border or a path, for their successor. At this season of the year, also, Directors are generally so engaged in their own home affairs, as to have no time left to think of these things. Neither will the scholars who resort to the school, though they may be sure of coming back next term, think of the matter at all, unless led and incited to it by Teachers and Directors. Thus amongst hands-being merely one of those debts to the future which the present is so apt to forget the improvement of the school grounds is entirely forgotten or overlooked by all.

Yet, if every Teacher were to take the right view of this duty, for after all it is one which will not be discharged unless the Teacher attend to it-it would redound not only to the credit of the school system and the cultivation of the pupils' taste, but to his own benefit. For, if all attended to it, every one— whether remaining in or changing his school-would find this improvement at least commenced wherever he might go to, the next term; at any rate, he would carry away with him the consciousness of having done his best in the matter, whatever others may or may not have done.

A couple of Saturdays, in March, April or May, according to the locality and the season, actively devoted to the clearing up and leveling of the school lot, the planting of young trees from the neighboring wood, the forming and graveling of paths and the laying out of a few flower plats, would,-repeated or attended to annually-soon work wonders. In a very few years each school would thus become attractive, instead of being the gloomy and uninviting place it now is; and the character of the pupils would become as much improved thereby as that of the general appearance of the country.

Want of a neat and sufficient fence around school-lots, in the country, is very often a reason given by teachers and pupils, for not attempting the kind of improvement here contended for. This is true; and it is has often struck us that it would be well to insert a section in the school law, compelling Directors, under some penalty or forfeiture to the District, to erect, and keep up a sufficient fence with proper gate on every school-lot in their jurisdiction. This would at least put it in the power of willing teachers and pupils to labor effectively for the ornament of the schools.

We would respectfully commend this whole subject to the County Superintendents of the State, and also the teachers at their District and County Institutes. If the county officers were to urge and explain it, and the teachers in their professional capacity to recognize and agree to discharge the duty, the school grounds of the State would be made, in a few years, to be a credit instead of a disgrace, as they now, in too many cases, are to the school system. -Pennsylvania School Journal.

"Praise ye the Lord, both young men and maidens, and old men and children," for the Flag with the Stripes and Stars is on Sumter.

AIR POISON.

People have often said that no difference can be detected in the analyzation of pure and impure air. This is one of the vulgar errors difficult to dislodge from the public mind. The fact is, that the condensed air of a crowded room gives a deposit which, if allowed to remain for a few days, forms a solid, thick, glutinous mass, having a strong odor of animal matter. If examined by a microscope, it is seen to undergo a remarkable change. First of all, it is converted into a vegetable growth, and this is followed by the production of animalculae, a decisive proof that it must contain organic matter, else it could not nourish organic being. This was the result arrived at by Dr. Angus Smith, in his beautiful experiments on the air and water of towns in England, where he showed how the lungs and skin gave out organic matter, which in itself is rank poison, producing headache, sickness, fever or epidemic, according to its strength. When, if "a few drops of air of a foul locality, introduced into the veins of a dog, can preduce death, with the usual phenomena of typhus fever" what incalculable evil must it not produce on those human beings who breathe it again and again, rendered fouler and less capable of sustaining life with every breath drawn? Such contamination of air, and consequent hotbed of fever and epidemic, it is easily within the power of man to remove. Ventilation and cleanliness will do all, so far as the abolition of this evil goes, and ventilation and cleanliness are not miracles to be prayed for, but certain results of common obedience to the laws of God.

Much as has been said on ventilation, the majority of the school-houses of of the state remain unventilated, or at best but ill-ventilated. Any apparatus for this purpose, other than windows and doors, is still the exception. Bad air is the greatest annoyance encountered in visiting schools. To the children constantly breathing poisonous gas, the permanent consequences, beside the present lassitude and restlessless, are most injurious. In visiting eight schools in Millbury a few days since, I enjoyed the luxury of breathing pure air in each. The cause of this rare phenomenon was not any superior apparatus, but the following printed regulation of the school committee, conspicuously posted in every room, which I beg leave to commend to teachers and committees:

"The windows that will not directly admit the air upon the children, should, during the hours of the school session, be dropped a few inches from the top; and at recess, and at the close of the school, both morning and afternoon, all the windows should be thrown open for a few moments so as to change the air of the school-room and effectually remove from it all impurities."

Teachers as well as scholars often suffer in health from remissness on this subject. Absorbed in their work, they fail to observe the gradual deterioration and noisome vapors which painfully impress a visitor coming from the pure air of heaven.-Report of B. G. Northrop, Agent Bd. of Ed. in Mass.

PRESERVE YOUR HEALTH.

