Other occasions.-Teacher's satisfaction.

It has always been a source of pleasure to that teacher to recall from the "buried past" the associa tions connected with that delightful hour and that charming song; and it has been among the most gratifying incidents of his experience as a teacher, to hear more than one of those pupils in later life recur to the memory of that day, and acknowledge with thankfulness the lasting impressions which then and there were made upon their minds.

It would be easy to furnish examples to almost any extent, of the manner in which this principle has been, or may be carried out in practice. The degradation of an intoxicated person who may pass the school,— the pitiable condition of the man who may wander through the streets bereft of his reason,-any instance of sudden death in the neighborhood, particularly of a young person, the passing of a funeral procession,in short, any occurrence that arrests the attention of the young and enlists their feeling, may be seized upon as the means of making upon their minds an impression for good. The facts developed in many of their lessons, too, afford opportunities for incidental moral instruction. The adaptation of means to ends,—the evidence of design and intelligence displayed in the works of creation,-the existence of constant and uniform laws as developed in the sciences, all furnish the means of leading the young mind to God.

That teacher will enjoy the richest satisfaction in

Pleasant retrospection.

the evening of life, who, in looking back upon his past experience, shall be conscious that he has improved every opportunity, which God has given him, to turn the youthful affections away from the things of earth to seek a worthier object in things above.

Low pecuniary reward.-Illustrated.

CHAPTER XV.

THE REWARDS OF THE TEACHER.

It is proverbial that the pecuniary compensation of the teacher is, in most places, far below the proper standard. It is very much to be regretted that an em ployment so important in all its bearings, should be so poorly rewarded. In New England there are many young women who, having spent some time in teaching, have left that occupation to go into the large manufacturing establishments as laborers, simply because they could receive a higher compensation. I have known several instances in which young ladies, in humble circumstances, have left teaching to become domestics, thus performing the most ordinary manual labor, because they could receive better pay; that is, the farmers and mechanics of the district could afford to pay more liberally for washing and ironing, for making butter and cheese, for sweeping floors and cleaning paint, than they could for educating the immortal minds of their children!

Nor is this confined to the female sex. Young mechanics and farmers, as well as those employed in manufacturing, frequently receive higher wages than the common-school teacher in the same district. Many

Driving pegs.-Injustice.-Extra expense.

a young man who has only genius enough to drive the pegs of a shoe in a regular row, and skill enough to black the surface of the article when it is completed, having spent but a few weeks in learning his trade, receives more money for his work than he who, after having spent months, or even years, in gaining the requisite qualifications, labors to polish that nobler material, the human soul.

The injustice of this becomes more apparent when we bear in mind that public opinion demands, and justly too, that the teacher should be not only gentlemanly in his manners, but better clad than the mere laborer,— thus throwing upon him a greater burden without affording him the means of sustaining it. The female teacher of a district school, in order to be respectable, must be much more expensively dressed than the domestic in the family where she boards, and is thus compelled to consume most of her receipts upon her wardrobe, while the domestic is able to place surplus money at interest in the Savings Bank. This injustice has so often been laid before the people, and yet has been so long continued, that many have given up in despair, and abandoned an employment that has yielded so little, choosing rather to engage in that lower service which is so much better paid.

This sufficiently explains why so many unqualified teachers have been found in our common schools. Men of talents and ability being tempted to other employments, have left the field unoccupied; and those men who have failed to gain a comfortable living by their

Living by wits.-Improvement.-Means of inental growth.

hands, have been allowed to try the experiment of supporting life by their wits, that is, by becoming teachers!

Such has been the case for a long time past; and, though in many quarters the people are beginning to open their eyes to their true interest, and are gradually and commendably coming up to their duty, yet, for some time to come, the pecuniary compensation will not constitute the chief reward of the teacher. If he will go cheerfully to his work, and find his daily enjoyment in his daily toil, he must have a higher object, some more elevating, inspiring motive, than mere money-getting. The chief encouragements of the faithful teacher lie in another direction.

It is the object of the following paragraphs to point out some of these encouragements; for, having in the preceding pages required very much at his hands, I feel that it is but just that he should be invited to look at the brighter side of the picture, so that when he is ready to sink under the responsibilities of his position, or to yield to the obstacles that oppose his progress, he may have something to animate his soul, and to nerve him anew for the noble conflict.

I. The teacher's employment affords the means of intellectual growth. If a man teaches as he should teach he must of necessity improve himself. Teaching, un derstandingly pursued, gives accuracy. I know it is possible for a man to be a mere schoolmaster—a pedagogue, without any self-improvement. But I am speaking of the faithful, devoted teacher, the man who