CHAPTER VII.BOOKS.
The books chosen for young people should as far as possible combine amusement with instruction; but it is very important that amusement should not become a necessary inducement. I think a real love of reading is the greatest blessing education can bestow, particularly upon a woman. It cheers so many hours of illness and seclusion; it gives the mind something to interest itself about, instead of the concerns of one’s neighbors, and the changes of fashion; it enlarges the heart, by giving extensive views of the world; it every day increases the points of sympathy with an intelligent husband; and it gives a mother materials for furnishing the minds of her children. Yet I believe a real love of reading is not common among women. I know that the new novels are very generally read; but this springs from the same love of pleasing excitement, which leads people to the theatre; it does not proceed from a thirst for information. For this reason, it has a bad effect to encourage an early love for works of fiction; particularly such as contain romantic incidents. To be sure, works of this kind have of late years assumed so elevateda character, that there is very much less danger from them than formerly. We now have true pictures of life in all its forms, instead of the sentimental, lovesick effusions, which turned the heads of girls, fifty years ago. But even the best of novels should form therecreationrather than theemploymentof the mind; they should only be read now and then. They are a sort of literary confectionary; and, though they may be very perfect and beautiful, if eaten too plentifully, they do tend to destroy our appetite for more solid and nourishing food. The same remarks apply, in a less degree, to children’s forming the habit of reading nothing butstories, which are, in fact,little novels. To prevent an exclusive and injurious taste for fiction, it is well to encourage in them a love of History, Voyages, Travels, Biography, &c. It may be done by hearing them read such books, or reading with them, frequently talking about them, and seeming pleased if they remember sufficiently well to give a good account of what they have read. Sir William Jones, who had perhaps a greater passion for knowledge than any other mortal, and who, of course, became extensively useful and celebrated, says, that when he asked questions about anything, his mother used to say to him, ‘Read your book, and you will know.’ Being an intelligent and judicious woman, she took pains to procure such volumes as would satisfy his inquiries; and in this way his love of books became an intense passion; he resorted to them as the thirsty do to a fountain. This anecdote furnishes a valuable hint. I am aware that all cannot afford to buy books freely; but I believe there are very few in this land of abundance, who do not spend in the superfluities of dressand the table, more than enough to purchase a valuable library. Besides, ample means of information are now furnished the public by social libraries, juvenile libraries, lyceums, &c. I can hardly suppose it possible that any person can really want a book, in this country, without being able to obtain it. Such being the case, it certainly is easy to follow the example of Sir William Jones’s mother. For instance, a cold, stinging day in winter would naturally lead a child to say, ‘I wonder how people can live near the poles; where my geography says they have six months of night and winter.’ Here is a good opportunity for a parent to reply, ‘I will get a book about Polar Regions, and you shall read to me, after you have learned your lessons; if I am busy, and cannot hear you, you must read by yourself, and tell me about it.’
It is by seizing hold of such incidents as these, that a real love of knowledge may be instilled. The habit of having the different members of a family take turns to read aloud, while the others are at work, is extremely beneficial. It is likewise an excellent plan for young people to give a familiar account, in writing, of what they have read, and to make their own remarks upon the subject freely; but these juvenile productions should never be shown out of the family, or praised in an exaggerated manner, likely to excite vanity; and if one child is more gifted than another, care should be taken to bestow the greatest share of encouragement on the one that needs it most. I wish the habit of reading the purest and best authors aloud was more frequent in our schools. I know not how it is, girls learn an abundance of things, but they do not acquire aloveofreading. I know very few young ladies, among those esteemed thoroughly educated, to whom a book is really a pleasanter resource than visiting, dress, and frivolous conversation. Theirunderstandingmay have been well drilled in certain sciences; but knowledge has no place in theiraffections. The result is, that what they have learned at school is gradually forgotten, instead of being brought into constant use in after life. Like soldiers on parade day, they go through a certain routine, and then throw by their accoutrements as things useless for anything butparade. The fact is, we should always begin with the affections. What we love to do, we accomplish through all manner of obstacles; but what we do not love to do is uphill work, and will not be performed if it can be avoided. If a fondness for books be once imbibed, it is plain enough that the understanding will soon be enlightened on all interesting subjects; and a person who reads, as he drinks water when he is thirsty, is the least likely of all men to be pedantic: in all things, affectation is fond of making a greater show than reality. I once heard a woman in mixed company say, ‘My dear Mrs. ——, howcanyou play whist? I cannot possibly give my attention to such trifling things; if I attempt it, my mind is immediately abstracted.’ I at once set her down for a fool and a pedant. I should not have been afraid to risk a fortune that she had noreallove of knowledge. Nature and truth have never learned to blow the trumpet, and never will. The lady whom she addressed was really intelligent and well-informed; she did not love to play whist, but she very good-naturedly consented to it, because her hostess could not otherwise make up the number requisite forthe game; knowledge was the food ofhermind, not its decoration. Miss Edgeworth has very beautifully remarked, ‘We are disgusted when we see a woman’s mind overwhelmed with atorrentof learning; that the tide of literature has passed over it, should be betrayed only by itsgeneral fertility.’ And this will be the result, if books are loved as a resource, and a means of usefulness, not as affording opportunity for display.