There is no reason in the nature of things why teachers should prematurely break down in their usefulness. God never intended it. It is all their own doing. Let them use every means to keep up the purity of the air in their class-rooms and their own chambers; be satisfied to exercise their voices fully, but without overstraining them; never sit down with cold and especially damp -feet; take all the exercise out of doors they can; allow themselves a plentiful dose of sleep, fully proportioned to the amount of brain-work, frequent and copious washings with water at such a temperature as their system can bear -tepid, if necessary,-cold if they have sufficient power of reaction; let them eschew over-rich and otherwise indigestible food, undue variety at the same meal, and eat no half-baked biscuits; let them make frequent, if not constant, use of brown or Graham bread, which the perverted ingenuity of the miller has not, by his bolting machinery, deprived of its gently stimulating element, the bran; let them cherish an earnest, hopeful, cheerful and loving spirit; a good conscience, of course void of offense towards all men; a filial dependence on God for pardon and grace, and that spirit of love which casteth out fearslavish fear; cherish the inspiring consciousness of the usefulness and dignity of their calling; let them do that, and I trust that the probability is strong, that they will not become the victims of those demons, dyspepsia, bronchitis, consumption, cerebral congestion, etc., etc., and be obliged to leave the field of battle before they have, with the help and grace of God, fought the good fight and ripe for eternal life, won the promised reward.-Ohio Ed. Monthly.

PESTALOZZIAN MAXIMS.

1. Let the child be trained to feel that the aim of his existence is higher than his existence.

2. To become capable of educating a child, the teacher must himself become like a child.

3. It is not by forcing the child's nature into the form of your own nature, but by giving yourself up to the nature of the child, that you can return to childlike simplicity.

4. Never behave childishly to a child, but treat the child with a childlike heart.

5. Do not strive to hide your imperfections from the child; but rather strive to avoid their influencing your conduct; and when you have done this, avow them fully. But to be able to avow them without impairing your influence, you must get rid of all those imperfections which you cannot avow with. out losing your dignity in the child's eye.

6. Never let your pupils look up to you for the ground of their conviction, but let them find the proof of their knowledge in their understanding.—T. E. SULIOT in Ib.

SONG OF LEARNING.

AIR-We'll Rally Round the Flag, Boys.

1.

We will rally round our books, all, we'll rally with a cheer,

Singing the noble song of learning;

We will rally from the town and country far and near,

Singing the noble song of learning.

CHORUS.-The school-room forever.

Hurrah, all hurrah!

Down with the idlers,

No place for them here.

For we rally, earnest all, where sweet learning is dispensed,
Singing the noble soble song of learning.

II.

We will rally in the hopes of an educated day,

Singing the noble song of learning;

When the truth will banish error, and reason hold the sway,
Singing the noble song of learning.

CHORUS.

III.

Oh! too long the world has suffered with ignorance; but now,
Singing the noble song of learning,

We are marching solid front, till the enemy shall bow,

Singing the noble song of learning.

CHORUS.

IV.

There's glory in the future that mind will sure display,

Singing the noble song of learning;

And the wrong that now surrounds us will have to pass away,
Singing the noble song of learning.

CHORUS.

V.

Then rally round the books, all, with thought and earnest toil,
Singing the noble song of learning,

That the better day may come soon, to bless and cheer us all,
Singing the noble song of of learning.

CHORUS.

[Clark's School Visitor.

"Praise ye the Lord; sing unto the Lord a new song in the congregation of his saints," for Richmond is fallen; the Babylon of secession is in the dust praise ye the Lord.

MUSIC IN SCHOOLS.

The use of music in schools, how it can be introduced and successfully taught therein, are perhaps important matters to be considered in a Journal of Education.

Some object to music, saying it is not useful. That which makes the inharmonious harmonious; that which hews down the rough corners, and smooths the sharp edges; that which blends the incongruous masses, and combines in definite forms the heterogenous changes in life, is certainly useful. This is the mission of music.

Comparing reading and singing, we see methods for teaching one applicable to the other. Children, before learning to read, have several years' experience in talking. They learn various things, and can talk of many subjects. So the child who is to study singing as a science, must first learn to sing by rote. Very little children love to sing, and I am yet to learn of there ever having been one who was not affected favorably by the mother's song. Were I to maintain that all can sing, I should consider this a very important item in the argument; and I believe very few, if any persons, could be found who could not sing, if efforts to teach to sing in early childhood were as careful as they are to teach to talk.

But in our schools most
Hence the school room

It is quite important that singing commence early. children have had very little, if any such instruction. is a good place to begin this work Very much rote-singing should be had. This we shall find not only useful at the beginning of and before teaching the science of music, but the schools are very few in which it might not profitably bc used throughout the instruction.

One teacher says, "I can't sing." This is very common with many first-class teachers. But there are ways for you to have singing, notwithstanding this.

1. Very likely many of your pupils sing, and you can in some way induce them to teach the school the songs which they know. It will be but a short time before you will have added one more very pleasant and profitable exercise to your school.

Miss J. A. Jones was for several summers the teacher of our school, in Columbus, N. Y., when I was a school boy. She sang some, but her chief means for sustaining singing in her school was through her scholars. Many of the songs then learned can be recalled, and the youthful leaders' clear and ringing voices seem now to sound in my ear.

Should you fail in this, you have, perhaps, an acquaintance who would esteem it a great pleasure to be invited to teach a class of school children a few pleasant songs occasionally.

Another teacher says, "I have no time." So far am I from believing this, that I think you will save time every day by having a judicious amount of singing.