expression, 

 rather than to instructing the student in all 

 the latest and most remarkable discoveries 

 of science. If he has the desire and has 

 once acquired the proper method of seeing 

 and thinking, the student will have little 

 trouble in picking up much more infor- 

 mation than can possibly be given to him 

 in any superficial course of cramming. 

 Teach him to see, to think and to speak 

 clearly, and all will be well. 



Professor W. C. Peckham, of Adelphi 

 College, urged that the attention of the 

 young pupil should be directed to the 

 phenonena of nature about him; to the 



