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 AN OUTLINE OF THE 
 SYSTEM OF ED UCAHON 
 AT NEW LANARK
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 '/^ Yu^'y ,g 
 
 AN OUTLINEy^^/^^ 
 
 7 
 
 OF 
 
 THE SYSTEM 
 
 OF 
 
 EDUCATION 
 
 AT 
 
 NEW LANARK. 
 
 By ROBERT DALE OWEN. 
 
 GLASGOW" : 
 
 ^vintclj at tlje itluiberiBitB ^resia, 
 
 FOR VVARDLAW & CUNNINGHAME, GLASGOW; 
 
 BELL & BRADFUTE, EDINBURGH; AND 
 
 LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORMR, BROWN, & GREEN, 
 
 LONDON. 
 
 1824.
 
 laaiu 
 
 • • « «<
 
 lA 
 M^<^0 f 
 
 DEDICATION. 
 
 To ROBERT OWEN, Esg. 
 
 I DEDICATE this my first production to you, my 
 dear Father, because I trace the formation of a 
 great part of my own character, and the origin of 
 a great part of my own feelings and sentiments to 
 yourself. 
 
 In teaching me to think, you led me to examine 
 principles, intimately connected with the best 
 interests of mankind ; and I feel that I have derived 
 both pleasure and profit from the examination.
 
 I have seen these piinciples partially applied to 
 practice, and have witnessed the many beneficial 
 effects which were produced. I have seen their 
 application counteracted by many opposing cir- 
 cumstances, whose influence in rendering the ex- 
 periment incomplete, had been predicted and ex- 
 plained by the principles themselves. 
 
 And it gives me pleasure to know that you arc 
 about to commence a more perfect experiment, 
 where practice may uniformly accord with prin- 
 ciple ; because I believe this to be necessary to 
 pi-ove to the world, that your principles are indeed 
 founded in fact and in true religion. 
 
 But its success will scarcely create in my own 
 mind a stronger conviction than I already entertain, 
 of the certainty and facility, with which poverty 
 and vice and misery may be gradually removed 
 from the world. 
 
 R. D. OWEN.
 
 INTRODUCTIOxV. 
 
 The system of education which has been in- 
 troduced at New Lanark, differs essentially 
 from any that has been adopted in a similar 
 institution in the United Kingdom, or, pro- 
 bably, in any other part of the world. 
 
 Some particulars regarding it, may, there- 
 fore, prove interesting, as exhibiting the 
 results produced on the young mind, by 
 combinations, many of them new, and almost 
 all modified by the general principles on 
 which the system is founded. 
 
 It may be necessary to premise, that, the 
 experiment which has been here instituted 
 for the purpose of ascertaining the capabili- 
 ties of the human mind, at a very early 
 period of life, cannot, by any means, be 
 considered as a full and complete, but, on
 
 6 
 
 the contrary, ^s merely a partial and imper- 
 fect one ; and the results thence obtained, 
 however satisfactory, not as those which a 
 system of training, rational and consistent 
 throughout, may be expected to produce, 
 but only as a proof — an encouraging one, it 
 is presumed — of what may be effected even 
 by a distant approximation to it, under the 
 counteraction of numerous prejudices and 
 retarding causes. 
 
 The difficulties and disadvantages, inci- 
 dental to an experiment of this nature, will 
 be most correctly estimated by those, who 
 may have had an opportunity of witnessing 
 the introduction of any new system, however 
 beneficial ; and the pertinacity with which 
 old established habits and ideas continue to 
 hold out against apparently self e\idcnt im- 
 provements. 
 
 Such individuals will give to the following 
 considerations their due weight : 
 
 That, as the children lodge with (heir 
 ])arcnts, and remain in school during five 
 hours only, each day, tlie counteracting 
 influence of :ui association witli ])crsons who 
 iiave not received a similar education, must
 
 be very great, particularly as those persons, 
 whether parents, relations, or . elder com- 
 panions, are such as, from their age and 
 experience, the children generally look up 
 to with respect, and whose habits and man- 
 ners they are but too apt to adopt implicitly 
 as a model for their own. 
 
 That the difficulty was very great in pro- 
 curing teachers, who, to the requisite fund 
 of knowledge, general and particular, should 
 unite all the various qualifications of habits, 
 and of temper, so essential in a teacher of 
 youth 5 unaccompanied too with any pedant- 
 ry, which might prevent him from regarding 
 his pupils in the light of younger friends, or 
 conversing familiarly with them, and enter- 
 ing into their ideas, or even sometimes into 
 their little projects and amusements, or which 
 might disincline him to be himself, when 
 necessary, instructed and directed. 
 
 That, as the parents in general avail them- 
 selves of the permission which is granted 
 them, to send their children into the manu- 
 factory at ten years of age, the education of 
 these children, being thus broken off at the 
 most interesting and important period, ge- 
 
 10
 
 s 
 
 nerally remains incomplete ; for, altlioiigh 
 the schools are open in the evening for the 
 instruction of tliose older children who are 
 employed in the works, yet many do not 
 attend regularly, and it is found that those 
 who do, cannot, after ten hours and a half 
 of labour, apply in the same manner, or 
 derive, by any means, tlie same benefit from 
 that instruction, as the day scholars. 
 
 That many of the children, })reviously to 
 their admission into the schools, had been 
 permitted to acquire bad liabits and improper 
 dispositions, an acquisition which is frequent- 
 ly made, to a great extent, before the little 
 creatures have reached the age of two years, 
 and which most parents, under existing cir- 
 cumstances, have neither the knowledge, nor 
 tlie means, to prevent. And lastly. 
 
 That several of tlie arrangements, neces- 
 sary to the completion of the system, are yet 
 only in procuress, and that mauv more remain 
 to be introduced. 
 
 New Lanauk, \ 
 
 Or/. I82.S\ i
 
 AN OUTLINE, 
 
 It will be proper, before proceeding to 
 details, to state the general principles by 
 which these schools are regulated. 
 
 The children are governed, not by severity, 
 but by kindness ; and excited, not by distinc- 
 tions, but by creating in them a wish to learn 
 what they are to be taught. 
 
 All rewards and inmishments whatever, ex- 
 cept such as Nature herself has provided, and 
 which it is fortunately impossible, under any 
 system, to do away with, are sedulously ex- 
 cluded, as being equally unjust in themselves, 
 and prejudicial in their effects. 
 
 Unjust — as, on the one hand loading those 
 individuals with supposed advantages and dis- 
 tinctions, whom Providence, either in the 
 formation of their talents and dispositions, or 
 
 B
 
 10 
 
 in the character of their parents and associ- 
 ates, seems already to have favoured ; and on 
 the other, as inflicting farther pain on those, 
 whom less fortunate, or less favourable* cir- 
 cumstances, have already formed into weak, 
 vicious, or ignorant, — or in other words, into 
 unhappy beings. 
 
 And prejudicial — in rendering a strong, 
 bold character, either proud and overbearing, 
 or vindictive and deceitful j or in instilling 
 into the young mind, if more timid and less 
 decided, either an overweening opinion of its 
 own abilities and endowments, or a dispiriting 
 idea of its own incompetency — such an idea 
 as creates a sullen, hopeless despondency, and 
 destroys that elasticity of spirit, from whence 
 many of our best actions proceed, but whicli 
 is lost as soon as the individual feels himself 
 sunk, mentally or morally, below his com- 
 panions, disgraced by punishment, and treat- 
 ed with neglect or contempt by those around 
 liim. 
 
 It may be a question, which of these two 
 motives, reward or ))unishmen(, is in its ulti- 
 mate cHbcts upon the human character, the 
 more ])rejudicial, and ])ro(liu'c's ihe greater
 
 11 
 
 unliappiness ; the one in generating pride, 
 vanity, inordinate ambition, and all their con- 
 comitant irrational and injurious feelings and 
 passions, or the other in debasing the charac- 
 ter, and destroying the energies of the indivi- 
 dual. And, in this view, the advocates for 
 such a system might perhaps with some plau- 
 sibility support its justice, by arguing — "that 
 the apparent advantages and distinctions, be- 
 stowed on already favoured individuals, often 
 cause tliem more unhappiness and dissatisfac- 
 tion, than all the mortifications and dis- 
 appointments of their seemingly less fortu- 
 nate companions ; and thus tend to equalize 
 the amount of positive advantages acquired 
 by each." But surely such an argument is 
 but a poor defence of the system. It is only 
 supporting its justice at the expense of its 
 expediency. 
 
 We have said, that all rewards and punish- 
 ments were excluded from these schools, ex- 
 cept those which nature herself has establish- 
 ed. By natural rewards and punishments, 
 we mean the necessary consequences, imme- 
 diate and remote, which result from any 
 action. 
 
 B2
 
 12 
 
 If happiness be " our being's end and aim," 
 and if that wliich promotes the great end of 
 our beinc: be ridit, and that which has a con- 
 trary tendency be wrong, — then have we ob- 
 tained a simple and intelhgible definition of 
 riaht and wrong. It is this : " Whatever^ 
 in its ultimate consequences, i?icreases the hap- 
 piness of the community, is rigid ; and iduit- 
 ever, on the other hand, tends to diminish that 
 happiness, is wrong." A proposition, at once 
 clear in itself, and encouraging in its appli- 
 cation ; and one which will scarcely be re- 
 jected but by those who are unaccustomed 
 to take a comprehensive view of any subject, 
 or whose minds, misled and confused, per- 
 haps, by words without meaning, mistake the 
 means for the etid, and give to those means 
 an importance, which is due to them only in 
 as far as they conduce to tlie end itself, tlie 
 great object of all our pursuits, and the se- 
 cret mainspring of all our actions. 
 
 Every action whatever must, on tliis prin- 
 ciple, be followed by its natural reward and 
 punishment ; and a clear knowledge and 
 distinct conviction of (he necessary conse- 
 quences of any jinrliculai- line of conduct, is
 
 13. 
 
 all that is necessary, however sceptical some 
 may be on this point, to direct the child in 
 the way he sliould go ; provided common 
 justice be done to him in regard to the otlier 
 circumstances, which surround him in in- 
 fancy and childhood. We must carefully 
 impress on his mind, how intimately con- 
 nected his oxvn happiness is, with that of the 
 communitjj. And the task is by no means 
 difficult. Nature, after the first impression, 
 has almost rendered it a sinecure. She will 
 herself confirm the impression, and fix it in- 
 delibly on the youthful mind. Her rewards 
 will confer increasing pleasure, and yet 
 create neither pride nor envy. Her punish- 
 ments will prove ever watchful monitors ; 
 but they will neither dispirit nor discourage. 
 Man is a social being. The pleasures re- 
 sulting from the exercise of sincerity and of 
 kindness, of an obliging, generous disposi- 
 tion, of modesty and of charity, will form, 
 in his mind, such a striking and ever-present 
 contrast to the consequences of hypocrisy 
 and ill-nature, of a disobliging, selfish temper, 
 and of a proud, intemperate, intolerant 
 spirit, \that he will be induced to consider 
 
 B3
 
 14 
 
 the conduct of that indivickial as little short 
 of insanity, who would hesitate, in any one 
 instance, which course to pursue. He would 
 expect, what appeared to him so self-evi- 
 dent, to be so to every one else ; and feeling 
 himself so irresistibly impelled in the course 
 he followed, and deriving iiom it, daily and 
 hourly, new gratification, he must be at a 
 loss to conceive, what could have blinded 
 the eyes, and perverted the understanding 
 of one who was pursuing, with the greatest 
 difficulty and danger to himself, an opposite 
 course, pregnant with mortification in its 
 progress, and disappointment in its issue j 
 employing all his powers to increase his own 
 misery, and throwing from him true, genu- 
 ine hap})incss, to grasp for the hundredth 
 time, some momentary gratiiication, if tliat 
 deserve the name, which he knew by ex- 
 perience would but leave him more dissatis- 
 fied and miserable than it ibund him. 
 
 And his sini)nsc would be very natural, 
 if he were not furnished with tiie clow, which 
 can alone unravel what :i))pears so palpably 
 inconsistent with the first dictates of human 
 nature. That clew would enable liim to 
 
 9
 
 15 
 
 trace the origin of such inconsistency to the 
 system of education at present pursued, 
 generally speaking, over the world. Arti- 
 ficial rewards and punishments are intro- 
 duced ; and the child's notions of right and 
 wrong are so confused hy the substitution of 
 these for the natural consequences resulting 
 from his conduct^ — his mind is, in most cases, 
 so thoroughly imbued with the uncharitable 
 notion, that whatever he has been taught to 
 consider wrong, deserves immediate punish- 
 ment j and that he himself is treated unjust- 
 ly, unless rewarded for what he believes to 
 be right ; — that it were next to a miracle, if 
 his mind did not become more or less irra- 
 tional : or if he chose a course, which, other- 
 wise, w^ould have appeared too self-evidently 
 beneficial to be rejected. 
 
