to his surroundings. Never forget that the boy is going to be a social being, and that we fit him for society thru the study of history.

SUPERINTENDENT A. S. KINGSFORD, of Litchfield, Minn.-Logical sequence ought to be the main thing in the study of history. Make English history the basis of information. The reason is that history is an evolution. Then take history of Greece and Rome, and in those three histories we have the essential elements of all history. They represent democracy, republic, and empire. We ought to study creative periods, instead of retrogressive, and that is the reason why we should emphasize the study of the democracy of Greece and the republic of Rome. After that we could take up mediæval history, if we have time. Only a limited time can, under ordinary circumstances, be given to history. Other subjects demand attention. Citizenship is, of course, the main object, and we teach that thru history; but other subjects must also have due attention.

ENGLISH CONFERENCE

LEADER, THOMAS C. TRUEblood, profFESSOR OF ORATORY, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN [REPORTED BY PROFESSOR George w. saunderson, Seattle, wash.]

In the English section the discussion was directed toward the spoken English, and the subject was divided into three parts: (1) Pronunciation, its purity, and the effort to establish reasonable uniformity in America. (2) Training of the speaking voice; the underlying principles of emphasis and expression; expressive reading as an aid to the teaching of literature. (3) Rhetorical work, the declamation, the oration, the debate;

contests.

As to the first of these divisions, Mr. Trueblood urged that a universal English pronunciation be sought; that localisms and provincialisms be rooted out as far as possible; that the teachers of the high school be carefully drilled in a common-sense, economic, authorized pronunciation; and that every teacher, whether in English, Latin, or mathematics, should note and correct mispronunciations in the class-room. In this way there would be less for the colleges and universities to correct.

Some of the agencies suggested as means of polish in pronunciation were the association of peoples of the various sections in commercial relations; intermingling in great cities; meeting in conventions and conferences; travel and observation; observing and following the pronunciation of speakers of culture and refinement; receiving direct instruction from those well prepared to teach spoken English.

Mr. Trueblood called attention to a few special provincialisms, among which were the following: a, arm, far, is often pronounced as a, call, law, and vice versa; ou, sought, nought, becomes o, sot, not. There is a tendency to make all short o's alike, e. g., the o of sot and song is not the same; u, tune, duty is wrongly pronounced as long oo. There is a tendency to slight ther in the South and parts of the East, and to exaggerate it in parts of the North and West. A modified and softened sound is preferable to either.

MISS VIOLET JAYNE, associate professor of English in the University of Illinois, said she would be sorry to lose the edge of some provincialisms that she was fond of hearing. She deplored the overexactness of some in their pronunciation, which called attention away from the thought to their manner. She was much interested in spoken English from the standpoint of literary interpretation.

DR. E. E. WHITE, of Columbus, O., spoke of the importance of not overaccenting unaccented syllables, and used as an illustration the word trespass, the last syllable of which is often given too positive a sound of short a. He urged the cultivation of the voice, because the uncultivated voice cannot express the finer distinctions of sound. But let your voice be your servant, not your master. It is a form of pedantry to display pronunciation.

PRINCIPAL OLIVER S. WESCOTT, of Chicago, advocated accuracy even to the point of overexactness, that the pupil may leave his slovenly mumbling far behind.

Mr. Trueblood then took up the second of the topics set apart for discussion, "The Training of the Speaking Voice for Expressive Reading." Before vigorous training for the speaking voice should begin the average student should be advanced to at least the third year of the high school, for then the voice will have become reasonably well settled. But expressive reading should begin as soon as the child gets over the act of naming words. Question him as to the meaning, and he will often give it in the words of the book, and with far more expression than when reading. This gives the qualities of directness and naturalness so much to be desired. Then as the child advances give him hints as to sense emphasis. Show that emphatic words are those necessary to the thought— the key words; such, for example, as you could least afford to cut out of a telegraphic message.

