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tice, the teacher can lead his scholar on from step to step from the outset, until he is prepared to draw from life. In the second place, by commencing with the cast, he draws with more confidence and independence ever after.

On the contrary, commencing with the paper models gives a feeling of timidity with regard to drawing from objects that is not readily overcome.

In the third place, in making his own delineation of an object, instead of a mechanical copy of a drawing placed before him, the scholar feels that he is really producing something new, which increases his interest in the study, and is a constant stimulus to improvement. If he has any genuine taste for art, he may in this way be gradually advanced until he has thoroughly mastered the art of composition, when he is prepared to design according to the ability with which his Creator has endowed him. By commencing with the cast is not meant that of the human figure, which is too difficult for a beginner. Architectural ornaments, such as are used in house decorations, furnish a variety of simple curves, as well as combinations of curves, that afford excellent studies for the first lessons.

These should be selected with care, and none adopted for the purpose that are false in taste and skill, because the scholar should be trained from the beginning to learn the laws of unity and harmony, which are indispensable to the composition of every subject, however limited.

The difference in the progress made by the scholar in using a series of good and cor. rect models, or those that are poor and faulty, is incalculable. For this reason, the selection of models should never be a question between scholar and teacher, or parent and teacher, for art is governed by established rules as simple, and by scientific laws as arbitrary, as those that belong to music or to geometry. In other studies pursued, no difficulty of this kind occurs, for the teachers employed in the various departments are supposed to be better qualified to judge than the scholars.

DRAWING SHOULD BE MADE A REQUIRED STUDY.

But, alas! for the teacher of drawing. In the first place, all children are allowed to say whether they wish to learn to draw, and their own inclination decides the question. This study being the only one in regard to which they are left free to choose, shows them at once that no importance is attached to it. If they object on the plea of having no taste for it, no one regards it as evidence of a deficiency in natural gifts; but what parent ever allowed a child to say that they had no taste for music. Ear or no ear, taste or no taste, the master is summoned to make an accomplished musician of the subject given him; and ear or no ear, taste or no taste, the child is made to work with indefatigable diligence, and the lessons are steadily pursued, intermingled with alternate tears and remonstrances, which avail nothing with the parent, for musical skill commands a little coveted éclat. This the scholar does not always secure, but, as a reward for the application made, her individual pleasure in after life is greatly enhanced by the gratification of a cultivated taste, in the frequent opportunities afforded of listening to fine music.

In the next place, if latent talent is developed with the growth, the years that should have been devoted to the acquirement of elementary knowledge and skill in this, as well as in other studies, have passed by. But during that period the eye and taste have become somewhat cultivated, and if the art of drawing is then attempted, the very slow progress made, combined with the feeling of disgust at the puerile effort of skill, will discourage all who have not more than an ordinary share of ability.

DRAWING SHOULD BE TAUGHT SCIENTIFICALLY.

Before closing I would beg leave earnestly to recommend that drawing should be taught scientifically in every school whereit is taught at all, more particularly in the State normal, the ostensible object of which is to prepare teachers for all departments of instruction. Our people have yet to learn that the rules of art are founded in science, and that drawing, to be taught successfully and usefully, must be taught scientifically. The author of an exceedingly interesting and valuable article published in the "American Journal of Education," entitled "Science and scientific schools" (Vol. II, p. 354), in speaking of the ancients, says, "they had, it is true, built magnificent temples. But the taste of the architect, and that of the statuary, or poet, is simply an emanation from the divine breath within man, and is cultivated by contemplation, and only surface contact with nature." Will the writer pardon the liberty taken in commending to his attention the science of art? He will find, on understanding it, that magnificent temples and beautiful statuary, as well as all works of art, are the result of study and scientific skill, and never in any instance designed and accomplished simply by what he considers inspiration, and mere "surface contact with nature."

In the same article (p. 369), the writer speaks of the result of the Crystal Palace Exhibition in London, when the English found, by comparing the productions there

exhibited with their own, that the manufactures of other countries surpassed theirs in the display of artistic skill-the skill which of all others gives the greatest advantage in the great marts of the world, for the artistic will eclipse the mechanical, even in its greatest perfection. And what but scientific art gives the French artisan the advantage over all others, and in all markets commands the preference for their productions?

