VOL. XVIII.-No. 12.

THO. H. BURROWES, Editor and Publisher. STATE TEACHERS' ASSOCIATION.

The Executive Committee, Prof. Chas. W. Deans chairman, is actively at work in making arrangements for the approaching session of the State Teachers' Association, to convene at Lancaster, August 9th. Col. Wm. L. Bear is chairman of the local committee, which insures such arrangements as shall be creditable to Lancaster, and satisfactory to the Association. The court room, which is now undergoing repairs, repainting and frescoing,-has been secured for the meeting. It is one of the finest rooms in the State. The usual railroad ar rangements will be made by Mr. C. H. Harding, of Philadelphia. A full programme will appear in our next issue.

SCHOOL PROGRESS.

The items from the monthly reports" of County Superintendents, in the May number under the official head, are very interesting and cheering. In the matter of new school houses, especially, great progress is reported. The erection of a substantial and well-planned building, costing thousands of dollars, that would have been trumpeted from one end of the State to the other, a few years ago, is now only noted officially by the proper officer, as a matter of every-day occurrence. And especially is it remarkable and encouraging to perceive that fine new school houses are making their appearance in the rural districts. This is a most interesting and decisive mark of school improvement among us.

We have long been of opinion that in the county districts the school system of Pennsylvania is equal to any and superior to most of those of the other States, however, we may be behind the educational finish and show of their larger cities. And now the spirit manifested by our country directors, in providing substantial, well-arranged and costly houses, is rapidly

WHOLE NO. 216.

Associate, J. P. MCCASKEY.

giving evidence of the soundness of this opinion. For this they deserve the greatest credit. In a large town where all the materials for school improvement are at hand,-pupils in large number to be easily graded into different schools, numerous intelligent citizens to act as directors, and generally an experienced and acknowledged want of better schools to spur them on, there is little else needed than for a few energetic persons to undertake the matter and achieve success by a slight effort. In the country it is different. Most of the elements of success just named, are absent; and consequently, the establishment of an efficient system of schools is very difficult and requires long and much labor. All honor, therefore, to the directors in the rural districts, who are so admirably and efficiently working for the rising and for future generations.

We have not had time to closely analyze this matter, so as to arrive at any definite opinion as to the causes and the proportion of success in the several counties; but we more than suspect that both would be found, were the investigation made, to bear a close relation to the ability and faithfulness of the respective County Superintendents. After all, able professional supervision is the moving power of the system.

Amongst other items of progress, we notice that directors are sustained by the Department in refusing the use of their school-houses, during the recess of the common schools, to any but teachers holding legal certificates. This is not only lawful and right, but it is a very great improvement upon the olden practice, when any one who would get up a few subscribers to send him scholars, was supposed not only to be entitled to the house but to have the right to inflict his ignorance or his evil habits upon the children of the vicinity. Now, not only is evidence of fitness required of the actual common school teacher when in the employment of the board but the common school

house is not to be made use of by any unless they have that standing in the profession which entitles them to exercise its functions, whether as the employees of a board of directors or as the selected agent of the parent out of term time. The school-house is thus kept sacred to the object of its establishment and in some degree the hard-earned prerogatives of the teacher's vocation are protected against encroachment.

SCRAP OF EDUCATIONAL HISTORY.

The following letter, with the one to Governor Shunk, was received soon after its date, but unfortunately overlooked in making up the matter for the April and May numbers. It is now cheerfully inserted, not only out of justice to one of the earliest, most persevering and most consistent common school men in the State for such is Mr. Hamilton esteemed by all who have the pleasure of his acquaintance -but from a desire to put upon the record as many as possible of the numerous attempts that were so long and so early made in favor of schools for the professional training of teachers. Looking back now at our State's experience, and that, too, of other States and nations in this relation, the wonder is, not that Normal Schools should have succeeded, but that any school system should have been able to sustain itself in their absence. We now see that to prepare the teachers is more essential to the success of a school system than to build the school house, print the school book, or levy the tax. But it is only recently that this plain truth has become manifest:

CARLISLE, February 10, 1870. THOMAS H. BURROWES.-Dear Sir-I was burning old papers a few days ago and came across a rough draft of a bill for normal schools in my hand-writing, which I burnt. The next paper was the enclosed copy of a letter to Francis R. Shunk, Esq., on the subject, dated December 7th, 1839. I thought I would send it to you as having some relation to the early history of common schools, inasmuch as it shows that Mr. Shunk's attention was directed at that time to the importance of normal schools, which you had urged in your annual report the year previous, desiring two seminaries for that purpose. I was intimate with Mr. Shunk, but cannot now remember anything of this correspondence. I suppose he laid my bill on the table as not meeting his views on the subject.