 The principles that regulate the instruc- 
 tion at New Lanark, preclude any such ideas. 
 A child who acts improperly, is not consid- 
 ered an object of blame, but of 'pity. His 
 instructors are aware, that a practical know- 
 ledge of the effects of his conduct is all that 
 is required, in order to induce him to change 
 it. And this knowledge they endeavour to 
 
 B 4
 
 16 
 
 give him. They show him the intimate, in- 
 separable, and immediate connection of his 
 own happiness, with that of those around 
 him ; a principle which, to an unbiased 
 mind, requires only a fair statement to make 
 it evident ; and the practical observance of 
 which, confers too much pleasure to be 
 abandoned for a less generous or more self- 
 ish course. 
 
 In cases where admonition is necessary, it 
 is given in the spirit of kindness and of 
 charity, as from the more experienced, to 
 the less experienced. The former, having 
 been taught wherein true self-interest con- 
 sists, are aware, that had the individual who 
 has just been acting improperly, had the 
 knowledge and the power given him, to 
 form his character, he would, to a ccrtaintjjy 
 have excluded from its composition such 
 feelings, as those in which his offence origi- 
 nated J Ijccause that knowleilge would have 
 informed him, tiiat these were only calculat- 
 ed to diminish his own haj)j)incss. The pre- 
 sence of those feelinirs would constitute the 
 suiest proof, that the knowledge and the 
 power had been denied him.
 
 17 
 
 Such, at least, would be the inference we 
 should deduce from similar conduct, in any 
 parallel case. Let us suppose a traveller 
 anxious to reach the end of his journey. 
 He is young and inexperienced, and per- 
 fectly unacquainted with the country through 
 which he is to pass. Two roads are before 
 him : the one is smooth and pleasant, afford- 
 ing, at every turn, some new and animat- 
 ing prospect ; it leads directly to his ob- 
 ject; if he follow it, he will every where 
 meet with agreeable and intelligent com- 
 panions, all travelling in the same direction, 
 and all anxious to give him every informa- 
 tion and assistance. The other, though at 
 first not uninviting, soon becomes danger- 
 ous and rugged, leading through a bleak, 
 waste country, the prospect on every side 
 dismal and discouraging ; he who pursues it 
 will be continually beset by thieves and as- 
 sassins ; he must be prepared, in every in- 
 dividual he meets, to discover a rival or an 
 enemy; all his fellow-travellers will conceive 
 it to be their interest to mislead and perplex 
 him y for they know that the inns are few, 
 and small and ill supplied, and that every
 
 18 
 
 additional companion lessens the chance of 
 adequate accommodation for themselves : 
 this road, too, dangerous and difficult and 
 disagreeable as it is, gradually changes its 
 direction ; it will lead the unfortunate travel- 
 ler, if indeed he survive its perils and hard- 
 ships, farther and farther from the object of 
 his destination, and will at last probably 
 conduct him into a strange, barbarous coun- 
 try, where he will sit down in despair, fa- 
 tigued and harassed, dissatisfied with him- 
 selfi displeased with his fellow-creatures, dis- 
 gusted witii his journey, and equally afraid 
 and luiwilling either to proceed, or to re- 
 turn. 
 
 Our traveller, however, chooses this latter 
 path in jireference to the other. Now, can 
 we su})pose it a possible case, that, at the 
 time he did so, he knew what he was choos- 
 ing. It is admitted tliat he Jiad a choice, 
 aiul (hat he chose evil, and rejected good, 
 liut slioukl we tlierefbrc assume that he liini- 
 sel/' created the prejereiice xvhidi gave 7'i.se to 
 that choice ; that he inJfuUijfoyined an errone- 
 ous judgment ; and lluit he merited pain and 
 punishment by such perversity? Should wc
 
 19 
 
 not rather conclude, either that he had de- 
 cided at random, unconscious of the import- 
 ance of his choice, or had been deceived by 
 a casual review of the general appearance of 
 tlie country ? Could we avoid remarking, 
 that circumstances which he had not creat- 
 ed, and which he could neither alter nor re- 
 gulate, induced a preference, and thus deter- 
 mined his choice ? And if we attempted to 
 put him into the right path, would our lan- 
 guage be that of anger or violence ? Should 
 we consider it necessary to employ any arti' 
 Jicial inducements in urging him to change 
 his course? or should we not rather con- 
 clude, that this would only lead him to sus- 
 pect our disinterestedness, and confirm him 
 in the resolution he had already adopted ? 
 Nay, if, to ensure his safety and comfort, 
 we proceeded to actual force, and obliged 
 him to take the other path, is it not but too 
 probable, that, as soon as he was relieved of 
 our troublesome presence, he would strike 
 into the first cross-road that presented itself, 
 to return to his original course ? How much 
 more easily would the proposed end be ef- 
 fected by a simple dispassionate statement of
 
 20 
 
 facts, unaccompanied by violence, and unat- 
 tended by any artificial inducement ! How 
 much more wise would be our conduct if we 
 endeavoured to procure a map of the coun- 
 try, and to prove to the traveller the accur- 
 acy of the information we gave j or if we 
 advised him to enquire of those who might 
 be returning from the road he had been so 
 anxious to follow^, whether they had found it 
 a pleasant or a direct one. They w^ould at 
 once tell him the real state of the case. We 
 might then endeavour to induce him to ac- 
 company us in the other direction, only re- 
 quiring of him that he should look, and hear, 
 and judge for himself. 
 
 Now, 1 believe it to be impossible, that, 
 witli even a moderate knowledge of human 
 nature, we should not be able to prove to 
 this traveller, young and inexperienced, and 
 uninformed as he is, our sincerity in the ad- 
 vice we had given him; and I am (>qualiy 
 certain, that if we did so, and he believed 
 our statement, he could not dcUhcralcUj make 
 liifii.sclj' viisc ruble y in preference lo nuil/ing 
 hiniseljltappij ; olherwise the desire of ha])pi- 
 ness cannot be a universal hiw of our nature.
 
 21 
 
 In the case just stated, the traveller is sup- 
 posed to commence his journey alone. If 
 he were accompanied by many companions 
 of his own age, and if they all struck into the 
 opposite road, we admit it to be possible that 
 advice and even conviction might be ineffi- 
 cient to prevent him from going along with 
 them. Man is gregarious ; and he might 
 choose to traverse a desert in the company 
 of others, though it led to danger and to 
 death, in preference to beginning a solitari/ 
 journey, though it conducted through gar- 
 dens to a paradise. But, on the other hand, 
 if his companions followed the road to hap- 
 piness, it would scarcely be necessary to 
 warn him of the danger of separating from 
 them and choosing the other path. If, in- 
 deed, ea^ample and advice proved equally un- 
 availing in inducing him to accept of happi- 
 ness, then nothing less than insanity would 
 account for his conduct ; and even in such 
 a case, violence or artificial inducements 
 would prove ineffectual. 
 
 We might safely build on a rock, and yet 
 we prefer a bank of sand, artificially support- 
 ed on all sides, with infinite trouble and
 
 22 
 
 anxiety and expense, and which, in all HkeU- 
 hood, the first flood will carry along with it ! 
 Let us suppose a set of children, overawed 
 by the fear of punishment, and stimulated 
 by the hope of reward, kept, which is but 
 seldom the case, during the presence of their 
 teachers in what is called ** trim order,'* ap- 
 parently all diligence and submission ; will 
 these childi'en, we ask, when the teacher's 
 back is turned, and this artificial stimulus 
 ceases to operate, continue to exhibit the 
 same appearance? or are they not much 
 more likely to glory in an opportunity of 
 running into the opposite extreme, and 
 thereby exonerating themselves of a re- 
 straint so irksome? Nay, more: impressed 
 as they are with the idea that pleasure and 
 duty run counter to each other, and that, 
 therefore, rewards and punishments arc em- 
 ployed to induce them to follow duty at the 
 expense of pleasure, can we expect that such 
 indi\iiluals should in after life hesitate to 
 reap present gratification from any line of 
 conduct, not immediately Ibllowed by artifi- 
 cial punishuKMit? for that is a nitcrion of 
 ?-rf(/// and U'ro?/g, which had been brought
 
 23 
 
 home to their feehngs in too forcible a man- 
 ner to be quickly forgotten, or easily effaced. 
 Can we wonder that so few individuals leave 
 our schools with other impressions than 
 these ? If we do, we surely forget that the 
 law of cause and effect applies equally in 
 the formation of the human character, as in 
 that of a blade of grass or any other natural 
 production. 
 
 It is sctircely necessary to allude to the 
 difference which will be found in the charac- 
 ter of those, who have never felt these arti- 
 ficial excitements, and whose youthful actions 
 have been regulated by a principle, which 
 will operate equally in after Ufe. They will 
 know that virtue always conducts to happi- 
 ness, and that vice leads only to misery ; and 
 tlierefore, they will follow virtue from its 
 own excellence, and avoid vice from its own 
 deformity. 
 
 Obstinacy and wilfulness are often fostered, 
 even in generous minds, by a feeling of in- 
 dependence, in rejecting what is attempted 
 to be forced upon them. And public opinion 
 confirms this feeling. He obtains, among 
 his school-fellows, the character of a brave,
 
 2i 
 
 spirited fellow, who will set himself — whether 
 right or wrong — against the will of their 
 mutual tyrant, for that is the light in which 
 they are too often obliged to regard their 
 instructors. In an institution, conducted on 
 correct principles, the scene is reversed. 
 No credit is obtained, where no risk is in- 
 curred. Public opinion is against those who 
 refuse obedience to, or elude commands, 
 which, it is known, are never given but on 
 a reasonable occasion, or enforced, but in 
 a mild and gentle manner. Obedience is 
 never confounded with coxcat^dice, and there- 
 fore obedience is popular. The most gene- 
 rous and intelligent individuals imiformly 
 lead their companions, and these are gained, 
 when they see themselves treated in a gene- 
 rous and intelligent manner. No party is 
 formed against the authority of the teachers ; 
 for even a schoolboy's generosity will not 
 oj)pose force to mildness, or determined ob- 
 stinacy to uniform kindness. The teachers 
 are loved, not feared, yet without any de- 
 duction from their authority, whenever they 
 find it necessary to exert it. 'J'lieir ])iij)ils 
 converse with theni out of school hours.
 
 ^5 
 
 * « 
 
 or even during tlie lessons, when it can be 
 done witli propriety, with the most perfect 
 ease and freedom, and sucli conversation is 
 regarded as a privilege. In the New Lanark 
 institution, tiiis practice has already led to 
 questions and remarks from the children 
 themselves, which would be considered far 
 above their years, and than which nothing 
 can be a greater proof of the good effects of 
 this system of instruction. 
 
 What the children have to learn, is con- 
 veyed to them in as pleasant and agreeable a 
 manner as can be devised. The subject is 
 selected, and treated with a view to interest 
 them as much as possible. In the lectures, 
 to which we shall presently have occasion to 
 allude, if the interest or attention is observed 
 to flag, the teacher looks to the leciure itself] 
 and to his wanner^ of delivering it, rather 
 than to the children, to discover the cause. 
 It is on this principle, that sensible signs 
 and conversation are made the medium of 
 instruction, whenever it is practicable ; and 
 this plan, dictated by nature, has been found 
 to be eminently useful. 
 
 Their attention is never confined too long
 
 26 
 
 to one object : a lesson for the day scholars, 
 in any particular branch, never exceeding 
 three quarters of an hour. 
 
 No inmecessary restraint is imposed on 
 the children ; but, on the contrary, every 
 liberty is allowed them, consistently with 
 good order, and attention to the exercise in 
 which tliey may be engaged. 
 
 By a steady adherence to such a system, 
 but little difficulty will be experienced, in 
 mildly enforcing whatever has once been 
 required of the scliolars ; even in cases 
 where tliey may perceive neitlier the im- 
 mediate nor ultimate benefit of a compliance. 
 
 These principles are no })lausible, inisup- 
 ported thcoiy. Even as such, they appear 
 conclusive. In llic absence of any direct 
 experiment, their consistency with every 
 thing we see around us, and with the first 
 feehngs and dictates of our nature, would 
 give tliein no inconsiderable weight. Hut an 
 experiment has been made under every dis- 
 advantage, — what lias been done in school 
 has been counteracted without, — (for most of 
 the parents, as was to be* expected, do not 
 vet comprcluMid the utililN' ol" this mode of
 
 27 
 
 instruction, and have continued their system 
 of rewards and punishments) ; the teachers 
 themselves liave discovered the practice of 
 the system but by degrees ; it has been at- 
 tacked and denounced even by those who 
 had been connected with it — has been cramp- 
 ed by imperfect arrangements ; and checked 
 by a mixture of the old with the new prin- 
 ciples and practices, inseparable from a first 
 trial J — and yet the result, much as it falls 
 short of what, under different circumstances, 
 might have been obtained, has been, in a 
 very high degree, satisflictory. No such 
 result, as far as we are aware, has hither- 
 to been produced in any similar institu- 
 tion ; it is a result, too, which is obtained 
 in the most agreeable manner, both for 
 the instructors and the instructed, without 
 repressing a single generous feeling, and 
 without incurring the risk of abandoning 
 the schoolboy to the world, either as a de- 
 termined violator of law and of principle, or 
 as a mean, undecided, dispirited character, 
 equally afraid to do wrong, and unwilling to 
 do right. 
 
