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About Montana Sunlight (Whitehall, Mont.) 1902-1911 | View This Issue
Montana Sunlight (Whitehall, Mont.), 04 March 1910, located at <http://montananewspapers.org/lccn/sn85053178/1910-03-04/ed-1/seq-3/>, image provided by MONTANA NEWSPAPERS, Montana Historical Society, Helena, Montana.
HE shrill morning clamor of 'nearly 8,00C Jewish children gath- ering in Public Sehool 31, New York, had died down. All were assembled in neat ranks on the four floors of the splendjd stone building. In the streets, with their lhawled mothers and push -cart ped- llers, were picturesque huddles of to:t- ilers waiting for a chance to oilier lie crowded place. A fair haired young teac-her tatting It the piano On the top floor bent her head and struck a long, deep chord. Instantly 600 dark -eyed boys and girls arose from their desks and a stately psalm filled the great sunlit mom. Presently the fresh young redoes swung Into \Who Is Sylvia?\ and \Where the Bee Sucks.\ Against FV,17.17 - TO TNT come of OurSixteen hildren ? h (41;fff 1411 th,46 /A4./eiREP ugly noises of the crowded, sordid etropolts they sang the fairest, tenderest cies of Shakespeare. Then there was silence. A pale, fiat -chested fish boy lifted a large silk American flag its place against the wall, bore it with emn step and reverent face to, the head of middle aisle, dipped it slowly and then sed it high with a gesture of simple pride. There was something Inspiring as well as (etc in the young eyes in which the op- ed blood of European ghettos looked ugh Its emancipated heirs upon that sacred bol of eqlsity and liberty. The room was still as death. Every face was earnest. The young teacher struck another deep ord from the piano. At this every right hand was lifted in salute the brow and then stretched out toward the ag, while the boys and girls chanted: ' \We saipte thee! We, the children o': many de, who find rest under thy folds, do pledge 3 lives and our hearts to love and protect ee—our country—and the liberty of the erican people forever' I have seen the American flag saluted In ny lands and on many seas, but never have Witnessed a greeting that meant so much ..ts t childish pledge in which one civilisation thistly surrendered to another. Bitter complaints against the public scf.'ools the country spurred me out to learn some- Ing of the present training of our nearly 17, ,000 school children went honestly to condemn; I came back to plain and praise. Nor Is there a more misrepresented or mire derstood subject in America than this goes - on of the public schools; and he is a lucky an who can make the American mothers and there of to -day realize what is being done to e American mothers and fathers of to- Orrow The business man loudly insists that the bile schools are not what they are intended be and arc not what they used to be; that e interest and tillthuttiasm of both teachers d pupils are %Mated on nature studies, paper tting and folding, straw plaiting, art work, k dancfng, music, cooking, sewing, and all anner of fads and frills, while the essentials education, the old fashioned school subjects uped together as the \three Rs,\ are dellb- tely neglected; and that this Is an outrage n the children and a defiance to the tax yore. The immensity of the subject may be judged the new report of the United States com- Issioner of education, which shows that a ar ago there were 16,820,386 pupils enrolled the 259,115 common schools of the nation, th 475,238 teachers. The yearly expenditure on schools is $330,- 0,801—equal to about a third of the whole penditures of the national government—and e value of the school properties reaches the gelling total of $843,309,410. The enrolled school children of the United tee almost equal the combined populations Holland, Sweden, Portugal and Greece. It will be seen that if the education of the lldren of the country Is drifting into the ds of doctrinaires and experimentists, and e practical elements of School training are ng neglected In order that modern pedagogy ay exploit unsound scientific theories, the atter concerns not only fathers and mothers, t touches the character of the nation as a ole. Hope for the future of the great republic ts upon its school children. Nr - cer has such weight of responsibility been thrown upqn, e school house _as_ 10 -day. New York, the second city of the world, Is good field in which to investigate the angry accusations of American tax- payers against the so-called frivolous and demoralizing tendency of public school education. The metropolis has, including high schools, 651,325 children enrolled In its 614 school houses, which cost $99,133,000, and has