and yet loftier excellence, is the secret of all high attainment. ORGANIZED CHARITIES IN THE WEST. MARRIED. WILDMAN — YERKES. — On Fifth-day, Third month 22d, 1883, under the care of Middletown Monthly Meeting of Friends, at Edgewood, Pa., Ellwood Wildman, of Edge It is now seen that the experiences connected wood, and Sarah Elizabeth Yerkes, of Phila with the recent Western floods have furnished an excellent illustration of the value and efficiency of the system of organized or associated charity. In the city of Louisville this system was not established, and we now learn that the friendly help, so eagerly forwarded from other quarters, was distributed so wastefully that much needless suffering was experienced. This would appear to be inevitable where no carefully organized system of charitable help exists, although personal kindness and municipal energy do their utmost. Jacob D. Cox, of Cincinnati, Chairman of the Board of Associated Charities in that city, writes to a friend at the East, giving some information as to the method of procedure. The Chamber of Commerce undertook the raising of money, and procured liberal donations, in the administration of which they called in the agents of the Associated Charities. It was through the districts and visiting committees of this organization that the most satisfactory work was effected; and, as the disaster is now mainly retreating, the Chamber of Commerce is now transferring the remainder of the work to the Associated Charities. J. D. Cox adds: delphia. DIED. CLEVENGER.-Hannah Clevenger, in the 76th year of her age; a member of Hopewell Particular and Monthly Meetings. FUSSELL.-On Second month 21st, 1883, at Clinton, Miss., Rebecca C. Fussell, widow of Dr. Bartholomew Fussell, in her 79th year. HEACOCK.-On Third month 22d, 1883, at Chelten Hills, Pa., Joseph Heacock, Sr., in his 83d year; a member of Abington Monthly Meeting, Pa. HORNE.-On Third month 18th, 1883, at the residence of her son-in-law, Geo. M. Redman, Media, Pa., Margaret B., widow of Israel R. Horne, aged 71 years. KESTER.-On Third month 7th, 1883, of consumption, at Kennett Square, Chester co., her 38th year; a member of Kennett Monthly Pa., Frances J., wife of Joseph J. Kester, in Meeting. LEVIS.-On Third month 1st, 1883, at Clif ton, Delaware county, Pa., Seth T. Lévis, aged 56 years. LUPTON.-On Second month 10th, 1883, Joel Lupton, Sr., in the 79th year of his age; a member of the Ridge Particular and Hopewell Monthly Meeting. MARVIN.--On Tenth month 19th, 1882, John W. Marvin, in the 72d year of his age; a member of Centre Particular and Hopewell Monthly Meeting. MITCHELL.-On Second mo. 20th, 1883, at Elgin, Ill., Louisa A. Mitchell, of Cayuga, co., N. Y., aged about 61 years; for many years an Elder of Scipio Monthly Meeting. The following memorial of this esteemed Friend was read in Scipio Monthly Meeting of Women Friends, held at North street, Cayuga co., N. Y., Second mo. 15th, 1883. "We strengthened our visiting committees, appointed special ones for boat service, and hired a few special men for continuous work, etc. All the districts were thoroughly alive, though those on the river were most involved in the immediate scenes of distress. The rescued went to other parts of the town, so that "It seems fitting that we pay a tribute of all the districts were soon in business. The love and respect to the memory of our wellChamber of Commerce Committee bought the beloved friend Louisa A. Mitchell, whose sudsupplies at wholesale, and issued them upon den death caused a wave of sadness to pass over the requisitions we made for our several dis- the hearts of those who knew her sterling tricts. They, however, also opened soup-qualities. In times of need her mission was houses, which became general and rather unchecked distributors of food These are now abandoned, and the other points of distribution are also being dropped, so that ours will soon be again nearly the whole." ever where duty's call was loudest. She was faithful, untiring, and unselfish throughout her active life; paying little heed to pain and fatigue in herself, but hastening to relieve it in others. Her ministrations by the sick bed were highly prized. Her kindly deeds, her Christian example are before us now like a living presence, as again comes the thought that she has gone from us to return no more. Though the call came early, her work was finished, and she has gone to enjoy a blessed rest." Her death occurred at the home of her sister, in Elgin, Ill., whither she went in the fall of 1881. S. W. HART. RECONVERTED FORCES IN NATURE. There are busy workers in the realm of nature whose wisdom and industry teach lessons that man's own investigations would rarely disclose. Hornets first utilized the wastes of wood and turned them to account in house-building, and also were the first to introduce into the utilities of life the use of pulp paper. This tissue is gathered largely from oak and hickory fence-rails and stumps, in which the action of the air and moisture loosens the fibre from the exposed sides of the timber, and the sunshine so dries it that it can be easily detached and converted into paper, out of which their curious and beautiful homes are built. worker, the result was that wonderful triumph of engineering skill. The power of these reconverted forces is not only direct, but indirect. The wonder of their being is increased not only in what they accomplish, following their own instincts, but by becoming themselves models and teachers. But the best way in which to estimate the reconverted forces in results, both in magnitude of production and varied application, is to continue our observation of hornet life, in what they have given to the world in suggestions touching paper production. The first use of paper by these insect discoverers and manufacturers has not yet been attained by man as a