An Essay on Infant Cultivation

CLOTH MEASURE.

Sheep's wool is wash'd and comb'd with hand,

And then 'tis spun with wheel and band;

And then with shuttle, loom, and care, Wove into cloth for us to wear.

The cloth is then sent to be dyed, Where it is boil'd, and wash'd, and dried;

And then 'tis press'd so nice and smooth,

That tailors buy, and it do use.

The tailor then cuts out with care
The clothes that men and boys do

wear;

But when the tailor buys, I'm told, "Tis by this rule all cloth is sold.

Two inches and one quarter take, Which just an English nail will make ; Four nails one quarter make we know, Which we can cut, turn down and sew.

Four quarters will, if new or old,
Make just one yard, for so 'tis sold;
Three quarters make one Flemish ell,
For thus those people buy and sell.

But five quarters do make an ell
In England, which is known full well;
But when the French do buy or sell,
They give six quarters to an ell.

* In this and the two following pieces, the teacher will ask the questions, and the children will answer in concert.

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FROM POEMS BY A FRIEND TO YOUTH.

On Attention at School and Obedience to Teachers.

We must mind what our master and mistress shall say,
And be quiet in school-time and gentle in play;
We will look at our letters, and say them quite well,
And then our kind mistress will teach us to spell.
And when we can spell very perfect indeed,
Oh! then our good master will teach us to read.
Then we shall be able to read to our mother;
And then we can teach little sister or brother.
We'll read in the Bible, and learn to be good;
And to thank the great God for our clothes and our food.
And we will not forget that to God we must pray,
To keep us from hurt both by night and by day.
But to please him we always must try to do right,
We must not be cross, nor be naughty, nor fight;
But we'll be good children, or we shall not grow
To be good men and women, we very well know.

The Fly.

"Twas God who made that little fly,
But if I pinch it, it will die;
My master tells me God has said

We must not hurt what God has made;
For God is very kind and good,
And gives e'en little flies their food;
And he loves every little child
Who is kind-hearted, good, and mild.

The Pleasure of attending School clean and neat.
'Tis pleasant to come to School happy and good,
'Tis pleasant to come neat and clean;

"Tis pleasant to know all the lessons I'm taught,
And tell mother at home what they mean.

How sorry I am when we stand up to sing,
If dirty my hands and my face;

For then I'm remov'd far away from the rest,
And must not stand up in my place.

Then I'll beg my dear mother to make me quite neat,
And wash me and comb me each day;

For then I can learn all my lessons at school,
And then I may happily play.

Good Resolutions.

When my father comes home in the evening from work,
Then I will get up on his knee,

And tell him how many nice lessons I learn,

And show him how good I can be.

He shall hear what a number I know how to count,

And I'll tell him what words I can spell,

And if I can learn something every day,

I hope soon I shall read very well.

I'll say to him all the nice verses I know,
And tell him how kind we must be,

That we never must hurt poor dumb creatures at all,
And he'll kiss me and listen to me.

I'll tell him we always must try to please God,
And never be cruel or rude;

For God is the Father of all living things,
And he cares for and blesses the good.

Never throw a stone or brick then,

Though you see no creature near; 'Tis a dangerous, naughty practice, Which my little ones should fear.

Never do like those bad children Who are often in the street,

Throwing stones at dogs or horses, And at any thing they meet.

God will love the child that's gentle, And that tries to do no wrong; And you should be always careful, Even though you are so young.

HYMNS FOR INFANT SCHOOLS.

For Sunday Morning.

This day belongs to God alone:
He chooses Sunday for his own;
And we must neither work nor play,
Because it is the Sabbath day.

"Tis well to have one day in seven,
That we may learn the way to heaven,
Or else we never should have thought,
About religion as we ought.

Then let us spend it as we should,
In serving God and growing good;
And not forget, when Sunday's gone,
What texts the sermons were upon.

We ought to-day to learn and seek
What we may think of all the week;
And be the better every day

For what we've heard the preacher say.

And every Sabbath should be pass'd,
As if we knew it were our last;
For what would dying people give,
To have one Sabbath more to live!

II.

Things that ought to be remembered.

These are the things I ought to mind: To come in time, and every day,

And never idly wait behind,

For no good reason, or to play.

To put my clothes on neat and tight, And see my hands and face are clean; And mind to say my lessons right,

And to remember what they mean.

My books I must not tear or lose, But always keep them smooth and neat;

And wicked words I must not use, Such as I hear about the street.

I must remember what I'm told,
And always do as I am bid;
And not be obstinate or bold,

Or cross, or sulky, when I'm chid.

And when I am not at the school,
Even if nobody is near,

I ought to think of every rule,

And be as good as when I'm there.

These are the things I ought to mind; And so I will with all my might; Because I'm certain I shall find There's nothing lost by doing right.

III.

"Q. What must you do for this great God who is so good to you?—A. I must learn to know him first, and then I must do every thing to please him."

This is the way to know the Lord,
And this will please him too,
To hear and read his holy word,
That tells us what to do.

He lives in heaven, and does not need
Such little ones as we;

But God is very kind indeed,
And even cares for me.

Though if I tried with all my might,
And did the best I could,

I should not always do it right,
And could not do him good.

Then let me love him for his care,
And love his holy word,
Because he teaches children there,
To know and please the Lord.

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An Essay on Infant Cultivation: With a Compendium of the Analytical Method ...