 Having thus adverted to the general prin- 
 
 ' c 2
 
 28 
 
 ciples by wliicli these schools are governed, 
 the full discussion of which might easily be 
 extended to volumes, and is consequently 
 foreign to our present purpose, we proceed 
 to lay before the public an outline of the 
 details of the plan. 
 
 The "New Institution,'* or School, which 
 is open for the instruction of the children 
 and young people connected with the estab- 
 lishment, to the number of about 600*, 
 consists of two stories. The upper story, 
 which is furnished with a double range of 
 windows, one above the other, all round, is 
 divided into two apartments ; one, which is 
 the principal school-room, fitted uj) with 
 desks and forms, on the Lancasterian plan, 
 having a free ])assage down the centre of the 
 room, is about 90 feet long, 40 feet broad, 
 and 20 feet high. It is surrounded, except 
 
 * (>f tliose about 300 are day scholars, luulcr ten years of 
 
 a<;e. The rest arc al)ovc that aj^c, and attend in the evening 
 
 when tlieir wfnrk is completed; in summer, however, their 
 
 number is considerably liclow that here stated. 
 
 6
 
 S9 
 
 at one end, where a pulpit stands, with gal- 
 leries, which are convenient, when this room 
 is used, as it frequently is, either as a lecture 
 room or place of worship. 
 
 The other apartment, on the second floor, 
 is of the same width and height as that just 
 mentioned, but only 49 feet long. The 
 walls are hung round with representations of 
 the most striking zoological and mineralogi- 
 cal specimens ; including quadrupeds, birds, 
 fishes, reptiles, insects, shells, minerals, &c. 
 At one end there is a gallery, adapted for 
 the purpose of an orchestra, and at the other 
 are hung very large representations of the 
 two hemispheres ; each separate country, as 
 well as the various seas, islands, &c. being 
 differently coloured, but without any names 
 attached to them. This room is used as a 
 lecture and ball-room, and it is here, that 
 the dancing and singing lessons are daily 
 given. It is likewise occasionally used as a 
 reading room for some of the classes. 
 
 The lower story is divided into three apart- 
 ments, of nearly equal dimensions, 12 feet 
 high, and supported by hollow iron pillars, 
 serving, at the same time, as conductors, in 
 
 C 3
 
 30 
 
 winter, for heated air, which issues through 
 the floor of the upper story, and by which 
 means the whole building may, with ease, be 
 kept at any required temperature. It is in 
 these three apartments that the younger 
 classes are taught reading, natural history, 
 and geography. 
 
 We may here remark, that it is probable, 
 the facihty of teaching the older classes par- 
 ticularly, would haye been greatly increased, 
 had some part of the building been divided 
 into smaller apartments, appropriating one 
 to each class of from twenty to thirty chil- 
 dren, provided such an arrangement had not 
 encroached either on the lecture room, or 
 principal school-room. 
 
 Each of the two elder classes for the boys, 
 and the same for the girls, who at that age 
 are taught reading, writing, kc. separately 
 iiom the boys, and only meet them during 
 the lectures, and in the lessons in singing 
 and dancing, consists of Iiom twenty to forty 
 children. The younger classes, composed 
 indiscriminately of l)()ys and girls, are rather 
 more numerous. A master is ;i|)p()inted to 
 each class. There arc likewise, attached to
 
 31 
 
 the institution, a master who teaches dancing 
 and singing, a drilling mastei', and a sewing 
 mistress. 
 
 At present the older classes are taught 
 reading, writing, kc. in different parts of the 
 principal school-room, the size of which pre- 
 vents any confusion from such an arrange- 
 ment; but, as was before observed, the facility 
 with which their attention could be gained, 
 would probably be greatly increased, could 
 a separate apartment be appropriated to each 
 class. The very size of the room, too, in- 
 creases the difficulty, of itself no slight one, 
 of modulating the voice in reading. 
 
 The hours of attendance, in the day 
 school, are from half past seven till nine, 
 from ten till twelve, and from three till five 
 in the afternoon. In winter, however, in- 
 stead of coming to school again in the after- 
 noon from three to five, the children remain, 
 with an interval of half an hour, from ten till 
 two o'clock, when they are dismissed for the 
 day ; making the same number of hours in 
 summer and in winter. 
 
 The ages of the ciiildien are from eighteen 
 months to ten or sometimes twelve years. 
 
 C 4
 
 32 
 
 They are allowed to remain at scliool as long 
 as their parents will consent to their doing 
 so ; though the latter generally avail them- 
 selves of the permission which is granted 
 them, to send their children into the manu- 
 factory at ten years of age, or soon after. 
 It is the wish of the founder of these schools, 
 that the parents should not require their 
 children to attend a stated employment till 
 they are at least twelve years old ; and it 
 cannot admit of a doubt, that the general 
 adoption of such a measure would be pro- 
 ductive of the most important advantages to 
 the parents themselves, to the children, and 
 to society at large. 
 
 The infant classes, from two to five 
 years, remain in school only one half of 
 the time mentioned as the regular hours of 
 attendance for the other classes. During 
 the remainder of tiie time, they are allow- 
 ed to anuise themselves at perlect freedom, 
 in a large j)avcd area in front of the Institu- 
 tion, under the cliarge of a young woman, 
 wiio finils less ihlliculty — and without harsh- 
 ness or ])nnishmenf — in taking charge of, 
 and rendiring contented and ha})py, one
 
 33 
 
 hundred of these Uttle creatures, than most 
 individuals, in a simihir situation, experience 
 in conducting a nursery of two or three 
 children. By this means, these infants ac- 
 quire healthful and hardy habits j and are, 
 at the same time, trained to associate in a 
 kind and friendly manner with their little 
 companions ; thus practically learning the 
 pleasure to be derived from such conduct, 
 in opposition to envious bickerings, or ill- 
 natured disputes. 
 
 The school is open in the evening to the 
 children and young persons, from 10 to 20 
 years of age ; the system pursued with them 
 is so similar to that adopted in the day 
 school, that in describing the one, we shall 
 give an accurate idea of the other also. 
 
 The dress worn by the children in the 
 day school, both boys and girls, is composed 
 of strong white cotton cloth, of the best 
 quality that can be procured. It is formed 
 in the shape of the Roman tunic, and reaches, 
 in the boys dresses, to the knee, and in those 
 of the girls, to the ancle. These dresses are 
 changed three times a week, that they may 
 be kept perfectly clean and neat.
 
 34 
 
 The }3arents of the older children pay 3d. 
 a month for their instruction. Nothinn; is 
 paid for the infant classes, or for the even- 
 ing scholars. This charge is intended mere- 
 ly to prevent them from regarding the Insti- 
 tution with the feelings connected with a 
 charity school. It does not amount to one- 
 twentieth part of the expenses of the school, 
 which is supported by the proprietors of the 
 establishment. 
 
 It has been deemed necessary, in order 
 to meet the wishes of the parents, to com- 
 mence teaching the children the elements of 
 reading, at a very early age ; but it is in- 
 tended that this mode should, ultimately, be 
 superseded, at least until the age of seven or 
 eight, by a regular course of natural history, 
 geograi)hy, ancient and modern histoiy, 
 chemistry, astronomy, kc. on the principle, 
 that it is following the plan prescribed by 
 nature, to give a child such particulars as he 
 can easily be made to understand, concern- 
 ing the nature and proper lies of the dillerent 
 objects around him, before we ])roceed to 
 teach iiini the arlijicial signs which have 
 been a(l()])ted fo represent these objects. It
 
 35 
 
 is equally impolitic and irrational, at once to 
 disgust him by a method to him obscure or 
 unintelHgible, and consequently tedious and 
 uninteresting, of obtaining that knowledge, 
 which may, in the meantime, be agreeably 
 communicated by conversation, and illustrat- 
 ed by sensible signs ; and which may thus, 
 by giving the child a taste for learning, ren- 
 der the attainments of reading and writing 
 really interesting to him, as the means of 
 conferring increased facilities, in acquiring 
 further information. 
 
 The following are the branches of instruc- 
 tion at present taught at New Lanark. 
 
 READING. 
 
 Great difficulty has been experienced, in 
 procuring proper school books for the dif- 
 ferent classes. Those at present in use, are 
 in many respects defective : they are but ill 
 adapted to the capacities of children so 
 young, and are consequently not calculated 
 to interest them sufficiently. An exception 
 to this last observation must however be 
 made in favour of Miss Edgeworth's little 
 works ; but even these contain too much of
 
 36 
 
 praise and blame, to admit of their being re- 
 garded as unexce})tionable. From some little 
 volumes of voyages and travels, too, illus- 
 trated by plates and maps, and interspersed 
 with amusing and characteristic anecdotes, 
 great assistance has been derived. The elder 
 classes have often only one copy of each 
 work, from which one of their number reads 
 aloud to the others, who are generally ques- 
 tioned, after a few sentences have been read, 
 as to the substance of what they have just 
 heard. In their answers, they are not con- 
 fined to the author's words ; on the contrary, 
 their answering in a familiiu" manner, and 
 employing such expressions, as they them- 
 selves best understand, is considered as a 
 proof, that they have attended more to the 
 sense, than to the sound. 
 
 The general i)rinci[)le, that children should 
 never be directed to read what they cannot 
 understand, has been found to be of the 
 greatest use. The invaluabk' habit of en- 
 deavouring to understand wliai is read or 
 heard is thus formed. That great and gener- 
 al error, the mistaking of Iho ;;/r<'//?.v for the 
 cnd^ is avoitk'd, and the erroneous idea ex-
 
 37 
 
 eluded, that acquiring a knowledge of the 
 medium^ through which instruction may be 
 conveyed, is the acquisition of the instruc- 
 tion itself. The children, therefore, after 
 having become acquainted with that medi- 
 um, will not rest satisfied with this mere 
 mechanical attainment. A knowledge of 
 reading and writing is considered but as 
 furnishing a child with tools, which may be 
 employed for the most useful, or most per- 
 nicious purposes, or which may be rusty and 
 unemployed in the possession of him, who 
 having obtained them at great trouble and 
 expense, is yet unacquainted with their real 
 use. The listlessness and indifference so 
 generally complained of by him, whose un- 
 pleasant duty it becomes, to force learned, 
 but to them unmeaning sounds, upon his 
 ill-fated pupils, who are thinking of nothing 
 all the time, but the minute that is to free 
 them fi'om the weary task, — are scarcely 
 known under such a system.* 
 
 * That the system actually in practice at New Lanark is 
 imperfect, and consequently incapable of uniformly producing 
 all the results, which would otherwise be obtained — has al- 
 ready been stated. 
 
 JUjJ7
 
 38 
 
 It is for this reason, tliat, but for the 
 wishes of the parents, and of parties con- 
 nected with the estabhshment, the Scrip- 
 tures and Church Catechism would not be 
 put into the hands of children, at so early 
 an age as that of the day scholars. There 
 are many parts of the Scriptures, which 
 children of that age should not be made ac- 
 quainted with, and many more which they 
 cannot understand ; and the Catechism of 
 the Scotch Church is so abstruse and doc- 
 trinal, that even their superiors in age and 
 understanding might be puzzled, if called 
 upon to explain, what, as children, they 
 learned to repeat. 
 
 The children are taught to read according 
 to the sense, and, as nearly as possible, as 
 they would speak ; so as, at once, to show, 
 that they comprehend what they are read- 
 ing, and to give their companions an oppor- 
 tunity of C()m])reliendiiig it likewise. In 
 order to teach them the proper tone and 
 modtilatioii of the voice, the master Ire- 
 (liKiitly leads to his class some interesting 
 work ; lie tlicii allows his |)iipils to ask any
 
 39 
 
 questions, or make any remarks, tluit may 
 occur to them. 
 
 IV R I T Z N O. 
 
 The mode of teaching writing, is, in the 
 commencement, nearly the same as that 
 adopted in most schools ; but as soon as the 
 children can write a tolerably fair text copy, 
 the master begins to teach them current 
 hand writing, accordhig to a plan which 
 has been lately adopted in various semin- 
 aries. By this method the children write 
 without lines ; and with a little attention, 
 soon learn to correct the stiff formal school 
 hand, generally written, into a fair, legible 
 business hand, such as shall be useful to 
 them in after life. 
 
