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out the slums ; moreover, slum children, if removed, in time may become 

 desirable citizens. 



Why is it that "human weeds" are given such an undue amount of 

 attention, asylums are erected for them where they have the best of at- 

 tention, where they live on to old age? Why must a man wait until he 

 becomes insane or a pauper oi' a criminal before being housed under 

 sanitary surroundings?^ 



Why does ill health flourish so widely? Why are there so many 

 quack remedies, as those advertised in newspapers? The newspapers of 

 some small towns are overcrowded with nostrums for common ill health. 

 Where should the attempt to make a change begin? 



One day I was telling a teacher that in Germany children are taken 

 out into the couutrj- on certain afternoons to study nature, the valleys 

 and streams and underlying rocks, the plants and animals ; that boys 

 make collections of plants and bugs, etc. Perhaps later when as adults 

 they go out into the country they really "see" something. He admitted 

 that that was all very nice but that it required the teacher himself to 

 know what to point out. 



He mentioned that some of our teachers had the pupils to study news- 

 papers. But that occurs only in isolated instances ; when we investigate 

 we find that the editorial page only is read and studied. 



Now the editorial page of large city newspapers as a rule is the 

 only page free from offensive advertisements and reading matter, of ac- 

 counts of murders and all sorts of things that do not elevate mankind. 

 Likely the back of the editorial page is full of murder news and crude 

 pictures of the murderer, his victim and the places where the deed was 

 committed ; or the page is full of quack advertisements, of medical pariahs 

 who claim to cure what no conscientious physician can cure ; or of de- 

 ceptive patent medicine advertisements for ills that no physician can 

 cure, because they are a reaction to an unsanitary environment. 



Now it would be a good thing for schools to study the newspapers, 

 all their pages and all the papers, the high toned ones that leave com- 

 paratively little to be desired and the other kind called yellow. The re- 



' This is not to be ccnsidored a criticism of oiu- benevolent institutions ; they 

 are doing a good work, one in harmony with the spirit of the age. It toolc a long 

 time to reach a high plane. Our leveling should be upward. .\s matters stand, the 

 amount of attention given charitable institutions is wholly out of ])roportion to what 

 is given worthy people not in institutions. 