I believe we are indebted to you for the present excellent law regulating normal schools. It will be a monument to your memory as one of the chief benefactors of our common school system. It has accomplished much already, and promises still greater results. I confess I did not believe, when first passed, that it would succeed, from the large requisitions it made to obtain such an establishment; but it has succeeded, and the prospects are favorable that ere very long every district in the State will be supplied. I am, dear sir,

Respectfully yours, J. HAMILTON.

CARLISLE, Nov. 7, 1839.

FR. R. SHUNK, Esq.-Dear Sir: I designed this week

for the purpose of preparing a plan and system for a teachers' seminary; but it appeared to me that, if the Legislature did embark in the project, it was of great importance to set out with the very best plan that could be devised; and that a few hundred dollars to attain this ought to be of no account to the State of Pennsylvania: instead, therefore, of pursuing the object as originally contemplated, I have prepared a bill which if enacted into a law will secure a very complete system, and give it such notoriety and support from the different parts of the State as would be likely to insure success.

The premium is sufficient to secure competition from able men in different parts of our country, and to bring together the results of experience, and elicit the efforts of genius in promoting the Common School system. The 2d section, so far as relates to each of the commissioners being an examiner of applicants for teachers' situations is in no way connected with the provisions of the bill, and may be stricken out without interfering with its other details. I merely put it there as a suggestion of what is really wanted until normal schools come into operation. Our boards of directors are generally incompetent to examine a teacher thoroughly, even in the ordinary branches, and if competent men were exclusively appointed to this work, it would not only facilitate our obtaining competent teachers, but would afford so many intelligence offices where teachers might apply for appointments, and directors for teachers. This would, however, be superseded as soon as a normal school went fairly into operation.

According to my view each of the normal schools contemplated, would be open to teachers from any part of the State, and I have supposed that the number would not be wanted sooner than the years mentioned in the 6th section. The interval of three years between the establish ing of each one would give us time fairly to make the experiment and see the result before any great expense was incurred, while every part of the State would be satisfied, as all would have an equal chance. The objection to determining by lot in what part of the State the first normal school should be located is very formidable, for should either the northeast or northwest corner be drawn, it would be so distant from the supervision of the Superintendent of common schools, and so far from the settled parts of the State, and likewise in a region where the common schools have not been brought to any degree of superiority, that it would endanger an entire failure of the very best plan. It might, therefore, be better to designate in the bill the districts in the order in which the schools should be successively opened, and the first one in that case ought to be in the centre of the State under your supervision.

I estimate the expense of the ground and buildings of each to average $10,000, and the annual expense of each $8,000; this would be predicated on six instructors and a teacher of a model school. Two hundred and fifty might conveniently attend the course of instruction at one school.

My reason for proposing five normal schools is to secure the support of all parts of the State to the bill, which might otherwise be withheld, and to excite sufficient interest to secure its success. If the first school did not answer public expectations during the first three years, it would be easy by legislation to postpone the time for the second to go into operation, or to repeal the bill altogether. In 1841, we would have provision for educating 250 teachers; in three years more for 500, and in 1854 for 1250.

The whole expense in about fourteen years would be, according to this estimate, $50,000 expenditure, and

MARK 12: 41-44.

And Jesus sat over against the treasury, and behold the people cast money into the treasury and many that were rich cast in much.

And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.

And he called unto his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury. For all they did cast in of their abundance: but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living. PROBLEM. Had the widow's mites, when dropped into the treasury of the temple, been placed at interest, compounding annually at 6 per cent., what would be their present value? and what the diameter of a globe of solid gold of equal value,-reckoning the "mite" at two mills U. S. money, the oz. of gold at £4 sterling (English valuation,) or $19.36, and the specific gravity of gold at 19.34, as given in the French tables?

boys are fully convinced that their method of solution is correct and that no error of importance has been made in the mechanical operations of multiplying and dividing. The method of solution is, of course, simple enough, being for the first part, nothing more than a geometrical progression: given the first term 4 mills, the ratio 1.06, and the number of terms 1837 (1870-33,)--to find the last term. The final multiplications here are long and tedious, and the powers of the ratio 1.06, as found, are given below, so that teachers and others desiring to do so can test their accuracy at any point. 4th: 1.26247696. 8th: 1.5938480745. 16th: 2.5403516846. 32d: 6.45338668145. 44th: 12.9854819116. 64th: 41.6461996603. 128th: 1734-4059461456. 256th: 3008163.9860252139. 300th: 39062459.0276569703. 512th; 9049050566819.1032878539. 812th: 353478167005567305368.2722718449 1024th:81885316160849134497804519.636

787869.

1836th: 28944671461208 309786065374729556396967344958984.922047303.

