ending the words of others; but in
these cases, we should not reprove or silence them; we should
patiently endeavour to find out their hidden meaning. If we rebuke or
ridicule them, we shall intimidate them, and either lessen their
confidence in themselves or in us. In the one case, we prevent them
from thinking; in the other, we deter them from communicating their
thoughts; and thus we preclude ourselves from the possibility of
assisting them in reasoning. To show parents the nature of the
mistakes which children make from their imperfect knowledge of words,
we shall give a few examples from real life.

S----, at five years old, when he heard some one speak of _bay_
horses, said, he supposed that the bay horses must be the best horses.
Upon cross-questioning him, it appeared that he was led to this
conclusion by the analogy between the sound of the words _bay_ and
_obey_. A few days previous to this, his father had told him that
spirited horses were always the most ready to obey.

These erroneous analogies between the sound of words and their sense,
frequently mislead children in reasoning; we should, therefore,
encourage children to explain themselves fully, that we may rectify
their errours.

When S---- was between four and five years old, a lady who had taken
him upon her lap playfully, put her hands before his eyes, and (we
believe) asked if he liked to be blinded. S---- said no; and he looked
very thoughtful. After a pause, he added, "Smellie says, that children
like better to be blinded than to have their legs tied." (S---- had
read this in Smellie two or three days before.)

_Father._ "Are you of Smellie's opinion?"

_S----_ hesitated.

_Father._ "Would you rather be blinded, or have your legs tied?"

_S----._ "I would rather have my legs tied not quite tight."

_Father._ "Do you know what is meant by _blinded_?"

_S----._ "Having their eyes put out."

_Father._ "How do you mean?"

_S----._ "To put something into the eye to make the blood burst out;
and then the blood would come all over it, and cover it, and stick to
it, and hinder them from seeing--I don't know how."

It is obvious, that whilst this boy's imagination pictured to him a
bloody orb when he heard the word _blinded_, he was perfectly right in
his reasoning in preferring to have his legs tied; but he did not
judge of the proposition meant to be laid before him; he judged of
another which he had formed for himself. His father explained