In the last two years of high school attention should be paid to the simple principles of vocal expression-pitch, force, time, and quality in utterance. There should be frequent reading from the English classics, not for grammatical construction, etymology, or philology, but to catch the spirit of the author. English literature should not be slighted vocally. Teachers should be able to interpret, not that students should imitate, but that they should be led by suggestive hints of expression to gather the full force and effect of the lines.

It was suggested that a good way to teach Shakespeare.after critically studying the lines is to assign characters in the principal scenes of the play under consideration to members of the class, and require them to commit and present the scenes in the class-room with such force and effect as is consistent with propriety.

DR. A. F. NIGHTINGALE, of Chicago, urged very strenuously that teachers train the speaking voice, and bewailed the fact that so few are really expressive readers. "I have examined hundreds of teachers for the Chicago schools and found hardly one I would wish to put before children to teach reading."

C. S. HARTWELL, of Brooklyn, N. Y., spoke of the very great natural expressiveness of the language of Milton, Shakespeare, Scott, and Tennyson. Their language is attractive, because it fits their ideas. It takes a better teacher to teach English than a foreign language, because students having a knowledge of the practical use of English are more critical than with teachers of other languages.

PROFESSOR GEORGE W. SAUNDERSON, of Seattle, Wash., spoke of the value of oral reading as a means of intellectual and literary training, of the analysis of the sentence, the paragraph, and the whole composition, and then of vocal synthesis as a means of mentally and spiritually transporting the ideas and feelings to others.

MR. WEST, of Wisconsin, made the point that in grade teaching if selections different from those found in the text be given to pupils to read in the class they give better expression to the thought, because the matter is new to the audience. They gain directness by trying to entertain and instruct.

Mr. Trueblood then directed the discussion to the third of the topics for discussion, “Rhetorical Work." He commended original work in writing and speaking in the last two years of the high school. Some simple hints on planning and constructing speeches should be given by the teacher, corrections should be made, and then the papers should be rewritten, so that full benefit may be derived from the criticisms. Opportunities for more formal orations are offered in the oratorical contests which lead to district and state contests, such as many of the states have already organized.

As interscholastic debates are also occupying a prominent place, it was suggested that a few hints on argumentation and parliamentary usage might contribute much toward properly utilizing the competitive spirit of debate. Questions of live interest should be

proposed under faculty direction, and so worded as to give opportunity for good argument on both sides of the question. These questions, because of their vital interest to students, make it much easier for them to express themselves with force and effect.

Mr. West and Mr. Hartwell spoke of the great value of these debates. The latter suggested three grades of oratorical work in the schools: (1) the declamation, valuable as a means of crystalizing one's manner; (2) the oration as a means of crystalizing one's thought; and (3) the debate, useful as a means of putting thought into action—a practical form of public speaking, developing ability to cope with emergencies.

General discussion followed as to methods of arousing general interest in debate, methods of preparation, schemes for securing satisfactory decisions, points on which decisions should be made, the conduct of debates, and other points of vital interest to teachers of English and oratory.

PRINCIPALS' CONFERENCE

LEADER, W. J. S. BRYAN, PRINCIPAL OF HIGH SCHOOL, ST. LOUIS, MO. [REPORTED BY FOREST C. ENSIGN, PRINCIPAL OF HIGH SCHOOL, COUNCIL BLUFFs, ia.] THE LEADER: In the selection of topics for consideration at this conference, I have been guided by the desire to have the discussions fruitful of results in that they may call forth an expression of opinion about matters of real concern to those who are engaged in the management of secondary schools.

I have named, and very imperfectly outlined, several topics, not with the idea that all could be considered, but that those may be discussed in which there is the greatest interest.

Having noted the very general interest manifested in the first topic sketched, "School Athletics," I shall occupy a few moments in its elaboration before opening the meeting to such discussion as may be pleasing to those in attendance.