a teach- ing and supervising force of 16,489 persons, whose combined salaries amount to $17,581,000 a year. For weeks I went from school to school. from class room to class room, from teacher to teacher, from principal to professor, observ- ing, questioning, comparing, analyzing the old idea of the common school with the new, par- ticularly looking to see how theory consisted with practice and results. To start with. I had the fact that there Is general complaint that the boys and girls who come from American public schools write bad• ly, spell badly, and are weak in grammar and arithmetic. But facts are hard things to overcome, and the more I searched for evidence with which to shame and confound modern pedagogy and its methods, the less was I disposed to con- demn, until finally it became plain that I, in common with the general public, was mistaken, and that an attack upon what is known as the \new education\ could not be justified. That there is some waste and much that is experi- mental in it cannot be denied. But the great groundwork i et it seems to be sound and prac- tical. I',,. is claimed that the old system of teach - /05 childrest in the schools was based on an fenorant theory of -the human brain. The idea was that a stern, high drill in a few subjects developed mental power that could be used In all subjects. Teachers have assumed that the mind was a group of general powers or fatuities, such as observation, comparison, at- tet . ion, logic, memory, language, and so on, an that an intensive study along the line of any mind faculty would develop that faculty as a whole and practically for all purposes. It is now held by leading educational au- thorities that the brain, instead of being a col- lection of a few general faculties, divides itself on investigation into countless specilizations, and that mental power deveiopea in one func- tion of the brain cannot as a rule be trans- ferred to another function. That discovery upsets the foundations on which education has been based for centuries and, together with the modern demand for technical and manual training to meet Indus- trial problems, accounts foe the sweeping changes observable in the public schools. To -day the teaching profession has grown to enormous proportions. There are in the United States alone more than half a million teachers and college professors. That is more than a third of the membership of all the pro fesatons combined. The teachers of the coun- try outnumber the lawyers or physicians more than four to one. Pedagogy has suddenly become a conscious profession which seeks to establish itself upon a firm scientific basis. The new idea is that a broad curriculum. embracing, in addition to the three Rs, man- ual training, art, science and nature studies, touches all the latent possibilities, thetas and ambitions of the child; arouses. leterests and develops its capacities; and, so, preperes it for self-realization in its life vocation. Such investigators as Prof. Edward I... Thorndike, professor of educational psychology In the Teachers college, Columbia university, declare that actual scientific tests show that the specialization of the human mind is \even greater than ordinary observation leads one to suppose.'' That thrillingly beautiful ceremony in Which t woo° New York school ohildree end their 16,000 teachers begin each morning's work by stretching out their hands to the American flag and solemnly pledging allegiance to it is 0 0Ir/ an education of the emotions, a cultivation o f the mystic ele- ments of patri- otism. Who can doubt that the , daily salute to the symbol of American Ii b- e r t y, equality and justice as something high and sacred stirs In the childhood of the restless, changing, pro- fane metropolis those fine, almost unspeakable feelings to which the national flag may appeal when even the study of American history fails to arouse the iniaginatkm? But it Is not wholly on psychology that the modern public school and its methods depend for justification. The old style public schools, aside from drill- ing spelling, arithmetic, grammar, geography and Meter. , into the minds of children, princi- pally by stern memorizing of the words of text books, were conducted on the theory of prepar- scion for high schools. The truth is that not one public school pupil out of ten in the coun- try enters a high school. The high schools were largely a preparation for college. But not more than one high school pupil out of ten completes a college course, even in New York. where collegiate education is free. It will be seen that only one out of • hun- dred of the entire school population, in New York, for instance, has the means, inclination