matter of utility. Houses will yet be built of paper, more durable and better resistants of the destructive agencies of nature than either stone or brick, in such universal use. It is lighter and dryer, and susceptible of the most varied and brilliant polish. The Mosque of Omar, at Jerusalem, the most imposing structure in the East, is covered with encaustic tiles, showing every variety of color, and is indescribably beautiful in effect. All this and more can be gained in paper, which can have the superiority over all other building materials of being absolutely fire-proof; for common brown paper, made of straw, clay and pulp, will resist fire as well as clay. We have wondered that man, so quick to catch suggestions, has not utilized the material so long employed by the hornets; but this has been, no doubt, because need has not compelled, nor scarcity offered its bonus to the success of the experiment. But, as our timber resources shall be exhausted, new It is one of the marvels, as humiliating as wonderful, that insects and animals have anticipated much of what man proudly calls his inventions, and that his ideas are largely borrowed from these humble sources, often without acknowledgment either of their wisdom or of God's working by them. Stothard learned the art of combining colors by observing and imitating the flashes of color in butterflies' wings, which seemed to be under the perfect control of the creature itself. Cap-agencies of supply will come into service; tain Brown, afterwards Sir Samuel Brown, and, in our judgment, a quarter of a century while occupied in studying the construction will not elapse until paper houses will be obof bridges with a view of contriving one to jects of daily observation. And, to remove be thrown across the Tweed, was walking one the impression that this may be only a vagary dewy morning in his garden; he saw a tiny of our imagination, we can direct the reader spider's net suspended across his path. This to. an example of success already attained. suggested to him the possibility of a bridge Among the curiosities of the late Australian upheld by iron rods or ropes, and this was Exhibition was a house entirely constructed the beginning of suspension bridges. Sir from paper, containing carpets, curtains, James Watt, when consulted about the mode dishes and what-nots, out of the same mateof carrying water by pipes under the Clyde, rial. The hardening necessary to resist all along the irregular bed of the river, turned destructive agencies is obtained by saturating his attention one day to the shell of a lobster and covering with a cement prepared from presented at table, from this model invented blood, lime and alum, in the following ratio: an iron tube which, when laid down, was Four parts of slaked lime are mixed with found to answer every purpose. Sir Isambert three parts of fresh blood and a small quanBrunel took his first lessons in forming the tity of alum, the amount of which can be Thames tunnel from the tiny ship-worm, after best obtained by experiment, and the whole seeing how this creature had perforated the well beaten. In Germany, dishes and tablewood with its well-armed head, working wares throughout are made from sawdust and it first in one direction and then in the other, paper. The dome of an observatory has till the archway was complete, after which it lately been constructed from it, compressed daubed over the roof and sides a kind of var-, to the hardness of wood. The most durable nish. Following the mode of this worm-fire-proof roofs, variegated by color and de sign, have been prepared within the last year, and will soon be found in the market, tempting buyers by their beauty, cheapness and utility. In Corea, hats and umbrellas are made from it, and are in as common use as cotton is with us. In one of our monthlies is a description of a magnificent stage costume worn in Paris, enriched with exquisite lace made of paper; and we are all familiar with Chinese dinner napkins, answering every purpose, and so cheap that they can be thrown away after a single service. We can thus easily see what a magnificent future there is for wood fibre. Ships will ply the ocean not weighing a ten thousandth part of iron, more durable and better able to stand the strain of the storm; for this fibre, when properly treated, is tougher than iron, and can be made to resist water and fire more effectively. Our cars will be built of it, and the boilers which furnish the steam for motive-power, as well as water-pipes, reservoirs, railroad tracks, as easily as car-wheels are now made from it, in common use. It is within the bounds of possibility that air-ships shall yet ply the sea in which we live, as well as in the water below A New Yorker made a journey of over two thousand miles last year in a yacht made of paper, the weight of which was only fiftytwo pounds. us. We need not add example nor prophecy; for prophecies will be transcended by realities in this wonderful production, now in its infancy with man, but old as the hills in the house-building of the hornets, which man has fought and hated, and which were his friends, teachers and suggesters of a glory and comfort that the ages are but bringing him slowly to accept. But the grandest thought of this incoming revolution is that all this is from the reconversion of the wastes of nature, and will be but the carrying out of the laws of its grand economies.