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sor of the Theory and Practice of Medicine, in Yale College, is admirably suited to this purpose. It is in three parts: one, upon plants; another, upon animals; and the third, upon air, water, light, heat, etc. There are also, by the same author, a "Book upon Common Things," on "Natural History," and "First Lessons in l'hysiology," the last of which has been introduced into the Grammar Schools of Boston and San Francisco.

The following remarks of this accomplished Naturalist and Physician commend themselves to the good sense of every one:

"We live in the midst of a material world, animate and inanimate, presenting phenomena of the highest interest, and of endless diversity. And yet throughout almost all the period of childhood, and perhaps we may say youth also, this book of nature is, in the school-room very nearly a sealed book. The very process of education shuts in the pupil from the broad contemplation of the world in which he lives. He is drilled through spelling, reading, grammar, etc. but he is left in total ignorance of the beautiful flowers and the majestic trees outside of the schoolroom. How very few, even of the best educated adults, know the processes by which a plant, or tree, grows! And the same can be said of other phenomena of nature.

The great facts of the world, both of mind and matter, should furnish really the material for education. Instead of beginning the child's education with learning to spell and read, the object should be to make him an observer of nature, and the spelling and reading should be done in connection with this, and as subsidiary to it. Things, and not words, or mere signs, should, from the first, constitute the substantial part of instruction. We should aim to impart to him a spirit in consonance with the following precept of Hugh Miller, the famous self-taught Geologist: Learn to make a right use of your eyes; the commonest things are worth looking at even the stones and weeds, and the most familiar animals."

If the general mode of education were changed in the manner indicated, education would have much less of the character of mere drudgery than it now has. Not that there would be any the less labor; but the labor would be made lighter by the interest imparted to it, the interest which always results from the study of facts and phenomena, and never from the learning of mere words and technicalities."

The world around us is fair and beautiful and full of wonders. It is always speaking to the heart of man, though the cares of life may prevent him from hearing its voice. But it is in the morning of life, when the heart is free from anxiety, when the spirits are light and buoyant, when the senses are the most acute, the curiosity insatiable, and creation fresh and new, that its language finds a willing and a charmed ear.

How do the young enjoy the glories of sunrise, a lovely prospect, a ramble through the woods, or along the sea-shore, and how much quicker than their elders do they notice any little circumstance that may occur! And what a pity it is to close upon them this broad face of nature which God himself has spread before them for their contemplation and delight, and shut them up within four walls, where they are told to keep their eyes on their lessons which are some pages of a printed book! Cage the lark, tie up the forest deer-and you do not act more against nature than has been done in sentencing children to imprisonment six hours a day within the blank walls of some penitentiary of a school-house.

Now I know very well that geography, grammar, and arithmetic, are indispensable. They must be learnt and well learnt. The fundamental branches of a good English education must not be neglected. But while I would not have these in the least interfered with, I would urge it upon all connected with schools not to disregard the natural sciences. The study will, I am sure, contribute to the pleasure and improvement of both Teachers and Scholars, and promote, instead of retarding, the progress of the latter in their other studies. These first books can be understood by any Teacher whose "heart is in her vocation;" in fact, such a Teacher will be delighted with them; and if she catches the true spirit of observation, she will be continually led to add facts of her own gathering to those which the author has preserved.

It is certainly possible, during the seven, or eight, years spent in the Grammar Schools, to pay some attention to the natural sciences. Do not shut the children

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out from them during this the golden period of their lives for studying them. Consider a few of the advantages to the discipline of the pupil's mind in pursuing these sciences. How much are his powers of observation improved by the study of nature! And this is no small thing. How few people see things just as they How often do witnesses under oath disagree with regard to material circumstances in relation to events occurring before their eyes, and where all had equal opportunities of seeing. Men are unwilling to trust their own senses in reference to matters a little out of the line of their own business. They will tell you they are no judges in such cases. Have not persons been made believers in spiritualism and animal magnetism, because their observing faculties were not sufficiently awake to see through the deception?