I have said that reading works of fiction too much, tends to destroy a relish for anything more solid, and less exciting; but I would suggest that the worst possible thing that can be done is to prohibit them entirely, or to talk against them with undue severity. This always produces a fidgetty desire to read them; and unless the principles are very strong, they will be read by stealth. Direct prohibitions, though unquestionably necessary at times, are not likely to do great good, because they appeal to the understanding without being grounded in the heart. The best way is to allow the occasional perusal of novels, which are pure in spirit and in language. When a taste is once formed for the best novels, silly, lackadaisical ones will have no charm—they will not be read from choice. In this instance, as in others of more importance, evil is prevented from entering, by finding the mind occupied with good. Many readers, and writers too, think any book is proper for young people, which has a good moral at the end; but the fact is, some books, with a long excellent moral, have the worst possible effect on a young mind.—The morality should be in the book, not tacked upon theendof it. Vices the juvenile reader never heard of, are introduced, dressed up in alluring characters, which excitetheir admiration, their love, their deepest pity; and then they are told that these heroes and heroines were very naughty, and that in the end they were certain to die despised and neglected.
What is the result? The generous bosom of youth pities the sinners, and thinks the world was a cruel world to despise and neglect them. Charlotte Temple has a nice good moral at the end, and I dare say was written with the best intention, yet I believe few works do so much harm to girls of fourteen or fifteen.
I doubt whether books which represent vice, in any way, are suitable to be put into the hands of those, whose principles are not formed. It is better to paint virtue to be imitated, than vice to be shunned. Familiarity with evil is a disadvantage, even when pointed out as an object of disgust. It is true that evil must come in the way of the young; they will find it in books, and they will find plenty of it in the world. It would be useless to attempt always to keep such volumes out of the way; but I would, as far as possible, avoid them when a child is young, and his mind is comparatively empty. After his principles and taste are formed, he will view such descriptions as he ought. I do not approve of stories about naughty children; they suggest a thousand little tricks and deceptions, which would not otherwise be thought of. A small book by a very excellent writer appears to me liable to this objection; I refer to Adelaide, or Stories for Children, by a Lady of Philadelphia.[2]
Children, especially girls, should not read anything without a mother’s knowledge and sanction; this is particularly necessary between the ages of twelve and sixteen, when the feelings are all fervent and enthusiastic, and the understanding is not strengthened by experience and observation. At this period, the mind and heart are very active, and parents should take peculiar care to furnish them with plenty of innocent employment.
