ded to
the usual course is of better value, and more appreciated, except by
those who are restless to come out as soon as possible. No reference
is made here to those exceptional cases in which girls are allowed to
begin a course of study at a time when the majority have been obliged
to finish their school life.

As the elements of philosophy are not ordinarily found in the
curriculum of girls' schools or schoolroom plans, it may not be out of
place to say a few words on the method of bringing the subject within
their reach.

In the first place it should be kept in view from the beginning, and
some preparation be made for it even in teaching the elements of
subjects which are most elementary. Thus the study of any grammar may
serve remotely as an introduction to logic, even English grammar
which, beyond a few rudiments, is a most disinterested study, valuable
for its by-products more than for its actual worth. But the practice
of grammatical analysis is certainly a preparation for logic, as logic
is a preparation for the various branches of philosophy. Again some
preliminary exercises in definition, and any work of the like kind
which gives precision in the use of language, or clear ideas of the
meanings of words, is preparatory work which trains the mind in the
right direction. In the same way the elements of natural science may
at least set the thoughts and inquiries of children on the right track
for what will later on be shown to them as the "disciplines" of
cosmology and pyschology.

To make preparatory subjects serve such a purpose it is obviously
required that the teachers of even young children should have been
themselves trained in these studies, so far at least as to know what
they are aiming at, to be able to lay foundations which will not
require to be reconstructed. It is not the matter so much as the
habits of mind and work that are remotely prepared in the early
stages, but without some knowledge of what is coming afterwards this
preparation cannot be made. In order of arrangement it is not possible
for the different branches to be taught to girls according to their
normal sequence; they have to be adapted to the capacity of the minds
and their degree of development. Some branches cannot even be
attempted during the school-room years, except so far as to prepare
the mind incidentally during the study of other branches. The
explanation of certain terms and fundamental notions will serve as
points of d