But after things are seen, (and it is a very important thing to see them accurately and fully,) then comes the exercise of the faculty of comparison. Now this faculty implies a great deal. We compare things not merely to see their resemblances but their differences. He who can do this well, is no ordinary person; he who can do it remarkably well, is one out of ten thousand. Men differ greatly in their ability to perceive resemblances and differences. An unfortunate lawyer is compelled to take his seat in mortification, by the Judge's showing him that the cases he had cited are not analogous to that before the Court, and consequently not at all applicable. The great business of buying and selling depends, as one may say, upon comparison. It sometimes happens that the best of friends will get angry in a discussion, when the difference between them is a trifle, a fact of which they may afterwards become aware, much to their astonishment. We consider it a compliment to any one, when we say that he has a discriminating mind, he can make distinctions. Now the natural sciences teach how to observe, and how to distinguish things correctly— which is in fact the greater part of education, and that in which people otherwise well educated are sometimes surprisingly deficient.

It must not be forgotten that the course of study in the Grammar Schools should be comprehensive enough to meet the wants and tastes of every mind. Now the list is by no means small of those who have been pronounced dunces at school, who have afterwards been widely distinguished for their attainments in science. Hugh Miller, who has been mentioned, is an instance in point. Dr. Franklin was probably considered by his Teacher as arithmetic proof, and perhaps, as stupid in other respects; the reason being that there was no study pursued in the school which interested the youthful philosopher, who was born to be an observer of nature. Many other instances to the same effect might be mentioned. Introduce, then, into the Common Schools the study of Nature, and make provision for those whose tastes, perhaps whose genius, lies in that direction.

I know that the general impression is, that the study of any branch of natural science is a study of hard words, particularly in the case of natural history. It is surprising to notice how many school-books will commence with pages of hard words and definitions, the purpose of which at that stage is unintelligible. This is not the case, however, with the books I have mentioned. They are simple and suited to the young. The great and interesting facts are noticed; hard names are explained, and the definitions given only when it becomes necessary in the course of the works, and thus the pupil is not disheartened, or disgusted, at the very beginning. We must wait until the mind has become more mature, before the scholar can attend to classification, or to generalization.

It must not be overlooked that, in consequence of the great advances made in the physical sciences, they are much more the objects of attention now than formerly. The great discoveries of modern times, more, or less, intimately connected with the welfare and the progress of society, are made in these sciences, and the physical arts themselves have received a new impulse. We must keep pace with them in our schools.

The public are little aware how much interest is taken by Naturalists, the world over in the natural history of California. The State has been visited and explored,

in some parts, for that purpose, by agents from most of the prominent universities and societies in the world. The distinguished Naturalist, Agassiz, states that he has a friend in San Francisco who has sent him an amount of specimens greater than all those collected by all the United States' Exploring Expeditions put together.

Is it not high time for the citizens of California to take an interest in this subject, and to introduce it into the public schools, so as to give every young man desirous of entering upon these pursuits, an opportunity to make some, at least, of the necessary preparations; and is there any country where such studies are more needed, or will be more useful to the public and to the individual?

There is a very strong desire at the East, to introduce more extensively into their schools the study of the natural sciences, including natural history. They acknowledge their remissness in this respect, and all concur in the importance and necessity of this change being made.

In a lecture delivered by Agassiz, are the following remarks:

"Our school system has been developed in a manner which has produced the most admirable results, and is imitated everywhere as the most complete and the most successful; but, while we have attained the highest point in that respect, we are also best prepared by that very position to make any further improvement which may lead to a better future. And I believe that the introduction of the study of natural history, as a branch of the most elementary education, is what can be added to what is already so admirable a system. The difficult art of thinking can be acquired more rapidly by this method than by any other. When we study moral, or mental, philosophy, in text-books which we commit to memory, it is not the mind we cultivate, it is the memory alone. The mind may come in; but if it does in that method, it is only in an accessory way. But if we learn to think, by unfolding thoughts ourselves, from the examination of objects around us, then we acquire them ourselves, and we acquire the ability of applying our thoughts in life. The Teacher who is competent to teach the elements of this science, must, of course, feel a deep interest in it; he must know how to select those topics which are particularly instructive and best adapted to awaken an interest, to sustain it, and to lead forward to the understanding of more difficult questions. He should be capable of rendering the subject attractive, interesting, and so pleasant indeed, that the hour for the school should be welcomed by the scholar, instead of being dreaded as bringing something imposed by duty, and not desirable in itself."

