^^Mm, |Vl526 .F66 — - ill'/' '''^^on P. ,341- A manual of Sundav school V [Green Fund Book No. 13.] A Manual of Sunday-School Methods BY Addison Pinneo Foster, D.D. PHILADELPHIA: AMERICAN SUNDAY-SCHOOL UNION, 1122 Chestnut Street. Copyright, 1899 by The American Sunday-School Union. Contents. Preface 7 PART I. FOR THE SUPERINTENDENT. Section i. Fundamental Principles. Chap. 1. The Aim of the Sunday-school 9 «< II. The Relation of the Sunday-school to the Church, 14 " III. The Religious I.ife of the School 17 " IV. Systems of Bible Study in the Sunday-school . . 19 Section 2. The Superintendent's Place. Chap. I. The Duties of the Superintendent 23 II. Qualities Desirable in the Superintendent ... 27 III. The Superintendent Preserving Order 31 IV. The Supernitendent Teaching 36 V. The Superintendent Choosing Teachers .... 38 VI. The Superintendent's Pastoral Work 44 Section 3. The Superintendent's Helpers. Chap. 1. The Pastor's Relation to the Sunday-school ... 47 " II. Duty of Parents to the School 54 " III. The Committees of the Sunday-school 57 " IV. The Subordinate Officers of the School .... 61 " V. The Young People's Society and the Sunday-school, 66 Section 4. Special Features of the Sunday-school. Chap. I. Worship in the Sunday-school 70 " II. Music in the Sunday-school 75 " III. The Supplemental Lesson 79 3 CONTENTS Chap. IV. Public Reviews 82 " V. Benevolence in the Sunday- school 89 " VI. Sunday-school Entertainments 96 " VII. Temperance in the Sunday-school 102 " VIII. Special Days in the Sunday-school 109 " IX. Time for Holding the Sunday-school 1 13 Section 5. The School as Classified. Chap. I. Necessary Divisions 117 II. The Primary Department 121 III. How to Hold the Older Boys and Young Men . 127 IV. Adult Bible Classes 132 V. The Normal Class 136 VI. Teachers' Meetings 140 VII. The Home Department 147 Section 6. Sunday-school Appliances. Chap. I. The Sunday-school Library 153 " II. Sunday-school Supplies 159 « III. Sunday-school Rewards 165 " IV. Sunday-school Architecture 168 Section 7. The Sunday-school Under Various Conditions. Chap. I. How to Establish New Sunday-schools . . .170 II. The Sunday-school Separate from any Church . 176 III. The Country Sunday-school 179 IV. The Mission Sunday-school in the city 184 V. Sunday-schools in Summer and Winter . . . .186 VI. Denominational and Union Sunday-schools. . . 191 Section 8. Sunday-schools Associated. Chap. I. The State and other Sunday-school Associations, 196 " II. Sunday-school Conventions 198 " III. Sunday-school Institutes 201 " IV. Primary Teachers' Unions 206 " V. Sunday-School Missionary Societies 208 CONTENTS 5 PART II. FOR THE TEACHER. PAGE Section i. Considerations at the Basis of Teaching. Chap. I. The Teacher's Privilege 213 " II. The Teacher's Aim • 217 <' III. The Teacher's Responsibility 222 *' IV. The Teacher's Relation to the Sunday-school and the Church 224 Section 2. The Teacher that is Wanted. Chap. I. "Who is Sufficient for these Things ? 228 " II. The Teacher's Character 232 " III. The Teacher's Ability to Teach ........ 235 " IV. The Teacher's Habits 239 Section 3. The Teacher Making Ready. Chap. I. The Teacher Training for Service 241 " II. The Teacher Preparing the Lesson 245 <« III. The Use of Lesson Helps 248 Section 4. In Regard to Teaching. Chap. I. Success in Teaching 252 II. Methods of Teaching 256 III. The Art of Questioning 262 IV. Illustrations 267 V. Object Teaching 271 VI. Primary Teaching 274 VII. The Kindergarten 278 VIII. A Study of the Pupil 284 Section 5. The Teacher with his Class. Chap. I. The Teacher Teaching . ... .... 291 " II. Special Phases of Class- Work 296 " III. The Teacher Preserving Order 298 " IV. The Teacher's Pastoral Duties 300 " V. The Teacher Winning Souls 304 Preface. The aim of this book is to furnish in compact form a comprehensive treatment of Sunday-school principles and methods. The Sunday-school has become essential in our modern church life and has developed great com- plexity, both in organization and method. With the growth of ideas in regard to education in general and the duties of the church in particular, the Sunday-school has taken on a new character and importance. In writing this book the author has had the Sunday- school constantly in mind from three different points of view. First, he has written out of his experiences as a pastor who for nearly thirty years always sought to be identified with his school. Second, he has written as a superintendent or Sunday-school teacher, having held both positions and thus had practical acquaintance with Sunday-school work. Third, he has written, also, as a secretary of the American Sunday-School Union, inter- ested in the organization of Sunday-schools in destitute regions and recognizing the needs of these small rural schools, just beginning under great difficulties, and unable to secure for themselves a tithe of the advantages enjoyed by the more favored schools in the great centres. The great number of topics which must be treated in any reasonably comprehensive consideration of the Sun- day-school, naturally range themselves in two parts. I. The superintendent will concern himself especially 7 8 PREFACE. with points that have reference to the administration of the whole school ', 2. The teacher, necessarily, will turn his thoughts to his obligations to his class. This suggests for convenience of division that we treat, first, those gen- eral themes connected with the Sunday-school for which the superintendent is especially responsible, and, second, those duties and methods which belong to the teacher. Under these two general divisions the treatment of the subject has been arranged in sections, each taking up some distinct phase of the topic, while in separate chap- ters individual principles or methods have been con- sidered. Many admirable books have been written on the Sunday-school, and in these certain points have been discussed with fulness and certain positions established. It would be as impossible to-day to write comprehen- sively of the Sunday-school without introducing prin- ciples already well established as to write a treatise on astronomy without introducing facts first proved and pub- lished by Galileo, Newton and Laplace. A complete survey of the subject must present these fundamental truths, and yet he who arranges and classifies established facts has an important work to do, while in a discussion of the Sunday-school a wide field remains for original suggestion. On making this circuit of Sunday-school topics the writer is filled with a deeper thankfulness than ever for the power and blessing of the modern Sunday-school. Its growth during the last century and its present remark- able development and efficiency abundantly prove it to be under the approval of God. Addison P. Foster. A Manual of Sunday-School Methods. Part I. For The Superintendent. Section i. Fundamental Principles. CHAPTER I. THE AIM OF THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. The Sunday-school Idea Not New. The idea of the Sunday-school is not modern. The Sunday-school, rather, is ingrained in the life of God's people. It can- not be questioned that the religious education of the young was carefully sought in Old Testament times, pre- vailed among the Jews in the New Testament age, was the practice of the early church, and has taken some shape in the church of God ever si nee. ^ 1 See on this point Dr. E, W. Rice's article entitled, " Sunday- schools," in the Schaff-Herzog Encyclopoedia of Religious Knowl- edge. 9 10 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § I, CH. i. In ancient Jewish synagogues on Sabbath afternoons was a '' Beth-ha-Midrash," a House of Search or Study, which was in substance what the Sunday-school is to-day.^ Christ, when a boy, was found by his parents in the temple, asking and answering questions about the Old Testament law, and when he assumed his ministry he not only preached but taught, that is, he evidently took part in the Sabbath afternoon Jewish Bible-school. The early Christian church modelled its services of worship largely on those of the synagogue. The practice of teach- ing was general and the associated study of the Bible was recognized as a duty. The great commission required all nations to be made disciples or learners and the church of God to engage in teaching. There is abun- dant evidence that the essential principles of the modern Sunday-school were mcorporated in the practice of the early church. Robert Raikes, in 1780, in organizing his mission Sunday-school in Gloucester, England, did but develop ideas of religious study accepted by the church from its earliest days. Teaching Not Preaching. The distinctive idea of the Sunday-school, as we may trace it through the history of the church, is teaching. A more formal way of pre- senting the truth is oratorical and is called preaching. But the Bible makes constant distinction between preach- ing and teaching, insisting on the latter quite as much as on the former. But teaching indicates study ; it implies education ; its aim is that of mental assimilation and digestion; its method is that of question and answer. The Sunday-school a Church Nursery. While the modern Sunday-school movement began in an effort to reach those outside of the church, yet the Sunday- * Yale Lectures on the Sunday-school by Dr. H. C. Trumbull. THE Am OF THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 11 PART I, § I, ClI. i.J school, as we see it to-day, is too often merely a church nursery. It is managed solely with a view to promote the life of the local church itself. As a nursery of the church it aims first of all to care for the children of church members and pew-holders. In a distinctively family church, as most of our churches in the cities must necessarily be, this aim is unavoidably prominent. The children in such schools are mainly from refined Christian homes and the school must be shaped by the fact. In such churches the great need of the school arises from the tendency of humanity to receive the truth superficially, and to for- get it quickly. There must be subsoiling; there must be the har- rowing in of the seed ; and the Sunday-school's social study of God's word is the method divinely ada|)ted to produce deep and lasting impressions. The church cannot afford to give up systematic and thorough Bible study as a regular part of its own religious services in which all, both young and old, should share. The Sunday-school an Evangelizing Agency. But in addition to the use of the Sunday-school as a church nursery, it is invaluable also as an evangelizing agency. There is no school, in no matter how cultured a neighbor- hood, which may not reach out into the surrounding com- munity and touch those who are not in the habit of church- going. Every school may have in it to some degree, a mission element, while there are innumerable localities where the Sunday-school is the one influence available to reach the non-church-goers. It is an evidence of the divine prigin of the Sunday-school and of its spiritual power that it proves to be so successful a missionary agency. There is nothing like it to reach those un- reached before, to kindle a gospel fire and to fan the flame till the whole community is reached. An Advance Needed. Unquestionably an advance is needed in Sunday-school methods. Modern methods 12 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL BIETHODS. [PART I. § I, CH. i. in secular education are vastly different from the methods of a half-century or even a quarter-century ago. The young people in our Sunday-schools are under the daily training of the improved methods of our secular schools and notice the difference in our Sunday-schools. As the Sunday-school largely lacks the systematized and scholarly methods of our public schools, these young people make comparisons to the disadvantage of the Sunday-school and presently become dissatisfied and withdraw. The remedy for this is to improve our Sunday-schools, and while avoiding a servile imitation of secular schools, yet to bring Sunday-schools up to the high standards of modern educational methods. 1. A trained superintendent needed. The time is coming when in our large city schools a trained and salaried Sunday-school superintendent will be required as much as a pastor. Already a movement has begun in this direction and several of our largest churches have secured such an officer, while at least one institution, the Bible Normal College at Springfield, Massachusetts, has ar- ranged a course of study to fit young men for this post. 2. Trained teachers needed. Further than this, it is essential that the teachers in our Sunday-schools be able to compare favorably with the teachers in our day schools. Too often, these teachers are not trained for their work and have no suitable skill for their position. They lack information regarding the Bible ; they do not adequately study their lessons, and have only the most superficial knowledge of what they undertake to teach ; they know absolutely nothing of the principles and methods on which successful teaching is based. Too often such teachers are in their places simply because they are the only ones that can be obtained. This must be met by special efforts to develop a suitable teaching force in the Sunday-school. THE AIM OF THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 13 PART I. § I, cn. i.] The importance of normal training cannot be exaggerated, and more and more emphasis is certain to be laid on this as the years pass. Much has already been done to facili- tate such normal study. Classes have been formed in many schools, teachers' meetings are maintained, insti- tutes are frequently held, while the school just mentioned, if not several others, is making a specialty of training teachers. 3. A graded Siinday-scJiooL Connected with the need of trained superintendents and teachers is the need of an improved and graded method of conducting the Sunday- school. Of course a thorough system of grading is im- possible in small country schools, but in all the larger schools in cities and villages, more careful grading is pos- sible and should be sought. The Sunday-school hopes to retain in its membership and under its instruction persons from early childhood to old age. It must have unusual attractions and be uncommonly well managed to do this. Of late the grading of the Sunday-school and the arrange- ment of a well-defined course of study to cover a series of years have received much attention and careful thought, while schemes have been devised for a curriculum of con- secutive study that shall cover at least sixteen years. Something of this sort is essential to bring the Sunday- school up to the high standards of modern education. After all, the fundamental idea in grading a school is very simple and can prevail to some extent in a small rural school as well as in a large city school ; — it is that the methods in teaching and in other directions should be adapted to the need of the pupils. CHAPTER II. the relation of the sunday-school to the church. The Sunday-school a Department of the Church. When the Sunday-school exists in connection with a church, to fail to recognize it as a department of the church is to narrow its opportunities, to impair its useful- ness, and to threaten the harmony of the church itself. A school connected with a church, but holding itself aloof and managing its affairs independently, is a con- stant menace. Temptation to Independence. There are reasons why the school tends to a position of independence. Ordinarily in these days the school comes first and the church grows out of it. When this is the case it is not always easy for the school to give way gracefully to the church and to take a subordinate place. Then the school is often the only large and complete organization exist- ing in the church. Having its own officers and rules, it sometimes becomes a power and assumes authority that belongs only to the church. The Sunday-school sometimes falls into the hands of an ambitious and self-willed man who resents the control of the church and who finds his opportunity in the school. But not only is there such a tendency, or at least, temptation, to independence ; the church itself sometimes aggravates the danger by its own treatment of the school. It refuses to assume the support of the school, when it is under more obligation to provide for the spiritual education of its children than for the music of a paid choir or an organ as an aid to worship. It shows its indifference to the school by the un- willingness of its adult members to serve as teachers or even to at- tend the school. A child that is utterly neglected by its parents must not be unduly blamed if it goes its own way. If a Department of the Church, What Then ? If the Sunday-school is recognized as a part of the church, 14 RELATION OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL TO CHURCH. 15 PART I. § I, CH. ii.] or rather, as the church working in a certain way, then certain things must follow. 1. The fina7icial support of the school must be as- sumed by the church and provided for exactly as are the salaries of the pastor, the sexton and the organist, or as the ordinary bills for heating and lighting the church. Further than this, 2. The church should in some way have supervision and authority over the Sunday-school. While the super- intendent and teachers are not to be hampered needlessly, yet they are but the representatives and servants of the church and should therefore be such as the church ap- proves. It is customary in many schools to submit all school elections to the church for approval, while an an- nual report is made to the church. In some churches the official board decides all action. Some method, consist- ent with the polity of the church, should be adopted to make this relation clear. The School Must Work in Har:mony. It follows as a matter of course that the school should work in harmony with the church plans and in no wise conflict with church services. 1. In regard to time of rneeting. The hour when the Sunday-school meets must be carefully determined in consideration of the best good of all concerned. Its re- lations to preaching services, to prayer-meetings and to other church exercises, are to be considered with a view to helping them all. 2. Jn regard to Sunday-school e?ttertai7iments. These must never be allowed to interfere with the religious work of the church, or occur at a time to detract from any spiritual impressions the church is seeking to promote. 3. By promoting church attendance. The school should be careful to promote church attendance rather 16 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I. § I, CH. ii. than hinder it. There is great Hability that the children in the school may come to feel that this is all the service they can attend during the day and that parents will in consequence excuse them from the regular preaching service. If this is done, it is almost certain that in time these children will become neglecters of the house of God, and that when adults they will not go to church. The absence of children from the preaching service in the house of God is notorious, and is unquestionably a lead- ing factor in the church neglect that has developed to such an alarming extent in this country. The Sunday- school must see to it that it is not to blame for this evil. It need not be. A little wise influence on the part of the superintendent, teachers and pastor, may easily promote attendance among Sunday-school scholars. CHAPTER III. THE RELIGIOUS LIFE OF THE SCHOOL. A Temptation to Inferior Aims. There is great temptation in the Sunday-school, as in all other kinds of religious work, to content one's self with inferior aims. It is exceedingly difficult to hold the school up to a high spiritual standard. The world exercises the secret and subtile force of gravity continually, and seeks to pull down to its level everything that is rising toward heaven. Instead of spiritual results, as seen in the conversion of souls, in holy living, in greater religious activity, in a fuller comprehension of truth, there is temptation to be satisfied with temporal and material results, such as a large attendance, promptness, a good collection, superior music, and the like. These things are far more easily secured, fall more in the line of the business methods to which the superintendent is accustomed, and make a better display in the eyes of the careless observer. If the superintendent is not himself spiritually-minded, but measures success, as is too often the case, by numbers or show, he is likely to be satisfied with the material ad- vance of the school, quite unconscious of its higher needs. The Religious Influence of the Sunday-school. As a matter of fact, every school exists for religious needs, and its success is to be measured by its religious influence. It has been well said that the Sunday-school exists to teach religion through the Bible and not to teach the Bible. \Vhat we need to know is how to live aright 17 18 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [part I. § I, CH. iii. toward God and man, and we study the Bible to find out what it teaches on these points. The whole machinery of the Sunday-school is arranged to this end, and the one question which most decides its merit is, What does it do for souls ? We do not judge a great manufactory by the elegance of its architecture, nor by the amount of water that pours through its canals, nor by the brilliant display its windows make at night. We judge a Sunday-school as we judge a manufactory by the answer given to the question, " What is the character of its products ? " The school should be marked by a high religious atmosphere. Those who are there should feel that they are there for important business, and immortal destinies hang on the hour. Here is a chance to make souls happy by bring- ing them into sweet and loving loyalty to their Father. CHAPTER IV. SYSTEMS OF BIBLE STUDY IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Knowledge of the Bible. One chief aim of the Sunday-school is to instruct those who attend the school in the Word of God. It is of the first importance that the school be taught to reverence the Bible and to recog- nize it as the basis of all religious knowledge. If no more were done in the school than to awaken a reverence for the Bible and an appetite for its study, the result would well repay the effort to secure it. One of the most impressive sights in the great Bethany Sunday- school at Philadelphia, where 4,000 people are together, is when the superintendent calls out, " Show your Bibles " and on all sides the eager hands of pupils thrust their Bibles high up like stand- ards. It is not enough to have in the class the lesson help with the Scripture for the day printed in it. The Bible itself should be there, and every pupil should gain a familiarity with it, be able to refer at once to passages throwing light on the lesson, and by thus comparing Scripture with Scripture, develop the true method of Bible study and a right attitude toward the Bible. In some schools an admirable device has been successfully tried to secure the presence and use of Bibles. The superintendent prepares a Bible-reading on the lesson. He then announces one passage after another for the whole school to find. Stating the chapter and verse, he gives the school a certain number of seconds in which to find the place, standing with watch in hand to call out when the time is up. Each one is to rise as soon as he finds the passage. Great interest is excited, and all are eager to be on their feet before the allotted time has expired. Of course all in the school are sure to bring their Bibles for such a service. A Graded System of Bible Study. The question is now seriously discussed whether our schools are doing all 19 20 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § I, cii. iv. they ought to secure a thorough knowledge of Scripture. Our present and generally accepted method of uniform Bible lessons has its great advantages and has unquestion- ably accomplished much good. But educational methods are making constant advance. Our public schools and colleges are teaching in different ways and doing far bet- ter work than they did a quarter of a century ago. Similar improvements are not only possible but urgently needed in our Sunday-schools. This improvement should come in the line of a graded, systematic, and exhaustive course of Bible study. At present, the only grading is that all the classes in the school, while studying the same portion of Scripture, study it from differ- ent points of view, and take up topics connected with it of greater or less difficulty. This is well as far as it goes, but it is not enough. The command is to give each his portion of meat in due season, and we must serve out milk for babes and meat for strong men. To do this we must arrange a course of study in the Sun- day-school lasting for a series of years. The pupil must be ad- vanced from one grade to another, as in the public school, each year taking up more difficult topics and passages that have been prepared for by the study that has gone befofe. The primary scholar will then study the simple stories of the Bible and the leading historic facts; the intermediate scholar will take such things as the parables, an outline life of Christ, the general move- ment of Scripture history ; the adult department will consider not only historic facts but fundamental religious truths; while the vet- erans in Sunday-school study will give themselves to the epistles, to prophecy, to the gospel of John and the philosophy of religion. This, of course, is a rough outline, intended to be suggestive merely. Some attempts at such graded methods have already been made, and they are a decided advance on the past. They may not completely fill the need, but unquestionably they are working on the right lines and deserve encouragement. The International System. The present Inter- national system of uniform lessons is admirably adapted BIBLE STUDY IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 21 PART I. § I, ClI. iv.] for certain lines of Bible study. There are a great num- ber of small country schools, of mission schools in and out of the city, of schools of heterogeneous and mis- cellaneous and migratory elements, in which the uniform lessons are the best possible. We owe a debt of grati- tude to the International lesson system for what it has accomplished, and we may be sure that its work is not yet done and is not likely soon to be. Why a Graded Method. With all that may justly be said in favor of the International system, it is certain that in our well-established church-schools, in schools large, permanent, and intelligent, in schools where the emphasis must be on education rather than evangelization, a graded method is needed. Such a method, covering the whole Bible, giving a systematic and scholarly knowledge of Scripture, is the method which is most likely to hold the whole congregation in the school from childhood into youth, from youth into manhood, and from adult years to old age. What we want is genuine study of the Scriptures, a study that steadily advances, and every year gives one a wider scope of vision and a truer grasp of the deep things of God. Such study, lift- ing one every year to a higher platform of thought, will make the Bible known as never before, and will take from young people the feeling that they have compassed the study of the Bible and are now too old to continue its study longer. Such a systematic, consecutive, ever- advancing and thorough study of Scripture will immeas- urably increase our sense of its value and give us a new interest in our work. Advanced Bible Study. The general introduction of the study of the Bible into our colleges and other higher schools of learning will help greatly in this matter. Such study is already raising up for us an influential 22 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3TETnODS. [part I. § I, CH. iv. number of scholarly young people whose knowledge of the Bible is comparatively thorough and who are sure to create an atmosphere of interest in Bible study in the communities where they locate. Why should not similar methods of Biblical study under the best leadership be generally taken up in our churches? There might in most large communities be formed a class for the study of the Bible in a scholarly and comprehensive fashion. This could be taught by some graduate of one of these institutions or by some local pastor. What more useful and interesting service could be rendered for the church of God by the many clergymen who are now no longer in the active pastorate than to conduct a class like this ? Such a class should, of course, meet at some other time than the regular Sunday-school hour, for the teachers in the Sunday-school, above all others, should be connected with it. Some midweek evening would no doubt be best, and in such a class it might be well to have a small fee and to pay the teacher that he might be sure to do his best work. There has been for a few years a very successful class of this character conducted in a metropolitan centre. At this midweek gathering people of all denominations, from all the churches around, are in the habit of coming, and they study the Bible in a large way, synthetically and not analytically. A much smaller effort in the same direction and with a narrower idea was maintained by a city pastor a few years since. He took Cogswell's Theological Classbook, a little handbook with questions on the great doctrines of the Bible and abundant Scrij^ture references. Unexpected interest was shown in the class. Nearly all were teachers in the Sunday-school, and many others joined the class, faithfully studied the lessons apportioned, and attended the sessions regularly. It was an experiment which proved a need and showed how the need might be met. Section 2. llie Superintendent's Place. CHAPTER I. THE DUTIES OF THE SUPERINTENDENT. He Superintends the School. The name of this officer indicates his chief duty. Wherever there are many concerned in a common work there must be one to supervise it and to direct the efforts of all the rest. Every industry carried on by many,— as a foundry, a mine, a mill, a farm, — has its superintendent. A ship has its captain, a college its president, a church its pastor. The Sunday-school superintendent is responsible far more than any other for the management and success of his school. It is his business to give life to the school, to impart to it his personality, to infuse it with enthusiasm and energy. He strikes the keynote and keeps the school up to pitch. He Should Arrange the School in Classes. The pupils must be arranged into classes, and much depends on doing this properly. The larger the school, the easier to do this successfully. A small school which can have only three or four teachers is obliged to allow those of different ages and different degrees of intelligence to be in the same class. A large school, on the other hand, gives the superintendent his opportunity. It will be his ami to sort out his pupils and set them into classes according to their fitness to work together harmoniously. The Work of Choosing Teachers falls to the super- intendent after he has arranged the classes. This is a 23 24 BIANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3TETH0DS. [PART I. § 2, CH. L most delicate and difficult task. Those should be sought for teachers who are best adapted to do the work, and such a selection should be made only after careful inquiry and much study. The Superintendent Must Open and Close the School. He thus stamps it with his personality at the beginning and gives it its tone. He also brings together all its scattered thoughts when the teaching is over and leaves the last impressions on the minds of the pupils. He should not be a '* talking superintendent," continu- ally thrusting his words before the school. Some men thus make themselves obnoxious. But he should be able at the close of the school, in a few brief words, to bring out the chief lesson in the passage studied and make an impression on the minds of the pupils. He Plans Details. It falls to the superintendent, in consultation with his teachers, to plan for the work of the school in all its details. He arranges for all kinds of Sunday-school gatherings, entertainments, teachers' meet- ings, Sunday-school concerts, prayer-meetings and the like. He largely shapes its method of benevolence. He has much to say as to the line of study it pursues and the publications it uses. In fact, all questions pertaining to the policy of the school and its methods come first before him. He is the head and must exercise a thorough su- perintendence over the activities of the school. He Directs Others. It follows from this superin- tendence that he directs the other officers of the school. They will all look to him for suggestion. It is, however, a good rule in all lines of affairs to leave subordinates as far as possible to themselves. Too much dictation inter- feres with their highest success. They are more manly and more successful if allowed to do their work in their own way. The best results in business are generally se- THE DUTIES OF THE SUPERINTENDENT. 25 PART I. § 2, CH. i.] cured simply by giving to each employee a few general directions and throwing him upon his own responsibility. He is to be tested by what he accomplishes. On this system, much depends upon the choice of men. Many a man has succeeded by his skill in judging men and in gathering about him a corps of helpers able to put his plans in execution. This was one source of the success of Napoleon. Agassiz, the naturalist, knew how to sum- mon to his aid enthusiastic investigators in science. The superintendent needs to cultivate the same gift, choose wisely, and give his helpers large liberty of action. He Must Have Right Ideas. Especially must the superintendent, to succeed, have right ideas of the Sun- day-school. He must understand clearly what the Sun- day-school is for and put the right aims into the forefront. Nothing is more fatal to the success of the school than for the superintendent to be controlled by inferior ideas as to the object and management of the school. The Superintendent Determines the Religious Atmosphere of the School. This depends largely upon the manner and words of the superintendent. He must not be morose and glowering, but serious and earnest. His manner must show that he is watching for souls as they that must give account. His words at the opening and closing of school must confirm the impression of his manner. He must work through his teachers, first of all selecting those who have a qualification of vital piety and then by suitable teachers' prayer-meetings, by personal conversations, and by inquiries regarding the religious condition of their pupils, keeping the spiritual side of their work continually before them. He must accomplish the same in part by his personal effort among the pupils, calling on them at their homes, inviting them to his house, taking them to the pastor's inquiry meetings. He 26 MANUAL OF SUNDAY SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 2, CH. i will frequently hold Sunday-school prayer-meetings after the session of the school. At these meetings the testi- monies of teachers and older pupils are exceedingly inter- esting and helpful. He will be deeply interested in the Young People's Society connected with the church, and will encourage the young people in the school to connect themselves with it and help it in its work. He will watch continually for those just beginning the Christian life, and will throw around them every helpful influence, encour- aging them to Christian service, and in due time to church membership. In such and similar ways he can make the school a powerful instrumentality in lifting up the whole community to a sweet and happy Christian life. CHAPTER II. QUALITIES DESIRABLE IN THE SUPERINTENDENT. All Desirable Qualities not Possible. It is im- possible, of course, to find a person for any position who has all desirable qualities. Men are not made on that pattern. No one, therefore, need be discouraged because he does not come up to the ideal of excellence. He must simply do the best he can. Neither need an organ- ization seeking some one to fill a place be discouraged because no one can be found suited in every particular. It must simply take the best it can get. It is well, how- ever, to have an ideal in mind, to guide both those look- ing for one to take a position and him who has decided to take it. On the basis of such an ideal a choice should be made and the incumbent should try to be worthy of his place. All this is true of a superintendent. The Superintendent Desired. What kind of a man should we look for in choosing a superintendent and what kind of a man should one who is a superintendent try to be? I . The superintendent should he a man of consistent life. This is fundamental and essential. An unworthy character in a superintendent taints all that he can do and makes it unsatisfactory. We are more influenced by example than by precept, and unworthy conduct on the part of a religious teacher is proof that he does not be- lieve what he says. " As a man thinketh so is he," and his deeds give far better evidence than his words as to his real convictions. A life of inconsistency brings one's 27 28 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART I. § 2, CH. ii. teachings into contempt. No matter how excellent in themselves they are tested by the life. A bad life in one who undertakes or directs religious instruction destroys confidence not only in the teacher but in what he teaches. Thus the doctrines of Christianity even may seem to be evil because presented from an unworthy source. So it is important to find for a superintendent one who lives a pure life at home, whose business transactions are honest, who has a clear record and a good reputation in civic affairs, whose habits are above reproach and whose amusements and language are not open to criticism. 2. T/ie superintendent should be a man of sincere piety. It is not enough for him to live without reproach. He should also be a devout man, full of reverence, of an earnest spirit ; eager for souls. He is to be the leader of an organization engaged in the highest possible service. He must be a man of prayer and of spirituality. He must burn with desire to do good and to help the multitudes who throng about him. Unless he is all this he will lack the enthusiasm desirable for the best leadership. His im- pulses must come from within. In a soul on fire with love to Christ and love to fellow-men is to be found the only motive power adequate to carry him on week by week through the toils connected with his position. 3. He should be familiar with the Bible. He is to guide others in teaching the Scriptures. He is to plan for securing the best possible instruction. He is to teach teachers and must have the respect of both teachers and pupils. How can he hope for this as their teacher unless he knows to a reasonable extent what he expects them to know ? In these days the head of a manufactory or the captain of a ship or the manager of a railway, works his way up from the lowest place and understands the details below him. For similar reasons the superintendent of a QUALITIES DESIRABLE IN SUPEUINTENDENT. 29 PAKT I, § 2, CM. li.] Sunday-school should thoroughly know the one Book which is the basis of Sunday-school instruction and the source of power in the Sunday-school. 4. The superinte7ident should be a man of admin- istrative ability. The Sunday-school, as we see it in con- nection with our larger churches, is an elaborate organi- zation, complicated and delicate in its parts. It is im- portant that the superintendent be an organizer, a man of expedients, a man who can handle the great machine of which he is put in charge as a skilful engineer handles a locomotive. In classifying and grading the school, in ap- pointing and changing teachers, in devising appliances of all sorts to meet unexpected and peculiar needs, he should be something of a genius. He is a genius in administra- tion if he can keep the school in steady motion, always doing its appointed work, always growing and thriving, and yet never developing friction or turning from its course. 5. Once more the superintendent should be a man stro fig-willed but not self-willed. It is very difficult to keep an even poise in such matters. A leader fails if he is weak and he fails no less if he is headstrong. The superintendent must decide many things for himself; he must have his own ideas and be able to act independ- ently ; he must have unquestionable energy and push on undisturbed by indifference or even by opposition. Other- wise he cannot hold his own and the Sunday-school will run down under his hands. On the other hand he must not be obstinate and un- willing to be counselled. He is simply a lieutenant. He is acting for the church. The will of the church govern- ment, whatever that may be, is supreme. His pastor must necessarily be his adviser. His Executive Com- mittee or Board of Management, if there be one, can 30 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 2, CH. ii, overrule his decisions. The combined judgment of his teachers he can never afford to override. In short he must not be a despot. If he undertakes it, he will either wreck himself or the church. He can be nothing more than the president, the executive head, of the Sunday- school, for the Sunday-school is simply a part of the church and in these days no department or individual can afford to disregard the will of the church. CHAPTER III. THE SUPERINTENDENT PRESERVING ORDER. The order of the Sunday-school depends in large measure on the superintendent. He determines the spirit of the school and if his personality is strong enough he is able to impress his own ideas of order on all in the school. Punctuality. The superintendent's first effort at good order is to secure punctuality. The continued entering of pupils after the school has opened is sure to create disorder. He is careful, therefore, to begin in time, in order to give no excuse to any for delay in ar- riving. He develops a spirit of honor in regard to the matter. Teachers and pupils after a time become ashamed to come late and so disturb the school. During the opening exercises it is well to close the doors that the noise of late scholars stepping heavily on the floor may not distract the attention and interfere with the devotions. The best thing the superintendent can do is to be on hand himself and greet all who come in with a smile, a cordial word, and a handshake. At such times he may well ex- press his gratification at the promptness of those he greets. After a while those habitually late will find out what they miss and out of curiosity come earlier and then from a sense of duty continue in the best way. Coming to Order. Punctuality obtained, the super- intendent must call the school to order and obtain quiet. This has to be done at least twice during the session, once at the beginning and once at the close. Order is best secured by a quiet but firm manner. Repeated calls to 31 32 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0D8. [PART I. § 2, CH. iii. order develop indifference and come to mean nothing. No one knows when the last call will be made. The re- peated striking of a bell operates in the same way. It does not produce order ; it rather sets all to talking in the thought that by and by order will be secured and then they will talk no longer. A firm and dignified call to order, once made, ought to be enough. ''The school will please come to order," following the single tap of a bell, or without the use of a bell, for many schools have discarded it altogether, will in time secure order. This may not come at first but if not, then let the superin- tendent simply wait. He should not repeat his words ; he should not scold ; he should simply wait. This silent waiting will, at length, impress the school and bring it to silence. A Spirit of Reverence. The superintendent must secure a spirit of reverence and devotion. Good order is the outgrowth of feeling and a devout feeling in the house of God is sure to develop quietness. But the superin- tendent cannot arouse in others that which he has not in himself. To make others reverential, he nmst be rev- erential himself. If he has this feeling, he will show it in his manner of conducting worship. If he would make a suitable impression he should make all his preparations for worship beforehand, having his hymns and Scripture readings selected, his order of service arranged. His notices should be as brief as possible and free from ob- jectionable features. While he should avoid anything sombre or sanctimonious in his bearing, he should seek by his whole manner in the school to impress all with the fact that they are met on serious business and are face to face with God. Quiet During the Study Hour. The superintend- ent must secure quiet during the study hour. THE SUPERINTENDENT PRESERVING ORDER. 33 PART I. § 2, CH. iii,] To this end let him immediately supply each vacant class with a teacher. The discipline should be so perfect that if a teacher is to be absent, the superintendent will be informed of the fact beforehand and, thus informed, make provision before the Sabbath to fill the vacancy. It greatly contributes to disorder in the school for classes to remain through any considerable portion of the session without a teacher. It is hardly in the nature of youthful humanity not to take advantage of the fact and to whis- per and play as they would not do were some older per- son with them. It is very desirable, therefore, that at the beginning of the session, some one take the absent teach- er's place. But when the teacher is present there may be disorder. If so, this is due, ordinarily, to the fact that the needs of the class are not well met. The superintendent should constantly watch the classes and study their needs. By giving them locations best fitted to meet their peculiar conditions and the teachers best adapted to serve them, by protecting them from disorderly influences in the class or near it, and by talking with teachers about the impor- tance of good order and how to secure it, the superin- tendent can do much to promote good order in those classes which have before caused trouble. Protection From Interruptions. The superintend- ent should, further, protect the study-hour of the classes from interruptions. He will not allow the distribution of books by the librarian or careless visiting, during the hour devoted to the lesson. He will not permit needless and empty addresses to encroach on the too brief time al- lotted for the lesson. There are too often visitors in the school who have nothing to say and who have no gift of addressing the young, but the superintendent feels com- pelled to invite them to speak. Happily this practice is 34 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCnOOL IIETHODS. [PART I. § 2, cii. iii. obsolescent and soon will become obsolete. Of course there are those whose addresses are rich and helpful, and anything may be set aside that the school may hear them. The superintendent will discriminate as far as possible, but will guard the hour from profitless interruption. This is his sacred trust. It is quite possible for the superintendent himself to sin against the sacredness of the hour of study by vapid talk. He needs to guard his own speech. There are some who waste time and tire the patience of the school by needless prolixity in giving notices, dwelling on them item after item with tedious repetition. The superintendent should especially avoid repeating notices in a different form and order. In many schools great disorder is caused toward the end of the session by certain unmannerly boys rising and leaving the schoolroom before the closing exercises. This is generally confined to those classes where the teacher finishes his lesson before the rest, and the boys are expected to sit and wait till the end of school. The cause of this evil is largely in the failure of the teacher to fill the hour. He ought to be so full of his subject that the hour would not be long enough and that his class would be so interested as not to notice the lapse of time. The superintendent must find the remedy for the early and disorderly withdrawal of boys from the school, not in harsh measures with the pupils, but in reforming the the teacher or finding a better one. Treatment of Bad Boys and Girls. What shall the superintendent do with bad boys and girls? They are found occasionally in every school. They are capa- ble of doing great harm. They destroy the peace of the class and the usefulness of the teacher. They are some- times insubordinate, saucy and malicious. It is not THE SUPERINTENDENT PRESERVING ORDER. 35 PART I. § 2, CII. iii.] Strange that the superintendent is tempted to expel such from the school, and so have an end of the trouble. But this should be the last resort and is probably seldom necessary. It works injury to the boy and may drive him to greater wickedness. It often works evil to the parents, embittering them against the school and the church and very likely driving them also out into the world, away from Christian influences. But what else can the superintendent do ? The boy must not be al- lowed to ruin the class. Often judicious handling will bring him to see the folly of his course. An appeal to his sense of honor, in a private and wise interview, may entirely change him. A new responsibility put upon the boy, such as charge of the books of the class, or the keeping of class accounts, may give him manhood and save him. Or, it may be desirable to separate him from his old associates by putting him into a new class. If such a class is older than he, he will feel complimented, while at the same time, he will no longer have the old disposition to mischief. Under some circumstances, if nothing else avails, it might possibly be well to put him in a class by himself and assign a teacher to him alone. This would keep him from mischief, and would prove the sincere desire of the superintendent to do him good. Self-Government. Above all, as essential to order in the school, must the superintendent be able to govern himself. He must cultivate calmness and self-poise. He must never lose his temper or show irritation. He must be free from weakness which would subject him to criticism and diminish the respect of the school. He must be in- telligent in regard to the needs of the school and be reason- able in what he expects of the school. If he is thus self- restrained, considerate and wise, he will have the school well in hand and be able to preserve the best of order. CHAPTER IV. THE SUPERINTENDENT TEACHING. Teaching the Teachers. The superintendent is the head of the school and to a certain extent responsible for the character of the teaching. Like the superintendent of a factory, he directs those under him and gives energy and effectiveness to their work. So far as possible the superintendent is to be the teacher of the teachers. He may shrink from this task and it is not always possible to find, for a superintendent, one who can organize and di- rect the school, and can also teach the teachers. Teaching Through Others. Where the superin- tendent lacks the gift of teaching, he must find others to supplement his work. The pastor will do what he can and often in the teachers' meeting and in the school itself the pastor's voice is heard most effectively. When the pastor cannot be secured and the superintendent feels himself unequal to the task of teaching, he may be able to call upon the most efficient of the teachers to take their turn. In other words the superintendent may meet his responsibilities as a teacher by seeing that the work is done. He need not necessarily do it himself, but he will see the need, will recognize in others the ability to meet the need and will not allow the matter to be neg- lected. Teaching by Example. An energetic, earnest, de- voted superintendent is a teacher by his life. He shows that he loves and reverences the Bible, that he looks to God for help, that he longs for souls, that he appreciates 36 THE SUPERINTENDENT TEACHING. 