 The writing copies consist of short sen- 
 tences, generally illustrative of some subject 
 connected with history or geography; and the 
 pupils finally proceed to copy from dictation, 
 or from a book or manuscript, any passage 
 that may be considered as difficult, and at the 
 same time important to be retained in their 
 memory. Thus, as soon as possible, apply-
 
 40 
 
 ing the newly acquired medium of instruction 
 in the most efficacious manner. 
 
 ik K, I T K 3M[ 13 T I C 
 
 Has hitherto been taught on the system 
 which commonly prevails in Scotland. The 
 elder classes, however, are just beginning a 
 regular course of" mental arithmetic, similar 
 to that adapted by M. Pestalozzi of Iverdun 
 in Switzerland. In this, as in every other 
 department of instruction, the pupils are 
 taught to understand what they are doing ; 
 the teaclier explains to them icliy the dif- 
 ferent operations, if performed as directed, 
 must be correct •, and in what way the know- 
 ledge they are acquiring, may be beneficially 
 employed in after life. 
 
 S S Vr I N G. 
 
 All the girls, exce})t those in the two 
 youngest classes, are taught sewing, includ- 
 ing knitting, marking, cutting out, i^c. One 
 day of the week is appointed, when they 
 are desired to bring to school any of their 
 garments (which nuist [)reviously have been
 
 41 
 
 washed) that may require mending, and 
 these they are taught to repair as neatly as 
 possible. 
 
 NATUItiLI. HISTORY, 
 
 asoaRAPiiir, and ancient 
 
 ANB I^ODERN HISTORY. 
 
 These studies are classed together, be- 
 cause, though distinct in themselves, and 
 embracing, each of them, so great a fund of 
 information, they are taught at New Lanark 
 nearly in the same manner ; that is to say, 
 in familiar lectures, delivered extempore, by 
 the teachers. These lectures are given in 
 classes of from 40 to 50. The children are 
 subsequently examined regarding what they 
 have heard ; by which means the teacher 
 has an opportunity of ascertaining, whether 
 each individual pupil be in possession of the 
 most important part of the lecture which lie 
 has attended. In these lectures, material 
 assistance is derived from the use of sensible 
 signs, adapted to the subject, and which we 
 shall explain more particularly in tiieir place. 
 Each master selects a particular branch, and 
 delivers, as has been already stated, a sliort 
 lecture to 40 or 50 chihlrcn at once. The 
 
 D
 
 42 
 
 number was formerly from 1*20 to 150 in 
 one class; but this was found much too large, 
 and one half or one third of that number is 
 as many as it is found expedient to assemble 
 together, except when the lecture is so in- 
 teresting, as at once to rivet every child's at- 
 tention, and so easily understood, as to re- 
 quire no subsequent explanation whatever. 
 The attainment of this very important point, 
 it may be observed, will require great at- 
 tention, considerable ability, and a correct 
 knowledge of human nature. It is extreme- 
 ly difficult for the teacher, particularly if he 
 has had but little experience in delivering 
 lectures to children, to preserve the proper 
 medium between too much and too little de- 
 tail — to distinguish between unnecessary par- 
 ticulars, which will only divert the attention 
 from the main subject, and those, which are 
 absolutely necessary to children, in the way 
 of explanation. By the former, we refer to 
 such particulars as relate to abstruse ques- 
 tions, to ])olitics, to uninteresting, tedious 
 descriptions of particular animals or countries, 
 especially if these difler but slightly from 
 each other; to any tiling, in short, that is not
 
 43 
 
 striking' and interestinsr in itself, or becomes 
 so, as illustrative of some general principle, 
 or characteristic of some leading feature. To 
 the latter will belong such simple and dis- 
 tinct details, as may explain the phenomena 
 of nature, of science, or of civilization, to- 
 gether with such as tend to create enlarged 
 ideas, to repress illiberal or uncharitable 
 sentiments on any subject, or to teach chil- 
 dren to value every thing for its real worth, 
 and prevent their being misled by the rela- 
 tion of events, which are too often held up 
 as glorious and praiseworthy, but which, rea- 
 son teaches us, are equally irrational and in- 
 jurious to the happiness of the community. 
 
 In commencing the exposition of any sub- 
 ject, too great pains cannot be taken to avoid 
 all minor details, and, first of all, to give the 
 pupils a distinct outline of what is to be 
 taught them ; and to impress this so clearly 
 and definitely on their miml*, that they shall 
 be enabled to arrange any subsequent details 
 accordingly. This outline should then be 
 only partially filled up, selecting the most 
 important features, and illustrating these by 
 characteristic anecdotes at greater or less 
 
 D2
 
 44 
 
 length ; than which nothing impresses more 
 distinctly or durably on the mind of a child, 
 the subject to which such anecdote may re- 
 late. Subsequently, when further advanced, 
 the pupils may be safely allowed, without fear 
 of perplexing, or overloading their minds, to 
 enter into any important details ; and these 
 they will be able at once to classify and ap- 
 preciate.* 
 
 These are the general principles, w'hich re- 
 gulate the instruction which is given on such 
 subjects, at New Lanark. We are aware how 
 difficult it frequently proves, to deduce from 
 general principles, their practical application ; 
 but this difficulty, in the present case, expe- 
 rience will gradually remove. 
 
 Natural History is taught to all tlie schol- 
 ars, even to the youngest, or infant classes ; 
 who can understand and become interested 
 in a few sim})lc particulars regarding such 
 domestic animals as come under their own 
 observation, if these arc connnunicated in 
 a sufficiently familiar manner ; for this, in- 
 
 * As a spcciiiiin ol' tlu; iiiaiiiu'r in whiili such an outline is 
 communicatetl to tlic scholars, see Appendix.
 
 45 
 
 deed, is almost the first knowledge which 
 Nature directs an infant to acquire. 
 
 In commencing a course of Natural His- 
 tory, the division of Nature into the Animal, 
 Vegetable, and Mineral Kingdoms, is first 
 explained to them, and in a very short time 
 they learn at once to distinguish to which of 
 these any object which may be presented to 
 them, belongs.* The teacher then proceeds 
 to details of the most interesting objects fur- 
 nished by each of these kingdoms, including 
 descriptions of quadrupeds, birds, fishes, rep- 
 tiles, and insects — and of the most interesting 
 botanical and mineralogical specimens. These 
 details are illustrated by representations of 
 the objects, drawn on a large scale, and as 
 correctly as possible. It is desirable, that 
 these representations should be all on the 
 
 * Even in the course of such simple ilhistrations, consider- 
 able powers of mind may be elicited. In one of the younger 
 classes at New Lanark, to which the teacher had been explain- 
 ing this division, the pupils were asked to which kingdom the 
 plaster with which the ceiling of the room was covered, belonged. 
 They answered, " To the Mineral Kingdom j" but one little 
 fellow added, " and to the Animal Kingdom too." And on be- 
 ing asked why ? he replied, " Because there is hair in it, and 
 
 that once belonged to an anunal." 
 
 D3
 
 46 
 
 same scale ; otlicrwise the child's idea of their 
 relative size becomes incorrect. These draw- 
 ings may be either himg round the room, or 
 painted, as the botanical representations at 
 New Lanark are, on glazed canvass, which is 
 rolled from one cylinder to another, both cy- 
 linders being fixed on an upright frame, at 
 about six or eight feet distance from each 
 other, so as to show only that length of can- 
 vass at once. These cylinders are turned by 
 means of a handle, which may be applied to 
 the one, or to the othei', as the canvass is to 
 be rolled up or down. 
 
 The classes are subsequently, individually, 
 encouraged to repeat what they have heard, 
 to express their opinions on it freely, and to 
 ask any explanation. Such examinations en- 
 able the teacher to ascertain, what parts of 
 the lectuie have been most suited to the ca- 
 pacities, or calculated to call forth the atten- 
 tion, of the ciiildren ; and, on the contrary, 
 what portions were too abstruse and uninter- 
 esting to be retained. Tie is thus daily directed 
 ill liis choice of materials ibr i'ulure lectures; 
 and he gradually discovers the extent of the 
 j)owe^s of mind wliicli his j)n})ils possess.
 
 47 
 
 In commencing a course of Geography, 
 the cliildren are taught the form of the earth, 
 its general divisions into Land and Water, the 
 subdivisions of tlie land into four Continents, 
 and into larger and smaller Islands, that of 
 the water into Oceans, Seas, Lakes, &c. ; 
 then the names of the })rincipal countries, and 
 of tlieir capitals, together with the most strik- 
 ing particulars concerning their external ap- 
 pearance, natural curiosities, manners and 
 cUvStoms, &;c. &c. The different countries 
 are compared with our own, and with each 
 other. 
 
 The minds of the children are thus opened, 
 and they are prevented from contracting 
 narrow, exclusive notions, which might lead 
 them to regard those only as proper objects 
 of sympathy and interest, who may live in 
 the same country with themselves — or to 
 consider that alone as right, which they have 
 been accustomed to see — or to suppose those 
 habits and those opinions to be the standard 
 of truth and of perfection, which the cir- 
 cumstances of their birth and education have 
 rendered their own. In this manner are 
 the circumstances, which induce national pe- 
 
 D4
 
 4.8 
 
 CLiliarities and national vices, exhibited to 
 them J and the question will naturally arise 
 in their minds : " Is it not highly probable 
 that we ourselves, had we lived in such a 
 country, should have escaped neither its pe- 
 culiarities, nor its vices — that we should have 
 adopted the notions and prejudices there pre- 
 valent? in fact is it not evident, that we 
 might have been Cannibals or Hindoos, just 
 as the circumstance of our birth should have 
 placed us, in Hindoostan, where the killing 
 of an animal becomes a heinous crime ; or 
 amongst some savage tribe, where to torture 
 a fellow creature, and to feast on his dead 
 body, is accounted a glorious action ?" A 
 chihl who has once felt what the true answer 
 to such a question must be, cannot remain 
 uncharitable or intolerant. 
 
 The children acquire a knowledge of the 
 zones, and other artificial divisions of the 
 earth ; and it is explained to them, that these 
 arc not actual and necessary, but merely 
 imaginary and arbitrary divisions, and that 
 they might have been very different, without 
 in any way altering the real and natural divi- 
 sions of onr globe.
 
 49 
 
 Any one of the older classes at New La- 
 nark, on being told the latitude and longitude 
 of a place, can at onoe point it out ; can say 
 in what zone it is situated, and whether 
 therefore, from its situation, it is a hot or a 
 cold country — what is the number of degrees 
 of latitude and longitude between it, and any 
 other given country, even though on the op- 
 posite hemisphere ; together, probably, with 
 other details regarding the country ; as for 
 instance, whether it is fertile, or a desert ; 
 what is the colour and general character, and 
 what the religion of its inhabitants ; what 
 animals are found there ; when, and by whom 
 it was discovered j what is the shortest way 
 from England to that country ; what is the 
 name of the capital city, and of the principal 
 mountains and rivers ; and perhaps relate 
 something of its history, or a variety of char- 
 acteristic anecdotes which he may have heard 
 regarding it. They can thus travel, as it 
 were, over the whole world, taking all the 
 principal countries in rotation. 
 
 In the course of the lectures, numerous 
 opportunities present themselves to commu- 
 nicate much general information, not strictly
 
 50 
 
 connected with the branches themselves ; as 
 for example, descriptions of natural })lieno- 
 mena, of trades, manufactures, &c. Thus, 
 in short, furnishing them with whatever is 
 useful or pleasant, or interesting for them to 
 know. 
 
 Ancient and Modern History constitutes 
 another branch of their education. It may 
 be thought, that in teaching History, the aid 
 of sensible signs can be but seldom called in. 
 Tile reverse, however, is the case. Their 
 application here is, in fact, more complete 
 than in any othei" branch. Seven large maps 
 or tables, laid out on the principle of the 
 Stream of Time, and which were originally 
 purchased fiom Miss Whitwell, a lady who 
 formerly conducted a respectable seminary 
 in London — are hung round a spacious room. 
 These, being made of canvass, may be rolled 
 up at ])leasure. On the Streams, eacii of 
 whicli is tliiltMcntly coloured, and rej)resents 
 a nation, are })ainted the j)rinci})al events 
 which occur in the history of those nations. 
 Each century is closed by a horizontal line, 
 drawn across tlie map. By means of these 
 maps, the chilchen are taught ihe outlines of
 
 51 
 
 Ancient and Modern History, with ease to 
 tliemselves, and without being Hable to con- 
 found diftercnt events, or different nations. 
 On hearing of any two events, for instance, 
 the child has but to recollect the situation, 
 on the tables, of the paintings, by which these 
 are represented, in order to be furnished at 
 once with their chronolosjical relation to each 
 other. If the events are cotemporary, he 
 will instantly perceive it. AVhen the form- 
 ation and subdivisions of large empires are 
 represented, the eye seizes the whole at once ; 
 for wherever the coloured stream of one na- 
 tion extends over another, on these tables, it 
 is indicative, either of the subjection of one 
 of them, or of their union ; and their subse- 
 quent separation would be expressed by the 
 two streams diverging again. The children 
 can therefore point out the different historical 
 events, as they do the countries on the map of 
 the world, count the years and centuries as 
 they do the degrees of latitude and longitude ; 
 and acquire an idea almost as clear and tangi- 
 ble of the history of the world, as that which 
 the first terrestrial globe they may have seen, 
 gave them of its form and divisions. We
 
 52 
 
 know, ourselves, how easily we can call to 
 mind any events, representations of which we 
 were, as children, accustomed to see, and we 
 may thence estimate the tenacity with which 
 such early impressions are retained. 
 