It may be added to what has been said by Agassiz, in illustration of the benefits to be derived from the study of natural history, that it is a fact which every one acquainted with the subject will admit, that our crops are every year injured to the extent of many thousands of dollars, by the depredations of insects whose habits are not properly understood. In this way, the Hessian Fly, the canker worm, the apple worm, the apple and peach borers, the curculio, the cotton worm, the tobacco worm, the corn borer, the rice weevil, the wheat midge, and other insects not yet known, make way with capital and labor to an enormous extent. There are many insects injurious to the grape-vine, to one of which a volume has been devoted. Investigations into the habits of such insects have been attended with the best results, one of the most useful of which has been to stop the farmer from destroying his friends with his enemies among insects, as he had been in the habit of doing. The best way of finding an effectual remedy for these injuries is to diffuse and cultivate in our schools a taste for natural history.

In a moral point of view, this study, as well as that of all the natural sciences, is of the highest importance. I never heard of a real lover of nature who was a bad man. They exhibit to man the thoughts of the Creator, for all the arrangements which he sees around him are manifestations of the Divine Mind. In the book of nature we can read a portion of the laws and the designs of the Almighty. The more diligently any one pursues these studies, the more deeply he is impressed with the abundant evidences of the power, the wisdom, and the benevolence, of the Creator. He sees that a drop of water is full of wonders, as well as the starry heavens; that the tiniest insect that sports in the sun-beam is not so insignificant as to be beneath the care of its Maker, nor the Island Universes, scattered through

the realms of space, too vast for His power to control. Every creature made by the Divine Hand, he sees to be perfect, with an organization exactly suited to its wants, and its place in the scale of being, and adapted to contribute to its happiness. God provideth for all His creatures. Now, the youthful heart readily understands and feels the lesson which nature teaches; it will not rest satisfied merely with nature and nature's laws, but willingly and instinctively is led through them up to nature's God. It is touched by His goodness; it reverences His power and majesty; as the mind expands, it feels that He is the source of all we possess; it begins to feel the need of His aid and protection, and then earnestly to invoke them. In this manner, it at length realizes the great truth, that in Him we live, and move, and have our being; it does not read these as unmeaning words, but is pervaded with their deep signification. It is impressed with the heartfelt conviction, that there can be no more utter and dreadful ruin than to disobey the commands of this Good and Just Being, and that there is no greater happiness than to do His will and receive His approbation.

I consider it an evil to stimulate the intellect, almost perhaps to its utmost exertions, and to neglect the moral training of the scholar, or to treat the latter as if it were of minor consequence, as if the object were to make smart linguists, or mathematicians, or chemists, instead of complete men. We have, undoubtedly, too many smart men in the world already; that is, smart in the bad sense of the word, and yet, perhaps, in a sense by which they feel complimented.

What is wanted more than anything else is true men, men of principle, men fearing God, loving their neighbor, loving their whole country, and cherishing its free institutions; men who stand for the right as immovable as the eternal pyramids ; whose word, whose look, is truth itself; whose honor can no more be tarnished than a sunbeam can be soiled; in whose breasts the ruling maxim is not "Cotton is king," nor "Gold is king," but everywhere, both in their most secret retirement, as well as in public position, reigns, enthroned in their hearts and obeyed in their lives, the divine principle-DUTY IS KING FOREVER!

Now, the child is not all intellect, any more than it is all conscience; it has a sense of right and wrong, and this sense is silently addressed in a hundred different ways, as the questions arise whether the pupil shall do this thing, or not, whether he shall confess, or conceal, a certain fault, etc. I know that the importance of this subject is adequately felt by the Public School Teachers of San Francisco, and that much attention is paid by them to moral instruction, and pains taken to impress upon the minds of their pupils the great religious truths in which all are agreed. At the same time, while this is done, all sectarianism is carefully avoided. I would have this moral sense carefully cherished as the voice of God; I would have it kept sensitive and acute, and properly trained and educated. I would have every part of the nature of the pupil well and proportionately exercised and developed-the physical, the intellectual, and the moral, the body, the mind, and the heart, the last the most carefully of all, since out of it are the issues of life. I wold tell the pupil that the acquisition of knowledge is valuable, but that, though his attainments in science and art, and in all learning, were transcendent, though he might "speak with the tongues of men and of angels," and "understand all mysteries and all knowledge," yet, if he had not a good character, sound moral principles, he would be nothing but a miserable failure. With all the energy I possessed, and all the different methods of appeal I could invent, I would enjoin it upon him to strive to become a good, true, and noble, man.

