is article the title of one of the
manuals in use in the primary schools of France. It is worth studying in
connection with the work of the Christian Brothers, and on other grounds
as well. The entire absence of all reference to God or to any kind of
religious knowledge or religious principle in connection with duty is
startling, and gives the book a complexion somewhat strange to an
English mind; and there are portions which can scarcely fail to strike
an Englishman as droll; but is full of French ingenuity. It contains a
vast amount of compressed information, and the dry instruction of the
text is enforced, or rather sweetened and made palatable, by a series of
stories in the form of a running commentary or collection of foot-notes,
in which the heroes of the stories illustrate the lessons which the
scholars have to learn.

We take two or three specimens from the manual, which we will present in
a free translation:--

OUR DUTIES TOWARDS OURSELVES

'As you grow older, you become more serious. Consider what
your duties are.

'You have duties towards yourselves, that is, towards your
bodies and towards your souls.

'Sound health must be taken care of; weak health must be
strengthened by a good hygiene.

'Hygiene demands cleanliness; wash your whole body carefully
and frequently.

'Keep nothing dirty upon you, nor in your house, nor near
your house.

'Hygiene demands good air: air your bed, your chamber, and
all places in which you live and work.

'Hygiene forbids all excess, and the use of injurious
things, as alcohol and tobacco. It prescribes temperance and
sobriety.

'Hygiene requires you to avoid a sudden change from heat to
cold. When you are in a perspiration, do not lie down upon
the ground, do not expose yourself to draughts, and do not
drink cold water.

'Hygiene requires gymnastic exercises, which make the body
supple, healthy, and strong.

'_Attention to health gives a chance of long life._

'In order to fulfil your duties towards your soul, you must
continue to cultivate your intelligence and to educate
yourself.

'Do not forget that you can educate yourself at any age.

'You must fight against sensuality, which would make you
gluttons, drunkards, and debauchees; against idleness, which
would make you useless to others and a burden to them;