or ability to pursue the academic course even at the. public expense. If only ohe child out of a hundred can take advantage of collegiate education, are the re- maining 99 to be left to face the struggle for life with only the three Rs, or perhaps • smat- tering of Latin and the higher mathematics? Germany has risen' to power and riches among the industrial nations through her tech- nical and trade schools. In the development of mechanical invention we have forgotten that the machine is not everything. Already „the labor unions have re Mt - feted the apprentice system until American industry is put to its wits' ends to Mid substi- tutes for highly skilled artisans. The public school teachers of the country and those who train and direct them are ap- parently fully awake to the magnitude of the new task which changing industrial conditions have thrown upon them. Teachers, principals and proferseors alike talked to m2 of Germany's great success through her techacal and indus- trial schools. This keen consciousness of the modern school problem, shown alike by. slender young misses and by gray and wrinkled veterans, was one of the most significant and impressive things I encountered in the public schools. The challenge of industrial Germany is to be answered by American pedagogy. Dr. Thurston of Cornell university, has de- clared that in order to bring the American peo- ple up ro technical and industrial equality with Germany, this country needed at present \1 university professors and instructors and 11,000 students studying the highest branches of tech- nical work; there should be 1,000 college pro tremors and 15,000 students in technical schools studying for superior positions in the tuts; and 20,000 teachers engaged in trade and manual training schools, instructing pupils, 400,000 in number, preparing to become skilled workmen.\ There are more than three female teachers to 'every one male teacher In the public schools of the United States, and yet I found in all schools the same virile thought, that, aside from writing, spelling, arithmetic, grammar, geography ang the rudiments of history, the first great 4y of the teaching profession in America wa manual training and other cul- ture outside o he three Rs, to develop the whole intellige e of children, to accustom their bottle, and minds to wort together, to u' - slat them in gradually discovering what their true vocation in after life ought to be, to fit them for it, and, from the kindergartens URNED TRICK ON FRENCHMEN 'o'er Manner in Which American Tourists Get the Best of the Situation. 'Common decency is cheap abroad,\ the man who had just returned his first trip to Europe. \During the time I was on the continent I subjected to discourtesy In but • instance, and I think 1 got away it then, at that. \We were crossing one of the Swiss passes by diligence, or coach, and Stopped off for luncheon at some little town. It was hot, and I suppose I made rather a comical tight in my shirt sleeves and black glasses, with a handkerchief over my collar, as I stepped out of the vehicle to the road. I suppose, too, that the brand of French interrhich I tried to ask ques- tions was pretty ragged. \Anyway a group of young French- men waiting In a cartiaga while their team was changed saw in me their long -lost original scream, and the way, they laughed was convincing, if not flattering. They weren't backward about pointing out the real, racy bits in the picture either, and they only laughed harder when I glared at them mildly. Another American and I trudged off for lunch, and when we came back there was the bunch ready to take up the howl at me again. I looked at my compatriot and he at el'AMES CREeldvi.AN 01-tY <,NT y ittecARSON IPUJia. CO. \ through every grade, up to the sewing dressmaking and cooking classes tot girls, and the technical drawing and car penter classes for boys—with a sdnapio grounding In art, science and commercia methods—to increase the economic pow er of the population. In spite of the general complaints oi business men against the public schools which were the text of the -article I In tended to write, simple honesty compels tue to confess that the average penman ship, spelling, arithmetic and origitui English composition worked out befort my very eyes in New York public ' schools, visited at random and usually without notice, seems better, touch bet ter, than the average of the public schools of 15. 