The Normal Record. November 1898

              THE NORMAL RECORD.
through the dusky inroads of ignorance,   to
better customs and civilization.
Who doubts that this may have been God's
plan of civilizing and Christianizing the
world; that the original actors in this perpetual drama were the Puritans, who left their
peaceless homes in England; who doubts that
July 4, 1776, marked the close of the first
act, and the different epochs in our country's
history, with the attendant strides in progress, are changes in the scenes of this drama
of the reality of an ideal life on earth, in
which the Maker of the Universe is the patient stage director. The gallant boys in
blue were selected and have acted well their
part. The next act may begin with the mustering into service of the teachers of the
land.
The lecture course has come upon us this
year like the advent of a new comet; it attracts attention by the mere mention of the
lecturer or his subject; it leaves the mind illumined by a light which will be a refreshing
contrast to the darkness which did prevail in
regard to these particular subjects. The
students should show their appreciation by
cheerful attendance.    We should do our part
to convince the Board of Trustees that this
will not be an experiment but a permanent
factor in the Normal. It required no little
effort on the part of our President to get the
required authority to make these educational
Klondykes entirely free to the student. He
who chooses to remain away robs himself and
indirectly the schools he may teach, of the
magnificent influence of a few of the greatest
intellectual and moral giants of the century.
To hear a description of the Nile, the Colis-
seum, the Alhambra, or the ruins of Pompeii,
from one who has spent weeks in the study
and inspection of each, and from so pleasing
a talker as Prof. Ardley, seems more like a
dream than a reality, for the stories of these
distant historical objects of admiration have
always appeared mythical. It is the presence and the personality of the speaker
which make these impressions vivid and lasting. To read the same subject is not to be
compared to hearing some man who is thoroughly alive, lecture upon it, for you miss the
gestures, the oratory, the expression of the
face and eyes; you miss the life and spice of
it all. The one is the lonely meal of hardtack and water; the other, the delicate and
dainty banquet.
Exchanges.
The "Archive," published by the U. E.
Manuel Training School of Philadelphia., is
particularly attractive in its exterior makeup. It is full of breezy articles and locals
and is altogether one of the most welcome of
our exchanges.
"The next person who interrupts the proceedings, ' said the judge sternly, "will be
expelled from the Court-room."
' Hooray!" cried the prisoner.
The Hall Boy—"Johnny Appleseeds " presents a novel and interesting character.
Her smile was most bewitching,
As beside him down she sat;
And she made a great impression,
But she made it on his hat.
cover;  bristling  with  news,   mainly  local in
character.
Professor of Chemistry—If anything should
go wrong in this experiment, we and the
laboratory with us, might be blown sky-high.
Step up closer, gentlemen, so that you may
be better able to follow.
The " Alpha " is an interesting little paper
and we are pleased to receive it.
" The High School Chat" has an attractive
A Kansas man has discovered the reason
why an engine is called "she," and his argument is that she wears a jacket, an apron,
wears shoes, hose, and drags a train behind
her; she has a lap, needs guides, rides wheels,
will not turn out for pedestrians, sometimes
foams and refuses to work; she attract men
and is very contrary, and it always takes a
man to manage her.