37 PART I. § 2, CII. iv.] the sacredness of the Sunday-school hour, that he looks for practical and spiritual applications of the lesson. In all this he is inevitably a teacher. Teaching is not nec- essarily a formal exercise. We teach in our manner, our intonations, our habits, the unconscious indication of our convictions. Such a teacher the superintendent must be and he cannot be too careful that this teaching by exam- ple is carefully done. Teaching in the Teachers' Meeting. The first and greatest opportunity for the superintendent to engage in the direct work of teaching is in the teachers' meeting. He ought not ordinarily to attempt to teach a class in the Sunday-school. He has quite enough to do there in su- perintending the Sunday-school. But if he has the gift, and can get his teachers together in the course of each week for a teachers' meeting, it is eminently fitting and helpful that he conduct the meeting. At the quarterly reviews there is a large oppor- tunity for the superintendent to exercise his gifts as a teacher. Such services he will naturally conduct, and into them he may well put most earnest study and his best thought. Such reviews become easy and natural if the superintendent is in the habit of exercising his gifts as a teacher by a five minute review every Sabbath. He may, if he is wise and skilful, put to the school, at the close of the study hour, half a dozen selected questions which shall bind together the truths that have just been studied and deepen impressions. Then he or the pastor may follow with a five minute talk, which shall drive home the truth and clinch it so that it cannot be forgotten. CHAPTER V. THE SUPERINTENDENT CHOOSING TEACHERS. One of the most important duties of the superintendent is to choose teachers in the school. How Shall Good Teachers be available ? 1. A noi'mal class. Every large school should have, connected with it, a normal class in which those are in training who are willing to serve as teachers when needed. By means of such a class not only are some made specially fitted for the work, but some are kept always in readiness to be drafted for the service in any emergency. Of course this is impossible in small schools. 2. Substitute teachers. It is a great help to the su- perintendent to have a list of substitute teachers who can be called on at any time. Some of these may be in the school as pupils in different adult classes ; others of them very likely are not able to attend the school regularly, but will make a special effort to come in case of need. There are many who, for one reason or another, find it impos- sible to serve as teachers regularly, but who yet are will- ing to teach a class occasionally. It is a proper recogni- tion of their willingness, to give them the name of substi- tute teacher and to count them and report them as such. In a large school they form an important corps of workers. 3. Reserve class. It is desirable, when feasible, to bring into one class those who are willing to serve as sub- stitute teachers and are able to attend Sunday-school regularly. They can then adapt their studies from Sun- day to Sunday to the fact that they are liable at any mo- 38 THE SUPERINTENDENT CHOOSING TEA CHERS. 39 PART I. § 2, CH, v.] ment to be summoned as teachers. Such a class is not a normal class ; it is not studying normal methods ; and yet it modifies ordinary methods of teaching and looks at the lesson constantly from the standpoint of a teacher. Sometimes such reserve classes have found it helpful to study the lesson, not of that given Sunday, but of the Sunday following it. In this way the members of the class have had the advantage of having studied the les- son together before they are called upon to teach it. 4. Teachers should train their pupils to be teachers. The teachers of the older classes should be made to under- stand their responsibility in this matter. Nothing is more important than that the young people in the adult classes should graduate into the teaching force and in due time take charge of classes themselves. There is a natural re- luctance on the part of the teachers of such classes to spare the best material in it, and to allow those to leave the class as teachers who had contributed largely to its interest and success. Such reluctance is not altogether selfish. And yet often, though not always, the best good of the school and simple justice to the young pei^son com- petent to teach, is to allow, or, rather, to encourage, the transfer to be made. A certain Sunday-school teacher was remarkably successful in gathering around him a class of young ladies. He invariably commenced with noth- ing and formed his class by inviting the young ladies of his acquaintance not already in school and not as yet Christians to unite in a class under his instruction. In the course of two or three years, his class of a dozen or more was quite sure to have been led to Christ. With rare tact, great wisdom, and unconquerable patience, he would lead them on until they were in the church, and earnest, happy Christians. Then he would say, '' Now I want this class to break up. 1 want you all to become 40 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [I'ART I. § 2, CH. V. teachers and take classes in the school." As soon as he had persuaded them to this, he would go out and bring into the school other young ladies not Christians, and begin his chosen work over again in attempting to lead them to Christ. 5. The pastor's help needed. In obtaining teachers the pastor's help should be enlisted, as it easily may be. He may say and do much to make it easy to secure teachers. If he urges the importance of the Sunday- school and the necessity of having teachers, many will be influenced by his words and will offer themselves for the work. He can do much to give dignity and importance to the teachers' work and to make the teachers certain that their self-denying efforts are recognized and appre- ciated by the whole church. 6. Installation of teachers. It is well to induct the teachers into office with appropriate services. Some schools have now a service of installation at which the new teachers stand up before the school and are formally welcomed. There is an address by the pastor and some- times a definite form of induction into the teacher's ofhce. All this gives honor to the work and impresses the teacher and the school generally with a sense of the responsibility and privilege connected with the teacher's work. The following is a suitable order for such an installation : — (i) Responsive reading ; (2) Singing, during which the teachers to be installed come forward; (3) Charge to the teachers by the pastor or superintendent ; (4) Reading of teachers' covenant and its ac- ceptance by the teachers; (5) Right-hand of fellowship; (6) Singing. The following is suggested as a fitting covenant : — (The superintendent introducing it by saying, " The following is the covenant entered into by our teachers : ") " Aware of our responsibility as Sunday-school teachers, anxious to meet our duties faithfully and to help one another by our com- mon agreement, and relying on the help of Almighty God to meet THE SUPERINTENDENT CHOOSING TEACHERS. 41 PART I. § 2, Cll. v.] our obligations, we do solemnly covenant with one another and with our Saviour Jesus Clirist, — " To be present at every session of the school wlien circumstances permit, and when absent to try to procure a substitute or to notify the superintendent ; " To prepare to teach in our classes by previous study and prayer and by attendance when possible at the teachers' meeting; *' To seek the spiritual welfare of our classes, especially the con- version of any not yet Christians, by faithfulness in teaching, by frequent visiting, by prayer and in other fitting ways; " To submit to the rules of the school, to cooperate with the officers and teachers of the school in promoting its good, and to seek to make the school helpful in the work of the church." The superintendent shall here add,—" Do you thus covenant and promise ? " and the teachers say, «♦ We do." How TO Choose Teachers. It is not enough to have teachers available ; it is desirable to choose wisely and to choose good teachers. How may the superintendent do this? I. He sJioiild consult his pastor and Iiis executive comviittee. The pastor ordinarily knows his people better than any other person in the church. He understands their points of excellence and their limitations. He should be constantly consulted on all points by the super- intendent, but on nothing more carefully than on the choice of teachers. The committee, also, should be a great help in the choice of teachers. It is designed to aid the superintend- ent in just such matters, and, if wisely chosen, is specially fitted to aid him. The judgment of several as to the fit- ness of a person for a given class is likely to be better than the judgment of one, and in such a committee in- fluences which are likely to be effective can be brought to bear to secure a teacher. 2. Study adaptations . In choosing teachers it is es- 42 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 2, CH. V. sential to study the adaptation of the teacher to the class. In one class a teacher will succeed who might utterly fail in another. Each teacher has his peculiar individuality and the same is true of each class, while the task is to bring into conjunction two harmonious individualities. They may be quite different and yet each be admirably fitted to the other. It is only necessary that they be the complement of each other. Evidently for many classes specialists must be sought. For a kindergarten it is desirable that an expert in kindergarten work be placed in charge. For an adult class, for a class of young men, for a class of workingmen, for a class of college students, a teacher of peculiar gifts is often necessary. 3. Value of public school-teachers. As a rule our teachers in the public schools make some of the best teachers in our Sunday-schools. Why should they not ? Their training as teachers gives them insight into the best methods of teaching. They have come to understand the young. They have that skill in adaptation which is secured only by training and practice. Their methods in the public school are to a large degree applicable in the Sunday-school. To be sure they naturally plead the need of rest on the Sabbath and say that after teaching all the week, they cannot continue the same kind of work on the seventh day also. But while this objection has force in the case of certain teachers who are overworked or out of health, it is hardly valid in the case of others. There are teachers whose work is light, or whose health is robust, or who have a long rest on Saturday and who for these reasons are able to take Sunday-school work. When thus possible their peculiar gifts should unquestion- ably be called into use. 4. Su7iday-school teachers specialists. One principle is much insisted on in our best schools ; — in order to THE SUPERINTENDENT CHOOSING TEACHERS. 43 PART 1. § 2, ClI. v.] have good teachers we must not try to have them cover too much ground. It is better to have them specialists. Let the kindergartner remain a kindergartner, the teacher of an adult Bible class keep at that work. The child should be constantly advancing from one class to an- other, from one department to the next higher. But the teacher should not go with the pupil. It is far better for the teacher to return again to the task of the previous year, or the year before, and go over the work again with those who have been promoted to that grade. Schools are now often divided into a number of grades each continuing two or three, or, in certain cases, even four years. The teacher may go with the class through the successive years of the grade, but should stop when the class passes the threshold of that grade and steps out mto a new department. CHAPTER VI. THE superintendent's PASTORAL WORK. The Superintendent should make Calls. The superintendent who would have the largest success in his school should do much work outside. He should be a pastor to his school and make many calls. An evening a week spent in this work would result in great blessing to the school. Probably not many superintendents make these calls, but it is a great mistake to neglect this phase of their duty. If they do neglect it they lose immeasur- ably in their power to direct the school, and they miss a joy of service that can come in no other way. There are Three Kinds of Calls which every super- intendent ought to make, calls on teachers, calls on pupils and calls on parents. I. Calls on teacher's. It is desirable that the super- intendent call on his teachers, that he may understand them better, and let them feel his warm, personal sympa- thy with them in their work. In calling on them he will show interest in their efforts and encourage them to bet- ter service. He will see their points of excellence, and their weakness, and be the better able to give them the right classes, and to help them to better ways. He can- not counsel wisely, unless by such visits he comes to know their difficulties and their needs. Manifestly in such calls he may be learning rapidly. Each teacher has a personal experience, can tell much regarding the con- dition and needs of individual scholars and the strength and weakness of the work in that class and the depart- 44 SUPERINTENDENrS PASTORAL WORK. 45 PART I, § 2, CH. vi.] ment in which it belongs. This is the information which the superintendent ought to have, and without which he cannot give his school that distinct adaptation to personal and present needs which it ought to have. Of course the superintendent wdll keep a notebook in which to record the information which he gains in his calls. 2. Calls on pupils. The superintendent will call on the pupils in order to show his interest in them and en- courage them to attendance. He cannot, of course, make a business of calling on those who are absent. That duty belongs to the teacher and should be faithfully met each week. But the superintendent can call in spe- cial cases and, if he is faithful, can win many to Christ. I'here are certain classes of people on whom he should call without fail. These are the sick, the afflicted, the newcomers and, especially, the inquiring. The superin- tendent does not wish to take the work of the teachers out of their hands, but his official position warrants him in making calls like these, while his work as superintend"- ent becomes much more effective if he does. It produces a marked impression on a young pupil if a superintendent shows him such an attention. Teachers and superin- tendent ought to work in conjunction in such matters, and the teacher may well inform the superintendent of cases of religious interest in his class and ask the superin- tendent to call. For years there was a superintendent in Lowell, Massachusetts, who made a practice of calling on pupils in the school and urging tlicm to come to Christ. He had a wonderful influence in conse- quence. His teachers were incited by his example to do the same. The pupils welcomed him gladly and were impressed. As a con- sequence there was a constant revival in that school for many years, and not a communion passed in which several from the school were not received into the church. 46 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3TETH0DS. [part I. § 2, CII. vi. 3. Calls on the parents. The superiDtendent in call- ing on the pupils is likely to meet the parents, and he should make a special effort to meet them and often make a call on them distinctively. When new families come into the congregation, he will do well to call on the parents to induce them to send their children to Sunday- school, and if possible to come themselves. If he finds certain pupils troublesome, and hardly knows what to do with them, it may be well to call on their parents and ask their cooperation. It will be a delicate matter, of course, for him to open up the subject, but if he is judicious, he can manage it without giving offence. Often the only trouble with the child who disturbs the school is that the parents do not know of the matter, and do not look after the child as they otherwise would. Then again, if a superintendent finds that a pupil is thoughtful, it is well for him, when he can do so and be sure of sympathy, to have a talk with the parents about it. He may very likely influence them to change certain conditions at home for the child's best good, or even to start out on the Christian life themselves in order to keep their chil- dren company. Section 3. The Superintendent's Helpers. CHAPTER I. THE pastor's relation TO THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. The Pastor is the Chief Officer of the Sunday- school in the same way that the president of the United States is the commander-in-chief of the army. The president never takes command himself, but the com- manding general, while paramount in the army, is never- theless recognized as under the direction of the president. The pastor is the official head of the church, and the Sunday-school, although" an elaborate organization in itself, is as much a part of the church as one of its prayer- meetings and as much under its oversight. The pastor has as much right to direct the Sunday-school as any other department of the church. At the same time he should respect the rights of the superintendent. It has already been said that the best results are always obtained by letting every one in a position of responsibility be himself, carry out his own plans, and act under restraint as little as possible. The pastor expects such treatment from the church he serves, and he should accord similar treatment to those in a similar, though more restricted, position. Pie will always seek to be in harmony with the superintendent. What Can the Pastor Do for the School Outside OF THE School ? I. He can interest the church in the school a.nd thus do much to secure right relations between the two. By 47 48 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 3, CH. i. remembering the school in his pubUc prayers, both in the church and the prayer-meeting, he will lead the people to pray for the school, he will awaken their interest and sympathy in behalf of the school, he will show how deeply the welfare of the school lies in his heart. Further than this he will greatly help the school by preaching in its behalf occasionally, and by making some phases of its work the topic of a prayer-meeting now and then. He will also take the Sunday-school lesson as a frcciuent theme both in the pulpit and in the prayer-meeting. It is not wise to do this regularly since a Sunday-school lesson does not always yield a fruitful and timely topic for a sermon and occasionally it is entirely unfitted for the devotional purposes of a prayer-meeting. With the same controlling purpose to interest the church in the school, he will talk of the school in his pastoral calls. In those calls nothing can be more helpful to his aims as pastor, as well as to the school itself, than for him to inquire if the children are in the Sunday-school, what work they are doing there, and who their teachers are. It is an excellent idea to ask the children a few questions on the past lessons, and especially to get them to recite the verses they have committed to memory. More than this, the pastor may well ask the older members of the family if they are teaching in the Sunday-school, and if not, if they would not be willing to take up this duty if desired. The pastor should also call on the teachers and talk of their work. He wishes to know how they are cooperating with him in work for souls and his pastoral calls give him an opportunity to ascertain. 2. Consult luith the siipet'intendent. Tliis is another thing the pastor should do for the school out of school hours. Let him plan with the superintendent for the school. The pastor's wide experience and special train- ing peculiarly fit him to do this, while his point of view, seeing as he must from his outlook as pastor the needs of the whole church and not of one department alone, make his judgment in such matters important. Of course the PASTOR'S RELATION TO SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 49 PART I. § 3, ClI. i.] superintendent should remember that he sliould seek counsel of the pastor rather than expect the pastor to come to him and suggest measures. The pastor will naturally feel delicate about this. He will not wish to assert himself unduly, and will wait, for a while at least, for the superintendent to come to him. 3. 27ie pastor will be the friend and adviser of every teacher. The work of the teachers is greatly like his, and he and they will be drawn together by a common sympathy. He will do all he can to encourage and direct them in their labors for souls. The Pastor Should, if Possible, Supplement the Superintendent's Work Whenever Needed. In the teachers' meeting he may be the one to take charge and to conduct the meeting. At least it is for him, when possible, to be present and to be ready to explain the difficult points where one not specially trained might stumble. In Sunday-school concerts and other special occasions he should be ready to speak to the interest and profit of all. In reviews his counsel and direction may be of peculiar value. In supplemental lessons he may be invited to take charge and conduct the service. In Sunday-school prayer-meetings his presence is especially desirable. No one can shape the meeting so as to secure large spiritual results so well as can a wise and devoted pastor. No pastor who loves his flock and desires to obey the injunction ''Feed my lambs," will willingly be absent at those tender and all-important moments when young people are weighing the question of deciding for Christ, and their future is hanging in the balance. How CAN THE Pastor Render Help in the School ? I. He 7nay take a class temporarily. It is not wise ordinarily for him to confine himself to any one class all the time, but he should be willing to meet emergencies. 50 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [TART I. § 3, CH. i. A young men's class or an adult class may be in danger of falling to pieces for lack of a teacher. More than once has a wise pastor saved such a class by teaching it for a month or two, till a satisfactory teacher could be permanently secured. 2. He may act as a substitute teacher, taking one class here and another there from Sunday to Sunday till he becomes acquainted with all the classes in the school. By doing this he has an excellent chance to win the confidence of the young people and to know the needs of the whole school. It will be an admirable thing for him and for the school that he thus becomes acquainted with its individual members both old and young. 3. By moving quietly about the school. To take a class may be too fatiguing after the strain of the pulpit service just preceding the Sunday-school. In that case the pastor may find it well to spend the session in moving quietly about the school, and stopping at this class or that as desired to explain points of difficulty. One pastor has followed this practice with great success. He would pass up and down the aisles of the class-room, without noise and never interrupting the work of a class, but wait- ing for a signal here and there from different teachers. When such a signal was given, at once he would go to the class and, taking a seat among the pupils, answer as best he could such questions as they might put to him. 4. By religious conversation in the classes. By pre- arrangement with the teachers he may visit one class one Sunday and another class another Sunday, with the single purpose of turning the thought of the hour on the personal duties of the individual members of the class. With wisdom and skill he can draw out the spiritual points of the lesson, find out the religious needs of the several members of the class and press Christ upon their PASTOR'S RELATION TO SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 51 PART I. § 3, CH. i.] acceptance. Such visits require peculiar tact, since it is not easy to talk on personal obligations before a whole class, and yet the pastor can do this because of his offi- cial position and his constant practice, when even an honored teacher might find it impracticable. 5. By making the school feel his sympathy. After all, the great thing for the pastor to do in the school is to make the teachers feel that he appreciates their work and let the pupils see that he loves them and desires their good. 6. In general the pastor is to bring the luork of the school to a focus. This he may do in part by summing up the lesson each Sunday at the end of the school session. He should take but a few minutes for this, and he should be exceedingly practical and clear in what he says. A brief anecdote or an apt illustration is often helpful to hold the attention of his youthful auditors. He cannot afford to leave this five minute talk to extempore effort. He will have no better opportunity than this to reach the young and he needs to give thought to what he says. It is not essential that he speak at every session of the school. But he certainly should do it often enough to let it be understood that he is identified with the school and to give shape and importance to the exercise. 7. He should meet the teachers for conference. Since the work of the school should invariably culminate in pro- moting the spiritual life of the pupils, the pastor may help by meeting the teachers for prayer and conference about the pupils. Many a faithful teacher is sorely burdened with desire for the welfare of his class. It is an unspeak- able comfort to such to meet the pastor for prayer and counsel. Other teachers who do not fully realize their duty will be stimulated and brought to a sense of their duty in such a meeting. 52 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 3, CII. i. 8. He should hold inquiry meetings. The pastor can do a vast deal toward securing proper results in the Sunday-school by meeting the pupils in inquiry meet- ings or conversational meetings. A certain young pas- tor was accustomed for years to hold inquiry meetings at his house. Every week the superintendent or one or more teachers would bring to him young people from the school to talk with him of their spiritual needs. The decision to seek the pastor and to talk with him of salvation was in itself a step that prepared the way for a final committal of one's self to Christ. It was easy, when once the inquirer and the pastor met, and the latter kindly and wisely found just where the inquirer stood and showed just what step he needed to take, to bring the soul to Christ. Thus the inquiry meeting became a hallowed place and scarcely a week passed in which some were not guided to Christ. 9. By Conversational Meetijigs. Another kind of meeting called a conversational meeting has proved equally effective. This is better adapted to a time of a revival when more are seeking Christ than the pastor can well talk with personally for any length of time. Preparatory to such a meeting the pastor will see the superintendent and a number of his best teachers, secure their cooperation and describe the plan of the meeting. He will then invite as many of the school as are willing to be talked with'personally on the subject of religion to attend a con- versational meeting, at the same time asking them to bring such of their class as they can induce to come. Such meetings have often been hallowed with religious blessings. During a revival in a certain city they were regularly held in a fair-sized church parlor. To avoid formality and stiffness the chairs were arranged promiscuously throughout the room. The PASTOR'S RELATION TO SUNT) AY-SCHOOL. 53 PART I. § 3, cii. i.] pastor gave a general invitation to the school, while many teacliers invited their classes and came with them. Perhaps fifty attended, mostly pupils and inquirers, but at least a dozen teachers were present, each with a Bible. After brief opening exercises the pastor would arrange those present in groups or singly, far enough apart to be talked to privately, and then assign the teachers to the work of conversation. He would himself talk with one and another inquirer and then pass them over to teachers. He would also go about and change the teachers. If he found cases, as sometimes occurred, where the teacher seemed to be making no progress, he would take the teacher away to some other person and bring another teacher to talk with the one as yet unhelped. In this way there was marked benefit both to the pupil and to the teacher and many were shown the way to Christ. CHAPTER II. THE DUTY OF PARENTS TO THE SCHOOL. Since a large number in every school are children still under the parental roof and subject to parental control, it is a matter of vital importance to the welfare of the school that parents become interested in it and give their influence and aid in its favor. If the school is to suc- ceed, manifestly the parents must appreciate its worth and use their authority in its behalf. Secure Children's Attendance. Parents should see that their children attend the Sunday-school. If pos- sible, they should go themselves. The children go more readily and continue on into adult years more willingly, if their parents are with them. But this is not always possible. Even then a little care will secure the attend- ance of the children. No great exertion of authority is necessary, for ordinarily the children are only too glad to go. The main thing for parents to do to secure the attendance of their children at Sunday-school, is to make it easy for them to go. Much will depend on attention to a few details in the home. If the meals are furnished at suitable hours, if suitable clothing is pro- vided for the children, if arrangements are made for their conveyance, it is almost certain that the children will choose to attend the Sunday-school. Avoid Criticism. Again, parents should show regard for the school and especially should avoid criticism of the school, the superintendent or the teachers before the children. The conversation of the parents exerts a far 54 DUTY OF PARENTS TO THE SCHOOL. 55 PART I. § 3, cii. ii.] greater influence on their children than they imagine. Their words are heard and pondered. Even the tone of the conversation has its influence. If parents show interest in the school, ask about the lessons and make it plain that they respect the superintendent and teachers, it gready strengthens the children's willingness to attend school and makes more likely .their improvement under its training. But if parents criticise, it destroys the teacher's influence. If criticism must be made, let him who makes it be manly about it, go to the teacher and make it directly to him. Promote Discipline. Parents can assist materially in the discipline of the school. For obvious reasons it is impossible to enforce the same discipline in the Sunday, school as in the day-school. On parents, therefore, rests the chief responsibility for good order in the school. If a scholar misbehaves an immediate remedy ought to be found and may sometimes be found in a visit to the par- ents and a kind, but frank, statement regarding the mis- deeds of the child. No self-respecting and true-minded parent could fail under such circumstances to take his child in hand and by such methods as approved them- selves to him, bring the child to a better mind. Unfor- tunately in many cases we know too well that such a visit would avail nothing. See that Lessons are Learned. Parents should see to it that children get their lessons. If possible, let the children have a set time at home to study their lesson ; encourage them in studying it; assist them at their study; provide suitable lesson-helps. It is desirable that every child have a Bible of his own, and that in every house there be a reference Bible, a copy of the revised translation, a set of commentaries on the Bible, or at least lesson-helps on the quarter's lessons, a concordance, 56 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3TETH0DS. [TART I. § 3, CH. ii. a Bible text-book, and a Bible dictionary. Thus equij^ped the parent not only can furnish needful helps to his older children, but can post himself thoroughly on the lesson, and so be able to help his children in preparing them- selves. In the Home Department. Parents, if they cannot be in the home school, ought by all means to be in the home department. This brings them into direct rela- tion to the main school, is a testimony stronger than words that they believe in the school and appreciate Bible study, informs them regularly as to the lesson, and makes it possible for them to teach the lesson to their children. CHAPTER III. THE COMMITTEES OF THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. It is usual in schools of any size to appoint committees of various kinds to share the responsibilities of the super- intendent and to some degree lighten his burdens. The Executive Committee is the most important of these. The duties of this committee are to act as the counsellor of the superintendent in all matters which he wishes to bring to its attention. The committee is some- times made responsible for the appointment and removal of teachers, for the selection and purchase of lesson- helps, library books and papers, for the decision of ques- tions relating to meetings and entertainments, for the raising of funds for the support of the school and the disbursing of the same, for the disbursing of its charities, and, in general, for the transaction of any business of the school. Ordinarily this committee is not given full pow- ers but is made advisory simply, that is, all business must first come before it and then be brought before the school with suitable recommendations. This committee is usually composed of the pastor, superintendent, assistant superintendent, the heads of the different departments and one or two teachers. It is ordinarily elected by the church on nomination of the teachers. Sometimes the duties of this committee are given to the governing body of the church, whatever it is. There are certain decided advantages in such a committee. Where everything rests with the superintendent, the government of the school is aj)t to be a despotism, mild and beneficent, often, 57 58 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I. § 3, CH. iii. but still not adapted to a free country. The superintendent under Such conditions is liable to force everything into the groove of his personality and so fail of reaching the best results. It is desirable that the perplexing questions that often arise should be considered from different points of view. Here is the great benefifof a com- mittee. If wisely selected, it represents a variety of interests, and its action, when substantially unanimous, is almost sure to carry the approval of the whole school and of the church itself. Such an arrangement every worthy superintendent is sure to like, for it relieves him of great responsibilities, it is a guarantee of wise management, it is a pledge of co5peration on the part of many interests and it is an assurance of help in the burdens that are connected with the management of the school. Such a committee naturally makes it easier to find a suitable superintendent for a large school, for he is more willing to accept a position that neces- sarily involves a severe tax upon his time and strength, if he knows that others are to share his burdens with him. But, in addition to this executive committee, it is usual in some large schools to have other committees to relieve the superintendent and perform various duties. In some schools many of these committees are permanent, serv- ing the year through ; in others they are appointed from time to time as the need requires. The Finance Committee is appointed to see to the finances of the school. Its business is to take measures to secure an adequate income. It also passes upon all bills and authorizes their payment. Of course in a small school, such a committee is quite unnecessary. The Temperance Committee, when such a one exists, is intended to see that temperance is properly brought to the attention of the school. It is to devise measures to interest the pupils in the subject, to secure signatures to the pledge, to organize a temperance society in the school if it is thought best to have one, and to arrange for such temperance meetings as may be held. The Missionary Committee is intended to do for COMMITTEES OF THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL, 59 PART I, § 3, CH. iii.J missions in the school what the temperance committee does for temperance, holding meetings, organizing mis- sionary circles, and distributing missionary literature. The Benevolence Committee in some schools has sole charge of the benevolences. It determines how the contributions shall be made, what causes shall be brought to the attention of the school, what addresses shall be made on different phases of benevolent work, what di- vision shall be made of unassigned contributions, and, if there is no missionary committee, what missionary publications shall be distributed. In most schools, how- ever, these duties are largely left to the superintendent. The Social Committee is to arrange for Sunday- school sociables, planning to give them variety and in- terest, to conduct them with propriety, to secure the at- tendance of those it is most desirable to reach, and to promote the acquaintance of those in the school. It often acts as a reception committee, bringing the people together and striving to make all feel at home. The Entertainment Committee is ordinarily a com- mittee chosen to meet a temporary need. At Christmas time, or at special social gatherings, or at picnics, such a committee is chosen to arrange games, tableaux, suppers and the like. The Calling Committee is appointed to increase at- tendance or secure more regular attendance. Its one duty is to call wherever a call is needed, whether on new- comers to bring them into Sunday-school or on absentees to bring them back to school, or on the sick to express sympathy. Large schools that are able to assume the expense, find it profitable to employ a Sunday-school visitor, usually a lady, who gives her whole time to work such as is undertaken by this committee. Nothing will more promote attendance at a Sunday-school or more 60 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART I. § 3, CH. iii. certainly hold the young in the classes than the judicious efforts of such a visitor. The Instruction Committee, when appointed, is charged with the duty of determining, or, more generally, recommending, a suitable course of study for the school and the lesson helps to be used. It sometimes is ex- pected to arrange a course of supplemental lessons. The Library Committee is placed in general charge of the library and the librarian is under its general direc- tion. Its business is to select the books for the library, reading those brought to their notice and allowing none to be placed on the shelves unless first approved by them. Its duties take time, are very responsible and of great importance. The Relief Committee should gather cast-off cloth- ing, put it in order and distribute it judiciously among the needy members of the school or in families where it is found that children are prevented from coming to school because they have nothing suitable to wear. Such conditions often exist in our cities and villages and every live Sunday-school will try to meet the necessity, not by spasmodic, but by systematized, efforts. CHAPTER IV. THE SUBORDINATE OFFICERS OF THE SCHOOL. The Number of Officers Needed in a school de- pends upon its size. In a small school of twenty to fifty ordinarily a superintendent and secretary will suffice, — the secretary acting also as treasurer and librarian. In a larger school, numbering from fifty to a hundred, an assistant superintendent is desirable ; the treasurer should be a separate officer, while very likely, a librarian also is needed. If the school is divided into departments, each department needs a superintendent of its own. Then, as the school grows, a larger number of officers is needed. Large schools numbering two or three hundred should have at least these officers, a superintendent, an assistant superintendent, a superintendent for the primary depart- ment, a secretary, a treasurer, a librarian and a musical director. The Assistant Superintendent. In schools of any size there should be at least one assistant superintendent and in a large school more than one. The duty of such an officer, — as his name implies, — is to aid the superin- tendent in his work. He should take on himself what- ever responsibilities the superintendent may delegate to him, such as providing the classes with teachers when the regular teachers are absent. In case the school is large and there are several departments with a consider- able number of pupils in each, it may be necessary to have a superintendent for each department. Many of our largest schools are now doing this and the kinder- 61 62 3TANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCnOOL METnODS. [PART I. § 3, CII. iv. garten, primary department, adult class, Chinese depart- ment, etc., each have one at the head to look after its interests. The advantage of such assistant superintendents is easily seen. They secure efficient oversight of the school when this would be impossible in the hands of one man, they secure the well-being of the school when the superintendent is necessarily absent, and they are in training so that they become fitted for the superinlendency itself if it should become vacant, or for other imi^ortant places in the school. The Secretary. What are His Duties? 1. The secretary sJiould collect, record and report statistics of the school. Such records ought to be very complete. They should contain an account of all busi- ness meetings held by the school, all votes passed and all officers elected. The attendance for each Sunday should also be noted in each department and in total, with averages for each quarter and a comparison with the same season in the previous year. The attendance of each teacher and pupil should also be recorded in some suitable way. Generally each class has its book in which the teacher keeps the record and from these class-books a general record can be made up if necessary. It is a good suggestion that the attendance of the teachers' meeting be given the secretary for record and that he state this attendance in his weekly report to the school. This will undoubtedly promote attendance at the teachers' meeting. 2. A catalogue of the school. One of the most im- portant things the secretary can do is to make out and keep in order a complete catalogue of teachers and pu- pils. This may be done in a book, but altogether the most satisfactory method is to prepare card catalogues in which a card is allotted to each individual member of SUBORDINATE OFFICERS OF THE SCHOOL. 63 PART I. § 3, CH. IV.] the school. To make this complete it should be in three parts, one alphabetical, one by streets and one by teach- ers. The last two may be made very brief and serve simply as indices, the bulk of the information desired being on the first cards.' 3. A history of the school. One other thing it is de- sirable the secretary should do and that is preserve in convenient form for reference an orderly history of the school. All facts connected with its early history are increasingly important from year to year and are espe- cially valuable on anniversary days. The secretary should, therefore, preserve statements as to the origin of the school, the steps taken in its organization, the original lists of officers, teachers and pupils, etc. Here, too, should be entered accounts of any important events, such as the organization of new classes or new depart- ments, the erection of a new schoolroom, any change in lesson-helps, revivals, and the like. It is also very desir- able in the same connection that a scrapbook be pre- served in which shall be pasted copies of all programs used in the school, copies of orders of exercises or lists of officers, etc., printed for the use of the school, clip- pings from newspapers pertaining to the school and other things of interest. All these records are of course open for the inspection of proper persons. The superintend- ent, the pastor and the executive committee will wish to refer to them frequently. The teachers may find the sec- retary's card catalogues of great value. The serviceabil- ity of these records will be in proportion to their fulness and correctness. The Treasurer. It is his business to gather up the contributions and disburse the same, to take general • Such cards can be obtained of the American Sunday-School Union in any quantity desired. 64 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 3, CH. iv. charge of the expenses and to pay all bills and by a care- ful system of bookkeeping to keep account of all moneys received and paid out. If the school is supported by the church, the superintendent ordinarily receives the amount appropriated and passes it over to the treasurer for safe-keeping, — this sum being drawn upon as needed for the legitimate expenses of the school. The Librarian. The librarian's duties will be con- sidered later in connection with the discussion of the library. Who Should Take These Places. 1. Men of system. The librarian, secretary and treasurer must all be men of system. In these days there are many devices to facilitate their work. The librarian has his checks and numbers, the secretary his record book suitably ruled, the treasurer his system of bookkeeping. These officers are all needed to relieve the su- perintendent of the burden of detail necessarily connected with every large school. He has altogether too much to do to perform their duties as well as his own. They can do much in preventing friction, saving time, promoting a helpful emulation and projecting the influence of the school into the community and beyond. They secure accuracy in reports and in the use of finances and are in- valuable in their place. 2. You tig men are generally considered desirable for the posi- tions of librarian, secretary and treasurer. It is also an excellent thing to put in a young man as assistant superintendent that thus he may be in training for the more responsible post of superin- tendent and that when a change must come, the school have some one whose experience fits him for this position. 3. Must the secretary, treasurer and librarian be Christians ? This is an open question to be decided in the individual case. On the one hand if a young man, not a Christian, becomes uneasy and is liable to drop out of school, give him one of these offices and he at once feels a new responsibility, is pleased that he can do some- thing for the scliool and is likely to stay. On the other hand such duties are quite as likely to be effectively and helpfully performed by a Christian, while it is certain that of the two it is more im- SUBORDINATE OFFICERS OF THE SCHOOL. 65 PART I. § 3, CH. iv.] portant to retain in the class in the study of the Bible the young man who has not yet settled the great question. We have known a Sunday-school started by a Sunday-school missionary where it was deemed impossible to organize the school because a base ball club played its games regularly on Sunday afternoons at the only hour when the school could hold its session. The problem was solved when the missionary asked the captain of the ball club to become secretary of the school and to bring his mates with him. The re- sult was the conversion of the secretary and of several members of the club. CHAPTER V. THE YOUNG PEOPLE'S SOCIETY AND THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. ^ A Feature of Modern Religious Life. A Young People's Society exists in most modern churches and is found in connection with a large proportion of our Sun- day-schools, though known by different names, — the Young People's Society of Christian Endeavor, the Bap- tist Young People's Union, the Epworth League, the Church Porch, the Brotherhood of Andrew and Philip and the like. This society, whatever its name, is ordinarily the outgrowth of the Sunday-school. It contains the most active and best trained pupils in the school. They naturally turn to this spiritual and practical organization as the fitting outcome of the training they have had in the school. Supplements the Sunday-school. The Young Peo- ple's Society has features that fit on to the Sunday-school and are supplemental to it. Here is a vital combination of Christians bound together by a covenant, sharing a common religious life, joining together in spiritual fellow- ship and combining in Christian activity. All this is ex- ceedingly desirable. For the most part it is not to be found to any great extent in the Sunday-school itself. The Sunday-school is a more superficial organization. Those who are in it are linked together by a common purpose to study the Bible, while those who are in the ' The substance of this chapter has been given by the author in addresses at the International Conventions of the Y. P. S. C. E. in Montreal and Boston and also on other occasions. YOUNG PEOPLE'S SOCIETY. 