 The intimate connexion between Natural 
 History, Geography, and History, is evident, 
 so that in lecturing on one of these subjects, 
 the teaclier finds many opportunities of re- 
 calling to the minds of his pupils various 
 portions of the others. 
 
 Ri:Z.IG-ION. 
 
 The founder of the schools at New Lanark 
 has been accused of bringing up the children 
 without religion. 
 
 The direct and obvious tendency of the 
 whole system of education there, most fully 
 warrants, as it appears to us, a representation 
 the very reverse of this ; and as mucli has 
 been asserted, and still more insinuated on 
 the subject, we may be allowed to state our 
 reasons for this oj)inioii. 
 
 An acquaintance with the works ol' the 
 Deity, such as these children accjuire, nuist
 
 53 
 
 lay the basis of true religion. The uniform 
 consistency of such evidence, all nations, 
 and all sects, at once acknowledge. No di- 
 versity of opinion can exist wdth regard to it. 
 It is an evidence with which every one who 
 is really anxious that liis children should 
 adopt a true religion, must wish them to 
 become acquainted ; whether he may have 
 been born in a Christian country, or be 
 a disciple of Mahomet, or a follower of 
 Bramah. Because simple facts can never 
 mislead, or prejudice the mind. They can 
 never support a religion which is false ; they 
 must always support one which is true. He 
 who hesitates to receive them as the basis of 
 his religion, tacitly acknowledges its incon- 
 sistency. " And where there is inconsistency, 
 there is error." If the subsequent religious 
 instruction, which a child is to receive, be 
 true, then will the instructor derive, in 
 teaching it, the greatest assistance from the 
 store of natural facts, which the child has 
 previously acquired ; because true religion 
 must be completely in unison with all facts. 
 If such subsequent instruction be false, then 
 will it certainly become a difficult task to
 
 54.^ 
 
 induce a belief in its truth, because a chilc^ 
 whose mind has been thus prepared, will 
 probably soon discover, that it is not in ac- 
 cordance with what he knows to be true ; 
 but every one must admit the advantage of" 
 such a difficulty. Even supposing a child 
 instructed in true religion, and believing it 
 implicitly, without, liowever, having acquir- 
 ed that belief by deducing its truth from 
 known or well accredited facts, — upon what 
 foundation can such a behef be said to rest? 
 The first sceptic he may converse with, will 
 probably excite a doubt of its truth in his 
 mind ; and he himself, being unable to de- 
 fend his opinions, and hanng no means of 
 reasoning on the subject, may soon become 
 a violent opposer of that religion, which, 
 though true, had yet been taught to him be- 
 fore he had acquired sufficient knowledge to 
 imderstand its evidence, or was capable of 
 judging of its truth or falsehood. 
 
 This reasoning is j)eculiarlyap})lical)le in the 
 case of any religion, the evidence for which 
 is chiefly derived iiom liistorical deductions. 
 
 In any other study, the inconsistency of 
 expecting the pupils to deduce correct con- 
 
 \
 
 r)5 
 
 elusions before the facts upon wliicli the 
 reasoning proceed^, are known to thenv 
 would be glaringly evident. Why tlien lose 
 sight of this consideration upon a subject so 
 important as religion ? 
 
 If a chemist were anxious that a child 
 should be able to trace and understand some 
 valuable and important deductions, whicli 
 with great study and much patient investi- 
 gation> he had derived from certain chemical 
 facts ; would he act wisely in insisting tbat 
 the child should at once commit to memory, 
 and implicitly believe these deductions? 
 Would he act consistently in objecting to a 
 system, which should first teach the pupil 
 the elements of chemistry, should gradually 
 store his mind with chemical facts, and at 
 length, when his judgment had become ma- 
 tured, place before him these important de- 
 ductions^and allow him to judge for himself^ 
 as to their accuracy ? 
 
 What should we think of a professor of 
 chemistry, who should object to such a 
 plan ? Who would join with him in stigma- 
 tizing, as an infidel in the great principles of 
 chemistry, or in denounchig as an enemy to
 
 56 
 
 the science itself, the man who expressed 
 his conviction, that it was irrational, before 
 the child could know any thing of the 
 elementary imnc'iples of the science, to in- 
 sist upon its ultimate deductions ? Would not 
 the chemist, who expressed a fear, that un- 
 less these were received and implicitly be- 
 lieved in infancy i they would not be received 
 or believed at all, excite, by the expression 
 of such an opinion, a suspicion of their truth 
 or acciuacy ? 
 
 And is religion a less important, or a less 
 abstruse science than chemistry? Is it of 
 minor consequence that no such cause 
 should exist for attaching suspicion to the 
 great truths of religion ? Or are religious 
 doctrines more easily understood than che- 
 mical deductions ? Or are they not, perha])s, 
 like these, founded on facts ? If they are 
 not, they stand not on a rock, but on a 
 sandy foundation. If they are — as it is pre- 
 sumed they must be — then is a knowledge 
 of these facts a necessary preliminary to 
 the study of the science of religion. 
 
 As such, it is comnumicated fo the chil- 
 dren in the schools at New Lanark.
 
 ^7 
 
 And on this principle it is considered, 
 that a child, at an early age, should become 
 acquainted with facts, instead of being in- 
 structed in abstruse doctrinal points. H it 
 often requires all the powers of the most 
 matured human reason to decide on these 
 points, surely we do wrong to present any 
 of them to the minds of children. Such a 
 proceeding only serves to puzzle and per- 
 plex them : it creates listless and inattentive 
 habits : in most cases, it gives children a de- 
 cided dislike to the study itself They 
 learn to regard religion, and every thing 
 connected with it, as gloomy, tiresome, and 
 mystical j fit only for those, who have lost 
 all power or opportunity of enjoying any 
 thing else. 
 
 It wolild be a libel on religion to suppose 
 these to be the natural consequences of 
 teaching it to children. They are only the 
 necessary results of forcing on the young 
 mind, the prevalent ideas on this subject. 
 Under a different svstem a religion of confi- 
 dence, and peace, and love, and charity, could 
 produce neither fear, nor disgust ; nor coultl 
 it ever become unattractive, if presented to
 
 58 
 
 cliildren in a simple and natural light. But, in 
 teaching it, we must not depart from those 
 principles, which regulate the rest of our in- 
 struction. AVe must not expect, that children 
 should like a study, which does not interest 
 them, or should feel interested in a study, 
 which they do not understand. If we do, we 
 shall infallibly meet with the results, which 
 alone, as experience tells us, such a system is 
 calculated to produce. But let us not de- 
 signate these, either the natural consequen- 
 ces of teaching religion, or evidences of the 
 original corruption of the human heart. 
 
 If we plant a healthy vine-shoot in an ex- 
 cellent soil ; but if, at the same time, being 
 unacquainted with the proper mode of cul- 
 tivating vines, we neglect to water it, 
 and surround it with a variety of shrubs, by 
 way of support, which, instead of answer- 
 ing this purpose, cramp the growth of the 
 ])lant, exclude the sun from it, and render it 
 weak and barren ; let us not be siupriscd at 
 the unha])py results of our management ; or 
 conclude that no vines planted in that 
 ground can ever flourish or bear valuable 
 fVmt ; neither let us libel flie soil, by imput-
 
 59 
 
 ing to it original, irremediable barrenness. 
 Let us rather inquire if our treatment of the 
 plant be such as nature dictates, or as, rea- 
 soning from analogy, and from our previous 
 knowledge of agriculture, we are warranted 
 in supposing conducive to its successful cul- 
 ture. Otherwise it should cease to be mat- 
 ter of surprise, if we find vines flourishing 
 luxuriantly even in wild, neglected spots, 
 while, under our care, they go to decay, 
 and become but a nuisance and a vexation. 
 
 To speak without a metaphor — it is not 
 only a fact, that true religion requires no ar- 
 tificial supports, but it is likewise certain, 
 that by surrounding it with these, we only 
 exclude the light of reason, and render prin- 
 ciples suspected, the truth of which, if they 
 had not been thus hidden, and obscured, 
 would long since have established itself on 
 the most solid basis. 
 
 Again — we are told, that the heart of man 
 " is deceitful above all tilings, and desper- 
 ately wicked." And it is undeniable, that 
 the present character of mankind is 
 neither a sincere nor a virtuous -one. In- 
 deed, perfect sincerity would expose its pos- 
 
 E2
 
 CO 
 
 sessor either to ridicule, to hatred, or to the 
 imputation of insanity. And any general 
 character approaching to real virtue could 
 not exist under the chilHno- influence of the 
 existing arrangements of society. This we 
 must acknowledge, with however much re- 
 gret. But we must be careful in regard to 
 tlie conclusions we deduce from the fact. 
 We must weigh the matter well, before we 
 admit, that human nature is necessarilij thus 
 corrupt under EVERY system — or utterly 
 abandon the idea, that the most noble and 
 superior sentiments, good faith, sincerity, 
 generosity, independence and fortitude, 
 kind and social, and cliaritable feehngs, are 
 its inherent qualities, which require only the 
 influence of a mild and genial chmate, to 
 draw tliem forth — and adoi)t in its phice 
 the gloomy picture, loaded with disgust- 
 ing defects, and sordid qualities, which 
 is Iicld u}) to us as a true representation of 
 oiu- nature, and over wliich we may brood, 
 till fancy herself either discovers, or creates 
 the resemblance. U it be correct, then 
 may we give up all li()])e of nny great or 
 j)ernianent inij)ro\cinent in this world, for
 
 61 
 
 the prospect before us is dismal and bleak, 
 and discoiiraoincr indeed. It matters not 
 that the intelligence and beneficence of the 
 Creator is conspicuous alike in the instinct, 
 which directs the smallest insect in the 
 way he should go, and in the principle,^ 
 which regulates and upholds thousands of 
 worlds in empty space. It matters not that 
 every inferior being seems fitted for the con- 
 dition assigned to it, for man himself, it seems, 
 is not. In his formation, an all-wise and om- 
 nipotent Creator has failed. Man's prospects 
 of happiness are indeed fair and promising, 
 but his heart has been made inherently de- 
 praved, and must always remain so — and 
 that mars and blasts them all. To attempt its 
 improvement would be in fact to oppose the 
 fiat of his Creator, which has stamped deceit 
 and depravity even on the earliest conscious- 
 ness of infancy. 
 
 In inculcating that religion teaches such 
 a doctrine, let us at least confess to our- 
 selves, that it is one, whose direct tendency 
 is, to discourage all attempts to promote the 
 virtue or the happiness of the world ; and 
 to fill our mind with vague and painful ad- 
 
 E3
 
 62 
 
 prehensions for the future ; on the ground, 
 that an all-good and all-poiverjul Being has 
 formed, or (wliich is the same thing) has 
 permitted to be formed, in the heart of man, 
 a principle, ichich must render all such al- 
 tempts abortive^ and all such appreliensions 
 hut too well founded. 
 
 Yet this doctrine, and many others of a 
 similar tendency, form part of the rehgious 
 instruction which is at present given, even 
 to the youngest children. The world is at 
 issue in regard to many of these doctrines ; 
 yet they are unhesitatingly presented, in 
 the most uninteresting and dogmatical man- 
 ner, to the mind of an infant, and he is 
 expected to comprehend them. Can we 
 wonder, that such a mode of proceeding 
 should bring religion into disrepute, anel 
 that instructions, given with a view to ele- 
 vate and ennoble the mind, should in their 
 ultimate effects, but leave behind them an 
 idea oC a IJeing, infinitely powerful indeed, 
 but agitated by human j)assions, any thoughts 
 of whom it is wise to banish from the mind, 
 as only calculated to terrify and distress; — 
 and an uneasy, undelined feeling of mystcri-
 
 63 
 
 oiis dread, just sufficient to embitter any 
 moments, into ^Yllich thoughts of religion 
 may intrude. 
 
 We act unwisely in adopting a system of 
 religious instruction which shall, in any one 
 instance, have been found to produce such a 
 result. 
 
 At New Lanark, every opportunity is em- 
 braced of inculcating those practical moral 
 principles which religion enjoins ; and of 
 storing the minds of the children, with the 
 most important and striking natural facts ; 
 but the consideration of any abstruse doc- 
 trines is, as far as the religious views of the 
 parents will admit, reserved for an age, when 
 the pupils shall be better fitted to judge for 
 themselves, and to weigh, with an accuracy, 
 which it would be folly to expect from a 
 child, the opposing arguments that are em- 
 ployed to support or to attack disputed points. 
 By this means, the real interests of truth 
 must necessarily be promoted ; for it is evident 
 that an individual, whose judgment has been 
 thus informed, must be much less likely to 
 reject truth, or to receive error, than it is 
 
 E 4
 
 64, 
 
 possible for the unprepared mind of" an in- 
 fant to be. 
 