In the comprehensive plan given in the article referred to, which embraces nothing superfluous to a thorough education, "drawing and the history and criticism of the art" are included. If the art of drawing is worthy of a place in the list of studies pursued, is it not worthy of the same thorough attention as the rest? And if art is not to be studied scientifically in a scientific school, why should it be introduced at all?

STUDY OF ANCIENT ART AN ESSENTIAL AID TO STUDY OF CLASSIC LITERATURE.

It is true, as he says, our young men go to Germany for the purpose of acquiring a higher mental cultivation than the facilities afforded them in their native land ena bles them to gain at home; and what is it that marks so decided a difference between the advantages afforded them in European institutions and those in the United States ? Is there any point of difference so material in the two systems, as that of art culture, which is there considered as of first importance and here entirely overlooked?

In Germany no student of Greek is expected to understand the ancient classics until he has attended lectures upon Greek art and become familiar with the antiquities collected in their rich museums, and that he may understand these lectures, he is first taught the rudiments of art at school with elementary practice.

In all pursuits we Americans look at the practical and the profitable, and in examining the statistics of art we find that in Apelles' time, when every well-educated Greek was well educated in art, pictures brought the highest prices to living artists, for then Apelles sold his pictures of Alexander grasping the thunderbolt, which was deposited in the temple of Diana at Ephesus, for $211,000. Correggio, who died in 1534, executed his "Saint Jerome" for about $2,000. In 1749 the King of Portugal offered $90,000 for it. When the French had possession of Parma the duke vaiuly offered $200,000 to redeem the same picture from being sent to Paris.

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SOME KNOWLEDGE of ART REQUISITE FOR ITS HIGHEST APPRECIATION. Many who go abroad for the purpose of seeing ancient works of art are incapable of appreciating them, because in their education this branch of study has been entirely neglected; still, they claim to be judges, and are ambitious to procure fine pictures and statuary, the possession of which will prove their superior taste and judg ment. In this they tacitly acknowledge the great importance attached to the subject, and at the same time unwittingly betray their ignorance, which is the necessary con sequence of our having no schools of instruction. Our Government pays great prices to native artists for their pictures, and thus by voluntary patronage distinguishes them above their fellow-countrymen, yet no importance is attached to a school of art. The great inventive power of our people is freely admitted by those of other nations with whom we come in competition, but our productions are less finished than theirs, because the inventors have received no artistic training, and of course their work suffers in the comparison.

Impressed with the vague idea that in the pursuit of art there is some radical de fect, one says, "All that our artists need to enable them to compete with those of Europe is a liberal patronage." Another says, "If we would have art succeed in America, we must have large public galleries, thrown open to the public." Athird says, "Artists can never do anything here; they must go to Italy, the land of art." But the true question is, Shall art be taught to our people scientifically and with the same care as other studies pursued? or shall it be condemned as utterly useless, and therefore unworthy the attention of educationists?

On this point let our educationists decide, and act conscientiously for the good of the young who are to perpetuate our Republic, and protect its future interests, and for whom they have in all other branches of education acted so judiciously and ener getically. Let not those who are to follow after them, and on whom the same duties must devolve for the interests of their successors, while grateful that so much was done, mingle their gratitude and praise with reproach and regret that in the education given them, one valuable pursuit was neglected, one important thing omitted, a study which of all others opens the way to profit, to honor, and to distinction, both individual and national." (Fourth Article, pp. 33-38.)

V.-SUPERINTENDENT PHILBRICK'S REPORT, 1871.

In the following report, made to the school committee of Boston, by Superintendent Philbrick, in 1871, the supreme necessity to educators of instituting accurate comparisons between the appliances, methods, and results of the educational systems of different countries and States emphasized; the value and relation of the higher grades to the whole system of public schools is admirably expressed; the history of the evolution of the public schools of Boston, from the time of the passage of the first act in regard to the Massachusetts schools in 1647 to the present day, is succinctly stated; the essential qualities of the public school system, by which the schools have ever been readily responsive to public needs, are clearly pointed out; the great improvement in the quality and usefulness of the schools of the present, over those of the past, is demonstrated; the variety of criticism to which the school authorities are subjected is amusingly illustrated; some of the erroneous conceptions often embodied in the ideas about a "practical" education are exposed; methods of economizing the time and attention heretofore given to the studies of arithmetic and geography are sug gested; programmes of courses of study recommended for various classes of elementary schools by the London school board, for comparison with those used in the Boston elementary schools, are given; so that, both by his interesting portrayal of the historical development of the schools, and by his comprehensive view of the public school system as a whole, Superintendent Philbrick has made a valuable contribution to the present discussion concerning the introduction of industrial art and manual training in the public schools of the country.