07 PART I. § 3, CH. v.] Young People's Society are linked together by a common life, the Christian life in their souls. On the other hand the Young People's society owes much to the Sunday- school. The members of the society were first trained in the Sunday-school, and there, as a rule, received their first impulses in the Christian life. The Sunday-school opened to them the wonders of Scripture, showed them the way of salvation and brought them into contact and com- panionship. Without the Sunday-school as a preliminary experience, the Young People's Society would be hardly possible. Mutual Helpfulness. The Young People's Society and the Sunday-school should then stand in close and kindly relation to one another. On the one hand the Sunday-school should cherish and encourage the Young People's Society. It should regard the society as a natural and proper outgrowth of it, as its very flower, and it should endeavor to promote the society's interests. The superintendent and teachers should encourage the organization of such a society and should seek its wel- fare. On the other hand, the Young People's Society should never weaken the Sunday-school by withdrawing from it or becoming absorbed in its own affairs. The Young People's Society can never take the place of the Sunday-school, for the Sunday-school has entirely distinct functions, and functions of great importance. It is the place for Bible study, where the fundamental truths of re- ligion are learned. It is important that all, whether young or old. Christians or not, should use the Sunday- school as an instrumentality to feed their souls with spiritual food and to build them up in Christian character. The members of the Young People's Society, then, should never desert nor neglect the Sunday-school but, recogniz- ing its helpfulness and grateful for its help, should seek to 68 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [FART I. § 3, CH. V. Strengthen its work by their own presence and helpful- ness. It is not always easy, when warmly interested, in one object to be equally interested in another, and it has been feared that the Young People's Society might cause a diminished attendance on the Sunday-school. There seems to be no real ground for such fear, however, for, as a matter of fact, nearly all members of Young People's Societies are in the Sunday-school and the most active in the society are apt to be teachers in the school. Special Duties to Schools Apart From Churches. There is a special duty which the Young People's So- ciety owes to schools which are existing apart from churches. There is necessarily a great number of such schools in the land, organized as they are by missionary effort in outlying districts far from any church. Such schools often furnish the only opportunities for Christian worship enjoyed by the community where they are located. They become, therefore, a religious nucleus or germ, de- veloping in themselves whatever the community absolutely needs for its religious life. They often cannot, for some time at least, become churches, and yet the people need some form of organization stronger than the Sunday-school and on a more spiritual basis. The Young People's Society exactly meets this need. It binds together those in the Sunday-school who are religiously inclined, forms an organization preparatory to the church, and gives a basis of strength by means of which it is comparatively easy to maintain prayer-meetings and even to secure occasional preaching. The Young People's Society is a godsend, a spiritual boon, to those dwelling in out-of-the-way places, where the Sunday-school has awakened in their hearts a desire for closer ties as Christians. The great army of young people in these societies throughout the land, ought to be on the watch for these outlying Sunday-schools YOUNG PEOPLE'S SOCIETY. 69 PART I. § 3, CH. v.] and regard them as specially needing and deserving their aid. Let them organize in these schools Young People's Societies. Let them care for these schools as sure in time to result in Young People's Societies. Section 4. Special Features of the Sunday- school. CHAPTER I. WORSHIP IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Much Attention Now Given to Worship. Of late years much has been made of worship in the Sunday- school. Opening services have been carefully prepared and are universally used. These services have been greatly enriched in various ways but especially by re- sponsive readings and by music adapted to the young. Is Worship the Primary Idea ? There undoubtedly should be a large place for worship in the Sunday-school. Is it the primary idea of the school ? Worship is the dis- tinctive feature of the morning service but is not instruc- tion that of the Sunday-school ? It is desirable that all who attend the Sunday-school should attend the morning service of worship where the whole congregation are to- gether and a sermon is preached. Care must be taken that the Sunday-school does not so completely cover all the functions of religion that the morning service shall seem to be needless and so the young, especially, become content with absence from the great congregation. We would by no means remove the exercises of worship from the Sunday-school, but we would not give the impression that they were all that are needed. These exercises should rather be supplementary to the more formal wor- 70 WORSHIP IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 71 PART I. § 4, CH. 1.] ship of the house of God and excite a desire for it. Tliey should not usurp the place of the morning service. Worship Preparatory to Bible Study. Yet wor- ship is essential to open the way for Bible study and to fit the mind for the influences of the Holy Spirit in con- veying truth. To this end there must be direct and earnest, though brief, exercises at the opening and close of school. These exercises will naturally consist of music, responsive readings and other uses of Scripture, prayer and addresses. Responsive Readings have come to have a very im- portant part in the general exercises of the Sunday- school. This is undoubtedly well. They familiarize the school with the Scriptures and teach it reverence for God's word ; they give the whole school an opportunity to participate actively in the worship ; they convey of themselves, by constant repetition, important lessons. It is remarkable how responsive readings have now come to be adopted as a part of worship by nearly every branch of the church of God. This is probably due in the main to the influence of the Sunday-school. The Sunday, school first introduced the practice, and presently it was readily taken up by the churches themselves. ^ The Repetition of Scripture in Concert is a de- lightful and helpful form of worship in Sunday-school. Many schools are in the habit of repeating a psalm in unison. This practice is altogether admirable. We cannot lay up too much Scripture in our memories and there is both pleasure and profit in repeating it with the - voice of the whole school. In a great monthly meeting of Christian gentlemen, where over four hundred meet to listen to scholarly addresses on religious themes, the most interesting j.art of tlie exercise is the repetition, as if it were a single utterance, of the Lord's I'rayer. This is 72 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [part I. § 4, CH. i. never done without producing a deep impression. Every school should repeat the Lord's Prayer in concert and many of the psalms also. The Prayers in the general exercises of the school are of great importance. They are to voice the needs of the whole school, to bring the minds of children and teach- ers into a proper condition, to bind the school to God. They should not, then, be carelessly or hastily offered, but after thought and by those who appreciate the needs of the school and sincerely desire God's blessing. While the superintendent will lead in these prayers, it is desirable that the different teachers, and sometimes the older schol- ars, after previous notification, take up the duty in turn. Addresses. There is a prejudice in some schools against addresses during the school hour. This arises from the fact that when it has been the practice to invite every chance visitor to say something to the school, often precious time has been taken up in platitudes. An ad- dress that is brief, pointed, tender and timely, is helpful at the end of the school hour. It has already been sug- gested (§ 2, chapter iv.) that the superintendent may well close the school hour with a few review questions, — fol- lowed by a five minute talk on the lesson, either by him- self or the pastor, — to clinch the truths of the lesson. In addition to this, or in place of the pastor's remarks, it may be well at times to give an opportunity to some judicious and competent visitor to say a word. This is especially true in the case of an experienced Sunday- school teacher or superintendent or pastor, or if there is with the school some one, like a missionary, who can tell of the work done by the people of God on mission fields. Every school should be taught to give by receiving in- struction on the world's need of missionary effort and on the result of its own contributions in mission fields. WORSHIP IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL 73 PART I. § 4, CH. i.] • '"^ Forms FOR Worship. The need of suitable opening and closing services is strongly felt in many of our schools. 7 he lesson quarterlies fill this need to a certain extent by publishing in connection with the pages de- voted to the study of the lesson two or three pages contain- ing a form of opening and closing for the quarter But many superintendents desire a larger variety than is thus secured and wish also to preserve and use again, from tune to time, forms which have been learned in the school and have proved acceptable. To meet these needs some superintendents have prepared and printed a i^sv forms of opening and closing services for their own use This method, however, is expensive and limited in its scope It IS desirable that the school be provided, as is often the church, with a book of worship. The following orders of service are appended as examples of the way in which prominent Sunday-schools have been conducted. Number i. 1. Voluntary. Organ or piano or orchestra or choir 2. (School rises) Recitation of Scripture selections. (For ex ample .-Ps. xxxiv. 3; Acts iv. 12; Ps. ciii. ,3; John XIV. 19; Ps. xxiii; the Beatitudes or Heb i 1-6 ) 3. Singing of the Gloria. (The school is now seated ) 4. Supplemental Lesson. For example, a repetition of the titles of the books of the Bible. 5- Singing. (Any who are late quietly take their seats ) o. Notices. ^ 7. Study of the Lesson. 8. The lesson Reviewed by the whole school. 9. Singing. 10. Prayer, closing with the Lord's Prayer 11. Benediction. Superintendent. «« The Lord bless thee and keep thee." Teachers. "The Lord make his face to shine upon thee and be gracious unto thee." Pupils "llie Lord lift up his countenance upon thee and give thee peace." ^ 74 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I, § 4, CH. i. Number 2. 1. School comes to order and rises. 2. Call to worship by the superintendent, who repeats Ps. xcv. I, 2. 3. Singing, after which the school is seated. 4. Recitation of Scripture passages. By superintendent, Ps. cxxii. I; by the teachers, Jas. iv. 8; by the school, Ps. xxvii, 7 ; or a Responsive Reading. 5. Prayer. 6. Singing. 7. Reading the lesson. 8. Making the Offering and Marking Attendance. 9. Study of the Lesson. 10. Secretary's Report. II. No- tices for the Week. 12. Title of the Lesson and Golden Text given in concert. 13. Singing. 14. Dismission. Number 3. 1. Singing for fifteen minutes. 2. Responsive Reading. The Beatitudes or Psalm xxiv. or Ephesians vi. i, 4, 10, 18. 3. (The school rises.) Apostles' Creed in concert. 4. Sing- ing. (The school is seated.) 5. Responsive Reading of the Lesson. 6. Prayer. 7. Notices. 8. Singing. 9. Lesson. (30 minutes.) 10. Brief remarks by pastor or superintendent on the lesson. II. Lord's Prayer in concert. 12. Singing. 13. Doxology. CHAPTER 11. MUSIC IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Music is a part of worship and might fittingly have been treated in the preceding chapter, but it is so important and so liable to be misused that it deserves distinct dis- cussion. Music to be Worshipful. The aim of music in the Sunday-school must ever be worshipful, and to this end music must be carefully guarded, lest it be degraded and put to some less worthy use. Music is the language of emotion ; it speaks for the heart. If properly used in the school it arouses feeling and places the soul in tune with the purposes of the hour. If wisely selected, it will deepen the impressions of the lesson and clinch, by stir- ring the heart, the convictions produced. It is impor- tant, then, that the school open and close with appropriate and helpful music, music that at the opening of service shall be inspiring and put those who join in it in a proper mood for studying the Bible, while at the close of the school the music should be in even closer accord with the lesson and convey to some extent the same impressions that are aroused by the study of the previous hour. Music to be Attractive. It is not difficult in choos- ing music that is appropriate to choose also music that is attractive. It is perfectly fitting that music be used in the school to attract and interest the pupils. It is desirable that there be frequent singing, that the young may thus find pleasure in the school and that the way may be opened for them to join in the worship. 75 76 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 4, CH. ii. Music to be Spiritual. Sunday-school music should have a distinct character of its own. It should be spirit- ual and helpful. If it is spiritual, it will not be tawdry, but dignified and worthy. It will speak for God to the soul. Too much Sunday-school music is mere jingle and clap-trap, designed to catch the ear and quicken the pulse, but not written with the thought of introducing the pupil into the presence of God. Music Must be Helpful. It must be music that is earnest and tender, pure and elevating. And yet at the same time it must be music that is helpful, — music, i. e.j that appeals to the child-mind, that is not dull or heavy or sombre, but fresh, lively and interesting. Otherwise it fails largely to do its proper work. In such a case its tongue is not heard and its message is unheeded. Music not to be too Difficult. There is danger that in avoiding the cheap and tawdry 'music so com- mon in these days, we go to the other extreme and seek music that is severely classical and difficult. In such a case we allow our music to speak in an unknown tongue. It is as easy to sing over the hearts as to speak over the heads, of the young. Too difficult music in the Sunday- school defeats its purpose ; it expresses nothing to the un- trained mind. Music not to be Unduly Prominent. Music in the Sunday-school ought never to be unduly prominent. It is simply a means to an end. It must not make undue demands upon the time ordinarily given to study. The practice of using a part of the school hour for drill in music is unfortunate. It may be unavoidable, but still it is greatly to be deprecated. Of course some way must be found to train the children to sing and to acquaint them with new music, and often before Children's Day and other special days it seems quite important to take 3imiC IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 77 PART I. § 4, CI I. ii.] time to practice the music. At the same time, these special occasions witli their fine new pieces of music are dearly bought if made possible by the loss of a good part of several study hours. It might be better to keep the school a little longer and spend such time as was necessary for musical drill after the ordinary hour of closing, or it would be better still if the school could be got together in special meetings for practice in singing. This used to be quite common thirty or forty years ago. There was a certain city church in those earlier days which regularly held a Wednesday afternoon singing school for the chil- dren of Its Sunday-school. In that school the principles of music were taught for a while at every session and then the Sunday- school music was taken up and practiced. There was never any musical drill in the Sunday-school itself. It would have been resented as much as in the house of God at the regular morning service. This was before singing was taught to any extent in the public schools and very likely the change in our public schools in this regard renders a singing-school connected with a Sunday-school in most places unnecessary and impracticable. Music to be Rendered by the School Itself. Sun- day-school music should be largely sustained by the Sunday-school itself. This is desirable both on the score of economy and in order to interest the young. Children and youth ordinarily like best that in which they have a part and unquestionably the music of the school is more helpful and better appreciated when the young people themselves furnish it. It is well to make their work prominent and to let them feel that they have an im- portant part to do. To this end it is quite desirable to have a good Simday-school quartet selected from some of the best singers in the school. This is often a great addition, A School Orchestra also proves in some cases to be 78 3TANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 4, CH. ii. a valuable aid. No doubt this greatly interests the school, for a time at least, and it certainly gives the school a strong hold on those who are in the orchestra, but whether or not the orchestra is desirable depends upon its ability to touch the emotions and express religious feelings. If it really aids worship it should be welcomed. If it is simply a novelty and an amusement, it jars on the lofty aims of the school and does harm. CHAPTER III. THE SUPPLEMENTAL LESSON. Need of Supplemental Lessons. It is evident that the ordinary lessons of the International series or any reg- ular course of study of consecutive Scripture passages will not furnish information greatly to be desired in regard to a variety of matters that should naturally be taught in the Sunday-school. There are many facts about the Bible pertaining to its geography, history, composition, author- ship, etc., that ought to be known. A systematized state- ment of doctrines, — that may or may not be a church catechism, — church history and the like, ought also to be studied in the Sunday-school. What Supplemental Lessons Are. A scheme of supplemental lessons has been devised to meet this need. It is proposed that ten minutes of the Sunday-school hour, either before or after the regular lesson, but preferably before, be taken for instruction on these general topics. This exercise would probably better be conducted with the whole school from the platform, the pastor or the superintendent being in charge, but it can be managed, if preferred, by each teacher in his class in his own way. Tkxt-books for Supplemextal Lessons. Certain small text- books for supplemental lessons have been published. One is by Loranus E. Hitchcock and is called " The Ten Minute Series of Supplemental Lessons for the Sunday-school." This contains five series of lessons for use by any denomination, each series having thirty-six lessons designed to cover a year, omitting the vacation. The topics for each year are respectively, The Life of Jesus, Studies about the Bible, Bible Geography, Bible History and The 79 80 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I, § 4, CH. iii. History of the Christian Church. Two additional series have been prepared, designed for use by Methodists. Besides this Rev. Jesse L. Hurlburt, D. D., has prepared a small volume with a similar purpose. It is entitled " Supplemental Studies for the Sunday- school." Mrs. Mary G. Rice has prepared " First Lessons for Primary Classes" as supplemental lessons in that department, and over 70,000 have been used. Dr. Vincent has outlined a course of supplemental study as follows : Two years in primary work on memorizing verses, a catechism about the Bible, outlines of Bible biography and history and church catechism. Three years of intermediate work and three years of senior work on memorizing verses, Bible history and geography, the im- portance of the Bible, church catechism, hymns, temperance and missions. Fifty years of exegetical study in special classes, of lectures on evidences, church history, the relation of science and religion, of theological sermons, of general reading. "Our Sixty-Six Sacred Books," by Dr. Edwin W. Rice, has been widely used in advanced classes as sup- plemental studies. Such a Supplemental Course ls Important. Most of the pupils in our Sunday-schools have little other op- portunity for religious instruction. They are not ordi- narily students having regular lessons on the Bible in academy or college. Nor are they ordinarily people of large reading, able and willing to supplement their Sunday-school lesson on a Biblical passage by a general course of reading, A ten-minute-a-week course of study in supplemental lessons means not only nearly nine hours a year in itself, l)ut, what is far more, hours of prepara- tion and reading in connection with such lessons. THE SUPPLEMENTAL LESSON. 81 PART I. § 4, cii. iii.] The Things to be Almed at in such supplemental lessons should be (i) a general acquaintance with the scope, plan and contents of the Bible; (2) a knowledge of those facts necessary to be known in order to under- stand the Bible, viz : its origin and authority, the history, geography, archaeology and institutions referred to in it ; (3) memorizing Scripture ; (4) knowledge of Christian doctrines; (5) familiarity with Christian evidences ; (6) acquaintance with the outlines of religious history, viz : the history of the Jewish church, of the religious con- ditions in the time of Christ and the apostles, and of the church of God subsequently. More and more stress can be laid on these topics of supplemental work as the pupils pass from lower departments to higher. The Basis of Promotions. It is now often urged that these supplemental lessons should be the basis of ex- amination in the Sunday-school for promotion from one grade to another and that pupils should not be thus ad- vanced until they know the supplemental course belong- ing to their grade. Evidently the practice is a makeshift arising from the fact that the lessons of the school are not yet properly graded. When such grading of lessons is common, no school will be satisfied to resort to supple- mental and incidental work as a basis for promotions. A certain large Sunday-school has printed " Requirements for Graduation from the Senior Primary Department." The paper contains the twenty-third Psalm, the Beatitudes, the Ten Com- mandments (in full), classified lists of the books of the Old and New Testaments and, last of all, a page of texts to be memorized on the need of a Saviour, the way of salvation through Christ, the duties of missionary service, of giving and of temperance. CHAPTER IV. PUBLIC REVIEWS. Reviews in the Sunday-school are of two kinds, those conducted by each teacher in the privacy of his own class and those conducted publicly by the superintendent or by some one acting for him. The teacher's method of con- ducting reviews will be considered in a subsequent chap- ter, but the review from the superintendent's standpoint should be discussed here. Importance of Reviews. No well conducted school will fail to introduce reviews at stated periods. Such reviews are necessary. 1. They impress the lessons on the memory. In going over a series of lessons for the first time, some im- portant facts will inevitably slip from the memory. A review picks up the threads that have been dropped, re- stores everything to its place and arranges all in order in the mind. "Line upon line" is the Scriptural method of teaching, — it must be the method of to-day. To make a memory retentive, review. 2. Reviews are at least a partial compensation for past failures. The pupil may have been absent a por- tion of the Sundays or he may have neglected to study a lesson or to have paid good attention in the class. Or the fault may lie with the teacher. The teacher may have been careless in teaching when the topic was taken up in the class or very likely for lack of time did not consider the topic at all. Or it may be that the teacher is not altogether satisfactory and fails to teach correctly, 82 PUBLIC HE VIEWS. 83 PART I. §4, cir. iv.] at least in regard to certain points. All these defects are likely to be met in some measure by a general review. The review will take up the lessons in their right propor- tion and will bring out the salient points in each. The pupil that has been absent or neglectful and the pupil that has been unsatisfactorily taught will alike gain infor- mation that they had not gained before. The review looks at the subjects considered from a different stand- point and so greatly widens the vision. 3. // teaches the teachers. Another advantage of a review is that it teaches the teachers. They see in a re- view what they had fliiled to see when they went over the lessons originally. The review brings up points they had neglected and treats subjects in new ways. They listen and learn. These advantages of a public review are reasons enough why reviews should be often public and in charge of the superintendent. He must study to give these reviews interest and practical value. Sometimes it may be well for him to appoint a committee to take charge of the review for that quarter. Variety is thus secured as well as spe- cial effort to make the review satisfactory. Requisites of a Review. What are some of the requisites of a review ? 1. Completeness. The review should not be partial, taking up only a portion of the lessons. It should be planned so as to cover the whole ground traversed during the quarter. 2. Conciseness is another desirable quality. Com- pleteness does not mean the introduction of every minute detail. There is no time for this, and, if there were, to attempt it would be an unreasonable strain on the mem- ory. It is necessary tl;at the facts brought out in a re- view be well chosen and be briefly stated. 84 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL BIETHODS. [part I, § 4, CH. iv. 3. Easily remembered. A review must be easy to be remembered. The points brought out in a review should be so clearly stated and so aptly illustrated that they will cling to the memory. Appeals should be made, if possible, to the eye, the ear, and every other mnemonic aid avail- able. The blackboard should be often used and maps are of great value at such times. 4. Interesting. Reviews must be interesting. They must hold the attention. Too often they are considered by the pupils as tiresome occasions to be escaped if pos- sible. They are criticised as dull and profitless. This objection must be removed or else reviews are simply an injury both to the individual pupil and to the school itself. 5. Marked by variety. Reviews to be interesting should cultivate variety. The method of conducting them should change constantly. It is better for no two consecutive reviews to be alike. It is possible to bring this about by great study only, and one great reason why reviews are dull is that no pains are taken to give them freshness and vivacity. 6. Shared by all. So far as possible every class and every member of every class should have something special to do in a review. It is wonderful how interested people become in that for the success of which they are personally responsible or to which they have to contribute personal effort. One who reads a paper at a revicAv or who conducts a part of it always enjoys it. To make the review interesting, awaken the emulation of the classes and place responsibilities on each. Preparation for a Review. A review can be satis- factorily secured only by careful preparation. There must be planning for it and working for it. Some lesson quarterlies are written with reference to the quarterly re- PUBLIC REVIEWS. 85 PART I. § 4, CII. iv.] view;— all ought to be. What may be done by way of making ready for the coming review ? ^ I. £ach week the topic of the lesso7i should he pub- licly pointed out and memorized. The topic is not neces- sarily the title of the lesson as printed in the quarterly; it is the great underlying principle that is discussed in the passage of Scripture studied. The title of the twenty- third Psalm, for example, might be given as The Shep- herd Psalm, but the topic is The Lord our Shepherd. The title of the first part of the fifteenth chapter of John would be The Parable of the Vine, but the topic is Christ the True Vine and Christians the branches. It is important to get into the mind of the pupils not a mere catchword or a mnemonic phrase to remind them of the lesson, but rather, if it can be properly shaped, a phrase expressive of the great principle considered and enforced in the lesson. To this end it is well that the golden text be thoroughly memorized by the pupil and that it be distinctly connected with the lesson to which it belongs. 2. Each week each class should fix upon certain principal points to be remonbered in the lesso?i,— or di- narily not less than three,— and try to fix them in the memory. These principal facts will stand out in the mind and serve as does the framework of a ship to which all the planking is afterward attached. Ways to Conduct a Review. It may be well to suggest a number of ways in which a review may be con- ducted. The methods given are only examples, for it is impossible as well as undesirable to give an exhaustive catalogue of methods. Some of those given below have been suggested by J. B. Smith, Vincent, and others. I. Four points to remeniber. Let the superintendent announce at the beginning of the quarter that he desires 86 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [part 1. § 4, cii. iv. the school to remember in each lesson one important character and why, one important place and why, one important event, and one important truth, and on review day call on twelve classes in turn to state each of these things regarding one lesson. 2. Sa>ne with more classes to recite. Vary the above by calling on four times as many classes, asking the first question of one, the second of another and so on. 3. A special subject to each class. Assign on review day a special subject of review to each class, — persons to one, golden texts to another, great truths to another, places to another, etc. Let each class have ten minutes to talk over the matter without looking in the Bible or quarterly and then have them recite in turn. 4. Same with more classes to recite. Vary this by giving a part only of the lessons to one class and asking a second class to take up the same subject in succeeding lessons. This is a better method for a large school, since it gives something to each class to do. 5. Brief papers read. Let several teachers read brief papers on assigned topics connected with the quar- ter's lessons. Suppose the lessons to have been on Paul's voyages as given in the Book of Acts, then let there be four papers, one on Paul's training for his work, one on Paul's character as an apostle, one on the condition of the Roman Empire at the time, and one on the early ex- tension of Christianity. This method will be found to furnish an intensely interesting exercise. 6. An appeal to the eye. The review may be an ap- peal to the eye. The classes may successively build a pyramid, or arrange banners, or adjust a modest scenic display to illustrate the lessons. Of course, whatever of this sort is undertaken must be under careful limitations to avoid anything incongruous or expensive or sensational. PUBLIC REVIEWS. 87 PART I. § 4, CH. iv.] The method is especially appropriate to a primary de- partment. 7. Classes to question the school. Each class may rise ill turn and through its teacher put to the school a certain number of questions of their own selection. A committee of judges, previously appointed, should de- termine the merit of the respective classes both in respect to their questions and their answers. The judges at the close of the exercise should make honorable mention of the classes that have excelled and possibly give out ban- ners or other prizes for superior excellence. 8. Three questions a Sunday. Each class after the lesson each week hands the superintendent three questions for the quarterly review, with their names on the ques- tions, and from these the superintendent selects the best, thus making up a list of questions for review Sunday. At the review he puts to each class questions which it has prepared itself, of course without previous knowledge on its part that he intended to do so. Much interest will be excited in seeing whether a class can answer its own questions. 9. Title; topic; golden text. The superintendent puts on the blackboard the words Title ; Topic ; Golden Text. He then calls on a class to rise, and on his men- tioning the title of a lesson, the class gives the topic and golden text. Thus all the lessons are treated in turn. If the superintendent names any one of these three points, the class gives the rest. 10. Events in order. The superintendent, the Sab- bath before review, gives out a series of events in the historical or biographical studies of the quarter, each written on a card and passed out to the classes at ran- dom. On review Sunday he calls for these events in their proper order. Much interest will be excited among 88 BIANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I, § 4, CH. iv. the classes in watching to see that they respond in their proper places. The life of Christ, the history of the early church as given in the Book of Acts, the history of the kings of Judah and Israel, the lives of Joseph, Moses, Ruth, Esther, Peter, Paul, etc., or the narratives of Gen- esis and Exodus may be thus treated. 11. Analysis of the quarter's lessons. The superin- tendent may, by wise questioning, bring out the analysis of the quarter's lessons and record it on the blackboard as he proceeds. The steady growth of the analysis un- der his hand will be sure to excite interest. 12. A written examination at least once a year is very desirable. The papers should be thoroughly ex- amined and marked by competent teachers and the result announced to each pupil privately. Those successfully passing the examinations may receive a certificate and sometimes it may be wise to make promotions dependent on them. CHAPTER V. BENEVOLENCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Giving to be Taught in the Sunday-school. The spirit of giving can best be developed in youth. If it is not then developed, there is great difficulty in after years in breaking through the chains of habit and parting with hard-earned gains. The Sunday-school can teach be- nevolence only by encouraging its practice, and it must not fail to develop this essential side of Christian char- acter. School Expenses met by the Church. But in or- der to teach benevolence well, the school must not be de- pendent on the pennies of the children for its support. The expenses of the school ought never to be met in this way, if the school be connected with a self-supporting church. The children's little gifts should all be appro- priated to uses which will build up their own Christian life. The church itself should provide for the expenses of the Sunday-school as an institution necessary to church efficiency, in the same way that it provides for heating and lighting the church. But this is not always possible. There are a great many schools on an independent basis, having no church to mother them and pay their bills. There are other schools connected with a church so feeble that pecuniary aid from it is out of the question. A Part for Benevolence. But even when the school is obliged to take care of itself, it should devise some way to spend a part of its income in benevolence. Let it divide its collections and set aside at least a small 69 90 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METnODS. [TART I. § 4, CH. V. amount for strictly charitable uses. After the expenses of the school are met, all other moneys should go to be- nevolence. Or better yet, the expenses of the school might be assumed by the adults in the school, with the aid of outside help, and the children's pennies be sa- credly devoted to missionary purposes. The Givers Should Dispose of the Gifts. It is very desirable that those who give should have a voice in the disposition of the gifts. Sometimes this matter is left to the superintendent or the pastor, and very prop- erly these officers should have a large influence in regard to it, but a better way is to place the contributions in the charge of a committee, either the executive committee of the school or a specially appointed committee on benevo- lences, which shall consider the best method of disposing of the collections. Such recommendations of the com- mittee should be brought before the whole school for a vote. Everything should be done to awaken a personal sense of responsibility, and to make the service intelli- gent and joyous. To this end it is important that the in- dividual members of the school decide for themselves to what causes their gifts should go. Objects of Benevolence. It is a matter of no little importance that the right objects of benevolence be chosen. Much of course depends here on the recom- mendations of the committee. The general rule in de- ciding on causes for benevolence should be to choose ob- jects that are not only needy and deserving, but that shall both interest and instruct the children. In decid- ing on this matter the following suggestions are in place. I. Educational scholarships for children in home and foreign missionary schools are fitted to awaken inter- est. It means much to children that they are giving to help a child somewhere else whose needs they know and whose name they know. BENEVOLENCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 91 PART I. § 4, CH. v.] 2. Physical relief, such as fresh air funds and flower missions, children's Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, food and clothing for the destitute, is a phase of giving easily understood and appreciated by children. It is well that some of their pennies should go for such pur- poses. Still, this phase of benevolence may easily be overdone. Flowers are helpful, but do not compare with the gospel as a humanizing and comforting force. Teach the children to give especially to make Christ known. 3. Denominational causes, of course, have claim on every church Sunday-school. It is proper and desirable that every church should educate its children to be inter- ested in the missionary work undertaken and carried out by its own denomination. How can that work continue in another generation unless the children of to-day are shown its importance and made willing to support it ? 4. Claims of our common Christianity. It is equally true that the children must be enabled to recognize the claims of our common Christianity. They should not be narrowed in their vision and be made to feel that no work is worth supporting which does not run in the channel of the denomination to which their parents be- long. Let them see that Christ belongs to all Christians, and that much of his work for the world can only be done on a broad basis of a common love for Christ. There must be much common work. The age is de- manding it more and more. 5. Development of existing Su7iday- schools. Every Sunday-school will be glad to do its part in sustaining those agencies which are lifting up the whole Sunday- school work to a higher efficiency. The State Sunday- school associations and the various Sunday-school con- ventions and institutes that are held with the purpose of stimulating Sunday-school enthusiasm and of securing 92 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [part I. § 4, CH. V. better work in our Sunday-schools need money to keep in operation. 6. Sunday-school missionary work. It cannot be questioned that nothing is more appropriate as an object for missionary giving on the part of the Sunday-school than Sunday-school missionary work in starting new Sunday-schools. There are agencies actively engaged in promoting the establishment of new Sunday-schools in needy portions of our country and throughout the world. In this country alone, about half the children of school age are without the privileges of Sunday-school instruction. Nothing can appeal to the children in our Sunday-schools more vividly than this alarming and sug- gestive fact. Nothing can more stimulate their giving, or make it more intelligent, or place it on a nobler foun- dation than to urge them to give to provide for other children, more needy than they, the same gospel privi- leges through Sunday-school methods which they them- selves enjoy. Methods of Developing Giving. But to secure in- telligence and interest in giving it is well not only to pre- sent to the school objects wisely chosen, but to follow certain methods in doing this. I. The gifts of the school should he specific. The sums given should go, not simply to well-accredited ob- jects, but to accomplish certain definite results. Thus a gift may be made to keep a certain child at school, or to establish a certain Sunday-school, or to give a library, or to pay part of some missionary's salary. In such a case the results of the expenditure can be seen, and reports may come back from the missionary or other beneficiary in regard to the expenditure of the gift. Such definite uses of contributions, and such reports by letter from the recipients of the gift are exceedingly helpful in promoting BENEVOLENCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 93 PART I. § 4, CH. v.] interest in giving. Nearly all the benevolent societies aim to locate gifts after this specific fashion when desired and missionary letters are gladly sent to the schools in recognition of their gifts. 2. Previous knowledge of the object given to. It is desirable that the school know beforehand to what it is giving. It is not well to ask the school to give week by week without a definite object in view and leave the dis- tribution of the sum to the superintendent or the vote of the executive committee. To do this is sure to lessen the flow of benevolence. 3. A definite object for each month. A good way is to fix upon an object for benevolence for each month in the year or at least for certain consecutive Sabbaths, then to announce to the school at the beginning of each period what the cause of benevolence for that period is to be, together with a brief statement of its claims. Fur- ther than that every Sunday throughout the period there should be, either by the statement of the superintendent, or by a printed sign suitably displayed, or by both methods, an announcement of the object to which con- tributions made on that day are to be devoted. 4. An occasional address. In developing the spirit of benevolence in the school an occasional address from a missionary or the representative of a benevolent society is a great help. The school needs to be educated in Christian benevolences as much as in other directions and to this end a carefully considered address of ten or fifteen minutes by some expert on some phase of mission- ary work is occasionally very desirable. It is especially fitting, when made at the beginning of a na^y period of giving and in reference to the object which is to be re- member^ in the gifts. 5. Special efforts to aivaken missionary interest. 94 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I. § 4, CH. V. Giving is developed by awakening a missionary spirit, and a missionary spirit is awakened by special efforts. It is desirable to have occasionally a missionary day. Some lesson like a passage describing one of Paul's mis- sionary journeys should be seized upon and utilized to develop the missionary spirit. Christ's great command to his apostles to disciple all nations, or the seventy-sec- ond Psalm are, equally suitable for the purpose. Then the children in the school should occasionally be sup- plied with missionary papers. Most of the woman's boards issue monthly an admirable little publication for the purpose of presenting missionary information to the children. Most of the Sunday-school missionary organi- zations publish papers designed to give information re- garding their work in organizing Sunday-schools, while all issue from time to time interesting leaflets which can easily be obtained for distribution. But it is not enough to give out such literature ; a mission band among the children should be organized either under the auspices of the Sunday-school or the church. These methods will prove helpful in developing an interest in missions in the school. Giving in Church Channels. Some schools have adopted a method of giving which is designed to link the Sunday-school yet closer to the church and educate the children in regard to the causes to which they give. A certain time, generally a month, is set apart for gifts to be made for one of the church causes, another period for a second, and so on. Even the pastor's salary and in- cidental church expenses are included in this list of ob- jects for giving endorsed by the church. The first Sun- day when the period of giving to any specific object be- gins, each teacher carefully explains the cause to his class, describing the nature of the work carried on by the BENEVOLENCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 95 PART I. § 4, CH. v.] benevolent society to which the gifts are to be made. The gifts are all paid over to the church treasurer, and by him included in the benevolences of the church. Thus the school comes to understand the benevolent plans of the church, and recognizes itself as a part of the church and engaged in its work. CHAPTER VI. SUNDAY-SCHOOL ENTERTAINMENTS. Why Needed. Sunday-school entertainments seem to be occasionally necessary. Young people need recrea- tion, and those associated in the Sunday-school should have opportunities of social pleasure in one another's company. Such entertainments, in furnishing a proper outlet for youthful spirits, tend to secure good order in the school itself, while it is only reasonable and humane, especially in large city schools, where many children have no pleasures at home, that Sunday-school officers and teachers should furnish recreation to those whom they are seeking to benefit. Such entertainments, by calling out the self-denying efforts of the teachers in be- half of their pupils, often serve to bind teacher and pupil together as could almost nothing else. Besides all this an entertainment now and then undoubtedly tends to advertise the school in a legitimate way and to draw many in who otherwise would know nothing of it or care nothing for it. It also is likely to hold certain pupils in the school who otherwise would be restless and discon- tented. Danger in School Entertainments. It must be remembered, however, that in connection with school entertainments there is an element of danger. The danger is that entertainments will become the chief end of the school. There are schools which are maintained by a rapid succession of picnics and excursions in sum- mer and of exhibitions and gatherings for games in the 96 SUNDAY-SCHOOL ENTERTAINMENTS. 97 PART I. § 4, CH, vi.] winter. A certain superintendent of large means spent several thousand dollars yearly in such devices, simply to amuse the children. It hardly needs to be said that while this lasted his school was crowded to overflowing. At the same time every one was necessarily demoralized, the aim of the school was low, the minds of both teacher and scholar were drawn away from the need of the soul and the thought of Christ, and the school became a mere social club. Certain Cautions, then, are greatly needed in regard to Sunday-school entertainments. 1. Such entertainments must not interfere with the spiritual life of the school nor detract from the spiritual impressions of the lessons. They should not be boister- ous nor coarse nor ill-timed. A Sunday-school enter- tainment is liable to get beyond control. The children, warmed up with their sports, grow noisy, rude and destructive. Sometimes an entertainment drifts into grossness, and is anything but elevating and helpful. Dialogues are introduced or acting is permitted, entirely out of keeping with the dignity and purity of a religious school. 2. Avoid univise amusements. Sometimes the young people indulge in amusements which if proper any- where should only be permitted under the restraints of a home and should be avoided in Sunday-school gatherings for this reason, if for no other, that they are a grief to many sober-minded people and so are a violation of Christian courtesy. Whatever any considerable por- tion of the church considers wrong ought never to be allowed at Sunday-school entertainments, no matter how innocent others may think them. Church obligations forbid such discourtesy. 3. Avoid inopportune entertainments. The most frequent evil in connection with Sunday-school enter- 98 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETIT0DS. [PART I, § 4, CH. vi. tainments is that they are liable to come at inopportune times, diverting the attention of the young from religious themes and sometimes breaking up religious impressions. Such an entertainment, just before or just after a series of revival meetings, may be disastrous to the most im- portant work of the church. There is a peculiar incon- gruity in the elaborate entertainments sometimes prepared at Christmas. If at any time serious impressions may be expected in the school it is at the end of the year. Christmas is naturally a hallowed season, turning the thought to Christ as the Saviour of the v/orld. It is closely followed by the last day of the year and the first day of the new year on which succeeds the week of prayer. The associations, suggestions and influences of these marked times tend to make us number our days and apply our hearts unto wisdom. What could be more inopportune than for the Sunday-school to get up some entertainment of wild revelry, occupying weeks in prep- aration, culminating in sport out of touch with the ftict that a Christ-child has entered the world to draw child- hood to a holy life, and leaving its sweeping waves along the shore long after it is past ? Let the school have a pleasant Christmas by all means, but let it be a Christmas in which Christ is the chief thought. 4. Not to he for children only. Another thing needs to be guarded against in Sunday-school entertainments, and that is, not to make them distinctively for the chil- dren. We need to guard ourselves continually against the impression that the Sunday-school is for the young alone. Undoubtedly the young are specially prominent in the school as they always have been and always will be. At the same time, the Sunday-school is designed for young and old alike and in every feature should insist on that fact. There is a strong tendency in this modern SUNDAY-SCHOOL ENTERTAINMENTS. 99 PART I. § 4, CH. vi.] day to separate the old and the young in the church and to regard them as having distinct, if not antagonistic, interests. Nothing could be more fatal to the church in all its departments than to have this idea prevail. That is an unfortunate and unhappy church in which the old and young must have their separate sociables and gather- ings, finding themselves unable to associate, happily and sympathetically on a common social basis. Let the young come together for pleasure, but let it be in the company of their elders. Different Forms of Entertainment. It is a matter requiring no little study to determine what forms of enter- tainment are desirable for a Sunday-school. It is gen- erally wise to place such an entertainment in the care of a well-chosen committee. 1. A picnic is generally agreed upon as suitable in the summer. An outing in the woods or by the seashore is almost sure to be delightful and helpful, but it needs to be arranged with great care. On such occasions let it not be forgotten that the Sunday-school is a religious organization and that religion should be recognized in the management of the picnic. Sometimes in the excitement of the hour and the heat of pleasure-seeking opportunities for a good impression are needlessly lost. Not much time should be taken up in speech-making, but a prayer and just a word from super- intendent or pastor are surely in place. At a certain Sunday-school picnic there were present the missionary who had organized the Sunday-schools represented and a visitor from two thousand miles away, prominent in Sunday-school work, yet neither of them had the slightest recognition beyond friendly treatment. This was not courteous to them nor for the best good of the schools. 