I had almost forgotten to mention the prejudice which some people have against all manner of fairy stories and fables, simply upon the ground that they are not strictly true. The objection does not seem to me a forcible one; because I do not believe children ever think they are true. During my own childhood, I am very sure I regarded them as just what they were,—as efforts of the imagination—dreams that had a meaning to them. I do object to reading many of these things; for they are the novels of infancy, and have a similar effect, though in a less degree. All frightful and monstrous fairy stories are indeed abominable; but I do not believe that Cinderella, or the Glass Slipper, ever injured any child. With regard to fables, children do not believe that dogs, foxes, and birds, talk to each other; nor do they think that the writerintendedthey should believe it; therefore it cannot be injurious to their love of truth. No child, who reads those pretty little verses beginning with,
‘Come up into my chamber,’ said the spider to the fly,—‘’Tis the prettiest little chamber that ever you did spy!’
believes that the spider actually talked to the fly. Children understand the moral it is intended to convey perfectly well; they know that it means we should notallow the flattery or solicitations of others to tempt us to what is improper and dangerous. Fables and fairy stories, which contain a clear and simple moral, have, I think, a good tendency; but care should be taken to ascertain whether the little readers understand the moral, and to explain it clearly to them, if they do not.
Imagination was bestowed upon us by the Great Giver of all things, and unquestionably was intended to be cultivated in a fair proportion to the other powers of the mind. Excess of imagination has, I know, done incalculable mischief; but that is no argument against a moderate cultivation of it; theexcessof all good things is mischievous.
A strong reason why we should indulge children in reading some of the best fairy-stories and fables, and young people in reading some of the best novels, is, that we cannot possibly help their getting hold of some books of this description; and it is never wise to forbid what we cannot prevent: besides, how much better it is that their choice should be guided by a parent, than left to chance.
The extreme fondness for fairy legends indicates an origin deeply laid in some law of our being. Probably, it is merely a grotesque form of the universal consciousness that the earthly and the visible are constantly and intimately connected with the spiritual and the unseen. Whatever may be the cause, such a book as The Arabian Nights charms all sorts of youthful readers, all the world over. Its extravagant fancies are probably as harmless as are pictures of trees changing into men, orrocks making up faces like monkeys. They are understood to be extravagances, and are enjoyed as such.
The love of fiction is likewise founded in an universal instinct; and all universal instincts of human nature should be wisely employed, rather than forcibly repressed. They are like powerful waters, which, if dammed up in one place, will surely overleap their barriers in another. Our eager desire to obtain insight into another’s being, makes autobiography intensely interesting to all classes of readers; and novels derive their charm from the same source. That which biography gives to us in outline, the novelist fills up, by the power of imagination, guided by experience. We see ourselves reflected in the characters that most interest us. Thus have we hoped and loved, sinned and suffered. A mirror for the face has a bewitching attraction for all nations; what wonder then that a mirror for the soul is so generally fascinating? It is the business of a judicious parent to guide this instinct aright, and thus make it productive of genuine culture, as well as of amusement. The profligate and strongly-exciting works, with which our circulating libraries are overrun, operate on the mind as alcohol does on the body; but this intellectual intoxication produces effects more difficult to cure, than its type in the physical system. For this reason, the works of Byron, Bulwer, Eugene Sue, &c., ought never to be read, till the principles and taste are thoroughly formed on wiser and better models. Yet a peremptory prohibition of such works seems to me injudicious and hazardous. In one of my last conversations with the lamentedDr.Channing, he told me that he never deemed it wise to forbid his childrenanything they were very eager to see or hear. He said he would not put in their way books, the tendency of which he disapproved; and if they came in their way, he would endeavor to set them aside, if it could be done without stimulating curiosity. But if he found his child eager on the subject, he would say, ‘My son, I do not like this book; but since you desire to read it, let us read it together, and see whether it makes a similar impression on your mind.’ In the course of the reading, this wise father would take frequent opportunities for incidental commentaries, and free discussion. He would remark upon what he considered immoral, irrational, unnatural, or untrue. If the lad did not accept these observations as just, his father would listen kindly and respectfully to all the reasons he had to offer, and answer them with perfect candor. Thus were dangerous books disarmed of their power to injure, while the bond between parent and child was strengthened.