 It appears to uSj that if an individual be 
 sincere in his religious profession, whatever 
 peculiar tenets he may hold, he must, on 
 mature consideration, approve of the plan, 
 Avhich is now suggested, as the most cer- 
 tain method of disseminating Iiis particular 
 opinions over the world. And simply be- 
 cause each individual believes his own opin- 
 ions to be true, or he would not entertain 
 them. 
 
 If it be admitted that a very large ma- 
 jority of the religions of the world are false 
 — and it is certain, that only one can be true 
 — then docs the admission furnish an ad- 
 ditional argument in favour of this mode 
 of instruction. For it is very unlikely that 
 any false religion would endure such a 
 test; and it is certain, that a religion founded 
 on reason and on truth, nuist be essentially 
 promoted by it, to the exclusion of all others. 
 
 We shall not enter into any arguments in 
 snj)j)oil of ihe doctrines ])ro})ounded by 
 Calvin ; nor shall we (jucstion their truth 
 or accuracy : the discussion is irrelevant to
 
 (')5 
 
 our present purpose ; but it appears to us 
 evident to a demonstration, that if these 
 doctrines are true we cannot adopt a more 
 effectual method of inducing the whole world 
 to become Calvinists, than that now recom- 
 mended. If false, the sooner they are ex- 
 ploded the better. 
 
 It is a fair question, whether too little 
 interference in so delicate a subject as that 
 of religion, or too great latitude in religious 
 toleration, can ever exist? That an op- 
 posite system has excited the most bitter 
 and violent of all animosities, that it has 
 armed the neighbour against his neighbour, 
 the father against his children, has destroyed 
 the peace and harmony of families and of 
 nations, has deluged the world with blood, 
 and, under the sanction of the most sacred 
 name, countenanced atrocities, during the 
 relation of which we seem to listen to the 
 history, not of men, endowed with reason, 
 but of demons, possessed with an infernal 
 spirit of savage madness — these are facts, 
 which every page of our history must es- 
 tablish. Can we be too tenacious in main- 
 taining a principle, the practical influence
 
 66 
 
 of which, is to prevent the possihiUtij of their 
 recurrence ? 
 
 This is the principle that has always regu- 
 lated the religious instruction, in the New 
 Lanark Schools. An endeavour has been 
 made to rescue human nature from the im- 
 putations thrown upon it by the conduct of 
 individuals, actuated by intemperate religi- 
 ous zeal — a conduct, which has often seemed 
 to justify the strongest expressions regard- 
 ing human deceit and human depravity. 
 At New Lanark these imputations find no 
 support : in pursuing the system adopted 
 there, no cause of complaint has arisen 
 against the natural depravity of our nature. 
 On the contrary, experience seems com- 
 pletely to warrant the opinion, that our 
 nature is a delightful compound, capable, 
 no doubt, of being formed to deceit and to 
 wickedness, but nihercntltj imbued neither 
 with the one nor the other — that if fear be 
 excluded as a motive to action, a child will 
 never become deceitful, ibr it will scarcely 
 liave a motive to deceive. — That if a child 
 be taught in a rational manner, il will itself 
 become rational, and thus, even on the most
 
 67 
 
 selfish principle avoid wickedness — and that 
 our only legitimate cause for surprise is the 
 consideration, that human nature, as it now 
 exists, is neither so deceitful nor so wicked 
 as the present arrangements of society would 
 seem calculated to make it. 
 
 We should apologize for this digression, 
 but that we feel the importance of the sub- 
 ject, and the necessity that those who woukl 
 improve and re-form the rising generation, 
 should not create to themselves imaginary 
 difficulties, where no real difficulties exist ; 
 and that we have seen how much evil may 
 be done, when a teacher first takes it for 
 granted, that his pupils are all depraved and 
 irrational beings, and then treats them as 
 sucli. The very tone and manner, which 
 such an idea produces, destroys confidence, 
 and creates distrust and dislike. When con- 
 fidence is lost and dislike excited, the case 
 becomes indeed hopeless ; and the teacher, 
 whatever be his talents, will meet with real 
 and increasing difficulties, and daily discover 
 fresh cause for distrust and vexation. Un- 
 just suspicion first creates its object, and 
 then glories in the penetration wiiich dis-
 
 68 
 
 covered it. His pupils must consider that 
 they have no character to lose, and are thus 
 deprived of a great inducement to virtue. 
 They will thwart him in all his measures, 
 and deceive and oppose hmi on every oc- 
 casion ; because children will not act gener- 
 ously, unless they be treated-with generosity. 
 Before concluding this important subject, 
 it may be necessary to say ; that no allusion 
 has been made in this place to a fact which 
 has already been stated ; viz. that the scrip- 
 tures are and have always been statedly 
 read, and the catechism regularly taught 
 there — because this has been done, not as 
 being considered the proper method of con- 
 veying religious instruction to the minds 
 of young children, but because the parents 
 were believed to wish itj and any encroach- 
 ment on })crfect liberty of conscience, was 
 regarded as the worst species of tyrannical 
 assumption. 
 
 liesides tlie studies already menlioned, 
 llie children arc instruclecl in nnisic and
 
 GO 
 
 dancing ; which are found essentially to con- 
 tribute towards moral refinement, and im- 
 provement. When properly conducted, each 
 of these acquirements becomes a pure and 
 natural source of enjoyment ; and it is a well 
 authenticated fact, that the best method of 
 making a people virtuous, is to begin by 
 rendering their situation comfortable and 
 happy. 
 
 s I N a z N a. 
 
 All the children above five or six years of 
 age are taught singing, sometimes by the 
 ear, sometimes by the notes. They begin 
 by learning the names and sounds of the 
 notes, and by singing the gamut ; then pro- 
 ceed to strike the distances, and finally 
 acquire such a knowledge of the elements of 
 the science of music, as they may easily re- 
 duce to practice. The musical notes and 
 signs, as well as a variety of musical exer- 
 cises, are represented on a large scale, on a 
 rolled canvass, similar to that on which we 
 have mentioned, that the botanical speci- 
 mens are painted. A small selection of sim-
 
 70 
 
 pie airs is made, for the school, every three 
 months. Tlie words to these are printed on 
 slieets, one of which is given to each child. 
 Spirited songs, in the braviu'a style, are 
 found to be much more adapted to children 
 under ten years of age, than more slow and 
 pathetic airs ; into the spirit of which they 
 seldom seem to enter, while the former are 
 uniformly their favourite songs, particularly 
 any lively national airs wdth merry words. 
 Almost all the children show more or less 
 taste for music ; altliough of course this ap- 
 pears in one child spontaneously, while in 
 another it requires considerable cultivation. 
 
 The vocal performers in the evening 
 school are sometimes joined by the instru- 
 mental band, belonging to the village. This 
 recurs in general once a week. 
 
 DANCING 
 
 Is tauglit, as a pleasant, liealthful, natural 
 and social exercise, calculated to improve 
 the carriage and doportmont, and to raise 
 the s))irits, and increase the clieerfulness and 
 hihirity of those engagcnl in il. The dan-
 
 ces are varied. Scotch reels, country dances, 
 and quadrilles are danced in succession ; and 
 by some of the older pupils with a simple 
 and unaffected ease and elegance, which we 
 have never seen surpassed in children of 
 their age. 
 
 Besides dancing, the children, boys and 
 girls, now and then go through a few mili- 
 tary evolutions, as well to give them the ha- 
 bit of marching regularly from place to 
 place, as to improve their carriage and man- 
 ner of walking. This species of exercise is 
 never continued long at a time j and stiffness 
 and unnecessary restraint are avoided as 
 much as possible ; on the principle, already 
 mentioned, and which pervades the whole of 
 the arrangements in these schools, that what- 
 ever is likely to prove unpleasant or irksome 
 to the children, and is not necessary for the 
 preservation of good order, or for some 
 other useful purpose, should never be re- 
 quired of them. At the same time, what- 
 ever is really necessary to the proper regula- 
 tion of the school, is uniformly but mildly 
 enforced. 
 
 To prevent any confusion or irregularity,
 
 72 
 
 each teaclier is fiirnislied with a list of the 
 lessons, which his class is to receive during 
 the week, and these are of course so arrang- 
 ed, that the lessons of the different classes 
 cannot interfere \vith each other. 
 
 The general appearance of the children is 
 to a stranger very striking. The leading 
 'character of their countenances is a mixed 
 look of openness, confidence and intelli- 
 gence, such as is scarcely to be met with 
 among children in their situation. Their 
 animal spirits are always excellent. Their 
 manners and deportment towards their 
 teachers and towards strangers, are fearless 
 and unrestrained, yet neither forward, nor 
 disrespectful. Their general health is so 
 good, that the surgeon attached to the vil- 
 lage, who is in the habit of examining the 
 day scholars periodically, states, as the re- 
 sult of an examination, which took place a 
 few weeks since ; that, out of 300 children, 
 only three had some sligiit coni})l:iint ; and 
 that all the others were in perfect health. 
 The individual literary acquirements of tiie 
 greater ])ro))orti()n of the older classes, are 
 such as ])erliaj)S no body of cliildreii of the
 
 73 
 
 same age, in any situation, iiave liad an oppor- 
 tnnity of attaining. The writer of the present 
 article has had frequent opportunities of ex- 
 amining them individually ; and he has no 
 hesitation in saying, that their knowledge on 
 some of the subjects, which have been men- 
 tioned, as forming part of their instruction^ 
 is superior to his own. 
 
 A sufficient degree of friendly emulation 
 is excited amongst them, without any arti- 
 ficial stimulus ; but it is an emulation, which 
 induces them to prefer going forward zvith 
 their companions^ to leavitig them behind. 
 Their own improvement is not their only 
 source of enjoyment. That of their com- 
 panions they appear to witness with plea- 
 sure, unmixed with any envious feeling 
 wliatever ; and to be eager to afford them 
 any assistance they may require. Some of 
 them have voluntarily undertaken, when any 
 of their companions were necessarily absent 
 during some interesting lecture, to give them 
 all the particulars they should be able to re- 
 collect of it, as soon as they returned home. 
 
 Although there have always been schools 
 at New Lanark, and although the building 
 
 ¥
 
 74 
 
 which is at present employed as a school, 
 has been open for eight years, yet several 
 material parts of the system have been in 
 operation scarcely two years — so that their 
 ultimate effects cannot yet be fully ascer- 
 tained. As far as these have yet appeared, 
 however, they have been most satisfactory. 
 It has always been found, that those children, 
 who made the greatest proficiency in their 
 various studies and acquirements, proved 
 subsequently, the best, the most industiious 
 and most intelligent assistants, both as work- 
 people and domestics. 
 
 There are persons, who will admit the 
 general consistency and excellency of such 
 a system of education, but who will, never- 
 theless, object to it, as totally unadapted to 
 the lower or working classes. 
 
 TJial true hioxclcd^e viujhnnh/ conduces 
 /(> /ta])j)i/ic6S,is a tact, which, tiiough it was 
 denied in the dark ages of the world, is very 
 generiilly admitted at the present day. 
 
 The acquisition of true knowledge, there-
 
 75 
 
 fore, must increase the happiness of those 
 who acquire it. And if the lower classes 
 have fewer outward sources of enjoyment^ 
 than their more wealtliy neighbours, then 
 does it become the more necessary and just, 
 that they should be furnished with means of 
 intellectual gratification. 
 
 We admit, that the lower classes cannot 
 receive such an education, and yet remain 
 in their present ignorant and degraded state. 
 We admit, that it will make them intelligent 
 and excellent characters. That, when they 
 are placed in a situation which is really im- 
 proper, it will necessarily make them de- 
 sirous of changing and improving it. We 
 admit, that the real distance between the 
 lowest and the highest ranks will be de- 
 creased. That the ultimate result will be 
 such an improvement of habits, dispositions 
 and general character in those in subordinate 
 situations, as will induce us to regard them 
 in the light of assistants rather than of de- 
 pendants. We admit, that its general intro- 
 duction will gradually render all ranks much 
 more liberal, better informed, more accom- 
 plished, and more virtuous than the inliabi- 
 
 F 2
 
 76 
 
 tants of Great Britain are at this moment. 
 And that, in sliort, its direct tendency will 
 be, to enlighten the world, to raise all 
 classes without lowering any one, and to 
 re-form mankind from the least even to the 
 greatest. 
 
