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first United States bank was established in Philadelphia. Florida was ceded to the United States by Spain in February 1819. Mexico became independent of Spain in February 1821. The battle of the Alamo, the decisive struggle which turned the tide toward Texan independence, began in February 1836. The greatest battle in Gen. Taylor's campaign, Buena Vista, was fought February 23, 1847. The treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which closed the Mexican war, was made February 2, 1848. Oregon was admitted into the Union in February 1859. In February 1861 the first Confederate congress convened, and Jefferson Davis was elected president of the Confederacy. In February 1862 occurred the capture of Ft. Henry and Ft. Donelson, the latter was the first great Union victory of the Civil War. In February 1864 Sherman began a campaign against Meridian, Miss., and in February '65 we find him with victorious troops marching northward from Atlanta. Columbia, Charleston, and Wilmington were all captured during the month of February. The Yellow Stone National Park was established in February 1871. The National Bureau of Education was set up in February 1872. On February 2, 1881, there was organized in Portland, Maine, the first Christian Endeavor society. In February 1891 the Reciprocity treaty was made with Brazil. Victoria, queen of Great Britain, was married to Prince Albert, February 10, 1840. In February 1878, Pope Leo XIII. was crowned.

February has wise teachings for Americans. The 12, and 22, birthdays of our nation's greatest sons, Lincoln and Washington, afford excellent opportunities for historic and patriotic lessons. February contains the birthdays of a long list of other eminent men; among them we note Copernicus born in 1473; Galileo in 1564; Cotton Mather in 1663; James Otis in 1725; Gen. Francis Marion in 1732; Wm. H. Harrison in 1733; Daniel Boone in 1735; Aaron Burr in 1756; Peter Cooper in 1791; Victor Hugo in 1802; Henry W. Longfellow in 1807; Horace Greely in 1811; Gen. Wm. T. Sherman in 1820; James R. Lowell in 1819; Charles Dickens in 1812; Dwight L. Moody in 1837, and Thos. A. Edison in 1847. Mary, Queen of Scots, was beheaded, February 8, 1586. Michael Angelo, Martin Luther, Ethan Allen, John Q. Adams, Gen. Hancock, Horatio Seymour, and John B. Gough died during the month of February.

New Year's day in the Empire of China occurs in our February. The Chinese reckon time in a peculiar manner, the beginning of months and years are calculated from movements of heavenly bodies, hence the date of their New Year's day is changeable. Their months are twenty-nine and

thirty days long but farther than that, the Chinese themselves cannot tell. Their calendar is so complicated that only a few of their best scholars understand it. New Year's day is governed by the time of the moon, the first new moon after the sun enters Pisces. Great festivities usher in the New Year. With this day comes a complete reckoning in the financial world, every self respecting Chinaman pays all his debts or makes some satisfactory arrangement for their settlement.

The ancient carnival, Mardi Gras, occurs this year on the 14th of February. From time immemorial this old custom has been observed in various cities in southern Europe. In this country the chief celebration is that at New Orleans, though the day is gaining grounds in Mobile and Memphis and a few other southern cities. It is worth remembering that on Mardi Gras day, Bienville, the first settler of Louisiana, took possession of the country in which is now situated New Orleans. Emigrants from Spain and France first settled New Orleans, and they brought with them and established there the custom of celebrating Mardi Gras with masking and merry-makings. During the week preceding Lent, gayety is universal, and on Shrove Tuesday the climax is reached. At first the celebrations of this holiday season were unorganized, the revelers appeared in the thoroughfares masked, each dressed as his individual taste and means would permit; at night there were balls in which all classes took part. It was not until 1857 that there was any systematic organization. A carnival association was then formed which provided for a great street parade. The magnificent street pageants of recent years far excel in pomp and splendor the display in earlier years, and are now recognized as the most complete and perfect Mardi Gras celebrations in the world, while the social entertainments which follow the street displays are famous for their brilliancy.

While Mardi Gras is observed with so much enthusiasm in southern cities, yet the day of this month which brings with it the most merriment and delight to all parts of our country, is undoubtedly St. Valentine's day. It is indeed a strange honor to be paid to Saint Valentine, a Christian bishop and martyr, who lost not his heart but his head, at Rome, in the third century, that the day dedicated to special love-making, the day accorded to mating birds, should be the day honored by his name. That Valentine day commemorates the ancient Roman feast of Lupercalia, on February fifteenth, is perhaps the best explanation, for that was a fete-day celebrated with much merriment by the young men and maidens. The origin of

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It appears to have been taken for granted until recently that there was no room for improvement in methods of teaching arithmetic. The science was exact and methods were fixed. Text-books in history, geography, reading, etc., might be improved, but an arithmetic was an arithmetic. If it was burdened with a mass of irrelevant stuff, puzzles, and relics of a dim past, all that was the fault of the science and not of the educational system. To-day one may pick up a dozen series of books in arithmetic all of which are vast improvements on their forebears. A few sets that have come to hand are noticed.

THE HEWETT ARITHMETICS.

