brates where most are at least fairly well acquainted, but let us turn our attention to the sub-kingdom or branch articulates.*

Let the pupils then be encouraged to bring in representatives of the branch of articulates, of any kind whatsoever. By this means, sufficient material will soon be collected to enable the pupil himself, under the guidance of the teacher, to form a division of the branch somewhat as follows:

1. Articulates with six, eight, or many legs; breathing by means of pores opening along the sides of the body; integument moderately hard.

2. Articulates with ten legs; breathing by means of gills; integument usually very hard.

3. Articulates with no legs; breathing through an exceedingly porous skin, or by frequently inconspicuous organs at one extremity of the body; integument soft.

The learner will thus have separated the branch or sub-kingdom into three groups of individuals. These groups are technically denominated classes, the first class comprising insects, the second crustaceans, and the third worms. Thus all the articulates collected and examined have been arranged in these three classes. Any new captures can at once be assigned to their proper place, and the nucleus of a cabinet is formed. Henceforth let no member of a class be found away from his closely-related fellows, and among those whose relationship is plainly more remote. Now to proceed.

. A closer examination of the individuals thus classified as insects, accompanied, or rather preceded, by still more extensive collections on the part

of the pupils, will lead very easily to a further subdivision into groups. There will be found:

1. Insects with three distinct parts to the body, viz: head, thorax, and abdomen; with six legs; usually with wings.

2. Insects with but two distinct parts to the body, the head and thorax being closely united; with eight legs; without wings.

3. Insects with many distinct parts, from ten to more than one hundred; with two or four legs to each segment of the body below the head; without wings.

We will denominate these groups sub-classes, and call them res

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pectively by the names true insects, spiders, and myriapods. Individuals belonging to these sub-classes must now be kept by themselves. By this time, though reason asserts that our field of investigation has been constantly narrowing, yet experience has so sharpened the vision and whetted the appetite that a requisition upon the pupils for more materials wherewith to further sort out individuals by reason of other resemblances that force themselves upon their attention, will be filled at once, and so numerously that all will begin to believe, if not partially realize, that the portion of the territory to be surveyed is almost illimitable.

0. S. WESTCOTT. (To be continued.)

SPELLING REFORM.

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I am in my seventieth year, and find the subject of English Orthography is, for the fourth time within my recollection, and for the fifth time within my knowledge, receiving special attention.

1. When a boy, I recollect a book of my grandfather's, in which the words were all spelled in the simplest manner, without commas, semi-colons, or other points in the body of the book, but in place thereof, a few pages of each in the last of the book, with direction to the reader to pepper his dish with them to suit his own taste. Of the history of this effort to simplify our orthography, I have little information.

2. About the year 1825, a Baptist clergyman in Vermont was impressed with the idea, that a large amount of time and money was needlessly expended in learning to spell," and conceived it to be in

' the line of benevolent action to devise a remedy. Being a man of considerable talent, he succeeded in awakening an interest in the matter, and in inducing friends to furnish means to publish several books with the words spelled in accordance with his scheme. But after bankrupting himself and his friends, the matter was abandoned, and the world moved on as before.

3. About 1810, there was another paroxysm. I was then teaching an Academy in central New York, and recollect a letter I received from a leader in the movement, proposing to make us a visit, and to make our Academy one of the pioneer schools in this reform. In this letter, he stated that he had no doubt that within five years, all books and periodicals in the English language would be printed in accordance with the advanced ideas.” It needless to say that his sanguine anticipations have not been realized.

4. About 1858, I took charge, for a time, of what was then Brockway, now Ripon College. I found there two students, both teachers of Stenography, and both having a wider reputation than was good for them as students, as lecturers before teachers' institutes on the subject of Phonetics. Their spelling was, I hope, in accord with their reformed standard, for it certainly was not in accord with any other. Having to make more corrections in the spelling of their compositions than was pleasant, I asked one of them to stop for a private interview, when the following conversation in substance took place:

Teacher. I think you would do well to pay more attention to spelling, even if you have to pay less attention to other studies.

Student. I have no patience with spelling, and I am confident that in a very short time, no one will be expected to conform to the pres. ent recognized standard.

T. Fortunes have been expended in attempts to reform our spelling, but with no permanent results. Why do you expect to succeed when so many have failed ?

S. They failed because they did not go far enough. We propose to have a distinct character for each sound, and that no character shall represent more than one sound.

T. In that case you will need to use new letters, and virtually to make a new language. What charaters do you propose to use?