20 or 25 years ago A comparatively new idea is the \study period,\ in which pupils, with their text books before them, are taught how to study. The teacher explains to the class just what it is expected to get out of the books. In the public school attached to the Training School for Teachers in Brook- lyn I saw a good illustration of how mod- ern pedagogy strives to make children think, Instead of merely training thew /7,4N1141 TR/SI/YIN. fle R1IDL1L\ .7CIFIM71. to repeat and Memorize the words of the test books. A girls' class In history was asked to choose a subject for dramatization The girls those \The Roston Tea Party \ Then they selected who should be King George, the speaker of the houee of commons, the captain of the tertehip, the leader of the American patriots, and so on. Presently the little once—their ages aver- aged 11 or 12 years—acted out the Minot - kat incident which precipitated the American rev- olution. They used their own language, and not the language of the books. The object of all this was, of course, to sup- plement the memorizing of books by perm/tid- ing children to realize history through the ex- ercise of reason and imagination in the at- tempt to reproduee persons and events. There is just now great conflict on the sub- ject of American public schools Here and there are educators who believe that there is too much experiment in the new system. How- ever, the dominant thought is generally ac- cepted. This striving toward ladustrial training re- lates to cities and towus. It is well under- stood that a country boy or girl receives man- ual training and acquires a practical knowl- edge of things in his or her ordinary life in a farm district It Is the children growing up in centers of population, where everything is specialized, and almost everything reduced to machinery, who need vocational development in school. The confessed general object of the average American school teacher to -day is to so de- velop the natural industrial and artistic capac- ities of children, In addition to a good com- mand of the three Rs, that when they reach the ordinary age for leaving the elementary schools, say front 14 to 16 years, they will have distinctly shown their various mental and manual aptitudes. With technical and indus- trial schools In place of the academic high schools, hard-pressed parents will make an effort to keep their children in training longer for the sake of higher wages and greater op- portunities for promotion insured by vocation- al education. Of course the academic high school will continue to exist for that compara- tively small number whose means and ambi- tions destine them to a classical or profes- sional course. The growth of cities and towns, the coneen tration and specialization of industries and the inundations of Immigration have thrown other new burdens on -the public schools. The old American home training, with its Ideals of conduct, helpfulness, patriotism and morals, can no longer be depended upon as before in centers of population. The old American home life, and its standards, are rapidly disappear- ing, and at a time when the church, too, is los. ing - authority and influence. In this confusing era of loosening social bonds, of drifting ideals and of fierce, sordid competition—still more confounded by the nev- er-oeasing flow of mixed bloods from alien civi- lizations—the American school house stands as the one universal Instrument left to society. It has largely taken the place of the home as a guardian of the health of children. That Is one of its most significant developments. It has also accepted sociological duties through its kindergartens in keeping mere infants out of the streets. It teaches sewing, conking, and other household things that were once taught at home. It maintains recreation grounds, where children are trained to play. me. I don't think either of us put the idea in words, but we began \We began to laugh. We fell into each other's arms and laughed. We held each Other up and laughed. We laughed till the tears rolled down our' cheeks. We laughed till we couldn't stand. We rolled into our coach, still laughing, taking Inspiration for each outburst from a glance at the French- men. \Well. sir, that bunch of Frenchmen just wilted. First. they Closed their mouths, then they lost their grins, then each one began squinting at the other, trying to make out what was wrong. Before we'd been at it two minutes pee all discovered they need- ed a drink rod sneaked off to the lit- tle hotel. We laughed till we saw the last of them, and then we laughed at the way we had turned the trick,\ The Money of the Weald. Of the world's stock of money seven billion dollars Is gold, three and one- half bi;:tons silver, and four and one third tAlons uncovered Paper. 