 But we misconceive its tendency, and 
 mistake its effects, if we imagine that renl, 
 solid intellectual improvement, will ever in- 
 duce the lower classes to envy the situation, 
 or covet the possessions of the wealthy. Or 
 that it will ever raise any of them above a 
 pro})er employment, or render them dis- 
 satisfied with any state of thins^s, that is 
 really beneficial to themselves or useful to 
 society. Or that it will create seditious 
 principles, or excite revolutionary ideas in 
 their minds. Or, in sliort, if we su))pose 
 that true knowlediie will ever conduce to 
 misery. ^Vc arc in crior if we conceive, 
 that it is more pleasant to be surrounded 
 by servile dependants, than by enlightened 
 assistants — or, if" we l)elii>ve, that even the 
 selfish interests of thi' higher ranks can be 
 promoted by increasing the distance, and 
 thus widening the bieach between them and 
 
 10
 
 77 
 
 another class of their fellow-creatures — or 
 that the sufferings and degradation of the 
 one class can, in any way, increase the actual 
 enjoyment of the other. 
 
 Indeed, the idea, that such a notion is 
 deliberately entertained by the higher classes, 
 presupposes in them a want of feeling, in- 
 consistent aUke with every superior senti- 
 ment, and with their own real or permanent 
 happiness.
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 F 4
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 The following brief " Introduction to the Arts 
 and Sciences," is presented to the public merely 
 to explain what sort of outline it is here recom- 
 mended to give to children, before entering into 
 further details. It was drawn up for the New La- 
 nark Schools, and has been communicated to the 
 elder classes. The teachers are directed to illus- 
 trate each idea by any anecdote or interesting par- 
 ticular, which may occur to them, or by drawings 
 or models ; and to encourage the children, after 
 hearing a short portion of it, to repeat and explain 
 that portion in familiar language. This they are 
 generally able to do with considerable facility. 
 
 A manuscript of this " Introduction" has been 
 transcribed by some of the elder scholars, in order 
 at once to impress it on their minds, and to im- 
 prove their style of hand-writing.
 
 THE EARTH 
 
 On which we live, is a very large ball. It is near- 
 ly round, in the shape of" a globe. The hills and 
 mountains on its surface, even the highest' and 
 
 largest of them, which are six or seven times high- 
 er than any mountain in Great Britain, do not pre- 
 vent the earth's being round, any more than the 
 roughness on the skin of an orange prevents the 
 orange being round ; for they are not so large 
 compared to the whole earth, as the small raised 
 parts, which make the orange skin rough compareil 
 to the orange. And, therefore, if we were going 
 to represent the earth by a globe as large as an 
 orange, we should not make the mountains so large 
 as these small inequalities on the skin of the orange. 
 The earth does not seem to us rounti, but Hat, 
 because we can only see a very, very small })art of 
 the outside of the earth at once ; and a small part 
 of the outsitlc of a large ball is so very like a flat 
 surface, tlial wi; caiuiot easily dislinguisli it iVom 
 one. Bui wo know that the laith is round, because 
 people, by travelling lor two or three years, in the 
 same diii'ition, came at last to the j)lace they set 
 out iVoni. 'i'lM-ie people tra\ell((l round the world.
 
 83 
 
 We do not know whether the earth is soUd or 
 not; because we liave never seen the inside, except 
 a very short way under the surface. 
 
 It is always turning round with us. Yet we do 
 not feel it moving, because every thing we see moves 
 along with us. In the same way, that if a ship sails 
 on a smooth sea, and we are in one of the rooms in 
 the inside of the ship, we cannot tell whether the 
 ship is moving or not ; for it does not seem to us 
 to move at all. 
 
 The earth is warmed by a much larger globe than 
 itself, called the sun. The sun is a very great way 
 from the earth. If it were too near, every thing 
 would be burnt up. If the sun did not give us heat, 
 nothing could grow or live. 
 
 A candle, or any light, can only shine on one 
 half of a olobe at a time; the other half is dark. 
 In the same way, the sun can only shine on one 
 half of the earth at once, while the other half, on 
 which it cannot shine, must be dark. This is the 
 reason why it is sometimes day, and sometimes 
 night. The part of the earth we are on, is turned 
 to the sun in the daytime, and turned away from 
 it at night. 
 
 You will be told afterwards, why the days are 
 sometimes longer, and sometimes shorter ; and why 
 it is hot in summer, and cold in winter. 
 
 If you were going to draw a picture of a ball.
 
 84 
 
 you could only draw one lialt" of it at once. Then 
 you would require to turn it round, and draw the 
 other half. That is the reason why the whole earth 
 is drawn on two hemispheres. As you cannot draw 
 it round on paper, it seems flat, but each hemi- 
 sphere should in llict be a half ball. Every other 
 map, although all maps are drawn flat, represents 
 a part of the outside of the large ball we live on, so 
 that, to be quite correct, it should be raised from 
 the paper. 
 
 The world, or any part of the world, can be 
 drawn on a very large maj), or on a very small one, 
 in the same way tliat you can draw the same house 
 on a large piece of paper, and make it large, or on 
 a small piece, and make it small. This is called 
 drawinjT on a lar"€ scale, or on a small scale. 
 
 Part of the outside of the earth is covered with 
 water. The part that is not covered with water is 
 called land, and is not cjuite half as large as the 
 other. 
 
 The whole of the outside of the earth is, there- 
 fore, either land or water. 
 
 The whole of the earth i-. •jurrounded by air.
 
 85 
 
 Every thing that is in, or on the earth, is called 
 a substance. Each of these substances is supposed 
 to consist of very small particles, much too small to 
 be seen. 
 
 All these substances remain on, or in the earth, 
 and the different parts of each of them keep toge- 
 ther; — because all substances are drawn towards 
 each other, we do not know how or why. 
 
 The larger a substance is, the more it draws ano- 
 ther to it; because it has more particles than a 
 smaller body, and each of these particles draws a 
 little. This is the reason why the earth draws every 
 substance to itself; or, in other words, why sub- 
 stancesyaZ/ if we let them ; and why they jiress with 
 what is called their xceight, upon any thing that sup- 
 ports them. 
 
 When any body falls, it draws the earth a very 
 little upwards, in the same way that the earth 
 draws it downwards. But all bodies are so small 
 compared to the earth, and the earth is so large, 
 compared to them, that we do not see the eaith fall 
 to them, or move towards them, and they fall to it. 
 
 The different substances on the earth would fall 
 towards each other if they were larger than the 
 earth ; but we never see them do so, because none 
 of them are nearly so large as the earth ; and, there- 
 fore, althouirh thev are drawn to each other, vet 
 the earth draws them towards itself so much more
 
 86 
 
 forcibly, that they are held clown to the earth, and 
 cannot fall towards each other. 
 
 This is the reason that it requires an effoit to 
 raise one of our arms or legs, and that it falls again 
 if we let it. 
 
 This is the reason, too, why we never fall off the 
 earth when it is turning round ; for (because the 
 earth draws us strongly towards itself,) we always 
 remain standing, or sitting, or lying on it. JJe call 
 that iii-Jiich is in the earth, below us ; and ice saj/, 
 that that which siirronnds the earth, (for instance, 
 the clouds,) is above us. Therefore, however the 
 earth turns, we always stand or sit with our feet 
 downwards, and our heads upwards ; that is, with 
 our feet turned towards the earth, and our heads 
 away from it. 
 
 lia larijer substance than the earth were to come 
 near the earth, it would draw the earth to it ; tluit 
 is, the earth, and every thing that is upon the earth, 
 would fall to it ; but although there are many larger 
 substances than the carlli, which you will be told 
 about afterwards, they are not near enough to draw 
 the earth to them. 
 
 I'or, tlie nearer substances are to each other, the 
 more strouiiU iIhv arc diawii to<relher. U'liis is the 
 reason why the suiall pailicles of every thing or sul)- 
 staiice reiuain together, and why it ri(|uires force to 
 sppiiratc, cut, or divide any tiling. 
 
 to
 
 87 
 
 This inclination of substances to fall towards each 
 other, is called attraction ,- and when they are drawn 
 together, we say they attract each other. 
 
 If substances did not attract each other, any 
 power, that could set them, even in the least degree 
 in motion, (for instance, the wind,) would blow every 
 thing to pieces ; and the whole world would be se- 
 parated into small particles in a very short time. 
 
 Whenever the force of the wind on a substance is 
 stronger than the attraction of the earth to that sub- 
 stance, then the substance is lifted into the air ; and 
 whenever the attraction becomes stronger than the 
 force of the wind, it falls again. 
 
 Whenever the force of the wind on the particles 
 of a substance is stronger than the attraction of 
 these particles to each other^ then that substance is 
 blown to pieces. 
 
 Whenever the attraction of the particles of a body 
 or substance to the earth is stronger than their at- 
 traction to each other, then that body falls to pieces ; 
 that is, each of the separate particles the body is 
 made of falls to the earth, as soon as the size of the 
 earth makes the attraction greater, than the close- 
 ness of these small particles to each other, makes if. 
 For the force of the attraction always depends on 
 the closeness of the bodies, and on their size. 
 
 Almost all bodies, which we see, are made of two 
 or more substances, and are then called compound
 
 88 
 
 bodies. The substances these compound bodies are 
 made of, are called elements, or simple bodies. We 
 very seldom find simple bodies ; that is, we very 
 seldom find bodies made of one substance only. 
 
 Although there are so ve)-y many compound bo- 
 dies, yet there are very few diflerent kinds of simple 
 bodies, but the different ways in which these bodies 
 come together, make the different objects we see; 
 in the same way that, although there are so few let- 
 ters in the alphabet, you can make so very many 
 words by putting them together. 
 
 We can decompose all compound bodies; that 
 is, we can find out the simple bodies they are made 
 of, but we cannot always put the simple bodies to- 
 gether again, so as to form the compounds we do- 
 composed; for instance, we can decompose flesh or 
 bones, and get the simple substances they are made 
 of; but after we have got these, we cannot make 
 flesh and bones of them again. 
 
 Every substance belongs to one of three gi eat di- 
 visions called Kinifdoins, viz. — 
 
 The Animal Kiiiiidom ; 
 
 The Vejrotable Kiiiiidoin ; nnd 
 
 Tiic Mineral Kingdom. 
 
 Now, I will tell voii liow y<Mi can gonerallv find 
 tint to wliicli kiiufdoni ;iu\' tlr.iiLT bclon'js.
 
 89 
 
 Animals change, live, move of" themselves, and 
 (most of them, if not all,) think. 
 
 Vegetables change, live, (cannot move of them- 
 selves, and are not supposed to think.) 
 
 Minerals change, (do not live, therefore cannot 
 die or fade, cannot, any more than vegetables, move 
 of themselves, or think.)* 
 
 Therefore, animals, vegetables, and minerals, or 
 all substances — change ; animals and vegetables 
 change and live ; animals change, live, move of 
 themselves, and think. 
 
 I. HOW ANIMALS, VEGETABLES, AND MINERALS, 
 
 CHANGE. 
 
 All substances are continually changing, either 
 slowly, or quickly ; sometimes increasing ; sometimes 
 decreasing ; sometimes with little or no change that 
 we can perceive ; sometimes by means of an instant 
 and complete change. When animals or vegetables 
 change, so as to increase in size, we say they gro'w. 
 
 When an ajiimal is born, it is smaller than it will 
 be after it has lived some time. It continues to in- 
 crease in size, or to grow ; sometimes only for some 
 
 * These divisions and definitions arc given, not because they were 
 considered the most critically correct that could be adopted, but be- 
 cause they were thought to be simple, and easy of application.
 
 90 
 
 hours ; sometimes for many years, till it has attain- 
 ed its full size. Still, however, the difi'erent par- 
 ticles of the animal continue movino" about, and be- 
 coming altered ; and the whole body and appearance 
 becomes changed, but slowly. Animals grow so 
 slowly that we cannot see them growing ; but we 
 see after some time, that they have become larger, 
 and that their appearance has become altered. 
 
 Vegetables begin to grow from a seed, or from a 
 root, when this seed or root is put into the earth, 
 or sometimes when it is merely put into water. 
 Some parts of vegetables grow upwards ; those are 
 the parts we see ; some downwards into the earth, 
 and these are called roots. Vegetables grow in ge- 
 neral more quickly than animals, but still they 
 scarcely ever grow so quickly, that we can see them 
 growing.— Most vegetables grow during the hot 
 months of the year ; and cease to grow, and even 
 lose part of their growth, in winter. The particles 
 a vegetable is made of, move about in it, and be- 
 come gradually altered, as well as those of an ani- 
 mal. Some vegetables grow much larger than any 
 animals. 
 
 M/nrrals change, as well as animals and vege- 
 tables, but in a very diflerent manner to these, and 
 vrrij much slower, often without seeming to change 
 at all. Some of them, however, become many thou- 
 sand limes largei- than any animal or vegetable. 
 
 10
 
 91 
 
 The wliole body of tlie earth, as tar as we know, is 
 composed of minerals, which liave been changing 
 for a very long time. 
 
 There are a very great many more mineral sub- 
 stances in the earth than animal or vegetable sub- 
 stances ; for animal and vegetable substances grow 
 merely on the surface of the earth, whereas, the earth 
 itself is probably made of mineral substances. 
 