This report, by its direct statements, and still more by the logical inferences to be drawn from its statements, can hardly fail to be serviceable to all who are seriously investigating the subjects treated of in these volumes.

To the School Committee of Boston:

REPORT.*

GENTLEMEN: At the regular meeting of the board, in March, I placed in the hands of the members, for immediate use and reference, proof copies of a statistical summary of the condition of our schools, which might, perhaps, be accepted as the semiannual report due from me at that time. But my purpose was, instead of trying to. make that statistical communication pass for my report, to keep its type standing until I could get time to add to it a considerable body of explanatory matter, giving my views in detail as to the proper way of handling every part of the course of study in our grammar schools. Amidst the numerous pressing calls upon my time I found myself unable to accomplish this task as I had hoped to do. And now I have concluded, as the best thing on the whole to be done, to reissue the March statistics, prefaced, not by an elaborate guide for the use of the programme, as I had originally intended, but by such practical suggestions and thoughts as the present circumstances of our school system seem to require.

There is no country in the world where there is so much enterprise in educational

*Twenty-second semi-annual report of the superintendent of public schools of the city of Boston, March, 1871.

matters as in America; and yet this enterprise is not as fruitful as it might be. It is an enterprise too generally accompanied by wastefulness. The most obvious proof of this assertion is seen in recent American school architecture. But the lack of economy in erecting school edifices is of trivial importance in comparison with the waste of educational forces in the school room. In other words, the labors of teachers and pupils are not sufficiently utilized, and hence their results are not what they might be.

Everybody will agree that we ought to aim at the best economy, the wisest adaptation of means to ends, in the administration of educational affairs as well as in the management of business concerns. But as to the best mode of proceeding to reach this end, there is doubtless difference of opinion. For myself, I venture to think that the object in view would be greatly promoted by adopting the plan of treating the educational questions that arise in a thorough, business-like, and, as far as possible, scientific manner. Before we act on an important measure, we ought to know what experience has proved in regard to it, what the wisest heads have thought about it, and how the most practical minds have viewed it.

It seems to me that in America, education, both in the school room and out of it, is too much at the mercy of opinions and theories derived from limited personal experience and observation. So far as education is a science, it is an experimental science. The true method of dealing with its problems is to adapt the results of the most successful experiment to the particular circumstances of the case in hand. Hence the supreme necessity of comparisons in respect to the organization, agencies, means, methods, contents, standards, aims and results of education in different countries and States. "This is a subject which can no more be known without being treated comparatively, than anatomy can be known without being treated comparatively."

In accordance with this view, it is very properly made the duty of the superintendent, by your regulations, to keep himself acquainted with the progress of instruction and discipline in other places, in order to suggest appropriate means for the advancement of the public schools in this city.

This duty I have considered one of the most important assigned me, and I have endeavored to perform it with the utmost fidelity, so far as it could be done, without visiting foreign countries.

It has been no less my pleasure than my duty to compare and collate the history, progress and condition of education in different foreign countries, as well as in the different States and cities of our own country, in order to render my services more valuable in promoting the interests of our schools And this I say, because I wish it to be understood by every member of the Board, that what I say to them in my reports is carefully considered, in the light, not only of personal experience and observation, but also in the light of the results of the experience and observation of others.

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION.

Our system of public schools nominally comprises three grades of instruction, but in reality only two, the elementary grade, including both primary and grammar schools, and the higher or secondary grade, embracing all the different high schools. The line of demarcation between the primary and grammar schools is an arbitrary one, which was adopted merely for sake of convenience in the organization and management of the schools. It is not known to the law, and has no important signifi cance in respect to the age, instruction, or destination of pupils. All the pupils of the primary schools are expected to pass into the grammar schools, and this expectation is practically realized.

But the distinction between the grammar school grade and that of the high schools is real and important. Here is the dividing line between the two grand divisions of education, namely, elementary and higher. The latter has various departments and stages. It comprises secondary and superior education, liberal and technical, or professional.