1 , 1 Eit y °it ha e been two w evit• In the holier with one o' these terrible hurt - it it,,,, that ask their wives to be aura and wipe between the titiee of the orks, and that know Just how to hang out a wa•li so each piece will get the best sun, it's a real Joy to get back to the ordinary kind of man. Yes, 'Us so I want • man ellould have sense about the things he's meant to hays sense about, but when it comes to keeping house, I like him real help- less the way the Lord plinned to have him.\—Touth's Contpanloe. Dates as Feed. The date, fig and raisin are valu- able foods and with a few nuts one may make a wholesome meal with one or all of these fruits. A handful of dates and a bit of bread feeds the Arab, who is able to travel over the hot sands of the desert. These dried fruits way be used In combination with many foods, making . highly nu- tritive dishes Llate-eattderteees ere delicious. Chop the -dates, intal- , sweleas -'hopped and a little salt, then spread overthin- ly buttered bread Dote puffs are niade like cream puffs, using chopped dates and whipped cream for the filling. Date pie made with dates that have been cooked soft and put through a sieve, then added to a custard, makes a rich, delicious pie. A date dessert which is a little un usual may be made as follows: Date Whip. Cook one cupful of chopped stoned dates In one-half a cupful of boiling water until smooth. Press through ii sieve, Beat the whites of three eggs until stiff, add one-third of • cupful of sugar, one-half of a teamponful of salt and a tablespoonfol of lemon juice Fold In the date pulp, pile lightly in a buttered baking dish and bake in a slow oven 30 minutes. Serve with a thin custard or whipped cream. Dater combine nicely with apples. Line a pie plate with a rich crust. Fill It with a ntixture of chopped ap- ple and dates, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, Cover with • top cruet and bake in a moderate oven Dates filled with cream cheese well seasoned make a nice dessert Dates filled with nuts are another way of serving them Dates, nuts, apples and celery with dressing are a good combination for a salad _ H. WHAT if the snows ar• white mad melt And the summer's bloom is ever? Oh, what If the roses blush no more, And the froat has killed the clover? Let us turn to the winter • smiling face And welcome the pals newcomer; Isn't love as deep, Isn't if, as sweet As It was in the bygone summer?\ —it. F. Williams. 'The Winter Simper. In cold weather the appetite craves hot food, especially if the children and Mall of the house hare hid but a simple lunch at noon. A nice hot soup of some kind like a cream of po- tato or celery, or an oyster stew, is both good and nourishing. A bean soup Is another nice soup, and each dish garnished with a thin slice of lemon adds both to the appearance and flavor. The soup may be followed by a hot dish like an escalloped dish of corn. potatoes. Ash or Meat. If the dish is prepared of vege- tables, cold sliced meat or hot frank- furter sausage may accompany it. A chowder may make the main dish which will take the place of soup and meat. This may be made with vege- tables, fish or oysters, and is suffi- ciently filling to make a good meal with bread and butter. Milk or cream toast is another nice hot dish. Rarebits, omelets, souffles and hot croquettes are always nice, especially when served with some kind of an appropriate sauce. A nice omelet when eggs are • little cheaper so that the expense is not too great, is made as any omelet, putting into the omelet pin with the butter a hand- ful of blanched almonds, then pouring in the omelet and cooking as usual The almonds will be a beeutiful brown by the time the omelet is ready to turn. Serve with hot maple syrup Household Hints. Half a cupful of milk added to a dishpan of water will soften the wa- ter and leave the hands less likely to chap. A salt water bath will be found to quiet nervousness If taken just before retiring Suet and lard added together In the melted state, equal parts of each, make a good fat to use just as one uses lard alone. Date Buns. Roll light bread dough out quite thin; spread It with soft butter and then with chopped dates. Roll th bread up and out with a sharp kn into pieces half an inch thick; lay them In a buttered pan and bake when. -light. If nuts are mixed with the dates, a little richer bun is the result. Rhubarb Baked with Fins. Cover a half pound of well washed figs with boiling water and rook until the water is evaporated. Cie a pound of young pleptant into inch pieces, sprinkle with sugar; add a few figs, placing the rhubarb in alternate lay - er! with the figs. Add a very little water and bake. Raisins or dates may take the place or figs. Ap' raisin pie niakes a fine dessert and It is not an extravagant one an'clesserts go. Cranberry Catsup. One quart of cranberries, one CUP b -- hIVE kt - belief of My own. and it comforts me—that by desiring what Is per- fectly good, even when we don't quits know what Ii is, and connot do' what would. we are putt of a divin• pow- er against e%11, widening the skirts of 11011, and making the struggle with darkness narrower.