It will be apparent that in this whole scheme of instruction, we have sought to be strictly undenominational on the religious side. It has been the effort of the author to arrange the discussions so that they could be used in a Grammar School, where doctrinal teachings are excluded, or in the Sunday-school where these would be introduced as a matter of course. The plan has been to arrange the material so that the points of religious doctrine could simply be added on wherever desired, or omitted, according to the system or method of the school where this course of instruction might be employed.

The teacher who is giving lessons strictly in ethics, however, should be cautious about being too dogmatic. If we argue with the members of the class too far, where they disagree with us, we may only lead them to be all the more positive in their opinions. It would almost seem as if in ethics or religion, young people like to be contrary. We may often allow them to oppose us on minor points, with the hope of fixing rigidly on their minds the one or two leading principles, which strike us as of the most importance. Our method is not to be that of casuistry; we are not to let the young people feel that we are scheming to convince them in spite of themselves. We are simply trying, as far as possible, to have them see with their own eyes the truthsof the lessons in ethics, which have been found out from thousands of years of experience on the part of the human race. At the same time there are occasions when the adult should be very positive with regard to his own convictions, even where the class members will not agree with him. This especially applies on points where the young people could not have had sufficient experience to form a judgment of their But even here the most that we may be able to do would be to say earnestly and solemnly, "I think in this way," and there let the matter rest.

own.

There is a further danger to be considered in the fact that young people by this method of discussion

may be encouraged to watch and judge other people rather than themselves. It is a point that certainly must always be kept in mind by the teacher. At the same time we may not overlook the fact that this is the usual method by which conscience develops. The first judgments are liable to be with regard to others. The art of the teacher must be to recognize this fact, and then after the young people pass judgment on others, to encourage them to turn their eyes inward and to measure themselves by the same ideal standards.

In a practical way, the teacher is advised to be cautious when using this method of ethical instruction, lest he employ certain words too much and make them tiresome to the young people. There are terms which should be introduced only seldom so that they may have an exceptional significance on the minds of the young. On the other hand the adult may simply irritate the mind of the pupil by a repeated use of the same term. This would especially apply in the series of lessons before us, to the word "Habit." The teacher will, therefore, be driven to find substitutes for it, although he must use it a great deal in all the discussions.

It may seem to many persons, in this special series of lessons, as if we had been somewhat limited in our choice of subjects. No two persons would probably choose the same list of habits for treatment. But it is to be remembered that these lessons form only an introduction. We assume that any teacher who has undertaken to follow out the method oulined in these chapters, and made a success of it, would easily be able to go on and work out future dialogues for himself.

CHAPTER I.

THE MEANING OF HABIT.

Proverbs or Verses.

"Habits if not resisted soon become necessities."-St. Augustine.

"Habit is second nature! Habit is ten times nature."Wellington.

"Small habits well pursued betimes,

May reach the dignity of crimes.”—Hannah Moore.

"Ill habits gather by unseen degrees,

As brooks make rivers, rivers run to seas.'

"How use doth breed a habit in a man!"-Shakespeare. "Unless above himself he can erect himself, how poor a thing is man."-Daniel.

"Habit in sinning takes away the sense of sin.”

"It is a thousand times easier to contract a new habit than to get rid of an old one."

"Custom does often reason overrule,

And only serves for reason to a fool.-Rochester.

"Custom makes all things easy."

"Tyrant Custom makes a slave of reason."

"Use can almost change the stamp of nature."-Shakes peare.

Dialogue.

What do we mean by habit? I suppose you know what habits are? Will you give me some idea of what the word suggests to you? "Why," you say, "it is doing something over and over again without thinking about it, just as if it were second nature."

Yes, that is all very true. But sometimes we do the same thing over and over again, and yet we may not call it a habit.

Did you ever watch a chicken just after it had come out of the shell? Did you notice that it pecks at something, as if it had done that a great many times? Yet, had the chicken ever done that before? "No," you

admit, "that would have been impossible, because it had just come out of the shell."

Then, was it a habit? If not, what is it that makes the chicken do that? "Oh," you assert, "the chicken acts in that way by instinct."

So then, it is instinct, you tell me. Thát is a new word. And what is the difference between instinct and habit? This is quite an important distinction. Be careful now in your answer. "Instinct," you explain, "is something that is born in a creature. It begins without the use of the mind." Yes, you are right. It is a sort of gift at the start.

Name over some of the instincts, for example. What about the birds? Do you fancy, for instance, that if a little bird had never seen a nest made, it would go ahead nevertheless, when it grew up, and make a nest all of its own?

What do you think? "Oh, yes," you answer, "we are sure the bird would go ahead and make a nest just the same. I presume you are right. "Nest-making," then, is one of the beautiful instincts.

What about human beings? Do they have instincts? Is there anything that we do as something which is born in us, just as the chick pecks, or the bird goes about nest-making? "You doubt it," do you? "We act by reason and not by instinct," you insist.

Do not be too positive about that. Do you suppose that if a human creature had never been taught to eat, he would not put food in his mouth? I am quite certain he would, even if it had never been taught to him at all.

If a grain of dust falls against the eye, would you not wink, even if you had never learned how to do it? I am sure that the eye-lid would close all the same. Yes, we have instincts, just as the animals do.

And now another question. Which really have the greater number of instincts-the animal world or human beings? "Oh," you reply, "human beings would have more instincts, if they have instincts at all."

And why? I ask. "Because," you assert, "we are

superior in every way, and so should have more of those gifts than the animals.”

“Wait a moment now. How was it you said a creature acts, when guided by instinct?"Without reason?" Yes, without using his mind. Then are you sure that human beings, because they are superior, would have more instincts and act oftener without reason? No, it is really the other way. There are more instincts among the animals and fewer among human beings.

Can you see why? "It may be," you add, "because we exercise reason more than the animals do." Yes, that is it. Hence we have less need for instincts, inasmuch as we can make more use of our minds.

And now as to habits. If they are not born in us like instincts, where do they come from? Do they just happen? Do they come like second teeth? Do they drop down on us from the skies? "Oh no," ," you assure me, "because if they came that way, they would be a kind of instinct." Yes, you are right.

Where, then, do our habits come from? "Why," you point out, "we get them ourselves or we make them for ourselves." Do you really mean that? If you do, stop and reflect how important it is.

Appreciate what it signifies, that we form our own habits. Then what if we have bad habits; who is to blame for it? "We, ourselves," you confess. Yes, I suspect we are, if we form them ourselves.

Suppose we talk a little more now about the different kinds of habits. Then we shall be able to discuss this question in a more positive way. Mention some of the habits we may form.

Begin with the body. Did you ever see a girl throw a stone? Does she always throw it the same way that a boy does? You are smiling at that, I notice. Well now, why not? How does it happen that boys may throw stones in one way with their arms, and girls another? Although of course in this matter there is great difference in girls.

Or suppose that a boy and girl are throwing a ball.