At a meeting of the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools, the subject of school athletics called forth a most animated discussion, which resulted in the appointment of a committee to consider the whole subject and to report at the next meeting the result of its deliberations. This action, taken last March in Cleveland, certainly warrants the conclusion that the subject is of pressing importance and may well engage our thoughts at least a portion of the time set apart for this conference.

It is a question of practical importance, because it has not been called up from the realm of the imagination, but has arisen in the life of nearly every secondary school. It is a practical question, because athletic sports are natural to the adolescent period of life. The exuberance of vitality finds in them a healthy field for its pleasurable exercise. Having had their earliest development in the colleges of the country, it may be because in them young men lived together and were thrown upon their own resources for social pleasure, and so naturally gave some time to physical exercise, or because gymnasia were provided by the colleges for the physical well-being of students, athletics of late years have permeated the secondary schools, in many of which physical culture is now receiving the systematic attention it surely deserves, which is rendered possible by the wise provision of properly equipped gymnasia.

The existence of athletics and their forceful if not forcible entrance into the life of secondary schools has been regretted by some, because they seemed likely to disturb the calm serenity of the school, and often did prove a disquieting influence. It has taken the world, or at least some portions of it, long years to learn that the natural tendency of children and youth, and indeed of mature men and women, to indulge in sport and amusement is not sinful or subversive of good, when properly restricted and wisely directed by reason, but is a means of refreshing, conservative of energy and preservative of life itself.

Because athletics were viewed with distrust and disfavor, they were for some time left severely alone, if they were not openly discountenanced and discouraged. Left to themselves, the youth displayed a lack of judgment which older heads and mature years might have contributed had there been proper sympathy with youth and a right appreciation of the opportunity afforded for helpful suggestion and wise direction.

Unfortunately those who give themselves wholly to athletics are often - possibly as a necessary result of such perversion - neither intellectual nor moral. It is therefore not strange or inexplicable that, left to themselves and the example of such persons, the youth should run to excess and turn to evil that which by nature was capable of the best uses. Athletics unregulated have been harmful; regulated, they may be made to exert a wholesome disciplinary influence. Men ought to have learned the lesson of the age that forces which are destructive when not understood or not brought under control may become the most efficient servants of him who has learned how to take advantage of the laws of their being. Teachers, of all men, need to know this fact and profit by its teaching in dealing with the souls they are to guide and make efficient in righteousness.

--

If time permitted, I should dwell at some length upon the potential influence of athletics as a means of education; but it must suffice to briefly state the effects that may be and have been produced by their proper use.

Both in individual events and team playing, the powers of observation are called into the keenest activity, as upon the accurate noting of conditions and circumstances success or failure depends. The alertness, the quick perception, and prompt action of a pupil on the athletic field are often in strong contrast to the dreamy indifference of the same pupil in the recitation room. No movement escapes the notice, no irregularity goes unchallenged.

In the daily practice and on the field of contest, during all the period of training, what self-control and restraint of desires is observable!

In the hour of trial no hardship, no physical discomfort or pain, is regarded as of moment if thru it the touchdown may be scored, or the home plate crossed, or the hurdle cleared, or the goal reached. The players smile at exhaustion, make light of pain, bravely dare anything, cheerfully do anything that seems to promise victory.

One of the most striking effects of athletics is the prompt and unquestioning recognition of authority as vested in coach or captain, which results in absolute and immediate obedience to the one temporarily clothed with the right to command. The yielding of implicit obedience in such cases, based upon the perception that in this way alone victory is possible, may become a revelation of duty to those who have been slow to recognize their obligations to home and school. At least it is a very effective analogy for the teacher to draw, and discloses the falseness of the position of the pupil who fails to yield a like cheerful obedience to school authority.

In the management of field-day, or football contest, or baseball game, in the conduct of the affairs of the athletic association, pupils learn many a practical lesson in organization. I recall a complete transformation that was made in an athletic pupil by his induction into office. Careless, noisy, disorderly he had been before he was raised to the dignity of president of the athletic association, but on taking the chair there was apparently a complete change in his conception of the value of order and regulation, and from that time an appeal along lines of the necessity and value of organization never failed of a ready response. In more than one instance just appreciation of organization has been developed by participation in athletic affairs.