\—tleorge Eliot Leftovers. There seems to be • prejudice In the minds of most people that any- thing warmed over or served the sec- ond time is objectiettable. Tjaere are rare housekeepers who are able to make ends meet and not leave any waste, but they are indeed rare. Most of us Ilnd that we have all kinds of odds and ends which tax the Inge. nutty to make palatable. The French people, who stand at the head tin reputation at least). In the culivary art, are able to melte an attractlVe meal from the food that is ollco,,,litroen away lit the American houtsehoid • - asebetty veto its* en %ea -ef cook- ery, with large means at her disposal may prepare a fine meal; but it takes reel lugeuulty to prepare attactivo mad nourighlug food on • .sestall al- lowance. In planning the UMW for a week one is able to make dishes for luncheon from the leftovers of the dinner of the day before. 1'egetables of all kinds with carte ful handling may be transformed into scads, creamed or escalloped dishes. Nests beim' our most expensive food, should always be bought with care. The most expensive cuts do not contain any snore nutriment than the cheaper ones, though the process of cooking a tough, cheap cut must be slow and expensive if cooked without a tireless cooker. If one has met of th- e valuable cook boxes meat mnsy be cooked at little expense of fuel at the ideal temperature Fondant for icing, This Is the regular fondant which is used in making French candies. When eggs are high It is more economical than the boiled frosting with egg Boll sugar and water without stirring until it makes • soft waxy hall when dropped in water. Cool, then stir un- til creamy. The nice thing about this frosting is it may be kept for severald days or weeks if covered with bui tered paper and kept cool Wit wanted for use melt over hot wat and dip the small cakes in it. II IAT 'woman, work Is done.' Ilse often been dlepieted. But that she'. worried is a fact And cannot be refuted. The worry over what to eat Is greatest of these Quotations. And glad sited be If some one •Ise Would make th• meal suggestions.' Potato Puree. Have two quarts of stock in the soup pot free from fat, add six sliced potatoes, one small sliced turnip, two finely chopped onions, one Mead par- snip and a piece of celery cut fine. ('ook gently for one or two hours, strain and rub the vegetables through a sieve Mix one tablespoonful of flpur with two of water until smooth. add to the puree with one cup of cream or milk, one table spoonful of finely chopped parsley, pepper and salt to taste, stir and boil live min- utes and Plain boiled macaroni, cooked In boiling salted water, drained when tender, seasoned with butter, salt and paprika, and sprinkled with cheese, tn•kee a good hot supper dish. Household Hints. Mahogany can be given a good lur ter by wiping off with a cloth, using cold water and rubbing to a high pol- ish with a dry cloth. It will take at least half an hour. Finger marks or Mains on wood or porcelain may he (Melly annoyed by rubbing with a cloth 4150904.1111.1ger0- Ilene Paper may be cleaned a few 41mes by rubbing with crusts of bread - Free the room of dust first. Royal Nuggets. Cream one cupful of butter, add one and one -quarter cupfuls of sugar, three well -beaten eggs. Stir IR grad- ually three cupfuls of flour, adding milk to make the mixture of the COA alstency of pound cake batter; edd a quarter of a pound stitch of shredded almonds and chopped citron. 8Ift two teasponfuls of bpking powder _with the flour. Drop by teaspoptifelkon a baking sheet and bake In a moderate oven Broiled Oysters. If possible use oysters fresh from the shell. Wash and carefully pick off all bits of shell; dry carefully with a waft cloth. Heat a shallow baking pan under the flame of a gas burner, rub with butter and lay In the oysters Whenedakown on one aide turn the oth .:7ancert wer latortleid pour over a little melted butter and serve on slices of buttered toast of water and two cups of vinegar. Tie in a piece of muslin a few nioves, three or four allspice, a retch of cmn ntunon broken in bits and a little mace Simmer together until the fruit is soft. Press through a colander add one pound of brown sugar, elm liner ten minutes longer and seal This recipe may be made In small quantities at any time throughout the winter. Made • VKtIrit- We have observed ,that the, mass who is easy is usually worked hard •