The curriculum of the grammar school completes the elementary stage of education. Its instruction is instrumental and rudimentary.

The branches taught in the high school constitute not only a higher stage of instruction, but a radically different one. Its instruction is literary and scientific, introducing its pupils into the sphere of liberal culture, or it is technical, leading to professional pursuits. While the door of the high school is, and should always be, open for the free admission of all qualified comers, the great mass of pupils are, by their circumstances in life, prevented from entering. Hence another distinguishing characteristic of the high school: it is practically the school for the few, the minority of pupils. In view of this fact, the high school is sometimes unjustly stigmatized as the aristocratic school, while the elementary school is claimed as the only true democratic school; whereas the American free high school is peculiarly a democratic institution. It gives the poor man's child what he would not otherwise have-a chance with the rich man's.

The elementary school, on the other hand, is not for a minority of children, nor for any class, however large, but for all, up to the prescribed limits of age and attainments. Its course of study comprises those subjects of instruction which are deemed essential for all children, without regard to their social condition or their future occupations. It is the minimum education to which every child is supposed to be entitled as a preparation for usefulness in the community where his lot is cast. It is designed to afford that elementary knowledge and skill which every citizen needs, whatever his calling may be. It is the common school education. It is the base of the educational pyramid.

Remembering to whom these remarks are addressed, I am fully persuaded that it would be a waste of words to enlarge upon the transcendent importance of securing to every child in the community a good elementary education. It would be equally useless to attempt a comparison between the higher and lower grades of instruction in respect to their value as agencies in promoting the welfare of the community. Who would venture to estimate the value of either? Both are of incalculable value and importance. Besides, they are indispensable to each other.

Superior instruction is the source of popular education.

Our common schools were founded by colonists from the universities of the mother country, and their present efficiency depends mainly upon the high schools and colleges. The pre-eminent success of popular education in Germany would have been impossible without the influence and labors of the enlightened classes sent out from the unrivalled universities and secondary schools of that country. To sacrifice higher education to the common school is to kill the hen [sic] that lays the golden egg.

Nor can the college or high school say to the elementary school, I have no need of thee. The people's school is the nursery of the university. Here, from among the mass of common minds, the germs of genius and force are developed and led out from obscurity and poverty into the sunlight of hope. Thus the best material for high culture is made available, the higher seminaries of learning are furnished with meritorious students, the community is enriched and civilization advanced. Daniel Webster said he did not know how he could have gone to college but for the poor little district school of his neighborhood.

No system of education is truly solid and sound and democratic which does not make it possible for the child of superior merit, however poor, to mount to the highest round of the educational ladder.

PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

An examination into the nature and history of elementary education will make it evident that there is no necessary or permanently fixed limit to what we call a common school or elementary education. It is wholly conventional in its character. This education in Boston to-day is the average result of the present public opinion of this community in respect to this matter. It is very different from what it was two hundred years ago, and this difference is owing to the change which has taken place in the wants and circumstances of the people.

In the first public act of the Massachusetts colony (1647), requiring the establishment of schools, it was provided that the masters of high schools should be "able to instruct youth so far as they may be fitted for the university"; but reading and writing were the only branches prescribed for the common schools.

Since this early period the standard of elementary education has been from time to time and by slow degrees raised to meet the growing wants of an advancing civilization, until now every city and town in the commonwealth is required by law to maintain "a sufficient number of schools for the instruction of all children who may legally attend school therein in orthography, reading, writing, English grammar, geography, arithmetic, the history of the United States, drawing, and good behavior." In addition to these essential subjects, certain discretionary subjects are enumerated in the statute-"algebra, vocal music, physiology, and hygiene shall be taught by lectures, or otherwise, in all the public schools in which the school committee deem it expedient."

To such a height has the legal standard been raised from simple reading and writing. But it has been decided by the supreme court of the State that the statute only prescribes the minimum of instruction below which the schools shall never be suffered to fall, but that it allows any town to rise as high above this lowest limit as in its discretion, fairly and honestly exercised, it may deem best. I remember to have taught in my youth in country district schools, at different times, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, surveying, political economy, natural philosophy, and Latin.

EVOLUTION OF BOSTON SCHOOLS.

The history of public education in Boston reflects very distinctly the progress of public opinion during the period of two centuries, in respect to the development and expansion of elementary education.

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