The wisest way to create a distaste for sickly works of fiction, is early to form a taste for those which are pure and healthy. Highest in this class stand the admirable writings of Frederika Bremer. She brings before us human life, with all its simple enjoyments, its practical difficulties, its unsatisfied aspirations, its every-day temptations; and she leads us into it all, with the love and insight of an angel. The coloring of all her sweet domestic pictures, is revealed in the rich sunlight of a deep spirituality. The moral is not appended or inlaid, but fused with the whole mass. In the daily actions of her heroes and heroines, self-sacrifice and religious trust shine forth with such unpretending beauty, that they win their waydeeper into the soul, than the utterance of the wisest oracles. It has been justly said that ‘her powers of observation are most acute and rapid; she detects at a glance the follies and oddities of the great world, and gives them to us with good-humored and graceful satire; but her home is in the soul—there, in the still chamber, to watch and describe the struggle of purity against temptation, energy against indolence, aspiration against despondency.’ The great charm of this popular writer is, that she is deeply religious, without being theological.
Mary Howitt’s writings have similar attractions, arising from their simplicity and naturalness, their child-like love of all things in woods and fields, and their affectionate sympathy with the common wants and woes of humanity; but though the religious sentiment is everywhere present, there is not such deep spirituality, such close communion with the interior of the soul, as in Frederika Bremer.
Miss Edgeworth’s books, so long and so universally known, can never be otherwise than established favorites. They are admirably constructed as stories, and are full of practical good sense, philosophic discrimination, felicitous illustration, and pure morality; but the sentiment of worship is absent. There is nothing in opposition to religion; it simply is not there. It was once beautifully said, ‘Her system of education has helped the deaf to hear, and the lame to walk. If she had only said, “Arise in the name of Jesus,” the miracle would have been complete.’
Catharine M. Sedgwick is another writer, whosename alone is a sufficient guarantee that the book is safe for young people. Her pages offer no sickly sentimentality, no unhealthy excitement, but quiet, pleasant pictures of life, drawn by a wise and kind observer. The moral teachings are excellent; everywhere pervaded by the genial spirit of that true democracy, which rests on the Christian religion as its basis.
Walter Scott’s works are valuable to be read in connection with history, presenting, as they do, a lively picture gallery of the manners, costumes, and superstitions of the past. They aim at no high spirituality, and should be accepted for what they are; fresh and beautiful paintings of man’s outward life, in times of stirring and romantic incident. The author’s social position induced a spirit of conservatism, obvious on every page. When he would dignify any of the commonality, he is prone to represent their virtues as the growth of loyal adherence to their masters, rather than of fidelity to their own souls. The attention of the youthful reader should be drawn to this, simply as illustrative of the influences operating on the author’s mind. Indeed, there never was a book printed, in the perusal of which the young might not be greatly benefitted by the companionship of a judicious parent, or some older friend, free as possible from sectarian and political prejudices, and desirous to present the truth candidly.
There is one mistake in books, almost universal, against which the young should be guarded by the experienced; and that is, the tendency to represent goodness as generally rewarded by praise and success in this world. It stimulates selfishness, and the experience oflife is sure to prove it a delusion. To this false expectation, and consequent disappointment, may be traced the early weariness and discouragement of many in benevolent efforts. The reward for disinterestedness must be found in spiritual growth and inward peace, not in outward prosperity, or lavish gratitude. ‘My kingdom,’ says Christ, ‘isnotof this world.’ The lure held out by books, under the name of ‘poetical justice,’ may help to attract the youthful mind to some extra exertion and self-sacrifice; but the reaction produced by experience deadens the generous sympathies, which might have been kept alive by the presentation of a purer motive. Never were truer words than the Spanish proverb, ‘All lies, like chickens, come home to roost.’
