ill
enable the girls to fill office positions. Facts are at hand which
show the futility of attempting office work under such conditions, and
teachers should be very careful to see that all the facts are in the
possession of their pupils.

In the early days of high schools usually the only distinction, if
any, in courses was "general" and "classical." To-day we have many
courses, or in the larger cities different schools fit boys and girls
for varying paths in life. The college-preparatory course or the
classical high school leads to college. The commercial course or
school leads to office work. The manual training or industrial or
practical arts course or high school leads to efficient handwork. The
trade school leads to definite occupations. The difficulty now is to
help girls choose intelligently which course or school will best meet
their requirements. This involves vocation study in the grammar
school.

[Illustration: Benson Polytechnic School for Girls, Portland, Oregon.
The trade school leads to definite occupations. The girl with
mechanical ability may find her vocation in millinery, dressmaking, or
the various sewing-machine trades]

The girl who terminates her formal education with her graduation from
high school may find herself not very much better placed, apparently,
than the girl who has dropped out of school farther back. Many
openings into desirable occupations are still closed to her. Often
her opportunities, however, are much greater than they seem. All facts
go to show that the high-school girl makes more rapid progress in
efficiency, and therefore in pay, than the younger girl, even when she
seems to begin at the same work. Some fields, too, are open to her
that are not usually possible for the grammar-school girl. In office
work the high-school girl who has specialized in her training may make
a very creditable showing. Many thousands of high-school graduates are
received into telephone exchanges where with a brief period of
practice they become efficient workers. A very few high-school girls
become teachers in country schools without further training, but the
number is decreasing every year. If she meets the age requirement, the
high-school girl may enter a training school for nurses, gaining her
specialized training in return for her services to the hospital.

The high-school girl who can spare time and money for some further
training finds a larger field open; but, to make the most of what h