And such words, addressed in the spirit of affection to the young, go directly to their hearts. Their impulses can easily be turned into the right channel. They have a desire after excellence in the acquisition of knowledge, but if their sense of right and wrong is properly appealed to, I believe it can be made the ruling power of their lives. When this result is accomplished, how blessed is the work! It is beautiful to look upon the young, with their clear and honest eyes, their frank and beaming countenances, their warm and pure hearts beating high with aspirations

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after goodness and truth, and desiring that every evening may find them more worthy of the approbation of their Teachers, their parents, and of Heaven.

Fellow-Teachers! from our connection with the Public Schools, we must take a deep interest in their prosperity and success, and earnestly wish that each revolving year may render them more efficient. The Common School System is the child of the people, in which they take great pride. The Public Schools are emphatically the Teople's College. From them graduate the bone and sinew of the community, men of sound common sense, of good principles, and with stout hearts, who will stand by the Common Schools as the bulwark of their rights and liberties, and who will defend them against bold and open attack, or vile and secret slander. Their crowning glory is, that their doors are open freely to all; that in them the poorest child is the equal of the richest, and may lay the foundation of an education which may lead him to employment, to competence, to respectability, nay even to high station, and to a glorious fame. Many a poor man has denied himself in order that his little ones might attend school decently attired, and has had his last moments cheered by the thoughts that he had faithfully given his children every advantage afforded by the Public Schools-feeling in that fact a strong assurance of their future good conduct and welfare.

The Common Schools can show upon their rolls the names of distinguished men who laid in them the foundation of a world-wide renown. Franklin, of whom I have spoken; Clay, in the log cabin school-house of Peter Deacon, with no floor but the earth, and no window but the door; Webster, in the log school-house kept by Master Tappan in the wilds of New Hampshire; George Stephenson, the founder, and to a great extent the inventor, of the present system of locomotion on railroads, commencing at eighteen years of age in a village school to learn his A, B, C, like a little child; Fulton, Bowditch, and hosts of others. They commenced life in poverty; had not the Common School afforded them an opportunity to begin their education free of expense, how few of them might ever have been known to the world? How many of those yet unborn, and destined to immortal renown in their various capacities would, but for the Free Common School, be lost in eternal night! We have a right then to feel an honest pride in this great system with which we are connected.

Our profession is humble, laborious, and exhausting. The services of the Teacher are not adequately appreciated in any community. Neither fame, nor wealth, belongs to him. He is not allowed even the designation-Honorable. He is overworked and underpaid. And yet his life has its compensatious. I know nothing more touching and more grateful to the Teacher than at the close of the year, when he is bidding farewell to those who are passing forever from his care, for him to see every countenance turned towards him with affection and gratitude-to know that these minds have received from him wholesome knowledge-that by his influence and example, good principles have been implanted in their hearts-and that he has troops of friends growing up and becoming every year more numerous, who will voluntarily pay him that honor, love, and obedience, which they feel to be due to the benefactor of their youth.

The faithful Teacher has another reward of which nothing can deprive him. It is the approbation of his own conscience; it is the consciousness that he is humbly imitating the Creator and Preserver of all, in doing good. "Think not," said Sydney Smith to an aged, poverty-stricken Master teaching the art of reading, or writing, to some tattered scholars, "you are teaching that alone; you are protecting life, insuring property, fencing the altar, guarding the government, giving space and liberty to all the fine powers of man, and lifting him up to his own place in the order of creation." This well describes the nature of the Teacher's office.

It was the boast of the Emperor Augustus, that he found Rome brick and left it marble. Let it be the higher praise of the Public School Teachers, that California was found a wilderness, but that they have contributed by their exertions to fill its valleys and cities with a virtuous and intelligent population-a richer treasure than all her nodding harvests, than all her mines of gold.