To be an intelligent English reader, one should be well acquainted with the ancients. Much of our floating literature might be profitably set aside to give leisure for Plutarch’s Lives and Anarcharsis’ Travels. But it seems to me that this class of reading peculiarly requires guidance. The heroes of a past age are by no means models for this, and to present them to the youthful mind as great men, without comment, has always seemed to me unwise. Ulysses, for example, is presented to the classical scholar as the wisest of the Greeks; as ‘wise as Ulysses’ has passed into proverbial speech; yet what a cunning, lying knave he was! It is not easy to calculate the moral results of such incidental teaching. Modern defalcation and repudiation may be more nearly connected with it than we imagine. Unquestionably the young student should be made acquainted with Ulysses; for every fact in the history ofman is significant and useful. But he should be looked at in the light of Christianity, though not tried by its standard; for that would be unjust to him. The parent should speak of Ulysses as he was, both in his greatness and his defects; and sum up by remarking that such was the product of the theology and government of those times, and such their ideas of wisdom; for they had never heard the teachings of him who said, ‘Except ye become as little children, ye shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.’
Deeply impressed as I am with the rationality and holiness of perfect forgiveness of injuries, I could not allow a child of mine to read any history, or biographies of statesmen or warriors, without a running commentary, made by the continual application of the Christian standard. Violence and bloodshed will linger much longer on the earth, for want of these precautions in education. Yet whosoever would do this work wisely, must first have the principles of peace clearly defined in his own mind. The education of a young immortal is indeed a fearful responsibility.
This allusion to war reminds me of Dymond’s Principles of Morality; a volume which seems to me to be indeed a ‘diamond in the desert.’ I know of no other book of ethics that so consistently and uniformly applies the Christian standard to all the relations of life. Caroline M. Kirkland has done the public good service by abridging this excellent work for the use of families and schools. I think it will indicate a considerable step in human progress, when this book casts out Paley from our seminaries of learning.
But it is not enough that we introduce pure and elevated books into our families. If we would have them produce their full effect on our children, we must be careful that our own daily habits and incidental conversation are not at discord with them. To many families the following remarks by Frederika Bremer are but too applicable:
‘The daughters of the house were taught that all pomp and pleasure of this world was only vanity; that nothing was important and worth striving after, but virtue and unblemished worth. Yet, for all this, it so happened that the most lively interest and endeavors, and the warmest wishes of the hearts of all, were directed to wealth, rank, and worldly fortune of every kind. The daughters were taught that in all things the will of God must direct them; yet in every instance they were guided by the fear of man. They were taught that beauty was of no value; yet they were often compelled to feel, and that painfully, in the paternal house, that they were not handsome. They were allowed to cultivate some talents, and acquire some knowledge, but God forbid that they should ever become learned women; on which account, they learned nothing thoroughly; though in many instances they pretended to knowledge, without possessing anything of its spirit, its nourishing strength, or its esteem-inspiring earnestness. But above all things, they learned, and this only more and more profoundly the more their years increased, that marriage was the goal of their being; and in consequence thereof, (though this was never inculcated inwords,) to esteemthe favor of man as the highest happiness; denying all the time that they thought so.’
Few things have a greater tendency to produce refinement than good poetry. It is therefore wise to cultivate a taste for it, by encouraging children to commit to memory such verses as are at once attractive in style, and healthy in their moral tone. Wordsworth and Mary Howitt have written several that are peculiarly well adapted to this purpose. American poets, too, have furnished many a gem for the delight of childhood. If these things can be sung as well as said, it adds another innocent delight to life, another attraction to home. In the choice of tunes, care should be taken not to overstrain the childish voice, and thus injure its future sweetness. Still more care should be taken in the selection of songs. The early writings of Thomas Moore ought to be avoided, like poison concealed in honey-dew; especially at that romantic age when the young heart begins to swell with undefined yearnings and aspirations, like the flower-bud bursting from its calyx. Moore himself would gladly recall many of these effusions, which have gone the wide world over, on the wings of music. A friend once inquired at what time he began to regret the publication of these voluptuous songs. ‘When I had a daughter old enough to read them,’ was the reply.
It may perhaps assist some inexperienced parents to mention a few of those books which appear to me most valuable for young people. The list is, of course, very imperfect, because my limits make it necessary that it should be brief. I doubtless omit very many that deservecommendation; but I mention none which do not appear to me excellent of their kind.
Mrs. Barbauld’s Lessons for Children.All unite in cordially approving this lady’s writings. Good sense is clothed in very attractive simplicity, and the thoughts are continually directed to God, as the Giver of all that we enjoy.