 II. HOW ANIMALS AND VEGETABLES LIVE. 
 
 You have just been told, that animals, vegetables, 
 and minerals, are continually changing, — sometimes 
 o-rowinir lariier, sometimes becoming less ; but you 
 know, that animals and vegetables grow quite in a 
 different way from minerals. First of all, they grow 
 quicker ; then, animals cannot grow unless they are 
 fed, nor vegetables unless they are planted. Then 
 again, animals and vegetables grow larger for a cer- 
 tain time ; then they continue nearly the same size ; 
 then they become less and less vigorous, till at last 
 they always change completely, and become what 
 we call dead. The animal does not move about 
 then, nor take food, as it used to do ; the vegetable 
 does not grow in the warm months, and lose its 
 orowth in the cold ones, as it used to do. It falls 
 to the ground ; and the roots and branches of the 
 
 G 2
 
 92 
 
 dead veoetable, and the body of the dead animal, 
 gradually fall to pieces, and mix with the minerals 
 and veoetables around them, and chanire alonir with 
 them. 
 
 Now, this way in which animals and vegetables 
 change till they die, is called livhig ; and the sud- 
 den change they all undergo, when they no longer 
 continue this mode of existence, is called death. 
 Minerals do not grow in this way for a time, and 
 
 then change suddenly ; therefore, minerals do not 
 live or die. 
 
 Animals camiot live without eating Ibod, which 
 is either an animal, vegetable, or mineral substance, 
 chiefly a vegetable one; nor without drawing in 
 and breathing out the air with which the earth is 
 surrounded. If thev are without food or air, lor a 
 short time, almost all animals will die. This food, 
 and this air, nuist be proper for the animal, or he 
 cannot live either. Some animals eat one kind o)i 
 food, and some another. Each different species of 
 animals requires different kinds of food \o kiej) it 
 alive. Some kinds of air, too, would kill an animal, 
 if he were to breathe them : these arc sometimes 
 found a little below the surface of the earth. But 
 the air which surrounds the earth is, almost every- 
 where, fit for breathing; only it is better in one 
 place than another. 
 
 I'art of till' lood an animal rats, mixes with the
 
 93 
 
 particles of the body of the animal ; and the air the 
 animal breathes takes away some of these particles. 
 These particles are thus continually in motion, so as 
 gradually to change the animal. Most animals 
 have blood, which is red in some, and white in 
 others. It moves about in the body of the animal 
 as long as it lives. If a severe blow or stab pre- 
 vent these things from going on, the animal is killed. 
 Some animals do not live for one day ; others 
 live for about 200 years. We do not know what 
 is the longest time some animals may live. 
 
 Vegetables cannot live, any more than animals, 
 without food, nor without air. Their roots receive 
 nourishment from the ground, or from water, and 
 this nourishment is circulated all over the vegetable. 
 The other parts of the vegetable, particularly the 
 leaves, are acted upon by the air which surrounds 
 it, so that circulation is continually going on through- 
 out the vegetable. Some vegetables require one kind 
 of ground, and some another. Some vegetables live 
 only one summer, and these are called annuals ; 
 some live longer probably than any animals ; some 
 are said to have lived about 1000 years. 
 
 If a vegetable be cut in two, that part which re- 
 mains in the ground generally continues to live, and 
 the other part dies. 
 
 Some animals and vegetables can only live in 
 warm countries, and some few only in cold ones. 
 
 g3
 
 9^ 
 
 III. HOW ANIiMALS ^fOV£: AND THIN A'. 
 
 Some animals move on land, and some in water. 
 Most land animals move about by means ot" teet, 
 which they put forwards and backwards as they 
 please. A few land animals move without feet, by 
 drawing their bodies together, and then stretching 
 them out again. Some land animals can move about 
 in the air, without touching the land, by means of 
 wings, with which they continue to strike the air, 
 as long as they wish to move about. Water ani- 
 mals move about in the water, by means of fins, 
 which are grisly substances, which they can move 
 at pleasure, so as to answer the purpose of our feet. 
 Only one kind of water animal that we know, can 
 move about in the air, and it can only do so for a 
 short time. 
 
 Most animals have five senses ; viz. the senses 
 of seeing, hearuig, feeling, smelling, tasting. Every 
 thing that surrounds them makes an impression on 
 the senses, perhaps somewhat in the same way 
 that we can make an impression on any thing, for 
 instance by striking or pressing it. If we strike 
 or press any tiling it receives the stroke or 
 pressure; and if any thing comes before our eyes, 
 our tyes receive the image or impression of thai 
 thing. If they ihd not, wc could not see what
 
 93 
 
 it was like; — and the same with the rest of their 
 senses. 
 
 We certainly do not know how our senses get 
 these impressions, but we know that they do get 
 them ; for we see things with our eyes, hear with 
 our ears, feel with our fingers and other parts 
 of our bodies, smell with our noses, and taste with 
 our mouths. If we could not see, hear, smell, 
 taste or feel, we could know nothing of what is 
 about us ; so that every thing we know, we know 
 by our senses. We could not think at all if we 
 knew nothing, and we always think according to 
 what we know, or according to these impressions. 
 Therefore these impressions give us thoughts, 
 and after we have thought, then we move about 
 or act. So that you see the impressions which 
 we receive by our senses, cause us to move about 
 or act. 
 
 Now Vegetables liave not these senses. They 
 do not see, hear, feel, smell or taste. Therefore 
 they can neither think, nor move about, nor act. 
 
 Now I will tell you what are the different kinds 
 of knowledge, which have been obtained by the 
 senses of different men. 
 
 G 4
 
 96 
 
 All knowledire belongs either to an art or a 
 scie7ice. 
 
 Whatever tells us of the nature and properties 
 of any substance, is a science. 
 
 Whatever teaches us how to produce any thing, 
 is an art. 
 
 The principal sciences are — 
 
 Astronomy, Geography, Matliematics, Zoology, 
 Botany and Mineralogy — Chemistry. 
 
 The arts are — 
 
 Agriculture, Manufactures, Architecture, Draw- 
 uig, (including Sculpture,) Music, and a few others 
 of less importance. 
 
 Ahnost all these arts depend upon sciences, 
 for it is necessary to know what are the nature 
 and qualities of substances, befoie we can produce 
 them. 
 
 I am now going to tell you what these sciences 
 tell us about, and what these arts teach us. 
 
 ASTRONOMY. 
 
 There are, as I told you, many other very large 
 bodies besides the earth, some of them mucii 
 larger than the larth. These bodies arc the sun, 
 the moon and the stars. Astronomy teaches us 
 all that is yet known about them ; and ;ii)()ul tlicii 
 sizes and distances from one anollnr. Tliey are so
 
 97 
 
 fur from this eartli, Uiat we do not know much 
 about them. 
 
 GEOGRAPHY 
 
 Is the knowledge of the countries that are on 
 the surface of the earth. It tells us what these 
 different countries are like, and how they are 
 divided. It tells us of the manners and customs 
 of the people who live in them, and what animals, 
 vesetables and minerals are found there. 
 
 MATHEMATICS 
 
 Teaches us how to number and to measure differ- 
 ent bodies, and how to tell their proportionate 
 sizes to each other. 
 
 ZOOLOGY 
 
 Is the natural history of animals ; or the know- 
 ledge of the formation, appearance, habits, and 
 dispositions of animals. 
 
 As men and women are animals, it tells us 
 about tliem ; for instance, about their bodies, 
 about the blood, flesh, bones, sinews, joints, and 
 all the different parts of the body. It explahis 
 to us, as far as can yet be explained, how they
 
 98 
 
 live, how thev move • about, how thev feel uikI 
 think, and how they should be treated: but in 
 all these things there is a great deal that has not 
 yet been discovered, and that we cannot under- 
 stand. 
 
 That part of the natural history of men and 
 women, which tells us what men and women did 
 before we were born and since that time, is called 
 History. We are not sure that all histories are 
 quite true ; because the people who wrote them 
 might have been mistaken, or might have written 
 that, which they knew did not happen. However, 
 when different writers of history, who did not know 
 one another and had not seen what one another 
 wrote, tell us the same thing, it is more likely 
 to be true, than when only one writer tells us so. 
 
 It is more difficult to tell whether what we 
 read in history is true or not, than wliethcr what 
 we read about the earth and its productions is 
 true, because we can sec the earth, and what is 
 on it, l)ut we cannot sec what happened before 
 we were boni : nor 11" it be h'lig since, even see the 
 pcrsonsjwho were there when any event happened. 
 
 That part of Zoology which tells us about men 
 and women, is the most important science in the 
 world, because you will grow lo be men and 
 women, and then you will find how very useful 
 it is to know as nuich as is ytt known about
 
 99 
 
 yourselves. Now although every thing you will 
 hear about yourselves does really belong to 
 Zoology, yet there is so much of it, and it is so 
 very different from the natural history of other 
 animals, that it is generally found convenient not 
 to include it under Zoology, but to divide it into 
 a number of different sciences, which you will 
 hear of when you are older and better able to un- 
 derstand them. 
 
 BOTANY 
 
 Is the knowledge of all substances that belong 
 to the vegetable kingdom, therefore of all trees, 
 shrubs, flowers, fruits, and other vegetable produc- 
 tions. 
 
 MINERALOGY 
 
 Is the knowledge of the substances of which the 
 earth is made. 
 
 That part of Mineralogy, which tells us about 
 the interior (or inside) of the earth, and about large 
 mineral masses, is called Geology. 
 
 We know very little about Geology, because we 
 have never been able to get more than two miles 
 into the earth. Now it is 8000 miles through 
 the earth, so that we must have gone 4000 times
 
 100 
 
 farther than two miles to see what was all through 
 the earth. 
 
 Now I will tell you what the arts are, that I 
 mentioned to you. 
 
 AGRICUIiTURE. 
 
 The greater part of the food we eat is produced 
 from the ground. Agriculture is the art of pro- 
 ducin<>- this food. It is bv far the most useful and 
 necessary employment in the world, because we 
 could scarcely live without it. 
 
 MANUFACTURES. 
 
 Every thing we wear and every thing we use, 
 except food, is produced by manufactures. The 
 greater part of these things is made by machines. 
 One machine often does as much work as a great 
 many men and women. New machines are found 
 out almost every day. 
 
 Small manufactures arc often called trades; for 
 instance the trade of a shoemaker, tailor, &c. 
 
 ARCHITECTURE 
 
 1-. tlic ait of buiUling llic; houses in which men 
 and women livi'. A hut is a very small house
 
 101 
 
 which was easily built, and which has only one 
 or two rooms. A palace is a very large house, 
 which contains many rooms, and which costs much 
 
 trouble in building. 
 
 DRAWING 
 
 Is the art of representing objects, so that a person 
 who sees the drawing may know what the object 
 is like, although he has never seen the object itself. 
 The more like the drawing seems to the object 
 it is meant to represent, the better it is done. 
 Most drawings are made on paper, canvass or 
 ivory. Drawings of persons are called portraits. 
 
 Sculpture is the art of representing objects by 
 cutting wood or stone like them. 
 
 MUSIC 
 
 Is the art of producing pleasant sounds by means 
 of the voice, or of different instruments. The 
 knowledge of the rules required to compose music 
 is called Thorough Bass. 
 
 Most of these sciences might be included under 
 Chemistry ; and even many of the arts depend 
 upon it ; for Chemistry is, in fact — 
 
 10
 
 102 
 
 The knowledge of the properties of all sub- 
 stances, and of the manner in which all simple 
 substances are combined, and all compound sub- 
 stances decomposed. 
 
 Under Chemistry, however, is generallij under- 
 stood the knowledge of some of the properties of 
 such of the simple substances as we have alread}- 
 discovered, and of a few of their combinations, as 
 well as the way to make some of these combina- 
 tions. Even in this contracted signification, Che- 
 mistry includes a part of the sciences of Zoology, 
 Botany and Mineralogy. The substances it tells us 
 about at present are chiefly minerals ; so that it is 
 the most connected with Mineralogy. 
 
 We do not know nearly so much about Che- 
 mistry as we may expect to know, when people have 
 jiaid more attention to it and tried more experi- 
 ments. 
 
 In order to get an easier knowledge of the 
 sciences and arts, we learn to read, write, and to 
 undi-rstand languages, the arithmetical signs, and 
 the nnisical notes and signs. But these arc not 
 real knowledge. We only learn them, tliat we 
 may bi; able to acquire knowledge by means of 
 them. All real knowledge is not inchuled in any 
 of tiiese, hui «)iily in the arts and sciences.
 
 103 
 
 Trade or commerce is the system of arrange- 
 ments, by which the productions of nature and of 
 the arts are at present distributed. 
 
 Any new fact in science is called a discovery 
 any new mode of producing, an inventio7i. 
 
 No science or art is by any means complete. 
 People are learning something new in all of them 
 almost every day. That is ; there are discoveries 
 and inventions made almost every day. 
 
 GLASGOW: 
 
 ANfiREW & JOHN M. DirNCAN, 
 Printers to the University.
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES 
 
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