enefit of his knowledge and experience,--the child will
have time enough to examine the merits of his information when he
grows older and be more competent to do so!" To this I answer: in the
first place, nothing should be submitted to the child which it is not
fully competent to understand. To give the child tasks or subjects
too difficult for its mental powers, is a violation of nature; and as
foolish and detrimental as though you were to place a hundred pounds
weight on its shoulders when it is incapable of supporting ten. The
teacher's experience can only be of service to the child so far as it
is applicable to its own state; and as to postponing the period when
it is to think for itself, there is certainly no occasion for it.
Nature has provided food adapted to the powers of the infant's
stomach, and those who would rightly conduct the work of education,
should imitate her in providing its intellectual food. That this may
be done, I am attempting to shew in theory in the pages of this work;
and, that it answers equally well in practice, any one who has a
doubt, may assure himself by visiting any school conducted upon the
plan here laid down.

The charge has been brought against the system, that we are not
sufficiently anxious to teach the children to read. Now, though I may
venture to say, that under no other plan, do the children acquire a
knowledge of alphabetical characters, and the formation of words, so
soon as under the present, yet I am quite ready to concede that
I consider their learning to read a secondary object, to that of
teaching them to examine and find out the nature and properties of
things, of which words are but the _signs_. It is with _things_, and
not _words_ merely, we wish to make our children acquainted. If they
first learn the nature and properties of an object, there is no fear
of their afterwards inquiring its name; but we too frequently find,
that having acquired _names_, they are indifferent to, and forgetful
of, the objects represented.

Let children see and observe an object, and be taught the name of it
at the same time, and then both are indelibly fixed on the memory.
An infant at home is perpetually running around and looking at all
things, and hearing persons speaking about them; it soon becomes
acquainted with their names and properties, and then from time to time
speaks about them. "Ah!" exclaims papa or mama, "What an old-fashioned
child that is; one would wonder where it got