Mamma’s Lessons.An uncommonly excellent little book.
Original Poems for Infant Minds.ByJane Taylor. The books of this author are among the best. They are beautifully written, and a mild spirit of religion pervades them all.
Rhymes for the Nursery.By the same author. This is very fascinating to little children.
Early Lessons.ByMaria Edgeworth.
Rollo Learning to Talk.
Nursery Songs.ByEliza L. Follen, author of Married Life.
Mrs. Barbauld’s Prose Hymns.In this volume, religious sublimity is clothed in child-like simplicity.
Harry and Lucy.Frank.Rosamond.ByMaria Edgeworth. These books will maintain their place in juvenile libraries as long as the language lasts.
Mrs. Trimmer’s Introduction to the Knowledgeof Nature.Mrs. Trimmer is an excellent writer of juvenile books. Her influence is very pure.
Stories for Children in Familiar Verse.Ditties for Children.ByNancy Sproat. The familiar, simple style of this writer is very attractive to little folks. Parents who are strongly opposed to Calvinism, may here and there find a verse to which they would object.
Rollo Learning to Read.
Frank, continued.Harry and Lucy, continued.ByMaria Edgeworth.
Pleasing Stories.Stories for Children.Aunt Mary’s Tales for Boys.Aunt Mary’s Tales for Girls.ByMrs. Hughs.
Rollo at Play.Rollo at School.Rollo at Work.
Berquin’s Children’s Friend.A favorite of long standing.
Adventures of Congo in Search of his Master.This is very popular with young readers.
The Robins.ByMrs. Trimmer. A great favorite with children.
The Mirror.ByMiss Leslie. A pleasant, sensible book.
The Story without an End.A very poetic little volume, which leads the young soul joyously forth into Nature, where he is spoken to with a welcoming voice by all things.
Sketches of Natural History, in Verse.Tales in Verse.ByMary Howitt.
Robert Fowle.James Talbot.ByMiss Savage. Uncommonly good.
The Parent’s Assistant.ByMaria Edgeworth. This is composed of admirable stories, such as Simple Susan, Forgive and Forget, &c.
Evenings at Home.ByMrs. Barbauld, and her Brother,Dr.Aiken. A work of first rate merit.
Mrs. Leicester’s School.ByCharles Lamb and his Sister. Mary Howitt calls this ‘a charming book, written perfectly in the spirit of childhood.’
The Girl’s Own Book; byMrs. Child.The American Girl’s Book; byMiss Leslie. These books are very acceptable to girls. They are full of games, riddles, instructions for various kinds of work, play, &c.
Boy’s Own Book.An encyclopedia of boyish sports and experiments.
Rollo’s Travels.Rollo’s Experiments.Rollo’s Museum.TheRolloBooks, by Jacob Abbott, have found universal favor, both with parents and children. They relate, in very simple and familiar style, the every-day trials and temptations of juvenile life. They are well calculated to impart clear ideas of right and wrong, to encourage habits of observation, and form characters of plain practical common sense.
Moral Tales.ByMaria Edgeworth.
Sequel to Frank.Sequel to Harry and Lucy.By the same.
Sandford and Merton.ByMr.Day. A great favorite with boys.
Ellen the Teacher.ByMrs. Hofland. An excellent book.
The Twin Sisters.ByMiss Sandham. A religious, good book.
Birds and Flowers.ByMary Howitt. The love of nature, and of all simple, gentle things, taught by this charming volume, is well calculated to keep the heart forever fresh and young. Except religion, and the love of a happy home, there is no blessing to the human soul, so great and so abiding, as delight in all common forms of beauty; a joyful companionship with birds and squirrels, mosses, pebbles, and ferns.
Life and Maxims of William Penn.ByMrs. Hughs.
The Young Emigrants.This book, understood to be written by Mrs. Sedgwick, is extremely entertaining and instructive. In a lively narrative of adventures at the West, it teaches the important lesson that there is no education equal to the education of circumstances, and no way to quicken the faculties, like bringing them into constant use.