869,379,835.94.

Diam. of globe of gold, 1,638,863,775 miles. A few mornings since, at the opening of the Lancaster boys' high school, after reading the chapter in which the above verses occur, it seemed to the teacher as if he had somewhere seen it stated that the widow's mites, compounding annually at a low rate of interest, would at this day be worth more than a solid globe of gold as large as our earth. This was incredible, and the problem, as given above, was assigned to an advanced class for solution. The class numbering ten boys was divided into sections of two boys each, the results arrived at from time to time placed upon the blackboard, and nothing passed until the same result had been reached by the sections working separately. The operations were carried out to ten places of decimals so as more closely to approximate accuracy. The solution required between two and three days, all other school work for that class being suspended. As appears from the result, the Widow's Mite" would, under the conditions supposed, equal a globe of gold whose diameter would be nearly two thousand times that of the sun-or nearly two hundred and twenty-five thousand times that of our earth! Astounding as this result may be, the

mites, compounding annually at 6 per cent., the enormous sum of $115,778,685,844,833,239,144,261,498,918,225,587,869,379,835.94, The value of a cubic foot of gold is estimated at $341,270 5-12. Using this as a divisor, we have the above sum of money equal in bulk of metal, cubic feet, to 339,257,902,796,535,706,589,260,956,797,140,743,693.737.

Dividing this by the decimal .5236 and extracting cube root of quotient for diameter in feet of a globe, solidity as above, we have 8653200732953.07 linear feet, or, discarding decimals and reducing, 1638863775 miles.

The last term having been found, it was necessary to approximate closely the value of a cubic foot of gold. The English standard— £4-was taken for the value of an oz. of gold. The pound, or sovereign, being worth $4.84, we have 1 oz. of gold,-money reckoned at par,

worth $19.36. The b. Troy is then worth $232.32. There being 5760 gr. to the b. Troy against 7000 gr. to the Ib. Avoirdupois, we have 1 lb Av. worth $282.

For weight, in pounds Avoirdupois, of a cubic foot of gold: Referring to the French tables of specific gravity, gold is found to be 19.34. Since water, which is taken as the standard, that is, its specific gravity reckoned as

1,-weighs 1000 oz. to the cubic foot, the cubic foot of gold must weigh 19,340 oz., or 1208 lbs. Av. The pound Av. being worth $282, as found above, the value of the cubic foot becomes $341,270 5-12. The value of a cubic foot of silver, reckoning £3 to the Ib. Troy and 10.47 as its specific gravity, may be taken as $11,547, about one-thirtieth that of gold, bulk for bulk.

The results here reached surpass infinitely the wildest extravagance of guessing, and yet they afford but a striking illustration of increase by geometrical progression, or the application of the rule for calculating compound interest. Counting to the left from the decimal point, we find but few men who, in estimating their wealth after a life-time of money-getting, go beyond the fifth place of tens; still fewer beyond the sixth; now and then one reaches the seventh; the eighth puts another money king's name into history, as Girard, Astor, Stewart, Vanderbilt; the Rothschilds will never pass the ninth; our national debt, heavy as it is, might be reckoned four times over before passing the tenth; the eleventh, certainly the twelfth, would cover all pecuniary indebtedness in the world, whether public or private, national or individual; the thirteenth, at most the fourteenth, would more than represent the total cash value of everything upon our planet whose value is reckoned in money; and still the line of figures stretches away to the left for thirty-one additional places. Again: The light of the sun reaches our earth in eight minutes, through a distance of 91,500,000 miles. It would require about two hours and a quarter for light moving at the same velocity to traverse a distance equal to the diameter of the globe of solid gold above estimated. All this, the "widow's mite" compounding annually at our legal rate of interest!

In one sense the widow's offering has been compounding through the centuries, and in that sense, also, hath she indeed cast in " more than they all." What if some word or act of our own, with its power for good or evil, go on thus compounding its influence through coming ages! Can we ponder any thought of

greater moment?

AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE.

APRIL.

This has been a busy month. The spring having been somewhat rough and late, the work of the season was consequently very urgent. Still the College Farm has not been behind its neighbors. Every fair day was taken advantage of, and weather not fit for out-door employ

ment devoted to in-door matters, and getting matters ready for farming. Thus, a large quantity of work has been, in the aggregate, accomplished; and on the whole little essential has been postponed or neglected. On looking back, it is really astonishing to find how the work of a small force, actively and regularly employed, foots up at the end of the month. For instance April, amongst other months, shows as follows: 12 acres of barley, ploughed, harrowed and sown; 30 acres of oats, ploughed, harrowed and sown; 40 acres of clover ground rolled; 45 acres of spring grain rolled; 50 acres sown with clover seed; 90 acres sown with gypsum ; 200 cart loads of stone picked and hauled off; 300 bushels of oats threshed. All this, with hauling in coal and gypsum, and sending to market the surplus wheat, has kept the teams busy, and filled up usefully the labor hours of the students.