2. Christmas festival. In most Sunday-schools some 100 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETIWDS. [PART I. § 4, CH. vi. sort of a good time is generally provided for the children about Christmas. Perhaps there is a Santa Claus and the giving of presents. Perhaps there are tableaux. Whatever the entertainment, it must not take up too much time or thought or money. It must not interfere with church work nor the spiritual impressions of the season. It was quite possible and very desirable that the good time be combined with genuine Christian influences. We recall with great pleasure one such Christmas observance which the whole school attended and where presents were given to all. There was no Santa Claus, for this was considered out of keeping with the precious associations of the day. There were, however, a few choice tableaux representing Christmas scenes and calculated to touch the heart ; there were Christmas carols sweetly sung by children, there were a few remarks from the pastor, the presents were given out by the superintendent with kind and helpful words, there was a closing prayer, and all went home deeply moved and in no wise unfitted to take part the next day in the revival meetings then in progress. 3. Sunday -scJioo I sociables are a marked feature in modern Sunday-school entertainments. It is well to have them from time to time, since they tend to bind the school together and to make its work easier. On such occasions the caution already given not to separate the children from the older people is especially in place. The Sunday-school is made up of adults as well as of children, of teachers as well as their classes, and it is especially incumbent on the adults of the school to be present for the sake of the rest. Their presence will pre- vent rudeness and noise. On such occasions it is well to allow suitable games, and a committee previously chosen should make careful arrangements for the children's pleasure. The stiffness of the company may be re- moved and the animal life of the children find vent by SUNDAY-SCHOOL ENTERTAINMENTS. 101 PART 1. § 4, CH, vi,] various games of motion and perhaps a promenade to the music of the piano. A capital variation of these sociables is occasionally to arrange one especially for the parents. Let it be under- stood that the children invite their parents and do all they can to entertain them. Let the children speak pieces and give dialogues and furnish music, vocal and instrumental. The parents will be delighted and the children themselves will find special pleasure in what they do. 4. Educational entertainments are more and more in vogue in our schools. Many of our large schools now own a stereopticon and find it valuable in many ways. It is specially helpful for mission schools in our cities. With a stereopticon, delightful entertainments can be given in almost unlimited variety. There may be lec- tures on the life of Christ, on the lands of the Bible, on missions, on travel, on various industries, on art. Some- times a lecture on chemistry can be given with profit. Sometimes there may be elocutionary readings. In all cases music can be introduced to good advantage. It is pe- culiarly helpful in a mission school to have these outside agencies to attract, instruct and elevate the people who otherwise would not be brought under the influence of the school. CHAPTER VII. TEMPERANCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Temperance to be Taught. The Sunday-school is under special obligation to teach temperance. The reasons for this are plain. I. // must teach all Scriptural truth. It aims to teach, — in outline at least, — the whole round of doctrines and duties set forth in the Bible. It must not omit any that are prominent and important. Temperance is a duty plainly taught in God's word. It is set forth in broad terms applicable not only to the use of intoxicants but to other things of less danger. It is taught in Paul's statement regarding the eating of meat and the drinking of wine, when there is danger that such practices may lead a brother into sin. It is taught in the principle that the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit to be kept clean and holy for his indwelling. It is taught in the great fundamental principle that temperance is self-control, assigning every desire, appetite or passion to its proper place. The Bible teaches temperance still more strik- ingly and according to its own peculiar method, by ad- ducing instances in large number, each one of which suggests by a graphic picture of events, the advantage of abstinence or the evil of indulgence. Such instances, for example, are these : Noah's disgrace and his son's misconduct resulting from his use of wine ; the cruel in- justice to Queen Vashti at Ahasuerus' feast ; the pros- perity of the Rechabites ; the strength of Samson, a total abstainer ; the health and mental vigor of Daniel and his three friends on a thoroughly temperate diet; Bel- shazzar's drunken revelry and how a kingdom was lost by it ; God's abhorrence of the intemperate priests of 102 TEMPERANCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 103 PART I. § 4, cii. vii.] Hosea's day. It is impossible to teach the Bible faith- fully and not bring out the evil of intemperance. 2. T/ie Sunday-school must warn against great evils. It would be false to its trust as a teacher of righteousness, and as responsible largely for the moral training of youth, if it did not bring out prominently the evil of intemper- ance. Surely in this modern day no evil is more promi- nent than the use of intoxicants. Christianity has struck down, one after another, a great variety of evils, — the vendetta, trial by torture, duelling, cruelty to man and beast, injustice to woman, polygamy, slavery and the like. Intemperance yet survives and is to-day chargeable with innumerable evils. It attacks our homes, destroys the happiness of wives and mothers, drugs and debauches our boys, destroys the purity of our girls, and threatens the prosperity of the nation. It is feirly chargeable with one-fourth of the insanity, three-fourths of the crime and three-fourths of the pauperism to be found in the land. It causes enormous expenses for courts, jails and police. It drags thousands on thousands yearly into a drunkard's hell. Such a monster evil surely should be noticed in the Sunday-school, and the young be faithfully warned against it. 3. The Sunday-school must advance moral safe- guards against intemperance. The chief defence against this evil is not legal, but moral. He only is thoroughly defended against the use of intoxicants who clearly sees their harm, recognizes that to yield to the temptation is to debase his manhood and to displease God, and is controlled by an earnest purpose to do right.. The Sunday-school is specially charged with a responsibility for furnishing just such defences against evil. No other organization or influence, unless it be parental, is so well fitted to teach the young their duty in regard to intoxi- 104 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETirODS. [I'ART I. § 4, CH. vii. cants and to build up around them a wall of moral con- victions high enough and strong enough to keep off the attacks of the marauder Strong Drink. 4. T/ie Sunday-school must defend the young by pre- vention. Here is the great hope of the young and the chief possibility of temperance reform. Intemperance will die of inanition, unless it is continually fed by new victims from among the young. Anything that can pre- vent the young from joining the ranks of the devotees of drink and so stop the supply, will in the course of a generation or two, bring the evil to an end. Unques- tionably prevention is not only a sure method of ending the evil, it is also a far easier method than reform. We want to reform the drunkard when we can, but by all means must we prevent the young from becoming drunk- ards. Here is a great work for the Sunday-school. The Sunday-school can so surround the young with good in- fluences that even the children of drunkards shall grow up hostile to the use of intoxicants. It can develop such deep convictions on the subject that those in the school shall never learn the taste of intoxicants and form no appetite for them. 5. The Sunday-school must establish temperance as a fundamental principle in life. Temperance in its broad- est and truest sense is self-control. It has relation not simply to the use of intoxicants, but to innumerable gratifications. We must learn temperance in eating, in pleasure-seeking, in dress, in exercise, in many other di- rections. The word has a wide application, finding only one exemplification out of many, — but that one specially important, — in regard to the use of strong drink. Tem- perance is a fitting self-control in regard to every desire, appetite and passion. When applied to the use of in- toxicants, it means total abstinence, simply because total TEMPERANCE IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 105 PART I. § 4, CH. vii.] abstinence is the only fitting self-control in the case. To exercise temperance at this point is to gain strength to exercise it at other points wherever necessary. There is, then, a special fitness in laying emphasis on abstinence from intoxicants because in learning to obey the law of temperance at this its severest test, it is easy to obey the law in the manifold instances of ordinary self-denial re- quired in the everyday life. The Sunday-school, then, in teaching temperance in regard to intoxicants, is laying foundations for all the virtues, it is teaching the great law of self-control for the whole life, it is enabling us to crucify self and exalt Christ. There is abundant reason, therefore, why the Sunday-school should lay great stress on the subject of temperance. How May Temperance be Taught in the Sunday- school ? I. By temperance lessons. The practice has sprung up of devoting one lesson each quarter to this subject, in- troducing into the scheme of lessons for study a Scripture passage, even though it has nothing to do with the book of the Bible under consideration at the time. There are reasons for this practice. Only thus is adequate treat- ment of the theme made reasonably certain. The subject is hackneyed and does not introduce us to agreeable thoughts, so that we are apt to avoid the subject unless forced to it by some special method. It has been found that set times are necessary to bring to our attention themes otherwise liable to neglect. God has set apart one day in seven to make us turn from earthly cares and pleasures and think of our duty to him. It may be neces- sary for similar reasons to force our Sunday-schools by a regularly recurrent day to think of a great duty under- lying all others, — that of self-control. But if such quarterly lessons are not necessary, as some 106 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 4, CH. vii. strenuously insist, a peculiar responsibility rests on the International Lesson Cominittee or any others who select the passages for use in our Sunday-schools. We should at least have selected and brought into our course of study from time to time passages bearing so distinctly on the great fundamental theme, that no teacher should fail to deduce the topic from his lesson or to teach it to his class. 2. By a tempera7ice society. A temperance society of some sort is often organized in the Sunday-school among the children and has proved very helpful. This is com- monly an organization with officers, membership, consti- tution and by-laws and quarterly meetings. The society is sometimes made broad enough to include members of the congregation as well as the school. Its aim is to promote a temperance sentiment, to keep the subject be- fore the people, and to strengthen the purpose of all to abstain from the use of intoxicants. It has a different mission from the Reform Club as organized among re- formed men. Its work is one of prevention. In order to do effective and abiding work, its basis should be that of strict total abstinence. 3. By a temperance pledge. In such a society the chief instrumentality is the pledge and the great work of the society is to obtain signatures to the pledge. It is not necessary, however, to have a temperance society in order to circulate the pledge. Every Sunday-school should have a book containing a suitable pledge and at certain times an earnest effort should be made to secure as many signatures to the pledge as possible. There are those who make serious objection to a pledge, but no objection can be brought against a temperance pledge which does lie with equal force against every other kind of pledge, — every busi- ness contract, every marriage, the act of joining the church and the TE3IPERANCE IN THE SUNDAY SCHOOL. 107 PART I. § 4, CH. vii.] pledge taken in the Christian Endeavor Society. I'ledges in themselves are not wrong nor harmful ; but there should be care that what is pledged is that which one is glad to stand to through life. A temperance pledge, however, should be drawn with un- usual care. It should be exceedingly simple ; it should confine it- self to one thing, — abstinence from intoxicating drinks; it should attempt no definition. The language of the following pledge in- cludes everything that is necessary : " By the help of God I hereby promise to abstain from the use of all intoxicants as a beverage." The only cautions needed in regard to presenting this pledge to children for their signatures is to be sure that they understand what they are doing, that they take the step from a conviction of duty and not in a servile imitation of others, and that in taking the step they will not be met by the disapproval and possible opposition of their parents. In circulating the pledge as a temperance agency, wisdom and tact are needed as in all other methods of doing good. 5. By tejJiperance meetings. A temperance society in a Sunday-school will be sure to hold occasional meetings to promote temperance views ; but even if there is no temperance organization in the Sunday-school to assume the charge of such meetings, there should be such a tem- perance spirit in the school that it should be easy from time to time to hold a rousing temperance rally, on which occasion there should be good speaking, temperance songs, perhaps some appropriate declamations from the children and the signing of the pledge. 6. Above all, by a te7nperance sentiment. This is the best possible influence for temperance. Other things are superficial, this is fundamental. It is most desirable that the superintendent and teachers be consistent in their life on this point. Not only should they be absolutely free from taint as to the use of intoxicants, they should have right and positive views on the subject and be ready at all proper times to point a moral in this direction. They should discover the temperance suggestions which lie like 108 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 4, CH. viu veins of gold in the narratives of the Bible and be sure to draw the lessons God intended. The school itself, also, should have a high moral conviction on this subject and so lift up to a higher plane every one who is tempted or un- settled in regard to the drink habit. This moral sentiment pervading the school is dependent on the attitude of the church, the utterances of the pastor and on the choice made of superintendent and teachers. CHAPTER VIII. SPECIAL DAYS IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. It was formerly a universal custom to hold a " Sunday- school Concert," so called, one Sunday evening every month. Of late this practice has fallen somewhat into disfavor, partly because other uses are found for Sunday evenings, partly because Sunday-school attendance is not so easily secured as formerly, partly because it is now felt to be unwise to bring children out to evening service when they should be asleep, and especially because there has grown up a custom of observing a variety of set days which have superseded these monthly meetings. What are Some of These Special Days ? Some of them are movable feasts ; some fall on definite dates. Among them may be mentioned, 1. Anniversary Day. This is an occasion when the work of the year is summed up, when the superintendent, secretary, treasurer and librarian all put in their reports, when the history of the school and its controlling princi- ples are dwelt upon. 2 . Conimencemefit or Promotion Day. It might be well to have a special day regularly observed as the beginning of a new year. At this time there should be the promotion of classes, the installation of teachers, the announcement of new plans and methods. Such a day would naturally fall shortly after the annual election. The exercises sug- gested for this day are often assigned to Anniversary Day. The only objection to this is that there is little room for such exercises then, and they are sufficiently 109 110 3TANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 4, CH. viii. important to deserve separate consideration. On this day- there should be a readjustment of classes, and pupils should be advanced to different grades throughout the school, 3. Rally Day. Such a day is often observed in city schools in the fall, immediately after the summer vaca- tion. The superintendent then sends out through the mails an invitation to teacher and pupil to be present. Special exercises are held, and special efforts are made to bring the whole school together in order to start off in good shape for the fall and winter work. Such a day might well be held in country schools in the spring, when the school is reorganized and starts up again after its hi- bernation during the months of snow and cold. 4. A Sunday-school Day. This day is designed to impress the church with the importance of the Sunday- school. A sermon on the subject is preached by the pas- tor. The matter is discussed in the prayer-meeting. The duty of the Sunday-school to the church is consid- ered in the Sunday-school itself. This day differs ma- terially in its aim and management from Rally Day. It is a day in which the church itself prays for the school, and in which the pastor strives to awaken in the church a new interest in the school. At the same time, when it is not thought best to give a special day to this purpose, some of its features can be profitably combined with those of Rally Day. 5. Parents' Day. A day is set apart in some schools for the benefit of the parents. All the parents are in- vited, and there are special exercises fitted to interest the parents and show them what their children have accom- plished. 6. Home Department Day. Every school which maintains a home department does well to set apart one SPECIAL DAYS IN THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Ill PART I. § 4, CH. viii.] day in ev^ery year for the benefit of the lioiiie department. On tliat day, all connected with the home department are invited and expected to be present, and special exercises are arranged for their benefit. 7. Easter. This is one of the days when the date is fixed. It has come to be observed in schools of all denominations by services appropriate, and there is spe- cial reason why this should be. 8. May Anniversary. In Brooklyn, Jersey City and other cities it is the practice on some fine day in May for all the Sunday-school children in the city to come to- gether by schools and under marshals, and after appro- priate exercises in some of the churches, — music, prayer and an address, — to march through the city with banners flying and bands playing. The children greatly enjoy it, and the impression on the community at large is most helpful. In New Haven, Connecticut, latterly such a May anniversary has been held on Memorial Day, and a patriotic address is made by a gentleman in pul)lic life to the children gathered on the Green. The meeting has proved a great success. 9. Children' s Day or Rose Sunday. The observ- ance of this day has only recently been suggested, but it has met with great favor, and is now quite universal. The day is arranged to fall on the second Sunday in June, since this is a favorable time to secure a suitable floral decoration. Ordinarily the morning service is given up to the children, the church is filled with flowers, the pastor preaches a children's sermon, children sing and recite Scripture, there are various children's exercises, an offering is made by the children in behalf of some phase of missionary work, generally that of establishing Sun- day-schools in needy districts, one from each class often coming on the platform and presenting the class offering 112 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 4, CH. viii. with an appropriate verse of Scripture, while at the close of the service the children often file by the platform and each receives a small potted plant as a gift. Some of the Sunday-school societies obtain at least a third of their annual income from the offerings on Children's Day. This shows how much may be done by the children, if only they all work heartily together. 10. Harvest Day or Thanksgiving. Nothing is more delightful or appropriate near Thanksgiving time than for a harvest service to be observed in the school. On this occasion, the schoolroom is decorated with the fruits and vegetables of the season, — corn stalks, wheat, straw, pumpkins and the like ; there is an abundance of harvest music, and the address treats of themes appro- priate. 11. Christmas. This is a day which should not be passed without some religious recognition of the birth of Christ. It would be easy on the Sabbath nearest Decem- ber 25th to have a service which should be a spiritual uplift through the year. The public exercises on all these special days will nec- essarily vary, but in general there should be special exer- cises for the children, such as declamations, dialogues, recitations and songs. At the same time two things are to be carefully avoided. One is the exhibition of pert and overdressed children ; the other, scenic display or cheap theatricals. The service should invariably be dig- nified and uplifting. CHAPTER IX. TIME FOR HOLDING THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. The Best Tlme for Sunday-school. The question is often raised as to the best time for holding the Sunday- school. The question cannot be answered offhand. It depends upon the condition and needs of each individ- ual school and church. In the case of an independent or branch school, the time when surrounding churches hold their services must be considered and the time of the school arranged so as not to interfere with these. When a school is connected with a church, the question is not what is best for the school alone, nor what is best for the church alone, but what is best for both, all things considered. I. Some Sunday-schools are held in the afternoon, a service of public worship in the church being held both morning and evening. The result of holding the Sun- day-school at this time is quite likely to be unfavorable to the evening service. Both teachers and pupils feel too weary to be induced to come out in the evening. It is thought that the slight attendance at the Sunday evening services is in part due to this cause. At the same time the Sunday-school has a sweep and power, if given the afternoon, that it could not ha\e otherwise, and perhaps its great importance warrants its continuance at this hour if it does not interfere with the evening service. Cer- tainly some of our largest and strongest schools are held in the afternoon, while in the churches wilh which such Sunday-schools are connected the evening attendance is remarkably large. 113 114 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL BIETnODS. [parti, § 4, CH, ix. 2. Another time for holding the school is directly after the morning service. This has come to be the prev- alent hour in New England. It has its advantages and its disadvantages. It saves time on the Sabbath by not requiring so much passing back and forth from the house to the church. Those who would naturally be teachers in the school are likely to be at church in the morning and so can be more easily secured as helpers in the school. It is also thought to promote both church at- tendance and school attendance since parents can bring their children to church and then let them pass directly into the school. Undoubtedly this is true in country schools where people drive or walk a long distance to reach the church. In all cases also the school at the noon hour promotes the attendance of adults, for they are much more likely to drop into a convenient class after the morning service than to come out for the purpose to a special service of the school. On the other hand the fact that many children come to the Sunday-school ses- sion who are not at the morning service goes to show that not only are children often unwilling to attend the morning service and are not required to, but that parents sometimes feel that it is too much for their children to remain so long in confinement as is necessary in order to be at the morning service and then at the Sunday-school immediately. Little children should not be required to keep still through so long a period. 3. The early mor7iing. Perhaps the best time theo- retically, but the most difficult practically, is the early morning hour, just preceding the hour of morning wor- ship. At this time those who come to school are at their freshest and can give thought and attention to study. They are not wearied, as children often are after attend- ing a morning service, and consequently the close and TIME FOR HOLDING THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 115 PART I. § 4, ClI. ix.] careful work of studying the Bible is at its best. At the same time they are not incapacitated for the morning worship, because as this is worship and not study, it does not require concentrated thought, and its demands are more easily met. Further than this, at noon, when public worship closes, people can go home and take their dinner at a reasonable tinie, families have opportunity to see something of one another, as is so greatly needed in these busy days, and when the evening hour comes they are fresh and ready for the second service of public wor- ship. This is ideal, but the practical difficulty is that people in our cities will not rise so early on Sunday morning, nor trouble themselves to get their children ready, and consequently it is not easy to build up a good Sun- day-school before the morning service of worship. On the whole the hour that combines the most advan- tages with the least difficulties is generally found to be the noon hour, directly after the morning service. All, however, depends upon peculiar conditions. 4. 27ie whole school need not meet at the same hour. It is not necessarily the case that the whole school must meet at the same hour. On the contrary, different hours may be required for different classes. A suburban school near Boston, Massachusetts, holds its regular service at noon, but there is also a large class connected with the school made up of girls at domestic service. These are busied at noon and could not possibly come to Sunday- school at that hour. Consequently they meet in the afternoon at four o'clock. Another Sunday-school else- where furnishes a still more striking illustration. The session of the regular school is held at two o'clock in the afternoon. At this time a thousand or more are in at- tendance, filling up the spacious vestries and the adjacent chapel and overflowing into the church auditorium. It would be difficult to accommodate other classes. But there are other classes, which meet at other hours. Im- 116 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IErnODS. [fart I. § 4, CH. ix. mediately after the morning service there is an adult Bible class for married people, a class of young men and a class of young women. The members of these classes are all of them unable to attend in the afternoon. But this is not all. At the close of the afternoon Sunday- school an advanced class in the Greek Testament holds its sessions, and, when that is over, under the same teacher a class for beginners in the same study, while during the session of these classes a large Bible class of working men, numbering over two hundred, is busy in another part of the building. Section 5. The School as Classified. CHAPTER I. NECESSARY DIVISIONS. There is need of careful system in the Sunday-school. Such a need exists to a certain extent everywhere. One great secret of success in any department of life is to have a place for everything and everything in its place. This secret has its application to the Sunday-school. That school is most likely to be a success which is well arranged and thoroughly classified. The amount of classification necessary, however, as well as possible, de- pends in large measure on the size of the school. Division into Classes. First of all there must be a division of the school into classes. These will be ar- ranged on the basis of sex, age, scholarship, social rela- tions, aims in study, etc. The controlling aim in arrang- ing classes is to bring those together for study, who will work together most happily and successfully. Those should be put together in a class who are of a kind and who propose to study the same things and can study them in the same way. The nearer alike are the mem- bers of a class, the more easily can the class be controlled and taught. A frequent trouble in small schools is in the lack of careful classification. It is impossible to secure this as is desirable, just as it is in a small district day school, sim]jly because there are not enough pupils of any given age or grade of scholarship to form a single class. 117 118 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART 1. § 5, CH, i. In larger schools often, for other reasons, a lack of careful classification exists. Its importance may not have been recognized in earlier years and the present disorder is an inheritance of the past, not easy to remedy. What should guide us in determining classification ? 1. Scholarship. It is desirable in arranging classes that those of a similar degree of intelligence and educa- tion be in the same class. This ordinarily will bring to- gether those of the same age. Children in the same classes in the day school will more readily combine in the same classes in the Sunday-school. But the test of scholarship cannot be strictly enforced. It must be modified somewhat by the consideration of age. It will not do to place a young man who is ignorant and slow of thought in a class much younger than he, that he may find his intellectual level. He will be mortified and in- dignant. To give him self-respect, and to maintain his interest in the school, he must be placed in a class of those near his own age. The test of scholarship is the ideal test, to be followed as far as possible, but a Sunday- school must be a place of concessions and the grading of the classes cannot be as rigid nor thorough as in our day schools. 2. Social Co7idition. We would do nothing to imply that those in one grade of society should receive more consideration than those in another grade. In the Sun- day-school we are in the presence of God, and God is no respecter of persons. We may not make distinctions on the ground of wealth nor station. And yet in arranging classes to do the best work, we cannot force people together who have little in common, whose manners, whose morals, whose tastes are totally different. Those who are widely apart in these matters need a different style of teaching. If they came into the same class, each NECESSARY DIVISIONS. 119 PART I. § 5, CH. i.] would feel restrained in the presence of the other. It is really essential, therefore, to sort out the classes to some extent on the basis of social position. We know a class of some thirty work-girls in a certain Sunday-school in a great city. \Vlien the class was formed they were all from the same social station, out of the same slovenly and unwholesome homes. They were ignorant, untidy and careless. They required peculiar treatment, and from a painful sense of their own inferiority, would have dropped out of a class of refined and educated young ladies. But brought together in one great class they were interested in one another and felt at home ; a suit- able teacher of rare gifts was found for them who at once took them to her heart, and with great tact and skill lovingly helped them, guided them, mothered them, and finally lifted them up one after another into a noble. Christian womanhood. Departments in the School. After a proper ar- rangement of the individual pupils into classes comes the further classification of the classes into departments. Classes of a similar age, or condition, or aim will naturally fall together, and are set off by themselves as a department. I. T/ie ordinary number of departments. In small schools there will be no departments ; in others the num- ber of departments will depend upon the size and diversity in the school. Most schools are organized with three departments, — primary and senior departments and a Bible class. The primary class includes children up to ten or twelve years of age, the Senior, the main body of the school, and the Bible class the older men and women. But often there are many more. departments than this; — there will be the kindergarten, composed of the little children who cannot read, the Primary department proper, composed of the rest of the little children under ten years of age, the Intermediate department, comprising children 120 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETffODS, [PART I. § 5, CH. i. from ten to sixteen, sometimes divided into Intermediate and Junior departments, the Senior department, embrac- ing all who are over sixteen but not in the Bible class, the Bible class, the Normal class, the Home department, and, then, if there be need of them, the Chinese depart- ment, the Armenian department and so on. 2. Departments m a very large school. Let us take a practical case. There is a Sunday-school in Boston numbering about 1,700 members in the aggregate. This great school has eleven depart- ments, all grown out of its practical needs. They are these : 1. A Kindergarten ; age from 3 to 5 years. 2. Junior Primary ; " " 6 to 8 " 3. Senior Primary ; " " 9 to 1 1 " 4. Junior Intermediate ; •* *' 12 to 14 " 5. Senior Intermediate; " " 15 to 17 " 6. Young People's Department; '• " 18 on. 7. Adult Department ; Bible Classes. 8. Workingmen's Class. 9. Classes in Greek Testament. K>. Normal Department. II. Home Department. In this school tliere are twenty-nine general officers, including a salaried superintendent, four assistants and a superintendent for each department. Promotion. Every thoroughly classified school like this must have some systematic method of promotion from one department to another. It is also customary in promoting a pupil to give him a certificate of promo- tion, neatly printed and signed by various officers of the school. CHAPTER II. THE PRIMARY DEPARTMENT. One Class or Many ? The great question in regard to the primary department is, Shall it be conducted as one large class with one teacher or be divided into several classes with a teacher for each ? As is generally true in such cases, the answer to this question varies with circum- stances. How the department should be managed de- pends upon its condition. It is important, if the number of children in the school make it possible, to set off the little children who cannot read into a sub-primary depart- ment and conduct it as a kindergarten. Such a kinder- garten is not to be divided into classes but to be taught as a whole. The primary department, however, if it con- sist of a considerable number of children, should be divided into classes with a teacher to each, while before and after these class exercises the superintendent in charge gives instruction for the children present. There are reasons for such a division of the children into departments and for different methods in each. Reasons for a Kindergarten. A sub-primary department is a necessity in a large school and desirable wherever there are enough children who cannot read to be gathered into it. Such children cannot be taught by the ordinary methods of the school, and if it is attempted, the children simply will not be sent to school by their parents. They must be taught on a different plan, and should be together for the purpose. And it has come to be understood that kindergarten methods are best suited 121 V22 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 5, CH. ii. for the instruction of infant minds. There is really great gain to the Sunday-school cause in the introduction of the kindergarten because this makes it possible and certain that a younger class of children will come into the Sunday-school than have hitherto, and hence that younger children than heretofore will be reached by the Sunday-school and receive religious instruction. Why Teach the Very Little Ones all Together ? 1. J^ew are sufficiently familiar with kindergarten principles to teach properly on that basis. And if kindergarten methods are not used, few are sufficiently apt in teaching very little children to undertake it. The school that is fortunate enough to have a trained kinder- gartner or a genius in training little children should utilize those gifts to the full and place the little ones, whether they number ten or fifty, under her sole charge. 2. Motion is an essential feature in teaching little ones. They are restless and full of animal vivacity. They must be moved about as soon as tired to relieve the strain on their nerves and to regain their attention. This makes it desirable that they be under the care of one person who can handle all together. The need of fre- quent motion renders separate class instruction unde- sirable, if not impracticable. 3. The teachi7ig of the very youngest must he largely by object lessons. The constant use of pictures, tables, blocks and the like and other similar methods of instruc- tion are far easier when all are under one teacher, indeed are hardly practicable otherwise. Why the Class System for the Primary Depart- ment ? I. Because this method secures a personal contact and social influence that would otherwise be impossible. The teacher has from six to ten of the children and of nil MARY DEPARTMENT. 123 PART I. § 5, CH. ii.] course knows them all and is known by them and thus impresses her own personality on them. The instruction of the young, particularly, depends largely upon example. A teacher who is a personal friend and who has an attractive personality, teaches quite as much by her social influence as by her words. It is well to have such teachers in positions where they can make the most of this influ- ence. 2. These pupils are now at the point where individual care becomes desirable. The teacher who has a small class is able to call upon her pupils, notes at once any absences and knows who are sick or in trouble. She calls at their homes; she talks with them individually; she comes to know their individual peculiarities and needs ; she adapts her instruction to these needs. 3. Good order and attendance are more easily secured. When the teacher has each pupil under her eye and im- mediately before her, there is less likelihood of distrac- tion. The lesson becomes more a personal matter and is more likely to be heard and heeded. There is less tempta- tion to whisper or play. The youngest children are awed by the novelty of the surroundings and full of curiosity. But the older child, having had two or three years of experi- ence in the school, has lost these restraints, while it has become more self-willed and playful, and consequently is less likely to observe order. The class system, therefore, becomes a necessity when it was not earlier. How Shall Attendance be Secured ? It is very desirable that the primary department be kept always full. This is the feeder for the whole school. If this does not thrive, the rest of the school cannot. Various methods are pursued with great success. I . CJiildren are encouraged to bring their mates, and simple reivards are given for success in this direction. 124 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART I. § 5, CH. ii. 2. Sometimes a school employs a S:i.nday- school vis- itor who by calling from house to house induces peo- ple to send their children to the Sunday-school. Occa- sionally a primary department has such a visitor of its own. Fortunate is the school that can find some self- denying woman who will undertake this work gratuitously for the primary department. Such never fails to bring in rich returns. The cradle roll is a device which works well. In some schools the parents are invited to send to the primary department the name of their babe together with the date of its birth. This name is duly recorded in a *' cradle roll " and then the babe is regarded as a mem- ber of the school and its reception is announced to the school. A roll card or certificate of membership is then sent to the babe and subsequently birthday cards follow. All this reminds the parents of their obligation to send the child to school, and by and by is likely to awaken in the child itself a desire to attend. 4. The recognition of birthdays in our Sunday- schools, especially in the primary department, is coming to be more and more common and is sure to awaken in- terest. Superintendents and teachers ascertain the birth- day of each member of the department and, as the birth- day comes around, it is suitably remembered. Letters to the children are written and, when written, are sure to be greatly prized, or gifts of various sorts are presented, or a call is made. In such ways the child comes to recog- nize the Sunday-school as a friend, interested in his little affairs and glad to make him happy. The child who comes to feel this is the more closely bound to the school. The Completeness of the Primary Department. The primary department is so distinct in its methods, its PRIMARY DEPARTMENT I05 PART I. § 5, CH. ii.] membership and its officers, that pains should be gi\-en to give it a completeness of its own. 1. // musf have its own super hitendefit a7id corps of teachers. It should be managed to a certain degree in- dependently of the main school. Its methods must be different; its time of meeting must occasionally be differ- ent. A superintendent to plan its work, to centralize its efforts and to study its best success, is essential. 2. // must have independent music, ordinarily a music book of its own,^ and usually music quite distinct from that of the older pupils. It is well, however, for it to have regularly some of the simpler but commonly used hymns of the church. 3. // must have its own peculiar methods of teaching. Primary work must necessarily be very different from that designed for older pupils. While kindergarten methods are outgrown for the primary pupils, on the other hand such pupils are not yet fitted for the ordinary class work of the senior department. Lessons must not be unduly protracted ; there must often be a change in the services ; there must be frequent singing and public exercises to re- heve the strain of continued attention; there must be general exercises conducted by the primary superintend- ent. What Does the Primary Department Need for ITS Largest Success ? I. First of all, a suitable room. This should be separate from the room occupied by the main body of the school. The special exercises connected with the de- partment make this very important. And yet many a country Sunday-school cannot furnish this advantage to its primary department. In such a case the department ' Like the Hymnal for Primary Classes, published l)y the Amer- ican Sunday-School Union. 12G MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IET1I0DS. [part I. § 5, CH. ii. must do the best it can. It should find as retired a loca- tion as possible, perhaps in the gallery, perhaps in the rear of the church. It may help the situation somewhat by putting up screens or curtains. These will at least serve to prevent the little folks from the distraction of outside affairs. 2. A luell-furnished r 00771. But not only should a primary department have a room of its own ; it should have a room well furnished. There should be in it little chairs suited to the need of the children, a blackboard, maps and a piano. Of course other things may be made of great service. A cabinet of Biblical curiosities is of value. A book of illustrations of Biblical scenes is a great help. Charts and pictures to hang on the wall are desirable. Most of these things can be secured at a small price. But in a little country school many of these things are impracticable. If a piano cannot be had, a small cabinet organ can sometimes be secured. If chairs are out of the question it is easy to slip a long stool or block along the pews where the children sit, so that they shall have a place on which to rest their feet. A black- board can easily be procured, and any person of ordinary skill can draw maps and even outline pictures on large sheets of stout Manila paper which will then serve fairly well in place of more expensive material. CHAPTER III. now TO HOLD THE OLDER BOYS AND YOUNG MEN. Schools Weak at This Point. The one point where the Sunday-school is most apt to fail in doing its work is in regard to the older boys and young men. Many a school is large and prosperous, but the classes of older boys are few and small. No reform in Sunday-school management is more needed than in this direction. How Shall Young Men be Held? I. Secure for them a first-class teacher, the very best available. The success of a Sunday-school class in any case depends chiefly on the teacher. His person- ality must impress itself on his pupils and become a dominating influence. He must awaken their interest, skilfully bind the class together, developing a comrade- ship among the members and so conduct the lessons that the pupils shall not be willing to be absent. To succeed with a class of young men, a strong and attractive teacher is a necessity. It is not necessary that he be a college- educated man. We have in mind a large class of young men taught by a stirring business man. He was untsu- ally intelligent and had a forceful character, but lacked education. His superior manhood made up for this de- ficiency and gave him influence with his class. Young men are quick to recognize and respect a strong person- ality. To be a successful teacher of young men one must understand them, must be in sympathy with them, must love them, must show his interest and love by his fiiithfulness as a teacher and must command their respect 127 128 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METnODS. [PART I. § 5, CH. iii. by his thorough acquaintance with the lesson. A suc- cessful teacher of young men must enter into their life and prove himself their friend. 2. SIio7CJ the young me?i 7'espect. Consult their wish as far as possible. Their preference in regard to a teacher should be considered. It is not always safe to follow that wish implicitly, for it may be misdirected, but the young men dislike extremely a dictatorial method with them, while quick to respond to an appeal to their cour- tesy or generosity. If they have preferences in regard to their studies, these should be favorably considered. We sometimes fail to recognize that our boys have come to man- hood, but they resent it if treated as boys when they are really men. No doubt there is difficulty at this point in their relation to the school. They do not consider themselves as treated with suffi- cient respect. They are under more authority than they like, and they withdraw, A little tact will remove this difficulty. 3. Give the young inen something to do for the good of the school. They are glad to be of service. They can be valuable helpers. Let them be made to feel that by their presence and example they are a strength to the school and an encouragement to the superintendent. They are needed in many ways, — in the library, as ush- ers, in the music, in secretary work. If they only see that they are useful, they are pleased and glad to con- tinue at their service. A college student once learned, just as he was graduating, that his instructors were grateful to him for his influence during his college course on the side of good order. They said that he had been a help and comfort to them by his manly course in opposing lawlessness, and promotmg right sentiments among the students. This feeling of the faculty was a great surprise to him. He had never thought of himself as having any influence or doing any good. Might it not be well to take pains to make it plain to young now TO HOLD THE YOUNG MEN. 129 PART I. § 5, CH. iii.] men tliat they have a large influence in these directions? If our young men iu Sunday-school could be made to see how much of the success of the school depends on them, they would remain in school more cheerfully and would take pleasure in being of service. 4. T/ie yoiin^ men must be given instruction of real value to them. Undoubtedly one difficulty is that the Sunday-school does not compare in its instruction with the high school or college which youth are attending. Too often in the Sunday-school they feel that they are learn- ing nothing and that their time is wasted. To be sure the methods of the secular school and of the Sunday- school are necessarily quite different. There is a mark- ing system and a certain discipline in the secular school which cannot be utilized in the Sunday-school and which give an impression of inferiority in the Sunday-school not justified by facts. At the same time there is ground for this feeling. How can the objection be met? Not only by giving them an able teacher who will put time and thought on his work, but by more care in grading their studies. The young man does not want to go over and over the same lessons with substantially the same questions brought before him, in the successive years. The lessons taught the young men should not be a repeti- tion of the work of previous years. The lessons should take up new lines of study. It would undoubtedly do much to prevent the present sad dropping out of young men from our Sunday-schools, if a thorough curriculum of study were planned, covering a period of ten or fifteen years, and steadily increasing in scope and difficulty. But long before that is done, the peculiar needs of young men may be met, to some extent, by giving them a different study from the rest of the school. They should be allowed, if it seems desirable, different quarterlies and a different part of Scripture from the rest of the school. 130 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 5, cii, iii. A certain class of young men grew in numbers and interest when it turned aside from the regular International Lessons and took up the studies of the Bible Study Union in apostolic history. Probably more emphasis should be given to supplementary lessons and less time spent on the allotted passage. 