-Presbyterian. ENGLISH SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLMASTERS. BY PAMELIA M’A. COLE. Toward the close of the reign of " the godly and royal child," Edward VI., Bishop Ridley preached a sermon before him on Charity. After the discourse the young king asked the bishop what he could do to carry out the ideas of the sermon: "for," said he, "you spoke especially of the duties of the noble and the wealthy, and surely I, as the first of the land, ought to set a good example." Ridley suggested that he should consult the Mayor of London, as a person suitable to give advice in such a matter. He did so, and the result was the establishment of Christ's Hospital, St. Thomas', and Bridewell,-three of the five institutions known as the Five Royal Hospitals of London. These three were for the relief of the different classes of the poor of the city. The first, Christ's Hospital, for the "poor by impotency," i. e., "fatherless children," is commonly known as the Bluecoat School, from the dress of its members, a coat of blue cloth, which tradition says is a copy of the every-day garb of the Royal Founder, and like his, was originally velvet. Edward died in July, 1553, only a few weeks after signing the Charter of Incorporation of these three institutions, which were at first supported by a common fund; later it became necessary to separate them by appointing different boards of managers. Christ's Hospital was from the first an object of great interest to the citizens of London. Many liberal bequests have been made to the school itself, and for the assistance of those pupils who may take a university course. Originally intended only for destitute children, its range of studies was somewhat limited; but from time to time additions have been made to the course, which now combines classical and commercial departments. Many are also prepared yearly for the Royal Navy and other branches of sea-service. There are over a thousand pupils. Among the pupils of Christ's Hospital in recent times were Leigh Hunt, Charles Lamb, and Samuel Taylor Coleridge,—all of whom have left reminiscences, humorous and pathetic, of the school and their lives therein, also Bishop Middleton, of Calcutta, who calls the school "the source of greater good, upon the whole, than any other in England." Among its classical scholars are Barnes and Scholifield, both of whom have held the Regius Professorship of Greek in Cambridge.Journal of Education. EDUCATION OF FEEBLE-MINDED CHILDREN. In all the historic ages there have been in every community feeble-minded, idiotic, or imbecile children-children still, though they may have grown to the age of manhood or womanhood; and, though there is something terrible in the idea of mental and physical helplessness, protracted through centuries of existence, yet we cannot doubt that among the long-lived denizens of the ante-diluvian period there were the full quota of these unfortunates, whose lives were blighted through no fault of their own. It is touching to see, in the incidental allusions to this class, throughout ancient and mediæval history, how much more tenderly they were regarded than the insane. In many languages the names by which they are desig nated are full of pity for them. They are called "naturals," as if the possession of reason was an artificial or, at least, an unusual boon; "blessed children," as though helplessness brought the blessings of Heaven upon those who cared for them; "idiots"-that is, peculiar, with an added idea of ownership, as if a mother had called the child "her own;" weaklings," in a tender sense, as if they were to be specially cared for; and "God's bairns," as if the Almighty had confided them to their earthly parents as the objects of His love; but, with all this tenderness and pity, their condition was generally considered as hopeless. Two hundred and fifty years ago that Christian philanthropist, St. Vincent de Paul, among his other deeds of charity, gathered a considerable number of idiotic children together and attempted to improve their helpless condition and to instruct them; but, lacking the true perception of the causes of idiocy and their psychological status, he failed to accomplish any result beyond a slight improvement in their habits, which was not lasting, and the experiment was soon abandoned. For two hundred years no one again attempted the difficult task, though the deaf-mutes, the blind, and the insane had found friends and helpers who had greatly ameliorated their condition. About 1835, a brilliant and accomplished young French physician, Edouard_ Seguin, the pupil and friend of Itard and Esquirol, became interested in these unfortunates, and abandoning a professional and literary career of the highest promise, devoted himself to the work of their training and development. The work had few attractions for a young and gifted physician. There was no glory, no fame, and no money to be acquired by its prosecution. By common consent, the idiot was regarded as the most hopeless and helpless of all God's creatures; but M. Seguin was not only an enthusiast in his profession, but a genuine philanthropist, thoroughly devoted to the welfare of his fellow-men. Three years of careful investigation had revealed to him the key which was to unlock the hitherto impenetrable door to their darkened intellects, and let in upon them the sunlight of knowledge. It was this: "Idiocy is an arrested development of body, or mind, or both, and not an absence or paralysis of the intellectual faculties. The idiot is an infant, whose mind, and often his bodily powers, have remained in the infantile condition, and he can only be successfully treated by a training similar, but more protracted than that by which the ordinary infant is developed into an active and intelligent child." In 1838, Esquirol gave the weight of his name to a little publication of M. Seguin on this subject, which attracted much attention; in 1846, M. Seguin published his "Treatise on Idiocy and Arrested Development," a work which he had illustrated by his own teaching and which was crowned by the French Academy, as the most philanthropic and practical work of the time. It is still the standard authority on the subject the world over. In the thirtysix years which have passed since that time there have been