Page:The Book of the Aquarium and Water Cabinet.djvu/188



chief peculiarities of this Work are, its division into lessons of equal length, instead of the common mode of division into chapters, each Lesson treating of a distinct subject, and containing as much matter as can be read and remembered without undue labour on the part of teacher or pupil; and in the exclusion of those details of war and bloodshed, which too frequently occupy the attention of children on their first introduction to History. An attempt has also been made to treat every historical event in such a manner as to cherish sentiments of charity and forbearance towards all good men, by refraining from the unchristian practice of exciting odium against whole bodies and sects of men, on account of the vices and enormities of particular individuals. Appended to the work are copious Genealogical, Chronological, and other tables, from which the teacher may collect facts and dates, wherewith to fill up the historical outline given in the body of the work, if, for the class of children under his tuition, they are found somewhat too meagre. With the exception of a few schools, however, who make History a very special subject, the author conceives that, in the present state of popular education, this little work will be found to contain about as much as can be really learnt in elementary schools, unless it be to the exclusion of other subjects equally, if not more, important.