Page:Preparation of the Child for Science.djvu/68

64 suddenly exhibits tangential motion at the moment when the stone escapes from the counteracting force of the string. A small weight fastened to an elastic string represents the dual force under which the planets move, the force of attraction alternately yielding a little to the tangential impulse and slightly overcoming it.

The practice of playing with such toys as the sling and stone, the sucking-valve, the old-fashioned rope-maker's wheel, and the bandalore, may be made a means of accustoming children's nerves to the feeling of Nature's opposing tendencies, and may prepare the organization for receiving knowledge, later on, into the conscious brain. By training the hand to trace out Nature s action, we train the unconscious mind to act spontaneously in accordance with Natural Law; and the unconscious mind, so trained, is the best teacher of the conscious mind.

The delight that most children take in swinging is the outcome of natural physical craving to be in line with Natures forces. This purpose is best served by the pace at which and the height to which the child is swung being regulated according to his own instincts. If we excite him to allow himself to be swung higher than he likes, either by competition with other children or by the