5 . // is important that their questions he respectfully and fully met. Young people near manhood and woman- hood are apt to challenge the beliefs of their elders and to refuse to accept them on the basis of inheritance. Naturally and properly they desire to lay foundations for themselves, and to know the reasons why they should accept this and that belief. They see objections and bring them up for explanation. Sometimes the teacher is unable to solve the difficulty, and, if this occurs too often, their respect for him is gone and the pupil with- draws on the ground that he is learning nothing. Some- times the teacher gets impatient at the difficulties raised, answers sharply and dogmatizes. This does no good. To be harsh with them because they question well- established truths only angers them, drives them into opposition to the truth, and very likely ends in their dropping from the class. 6. They desire especially to see the practical side of life. They stand on the threshold of a great, unknown, and most interesting future. The world with its myster- ies lies before them. They are eager to know the appli- cations of truth to their daily duties. This is only reasonable. Great questions are pressing them on every side. They know that Christianity has formed modern civilization. What they want especially to know is the application of Christianity to business, to social relations, to pleasures. To keep them in school, let them feel that every Sunday kindles a beacon fire to light them on their way for the next week. HOW TO nOLD THE YOUNG MEN. 131 PART I, § 5, CH. iii.] 7. Sometimes a side ori^anizalion is helpful io Iiolil Ihe youii'^ men in a Sunday-school class. Let the young men of the class meet on a week night occasionally for literary purposes. Let there be a debate; let a news- paper of their composition be read ; let there be music, vocal and instrumental. Such an occasion, so long as it is not the principal thing, becomes sometimes very help- ful in tiding young men over a period of unrestfulness. 8. Avoid giving the impression that the school is for children alone. Too great care cannot be taken in this matter. Classes of young men grow restive and are apt to decrease in number if, in common with tlie rest of the school, they are frequently addressed as '' dear children," or if they have to listen every Sunday to baby talk from the platform, or if they are called on to join in infant hymns. Dr. Vincent urges that the main body of the school be called the ''Assembly," and that it be treated as distinct from the rest of the school and be given some power of self- government. It may be that this method would be help- ful in some cases in retaining the older pupils in the school. 9. Let parents identify themselves with the school. How can boys and young men be expected to stay in the school, when they discover that their parents regard them- selves as having outgrown the school, and think it no longer has interest for them or claims on them. If adults honor the school, the boys and young men will stay. Nothing is more helpful to full and vigorous classes of young men than similar classes of adults in the same room. At the same time it should be remembered that parents need to be assured that they are welcome as visitors in these classes of young people. It is desirable that a place be assigned for visitors and suitable seats provided. It is well also that the young men be encouraged to invite their parents to visit the class occasionally. CHAPTER IV. ADULT BIBLE CLASSES. Adults Needed in the Sunday-school. The Sun- day-school needs the adults in our congregations and they need the Sunday-school. Their presence in the Sunday-school is almost indispensable to give it character and standing in the community. On the other hand, they never needed familiarity with the Bible more than in these adult years of rough contact with the world, nor were they ever better able to profit by such study. There are portions of the Bible, like the epistles in the New Testament, or the prophecies in the Old Testament, which are especially fitted for study in adult years, and are not likely to be studied in youth. The years of adult life are among the very best for the enjoyment of Sunday- school study and for receiving profit from the Bible. How TO Make an Adult Bible Class Successful. I. The first 7'equisite, as with a class of yoimg ine7iy is a thoroughly competent teacher. A good Bible class teacher is rare. He must be scholarly and yet not dry or verbose. We have known a Bible class to be run completely out by a teacher, who though a godly and v/ell-trained minister, was yet slow in manner and heavy in thought. The teacher of a successful Bible class must be able to draw out his pupils by skilful questioning. He v^ill be tempted to occupy the time himself. It is easy to talk continuously and to make his class exercise a lecture. It is possible for him to lecture or preach so well on these occasions, as to build up the class and keep it full. If success is measured by numbers, some classes so con- 132 ADULT BIBLE CLASSES. 133 PART I. § 5, CII. iv.] ducted are successful. But after all such an assemblage is not a true Bible class ; it is not receiving the peculiar advantage that comes from a study of the Scriptures by question and answer. It is far better than nothing, but it does not give the benefit of real Bible study in cl-asses. But if the teacher would handle a large Bible class by the method of question and answer, he must be exceedingly careful how he does it or he will frighten timid people away. The class must be assured that he will put ques- tions only to the class generally or to those who have signified a willingness that he should. The successful teacher of a Bible class must know how to handle cranks. The chances are that in every large class will be some one who rides a hobby, or is a determined con- troversialist, or has some peculiar view which is bound to make trouble in the class. The teacher must be suffi- ciently firm and tactful to restrain such a person and keep him in his place, else the class will be wrecked. It is impossible to maintain a Bible class successfully with a frequent change of teachers. There must be one teacher, who is steadily at his post, and who is so able as to hold all evil influences in check and to feed the class with rich and satisfying truth. 2. // IS of the jitmost importaiice that the studies of a large Bible class be adapted to its needs and tastes. It should be absolutely free to choose its own topics and methods. It is well, of course, if the Bible class can conform to the lessons of the school, but the chances are that it needs sometlnng different. In the years before adult life there should have been such a faithful and con- tinuous study of the Bible, that now the subjects consid- ered may well be topical, perhaps on the great doctrines or duties, perhai)s on Christian evidences, perhaps on points of applied Christianity, — the one care being in all 134 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART I, § 5, CM. iv. cases to make the lesson really Biblical. In some schools a class in sociology from a Biblical standpoint has been quite successful. In another a '' Current Topics Class" has met the needs and desires of a considerable number. In this class practical everyday questions, such as the observance of the Sabbath, the relations of business and religion, the relations of labor and capital, are discussed in the light of Scriptural precept and example. But such themes need careful handling to bring them into the lines of a true Bible class. 3. // is noiu generally agreed that it is well to have both sexes represented in the class, that husband and wife be not separated, and that each may be a stimulus to the other, and may be able to talk of the teachings when at home. Unquestionably, married people are much more likely to come into the school, when they can be together in the same class. This enables them to study the lesson together and makes them feel more at home in the class. In many cases a husband will come into the class because his wife is there, and for her sake, when he could not be induced to go into a men's class. A Notable Instance, Mr. C. W. Osgood, a manufacturer, living in Bellows Falls, Vermont, has in that pleasant little village a Bible class of eighty or ninety resident members, with 350 in all who have been connected with it in years past and still claim a membership. The success of the class is due largely, beyond doubt, to the wisdom and devotion of their teacher. Mr. Osgood is seldom absent from the class, never enters it unprepared, greatly enjoys his work, is personally interested in every member and has rare skill in awakening an esprit de corps throughout the class. The class has a class color, — blue, as proposed by Moses of old; it has a roll call once a year, marked by some special offering; it has a Class I^oan I>ibrary ; it has an annual dinner, an occasion of which much is made. The Bible alone is used in the class, and the teaching is by question and answer so far as conditions allow. ADULT BIBLE CLASSES. 135 PART I. § 5, CII. iv.] Synthetic Bible Classes. A new form of Bible study- has come to be exceedingly popular in some of our cities and is likely to excite wide attention. It is called the synthetic method. I'his is the study of the Bible as a whole. Adult classes for such study have been formed in Chicago, and have met with such favor that nearly 3,500 members have been enrolled in them. These classes have been conducted by Mr. \V. R. Newell. Sim- ilar classes, which are large and successful, have been organized in Boston and vicinity under the charge of Rev. James M. Gray, D. D. The class comes to the lesson hour full of the book which is the theme for the evening. The members have read the book over and over. Suppose the book of Genesis is the lesson. Then the class is questioned on eight points in the book suggested by the words Creation, Fall, Deluge, Nations, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph. Each one of these points is taken up separately. In re- gard to creation, for example, the work of the six days is consid- ered, the two accounts of the creation, the details as to the creation of man, and so on. In regard to nations it is shown that the tenth chapter tells how and the twelfth chapter tells why, the nations w'ere divided. In regard to Abraham, the leading facts in his life, about ten in all, are brought out. A blackboard is used in indicat- ing the outline and each one is expected to enter the material there in his notebook. The chronological order is followed in studying the Bible, so that when the second book of Kings is reached the prophets of that period are taken up in succession and the historical books are not resumed till the study of Daniel is completed. This synthetic method of Bible study is peculiarly fascinating and has great value in normal work. Every Simday-school teacher is better fitted for his task who thoroughly studies the Bible in this way. CHAPTER V. THE NORMAL CLASS. The Need of Normal Study. There is more and more demand in our Sunday-schools for teachers spe- cially educated for their work. The feeling is strong that our Sunday-schools must take a higher position in education and be able to compare more favorably with our modern secular schools. Unless we have competent teachers in our schools, especially in those where public education has reached a high grade, we cannot hope that the Sunday-school will continue to flourish as in the past. Help From Institutions. Something is done tOAvard furnishing a higher grade of Sunday-school teachers in some of our institutions of learning. I. In many of our colleges to-day and in some of our academies, there is a course of Bible study. Such study is now recognized as a part of a thorough educa- tion and is coming to be valued. The graduates from institutions where such studies are pursued are specially fitted to teach the Bible in Sunday-schools and where their hearts are as well developed as their intellects they make excellent teachers. Tlie Bible Normal Collef,^e at Springfield, Mass., gives special training, not only in the Bible itself, but in everything pertaining to the Sunday-school. It makes a special effort to fit Sunday- school teachers for their work, arranging a course of ten weeks for such teachers as can spend but a short time in study, but are anx- ious for some such opportunity of improvement. More are com- ing to avail themselves of such privileges. A young man who had 13G THE NORMAL CLASS. 137 PART I, § 5, CH. v.] been appointed a superintendent in Sunday-school, felt so keenly his need for a larger fitness for his new responsibilities that he went half-way across the continent to attend the Moody Institute at Chicago for three months, that he might on his return to his quiet country home be a more successful Sunday-school worker. His example in trying to fit himself for his responsibilities should be widely followed. 3. Correspondence schools. There are now several organizations intended to teach by correspondence the Bible and methods of teaching the Bible. The Chautau- qua Normal Union is one of these. This covers a course of four years. Examinations are held and certificates and diplomas are given. The fees are trifling. 4. Chautatiqua assemblies. There are many sum- mer schools now held at convenient locations in the country where Sunday-school teachers can spend two or three weeks at small cost, join classes on various sub- jects connected with Sunday-school work and hear the ablest lectures. These assemblies are practically pro- tracted Sunday-school institutes and serve an admirable purpose. Besides these various devices to promote normal study, there are teachers' institutes and normal classes. We shall speak of institutes in a later section. What is a Normal Class? It is a class designed to fit those in it to be Sunday-school teachers. It does not attempt to study the regular lesson with the rest of the school, but it takes up those subjects which are essen- tial in fitting one to teach a class in Sunday-school. I . For one Sunday-school or for mafiy ? Such a class may be connected with one church or with many. A large Sunday-school surely ought to be able to main- tain such a class of its own. This is not true, however, in a small town, and there it is well for all the Sunday- 138 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART I. § 5, CH. V. schools to combine and together sustain a union normal class. 2. A suitable teacher essential. It is not easy to find a suitable teacher for such a school, and yet there are almost always two or three in every community competent for such a work. The pastor or the superintendent may be the right person to take charge of the class, or what is quite as likely, some educated instructor in the commu- nity. There are few places where some college graduate, trained in the subject under discussion, cannot be found and utilized in such a class. 3. The time to hold the normal class. Ordinarily the class should not meet at the same hour with the school. None are more likely to need the class or to enter it than the teachers in the school, and to hold the normal class at the same time with the main school de- bars them from attendance. To do this is suicidal. Be- sides, those in the normal class are often wanted as sub- stitutes in the main school and the training they thus get is essential. They must meet in the normal class at a time which leaves them free to serve in the school when needed. Ordinarily, the Sunday is too full for such a class. The best time is on some week-day, either after- noon or evening. 4. Lines of study. There are three lines of study to be pursued in the normal class: (i) Facts about the Bible. (2) The Sunday-school. (3) The art of teach- ing. The teacher is to teach the Bible ; therefore he must know what the Bible is, and why it is as it is. He must be posted as to its origin, inspiration, authority, con- tents, design, peculiarities, its geography, history and its fundamental teachings. He is to work in the Sunday- school, and must therefore understand its organization and its principles of action, its aims and its character- THE N0R3IAL CLASS. 139 PART I. § 5, CH. v.] istics. He is to be a teacher, and must understand the great underlying principles of his work. Private Study. When the teacher cannot join a normal class he can at least study by himself, receiving valuable aid if he likes from the Chautauqua Normal Union. There are now several excellent text-books de- signed for normal study. List of Books for Reading. There is no limit to the amount of private study one may put into these themes. Every Sunday- school teacher ought to keep a book on these subjects constantly on liand for frequent reading. No line of reading could well be more interesting or better fitted for the Sabbath than books on these topics. To aid those intending to read leisurely and fully on subjects pertaining to their work as Sunday-school teachers, a list of suitable books, prepared by Rev. Edwin W, Rice, D. D., editor of the publications of the American Sunday-School Union, is in- serted in an appendix. CHAPTER VI. teachers' meetings. Various Kinds of Teachers' Meetings. The term teachers' meeting has come to be used of one special kind of meeting held for the benefit of teachers. As a matter of fact, however, there are at least four kinds of meetings, all of which are teachers' meetings in the orig- inal sense of the phrase, and each of great, if not of equal, importance. They are these : — business meetings, prayer meetings, conference meetings and sociables and meetings to consider the lesson. Business Meetings. It is essential that teachers be called together occasionally to consult and decide as to the interests of the school. Whatever be the mode of government pursued, and however much of responsibility be given or denied the teachers, in controlling the school matters, they must at least be consulted and their coop- eration secured in a variety of matters. Meetings for business are generally not regularly held. It is best they should not be. Let them be called when needed. Or- dinarily the teachers are asked to delay a moment at the close of school. If the matter is serious, it is necessary to take more time and a special meeting should be called and due notice given. Under modern methods there is very little to bring before the teachers, and a moment's consultation is generally all that is needed. Prayer-meetings. It is very desirable that teachers should meet for prayer. This practice not only brings them a blessing in answer to prayer, but it brings them 140 TEACHERS' 3IEETINGS. 141 PART I, § 5, CH. vi.] into touch, develops sympathy, deepens their sense of responsibility and desire for souls and encourages them in their work. Teachers often meet weekly before the Sunday-school for prayer, spending fifteen or twenty minutes together for this purpose. Sometimes such a meeting is held just before the session. When, however, the school is held immediately after the morning service, this is impossible. Then the teachers often meet to pray for a half-hour preceding the morning service. There is advantage in this in the fact that prayer at that hour on the part of the teachers links the church preaching service with the Sunday-school in the thought, the interest and the prayers of the teachers. The more closely the morn- ing worship and the Sunday-school are united, the better it is for all concerned. Conference Meetings and Sociables. Unquestion- ably teachers should come together occasionally for social purposes, say once a quarter. They need to get acquainted to understand each other, to learn the work in sympathy and cooperation. It is good for the teachers of adult classes, of young men or young women, of primary classes, to get together and to exchange experiences and confer on methods. Each teacher is stronger and braver for knowing more of the difficulties encountered by the other teachers and their way out, for understanding the aims and hopes and joys of the rest. The pastor and sui)erintendent will be present at such a meeting of course. The su})erintendent calls the teachers to order, and if they can all sit around a table together with note- books in hand, the meeting will be freer and more suc- cessful. After prayer, one and another in turn report on the condition of their classes, tell of their anxieties, their new methods, their successes, their causes of joy, and ask advice as to any point of difficulty. The pastor and 142 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 5, CII. vi. superintendent answer these questions, comment on the statements made, drawing lessons for the rest of the teachers, ask questions as they seem needed and speak on various points as they come up. Sometimes a single topic is brought before the teachers, such as " What are you to try to do for your pupils ? " and each one is called on to answer the question, the superintendent writing the answers on the blackboard and the pastor summing up the whole. Of course there will be abundant prayer. It is often found convenient to transact business at this meeting. There is a supper before the conference, or perhaps only light refreshments after it, while a social hour is introduced in connection with the taking of food. Meetings to Consider the Lesson. These are ordinarily called teachers' meetings. They are uni- versally recognized as very desirable, and undoubtedly they are, but it may be that too much emphasis has been laid on them, as if they were essential to success. As a matter of fact, it is found very difficult in these busy days, when meetings of all sorts are clamoring for atten- tion, to maintain them. Lf they are managed, as is too often the case, simply as an easy way of getting the lesson for the next Sunday, they are not essential. Desirable as they are, it is quite possible to get their main advantages in other ways. The admirable helps of the modern day may enable the teacher to understand his lesson without serious draft on his time, and other less frequent meetings may suffice to instruct him as to methods and principles in adapting his lessons to the spiritual need of his class. We would not be misunder- stood. By all means, let the teachers' meeting be held if possible, but do not be disheartened if it cannot be sus- tained, do not imagine for a moment that because of this TEACHERS' 31 EE TINGS. 143 PART I. § 5, ClI. vi.] fact, if it be a fact, the Sunday-school is running down and becoming inefficient. 1. IF/io shall teach in tlie teacJie7's'' 7Jieelin<^ ? The superintendent may reasonably be expected and ought to be able to teach his teachers. He should certainly have charge and personal direction of the teachers' meeting. Sometimes the pastor is able and willing to teach the meeting ; sometimes it must be done by one especially brought in for the purpose ; sometimes, though this is not likely, it is found possible to sustain the meeting by giving its conduct to different teachers in turn. 2. Shall the teachers^ meeting he a iinlon meeting ? That depends on circumstances. In a city or village with several churches, a union meeting is likely to be the best. There are several advantages to be secured from such a union ; — a large attendance is secured ; there are more to help in the conduct of the meeting; the enthu- siasm of numbers is aroused ; a variety of views is secured and thought is stimulated. At the same time in a union meeting certain cautions are necessary. Peculiar care must be exercised in the choice of a teacher. He should be permanent, if possible. Such rare gifts are required and such tact is necessary in order to satisfy all and show no sectarian bias, that when a good man is found for the place, he should be kept there. If such a man cannot be secured the pastors of the several churches, or the superintendents of the several schools, may possibly meet the need. A second caution is to avoid all sectarian teaching and discussion of denominational differences. This is a union meeting and the courtesies of union must be sacredly observed. A great Saturday afternoon union teachers' meeting or Bible class was sustained for many years in one of our chief cities. Much of the time it 144 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IErR0DS. [PART I. § 5, CH. vi. occupied one of the largest halls in the city and was re- markably successful. But its success depended upon the man who led it. Only two or three who had peculiar gifts were able to maintain it. When they withdrew, others of known ability were brought in, but one after another they failed, the meeting dwindled away and was finally discontinued. To be able to teach teachers to their interest and profit is a rare gift. 3. T/i^ aim of the teacJiers' meeting. The aim should not be to teach the lesson, but to show how to teach it. There is no special need of a meeting simply to go over the lesson and learn its salient points. It is because teachers' meetings have attempted to do what is quite as well done in another way that they have so often failed. A teachers' meeting which is attended simply to study the lesson is certain to be dull, because sustained by a company of people who have no definite thought on the subject they attempt to talk about. Such a meeting is struck with disease at its roots and will eventually wither and perish. The aim should be' to study methods in their application to the particular lesson in hand, — to awaken enthusiasm and wisdom in presenting the lesson the coming Sabbath. The treatment of the lesson should be such as to fit the teachers to do their work. While avoiding monotony in method, the lesson may ordinarily be taken up something after this fashion : a. Get at the aim of the lesson. What is the under- lying thought in the paragraph to be taught ? h. Make an analysis of the lesson. What is the order of thought ? c. Briefly examine the salient points of the lesson. What are the principal truths taught? d. Give an explanation of difficulties. Are there any points that are likely to raise questions, awaken doubts or TEACUEliS' MEETINGS. 145 PART I. § 5, CH. vi.] Stimulate discussion ? How can these difficulties be met in the class ? How should they be treated ? e. What illustrations should be used ? Suggest an anecdote or two. Describe the use of slate or black- board in the class in regard to that lesson. /. Bring up specifications as to any particular methods or points needed in teaching the lesson in the different departments. What method shall be pursued or truths emphasized in the primary class, the adult Bible class, the young men's class, the young women's class and so on. 4. General plan of the meeting. This is suggested by the aim. First, let there be a brief but warm devo- tional service. Second, let the Scripture lesson be read aloud by all unitedly. Third, let the discussion of the lesson follow. What form this discussion should take should depend on the peculiarities of the passage studied. Often a preliminary investigation is necessary, the rela- tion to the circumstances connected with the passage, or its context, or the thought in the mind of the writer. This settled, the points referred to in the previous para- graph may be well taken up. 5. Suggestio7is for success. Some of these sugges- tions are negative. There are certain dangers in a teachers' meeting which must be avoided. Cranks arc liable to break up a teachers' meeting as they are a Bible class. A crank is usually a man who sees things out of tlieir due proportion, and consequently shies at dangers when there are none, or rushes after mirages which seem to him refreshing water. A crank must be suppressed. There is no escape for it. Controversy, also, in a teach- ers' meeting is almost as serious as the wild talk of a crank. It stirs up opposition, turns people from the seri- ous matter in hand, often causes bad blood and drives J46 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 5, CH. vi. away the Holy Spirit. We want that in the teachers' meeting which, without sacrificing principle, shall make for peace. We must speak the truth, but this is not enough, we must speak it in love. One other caution is to avoid dullness. Do not turn the teachers' meeting into a lectureship. There are plenty of men who have undertaken to conduct a teachers' meeting as a lecture- ship. To do this kills it. But there are suggestions also on the positive side. Let the teachers' meeting have a practical aim and a glowing spirituality. Let it constantly exalt the Bible. The question is. What does the Bible say, not what is the philosophy of the matter in hand or the opinion of one or another. Secure all possible help from all in the meeting and allow no one to be unduly prominent. Some will desire to Remain in the background and keep silent. Others will be eager to answer every question. Both classes must be wisely met and faithfully handled. One class must be brought out more and more; the other must be held back that others less forward may be en- couraged and be heard. CHAPTER VII. THE HOME DEPARTMENT. For Whom Designed. This is a new form of Sun- day-school work. It is designed to reach all who are unable or disinclined to attend Sunday-school. It offers a practical and profitable method of Bible study, of aid and supervision in such study, and of connection with the Sunday-school while yet the one studying remains at home. It is a boon to the aged and to invalids, to those whose duties elsewhere prevent their presence in the Sunday-school, to many who live so far away on the hills, or out on the prairies, that they cannot force their way through snows in the winter or the mud in spring and fall to the Sunday-school. What is its Plan ? The general plan is this ; — for the Sunday-school to secure the study of its lessons at home on the part of those unable to attend its sessions, thus widening its influence and reaching a great number of people who otherwise would not be likely to study the Bible. Those thus reached are considered members of the Sunday-school, enjoy its privileges, are visited regu- larly and their study aided and promoted. What is its Organization? The home depart- ment must have a superintendent, visitors and classes. 1. The superintendent is to plan the work, to appoint and direct the visitors, to receive their reports and to make reports on his own part to the school and from the school to the members of the home department. 2. The visitors should be in number as many as there 147 148 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 5, CH, vii. are districts to be reached or classes organized in the home deqartment. Their duties are a. To organize classes. b. To visit all members of these classes regularly and keep them in touch with the school, distributing and col- lecting all Sunday-school material. c. To make reports to their superintendent regularly, usually at a meeting of the visitors and superintendent. d. To report to the pastor any cases coming to their knowledge of newcomers, sickness, destitution, trouble or religious interest. Visitors are generally women because they can com- mand their time better and can enter families more easily. Since they are not called on to teach, the qualifications which they need are not the same, though, perhaps, quite as important as those which teachers should have. They rank with the teachers of the school, and should properly be counted among them. 3. Classes. The classes in the home department are quite different from those in the ordinary school. They are not composed of those of the same age or those studying the same lessons, but simply of those under the care of the same visitor. Such classes should not ordi- narily comprise more than from twelve to twenty-five, since these are all who can well be cared for by one per- son. These classes take various forms according to circumstances. a. Sometimes they are classes of individuals, who may or may not have relation to one another, their only tie being that the same visitor calls upon all of them. b. Sometimes they may be family classes. In these, all in the same family study together, and such a rela- tion may exist, though some in the class are able to at- tend the Sunday-school. THE HOME DEPART3IENT. 149 PART I. § 5, CH. vii,] c. Sometimes they are neighborhood classes. In these cases people of the same neighborhood, when two or three or four families are contiguous, meet at each others' houses and study the Bible together. Here is the germ of the district or branch or union Sunday-school, and, where such a Sunday-school can be organized, it is desirable that it should be. d. Sometimes the class is called a correspondence class, this term being used to describe a class when those in it are not ordinarily reached by the personal visits of the visitor, but, instead, by letters through the mail. This, of course, is less desirable than any other form of home department study and yet it is far better than nothing. What Constitutes Membership ? Simply an agree- ment to join the home department of such a Sunday- school and to spend at least half an hour each week in the study of the lesson, unless prevented by sickness or other good cause. Ordinarily a printed pledge card is signed and a certificate of membership is given, though neither of these is essential. Such a certificate may be helpful for purposes of identification in visits to the Sunday-school, to social gatherings, to picnics and other entertainments. The Outfit for the Home Department. This will be varied of course with the conditions of the department. Most of the publishing houses have prepared a quantity of material to pro- mote this work, including Leaflets descriptive of the plan, A membership card, A membership certificate, A report collection envelope or, if preferred, a report card, A visitors' home class book, A visitors' quarterly report blank. The home department superintendent's record book. The ordinary quarterlies or lesson papers studied in the Sunday school are of course suited for use in the home department. 150 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 5, CH. vii. Special Features of the Home Department. It is usiiai to have occasionally a home department social gathering when the members, as far as possible, are brought together for social conference. At such gather- ings leading representatives of the main school are sure to be present. Further than this, at certain times of the year on Home Department Sunday, or Rally Sunday, and perhaps on Review Sundays, every effort should be made to secure the attendance at the main school of all members of the home department. Often the pastor finds it desirable to preach annually on the home de- partment, commending it to his people. Advantages of the Home Department. 1. It reaches many who otherwise could not be reached, — people far from church, people who are travel- ling, people who are temporarily in the community, peo- ple who are ill, people who are too busy to get out to Sunday-school, people who shrink from class relation- ships. It thus brings many adults into connection with the school. 2. // becomes a powerful church instrumentality in Christian evangelization, securing systematic visitation, awakening a new interest in the Bible ; promoting atten- dance at church and Sunday-school. A skillful county missionary in New England has found that the home department is unusually helpful in building up decaying churches in rural neighborhoods. The people living back on the hills have dropped out of touch with the church, largely because the church had so little to give them and was living so inactive itself. When once the visitors go out from the church on their errand of love and call from house to house to develop habits of Bible study and bring the people into contact with the home school, they everywhere find a welcome : the people are THE HOME DEPARTMENT. 151 PART I. § 5, CH. vii,] touched by the attention and are grateful ; they become interested in the church and often form a habit of church- going. 3. // develops personal and faj)iily religion, promot- ing study of the Bible and encouraging family religious life. 4. // develops Christia7i activity in the church. It sets Christians at work as it sends out visitors on evan- gelistic errands. 5. // tends to maintain the life of the main Sunday - school, at those times when it is weakest. In summer the absentees should join the home department. In winter in the country when the main school is I'lroken up be- cause of heavy snows, the home department is often in full vigor and preserving the life of the school. Practical Examples, Two practical examples show the ap- plication of the home department to the conditions alike of city and country. 1, In a certain great city church is a home department num- bering 275 members. Thirty-five visitors are connected with it. At the outset a canvas was made to bring into it every church member not already in the school, and as many more as possible. The only requirement made was that every member study the lesson half an hour each week. One class was organized in the House of Correction, those there being in the truest sense among the " shut-ins." Another class was started in the Home for Sol- diers' Widows. This church is situated in a dense and poor popu- lation. Many mothers in the neighborhood get their meals for their families and tend their babies beside. Others are employed on Sunday and cannot get away at the school hour. The home department exactly meets their need. 2. Congregational Church, Plymouth, A^. II. Here is a good church in a thriving village with outlying districts in every direc- tion. Here the home dei^artment hfis been energetically and wisely developed so as to provide to a remarkable degree for the needs of these rural neighborhoods. Its membership has been 152 3TANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 5, CH. vii. 116. Connected with it is a family living sixteen miles away where there is no church organization and no Sunday-school. Fourteen of the members live in a town adjoining where there is no church, no minister and not even a Sunday-school, except in a far corner distant from four to eight miles from them. Six others live in another adjoining town, four or five miles distant from any church. The results of this home department have been most beneficial. Families not in church for twenty-five years are now regular students of the Bible. Invalids now rejoice to consider themselves members of the Sunday-school. The study of the Bible has been greatly promoted throughout the town. The Sab- bath is more scrupulously observed. Attendance at church and prayer-meetings has increased. One-seventh of those in the home department have been brought to Christ and several of these have joined the church. Results like these may confidently be ex- pected wherever the study of the Bible is promoted. Section 6. Sunday-school Appliances. CHAPTER I. THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL LIBRARY. Advantages of a Library to a School. In this modern day a first-class outfit for a Sunday-school in- cludes a great deal. Not all schools by any means can afford all that is available, but much that is desirable can certainly be obtained. With its lesson papers and its organ, a school needs a library. A library is a great aid to the school. It acts as a reward and an incentive to Sunday-school attend- ance. It often is an influence in the smaller country schools to keep them alive through the winter, — ''ever- green," as the phrase goes,— for these books in country homes are often greatly prized as the chief reading obtain- able. And if the school cannot be kept open during the winter even by this influence, the library is sure to lead the school to reorganize and open as early as possible in the spring. The library, if wisely selected, supplements the teaching of the school and by giving uneasy children some- thing to do, aids greatly in keeping the Sabbath holy. The library carries the work of the Sunday School into the homes. In nearly every school are the children of people who do not go to Sunday-school themselves or even to church. The only religious influences they receive are from their children as these children bring home the influ- ences of the Sunday-school. In such cases the chances 153 154 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part I. § 6, CH. i. are that the children will repeat at home much that they have learned at school. But such influences are necessarily fragmentary. If in addition they bring home an attract- ive book, well printed and illustrated, it will probably be read by many in the family who are not in Sunday- school, — by the young people, by the mother and possi- bly by the father. Should be Suitable for Sunday Reading. There are abundant reasons why the books selected for the Sun- day-school library should be only those which are suit- able for Sunday reading. A different principle of selec- tion often prevails, and books are placed on the library shelves which, though they may be high-toned and in- structive, have nothing to do with religion. It is said that the purpose of the library should be to supply read- ing through the week, to elevate and educate intellectu- ally as well as to train religiously. But this is certainly a mistake. The Sunday-school is distinctly a religious in- stitution, and should not attempt to cover the whole range of education. Its influence is dissipated if it as- sumes a secular aspect. The Sunday-school library should be strictly one that is helpful to the religious life. It should be selected on the same principles on which the books of the Bible find a place under one cover. In the Bible is literature of every kind, science, history, biogra- phy, poetry, fiction, philosophy, theology, but all has one distinct and marked aim, — it throws light upon the rela- tions of God and man and the duties of man both to God and to his fellow-man. So a Sunday-school library, while welcoming books in all departments of literature, must receive only those which directly tend to the up- building of a religious life. The great reason for this is that the Sunday-school library is sure to be read on the Sabbath after the school is over, and the fresh and ap- THE SUNDAY SCHOOL LIBRARY. 155 PART I. § 6, CH. i.] petizing books are taken home. The school library has much to do in determining the tone of the Sabbath day. It often depends on the library whether the impressions of the lesson in the school shall be deepened or dissi- pated. The Sunday-school library is the avenue to the hearts of many in the homes who are not in the school. By all means, then, let it be chosen with reference to its religious influence. If it be deemed necessary that some provision be made for secular reading during the week, — and, of course, this of itself is very desirable, — let this be done by some other agency than the Sunday-school. Let there be a town library, recognized as secular and given out on that basis. The two libraries may be under the same roof, but the town library should not be open at the same time with the school library, but rather, on a week-day, and thus the two libraries will not be confounded. In a certain quiet rural community, a little town library has been located in the vestry of the only church in the place and its books are given out at the week night meeting. This is a far better way than to put the books of the town li- brary into the Sunday-school library and give them out from it. But How Shall the Library be Selected ? Books should, if possible, be carefully read before purchase by a judicious committee. This is the surest method, but often one not possible. In such a case let the purchase be made of publishers or booksellers who know their books, and can be relied on to furnish only those which are suitable. Lists of more or less value are made up from time to time by various parties to guide in the selec- tion of good books. The imprint of certain religious publishing houses ought to be a sufficient guarantee that a book is fitted for Sabbath reading. Sunday-school mis- 156 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 6, CH. i. sionaries should be sufficiently familiar with the best books to be able to give good advice on this matter. A Reference Library for Teachers. This is some- thing exceedingly desirable when a school can afford it. We know such a library which stands open all the time in a Sunday-school room, accessible to the teachers with- out restriction. It contains commentaries, dictionaries and other books of reference, books on the Sunday- school, treatises on teaching and the like. It is greatly prized and much used by the teachers in the school. Not every teacher can afford the helps which are needful. The school which desires its teachers to do their best work will, if possible, provide them with such helps. Such a library should contain the latest and best com- mentaries, recent discussions on the Sunday-school and on pedagogy, maps, dictionaries and other works of ref- erence and books of general introduction to both Old and New Testaments. How TO Secure New Books. 1. A po7'tion of the school fund should he set aside for the purchase of new books if possible. 2. Let each class in turn give a book, — say one class each month or in larger schools one class each week, — the book to be approved by the library comniittee. 3. Let the gift of books by individuals {subject to the approval of the library committee^ be also encouraged. 4. Ln this case and the preceding let a special label be prepared oxv which the donor's name is inscribed, and when the book comes into the library, let it be mentioned and the name of the class or individual donating it be stated. 5 . Let neighboring schools exchange libraries or parts of libraries. Sunday-school missionaries can often facili- tate such exchanges. THE SUNDAY SCHOOL LIBRARY. 157 PART I. § 6, CH, i.] 6. Strong schools should give their laell-read books to needy schools, or they may wisely send out loan libraries to branch schools in outlying districts. Duties of the Librarian. 1 . He should value his work. He should love books and appreciate the power of good literature in the com- munity and should magnify his office. 2. He should promote the best use of the library. To this end a. He must have a good catalogue. b. He should make a statement whenever new books are added, showing their character and value. c. He should keep exposed a list of the newest books. d. He should by quiet commendation and personal influence try to guide the pupils in their selection of books. The teacher should supplement this effort of the librarian and do all possible to cultivate the right taste. e. He should have the best method of charging books. It must be known who has each book, and how long he has had it. The old method was to trace every- thing by the one who takes out the book. A better way is to trace the book itself. A new form of a library ac- count book has been made on this basis, and it has been found to be very serviceable. Character of the Librarian. Evidently, if such are the duties of the librarian, he ought to be a superior man. It is not the wisest policy to choose a young man, who is simply competent to pass out the books that are called for, and keep a correct record of them. Often the place is given to such a young man because he is restless and disinclined to stay in his class and this seems the best way to hold him. This may be an excellent plan so far as the young man is concerned, but it is not a good plan for the school. It is far better to select a thoughtful and 158 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [part I. § 6, CH. i. earnest Christian, one who appreciates the importance of good Hterature, who beUeves a Hbrary can be made a power in a community, who is eager to exert an influence for good through his hbrary and who is ambitious both to make the Hbrary what it should be and to develop its use among others. CHAPTER II. SUNDAY-SCHOOL SUPPLIES. A Lir.RARY is by no means all the outfit that is desir- able in a well-ordered Sunday-school. A large variety of supplies is now prepared for Sunday-school use, some of which are of great value in order to secure success in Sunday-school work. Others are helpful but can be dis- pensed with without serious loss. No country school which has a library and a blackboard, with a few Sunday- school papers, need feel that it is seriously hampered in its work. Sunday-school Papers. It is desirable to have Sun- day-school papers for distribution, and often they are available when the library is not. Few schools can boast of a reference library for its teachers, but there is scarcely a Sunday-school where the teachers cannot com- bine in a club and obtain some choice publication to aid them in the study of the lesson. For the younger classes Sunday-school papers are more important than library books. These classes are ordinarily too young to appre- ciate or even to read a library book. They are also liable to lose or at least to injure such books. A library would soon be worthless that was allowed to pass through their hands. But an attractive paper, prepared for the little folks, neatly printed and fully illustrated, is admirably adapted to their needs. Such papers are now furnished at a small price by many publishing houses. Lithographic Wall Pictures and Picture Cards. These have come to be quite indispensable for the smaller 159 160 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 6, CH. ii. classes and are to be had in great variety. For colored wall pictures nothing can be so easily secured as large, highly-colored lithographs of Bible scenes. These are designed to hang on the wall or on a frame in the sight of the children and can readily be seen across a room. Small picture cards are now prepared to be given out to the individual members of the school, and as these have a beautifully colored picture on one side and suitable questions and answers on the other, they are well adapted to interest and instruct the little people. When the cards are taken home, as they always are, where parents, care- less of religious matters and neglectful of church, ex- amine them, the influence of the cards in modifying the home is most helpful. Then there are now many volumes containing choice engravings, illustrating the scenery of Bible lands or reproducing famous pic- tures representing Bible scenes. Photographs are also to be had in limitless variety reproducing these same subjects, and a collec- tion of such photographs, suitably mounted, is exceedingly valu- able in teaching many portions of the Bible. Where a Sunday- school can afford it, it is wise to have a supply of such pictures for the use of its teachers. Maps. These are of the first importance, for it is im- possible to teach the lessons of the Bible correctly without their use. The maps that are in the Teachers' Bible, or the Lesson Quarterlies, are helpful ; but it is desirable to have large maps on which the eye of the pupil shall con- stantly fall. When possible, there should be a set of maps hung on stout spring rollers and, when not in use, rolling up into a box. They are thus kept out of sight when not needed, and preserved from damage. A map of Bible lands, another of Egypt and Sinai, another of Palestine in the time of the Judges, another of the same country in the time of Israel and Judah, another of Pales- SUNDAY-SCHOOL SUPPLIES. 