ore his fifth
year. No corporal punishment was administered before his seventh year.
The mother was greatly beloved by her children, though women were
excluded from education. The position of woman was much higher than in
either China or India. The chief training of children in the home was
physical. Throwing, running, archery, riding, etc., were the principal
employments of children. Absolute truthfulness and justice were early
inculcated. A quick eye, a steady hand, accurate power of observation,
and unwavering courage were qualities sought for in every child, and all
of the training in the home, as well as in the later education, had for
its aim the acquirement of these powers. Thus children were early taught
to be self-reliant and fearless.

=The State Education.=--1. Persian education was national in character.
After the seventh year the boy was taken from home and educated entirely
by and for the State.

His training in the use of arms, in riding, and in other athletic
exercises was continued. There were large public institutions in which
the boys were quartered, and simplest food and clothing were given them.
Besides the training for war, they were taught religious proverbs and
prayers, and were led to practice truth and justice. This education
continued until their fifteenth year. The teachers were men who had
passed their fiftieth year, and who were chosen for virtue as well as
knowledge, that they might serve as models to their pupils.

2. The second period of education consisted of a military training,
which occupied the ten years between the age of fifteen and twenty-five.

3. The final period was that of the soldier, which continued till the
fiftieth year, when the Persian could retire from the army with honor.
The most competent were retained as teachers.

Reading and writing were taught to a limited degree, but the chief end
of education was to prepare the citizen for war. The Magi were educated
in astronomy, astrology, and alchemy, and many of the dervishes have
ever been renowned for their acuteness, sense of justice, great powers
of observation, and good judgment.

=Criticism of the Persian Education.=--1. The State robs the family of
its inherent right to educate the children.

2. It neglects intellectual education, giving undue prominence to the
physical and moral; and demands too great a part of the active life of
man.

3. It makes the highest aim of education to prepare for war, and
there