The Travellers.ByCatharine M. Sedgwick.
Tales of a Grandfather.ByWalter Scott.
Robinson Crusoe.Abridged from Defoe. A book universally fascinating, but not altogether a safe stimulus for a boy of a rambling and adventurous spirit.
The Swiss Family Robinson.A sensible and popular book.
Popular Tales.ByMaria Edgeworth.
Display.ByJane Taylor. An admirable book for girls of this age.
The Cottagers of Glenburnie.ByMiss Hamilton. Full of practical good sense and religious benevolence.
Home.Ends and Means.The Poor Rich Man.ByCatharine M. Sedgwick. Most excellent and pleasant books.
Strive and Thrive.Hope On and Hope Ever.Little Coin Much Care.Work and Wages.ByMary Howitt. Genial and healthy in morals, and very attractive.
It is of very great importance that children should perfectly understand what they read. They should be encouraged to give clear and distinct accounts of what they have read; and when you are doubtful whether they know the meaning of a word, be sure to ask them. If you yourself do not know, do not hesitate to say so,and refer them to the dictionary. Some people think it diminishes respect to acknowledge ignorance; but the fear is unfounded. Good sense and good judgment command respect, whether they are accompanied by great extent of information, or not. No child ever respected a judicious parent less for saying, ‘When I was young, I did not have such opportunities for learning as you have; but I know how to value knowledge; and that makes me so anxious you should learn.’
The habit, which I recommended in the third chapter, of directing the attention of very little children to surrounding objects, lays an excellent foundation for obtaining clear and accurate ideas of what is read. The same habit of observation, that leads them to remark whether a thing is round or square, likewise leads them to attend to the sense of what they find in books.
I believe the multitude of little books generally put into the hands of children are an injury, rather than a benefit. Juvenile ideas are rapid and transient; and a repetition of the same thoughts makes them familiar and distinct. Ideas produce such a transient impression upon the mind of an infant, that he is never weary of hearing the same old story, over and over again; it is always new to him, because he forgets it as soon as it is repeated. The same remark is true, in different degrees, of all the various stages of childhood. It is better to read one book and understand it perfectly, than to read a dozen and understand them imperfectly. It is astonishing how much pleasure and information are lost by careless readers. An instructer once said to me, ‘I heard ayoung lady read The Abbot, by Sir Walter Scott. When she had finished, I tried to persuade her to tell me what she thought of it, and what she remembered. “Why, after all,” she replied, “Scott does not tell whether Queen Mary had sandy hair, or dark hair. I was in hopes he would, for I always wanted to know.” This girl was naturally bright and intelligent; but she had not been accustomed to attend to anything, except what related to dress and personal appearance. The descriptions of Scottish scenery, the workings of religious prejudice, the intrigues of political faction, the faithful pictures of life and manners, were all lost upon her. She did notobservethem, because she had never formed the habit of observing. She read through these two volumes, so full of historical interest, without feeling interested in anything but the color of Queen Mary’s hair.’
Had she never read more than half a dozen books in her life, and been called upon to give a faithful account of them, it would have been impossible for her to be so entirely unobserving of the beauties of that admirable work.
To conclude, I would suggest that it is better to have a few good books than many middling ones. It is not well for young people to have a great variety. If there are but few books in the house, and those are interesting, they will be read over and over again, and well remembered. A perpetual succession of new works induces a habit of reading hastily and carelessly; and, of course, their contents are either forgotten, or jumbledup in the memory in an indistinct and useless form.
Franklin said wisely, ‘Any book that is worth reading once, is worth reading twice;’ and there is much good sense in the Roman maxim, ‘Readmuch, but do not readmany books.’[3]
FOOTNOTES:[2]In justice to one of the very best of American writers, I would remark that the book in question has no other fault than being about naughty children. It is very natural and entertaining.
[2]In justice to one of the very best of American writers, I would remark that the book in question has no other fault than being about naughty children. It is very natural and entertaining.
[2]In justice to one of the very best of American writers, I would remark that the book in question has no other fault than being about naughty children. It is very natural and entertaining.