S. That has not yet been settled, but the matter is to be discussed at our next convention. It has been suggested that we might use Webster's notation, as far as practicable, so as to introduce but few new characters. But the subject is not free from difficulties.

T. Why do you not make use of your short-hand characters, if they are, as you maintain, most easily made, and best fitted for the use designed?

S. That has been proposed, and I should favor it, and I think it not improbable, that at our next National Phonetic Convention, it will be adopted.

T. Why not go a step farther, and make your short-hand phonetic alphabet, the alphabet for all nations, so that a given character shall represent a given elemental sound in whatever language?

S. That, too, has been proposed, and I have little doubt, that within three years, a World's Phonetic Convention will be called to meet at Paris, and that this will be adopted as the World's Alphabet.

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T. When your World's Convention are together, and have adopted the improved and simplified alphabet, just induce them to let the same sounds represent the same ideas in all languages, and we shall have not only a common alphabet, but a common language for the whole human family.

As our great rebellion began within the prescribed three years, it is perhaps allowable to attribute the failure of the scheine to this cause. At any rate, I think the World's Phonetic Convention has not been yet called.

5. It is now proposed to secure a simplification of our orthography, by a more gradual process; and many able scholars are giving the matter their earnest attention. It is to be presumed they have not undertaken so great a work without first sitting down and deliberately " counting the cost "'; without surveying carefully the difficulties to be encountered; without a definite idea of the end to be ultimately reached. I presume they “aim at perfection,” and will not be satisfied until we have a distinct character for every elemental sound, and no sound represented by more than one character. But how long will be required to attain this by a gradual process ? Noah Webster attempted some reforms in the direction of simplifying our orthography, but with the weight of Yale and Amherst, and the common „sense of the nation in his favor, the “Cambridge swells " quote from Quinctilian, “Usus est norma loquendi," and challenge us to point out a case where the best Cambridge scholars have spelled traveler with a single 1, and so with other words; and so successful have they been hitherto in their clamor, that the red tape gentry at Washington inform us that they have not felt at liberty to follow Webster, in deviating from usage, and have accordingly directed that in all records at Washington the orthography of Worcester and not of Webster shall be followed. If so little progress has been made in so long a time, in cases calling so loudly for reform, can any man now living expect the end prescribed to be reached within the time of his great-grandchildren?

But suppose the end reached, what shall be done with all the books now printed ? Shall they be destroyed, and their place supplied by new books, printed in accordance with the reformed orthography and reformed characters; or shall we have two languages, the ancient and the modern English, like the ancient and the modern Greek, the ancient American and the modern; the one to be studied for every day use, and the other for becoming acquainted with the writings of our predecessors?

But I am pursuing this train of thought too far. My object in writing was to suggest a doubt whether, if the reform be deemed practicable, it is really desirable. Is not "learning to spell" as well fitted to develope mental power, at an early period of mental growth, as anything which can be substituted for it?

One of the principal objects of study is to secure the power of concentrating the thoughts upon one object, and shutting out everything else. This power is not acquired in a day. It requires a long continued process of study, just adapted to the power of the student. If the study is above the mental power acquired, it tends to weaken rather than strengthen; just as muscular power is increased by suitable exercise, but weakened when overtasked. It is painful to witness the obvious over-strain of a bright little scholar, trying to analyze a problem too hard for him; and it is still more painful to know that the result of this over-strain is to weaken instead of developing men

tal power.

It seems plain to me that memoriter studies should be almost exclusively pursued until the child is about ten years old, and this conclusion seems to me to be borne out by an unusual amount of experience in teaching. Among these memoriter studies, learning to spell seems entitled to the highest place, and next to it the tables in arithmetic, including addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, with those of compound numbers; and next, suitable lessons in geography.

Give me a scholar who at the age of ten is a good reader and speller; who can accurately and rapidly add, subtract, multiply, and divide, without pretending to give a reason why or when he should add, subtract, multiply, or divide; and let him have a tolerable knowledge of elementary geography; and if at the age of fifteen his attainments do not compare favorably with the attainments of those who have substituted something else for these memoriter drills, I will consent that you may attribute his failure to my fault, and not to that of his previous training.

C. C. BAYLEY. Waupun.

Man wastes his mornings in anticipating his afternoons, and wastes his afternoons in regretting his mornings.

Make no more vows to perform this or that; it shows no great strength, and makes thee ride behind thyself.