between thirty and forty training-schools for idiotic, imbecile, and feeble-minded children established in Europe and the United States, and several others in Asia and Africa, all of which had their origin either from this treatise or from the personal efforts of Dr. Seguin. He came to the United States in 1851, and resided here most of the time till his decease, in October, 1880. He was a skillful physician and in many directions an accomplished scientist; but his heart was with the unfortunates to whom he had been so great a benefactor and he could not rest while there was an opportunity of doing anything for them. The institutions which he had helped to found were doing a good work; perhaps thirty per cent. of the children under their care were restored to a fair degree of intelligence and became capable of performing the duties of citizenship. About forty per cent. were so much improved as to be capable of working under direction, while about thirty per cent. were but slightly improved. These results did not fully satisfy Dr. Seguin. The training of these children is in a far greater degree than is generally supposed; an individual work and one which can be most successfully accomplished only by the teacher devoting herself (for the best teachers of these children are women) to one or at most two children for several hours of each day, and this for several years. This is obviously impossible in the large institutions; the instructors possessing the requisite qualities and qualifications could not be procured and the expense would be enormous. Dr. Seguin revolved in his mind the problem of providing for this difficulty for a long time. At first there seemed no probability of solving it. The State or the Nation might, indeed, establish such a training school; but the appropriations would be necessarily very heavy; the teachers might become careless and incompetent; and political influence, the greatest bane of charitable institutions, would be sure to be exercised. Turning away from this solution, Dr. Seguin finally decided to attempt it, by a private institution, established from his own extremely limited means. Idiocy is not peculiarly a misfortune of the poor, although many poor families are afflicted by it; but the rich are as liable to have feeble TREASURES. Let me count my treasures, minded or idiotic children as the poor. Basing | can be safely appealed to as an argument to his action on this fact, Dr. Seguin established, make the exertions and efforts, of which they in 1878, a physiological school for feeble- would otherwise be incapable, and every such minded and idiotic children, beginning with effort and exertion aids in the intellectual only two or three pupils, whose parents were development. Slow as their progress must able to pay for the training of their children, be, especially for the first year or two, it including the instruction of a governess in the would be infinitely slower but for this imbest methods of training, who could after a time portant factor.-I. P. Brockett, M. D., in go on with their education. He employed The Tribune. one or more assistants, and the school, which was removed to 58 West Fifty-seventh street, was becoming a successful one, when Dr. Seguin died, after a brief illness, October 28th, 1880. Mrs. Seguin, who had entered fully into his plans and had been a successful teacher of these unfortunates continued the school, at his request, and is achieving a marked success in it. The object of Dr. Seguin in the organization of this school was twofold; first, to demonstrate the great advantage of this plan of individual training in restoring to society those whose lives would otherwise be only a burden; and, second, to induce the charitably disposed to endow scholarships, by which these advantages could be placed within the reach of parents whose means did not allow them to place their children under this advantageous system of training. We cannot conceive of an object more worthy of large beneficence than this of restoring to intellectual health and to society those whose minds have been thus arrested in their development. The work is godlike, for it is in effect a new creation; and the noble philanthropist who, after more than forty years of arduous and unrequited toil, laid down his own work not wholly completed, deserves such a monument to his memory. A discovery made by Dr. Seguin at an early stage of his progress and since abundantly verified in all the training schools for children of this class was very interesting and helpful. The affectional nature, the soul, is not arrested in its development in anything like the same degree as the intellect. A child whose intellect is apparently almost a blank is capable of emotions of love, of hatred, of jealousy, fear, and reverence; nay, more, such a child will not only manifest these emotions, often in an intense degree, toward his fellows, but he will equally show them toward God and Christ. The story of the Christ-life and of the cross not only brings tears to the eyes of these poor children, but develops in them intense longing to be Christlike in their own conduct. These poor, despised little ones seem to be nearer to Heaven and to the all-compassionate One than those of us who far exceed them in intellectual powers. This condition of the affectional nature is of great service in the attempt to train the intellect. Their love for teacher and parent 'Mid dark horrors sought Knowing not her charms, Smiling in my arms. -Selected. NEW EVERY MORNING. Every day is a fresh beginning, The tasks are done and the tears are shed. Are healed with the healing which night has shed. Yesterday now is a part of forever, Bound up in a sheaf, which God holds tight, With glad days, and sad days, and bad days which never Shall visit us more with their bloom and Their fulness of sunshine or sorrowful night. |