161 TART I. § 6, CH. ii.] tine in the time of Christ, another of the Apostle Paul's journeys, should be included in this collection. There are also outline maps on which no names are printed, designed to be used as tests of knowledge regarding the map. Added value is given to either of these maps by mounting them on a board, and then boring holes through the map into the board at certain places so that differently colored pegs can be stuck into the holes to indicate various things, as for example, a city, the course of the Children of Israel in the wilderness, the sojourning places of our Lord and the like. Or, if it is preferred, small labels of different colors, suitably gummed, may be affixed to the maj) to save it from being mounted on a board or defaced by the gimlet. An ingenious method of preparing such maps has been suggested, viz : to paste the map on a piece of sheet iron and then to use for the objects that it is desired to move from place to place on the map small bits of magnetized iron fashioned in suitable shapes. These magnets leave no marks and so do not deface the map, while they can be instantly changed from one location to another. But besides these maps there are others of great value. There are dissected maps, putty maps, sand maps and blackboard maps. Such maps serve an excellent purpose for temporary use and are specially helpful to little children. Sand maps are to be built up by the children when studying a lesson. Putty maps are of a more permanent nature. When once fashioned on a rimmed board, care- fully shaped, allowed to harden, and then properly colored, they make admirable raised maps to illustrate the elevation of mountain, plain, valley, stream, and lake. Their expense is trifling compared with that of the raised maps of papier mache to be bought at book stores, though of course tliey cannot compare with the latter for finish and accuracy. A Mimeograph or Printing Press. Some modern device for reproducing programs, examination papers, notices, questions, etc., is very desirable. In a small school a mimeograph will do. In a large school a print- ing press, managed by the older boys, is found to be an interesting and valuable adjunct. 1G2 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [TART 1. § 6, CII. ii. 1 . Advafitages . The chief advantages of the mimeo- graph or printing press are these : a. It continues the work of teaching long after the voice is silent, b. It appeals to the eye, and so strengthens the impressions made, and develops the memory, c. It honors and dignifies various important occasions, when programs, tickets and the like are needed, such as anniversaries and concerts, d. It makes certain desirable things easy, if not possible, — such as special opening exercises, specially composed music and written review examinations. 2. Uses of the niiineograph or printing pi'ess. Some of these uses have already been suggested, but it may be worth while to make as complete a list as possible of those things which can be prepared by type or mimeo- graph. In this way the school can be supplied with programs, lists of officers, manual of the school and lists of classes and members, honor rolls, calendars of meetings, examination papers, notices for the week, annals and statistics of attendance regarding the previous week, the lessons for the year, special opening and closing exer- cises, special hymns or music, concert exercises, topics for reviews and the like. Such things are often for sale already printed in our publishing houses, but generally a school desires something spe- cially adapted to its own condition and needs. A monthly paper is sometimes prepared and printed by a large school. This may be found to be of great advantage in disseminating the news of the school, aiding the study of the lesson and developing a school spirit. The Blackboard is, of course, indispensable in the Sunday-school. Great use can be made of it in skillful hands and even one not expert with the crayon can emphasize the lesson on the board as in no other way. The board can be obtained in all styles and prices. It is desirable to have one mounted in such a fashion that it SUNDAY-SCHOOL SUPPLIES. • 163 PART I. § 6, CH. ii.] can be swung around so as to show the reverse side. It may be found convenient in some schools to use linoleum for blackboard purposes. This can be obtained cheaply and when tacked on the wall often proves every way serviceable. Besides a blackboard large sheets of Man'la paper with colored crayons are often very convenient, especially for review purposes. These sheets can be pre- served and so made to serve more than one use. At times also it is found to be well to supply classes with slates or pads of paper and pencils. Each member of the class can then draw maps or write exercises at the dictation of the teacher. A Stereopticon. Some of the best schools are now securing and using a stereopticon. This is a very de- sirable school adjunct. Slides can easily be purchased or rented illustrating everything connected with Bible study. Nothing could be more attractive and useful as the school studies the life of Christ, the lives of the apostles, the history of Old Testament times, the parables, the history of the church, than to supplement such study by an occasional illustrated lecture. Of course the expense of such a stereopticon is large and only the strongest schools can afford it. Museum of Bible Curiosities. It is easy in these days to secure a collection of specimens illustrating the articles frequently referred to in Scripture but not much known outside of Palestine. It is impossible to make certain objects distinctly understood by definition. They must be seen in order to be clear in the mind. There is nothing like the Oriental sackcloth in this country or the inkstand of Bible times or ''the husks which the swine did eat." Many seeds and w^oods, gums, nuts, garments and the like, peculiar to the Orient, are mentioned in the Bible. Every thoroughly equipped Sunday-school should 164 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART I. § 6, cii. ii. have a cabinet of such curiosities, perhaps one for each department ; while the teacher of an individual class may often well afford to own one of the smaller *' Bible cab- inets " now prepared. There are several collections of articles, — such as cassia, frank- incense, henna, myrrh, tares, — for the most part put up in small bottles and neatly packed in a small box. Much larger and more complete outfits of Biblical curiosities are also supplied. There are also to be had albums of dried and pressed plants from the Holy Land. They serve an admirable purpose in illustrating Scripture. It is also possible to obtain models of threshing machines, Oriental houses, plows, hand-mills, and a great variety of other articles men- tioned in the Bible. These are of much interest and useful in teaching by the object lesson method, A model of the tabernacle is a great help in promoting study and illustrating gospel teachings. Such a model is novi' occasionally manufactured for sale, but it is not difficult for any ingenious workman to prepare one for school use. CHAPTER III. SUNDAY-SCHOOL REWARDS. Rewards Desirable. It has been found desirable in all systems of educating the young to devise some method of stimulating pupils to do their best work. The best stimulus is, of course, a proper appreciation of the value of education, but such an appreciation comes only by education, and hence is not available at first, while in addition other forms of encouragement are helpful and desirable. Two Methods of Reward. Our best public schools adopt to a certain extent two methods of reward, one on a pecuniary basis, consisting of prizes, scholarships and the like ; the other an appeal to self-respect, and consisting of credit marks or honors. A marking system of some sort with honorable mention for some and special places on anniversary days for others, is of much use. The Sunday-school may to a certain extent build on the experience of secular schools and adopt both these methods of reward under limitation. For What Rewards May be Used. 1. Regularity in attendance and promptness are most likely to be rewarded in school. Probably the reason is because they are so easily noticed and have so much to do with the outward prosperity of the school. One large school pursues the plan of giving away a fine paper to all of the school who are not tardy, and only to them. 2. Bringing ifi pupils. This is another Sunday- school virtue which is likely to be rewarded. Such missionary effort is desirable and needs to be cultivated. 1G5 166 31 AN UAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL BIETIIODS. [PART I. § 6, CH. iii. What would become of our Sunday-schools if we were not constantly bringing in new members ? There is a practical merit in securing new pupils which deserves recognition and reward. To do this is a crude effort toward carry- ing out our Lord's command to go out into the highways and hedges and bring in those found there to the gospel feast. It is well worth while to develop the spirit of soul- saving among the young and to train them to seek and to win others to better ways. 3. Good lessons. These also are worthy of com- mendation and encouragement. Memorizing Scripture, which is very important, may well be rewarded. Among the treasures of one who was in Sunday-school over fifty years ago is a certificate neatly framed, setting forth that the person named in the certificate had committed the whole of the Westminster Catechism to memory and re- cited it accurately in the Sunday-school. In these days we are memorizing the Scripture rather than catechisms in the Sunday-school. Why should not neat certificates be issued for accomplishments in this direction ? Available Gifts and Honors. Among the gifts which are feasible are Bibles. There are very few young people who are not glad to get a Bible. This is true even in the families of the well-to-do. Much more is it true in the rural districts, where Bibles are scarce. In desti- tute neighborhoods, where Bibles ought to be given away to meet the need, they may often be so judiciously given as to make them a reward for special faithfulness in the Sun- day-school. In primary schools gift cards or tickets are often found serviceable in promoting attendance and promptness. Among the honors which may awaken a healthy spirit of emula- tion and a desire to do better, several things may be mentioned. A banner to stand by the class that has the best record for a SUNDAY-SCHOOL REWARDS. 167 PART I. § 6, CH. iii.] week or a month or a quarter in attendance, or for scholarsliip, or for benevolence, or for whatever it is desired specially to stimulate in the school, has often been used to advantage. A roll of honor is made out in some schools and hung up near the entrance for six months or a year to be seen and pondered by all the school, as the pupils pass it on entering or departing. Promotions with certifi- cates to the effect that such and such work has been done, are effective and ought to be more widely introduced. Sometimes it has been found well to place a book in the library with a suitable label, or to hang a fine picture or map on the wall of the school- room, in commemoration of admirable work done by one class or another. Such a memorial given by the members of the school, in evidence of their pleasure at certain excellences in a school- mate, is sure to be greatly prized, and is likely to act as an incen- tive to classes that follow. Nothing is more likely to gratify a class and to encourage it to do its best than a memorial to remain in future years as a witness of its special excellence. CHAPTER IV. SUNDAY-SCHOOL ARCHITECTURE. Take What We Can Get. In the matter of Sunday- school architecture we are generally obliged to take what we can get. Sunday-schools in outlying country districts are often fortunate, if they have any place to meet, a dis- trict schoolhouse, a grange hall, a farmer's kitchen, a barn. Schools in connection with churches often have no satisfactory room, but have to meet in the regular audience room of the church with its immovable pews. It is only within a few years, comparatively, that the churches have recognized the desirability of fitting up rooms on a special design to meet the needs of the Sun- day-school. It is, however, not so difficult as might at first thought appear to refit an old-fashioned vestry or chapel in such a way as to make it admirably adapted for school purposes. The wooden chapel connected with a certain church in a thriving village was a large, square, barn-shaped room, without any modern conveniences for school uses, but an energetic Sunday-school man saw the possibilities in it, raised a sum of money sufficient, and presently, by putting in galleries, by partitioning off a dozen small rooms on the end of the main audience room, upstairs and down, and by fitting all with sliding doors, he completely made over the place into a modern Sun- day-school building with the most approved and conven- ient appliances. And all this was done at small cost. Togetherness and Separateness. The principles of good school architecture are, as Dr. Vincent has well 168 SUNDAY-SCirOOL AllCIIlTECTUEE. 1G9 PART I. § 6, CI I. iv.] said, "togetherness" and '* separateness." These are best secured by a common meeting-place for opening and closing exercises, with separate rooms for individual classes opening into this common room, but easily closed, so that the classes can carry on their study without inter- ruption. Churches that are able are now providing for their Sunday-schools on this plan. Many churches, east and west, are now admirably fitted out in this respect. It is often found possible to secure these advantages to a considerable extent by introducing sliding par- titions, rolling doors, or even by screens or curtains. Such arrangements are often the only things possible in a destitute neighborhood. They are far better than nothing and serve an admirable purpose. The Furniture in a Sunday-school room should be plain. Articles are wanted in the schoolroom for use, and if too fine will hinder the usefulness of the school. The main things to consult are convenience and comfort. It is not wise to leave everything in the schoolroom so hard and uncomfortable that young people will stay away rather than submit to them. Nor is it desirable to have things so easy and comfortable that the practical use of them is made difhcult. In the schoolroom movable chairs are more desirable than settees. This makes it possible to arrange the chairs in a half circle so that the teacher can be surrounded by his class and yet face them all. Much more might be said in regard to Sunday-school architecture, but in a brief manual like this, it is impos- sible to treat the subject with the fullness it deserves Section 7. The Sunday-school Under Various Conditions, CHAPTER I. how to establish new sunday-schools. Responsibility of Christians for this Work. There is no question that one important form of building up Christ's kingdom is by estabhshing Sunday-schools where none exist, especially in needy, outlying neighbor- hoods. There are various Avays by which communities can be brought under Sunday-school influences. 1. Bruig the diildren to school. In some cases it is enough to bring children and others into schools already established. 2. Home departjnent. If attendance is impossible it may be wise to organize and push home department work. 3. Let a church maintain branch schools. In other cases the nearest church is able to reach the territory sur- rounding it by establishing and sustaining branch schools. There is a Reformed Church in New Paltz, N. Y., which is a model in this respect. It is the church of command- ing influence in a large farming territory of God-fearing people. There is a vigorous home school, and not less than seven branch schools, all under the care of church officers. It is a beautiful sight when these eight schools all meet in the church together for the anniversary. Every church ought to feel a similar responsibility for its 170 HOW TO ESTABLISH NEW SUNDAY SCHOOLS. 171 TART I. § 7, CH. i.] vicinage, and cultivate it thoroughly in the interests of Christ's kingdom. If tliere are two or more churches in a village, and the outlying districts are similarly divided by denominational preferences, it is well for these churches to combine and to make their schools in the outlying districts strictly union. In this way they will reach many more than by making the schools denomina- tional and will be able to maintain their hold upon them. If more of this missionary Sunday-school work were undertaken by our churches, more of our churches would be self-supporting, the piety of these churches would be of a higher type, while many an outlying neighborhood would no longer be the moral desert it now is. We know a centre in the midst of a large agricultural neighbor- hood. The church at the centre once had half a dozen or more branch Sunday-schools in as many outlying dis- tricts. Now they are all abandoned ; the people where those schools were located have given over the habit of church-going; while the church itself is no longer the vigorous and prosperous church it once was. The neglect of missionary activity is sure to lead to church decline. 4. Aid Sunday-school missionary or ga7iizations. Every church, either through its regular channels of benevolence, or through its Sunday-school, ought to share in the estab- lished methods of Sunday-school missionary work through regular missionary organizations. A very few of the de- nominations in this land have Sunday-school societies of their own, designed to establish Sunday-schools where needed, and these societies are doing vigorous work. The American Sunday-School Union, which antedates them all, is also an agency of God's people in this work, being supported by Christians of all evangelical denomi- nations, aiming to go into neighborhoods where denomi- 172 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IET1I0DS. [PART I. § 7, CH. i. national work does not exist or would not avail, and always working with the intent to bring souls to Christ and to strengthen the churches. When we consider that there are in this country not less than 11,000,000 of children between the ages of five and twenty-one in- clusive, who are not in Sunday-school, and that all our agencies combined do not bring more than 200,000 of these children into Sunday-school each year, it is evident that there is abundant room for all these agencies of good. Methods of the American Sunday-School Union. The methods of all these Sunday-school societies are largely the same, except that the American Sunday- School Union makes a distinct and special feature of union work. A description of the methods of this so- ciety will, therefore, illustrate in general the method that must be pursued by all missionary organizations in es- tablishing Sunday-schools. I, The missionary calls. The first step is for the missionary to call on the pastors and leading church people nearest to the neighborhood where there is as yet no school. He desires their sympathy and cooperation. He would enlist their support of the school after he is gone. He needs their advice as to what it is best to do. No wise missionary will needlessly arouse the prejudices, or ignore the rights of neighboring pastors and churches in any work he may undertake. But this is not all. Having met an encouraging reception from Christians, he then proceeds to the district where he proposes to work and makes a thorough canvas of the community. He calls from house to house ; talks with the father and mother ; sees the children, if possible ; gathers what statistics are necessary ; awakens interest in regard to the proposed school and secures pledges of attendance. He now TO ESTABLISH NEW SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 173 PART I. § 7, CH. i.] seldom leaves a house without a Christian word and a brief prayer. He also often leaves a Bible or other good Christian literature. 2. Place of meeting secured. In the course of these calls he learns the best place to hold the proposed school, — generally a public schoolhouse, — ascertains who have the authority to allow the use of the school building and, before his calls are ended, he has seen the school com- mittee and obtained permission to use the schoolhouse. When this cannot be had, perhaps a spacious room in some farmer's house will serve. 3. Meeting for organization. The district is called together for a meeting to organize a school. The mis- sionary addresses those present and explains the project fully. He then obtains a vote for a school and calls for the election of officers, viz : a superintendent, a secretary and treasurer. Generally he has learned by this time whom the people consider best adapted to be the superin- tendent, and ordinarily the meeting unites on the best person without trouble. A few classes are formed, and teachers are chosen. Lesson papers are decided on and money is raised for their purchase, or when the school is unable to raise the money, the missionary should grant to the school its first quarter's lesson helps. The school is now launched. This is a sufficient beginning, and from these simple steps have grown some of the largest schools in the land, while from them have developed some of our best churches. When a Church or Churches Would Organize A Sunday-school.. In such a case a committee of one or more, representing the one church or the many churches interested in the proposed school, do practically the work which has just been outlined for the missionary. Tlie committee must first awaken the interest of the com- 174 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METnODS. [I'ART I. § 7, CH. i. munity, and aid it in setting the new Sunday-school on its feet. Form of Constitution. Every Sunday-school just organized must move according to a certain procedure. Not every new school by any means, however, needs a constitution. It may seem absurd for a little school of a dozen or twenty to go through the formality of adopting a constitution. Still, such a constitution often proves helpful even at the outset, and may become essential as the school grows larger. The following is the simple constitution recommended to the Sunday-schools of the American Sunday-School Union, those phrases being omitted which relate to the connection of the school with that Society. Sunday-school Constitution. Name. — This organization shall be known as the Sunday-school. Objects. — The objects of this organization shall be to study and teach the Holy Scriptures; by the blessing of God to lead youth and adults to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ; to promote their growth in Christian life ; and to provide the children in this com- munity with pure and healthful literature. Members. — All persons giving assent to this Constitution, and whose names have been properly enrolled by the Secretary, may become members of this organization. Officers. — The officers of this school shall be a Superintendent, Assistant Superintendent, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and a Libra- rian. The officers shall be elected annually, by ballot, by the adult members of the school who have been regular attendants for at least two months before the election. Public notice of such election shall be given one Sabbath before it takes place. All officers shall continue in office until their successors are duly elected and are present and willing to enter upon their respective duties. Vacancies in any of the offices may be filled at any regular meeting, provided notice thereof be given, as above required^ for two Sabbaths. irOJV TO ESTABLISH NEW SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 175 rAKT I. § 7, CII. 1.] Duty of OFFiciiRS. — The Superintendent shall punctually open and close the sessions of the school, preseive good order, preside at the teachers' meetings, appoint, consult, encourage, and aid the teachers, and direct the general aflairs of the school. The Assistant Superintendent shall aid the Superintendent in his duties, and officiate in his absence. The Secretary shall record the pi-oceedings of the school, keep a roll of its members, mark the attendance, and attend to corre- spondence, etc. ; the Treasurer shall receive and disburse the funds of the school, upon its order, and perform such other duties as usually devolve upon this office. The Librarian shall have charge of the library, distribute peri- odicals and books, charge the books to teachers and scholars, and prevent the abuse or loss of the same. Duty of Tkaciiers. — The teachers shall endeavor to prepare themselves thoroughly for their duties, be regular and punctual in their attendance, and cooperate with the oflicers in all measures for the good of the school. Amendments. — This Constitution may be amended (except the clause specifying the objects of the organization) at any regular session, by a two-thirds vote of the adult members present, pro- vided a written notice of such amendment be given to the school for two weeks previous thereto. CHAPTER II. THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL SEPARATE FROM ANY CHURCH. An Independent School Often Unavoidable. A Sunday-school separate from any church is unfortunately situated, but it often cannot avoid such isolation. It is often the pioneer, long preceding the organization of a church, or often it is an outpost to the churches of a dis- tant village, occupying a strategic point and obliged to hold the place alone. The number of schools existing apart from churches is steadily increasing. There are about 4,000 new schools called into being every year which are organized on the hilltops or out on the prairies remote from any church and therefore dissociated from churches and church-life. The American Sunday-School Union alone organizes or reorganizes not less than 2,000 such schools each year, while the denominational socie- ties and other agencies organize about as many more. These Schools Result in Good. What is to be said of the position of these lonely and independent schools ? Why, that they are like a vine, capable of in- dependent growth, but needing some support and in- stinctively reaching out like the tender shoot of a vine, for a stronger organization to lean upon. It is a good thing to awaken this desire in a community and to cause the people, stimulated by Bible study, to long for a church and church privileges. The mission school is in its healthiest and most normal state, when it is sending out its filaments to grasp the blessings of church-life. The union school, organized by the American Sunday- School Union, happily has this desire just as truly as the 176 SUNDAY-SCHOOL SEPARATE FROM CHURCH. 177 PART I. § 7, Cl[. li.] denominational school organized by the denominational society. In all cases those who attend the Sunday- school regularly are sure to develop longings for regular church privileges and, as the outcome of Sunday-school attendance, are presently seeking to organize a church, if the conditions warrant, and if not, then to go regularly, as they had not before, to the nearest church. These pioneer and frontier schools, thrust out as pickets beyond the line of the churches, invariably act as feeders to the churches. They send in from the country side as church worshippers a great number whose interest in church-go- ing has been awakened in the Sunday-school or they de- velop into churches themselves as the occasion requires. Union Sunday-schools are quite as likely to do this as those of a denominational name. They weld the people together in common sympathies, till presently the people, made up as they are of different denominations, forget their differences and come together as one, forming a church of that denomination on which they can best agree, and which is most likely to live. These isolated schools, though swaying in the breeze in eager desire for church life and support, are yet of themselves long-lived. They live on and maintain them- selves, because the people in the locality learn to appre- ciate them. They are often the only opportunity which destitute people in rural neighborhoods have of religious worshii). They are a break and an ui)lift in the monot- ony of frontier life apart from neighbors. They are often maintained with eagerness and determination. A school may die, but so may a church. It is safe to say that, taking the country through, — the rate of mortality is no greater in the former case than in the latter. The Spring Mills Union Sunday-school, started in Pennsyl- vania over seventy years ago, is still prospering, w^hile 178 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [part I. § 7, CH. ii. similar schools twenty, thirty, and even fifty years old, are not uncommon. The Place They Occupy and Their Consequent Needs. Such schools are the only religious organiza- tions in the community. They must furnish whatever is furnished to the community of spiritual life and stimulus. There is need in every community of a prayer-meeting, a young peoples' society and a preaching service, and the Sunday-school often supplies these things. Such isolated schools steadily enlarge their influence, and should aim to do all they can do in church lines, until a church is formed. They should lead, when there is need for it, to church organization and, when there is no such need, to church attendance. Duty of the Nearest Churches. The nearest churches should care for them. It is cruel to let them struggle on without sympathy. Christian fellowship and encouragement. Such schools are often making a brave fight at great odds for the religious life of the community where they are located. A few earnest and self-denying Christians are carrying great burdens in order to rescue these hamlets from heathenism. A village or a city may be a few miles away. A flourishing church may be located so far away as not to be easily accessible to the community, and yet so near that a few devoted Chris- tians in the church might easily drive out every Sunday and aid in the school. There is a certain large village where for years this work has been done. One school, three miles out, another five, and another seven, are all cared for in this fashion, — members of the church go- ing out every Sunday in all weathers to aid in these schools. These innumerable lonely Sunday-schools, scat- tered all over this land, would take on new life if such efforts in churches were general. CHAPTER III. THE COUNTRY SUNDAY-SCHOOL. Difficulties to be Met. Not a few difficulties are to be met in organizing and sustaining country Sunday- schools. 1. Poverty a?id discouragement are often to be fomid among the people. This is not true, of course, in thriving villages or prosperous agricultural districts ; but it is true in outlying rural neighborhoods back among the hills or out on the plains. The movement of population has been for many years toward the cities and away from the country. The retired districts feel the loss of popu- lation keenly and are no longer able to provide for them- selves the religious privileges they once had.^ 2. Indifference to religion naturally arises from the cessation of religious privileges and the inability to supply them. In many a retired rural neighborhood this is the prevailing state of feeling. 3. A lack of workers is the necessary result. The active and energetic too often are not content to stay in the country. The young people have very likely gone to the city. It is consequently difficult to find any who are willing to take charge of a Sunday-school. 4. Denominational differences are much more em- phasized in the country than in the city, — probably because it is more difficult to gratify such preferences. In a little community of a dozen families it is not uncom- mon to find five or six denominations represented. 1 See an admirable chapter on the country in Dr. Josiah Strong's " The New Era." Also " Handy Helps for Busy Workers," Chap, ii,, by Dr. Edwin W. Rice. 179 180 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [I'ART I. § 7, CH. iii. 5. Distance and lack of conveyance increase the difficulty. It is not easy in the country for people to get back and forth between house and school. School attendance involves a long walk or else the harnessing of tired horses. 6. Midwinter and early spring are especially trying seasons. In the one case the snows often make the road impassable; in the other case the mud. How These Difficulties Are Met. These diffi- culties have been recognized and studied by the American Sunday-School Union in their three-quarters of a century of successful work, and the methods which in the expe- rience of its missionaries have proved successful in over- coming all hindrances are these : 1. Place of meeting. Secure some place without cost where the school may meet. The district school- house can ordinarily be obtained, but when this is refused, a grange hall or a farmer's kitchen may serve the pur- pose. Even a barn, a sawmill, a railroad station, a brush arbor or an oak-tree has furnished excellent temporary quarters. 2. Workers in the school. Find out the two or three who can carry on the school and persuade them to take up this duty. Generally it will be found in almost every hamlet that two or three are there who are Christians, and who can be induced to act as officers and teachers in the school. Sometimes one suitable for superintendent cannot be found in the immediate community. In that case it is generally possible to find some earnest Christian at a distance who is willing to come to the neighborhood every Sunday and undertake this duty. Many schools are thus officered. In one case a superintendent walked seven miles to his school every Sunday and back home at night. In another a superintendent drove every Sunday THE COUNTRY SUNDAY SCHOOL. 181 PART I. § 7, CH. iii.] ten miles to be at his school and, afterward, finding him- self obliged to sell his horse, changed his distant school for one nearer, and then walked every Sunday five miles out and five miles back to superintend that. AVhen it proves impossible to secure a superintendent in this way, the missionary sometimes holds a series of meetings before he undertakes to organize a school, many are con- verted and then it is easy to find a superintendent and teachers. 3. Pecuniary aid. It is always best that the people themselves should do what they can toward purchasing supplies, — lesson papers and the like, — for the use of their school. They will value the school more and be the better able to support themselves later on, while mis- sionary money is thus released to do good further on. But when a school is just beginning, it is often wise to help it with a moderate gift that the few who are willing be not overburdened and that all be encouraged by such an expression of sympathy. 4. House to house visitatiofi. Nothing is more im- portant than this to make a Sunday-school succeed. The people must be seen and their interests secured. 5. A union Sunday-school often necessary. In divided neighborhoods, where people of different de- nominations are found, and religious preferences are strong, it is not wise or best to attempt to force on the people a denominational school. Let this come later, if thought best, when all are united and a church, — nec- essarily of some denomination, — is formed ; but not now. Let nothing disturb the harmony, not even denomina- tional literature. There are places where a denomina- tional school is welcome and finds its warm adherents without driving any out of sympathy with it, into absence from Sunday-school privileges. Under such circum- 183 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [part I. § 7, CH. iii. Stances let such a school be established. There is a place for it. But let nothing of this sort be forced upon a people to the grief or irritation of a considerable number. 6. A Sunday-school library, as has already been said in another connection, is a great help in a country school in keeping the children in the school and especially in holding them in the school during the winter months. The young people are eager for the books during the long winter evenings, and will come out on Sunday to the school to get them. 7. Evangelistic meetings are almost essential to strengthen a country school, especially when it exists apart from a church. In such a case the school greatly needs a wider diffusion of the spirit of Christ that the self-denials incident to maintaining the school be cheer- fully and successfully met. What the Country Church Should do for its Out-Districts. 1. Hold district Sunday -schools. Some country churches are doing a noble work in this regard, main- taining one, two, three, or more such schools. Other churches, straightened in ability by the movement of population and the consequent loss of workers, have made the fatal mistake of abandoning their Sunday- school work in out-districts. Because they are weak- ened, they cut off their source of supplies, and then wonder that they grow more weak. 2. Put the best men in charge of these out-lying schools. It is important to dignify the work and to have it maintained in the very best way. 3. Have rotating libraries. A number of schools might combine and agree to exchange libraries from year to year. A library club might be formed and managed THE COUNTRY SUNDAY-SCnOOL. 183 PART I. § 7, CH. iii.] much ill the same way as is a magazine club in a village. Six schools might agree each to purchase a different library and then occupy six years in passing them around before a new purchase was needed. Or better, one school each year might purchase a new library and the rotation be kept up year by year. 4. School reunions. The home and branch schools should never fail to meet together at least once a year on anniversary day. What a Country School Can do. 1. // is under greaf /imitations. It is small in size and consequently cannot do as it would be glad to in re- gard to grading. It cannot divide itself into departments. It cannot arrange its classes carefully. It is limited in re- gard to teachers. It must take what is available. It cannot have the appliances of the larger schools. Its rooms must be small and not specially adapted to the purpose. 2. Yet it has no cause for discouragement. It has the essence of Sunday-school success. The Word of God is in its hand and the Holy Spirit is sure to lead those who teach. It has less to distract and hinder its influence. It often has a greater hold on the individual pupil in conse- quence. At any rate, the country school is peculiarly needed. At least two-thirds of the population of this land live in the rural districts. Most of the influential men of to-day in our cities were born and bred in the country. There is every reason to suppose that this will continue and fresh infusions of blood from the country will continue to be needful in order to give success to all the great enterprises undertaken and maintained in the city. It is desirable, or rather it is essential, that the Sunday-school be maintained in the country to train aright those who are to be the future leaders of the land. CHAPTER IV. THE MISSION SUNDAY-SCHOOL IN THE CITY. Mission Work in the Church School. The best Sunday-school mission work is done when the mission element is brought into the church school. There it is easily absorbed and shaped. The mission element, made up of children who have little training at home and whose only discipline is received at our public schools, is brought in contact with the cultivation and politeness seen in children from the best homes, and the object lesson is impressive and beneficial. It is good for both classes to know something of one another. On the one hand, the mission children are elevated and given refine- ment by the contact ; on the other hand, a disposition to pride and to indifference to the poor on the part of the children of the well-to-do, is stopped. A Mission Chapel. But often it is impossible to reach .the children of the poor by such a method. They will not come into our elegant up-town churches, however welcome they may be made. Perhaps they are too far away. Perhaps they would be uncomfortable in their squalid clothes and would make others still more uncom- fortable. What then? Why, then a mission chapel and a mission Sunday-school in the down-town neighborhood is absolutely necessary. Under such circumstances it is desirable to have a church back of the enterprise or, pos- sibly, a combination of churches. In New Haven, Connecticut, for example, are two important and flourishing missions. One, the English Hall school, is under the care of the City Missionary Society; the other, the Welcome Hall school, is sustained by the Church of the Redeemer. Both are 184 THE MISSION SUNDAY SCHOOL IN THE CITY. 185 PART I, § 7, ClI. iv.] doing a magnificent work and reaching all races and religions. In the Welcome Hall school are Jews, Italians, Irish, Germans, ne- groes and other races and nationalities, all happy together and studying the Bible in the same classes. In all our great cities you find the same. Nothing is more remarkabLe among all the forms of Christian work done to-day than the vigorous mission Sunday- schools in our cities. They are donig a work that can be done in no other way. What should be aimed at in these mission schools? T. Develop an esprit de corps. Let the school come to have a satisfaction in its existence. Let it cultivate ambitions. Let the individuality of the school grow. Let it have a personality of its own. This is important in order to secure its life. 2. Let the religious spirit dominate. Without crowd- ing or sudden haste, the aim of all concerned in the man- agement of the school should be to bring these wild chil- dren of the street to Christ. There is temptation to let this paramount aim drop into the background, there to be forgotten. There are so many preliminary things to be done, there is so much danger in hastening unduly, there is so much difficulty in reaching success in the higher aim, that a drop to a lower level is easy and natural. 3. Teach the school self-reliance. All forms of mis- sion work are liable to be nursed too long. Weakness and pauperism are sure to result from such treatment. The mission school should be taught to govern itself as fan as possible, to raise funds for its support, to assume more and more responsibility. It should choose its offi- cers as far as possible. It should determine on its measures for itself to a certain extent. It is not wise nor kind to do everything for a rapidly growing child. Its years and its ability should be recognized and trusted. So a school that could not go alone at first, must be taught to walk without constantly holding a mother-hand. CHAPTER V. sunday-schools in summer and winter. Should the Country Schools Close in Winter? The Reasons Given for it are Inadequate. The day-school does not close ; why, then, should the Sunday- school ? But the day-school is near by, — it is pleaded, — while the Sunday-school is often in a church at some dis- tance. This may be an argument for the church to open a neighborhood school in the winter, to close again as soon as the weather is settled in the spring and people are *able again to get down regularly to church. It is claimed that horses have too much to do on Sunday to take chil- dren to Sunday-school as well as people to church. But then the Sunday-school should be arranged to come im- mediately before or after church and the older people should attend. The Objections to Closing the Sunday-school in the Winter are these : 1 . The best time of the year for study is thus lost. There is more leisure for study in the winter. The long evenings give the farmer and his children opportunities for reading that should be enjoyed to the full. It is a sad misfortune to a rural community if, just as the time ar- rives when all who will can find abundant time to study the Bible, the agency that would stimulate and organize and make successful such study, is suddenly taken away. 2. Danger of a permanent closing. There is always danger when a school is closed for the winter that it may lb6 SUNDAY SCHOOLS IN SUM JJEE AND WINTER. 187 PART 1. § 7, ClI. v.] not be resumed in the spring. An organization like a Sunday-school can run for some time on its momentum. Even if agencies are not satisfactory and the force to maintain it is slight, yet it will keep on indefinitely. But when a school stops altogether, when the habit of attend- ance is discontinued, when children as well as their elders have otlier ways of spending their Sundays, it is some- times a task to reopen the school in the spring. All Sun- day-school missionaries find it an important part of their work to see that such hibernating schools are aroused and set to work again after the winter is over, 3. A loss of momentum. Even when the school is started up again easily and is certain to be resumed, still there is a distinct loss. The school has not its former power. It takes a long time in the spring to bring those in the school, teachers as well as pupils, back to the in- terest, energy and spirituality which was in the school when it closed the previous fall. Every railroad train loses time, and suffers from wear and tear, whenever it is brought to a stop. The same is equally true of a Sun- day-school. By all means keep it open and at work throughout the year, if possible. Influences Helpful to Keep Open the Country School. First, a good library. This has already been mentioned. Second, a resolute superintendent and faith- ful teachers. Third, the fact that the school is held in the nearest schoolhouse. Fourth, a revival spirit and revival work. Use of the Home Department in Winter. When a country school must close in winter, — and no doubt such cases occur, — then the home department should at once be organized to make good the place of the school so far as possible. A school that must close in winter can at least keep up a smouldering fire on every hearth- 188 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [TART I. § 7, CH. V. Stone till the spring opens, by expecting all to continue their Bible study at their homes and by arranging for some form of communication among the solitary students of the home department. Should City Schools Close in Summer? It has become quite customary to close up our city schools in midsummer, sometimes for a period of one or even two months. The Reasons urged for it are these : 1. The absence of teachers ami pupils. During the summer every one who can takes a vacation and absents himself from the city. The habit has grown to enormous proportions and certainly is based on the real need of the inhabitants that they seek a restful place in the country or by the seashore in the hot weather. As a result Sun- day-schools connected with our up-town city churches, if they try to keep open during the summer, are so de- pleted that they cannot be sustained on their ordinary basis. Two-thirds in nearly every class are absent ; half of the teachers are absent. The superintendent and most of his assistants are probably away. 2. Teachers ciaim a rest in the summer time. They say they cannot work continuously through the year with- out a vacation and that even if they are not away from the city they cannot come out to Sunday-school during the days of sultry heat. 3. Tlie closing of the public schools in the summer demoralizes the Sunday-school. Unless the Sunday- school follows the same practice the pupils sometimes rebel and stay away. 4. Disconforts of school attendance during the sum- mer heats. This undoubtedly is very great in the city. The heat reflected from the brick walls of the houses SUNDAY-SCHOOLS IN SU3IMER AND WINTER. 189 PART I. § 7, CH. v.] makes the streets almost unendurable at the noon hour in midsummer when the schools generally meet and it takes courage and resolution to maintain a Sunday- school under such conditions. The Disadvantages of Closing School are great. There is a loss outright of an important part of a quar- ter's lessons. There is a loss further of the energy and enthusiasm that are gained in a steady course of study. It is impossible to start a school in the fall with the same vitality and success which it had in the early summer when it closed. A summer spent away from Sunday- school must result in a certain dissipation of interest, and it is always hard to regain in September what has been lost in July and August. Then, again, a school closed for the summer always means a loss of pupils. Some are sure to wander away in the vacation and never come back again. Once more, such a summer interregnum of gospel privileges works great evil for those pupils who are obliged to remain in the city and who are shut out of school during the summer. Such are generally those from the poorer homes. Sunday-school means much to them, — more, if possible, in summer than in winter, for in summer they are lonely, their mates are away, their day-schools are closed. They miss the Sunday-school and not having it to help in passing the day, they wander off into the fields or fall into bad company on the streets and lose their reverence for the Sabbath. How CAN THESE INJURIES BE AVOIDED? I. Readjust the scJiool for the stiiiimer. Do not close it altogether, but combine classes; secure new teachers for the vacation ; keep the school in session for a short time only. Enough will remain to make it possi- ble to maintain a skeleton school. There can be an adult class, several classes of children of different ages and a 190 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [I'ART I, § 7, CH, V. primary class. Such a temporary and imperfect school is far better than none and will do great good. 2. Give letters to all going into the country. Those who leave the school for the summer should attend school where they are. They need it and the school needs it where they spend the summer. It will certainly be an inducement for them to attend if letters are given them stating that they are members of such a Sunday-school and commending them to the Sunday-school where tliey may chance to be. Such a letter would be sure to awaken a marked interest between the visiting pupil and the country school. 