But a more obvious effect is the creation of school spirit, or a sense of loyalty to the institution whose colors are defended on the gridiron or the diamond, on the track or the rowing course. Even those who merely shout for the school on the bleachers have kindled within them a sense of loyalty which may be used in other connections as well, if the teachers of the school sympathize with athletic sports and do not withhold their presence and approval and by sentiments of disfavor make the natural expression of loyalty

appear to be an act of hostility to good order and of disrespect to regulation. I do not mean that the thoughtlessness and impulsiveness and intensity of youth may not overstep he line of propriety. Excessive jubilation and noisy demonstration in the hour of victory are hard to prevent or repress. Indiscretion is not treason, and ebullition of spirit is not rebellion; but the wise teacher will be quick to note the danger and carefully plan to utilize the tremendous force displayed, directing the flow of the current while confining it to a definite channel lest it should sweep over the banks in a destructive flood.

There is conservation of energy in spiritual forces as well as in natural forces. The conditions of the transformation of the energy of adolescence from one form to another are the secret of the secondary teacher's power. Co-operation on the part of pupils is to be wooed and won by thoughtful attention and considerate, loving service on the teacher's part. He who cannot enter into the innocent, natural pleasures of youth has no rightful place in the schoolroom. Sympathy, to be effective, must be genuine and spontaneous. Athletics afford the teacher an opportunity to co-operate with pupils by sympathy and helpful suggestion, and by actual presence and service in a way that will bring return of co-operation on the part of the pupil in the serious work of the schoolroom.

The dreaded deleterious effect of athletics upon scholarship may be prevented by foresight and wise regulation. It is due to an injudicious distribution of energy on the part of pupils and want of system in the use of time. Scholarship qualifications carefully enforced should be made the prime conditions of participation in athletic events of all kinds. Such qualifications the pupils themselves will be ready to adopt if they are suggested before the opportunity to comply with them is past. Retroactive measures do not meet the approval of young or old. Without such qualifications scholarship will suffer; with them, the love of athletics will be an effective motive to effort on the part of otherwise indifferent pupils - not always a sufficient motive, it is true, but in many cases enough to produce satisfactory scholarship in those who would otherwise have been deficient. If there were no athletics there would be indifferent pupils, lacking in force and determination. Wise regulations with reference to athletics may make them a means of stimulation and prevent them from being an excuse for neglect. I may be pardoned if I cite from my own school instances in proof of the proposition that athletics are not of necessity injurious to scholarship. Three years ago there went from the St. Louis high school to Williams College a young man who had taken the prize as the best allround athlete. . . This young man has continued his interest in athletics, was made class president, and has taken the same high grade in scholarship that he maintained from the first in the high school. Two years ago there went to Princeton a member of the football team, who will complete his course with honor next year, and has sustained himself in college entirely by his own efforts, without a dollar of expense to his mother. Last year there entered Harvard a young man who, I am informed by the secretary, has taken excellent rank in his class, and has been the only freshman in many years to make the 'varsity baseball team.

It is natural and desirable that there should be displays of the various manifestations of vigor and skill, but all such contests, whether between pupils of the same school or interscholastic, should not be unregulated contests of strength, subject to the temptation to unfairness, which, like lying, is the refuge of weakness. They should be manifestations of strength and agility and courage and judgment resulting from deliberate training and persistent practice. The desire to achieve the best results by training and temperance in all things should be encouraged, but should be subordinated to the readiness to recognize in others like or superior excellence, in scorn of deception or guile. To cultivate this spirit there is no more effectual way than to bring about the voluntary adoption of carefully formulated rules for the purpose of securing such inspection and control of all contests as will reduce to a minimum the possibility of unfairness, the deadly foe of manly competition. The time to fortify against temptation is when free from the stress and strain of trial. It is possible for individuals and schools to so foster