It is now felt that farm matters begin to work as smoothly as if each student were at home, devoting a portion of his time to his father's aid in the business of agriculture, and the remainder to attendance at school. Or rather, there is here less of disturbance or unwillingness than there would be at such a home; for, with us, the tap of the bell calls to and dismisses from work, and there is no power amongst us capable of interfering with the hours of study or of work. Each has its time, which nothing but sickness, certified by the medical officer, is allowed to abridge.

Out-door sports begin to attract attention, and the ball-ground, and the gymnasium are coming into requisition. The latter requires refitting and will probably soon be restored to its proper condition; though it is an establishment of less urgent necessity here, where regular labor provides sufficient exercise, than at the merely literary college, where gymnastic exercises are essential to health, as well as promotive of pleasure.

In thus speaking of our physical employ. ments and condition, it must not be supposed that mental effort and culture are held as secondary in importance or attention. On the contrary, it is the report of every member of the faculty, that the exercises of the class and lecture rooms and of the laboratory, and other scientific departments were never better attended to, or with more of success. The reason for dwelling, at greater extent, upon the agricultural operations of the college is, that this is the department in which most difficulty was apprehended, and, therefore, in which success is most indicative of the prosperous condition of the institution.

About the 1st of April the college, in Prof.

J. M. Thomas, unexpectedly lost one of its ablest and most esteemed instructors. Owing to the sudden illness of his father, and his probable inability for a length of time to attend to business, it became imperative upon him to resign the chair of Mathematicis and Civil Engineering; and though the vacancy has been satfactorily filled, it will be long before his brethren of the faculty, or the students in the college shall cease to regret the necessity which caused the separation.

MAY.

The foregoing was prepared, but was too late for insertion in the last number. Since then the pleasant, but busy, month of May has passed. On the farm the chief business has been getting ready the ground for and planting the corn. 30 acres have been tilled, limed, and planted. Instead of dropping the seed by hand and covering it with the hoe, as last year, the corn drill was used, which, though a slower process than the other, where twenty droppers and as many hoes can be put into the field at once, completes the whole operation,-marking out, dropping the seed, putting in some plaster, and covering the grain,—at once. About six acres were thus put in, in one of our short eighthour working days, and the whole field in five days. This process, too, leaves the ground in nicer order for the first harrowing than that of marking out by means of the common plow, as it avoids turning up the sod on one side of the furrow for the seed, and it also covers the seed itself at a more equal depth. As the season advances and the crop grows, we shall report the comparitive result."

It may be proper to add, here, that our corn was planted, as was most of that in the valley, during the week from the 17th to the 21st of May.

This year our spring barley was put in with the grain drill and rolled, and looks remarkably well. It was feared that the drill would cover it too deep in the loose stalk ground; but such is not the result. It came up soon and even, and now bids fair for a good crop. The clover and timothy seed, too, sown with it and by the same drill, owing to the dropping season that immediately followed, has hit well, and promises a good grass covering for

next year.

Adjoining the barley field was a failure of an Osage orange hedge. This nuisance has been removed; but whether it will stay removed" is a question. Its ugly, long, orangecolored roots still stick up out of the ground, and if they sprout again, as some say they will, we shall have more trouble with them. out they must come, if it take a renewed job every year for five years.

But

On the first of the month, Dr. J. T. Rothrock, Professor of Botany, &c., left us, the year for which he engaged having expired, to enter upon the practice of his proper profession

the medical. This was the only unpleasant occurrence of the month, and was so regarded by all. Distinguished and most successful as a teacher of botany, his skill and promptness as a physician, and genial qualities as a gentleman, endeared him to all and added regret for him as a friend to that for his departure as a teacher.

A pleasant incident, on the other hand, was a visit by Professor Thomas for a couple of days. We do like to have old friends come back to see us, and to know that they are brought back by their liking for the institution; and hope that few, if any, will ever leave us as those do who feel that they are escaping from unpleasant duties and associations. Old professors and old students are always welcome.

THE INSTITUTE READER AND NORMAL CLASS-BOOK: For the use of Teachers' Institutes and Normal Schools, and for Self-Training in the Art of Reading. By Wm. H. Cole. 12mo. pp. 360. Cincinnati: Wilson, Hinkle C. 1870. Price $1.25.

This book is designed more especially for use in teachers' training schools. It is based on a new plan and designed to occupy its own field among educational textbooks presenting within the compass of a moderate sized volume, a variety of drill exercises; and practical instruc