3. Maintain the home department. During summer when people are largely away it is helpful to transfer all absentees to the home department and expect them dur- ing their absence to prepare themselves on the lesson every week. They will enjoy vacation better for this and in the fall will come into the school in closer touch with it. CHAPTER VI. DENOMINATIONAL AND UNION SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. Harmony of Interests. There ought to be the utmost harmony between all forces at work in Sunday-school lines. Denominational and union Sunday-schools certainly help each other. Union schools often develop into denomina- tional schools, and denominational schools are constantly giving for the establishment of union schools in needy neighborhoods. Under these circumstances the societies that organize Sunday-schools should help one another. Each society has its own place and its own work. There should be no rivalry between them, but each may well re- joice in the success of the other. In view of the millions of children still out of Sunday-school and still to be reached by missionary effort every agency at work has enough to do. The different methods are adapted to distinct stages of society and consequently as a rule denominational work is not likely to be attempted where union work is best adapted to succeed nor does union work wish to establish itself in those places where denominational work is likely to succeed. When a Denominational School is Desirable. It is desirable when it is the natural choice of the people. Too often the denominational feeling runs high in a little rural community. There are many denominations repre- sented, but ordinarily only two or three families hold the same religious views, so that no one is able to gratify his denominational preferences. A denominational school in such a community is quite likely to awake opposition and 191 192 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL .METHODS. [part I. § 7, CH. vi. to develop friction. It may tend to disintegration. Even a Sunday-school without a denominational name but using denominational lesson helps, is practically denominational, and sometimes causes ill-feeling which culminates in the withdrawal of families and the breaking up of the school. Sometimes the eagerness for denominational advantage on the part of outsiders, — neighboring churches or pastors or benevolent societies, — has been known to work great disadvantage to a school. Such over-zealous sectarianism comes into the school, insists that the school shall be denominational, or at least use denominational literature, and then the school falls to pieces, killed by denomina- tional zeal. It would probably in time have developed into a denominational school if all had been patient and had been willing it should turn into that denominational path for which it was best fitted. What is necessary in order to have a good denominational school is a suitable unity of feeling in the community regarding the matter. When this is developed, no matter how or when, a denominational school is the choice of a community. When such a school reaches the whole community and is an offence to none, because it is not of their denomination, then a denominational school is desirable. When a community is so far harmonized that it is ready to unite in organizing a church, which means ordinarily a church having denominational affiliations, then a denominational school is usually proper. Let Sunday-sch.ools, then, be denomina- tional when ripe for it, that is to say when the community is prac- tically united in one denominational view. Beyond question a church is the organization designed of God to bind Christ's people together and to make them a power in the world for the upbuilding of his kingdom. Sunday-schools are usually better for the wise mothering care of a strong church absorbing them, supervising them, energizing them, giving them a home. Whenever, then, a Sunday-school develops into a church and becomes a part of it, this is a matter of rejoicing. That in such a process it usually becomes denominational is incidental. The UNION SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 193 TART I. § 7, CII. vi.] tiling to be rejoiced at is that the scliool is now nourished in the bosom of a local church and working with it. Most Sunday- schools organized by missionary effort are obliged to work apart from churches in distant outlying districts. A large proportion of the Sunday-schools of the West and South are necessarily union and are so situated that they cannot be connected with churches. When occasionally one of these schools grows strong and finally becomes a church, those who originally organized it on a mission basis are as glad as any others can be. When a Union School is Desirable. A union school is often the only school that is feasible. 1 . // Jits the needs of divided and sparsely populated communities. There are not enough members of any one denomination to maintain a school of their own kind in a little hamlet and if there were, such a school would leave those of other denominations outside, for while they would be welcome, yet as they would feel at a disad- vantage in such a school, ordinarily they would stay away. It is certainly the courteous and wise thing under such circumstances to organize a school which will draw all into it and give all equal rights in it. 2. // often prepares the way for a church and other denominational work. It does this by fusing the people together. As they work together Sunday after Sunday, they come to love one another, they forget their differ- ences, they see that the people of God stand very close to one another and that denominational differences are of comparatively slight importance, so when the time is ripe for a church to be formed, they cheerfully unite in forming a church of that denomination which has the most adherents or the best prospects of life. 3. Such union schools live. Any newly organized school is liable to die. Its infant life often depends on the nourishing care of one or two in the community of 194 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. V - [I'ART I. § 7, CH. vi. sufficient consecration to carry it through its early trials. Such persons sometimes move away or die and then the school is given up. But what keeps a school alive is, first of all, the purpose of the people a,mong whom the school exists, second, the faithfulness of the missionary workers, who started the school, in looking after it after- ward, and third, the fact that, when possible, these schools are committed to the care of neighboring churches. A missionary of the American Sunday-School Union spent five years in Nebraska and in the time organized 125 schools. Returning after an absence of ten years he made investigation and found that at least no of these schools were still living. Fifteen only of the whole 125 failed to send to him word of their existence. It is not likely that any better report could be made of the same number of schools whatever name they might bear. The Test of Value is Evangelistic Power. After all, the test to which the union school should be sub- jected is its evangelistic influence. The aim of the union school is to kindle the gospel flame in some neglected neighborhood whether this result is a denomi- national school or not. On the broad basis of a common Christianity the school seeks to make the Bible known and to win souls to Christ. As a rule about one union school in nine develops into a church. The rest are located where no church is needed, and generally where the outside edges of several parishes touch and where people are so far from church' that they have stopped church-going and are of so many different faiths that they do not work together. The union Sunday-school brings them together, warms their hearts with a new Christian purpose and leads them to church attendance. Wherever such a Sunday-school is established, the nearest UNION SUNDAY-SCHOOLS. 195 PART I. § 7, CH. vi.] churches are sure to feel the influence and to be blessed. The people of these rural communities grow hungry for public worship and presently find their way to the house of God, often from a long distance, connect themselves with God's people and so give new life and strength to feeble country churches. Such a work is a blessing to the denominations in every way. It resuscitates feeble and dying churches. It strengthens them so that they are able to do more for themselves and otliers and require less from missionary boards. In short it is continually releasing money for new denominational work and en- abling enterprises to give to denominational causes which seldom gave before. Section 8. Sunday-schools Associated. CHAPTER I. THE STATE AND OTHER SUNDAY-SCHOOL ASSOCIATIONS. The Sunday-schools of this country have increased greatly in number and many have come into organized relation to one another. The evangelical Sunday-schools are generally combined into state, county and sometimes township associations. The state organizations accredit delegates to an International Sunday-school Convention, which aims to include most of the Sunday-schools of this land. 1. The International Sunday -School Convention meets triennially, the delegates coming from all parts of this country and Canada. It does not profess to be an or- ganic body having a continued existence. At this con- vention an International Lesson Committee is appointed every six years which selects passages of Scripture and Golden Texts for the Uniform Series of International Sunday-school Lessons. This committee came into ex- istence in 1872 and under its skillful management the International Lessons have been widely adopted, not only in this country but throughout the world. 2. State Sunday-school Association. In a large num- ber of states there is a State Sunday-school Association also holding conventions usually each year. At such conventions the Sunday-school interests of the state are 196 THE STA TE SUNDA Y-SCHOOL ASSOCIA TIOXS. 197 PART I. § 8, CH. i.] discussed and various improvements are suggested. Be- sides the usual officers necessary to any convention, these associations employ one or more paid ''field-workers," whose business is to gather statistics, hold institutes and promote the organization of town and county Sunday- school Associations. Nearly all of these associations do not undertake to do direct missionary work. They are formed to secure the development and higher efficiency of Sunday-schools already existing. 3. Cou7ity Associations have been organized in sev- eral of the states and are often thriving organizations. It is their purpose to bring all the Sunday-schools of the county into fellowship and to develop their efficiency by frequent meetings. 4. The District and Town Associatiojts serve the same purpose in a more limited area. How THESE Organizations are Planned and Con- ducted. 1. The officers are generally a president, secretary, treasurer, executive committee and in case of the State Association, one or more field-workers. These workers may be a general field superintendent, a primary super- intendent, and home department workers, while in a few states the State Association employs missionaries also. 2. The meetings of the State Associations are con- ventions and institutes. The difference between the two forms of meetings is ordinarily rather in the design than in the method. The convention is designed to give stimulus and enthusiasm to the schools; the institute is for educational purposes. CHAPTER II. SUNDAY-SCHOOL CONVENTIONS. Advantages of Sunday-school Conventions.. It is unquestionably a desirable thing that the Sunday-schools of the land be brought into association with one another. The Sunday-school idea is most important and needs to be emphasized in the minds of workers as only conven- tions are likely to emphasize it. The Sunday-school organization is most complex and needs the light on its management that can be gained from a conference of workers. The task of the Sunday-school worker is some- times discouraging and always severe. He needs the encouragement that comes from the contact of earnest souls engaged in a common effort. It is desirable that the schools of the land seek to enter this combination for mutual benefit. It is well that every Sunday-school worker should attend such meetings as far as possible. Conventions Distinguished from Institutes. Sun- day-school Conventions, though similar, are not to be confounded with institutes. As has just been said, the latter are to educate, the former to stimulate. The con- vention is designed to awaken fresh interest in the Sun- day-school, to discuss Sunday-school questions and to promote the cause. It is impossible to keep conventions and institutes from trenching somewhat on each other's ground. They differ partly in the emphasis placed on the distinctive designs of each and still more in the repre- sentative character of the meeting. Conventions aje, 198 SUNDAY-SCHOOL CONVENTIONS. 199 PART I. § 8, CH. ii.] either town, county, or state. The convention is to arouse enthusiasm and devotion to the work, to bring the workers together and make them feel that they are one. A convention is generally marked by a crowd, by prom- inent speakers, by various novelties, by a good time and by an effort to collect money for its work. Make Conventions Profitable. There should be abundant material secured for thought and discussion. These conventions are too often notable for the absence of prominent clergymen. When such clergymen have been asked afterward why they were not present, the an- swer has several times been, " Because I knew I should get nothing there of value." It may be said in reply that these ministers would have prized the convention if they had been more interested in the Sunday-school. Or it may be said that the convention is not designed to aid ministers in the higher departments of Biblical study, but to give elementary truths to beginners in the Sunday- school work. Or it may be said that ministers should attend these conventions to give of their abundance to others rather than to expect to add to their own store. But, whatever be said, it still remains a fact that the con- vention ought to be so strong and so helpful that the ministry would be sure to go away from it instructed, re- freshed and strengthened. How may the needs of such men be met ? 1. Underlying principles must be disciissed more at length, and not merely Sunday-school methods. In con- sidering themes relating to Sunday-schools, more of those topics should be taken up in which ministers are specially interested. 2. Leading 7ninisfers in the co?jvention. Not merely leading Sunday-school experts but prominent clergymen should be brought forward and their ideas be sought. 200 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY- SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART I. § 8, cii. ii. Discussions should be arranged between them. A free parhament should be had in which they may have a chance. 3. Conventions must do something. The best men are busy men and will not take time to come to such meetings unless there is something in them to be done as well as to be heard. The busy man wants to know what good he can do by going, not simply what good he can get. This feeling must be met by making the conven- tion a place to discuss and settle important courses of action. Here, too, is certainly the place for reports from the missionary work of the Sunday-school as conducted at home and abroad by the denominational societies and the American Sunday-School Union. CHAPTER III. SUNDAY-SCHOOL INSTITUTES. Object. The object of a Sunday-school institute is to instruct the teachers of the neighborhood in matters nec- essary to fit them for the largest usefulness in the work. The same general topics are considered in an institute as are taken up in a normal class; — the difference being that the normal class is held week after week while the insti- tute lasts only for a few days. Method. The institute meets at some convenient centre and holds its sessions for one, or two or more days according as it is able to bring together and to hold those who are willing to receive instruction. The methods pursued are partly by lectures, partly by the use of text- books, partly by question and answer and partly by the preparation of themes. It is the design of the managers of such institutes to bring to them men of ability to act as instructors. The institute proceeds with conversations, discussions, lectures with questions following, model class- teaching and the like. Hie aim is to have as wide a va- riety of method as possible in order to secure greater interest and to meet the needs of all classes of people. Constituency of the Institute. This is very flex- ible. Sometimes it may be best to have the whole state represented. If some great teacher from across the water were here and his time was short, it would be manifestly better to have all who were eager to hear him come in from a wide radius. But if the institute wei-e to be conducted by one who had time for it, and was 201 202 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IET1I0DS. [PART I. § 8, CH, iii. most concerned to do it in an effective way, it would be far better to hold an institute in one county and then in the next and so on till the whole state were covered. Or an institute for a smaller territory, even, might be very desirable. If a suitable instructor could be obtained, it would be far better for all the Sunday-schools in a town or in a city, to unite in an institute and then to have thor- ough work done, and the institute continue long enough to open the doors of knowledge to the teachers of the place. The Success of an Institute depends upon several considerations, — the leader, the variety secured, the na- ture of the work done, the spirit of the students and the facilities for instruction. 1. The leader. A first-class instructor is essential to give success to an institute. He should be scholarly and enthusiastic. He should be an administrator and able to plan wisely. He should be able to understand men and be able to recognize who are fitted to be helpers in. this work and to enlist their cooperation. It is impossible for him to carry the burdens alone, even though he be the normal superintendent for the state ; he must train and bring into service a large corps of volunteer assistants, pastors, educators and others, who will take up the work after he has organized it and carry it on successfully when he is away. 2. Variety in the management of an institute is an essential. This will awaken curiosity, stimulate interest and develop thought. Dr. Vincent has had an unusu- ally wide experience in connection with Sunday-school institutes and in his admirable book entitled ''The Mod- ern Sunday-school," he devotes a chapter to institutes, suggesting in it some thirty different features to introduce in order to give variety. Without dwelling upon them, SUNDAY-SCHOOL INSTITUTES. 203 PART I. § 8, CH. iii.] it will be suggestive and helpful to give a catalogue of some of them here. They are these : (i) Present in a series of brief addresses a consideration of the entire work of the Sunday-school. (2) Eluci- date topics by conversations. (3) Hold a free parliament in which any one has a chance to say a word on any topic he pleases. (4) Hold a promise meeting. (5) Give a lecture lesson, a lecture, i. e., which is often interrupted by the lecturer to question his audience or by an audience to question the lecturer. (6) A list of personal questions is made out and distributed to be filled out by the teach- ers present and subsequently read, — without the use of names. (7) Put test questions to be answered by all who can, these answers serving in place of reports. (8) Use the question drawer. (9) Prepare a set of serial questions to which each teacher is to write answers, give these out and read the answers afterward. Let committees arrange the answers. (10) Let lectures be given, followed by questions or discussions, (i i) Let specimen lessons be given which all should observe and study. Such specimen lessons may be taught a Bible class, or an intermediate class, or a normal class. Even a specimen Sunday-school session might be held be- fore the institute. (12) A session or part of it may be spent in map-drawing. (13) A small institute may with great profit spend an hour in preparing a lesson for teaching by selecting a golden text, ascertaining the central thought, preparing questions, choos- ing illustrations and making an analysis. (14) Study a section of history in the Bible. (15) Analyze the books of the Bible describ- ing the author of each, its object, contents and characteristics. (16) Take up such a single theme as " The wanderings of Israel " and devote, if necessary, several sessions to it. (17) Take up the sacred places and tell what made them memorable.- (18) Discuss the meanings of tabernacle and temple service. (19) Bring for- ward a Biblical museum and take it up article by article. (20) Spend an hour in mutual confessions as to personal habits of Bible study and the like, (21) Divide the institute into sections for pas- tors, superintendents, librarians, adult class teachers, primary class teachers and the like, each holding a separate meeting. (22) Hold a service of consecration. 1. The work done. No institute is successful unless 204 3TANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [part I. § 8, CH. iii. it really instructs. There must be solid thought and careful preparation, combined with experience to make the institute worth the expenditure of time and money which it involves. If it is well planned and well taught, if really fresh and helpful truth is brought forward, this will presently be recognized and appreciated. 4. The spirit of the students. Much of the success of an institute depends upon the spirit of those who attend it. It is not enough to sow the seed faithfully, the soil must be in good condition and receive the seed gladly. An institute of people who are frivolous, who have come for the sake of the journey or the social attractions or the privilege of visiting a city, instead of doing solid, hard work, can by no possibility be suc- cessful. 5. The facilities of an institute affect its success. An institute should be held in a place adapted to it, a place easy of access, in a room large enough for it, with con- veniences for instruction, — maps, blackboards, etc. Sum- mer institutes have proved a great success. Families meet in the summer in shaded grounds used for such purpose, spend two or three weeks in cottages, attend classes of various sorts with lectures and entertainments in the evening and get both pleasure and profit from the outing. Such Sunday-school assemblies are now held in various parts of the country and are very successful. Normal Superintendents. It would be a great advantage to Sunday-school work throughout the land if some method could be devised by which methods of training Sunday-school workers for larger efficiency were in the hands of regularly appointed normal superintendents. Such superintendents should be numerous enough to be able to do thorough work in the districts to which they were assigned. There need not in all cases be a superintendent to every state, while in the case of large states it might be desirable to SUNDAY SCHOOL INSTITUTES. 205 TART I, § 8, cii. iii,] have more than one. Every such superintendent should be a thorough educator and a devoted Sunday-school man. He should be a man of standing and of force of character, fully the peer of the state superintendents of education in our public schools. His busi- ness should be to develop methods of educating the Sunday-school teachers of his state to be thoroughly fitted for their work. To do this he might spend a good part of his time in holding Sunday- school institutes for the benefit of teachers, planning to cover the whole state in course of time. Once a year in every considerable city and in every district of four or five neighboring towns, there ought to be held for a period of two weeks, an institute which the teachers in the neighborhood should feel themselves in honor bound to attend if possible. Such an institute should be in- augurated by the superintendent and afterward visited from time to time, but he should train neighboring pastors and scholarly men in other walks of life, to take up the work and carry it on reg- ularly. Normal work of this character would commend itself not only to the Sunday-school but to the churches generally and, especially, to the pastors. CHAPTER IV. PRIMARY teachers' UNIONS. What is a Primary Union ? The work of teaching little children is so peculiar that it has been found desir- able by those engaged in such work to combine for the study of methods. Often the lessons taken up in pri- mary departments are unlike those in the older portions of the school, and in all cases the methods followed are distinctive. To teach little children is an art of peculiar difficulty. It requires a knowledge of child-nature and the use of methods developed by experience. The pri- mary union has been devised to aid the work of teaching little children. It combines features of the Sunday- school institute, the normal class and the teachers' meeting. It seeks to secure the best work in the primary department by bringing together primary teachers for study and counsel, — both in small communities and over a large territory. How Organized. Since it aims to reach teachers of a peculiar class of whom there are comparatively few in each school, it is found desirable for such teachers in all the schools of a city or village to combine in one primary union. Such a union then chooses a full set of officers, president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer. It usually appoints a number of committees, every member of the union being expected to serve on some one of these committees. Among such committees may be a lesson committee to arrange the exercises for the meet- ings, a music committee to secure good music at the 2(J6 PRIMARY TEACHERS' UNIONS. 207 FART I. § 8, CH. iv.] meetings, a sociable committee to promote acquaint- ance and keep lists of the members, and a library- committee to procure a suitable primary library and to care for it. Character of the Meetings. It is usual at the meetings of the primary union to study the lesson for the coming Sabbath, especially with reference to the best method of teaching it, and then to take up some branch of study designed to fit the teacher for greater usefulness, such as child-nature, the use of the blackboard, normal topics and the like. The International Union of Primary- Teachers has issued a list of 150 or more topics suitable for use at these primary meetings. The International Union. The primary unions of this country and Canada have combined in an Interna- tional Union of Primary Sunday-school Teachers. This organization has an international council consisting of a number from each state and province. There is a cen- tral committee of the international council appointed to act for the council between the meetings of the Interna- tional Triennial Sunday-school Convention. The Inter- national Primary Union promotes organized primary work, issuing a Quarterly Bulletin, a Primary Teachers^ Manual and other publications, assisting in the organi- zation of state and county primary unions, the holding of primary institutes and of summer schools for the study of the methods of primary teaching. In some states a primary secretary is employed to organize primary work and lecture on primary methods of instruction. CHAPTER V. SUNDAY-SCHOOL MISSIONARY SOCIETIES. The Sunday-school in this modern day has become a great missionary force and several societies now aim to promote the extension of Christ's kingdom by organizing Sunday-schools. This form of missionary work began early in the nineteenth century. The Philadelphia Sun- day and Adult School Union was organized in 1817, and in 1824 this body, having a large number of affiliated societies in different parts of the country, secured a change of name and afterward was called the American Sunday-School Union. The object of this society is to carry forward home missionary operations by organizing Sunday-schools in destitute regions and thus kindling a gospel fire which shall spread from point to point. Through all these years this society has been actively engaged in this work, sending its missionaries for the most part to the western frontiers or into the South. Of late years it has also found work to do in New England and other eastern states where from the movement of people into the cities an ebbing population has been left destitute of religious privileges. The society has been organizing Sunday-schools at the rate of over three every day of every year for the last three-quarters of a century. This society, which is supported, managed, officered and worked by Christians from a number of denominations, works on a union or interdenominational basis and organ- izes Sunday-schools which are union. The reason, as well as the necessity, for this is that in innumerable places in this country there are little communities of widely-scat- 208 SUNDAY-SCHOOL MISSIONARY SOCIETIES. 209 PART I. § 8, CH. v.] tered rural populations, where the people represent a great variety of denominations. The evangelical Christian basis of the American Sunday-School Union exactly fits their need. They could not agree on a denominational work and there are not enough of a kind to support a school of their own denomination. Therefore the school must be interdenominational, that is, union, or not exist. In a land where the census reports 143 different denominations, a society working in outlying rural dis- tricts on a broad union basis, meets with peculiar favor and often can hope for no favor otherwise. Those who understand its working best, no matter how strongly denominational they may be in their sympathies, ap- preciate its work, because it invariably strengthens the churches nearest to the Sunday-schools it organizes, and because its Sunday-schools often grow into strong churches and so strengthen the denominations. Nor do any who understand the matter charge that its schools are less likely to live because undenominational. As a matter of fact these schools, so long as they must remain without becoming an integral part of some local church and so passing under its fostering care, — in other words, so long as they must remain independent, — are strongest as union schools. They thus allay suspicions, quiet an- tagonisms, excite the interest and secure the support of all God's people of whatever name. After a time as they grow stronger, they often develop into a church which must necessarily be of some denomination, or they some- times pass into the care of the nearest church as a branch school connected with it. The American Sunday-School Union never works for itself and is always delighted to pass over its schools either as fully developed churches or as branch Sunday-schools to any denomination that the schools themselves voluntarily choose. 210 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART I, § 8, CH. V. During a good part of the nineteenth century this society has been busy in organizing union Sunday-schools in needy districts, at the same time through its publi- cation work providing such schools with a much needed literature. As a result it has organized over 100,000 Sunday-schools into which it has brought not less than 4,500,000 children and youth, together Vvith their teachers. Nearly 2,000 Sunday-schools a year are established by this society and into these schools are gathered ordinarily about 60,000 young people yearly who otherwise would for the most part, be without the privileges of the gospel. In the schools organized by this society are reported from 5,000 to 10,000 conversions annually, while from 100 to 200 churches are developed yearly. So certain are the methods of this society to produce the desired results, that it is easy to calculate from the amount of money put at its disposal in a given year the number of schools organized, of youth brought in and of converts reported. After the American Sunday-School Union had proved successful in organizing Sunday-schools which grew'into churches, a number of the denominations were stimulated to form their own Sunday-school societies to work in a similar direction, expecting that these denominational so- cieties v/ould result in larger denominational advantage. Thus the Massachusetts Sabbath-School Society, merged in 1868 into the Congregational Publishing Society, thenceforward called the Congregational Sunday-School and Publishing Society, was organized in 1832. The Sunday-school Union of the Methodist Episcopal church, organized in 1827, is not distinctively a missionary so- ciety. The Methodists expect their preachers to see to the extension of Sunday-school work and consequently brought their society into being to furnish supplies to SUNDAY SCHOOL BIISSIONARY SOCIETIES. 211 PART I. § 8, ClI. v.] needy schools already existing. Recently, however, a prominent Methodist gave a generous sum to be expended in the support for two or three years of two missionaries in the South. The Protestant Episcopal Sunday-School Union and the Evangelical Knowledge Society do a similar work to that of the Methodist Society in providing Sunday-school supplies for needy schools under Episco- pal care. Besides these societies, there are Sunday- school missionary departments connected with the pub- lishing boards of the Presbyterian, the Baptist and the (German) Reformed churches. These organizations are doing vigorous work, organizing, some of them, as many as 500 or 1,000 Sunday-schools a year. Besides these various societies for home missionary work, the Foreign Sunday-School Association, at one time auxiliary to the American Sunday-School Union, became incorporated in 1878 to do Sunday-school work in foreign lands. It does this largely by correspondence and by volunteer effort. Part II. For the Teacher. Section i. Considerations at the Basis of Teaching. CHAPTER I. THE teacher's PRIVILEGE. Difficulty in Securing Teachers. It is strange that so many are unwilling to teach in the Sunday-school. It is often difficult to find teachers to supply the classes. Even in churches with several hundred members the school is often inadequately equipped, — the classes are too large or teachers are retained when age or other duties demand that they should be excused, or incompetent teachers are accepted, or classes are not formed that ought to be, simply because church members are unwill- ing to take up the work. An Attractive Work. As a matter of fact, it would not be easy to imagine any phase of Christian work more attractive than that of the Sunday-school teacher. I . Every facility for work. Here is a definite field of work. The teacher's sphere of operations is defined. He is put in charge of eight or ten young people, whom he is to benefit spiritually. His methods also are largely defined. He is to reach these young people through the 213 214 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 31ETH0DS. [PART II. § I, CH. i. teaching of the Bible. He is surrounded with every in- fluence to make his work easy and successful. He is not alone, for other classes are about him, engaged in the same work. He has a superintendent to encourage him, a pastor to advise him, appliances of all sorts at hand, lesson helps in abundance. If he desires to carry out the direction of the Master and teach all men to observe all that Christ has commanded (Matt, xxviii. 19, 20), he can ordinarily find no way to do this easier for him or more likely of success than to teach in the Sunday-school. 2. A work for the young. In teaching in the Sun- day-school, the teacher comes into relation to the young. Ordinarily he will have a class of those just beginning life, with all the vivacity and enthusiasm of youth, and if he has not, the young are near him and are influenced by his class and his example. It is a wonderful privilege to live in contact with the young, to share their thoughts, to forget life's disappointments in their hopes, to gain fresh- ness and courage from their life. They are easily reached, and when reached they carry the good done them far into the future beyond the vision of the present. The teacher of youth, then, has a rare privilege. His efforts to do good are quickly appreciated and are effec- tive, while also he knows that he is setting influences in motion that will continue long after he is gone. 3. An effort to fit souls for heaven. It is worth w^hile to consider what the teacher's work is. It is noth- ing less than to fit the soul for heaven, — for a heaven that begins on earth and that continues through an eternity. The teacher has for his material the immortal soul, and this soul is to be moulded by him into the image of God ; it is to be rescued from sin and reconciled to God ; it is to be shown the joys of a pure life and be developed in the highest qualities of its being. There is no grander THE TEACHER'S PPdVILEGE. 215 PART II. § I, CH. i.] work, on earth than that which tlie teacher in the Sun- day-school shares in common with the minister of the gospel, viz : that of rescuing lost humanity and bringing it into the peace and power which come from the pardon of sins. 4. The privilege of Bible study. Another considera- tion deserves to be emphasized, viz : the privilege which the teacher in the Sunday-school enjoys in his study of the Bible. There is no other way of fixing truth in the mind at all comparable with teaching it. Thus the Sun- day-school teacher has this great comfort ; — in teaching others he is himself gaining knowledge of the utmost im- portance to himself in the most effective way. It is an unspeakable privilege to be engaged in a work which leads to constant communion with God's Word and obliges one to seek familiarity with the divine truth. There are innumerable ways of usefulness which lack this high privilege. But here is a way of working for Cin-ist which brings one into the very Garden of God where he is to pluck the choicest and eat for himself while he deals out to others. Reflex Benefits of Teaching. The teacher in the Sunday-school receives many peculiar advantages in his work. 1. // increases his knowledge. This has already been suggested in speaking of the familiarity with the Bible that the teaching of it insures. But this is not all. Teaching is a mental discipline of inestimable worth. It quickens every f^iculty of the mind and one who wishes to make the most of himself may be thankful for the privilege of teaching even but the one hour a week in Sunday-school. 2. Teaching builds up character. It is a great re- sponsibility. It gives tlie teacher the consciousness that 216 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part II. § I, CH i. others are dependent on him and are being shaped by him, and this makes him careful. His work brings him into contact with God and presently his own religious life takes a new start and he steadily grows in piety. 3. Teaching enlarges his sympathies. His heart is warmed by the effort to do good. He comes to love those who are in his charge. A new desire for the wel- fare of others fills his heart and he forgets self. It is a great thing to outgrow the boundaries of one's own per- sonality and to lose self-consciousness in a wide interest in humanity, 4. Teaching gives him the joy of doing good. He can see that he is of service. The gratitude of his pupils shows it, but still more the practical results in their inter- est in the Bible, their acceptance of Christ and their growth in character. There is no joy on earth richer and purer than this. The faithful teacher who seizes his opportunity and uses it wisely, at once tastes the supreme joy of service. CHAPTER II. THE teacher's AIM. The Same as That of the Bible. Manifestly the aim of the Sunday-school teacher in teaching the Bible should be the same as that of the Bible itself. The Bible does not exist for its own sake, but the rather to teach religion. It is a guide book to show the way to heaven. It is a book of directions to set forth our duty to God and our duties to man. The answer of the \Vestminster Catechism to the question ''What do the Scriptures principally teach?" can be accepted by those of all faiths; — "The Scriptures principally teach what man is to believe concerning God and what duties God requires of man." The Bible is an intensely practical book. It does not exist to teach history, or astronomy, or botany, or zoology, or archaeology, or ethnology, but all its ref- erences to those and simikir topics are purely to illustrate truths concerning God and the duties God requires of man. To Teach Morality and Religion. In the aim of the Bible is the limitation of the Sunday-school teacher's work. He should be intensely practical. His Bible is a means to an end. It is his business, as has already been said, not to teach the Bible, but what the Bible teaches, — in other words, the religion and morality of the Bible. He might easily spend his whole time and often does spend his time in learnedly setting forth curious and in- teresting facts in regard to the Bible, its origin, its manu- scripts, its preservation, its translations, its geography 217 218 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [part II. § I, CH. ii. and ethnology. More or less of this is unavoidable, all of it is desirable for scholars, some of it is necessary to the ordinary student who would accept the Bible intelli- gently, but after all, whatever is done in this direction should be entirely incidental. The purpose of the Sun- day-school is character-building, just as the aim of the Bible is to lift men up to God. When a man is drowning and we throw him a rope, our main effort at instructing him is to tell him where the rope is and that his life depends on seizing it. We do not take much time in learned disquisitions on the different kinds of rope manufactured or on the process by which this particular rope was made, or on rope-walks in general and the present state of the cordage business. Life is an emergency and the Sunday-school teacher is in a serious place. He is bound to use his short hour of contact with his class so as to produce the best spiritual results. He must not waste his time on irrelevant questions that have nothing to do with the religious life. His ultimate aim is to bring those he teaches into a loving and happy relation to their Heavenly Father. His one thought must be " 1 beseech you in behalf of Christ, be ye reconciled to God." The salvation of souls, the building up of character, the making of olhers useful, the strengthening of the church for service, these are his paramount aims. In order to this there are other subordinate aims and these may be at first spe- cially emphasized in order to prepare the way to use the hour suc- cessfully in higher aims. Awaken an Interest in the Bible. The first ne- cessity, of course, is to awaken an interest in the Bible. The teacher must hold his class and stimulate it to Bible study. To do this he may be obliged to begin at some distance from the truth he would inculcate, by leading his pupils to recognize the Bible as a peculiar and wonderful book. Secure Confidence in the Bible. When once an inter- est in the study has been awakened, it may be necessary, and THE TEACHEIVS AIM. 219 PART II. § ,1 CII. ii.] if not necessary, desirable, to secure the confidence of the pupils in the wisdom and authority of the Bible. To this end some consideration of the reasons why the Bible is ac- cepted as the word of God, and why it is a book speak- ing with authority, may be requisite. To be sure the Bible so impresses its personality on us and the convic- tions of this Christian land are so strong, that such argu- ments are often needless. It is not wise to awaken doubt by argument where a fact is already believed and con- ceded. At the same time judicious reasons for accepting the Bible, incidentally introduced, may be of great service. Urge Home the Truths of the Bible. These out- works of teaching being properly met and passed, then comes the steady and practical work of the teacher, which is to urge home to the intellect and then to the con- science the great vital truths of the Bible. No other book in the world so skillfully presents these truths under every conceivable aspect. The course of history as recorded in the Bible is manifestly de- signed to minor God's ways with man and especially God's plan in sending Christ. The wide bay of history contracts rapidly as the centuries are passed, till it becomes a narrow inlet leading up to the cross. Then the stream of history begins again and widens out more and more till boundaries cease and vision is lost in the expanse of the New Jerusalem. Biography in the same manner is recorded with a purpose. With photographic accuracy and impar- tiality it depicts the qualities in man, the evil and the good, and the results that follow. The poetry of the Bible, no less, is de- signed to describe the heart of man in its relations to God. Job, the Canticles, Ecclesiastes, the Psalms, — each in its own way, — sets forth the heart of man in its religious aspects. The description is not always given for our approval, but it is always a correct picture of humanity and always appeals to our judgment to discern the good and evil in it and to draw wise lessons from it. And as God's plan unfolds and religion is more clearly taught in the successive 220 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [PART II. § I, CH. ii. revelations of the Bible, — the New Testament being the rich result of Old Testament beginnings, — it comes to be plainly seen that the Bible is a perfect whole, a mine of golden truth, so sifted through with the ores of history, biography, poetry, prophecy and epistles, that every man's need is met, every man's taste consulted, and that every man need not fail to find that which is applicable to his own life. Build up Character. Looking at the Bible in this way, the teacher finds it easy to turn its study to practical uses. The Book becomes, under his wise management, a light to show his pupils the way of salvation through Christ. The teacher is content with nothing less than endeavoring to build up character in Christ, to make those in his charge useful in Christ's work. Thus the Sunday-school becomes an influence to ennoble the indi- vidual and to purify and elevate the community. An Educational or Evangelistic Aim ? The con- sideration just mentioned goes far to determine whether the teacher's aim, — and for that matter, the aim of the whole school, — shall be educational or evangelistic. Both aims should ever be in the mind of superintendent and teacher. But which should be dominant? That de- pends on the character of the school, of the class, of the individual pupil. In mission schools, composed largely of the unconverted, the evangelistic idea must be prom- inent. In church schools where the mission element is large, the paramount aim must always be to bring all the school to Christ. In such schools much time should be taken for worship, and the Christless character of the ma- jority present cannot fail to awaken an intense desire on the part of superintendent and teachers to bend every- thing to their conversion. But after all, the prominent fundamental idea of the Sunday- school is didactic. The school is principally designed to make THE TEACHER'S AUI. 221 PART II. § I, CII. ii.J clear, and to thoroughly establish, the views of God's people. It is to build up character and fit for usefulness. It is to take the chil- dren and train them from youth to adult years in a knowledge of Christian truth and, then, having begun this work, to continue it to old age. In the ordinary, well-established church school, beyond question, the educational idea should be predominant, and the studies should be arranged, and the school carried on with the didactic results constantly in view. In all cases the ultimate aim is to build up character, and the subsidiary aim is merely one of method. What shall be done to build up character? What method is most needed ? A company of wild, untrained, half-civi- lized street gamins need first of all to be imbued with a personal sense of need, as a perception of the preciousness of Christ as their Saviour and Friend. In all cases where this is lacking, it must be secured. In other words, evangelism goes before education, as essential to it. But the foundation thus laid in religious convictions, the work must be continued by religious education. Both are essential and both combine in the development of Christian character. CHAPTER III. THE teacher's RESPONSIBILITY. Two Cautions. In the raatter of responsibility, the teacher needs t\vo cautions, — first to appreciate his re- sponsibility and then not to make too much of it. I. An inadequate idea of his responsibility. There is danger that he will take up his duty v/ith no adequate idea of its importance. Nothing is grander or more diffi- cult than to mould an immortal soul aright. I'he teacher is given charge of perhaps a dozen immortal souls and told to train them into the likeness of Christ and into fitness for heaven. It is a task of supreme importance with which no achievement in scholarship or art or engineer- ing can for a moment compare. To lead humanity in a warfare with its sinful self and with a persistent adversary who delights to break man down ; to become a great peacemaker, reconciling to God those in rebellion against him ; to secure for others a Christlike nobility of char- acter and happiness for eternity ; — this is a marvellous ac- complishment. For this a divine Providence has been working through all the ages of man on earth ; for this Christ died. The teacher in the Sunday-schcol is simply taking up Christ's work and carrying it on. This thought ought to inspire him and make him do his very best. The danger is that he will be careless, and will take up the work in a frivolous and half-hearted way. There is no more serious work in the world than that of saving souls. It far surpasses in importance the task of the fireman who risks life to rescue the perishing from the (lames. 222 THE TEACHER'S RESPONSIBILITY. 223 PART II. § I, CH. iii.] The teacher who feels his responsibility will do his utmost to become fit for his task. He will scrupulously maintain a suitable character and life. He will seek help from God. He will not trifle with his trust but will strive in the class and out of it to meet his obligations seriously and in the fear of God. If he neglects his trust, it means as much as if he had had charge of moving trains and caused them to rush into deadly collision. It means more, because the consequences of his neglect reach down through eternity. 2. An overestimate of his responsibility. And yet it is quite possible for the teacher to err by assuming too much responsibility. Happily there are limits to all human responsibility. We are only indirectly concerned with results. We have our work to do, the seed to sow and cultivate, but God secures the results. *' Paul may plant and Apollos water, but God giveth the increase." If we do the Lord's work, we shall certainly have his help. If we do his work faithfully, we are the instruments in his hands ; he takes us up, uses us for a little ; lays us down again, and the work goes on. Here is the comfort of Christian service. We are like soldiers in the army, each doing his best, but in nowise responsible for victory or defeat. That rests on the master mind that has directed all our movements. Our responsibility, then, is simply to find out the will of God and do it faithfully. Whether the results are large or small is for God to de- termine. CHAPTER IV. THE teacher's RELATION TO THE SUNDAY-SCHOOL AND THE CHURCH. His Duties to the Superintendent. The Sunday- school teacher owes certain duties to the superintendent. He is under the superintendent's direction and for the success of the school it is important that he yield cheerful compliance to the superintendent's wishes. It is possible to wreck a school by too much self-assertion on the part of a teacher, while friction and consequent loss of usefulness is sure to follow his persistent opposition to the superintendent. The teacher cannot from his point of view §o easily see the needs of the whole and is liable to be biased in his judgments. He may safely conclude that the superintendent, planning for the good of the whole, has reached conclusions that he, as teacher of a single class, ought to accept. Let him strive to live at peace with all men, but especially with his superintendent. But more than this, he earnestly desires to be loyal to the school and to do his part for its best good. He will, then, to this end cooperate with the superintendent. When possible he will always be in his place in the Sun- day-school, or, if he must be absent, he will either pro- vide a substitute or notify the superintendent beforehand that he must be away. He will be ready also to do his part in the opening and closing exercises of the Sunday- school and on special occasions connected with the Sun- day-school. He is liable at any time to be called on to make a prayer or to sum up the lesson or to give some salient tliought drawn from the lesson or to drill his class 224 TEACHEIVS RELATION TO SUNDAY SCHOOL. 