Page:Robert Carter- his life and work. 1807-1889 (IA robertcarterhis00coch).pdf/126

110 was used to bring him to Christ. For many years he was an elder in a church in a Western city.

Mr. Carter’s home life was very beautiful. He and his wife were always married lovers, and entirely one in all their thoughts and aims and plans. In training their children, the two prominent ideas were love and obedience. He spoke in the last summer of his life of the remarkable gift of his wife in the training of children. Her will was law to them. Though her voice was never raised above its ordinary sweet and gentle utterance, they knew that its commands must be obeyed. Probably none of them remember being punished, because any discipline of that kind was gotten over in their very earliest years; but they had a very clear idea that any infringement of her commands would by no means escape chastisement. That knowledge was enough, and extreme measures did not need to be resorted to. She was a born teacher, though she never exercised her talents on any but her own children and grandchildren. Her children all learned to read almost as they learned to talk, so easy was the effort made to them, so carefully was their interest stimulated. Just a few minutes was given to the task each morning, and so pleasant was the exercise that the little ones would bring the book of their own accord and take the lesson as if it were a game. They all learned to read at four, and after that there were no more questionings, “What shall I do?” It was a book-loving and book-supplied home, and the children took to it like ducks to water. After they learned to read, little technical instruction was given until they went regularly to school, which was sometimes not until they were eleven years old.

Mr. Carter had a great idea of travel as a means of education, and they were taken to Europe repeatedly,