KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 



395 



place in the Public's " Own Journal," please 

 give it insertion. — C. A. B., Northlcach. 



Natural Histonj of Ailsa Crag. — At a recent 

 "lecture," given by George Donaldson, Esq., at 

 Glasgow, some very interesting particulars were 

 disclosed in connection with the Ailsa Crag. 

 This famous rock, from which the Marquis of 

 Ailsa takes his title, is a huge mass of basalt, 

 nearly three miles in circumference, and 1,200 

 feet high. It stands near the mouth of the 

 Forth of Clyde, and is often visible at immense 

 distances. Here is the chief building place in 

 Scotland of the Solan goose and the guilemot. 

 In a few days, this rock will bo covered, with 

 countless thousands of these birds; and inte- 

 resting as the sight is to an ordinary observer, 

 it is doubly so to ornithologists. The lecturer 

 remarked, that he had, at various times, seen the 

 guilemot move her egg by clasping it with her 

 wing close to her body, — thus proving that the 

 wing is in some degree a prehensile organ. He 

 had also Avitnessed the newly -fledged birds car- 

 ried to the sea on their parents' backs, — a fact 

 much disputed, and one which some of the most 

 able ornithologists have decided against. [Here 

 we see again the necessity for bowing to real 

 "facts," which the want of experience had not 

 before brought to light.] The egg of the guile- 

 mot bird (each bird has only one) is cream- 

 colored, with a brownish mark " scribbled" all 

 over it. It is a remarkable fact, that amongst 

 all the millions of eggs laid by these birds, no two 

 have ever been found precisely alike. The lec- 

 turer volunteered a jocose remark, that this might 

 be a provision of nature to enable each bird to 

 recognise its own egg amidst the indescribable 

 confusion existing in the colony. The same 

 diversity of mark exists in the egg of the house 

 sparrow (passer domesticus),' and some few others. 

 — J. B. M., Glasgow, June 1. 



ON THE EDUCATION OE CHILDREN. 



Dear Mr. Editor, — I was so much de- 

 lighted with some remarks that appeared in 

 a former Number of your excellent Journal, 

 that I have ventured to send you some few 

 of my own on a similar subject. Feeling 

 greatly interested in the matter, I trust you 

 will, if my ideas are in unison with your 

 own, give them insertion in the Public's 

 " Own Journal." 



Surely, Sir, there can be nothing of more 

 importance to parents, than the Education 

 of their children ; and yet, with what little 

 study is this noble work attended ! 



Every mother should inform herself on 

 this subject as far as her means Avill permit, 

 for it is her first of duties. Far too little 

 attention has been paid to the art of guiding 

 and training the human mind in its earliest 

 development ; less, indeed, than is devoted 

 to the acquirement of most mechanical 

 arts; although this is as far above all 

 other considerations as the lark is above 

 the sparrow, the heavens above the earth ! 



The formation of human character depends 

 upon surrounding circumstances ; and I think 

 half the misery in the world may be fairly 

 attributed to the ignorance of mothers. We 

 cannot comprehend how subtle is the influ- 

 ence which operates on the susceptible organ- 

 isation of a tender child. A smile and a 

 kind word are as grateful and as developing 

 for good purposes, as spring-rains are to the 

 early flowers ; whilst a harsh word and a 

 scowl may engraft that which shall end in 

 everlasting torment. 



Even as I believe we are influenced by 

 every wind that blows, and by every star 

 that shines, so is a child influenced and 

 moulded by every Avorcl and look of the 

 mother. It feels a thousand influences that 

 fall upon it unseen and untold ; but they are 

 silently felt, and have each their mission. 

 From the first moment of its dawning facul- 

 ties, a child begins to observe and to learn. 

 From the first hour it can discern objects, it 

 is open to object-teaching ; and is influ- 

 enced by example. I have a little child, six 

 months old, that is very susceptible to sur- 

 rounding influences ; and manifests its sus- 

 ceptibility in a remarkable way. For 

 instance, two days since, a strange nurse 

 came to it, and it cried when she took it 

 up ; but, as the nurse is very fond of chil- 

 dren, to-day my child cries when it is 

 taken from her. Children, even infants, are 

 wonderful physiognomists, far better than we 

 are. They are not blinded by deceit and 

 sin, and the mask of falsehood turns clear 

 as crystal to their innocent gaze. They 

 always know who loves them ; and can see 

 it through ugliness and deformity; while 

 beauty and fairness of feature do not blind 

 them to hatred, or dislike. This is evident 

 from the earliest infancy. Let us not say 

 then that children are too young to under- 

 stand ; and therefore too young to obey. 

 We are too ingenious in framing excuses for 

 our own neglect of duty. The proper edu- 

 cation of children requires the devotion of 

 heroes ; the most undaunted zeal, and a 

 never-wearying perseverance ; and when 

 we lack these, we are glad of any loop-hole 

 of escape. We are like the " Faculty," 

 who oppose Mesmerism as a curative agent 

 for disease, simply because of the immensity 

 of labor and patience it requires to effect a 

 cure by its agency ; and because its general 

 use would do away, for the most part, with 

 medicine. 



You can teach the kitten and the dog, 

 that they must do certain things, and must 

 not do certain other things. You can also 

 teach birds to do your bidding to a marvel- 

 lous extent. A Frenchman has recently col- 

 lected a large number of canary birds for a 

 show ; and he has taught them such implicit 

 obedience to his voice, as to march them in 