This series of text books was prepared by Dr. E. C. Hewett, author of Hewett's Pedagogy and an educator of national reputation. For many years Dr. Hewett was president of the Illinois State Normal School. This brought him into direct knowledge of the conditions and needs of the public schools as well as into direct association with the teachers of those schools, both in city and country. Dr. Hewett's own experience as a successful teacher, together with the facts given above, have combined to make the practical, helpful and successful series of arithmetics which have been brought out by Rand, McNally & Co. The author has evidently avoided radical methods which are as yet but experiments, in teaching arithmetic, and in this he seems to have shown wisdom. At the same time he makes use of those new methods which have proven advantageous and helpful He thus makes progress without going beyond the ability of good teachers to follow and to compre

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through the book are invaluable to the bright teacher and will be very helpful to the inexperienced teachers who constitute a large proportion of those employed in our schools.

The Practical Arithmetic shows in its subjectmatter, in its method, and in its arrangement the same clear sighted common sense combined with sound pedagogical principles that are to be found in the Primary. The books omit what is obsolete or non-essential and, properly used, cannot fail to fit the pupil both for business life and for the higher mathematics.

THE WERNER ARITHMETICS.

Under date of December 27, 1898, Superintendent C. N. Kendall of the New Haven, Conn., schools writes to the Werner School Book Co. that his board had adopted book III. of this series for reasons as follows:

"The book omits superfluous subjects in arithmetic.

The exercises are more nearly like the combinations of business than other books, therefore the tone of the book is practical and it is believed it will appeal strongly to pupils.

The algebra and geometry exercises supplement the arithmetic exercises and are not simply additions to the text.

it.

The book not only compels thought but induces

Mensuration is carried through the book in a most admirable way.

The admirable page arrangement of the book makes it simple and plain for teachers to use. The arrangement of the book is ideal." This is substantial commendation, and the other two books in the series seem to deserve as well. Professor Orville T. Bright says "they are unique because they are pedagogical." Professor Frank H. Hall, the author of the series, has evidently kept in mind the growing ability of the child and has aimed to give the pupil throughout "work which he is able to do." Great stress is laid upon mental work, and rules and definitions are developed by use rather than taught by memory.

THE BELFIELD SERIES.

This is a two-book series. The elementary book is designed to furnish work in arithmetic for the second, third and fourth years. The second book compares favorably with the average grammar school arithmetic, and is commendable for its clearness. It will be apparent to anyone examining them that the variety of material in these books is one of their very strong points of excellence Probably no series of arithmetics on the market gives as large an amount of concrete ma

terial and as thorough a drill on the fundamental operations. It may also be said that the books grade the material along the line of the child's ability, rather than on the line of the science of the subject.

THE PUBLIC SCHOOL ARITHMETICS.

Under this title McLellan and Ames have prepared an excellent set of two books designed to put into concrete and practical use the principles enunciated in McLellan and Dewey's Psychology of Number. In the primary work emphasis is put upon the necessity of a clear conception on the teacher's part of the work to be done in the primary grades, and of the order and method by which the end is to be reached. The authors recognize that number is the "tool of measurement," and have endeavored by a careful grading and variety of concrete and constructive exercises to develop true ideas of number and numerical operation. In the advanced book the departure from older methods is less striking, though there is a vigorous protest against irrational processes which have so long led to waste of time and to results that were far from satisfactory. Sensible and practical are the words that best describe these books.

THE NORMAL COURSE IN NUMBER.

This series consists (1) of a three-years' course in elementary arithmetic based upon carefully graded exercises. The author states that the effort was made to prepare problems that should be in the highest degree practical, that should develop the subject systematically, and that should appeal constantly to the child's ability to think. The number of problems is large, and practice wholly displaces theory. (2) In the advanced book it is the constant aim to develop the student's analytic and constructive powers—“conscious abstraction and conscious generalization." At the same time freedom is advised, and also stimulation such as will throw the pupil on his own resources. The authors, John W. Cook of the Illinois State Normal School, and Miss N. Cropsey of the Indianapolis city schools are well known as successful educators.

BITS OF INFORMATION IN GRAMMAR.

POSSESSIVE CASE FORMS OF THE NOUN,

The writer receives letters from teachers every week asking for information on points in grammar. He proposes to write in THE INLAND EDUCATOR, from month to month, brief discussions of some of the topics suggested by these letters. If the information given in these discussions seems

commonplace, sometimes, he has only to say that the letters of inquiry seem to indicate that it is demanded by teachers in our public schools.

Nouns whose last sound will unite well with s form their possessive case by adding 's; e. g., boy's, John's, children's, etc.

Most plurals and nouns whose last sound will not unite well with s without making a hissing, disagreeable sound, difficult to pronounce, form their possessive case by adding the apostrophe only; e. g., boys', Moses', conscience', goodness', etc.

If the noun be singular, even though it end in s, the weight of authority now seems to be to add the 's, provided the combination does not produce a hissing, disagreeable sound, which is difficult to pronounce; e. g., we study Harris's Logic; I saw Mr. Cass's son; I heard Mr. Briggs's speech. But euphony would require that we write: Socrates' motto was, "know thyself;" Moses' Law is found in the Old Testament.

