"Then, sir," rejoined
one of the boys, "you should not have promised."

In the course of my observations I had frequently enjoined the
children to make every possible use of their thinking powers, but it
appears I had at the same time forgotten to make use of my own, and
consequently had been betrayed into a promise which I was not able to
perform.

I remember some other instances:

One of the children happened to kick another. The injured party
complained to the person who then had the charge of the school,
saying, "Please, sir, this boy kicked me." It being time for the
children to leave school, the master waved his hand towards the gate
through which the children pass, thoughtlessly saying, at the same
time, "Kick away;" meaning that the complainant was to take no more
notice of the affair, but go home. The complainant, however, returning
to the other child, began kicking him, and received some kicks
himself. A friend was present, and seeing two children kicking each
other, he very naturally inquired the reason. "Please, sir," replied
the children, "master told us!" "Master told you," says the gentleman,
"that cannot be; I'll ask him." He accordingly inquired into the truth
of the affair, and received for answer, "Certainly not." "Yes," said
the child, "you did, sir; did not I tell you just now that a boy
kicked me?" "Yes," says the master, "you did." "Then, please sir,"
says the child, "you told me to go and kick away!" The master
immediately recollected that he had said so.

This fact shews how improper it is to say one thing to a child and
mean another. These children were under the influence of obedience,
_and in the light of truth_, and being in that light, they could see
from no other, and very naturally concluded the master meant what he
had said.

One day some visitors requested I would call out a class of the
children to be examined. Having done so, I asked the visitors in what
they would wish the children to be examined; at the same time stating
that they might hear the children examined in natural history,
Scriptural history, arithmetic, spelling, geography, or geometry. They
choose the latter, and I proceded to examine the children accordingly;
beginning with straight lines. Having continued this examination for
about half an hour, we proceeded to enter into particulars respecting
triangles; and having discoursed on the difference between isosceles
triangles and scalene triangles, I observed that a