SONG OF THE SHELL. There played beside the murm'ring sea, The day was bright, her spirit light, She loved to watch the dark blue wave, A beauteous shell the maiden found, She placed the smooth and polished shell, Then shone her eyes, with pleased surprise, So strange a tale to hear. In listening attitude she stood, That young and joyful child; While free the air, played with her hair, My song is not of the angry waves, There queenly palaces are found, With costly gems their queen is decked, Her robe confined, with shells combined, Sweet music from the silver bells Thus gently doth the fairy rule, Her wand is love, like God's above, Yet not all beauty, not all calm, Beneath these waters lie; Though stars are bright, they give their light, There are dark and gloomy caverns, Whose secrets angels keep; And angry waves dash o'er the graves Unconscious of a mother's tears, And one lies there to manhood grown, His brow was dark with Satan's mark, Until the sea gives up its dead, All that within it lies The mild farewells, and funeral knells, BOARDING ROUND. L. P. Messrs. Editors :-Again allow me to answer briefly the communication of H. C. O. in the June No. of your Journal. My design in doing this, is not to seize upon mis takes that may perchance occur, or to deal largely in sarcastic language; nor shall I attempt to explain to the gentleman's understanding certain things which appear to him dark and abstruse, for with persons whose will runs not with their understanding, arguments and even stubborn facts avail but little; but I do wish briefly to present to the consideration of an enlightened and unprejudiced people, a few facts which I still think the gentleman has failed to subvert. He says I admitted the phrase "relic of barbarism" might be somewhat objectionable, and so I did; but he very cunningly omits the reason I gave, which was, "since schools do not exist in barbarous lands." In this instance, as in others in the same communication, by taking part of a clause he has attempted by considerable warping to present ideas in an erroneous manner, as skeptics prove any doctrine, however absurd, from half quoted passages of Scripture. This, I maintain, is unfair; yet with his logical reasoning before me, I still maintain that the custom alluded to is so contrary to enlightened reaand so much in keeping with many barbarous customs, it may safely be termed a " relic of barbarism." son, Neither do I consider every " innovation " a "reformation," yet every reformation is surely an innovation; and when the wants of community, the interests of humanity, as well as the spirit of the age, demand a change, even though it breaks over ancient landmarks and destroys dearly cherished institutions, or time honored customs, I hope I may be the last to cry innovation. I said the teacher's work was the noblest, the most important of all. Would H. C. O. attempt to say that the parent is not a teacher? He is a teacher, and the teacher in the school room only assumes the office and the work of the parent for a few hours daily, and then returns the children of his charge to their true and rightful instructors. I did ask the question and now repeat it," who fares like him," not particularly as concerns the quality or quantity of food or sleep, but the constant inconvenience and annoyance to which he is daily subjected, to say nothing of the great destruction of health resulting from change of apartments, which of itself is one of the plainest yet strongest of facts. I ask no better fare for the teacher than the parent affords himself and family. The parent, first of all, provides a permanent home for his family. I claim one, on the same ground, for the teacher. Let the district place him, if it chooses, in the plainest and the poorest family even, but don't compel him to travel about from house to house like a street beggar, to seek his dai ly bread. And, because as a class the teachers of our land desire those conveniences and comforts of civilized life, which they so justly deserve, and see fit to express their opinions of a custom, inconvenient and uncomfortable in the extreme, must they forsooth be styled" motley group of pretended living teachers,"" white gloved aristocracy," " and the like? The idea is absurd, repugnant to every sentiment of honor and justice, contrary to every feeling of respect and decency. The gentleman shows his feelings upon the subject, by the very emphatic use of "servant" as applied to the teacher. He evidently believes, "all men were not created free and equal,” and that the teacher was born a slave, to labor faithfully for his masters, and in return, receive the usual amount of neglect and abuse, besides the inestimable privilege of boarding round and enjoying all those "best" things he so graphically describes. I know this has been a prevalent opinion among certain classes, but am glad it is fast disappearing with other relics of barbarism, though your correspondent may perhaps consider it an innovation of some sacred prerogative of ancient times. Another idea, "the teacher of common schools who is dependent upon his evening study to enable him to prepare for to-morrow's duties, is not qualified to teach." Such an one will make a better teacher by far, than one who depends upon theory alone, and makes no effort to improve. Does the Physician become skillful by simply learning the theory, or is it by long and laborious study of the nature and application of the various remedies in his power? The teacher, no matter how good his theory, or how complete his education, must study, if he would succeed. Tact and skill in communicating must be acquired, and his ingenuity must be taxed to find out new and more forcible methods of inculcating truth; and that teacher is the best, who succeeds the best in waking up the minds of his pupils and interesting them in an almost endless variety of ways. To do this he needs his hours for rest and thought, time which he cannot procure when obliged to board about the district. Now for the main argument, to which the gentleman clings so tenaciously, the more thorough acquaintance with both pupil and parent, acquired by boarding around. And here again he places things in a wrong light, by quoting part of a clause. I asked the question, "Where is the teacher possessed of average common sense who cannot by daily intercourse with the scholar, ascertain far more of his character, and the home influences brought to bear upon him, than he could by two days' acquaintance with him at home?" In quoting this, he left out the clause "home influences brought to bear upon him," and thus presented the matter in a different light from that intended. He ought to have been "surprised," not at the idea presented, but at his own hardihood in thus warping and changing the evident intention of the passage. It is an apparent fact, no matter how strongly the gentleman denies it, that people in many cases do not act out their real character, and most certainly is this the case with both parent and child. They are anxious to form as good an impression upon the mind of the teacher as possible; especially is it so with the child, if he is naturally inclined to be mischievous or unruly in school: and in the light of reason and human nature, it is safe to say, the teacher learns nothing of the true character of his scholar. It does, however, furnish many so disposed, an excellent opportunity to draw from the unthinking and inexperienced teacher, many things he ought not to speak, and by soft and oily language, succeed in prejudicing him in favor of their own perfect darlings, and in thoroughly deceiving him in relation to the willful and wicked children of their next door neighbor. I ask for no stronger argument against the practice. One other fact and I will close, as I fear I have already exceeded my limits. I am happy to say, the custom is fast becom ing obsolete, and a great majority of our larger districts Row board the teacher, both in summer and winter, at one place; and all that hinders in many others, is a few wealthy, yet penurious and small-souled men, who control |