225 PyMlT II. § I, CH. iv.] for some public exercise, or perhaps even to make an address on some special day. He may shrink from all this, but he is bound in loyalty to the school and his superintendent to do what he can and to make some sacrifice of preference in the matter for the good of all. He Should let Members of His Class go out as Teachers. Perhaps the greatest sacrifice of all to which he can be called is to give up the choicest members of his class as teachers. In every class of older pupils are some on whom the teacher leans for aid in his work. They always have their lessons. They are interested and thoughtful. They pay attention in the class and stim- ulate it by their intelligent answers and pertinent ques- tions. They are the life of the class and the teacher feels that he cannot do without them. Just then, the superin- tendent comes to the class and summons these choice helpers to leave their teacher and come to his aid as teachers themselves. They have been trained and show special aptitude for the work, and there are classes greatly needing their help. The wise and devoted teacher, while disliking to part with these valued pupils, will yet cheerfully acquiesce in their advancement. He will recognize that this is for the good of the school, that his own influence is widened as those trained by him go out to do work elsewhere, that his pupils, in taking up the work of teaching, are themselves entering on a new course of training especially helpful, and that it is a peculiar compliment to him that those in his class are deemed worthy of such a trust. His Duty to the Pastor. The Sunday-school teacher has a duty to his pastor. The pastor, if the man he should be, will welcome every opportunity for re- ligious conversation and counsel with those in his parish who may be seeking a new life in Christ or a better 226 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part II. § I, CH. iv. Christian life. He will, if it can be sustained, regularly hold a meeting for religious inquiry. But such a meet- ing is ordinarily of little avail without the cooperation of the Sunday-school teacher. It becomes, however, a grand success, a fruitful source of conversions and an influence leading to constant additions to the church, if the Sunday-school teachers are auxiliaries, i.e., if they, after previous efforts to awaken an interest in the minds of their pupils, bring these pupils to the pastor for counsel. Years since a young pastor was surrounded by just such a body of teacliers. They all burned with a desire for souls ; they all attended a teachers' meeting where tliey prayed for their pupils and counselled together how to reach them ; they cordially joined hands with their pastor in his desire to sustain an inquiry meeting. Not a communion passed in which some of their pupils did not join the church on confession of their faith. When there is co5peration like this between superintendent, teacher and pastor, all wox'king together to one end, the results are surprising. The teacher can do much to make the pastor a power in the school. If he invite the pastor occasionally to meet his class, it will do good both to the class and to the pastor himself. He may also, if he wull, by wise words greatly strengthen the respect of the class for the pastor's teaching and position. His Duties to the Church. Once more, the teacher owes important duties to the church. He should encourage his class to attend the church services reg- ularly. There has been a great falling off in church attendance among the young. The teacher can do much to remedy this evil. He should encourage those in his class to attend church and to listen to the sermon. He may well ask his class to repeat the text of the morning sermon and perhaps to give some of its most important thoughts. It has sometimes been found helpful for the TEA CHEWS EEL A TION TO SUNDA Y SCHOOL. 2211 PART II. § I, ClI. iv.] teacher to furnish each pupil with a httle book in wliich the text of the morning sermon is to be recorded. The young people should also be urged to connect themselves with the young peoples' society and to take part in various forms of church work. In due time, as the pupil gives evidence of piety, he should be encouraged by the teacher to come into the church. In short, in every relation to the church, the Sunday-school teacher should recognize the church as paramount and the Sunday- school as a department of its work designed to fit those connected with it for connection with the church itself and for the largest influence in it. Section 2. The Teacher that is Wanted. CHAPTER I. WHO IS SUFFICIENT FOR THESE THINGS? Shrinking from the Task. After considering the nature of the teacher's responsibiHties we inevitably ask *'Who is sufficient for these things?" Surely no one of himself. The wonder is that God uses man at all in building up his kingdom in the world, that Christ should have gone from earth and left his work to be carried on by his disciples. We are all *' earthen vessels" at the best, and none of us fit, in the highest sense, for the trusts committed to us. But Christ left his work to his dis- ciples as much for their good, as for the good of others, and he is willing to bless their efforts and give them suc- cess. In Sunday-school work no one need expect to be fitted at all points. The simple fact is that teachers must be had and such as can be had must be utilized. The most imperfect material is better than nothing and may be wonderfully useful if used of God. The dullest tool in the hand of a master can work wonders. We often draw back from service and declare ourselves unfit, and such shrinking is only the natural feeling of those who necessarily know their own weaknesses better than others can. God will Help. Such a shrinking shows a lack of faith. If God calls us to the service, he will give us ability to do it. 228 WHO IS SUFFICIENT FOR THESE THINGS? 229 PART II. § 2, CH. i.] Others Better Judges of Our Fitness. In ex- cusing ourselves from a teacher's obligation we are quite as likely to be influenced by selfish considerations as by a feeling of unworthiness, or, while we rate our imper- fections rightly, we may not give ourselves due credit for what we can do. Ordinarily others are better judges than we as to whether we should take up a duty. A pastor who is constantly studying his people to know how to reach them and help them, and a superintendent who knows the material that is available, as a rule, are far better able to judge as to our fitness to teach. Indeed, where the people of God unite to call a man or woman to Christian service, it may reasonably be concluded that this is the voice of the Holy Spirit. " Yes, I will do it," said a Christian man, when asked to take up some form of church work, " I decided long ago never to say no to such a request, if I could see any way to do it." Fitness by Experience. It is certain that if fitness is lacking, it may be to some extent developed by experi- ence. Ability is in no other way so rapidly developed. In fact, certain phases of fitness can only be secured by experience. It follows, then, that to have any fit we must take those partially unfit and give them experience. We need experience in our teachers when we can get it, but this is often impossible and it would be unreasonable to require it. Should the Teacher be Young or Old? That which has just been said in part answers the question *' Should the teacher be young or old? " It is desirable to have both classes. We need experienced teachers, /. ar^ on familiarity with the lesson. The teacher is to press home the word of God upon the convictions and consciences of those in his class. He must, then, first of all, know what the message is which he has to teach. 2. Still more, on a prof onnd conviction of the impor- tance of his message. If he teaches in a perfunctory and indifferent way, he might as well not teach at all. He needs to reverence the Word and to believe its message a matter of life and death. He needs to meet his class as one who holds in his hand a pardon and who offers in- conceivable blessings. 3. On a love for the pupil. Nothing breaks down all barriers like this. Let the teacher have a real and in- tense desire for the best good of those in his class and he will find some way of reaching them. 4. On a knoiuled^^e of the pupiV s peculiarities and needs and on. adaptation to them. It is fatal to the best education to treat all pupils alike and to subject them to the same urgency, the same aid, the same restraints. The successful teacher will be quick to see the differences among his pupils, and will treat each according to his personal needs. One he will seek to rouse from leth- argy, another he will seek to bring to a decision, in an- other he will stir a sluggish conscience, in another he will instruct a morbid conscience. It is a great and rare gift to know human nature so well that the needs of each pupil are quickly seen and met. 5. Ability to convey knowledge is essential in the teacher. It is not easy to tell in what this ability consists, but it is easy to tell if a teacher has it and exercises it. It depends in part no doubt on clearness of thought in the mind of the teacher and quite as much on enthusiasm in conveying this thought to others. SUCCESS IN TEACHING. 255 PART II. § 4, CII. i.J 6. Loyalty to Christ is at the foundation of success- ful Sunday-scliool work. If the teacher is devoted to Christ he will have enthusiasm. If he loves Christ, he will love his fellow-men. If he admires Christ, he will adopt his methods. If he obeys Christ, he will be ready to do his utmost to carry the gospel message to others so that they will accept it. On what does Success Depend in the Pupil? The pupil is responsible as well as the teacher for the success- ful conveyance of the gospel message. What are the re- sponsibilities of the pupil ? 1. Confidence in the teacher is necessary. The pupil should inform himself if the teacher is worthy of confi- dence and, having ascertained that, should place him- self in an attitude of glad receptivity. Nothing is more destructive to a teacher's usefulness than a spirit of criti- cism in the class. 2. Study of the lesson. It is treating a teacher most unfairly to go into the class without a glance at the lesson previously. A pupil who enters the class without pre- vious study of the lesson is also as unjust to himself as to the teacher. 3. Appropriation of truth. The teacher is sowing the seed and the pupils are the soil. It is for them to say whether the seed shall fall on the beaten pathways of daily habit or on ledges of rock thinly strewn with the earth of temporary impulse, or on the thorn-choked soil of worldliness, or on the good ground of earnest pur- pose, where it shall bear abundant fruit. It is not fair to condemn a teacher because his pupils willfully refuse to receive the truth aright, and to let it take root in their hearts, develop in shapely character and bear rich fruits in self-denying service. CHAPTER 11. METHODS OF TEACHING. What to Aim For. The method of teaching will be determined by the aim. The aim of the Sunday-school teacher differs but little in its outlines from the aim of the teacher in our secular schools. The main difference is in the final result. Both secular and religious teaching seek a practical result, but while the secular teacher aims to fit the pupil for success in worldly matters, the Sunday- school teacher has in mind the relations of his pupil to the spiritual life. It will be helpful to trace the steps over which the pupil must pass to reach his practical duties. In all cases they are the same up to a certain point. I. Attention. Nothing can be done in instructing others till their attention is gained. Consequently this is the first thing to be aimed at by the teacher. The in- terest of the pupils must be awakened, their minds fixed on the subject to be presented and their thought held there through the lesson. Attention is to the untrained mind the most difficult of all mental processes and yet the most essential to success in study. A story is told of a famous inventor that, taking the cars from New York to Chicago, he fell into a brown study just after leaving the former city and was not roused from it till the train rolled into the Chicago station. He had become absorbed in some intricate problem and was unconscious of his need of sleep or food. Simi- lar stories are told of Socrates, Sir Isaac Newton and other great thinkers. It is certain that scholarship was never possible where the art of attention was not learned. 256 METHODS OF TEACHING. 257 PART II. § 4, CH. ii.] 2. Understanding. Having become skillful in secur- ing attention, the next thing the teacher must aim for is to make the lesson plain. It is of paramount importance that the gospel message be not obscured in the transmis- sion. The teacher stands like one in a signal corps to read the orders that come flashing by heliograph from a distant hilltop. A mistake in delivering such a message may result in the loss of an army. The teacher is work- ing for eternity and to save life. He must make sure that he puts the duties taught in the lesson so clearly and sharply that no one can mistake them. The way of sal- vation must be so distinct that the wayfaring man, though a fool, need not err therein. The teacher must aim, then, by every de\'ice to make his pupils understand the truth. 3. Remembering. The next step in the mental process is for the pupil to hold what he has learned and to join to it the new truths which he is continually learning. Memory is the mental process which links these truths together. Memory stores up the truths as fast as learned and keeps them in stock, so to speak, ready to be drawn upon a mo- ment's notice. Unless memory is trained so that the mind holds the lessons gained in the past, one makes no advance in scholarship. He is like one struggling to lift himself out of a stredm, where the bank breaks off and falls into the water whenever he lays hold of it. The teacher must continually have this in mind, and by reviews and repetitions force the truths he teaches into the thought until the memory can hold them fast. 4. Reasoning. The three processes just referred to relate to the perceptive or accumulative faculty of the mind. But the intellect has more to do than this. It is to take the facts acquired by study and digest them. It is not sufficient to fill the mind with knowledge. Educa- tion is something more, — it is the result of a mental proc- 258 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [PART II. § 4, CII. iu ess which takes one's stock of knowledge and works it over into useful material. This process we call reason- ing. The mind must ruminate on the facts brought to it by the perceptive faculty and evolve the principles of life. The Sunday-school teacher is not half meeting his obli- gation who simply pours facts into the minds of his pupils. He must incite his puj^ils to think for themselves and from the great facts of the Bible narrative to work out the practical duties of life. 5. Appreciation. Next in the order of thought, though probably earlier in the order of appearance, comes the awakening of a feeling in regard to the truth learned. All the processes hitherto described are of the intellect purely. The process we call ^' appreciation " is an exer- cise of the emotions. It is impossible to learn great truths and to see their bearing on human life without a feeling being awakened in regard to them. In the case of evil deeds a feeling of aversion develops. In the case of the blessed truths of the Bible a feeling of appreciation, of glad and loving welcome, is natural. Such a feeling is of unspeakable importance. It is the link between the intellect and the will. The intellectual processes stir the emotions, and these in turn lead the will to decision and action. The Sunday-school teacher, then, aiming at final practical results in the life of his pupil, at this point, will strive to arouse in the pupil a sense of the beauty and value of divine truth. The pupil who has been brought through the processes which precede has now come to the point where what he has learned should touch his heart, stir his feelings, rouse his enthusiasm and develop his love. The Sunday-school teacher must seek to kindle the flame and on no account, by cold, perfunctory methods of teaching let the glowing facts of the gospel narrative be received as if they were the theorems of Euclid. MErnODS OF TEACHING, 259 PART II. § 4, CH. ii.] 6. Application. One other step, and that the most important, remains. The will is now to act. The intel- lect has delivered its message, the feelings have sounded their bugle call of duty, and now the will, if properly trained, takes up the task enjoined and performs it. Here it is that the truths taught by the Sunday-school teacher make a far grander demand on the student than the truths of the secular lesson. What are the demands of Greek and Latin, of mathematics, chemistry, astronomy and physics, or even of political economy, history and philosophy, compared with the demands of religion ? The truth of the Bible is a living seed designed to take root in men's hearts, spring up and bear fruit. It invariably is intended to make us be something or do something. The inevitable out- come of faithful Sunday-school teaching is to stir the will to action. How Can All This be Secured ? 1. Object teaching is exceedingly helpful in certain lines. It will secure attention. It often makes a subject clear, since it appeals to certain avenues of knowledge, like the sense of sight, not otherwise reached. It also greatly aids the memory. 2. Illustration is often of great value in promoting the processes sought in faithful teaching. It secures much the same results as do skillful object lessons, — it holds the attention, gives new light on the subject in hand, strengthens the memory. It enlivens teaching which otherwise would be too abstract, and causes cold and un- inipassioned truth to glow with emotion. At the same time, as all rhetoricians tell us, illustration must be used with care. It may become the chief object of thought, drawing one's attention from the subject in hand, or it may be so handled as to confuse and mislead the pupil. There is abundant evidence that the young often entirely 260 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [part II. § 4, CH. ii. misapprehend the meaning of metaphors. By them meta- phors are frequently understood Hterally and thus serve to obscure the sense. Illustrations are helpful in securing attention but must be simple to be understood. 3. Questioning is an important method of securing attention and of developing reasoning. So important is it that it will be discussed in a separate chapter. 4. Reverence for the Bible is exceedingly helpful in securing many of the aims already considered. The pupil recognizing the Bible as the Voice of God, speak- ing with a divine authority, is sure to feel an interest in its truth, and develop an appreciation and make a prac- tical application of it that would be almost impossible otherwise. Such a divine origin and authority in the Bible is to be assumed at the outset and to be impressed in every possible way. 5. Clearness of statement is to be cultivated by the teacher. He can gain much in this direction by study and he needs to train himself so as to tell the story of the cross with plainness. How many teachers can explain the way of salvation so distinctly and unmistakably that no one after hearing the statement can fail to know just what to do to be saved ? 6. Personal character in the teacher is an admirable agency to hold and impress the pupil. Character is in- dicated on the countenance and in the manner of the teacher. It never fails to make itself felt on the pupil. The pupil feels a certain awe, presently passing on into admiration and then love, for a teacher who is marked by grace and nobility of character. Confidence is the necessary result, and confidence leads to appreciation and then to a practical acceptance of the truth. 7. Feeling in the teacher kindles feeling in the pupil. If the teacher would rouse the emotions of his class, his 3IEriI0DS OF TEACHING. 261 PART II. § 4, CH. ii.] own must be aroused first. If he be cold, calm, indif- ferent, he need not wonder if his class is careless and even hostile to the truth. The teacher desires to see in his class interest in the truth, indignation at wrongdoing, sympathy with the suffering, admiration for good deeds, love for the noble and the good. All this will come in time if it is felt by the teacher, for the fire in his own heart will kindle a fire in others. 8. Familiarity with the subject taught is an essential on the part of the teacher. One who is full of his theme is under pressure, and speaks and teaches with a force not otherwise obtainable. He comes before his class not with a scant measure of truth which he doles out care- fully and uncertainly, but wath an overflow of soul which cannot fail to awaken enthusiasm. He has more to say than he can possibly express. He burns to say what is to his mind fraught with momentous issues. In conse- quence of this fullness and fervor, this manifest repres- sion, he strikes a chord of sympathy in his class, he keys them up to a new tension, he gains their confidence, he leads them to action. An unconscious process of selec- tion is going on in his mind as he speaks, and he serves out to his class, in whom there is, with equal uncon- sciousness, an eagerness to receive his message, those truths most needed for the moment and best adapted to help. 9. Cultivate simplicity of method. The teacher need not strive after new and striking methods of teaching. His highest aim should be to be simple and natural. ''P^ollow nature," said Plato, *'and the education you give will succeed." The same idea was emphasized by Rousseau in Emile when he said * * Let nature have her way. ' ' CHAPTER III. THE ART OF QUESTIONING. Teaching and Preaching. There are two methods of carrying the truth orally to others : — one is by public address, the other is by question and answer. The Lord Jesus made a distinction between these two methods when he commanded his disciples to preach and to teach. The ordinary public service of worship conveys the truth by preaching, the Sunday-school conveys it by teaching. In the former an oratorical method prevails, in the latter an interlocutory method. Teaching has been defined by Professor Hart as " causing an- other to know," while the Standard Dictionary says it means " to impart knowledge by means of lessons." The ordinary use of the word undoubtedly conveys an idea of the method by which knowl- edge is imparted. While it may be imparted partly by public ad- dress, this is not regarded as the best method and is certainly not the common method. Our schools, and, to a considerable extent, our colleges, are conducted on the interlocutory method. There is something about questioning which develops the ideas and fixes knowledge as can no form of lecturing. If the theory of educa- tion based on its etymology is correct, viz, that education is e-duc- ing or drawing out from the brain of the student the truths he ought to know, then education must be secured largely by a proc- ess of questioning. Certainly this has come to be ahnost entirely the method of our Sunday-schools. Advantages of Question and Answer. The ad- vantages of this method of teaching are manifold. I. // may be made a test of knowledge both in the 262 THE ART OF QUESTIONING. 263 PART II. § 4, Cli. iii.] questioner and the questioned. It shows where the lack is. One cannot teach who cannot question inteUigently ; — consequently, when one begins to question, he sees at once what he lacks. It is equally true that one who listens to the questions and answers them, is sure to indi- cate what his needs are and where he should be instructed further. Hence as J. G. Fitch says on ''The Art of Questioning," one use the teacher must make of ques- tions is ''experimental," /. e., by means of questions the teacher is to find out where the pupil stands and what he needs to learn. It sometimes seems as if the public school- teacher made this the only basis of questioning, in other words that the public school-teacher sometimes questions simply to see how he shall mark the pupil. But the true teacher will seek such knowledge in order to be able to supplement what has been learned by what yet needs to be learned. 2. Questioning aiuakes interest and secures attention. It demands some kind of a reply. Not to reply is dis- courteous and to reply irrelevantly shows inattention. When questions are wisely put, the class is aroused and listens intently. These questions are put to some one in the class and some one must make answer. They are in the nature of a puzzle and so awaken interest. They also arouse a certain spirit of emulation in the class. Who can answer? Often each one in the class is eager to show that he can. 3. Questioning strengthens inemory. A question challenges the best thought of the pupil. He knows he must give answer to questions concerning what he is sup- posed to learn and consequently he strives to lay his knowledge in his mind in such shape that he can draw upon it at any moment. The effort to do this, the knowl- edge that he needs to be able to do this, stimulates his 264 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0DS. [PART II. § 4, CH. iii. memory to its best work. So, too, when the question is put, and he is summoning his faculties to frame the proper answer, memory springs to the rescue and makes an effort to bring into use every item of information needed. 4. Questioning develops thought. The mind of the pupil is stirred to activity by the knowledge of the fact that every question means an answer, an answer that meets the question and satisfies its demands. If he can- not give such an answer, he shows himself either slow of intellect or ignorant on the subject on which he is ques- tioned. Questioning, therefore, stimulates his mental activity and stirs him to thought. It is through questions that the pupil is led to educe conclusions from his reason- ing faculties and thus to become, in the best sense, edu- cated. This was the Socratic method. This is a method to be chiefly followed in the Sunday-school. How Should Questioning be Done? This point has been so often considered that it is impossible to dis- cuss it here without repeating to some extent thoughts that others have already presented. 1. Clearness, Manifestly the questions should be clear. If they are vague, half-a-dozen different answers may be possible, and a slovenly habit of carelessness in answering is developed. There is no proper test of knowledge in the class when a vague question comes before it and no one knows exactly what it means. When two or more entirely different answers to the same ques- tion are given, the teacher may reasonably ask himself if the fault is not his, and if the trouble does not lie in the fact that he has framed his question in a faulty way. 2. Brevity. If clearness is demanded, then brevity is a necessity also. The ordinary class in Sunday-school is incapable of holding in mind a long and involved ques- tion. Brevity is really essential to clearness. But more, THE ART OF QUESTIONING, 265 PART II. § 4, cii. iii.] brevity is needed in order to keep the attention. An in- volved question is sure to cause the child's mind to wander. He cannot hold it in his memory from begin- ning to end. 3. Stiinulatini^ to thottght. The questions asked should invariably set the pupil thinking. If they are so framed that he knows from them what the answer should be, he loses benefit from them. The teacher needs to avoid falling into a rut in his questions, else the pupil, who is generally keen in reading human nature, soon learns the peculiarities of his teacher and the way in which he expects his questions answered. It is a harmful practice to ask questions that indicate wliat the answer should be. Leading questions that contain in their very phraseology an implied answer to the question, are de- structive to scholarship. 4. Logical succession. The questions should be arranged in logical order. If they are to bring out the story, they must be put chronologically, /. ^., with refer- ence to the events that occurred. But questions are also to bring out the moral truths that lie in the lesson, and this often demands a logical order in questioning. It was said of some great lawyer, that his questions were in themselves an argument. He would himself get such complete hold of the facts as to be able to arrange his questions chronologically and logically. One after an- other his questions, — carefully prepared beforehand, — would bring out facts in the case, until at last, out of the answers of ignorant and confused men, there stood before the jury an orderly narrative, so convincingly arranged that after it little argument was needed. As teachers we should study a similar art. We may so ask the questions in the class as in time to bring all to absolute conviction of the truth. 266 3IANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part II. § 4, CH. iii. How Should Answers be Received ? 1. IVith respect. It is a great thing for a child, timid and perhaps trembling at his attempt, to venture an an- swer in reply to the teacher's question. Never laugh at the answer. It is too important for that. It shows for one thing that the child is thinking and is trying to meet the wish of the teacher. Never check any such effort by a slight upon the answer, however unsatisfactory. Agree with it as f^ir as possible and then quietly and kindly lead the pupil to the further thought you had in mind. Almost every answer, if it does not convey the whole truth, at least conveys a half-truth. Oftentimes the answer is so pertinent and suggestive that it de- serves to be repeated to the whole class. Accept the answer so far as possible and add the points that are lacking without calling unnecessary attention to the deficiencies of the answer. At any rate the answer, no matter how imjierfect or incorrect, is sure to show the needs of the pupil and very likely the needs of his family. Heed the answers, then, no matter how crude and unsat- isfactory they are. They are unconscious testimony of the need of the pupil, and so of great value. 2, As suggestive of further questions. Every ques- tion ansv/ered starts a score of others. Such an answer furnishes a common standing place from which question and answer may start out together on a longer journey. Any answer is better than none and should be gratefully received. It is certain to help to open up the way for a further discussion and a more correct understanding. No matter what answer is given, then, do not slight it, but use your prerogative as teacher in weighing it and in cor- recting it as may seem to you best. CHAPTER IV. ILLUSTRATIONS. Their Advantage. The use of illustration is of great importance to all, whether writers, speakers, or teachers, who attempt to convey thought to others. It is of so much importance that all books on rhetoric and oratory- give special emphasis to the subject. But no one needs to consider the subject more than the Sunday-school teacher whose aim is to elucidate the Scripture and to in- terest in abstract truth youthful minds as yet largely un- trained. Illustrations in the Sunday-school class serve, 1. To secure attention. When an illustration is be- gun the ears are intent to hear to the end. Illustration was Christ's favorite method. If the interest flagged, he would say something like this ''Behold the lilies of the field : they toil not neither do they spin." By this time every one was keenly awake to know what lesson he would draw from the lilies. The Sunday-school teacher must have his illustrations ready to bring up at any mo- ment. 2. To impress the mei7iory. Attach a great truth to something that is outward and tangible or to some story that fascinates and the truth is remembered as long as the story or the object used for illustration. The parable of the good Samaritan in the Scriptures, the allegory of the Pilgrim's Progress, the reference in ancient legend to the swallow darting in at one window of a cabin and out at another as an illustration of the brevity of life, can never be forgotten. 267 268 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETII0D8. [PART II. § 4, CH. iv. 3. To make truth clearer. A well-chosen illustration lights up a truth and makes it easily understood. It calls attention to something that is well known and draws a likeness between it and something less known and thus helps us to comprehend the less known. How often Christ uses the phrase ''The kingdom of heaven is like " ! The likeness of one object to another is a mar- vellous help to the study of the abstract or the unseen. 4. To convey an argument. There is a real argu- ment in a genuine parallelism. That famous book " Nat- ural Law in the Spiritual World ' ' is an argument for great spiritual laws based on resemblances in the physical world to such laws. Establish an analogy between a divine truth the Sunday-school teacher is trying to enforce and some everyday occurrence known to the class, and in- stantly the class is inclined to admit that the teacher's statement of the spiritual principle is correct. How TO Illustrate a Lesson. The teacher who feels the need of using illustration must be on the watch for it. He will study resemblances and analogies. Peo- ple of imaginative powers are always seeing such resem- blances. But when this gift is not natural it may be ac- quired by training. A certain law of association may be developed so that out of every incident or narrative the teacher is quick to draw the moral lesson. The best il- lustrations always spring up unexpectedly like the good sword Excalibur uplifted to King Arthur by a hand thrust from the lake. But where one's mind does not work freely and quickly in seizing the right illustration, the wise teacher will make a constant effort to gather illustrations from all quarters. He will have envelopes for assorted newspaper clippings, he will gather the best books of illustrations, and there are many excellent collections to aid him. He ILL USTEA TIONS, 269 PART II. § 4, CH. iv.] will perhaps curry a notebook and enter in it whatever of value he sees or hears, that is likely to prove helpful to him in illustrating his lessons. Certain Cautions are desirable in regard to the use of illustrations. 1. Do not let them be too prominent or too lon^. It is sometimes the case that an illustration is dilated upon till the truth to be illustrated is forgotten. 2. Do ?iot let them be too many. A multiplicity of illustrations destroys force. " Young gentlemen," said a certain homiletical instructor, ''when you wish for a switch, strip off the leaves." 3. Do not let illustrations be irrelevant. It is a com- mon fault to tell a story or bring forward some other il- lustration that has little bearing on the point in hand. It illustrates nothing, but interest in the story has caused the point designed to be elucidated to be overlooked. 4. Do not let illustrations be out of taste. They may be easily so incongruous to the high and solemn themes the teacher wishes to illustrate as to shock the sensibilities. They may be irreverent or coarse or un- dignified. The teacher should remember that he is in a Sunday-school and be careful to introduce no story or simile that is not in keeping. 5 . Do not let illustrations be learned and unknown. The teacher should imitate Christ in seeking familiar ob- jects of illustration. He cannot make plain the deep principles of theology by reference to mysterious laws in chemistry of which his class knows nothing. What Kinds of Illustrations to Use. I. The simile is the simplest and most natural illus- tration to use. One thing is like another and it is al- ways helpful to call attention to this fact. 270 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IETH0DS. [I'AKT II. § 4, CII. iv. 2. Refe7'ences to resemblances in nature are pecul- iarly fitting. As a rule the young understand such ref- erences better than almost anything else. 3. Incidents or stories, — /. e., narrative, either in fact or fiction, — are very helpful. Incidents in biography and history are arguments as well as illustrations. They are practical exemplifications of the working of divine laws in human life. Stories put the abstract principles of life in concrete form. 4. Bible history, biography and parable are a mine of wealth for the purposes of illustration and serve much the same purpose in reference to the use of incident and story as do the resemblances in nature to the simile. CHAPTER V. OBJECT TEACHING. Importance of Object Teaching. Object teaching is really a form of illustration. It is an appeal to the visible to impress ideas upon the mind. As such it has the same advantages as has all illustration. There is no need to repeat what was said in the previous chapter on this subject. But there is this added advantage in object teaching over ordinary illustration, — it is an appeal to the senses and, as nearly all truth reaches the mind originally through the senses and is at first a perception, it fol- lows that the simpler the mind to be reached and the nearer it is to the original uneducated condition of humanity, so much the more needful is it to teach through object lessons. This was why God taught the untrained people of Israel by an elaborate ritual. This is why childhood is so eager for dolls and blocks and pictures. Caution, — Do not Overdo. There is need of special care in the use of object teaching not to overdo it. Sometimes object lessons are frivolous or misleading. They are a show and nothing more. The elaboration of blackboard work, as for example, a multiplicity of crosses and a great variety of colors, or an intricate combination of the first letters of words as a presumed mnemonic aid, is sometimes a delusion and a snare, and practically results in turning away the thought from the truth in hand. It is best not to have too much of object teach- ing. Too many objects are confusing to the mind, while 271 272 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL METHODS. [part II, § 4, CH. V. a too frequent introduction of objects tends to diminish interest in them. In order to have impressive mountains there must be valleys between them. Otherwise the mountains are mere table-lands, their lofty elevations making no impression because of their uniform flatness. Forms of Object Lessons. A reference to a previous chapter on Sunday-school supplies will be helpful here. Mention is there made of pictures, maps, the blackboard, the stereopticon, and a museum of Biblical curiosities. There is no need to enlarge here on any of these articles, except to refer to those that are peculiarly adapted to the use of the teacher. When the Sunday-school itself is un- able to supply them, the teacher may be able out of his own resources to bring to the class many things that are helpful. He can often secure for himself volumes of half- tone engravings, or collections of small, unmounted photographs. He can use paper and pencil instead of blackboard. He can have his hand-atlas. He can own his little collection of Bible curiosities, or album of the flowers of Palestine. Use of Objects. 1. Pictures. The teacher will do well to pause in his teaching from time to time, to pass around a picture illustrating the scene or the peculiarities mentioned in the Bible passage he is bringing to the attention of his class. He can point to various things in the picture to make plain the truth. In the parable of the sower, for instance, or the parable of the prodigal son, a series of pictures may be exhibited to describe and impress the success- ive facts and lessons of the story. Nothing would be more hopeful in conveying the lessons of these parables to a class of wild young Arabs from the street. 2. Chalk and pencil. It is often desirable that the class be called on to draw, or to write down abstracts of OBJECT TEACHING. 273 PART II. § 4, CII. v.] lessons, or to fashion a diagram. But all such use of the pencil should be simple. Sometimes key words, suggest- ing a theme or a paragraph, are written out. Sometimes memory sentences- are copied off to be committed to memory. Sometimes "alliteration's artful aid" is re- sorted to and sometimes an acrostic is helpful to the memory. Sometimes maps are drawn, or perhaps pictures, while yet again it is often found helpful to write out an analysis in full with memory letters, and let all the class follow that analysis. 3. Maps. Nothing will contribute more to clearness of thought in all geographical and historical matters than to have a map at hand for constant reference. Those in the quarterlies should be constantly referred to. Some- times a quantity of small maps purchased at the stores, or manufactured roughly on the mimeograph, may be dis- tributed among the pupils. 4. Bible cabinet. With a little pocket cabinet of curiosities the teacher can interest his class intensely. He may well take considerable time in exhibiting such articles, being careful to connect with them the spiritual lessons taught in the Bible. 5. Miscellaneous articles. The teacher will do well to bring into his class from time to time a variety of articles that he may take from his home or the shop or the fields, to illustrate the lesson. A tumbler half-filled with earth, in which ants have been allowed to burrow, might give its lesson one Sabbath ; a piece of honeycomb would be an interesting object lesson another Sabbath ; while a bit of wood from some old ship's hulk, bored through and through by the teredo, might serve another day to show the possibilities of evil in that which does but little at a time. CHAPTER VI. PRIMARY TEACHING. Importance of Teaching Little Children. It is now generally recognized that at no other period of life does the mind absorb impressions and conclusions so rapidly as in the early dawn of intelligent perception in the child. The organs of sense are then opening out upon a new world and bringing to the mind their treasure- stores of information. At the same time there is the greatest need of directing these processes of intellectual absorption in order that the child-mind, having no experience and no previous train- ing, may reach just conclusions and not be deceived or misled. The greatest skill is demanded in directing the studies of the child and the best teachers are required, in order to utilize to the full this richest opportunity of in- struction that ever comes in a human life. Peculiarities of the Child-mind. It is impossible to teach the litde child aright without a proper under- standing of its peculiarities. Some characteristics mark all young children alike. 1 . They have everything to learn. They stand at the beginning without experience, without previous observa- tion, with a most slender outfit of innate ideas, and the universe is rushing in upon their half-dazed and excited vision. 2. They have no habits of study. Their senses are not yet trained to accuracy and their minds are not yet disciplined to form correct judgments. It is not yet pos- sible for them to concentrate their perceptive faculties on 274 PRIMARY TEACHING. 275 PART 11. § 4, cir. vi.] any one object, nor for them to place a fact perceived into the alembic of judgment and hold it there till tested and analyzed. 3. They especially notice material things. They are at the age when the senses rule, and the senses testify of the outside world. In consequence earth has the largest hold on their thought and interest. 4. They have an active imagination. This is a most fortunate counterbalancing influence. The imagina- tion of a child is rank soil for all sorts of wild notions. The unseen, the ethereal, (not to say the spiritual), the superhuman, are eagerly grasped in the embrace of the imagination, so that after a little the claim of the physical and temporal is met by the claim of the spiritual and eternal. This is largely a matter of training. It depends on the parents and the teachers, whether the child feeds its imagination on Santa Claus and fairy tales or on the sweet story of the Christ-child, the miracles that followed his coming and the mansions prepared above for them that love him. 5. They have i77iplicit faith. They have not yet learned to cherish distrust, and no cloud of doubt has yet gathered above their horizon. Not having been taught to sift evidence and never yet having been deceived, they accept whatever is told them without a question. Methods of Teaching. The peculiarities of the child-mind being known, the methods of instruction must be adapted to them. Teaching must be of the simplest and begin at the foundations. Too much must not be expected of children in the way of consecutive thinking, but, instead, provision must be made for a constant change in the child's thoughts. Material things must be made to speak of spiritual things. The imagination-hunger in the child must be wisely fed. The teaching must be 276 MANUAL OF SUNDAY-SCHOOL 3IEriT0DS. [I'ART II. § 4, CII. vi. painstakingly truthful and little time is to be wasted at this stage of instruction on argument or evidence. The main anxiety on the part of the teacher should be in no way to forfeit the absolute confidence his pupils put in him. In the same connection, a few special suggestions are in place. 1. Arouse the doi'mant mind. It is well to excite curiosity. Make the child eager to learn ; let him ask questions ; strive to awaken thought ; set the children to guessing. Do not do all their thinking for them, but say enough to start their thinking, and then by judicious questioning, let them workout the problem for themselves. Appeal to the imagination. Give them word pictures as graphic as you can make them. Let them live Christ's life over in their thought. Dwell upon the supernatural side of the Bible, but not too long at a time and never so as to develop morbid feelings in their minds. 2. Appeal to their senses. For the eye have ready object lessons of every kind. For the ear let there be abundant music, — bright, cheerful, tender, uplifting. It will speak to the emotions and put them in the best frame to receive good. 3. Secure variety and change. Little children easily tire. The mind soon wanders, weary nerves must be rested and the mind calmed for a fresli effect. To this end no exercise should be long continued and the suc- ceeding exercise should be as different as possible. Vivac- ity in teaching is desirable, — though not nervousness, — and movement is a great help at times to bring the little ones to a fresh consideration of truth. 4. Repetition is the only certain way to fix the mem- ory. ''Line upon line and precept upon precept" is as applicable to the teaching of children to-day as it was to the instruction of the Israelites in the time of the prophets. PRIMARY TEACHING. 277 PART II, § 4, CII. vi,] 5. Adaptation to an undeveloped mind is the great necessity. To secure this the teacher must present to the child narrative rather than philosophy, the concrete rather than the abstract, and dwell upon only one point at a time. It is never safe to undertake to teach a little child too much at once. The teaching must be of the plainest character and should avoid anything that is com- plex or difficult. 6. Appeal to the religious nature. This is the ulti- mate aim of all Sunday-school instruction, and it must not be forgotten in teaching little children. They are easily impressible in this direction, and are devout, trust- ful and affectionate toward their Heavenly Father, as well as toward their earthly parents, if properly taught. How Can Variety be Secured ? It is an especial art in the management of the primary department to se- cure variety. Such variety must, of course, be largely developed outside the regular lesson. The lesson itself must not be too long. The order of service may include opening exercises, — consisting largely of Scripture, prayer and song, — preliminary exercises, general exercises on the lesson, the teacher's instruction, subsequent exercises, and closing exercises of worship. The preliminary and subsequent exercises may be 1. Various uses of Scripture. This will include Scripture recitations, repetitions of golden-texts or of special passages and Scripture readings. 2. Map drills. Questions are asked on lands of the Bible, the . Exodus Journey, Old Testament Palestine, New Testament Palestine, Paul's travels, etc. 3. Motion songs and marches. 4. Special topics, such as temperance and missions, which deserve distinct treatment. CHAPTER VII. THE KINDERGARTEN. Its Peculiar Features. The kindergarten is a new feature in Sunday-school work which has of late come into favor. A good number of our larger schools have now divided the primary department and put the little children into a kindergarten, securing, when possible, a trained kindergartner to conduct the department. The little ones, not yet able to read, are best taught according to kindergarten principles and methods. What is the process according to kindergarten principles of conveying a lesson to a child -mind ? We answer by paraphrasing in common speech the technical phraseology of Miss Susan E. Blow in her book on " Symbolic Education," as quoted in Black's Practical Primary Plans. 1 . Take some actual experience of the chihV s cve?yday life. It is necessary to begin from a standing place of the child's knowledge as one commences the study of mathematics with a few axioms. 2. Reproduce the experience in motion and expres- sion. It may be recalled to the child's consciousness by description, but still more certainly by some appeal to the eye. 3. Develop the ideas in this experience by language and music. Tell what the experience means and teaches. Let there be motion songs and exercises to bring out the idea. 4. Let a picture describe the experience. This may be done by a graphic word painting, or by drawing a pic- 278 THE KINDERGARTEN. 279 PART II. § 4, CH. vii.] ture on the blackboard or by bringing in suitable pictures to illustrate the subject and hanging them on the wall. 5. Talk about the subject sug'rested in the experience. 6. Tell a story or recite a poem, illustrating what has just been said. 7- By kindergarten gifts and occupations let the child reproduce the thoughts thus far brought out. Building blocks, paper houses, a sand board, cards to be used for sewing during the week, are all useful for this purpose. 8. Brin