distinction ought to be made in the treatment of them. In a word
then,--what we have been recommending under this head is, that the
teacher should make it his special study, for his first few days in
school, to understand the characters of his pupils,--to learn who are
the thoughtless ones, who the mischievous, and who the disobedient and
rebellious;--and to do this with candid, moral discrimination, and with
as little open collision with individuals as possible.

8. Another point to which the teacher ought to give his early attention,
is to separate the bad boys as soon as he can, from one another. The
idleness and irregularity of children in school often depends more on
accidental circumstances than on character. Two boys may be individually
harmless and well disposed, and yet they may be of so mercurial a
temperament, that, together, the temptation to continual play will be
irresistible. Another case that more often happens, is, where one is
actively and even intentionally bad, and is seated next to an innocent
but perhaps thoughtless boy, and contrives to keep him always in
difficulty. Now remove the former away, where there are no very frail
materials for him to act upon, and place the latter where he is exposed
to no special temptation, and all would be well.

This is all very obvious, and known familiarly to all teachers who have
had any experience. But beginners are not generally so aware of it at
the outset as to make any direct and systematic efforts to examine the
school with reference to its condition in this respect. It is usual to
go on, leaving the boys to remain seated as chance or their own
inclinations grouped them, and to endeavour to keep the peace among the
various neighbourhoods, by close supervision, rebukes, and punishment.
Now these difficulties may be very much diminished, by looking a little
into the arrangement of the boys at the outset, and so modifying it as
to diminish the amount of temptation to which the individuals are
exposed.

This should be done, however, cautiously, deliberately, and with good
nature;--keeping the object of it a good deal out of view. It must be
done cautiously and deliberately, for the first appearances are
exceedingly fallacious in respect to the characters of the different
children. You see perhaps some indications of play between two boys
upon the same seat, and hastily conclude that they are disorderly boys
and must be separated. Something in the air and ma