Bigotry in grammar.-Cause of it.-One book.

8. ENGLISH GRAMMAR. It is rare that a teacher is found without some pretensions to English Grammar; yet it is deplorable to observe how very few have any liberal or philosophical acquaintance with it. In many cases it is little else than a system of barren technicalities. The teacher studies one book, and too often takes that as his creed. In no science is it more necessary to be acquainted with several authors. The person who has studied but one text-book on grammar, even if that be the best one extant, is but poorly qualified to teach this branch. There is a philosophy of language which the teacher should carefully study; and if within his power, he should have some acquaintance with the peculiar structure of other languages besides his own. It can hardly be expected that the common teacher should acquire an accurate knowledge of other languages by actually studying them. As a substitute for this, I would recommend that the teacher should very carefully read the little work of De Sacy on General Grammar, also the article "Grammar" in the Edinburgh and other encyclopædias. In this science the mind naturally runs to bigotry; and there is no science where the learner is apt to be so conceited upon small acquirements as in grammar. Let the teacher spare no pains to master this subject.

9. ALGEBRA. This branch is not yet required to be taught in all our schools; yet the teacher should have a thorough acquaintance with it. Even if he is never called upon to teach it, (and it never should be intro

Algebra.-Geometry.-Surveying.-Natural Philosophy.

duced into our common schools till very thorough attainments are more common in the other branches,) still it so much improves the mind of the teacher, that he should not be without a knowledge of it. He will teach simple arithmetic much better for knowing algebra. I consider an acquaintance with it indispensable to the thorough teacher, even of the common school.

10. GEOMETRY. The same may be said of this branch that has been said of algebra. Probably nothing disciplines the mind more effectually than the study of geometry. The teacher should pursue it for this reason. He will teach other things the better for having had this discipline, to say nothing of the advantage which a knowledge of the principles of geometry will give him, in understanding and explaining the branches of mathematics.

In

11. PLANE TRIGONOMETRY and SURVEYING. many of our schools these branches are required to be taught. They are important branches in themselves, and they also afford good exercise for the mind in their acquisition. The young teacher, especially the male teacher, should make the acquirement.

12. NATURAL PHILOSOPHY. This branch is not taught in most of our district schools. The teacher, however, should understand it better than it is presented in many of the simple text-books on this subject. He should have studied the philosophy of its principles, and be fully acquainted with their demonstration. If possible, he should have had an opportunity also of

Chemistry.-Physiology.-Its importance.

seeing the principles illustrated by experiment. This is a great field; let not the teacher be satisfied with cropping a little of the herbage about its borders.

13. CHEMISTRY. As a matter of intelligence, the teacher should have acquaintance with this branch. It is comparatively a new science, but it is almost a science of miracles. It is beginning to be taught in our common schools; and that department of it which relates to agriculture, is destined to be of vast importance to the agricultural interests of our country. "Instead of conjecture, and hazard, and doubt, and experiment, as heretofore, a knowledge of the composition of soils, the food of plants, and the processes of nature in the culture and growth of crops, would elevate agriculture to a conspicuous rank among the exact sciences."* The teacher should not be behind

the age in this department.

14. HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY. The teacher should well understand this subject. There is an unpardonable ignorance in the community as to the structure of the human body, and the laws of health, the observance of which is, in general, a condition of longevity, not to say of exemption from disease. By reference to statistics, it has been ascertained that almost a fourth part of all the children that are born, die before they are one year old. More than one third die before they are five years of age; and before the age of eight, more than one half of all that are born return again to the

* Col. Young.