In proper names, consisting of more than one word, the possessive sign is annexed to the last word; e. g., George Washington's address. In complex names it is annexed to the last word or the word just preceding the name of the thing possessed; e. g., the Duke of Welling on's staff; the Queen of England's crown. In a series of terms in which common possession is denoted, it is annexed to the last term only; e. g., Baker and Watson's store; Singer and Wilson's sewing machine. In a series of terms in which separate possession is denoted, it is annexed to each term ; e. g., Webster's and Worcester's Dictionaries.

When a noun in the possessive case is modified by a noun in apposition with it, or by a descriptive phrase, the sign of possession is annexed to the word immediately preceding the name of the thing possessed. The sign of possession is thus not always affixed to the name of the possessor; e. g., the captain of the Swan's wife is with him. Here "captain" is the name of the possessor and "Swan" is the name of his vessel and the principal part of a prepositional phrase, but the sign of possession is affixed to the noun "Swan." I saw the book at Smith, the druggist's. Here the word store is understood after "druggist's" and the sign of possession is affixed to that word. There is also authority for adding the sign of possession to both words in such a case: I saw the book at Smith's, the druggist's. It may also with some authority be written: I saw the book at Smith's, the druggist. The best usage would write it as it is first given here; there is good authority for the second; not much can be said in defense of the third.

In compound nouns the sign of possession is

added at the end; e. g., my brother-in-law's house as burned; The Knight templar's hat was lost. Do not use double possessives. In the sentence, - we frequently buy books at the book store of Mr. Horn," the idea of possession is expressed by

he preposition "of" It would be wrong to write: "we frequently buy books at the book ore of Mr. Horn's."

The following expression may be written in ither of the two following ways, but the weight of authority is in favor of the first: I would sie srybody else's word for it I want sardady's else wedien Buwe shout st: The else code v

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CORRESPONDENCE.

SEVENTH AND EIGHTH GRADE HISTORY.

Editor of The Inland Educator:

The executive committee of the historical section of the State Teachers' Association wishes to learn as much as possible as to what is being done in teaching history in the seventh and eighth grade of our town and city schools. A list of questions has been prepared which will be sent to a number of schools, but as it will be impossible to reach any large per cent. in this way, it will be regarded as a great favor if you will print the following questions. Superintendents, principals and teachers of these grades of the town and city schools of the state are requested to volunteer to answer them as to their own schools. By so doing they will materially aid the section in securing valuable data for its work.

1. Summary of history work done in previous grades.

2. Summary of work done in these grades.

3. Is the work in the hands of a special teacher of the subject?

4. What preparation has the teacher made for teaching history?

5. What aids has the teacher in the way of reference books, maps, charts, etc.? Are these used? 6. Do the pupils have atlases? If not, why not? 7. What is the length of the recitation period? 8. About what is the average time spent by the pupils in preparing their history lesson?

(h) How often are written and oral examinations held?

(i) What attention, if any, is given to sources?

(j) What attention is given to the discussion
of political problems?

Please send replies as soon as practicable to
N. C. HEIRONIMUS,

207 National Ave., Richmond, Ind.

STATE LIBRARY.

Editor Inland Educator:

Permit me to correct a misstatement in your report of the Indiana Library Association meeting. The Librarians' bill to establish a state library system does not provide for any change in the present management of the State Library. The bill as presented by me and adopted by the Association provides (1) for a system of traveling libraries; (2) for township libraries wherever the people vote them; and (3) for a state library commission of three members, the State Librarian exofficio, and two others appointed by the governor, to supervise the traveling and the township libraries.

The State Library is unique; its contents are almost exclusively books of reference and not suited at all for traveling libraries. In fact most of them ought not to be allowed to go out of the State library. Our bill has been endorsed by the

9. Are the children encouraged to read along Indianapolis Commercial Club and many promihistorical lines outside of school? How?

10. What use, if any, is made of the historical novel as an inducement to the children to a broader reading of history?

11. What do you do to improve pupils' power to express themselves independently either on paper or orally?

12. Methods.

(a) Are lessons assigned by topics, outlines, or pages of the text?

(b) Is the topical or question method used in recitation?

(c) Are pupils required to memorize the text, or any part of it?

(d) What plan is followed in reviewing? (e) What is required of the pupils in the way of map drawing, map coloring, chart making, etc?

(f) What is required in the way of individual work written or oral on special topics?

(g) What is done to lead the pupil to use reference books, advanced texts, etc.?

nent educators of the state and introduced in both houses of the legislature [H. B. 244 and S. B. 158]. Another bill has been introduced differing from ours in two very essential features. It transfers the entire control of the State Library to a commission appointed by the governor and practically will put the whole contents of the State Library into the traveling libraries. It thus seeks to divorce the public libraries from the public schools. This bill has been confused with ours. It is needless to say that we do not endorse it and I feel sure that the teachers of the state are with us. Very truly yours,

ALBERT A. FAUROT. ROSE POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, January 18, 1899.

There is no chance for any question but that the schools are vastly better than ever before, and they are to be made by present conditions vastly better than they are.-A. L. SAFFORD in Journal of Education.

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