to the old notion of
"reading 'round" as an apology for a recitation, but we can well point
out the merit of seeing to it that pupils see and read the scriptures.
If the lesson can be so conducted that reading is indulged in as a
supplementary laboratory exercise--a turning through of gems that entice
the reader to make further study of the book--then reading can be made a
very valuable factor in the teaching process. Then, too, it is
educational just to have members of a class turn through the scriptures
to know what they are--what books are involved and where they may be
found. Ignorance with respect to the scriptures is alarmingly prevalent.
The following report taken from the _New York Tribune_ relative to a
simple test in Bible literature, given by an Eastern university to 139
students, is significant:

"Out of 139 only 12 reached 75%; 90 received less than 50%; 10 could not
name a single book of the Old Testament. Some who did spelled them
Salms, Joob, etc. Some named Paul, Babylonians, and Gentiles as Old
Testament books."

Surely much might be said in favor of the use of books in our classes.

3. _The Special Topic Method._ Much can be said both for and against the
topic method. At least three objections to its use can be raised:

A. It makes for piece-meal preparation. The lesson is partitioned off
into segments, one of which may be prepared by a particular pupil who
does not concern himself at all with the rest of the lesson. This
method, therefore, encourages fragmentary and incomplete preparation.

B. It makes for a disconnected presentation which makes it quite
impossible for pupils to get a unified conception of the whole lesson.
This is doubly bad, because of the fact that frequently those who are
assigned parts absent themselves from class.

C. It often results in dull, commonplace recitations. All too
frequently, especially if topic assignments are the usual method of
procedure, those pupils given the various topics to work up content
themselves with very meagre preparation. They come to class, therefore,
and merely run over so many facts wholly without inspiration and often
by constant reference to notes or the text.

Of course, these difficulties can be overcome largely by the judicious
use of the topic method. It ought not generally to be followed as the
regular order of business, but rather as a supplementary means of
enriching the lesson. It ought not to be used so as to excuse all class
me