Smith, a Prince, Carhart and Needham, or a Mason and Hamlin, we consulted three or four gentlemen of our acquaintance, organists themselves, familiar with such matters, and competent to give the advice desired. They were unanimous in favor of the Mason and Hamlin instrument. We inqnired "How about the stops?" "Never mind the stops," they said, "you have the Automatic Swell." We took their advice and there's our organ, the choicest of our earthly possesions,-— babies except, of course!

Shall we describe it? Shall we talk of the crescendos and diminuendos of the automatic swell, giving that wouderful capacity for light and shade which enables the instrument in the words of the Musical Review, "to approach the power aud expression of human voice?" of the marvelous simplicity of structure by which, without any unusual movement of hands or feet, the player can command at will any degree from the loudest to the softest tone? of the fine voicing of the reeds? of the extraordinary power of the instrument? of the roundness, fullness, sweetness, in a word, the perfection of tone? of the delicacy and promptness with which it "speaks" to the touch? of the durability of workmanship, and the finish of action and case? We think not. So many worthy men have gone this way before us to sorrow failure in the attempt that we shall take warning from their melancholy example.

A clergyman of note who was recently in New York, paid a visit to the Turkish Baths, in that city. He went in like any other weary mortal; and after having been pounded, and steamed, and stretched, and douched, rolled in blankets, and worked over "quite in the new," be finally emerged from the establishment a la Mercury, or Bayard Taylor, after a similar experience in the Orient, with wings at his ankles! Some one wished to know how the thing was done and how he felt afterwards. He replied that he was "no more able to tell than to describe one of Mason & Hamlin's Cabinet Organs." The latter dfficulty we fully appreciate; the former we hope to look into on our mext visit to the metropolis.

Instrumental music as an accompaniment to the voice, is becoming more and more a leading feature in our best public schools. It follows naturally upon the introduction of vocal music in the large cities of Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Cincinnati, and Chicago,

experience has long since demonstrated the observation of competent School Controllers, the fact that vocal music is an essential feature of any well-digested system of popular education. And this fact once established, no arguments advanced by a false economy succeeded longer in banishing the same from the school curriculum. The visitor to the schools of these cities finds in a large proportion of them, pianos of first-class manufacture, or School Organs of the most approved modern styles. All parties concerned teachers, pupils and controllers-regard these as essential parts of the school furniture; and in female schools more particularly, would as soon think of dropping from the list the inevitable blackboard as the invaluable musical instrument. This is also true, to a greater or less extent, of progessive towns of smaller size everywhere in the North.

The marked improvement of late years in the manufacture of musical instruments keeps pace with the public demand. To so great a de gree is this the case, that the Cabinet Organ, an instrument of sustained power, occupying much less space in the school room, better a dapted for the purpose intended, and furnished at less than half the cost of the piano, has in a measure superceded the latter instrument in popular favor, both for the school-room and the family circle. The in strument of which we write-"ours"- was used last fall at one of the largest county institutes yet held in Pennsylvania, in one of the lar gest court rooms of the State, and although a very good piano stood beside it, yet the Cabinet Organ was preferred, and used during the entire week, while the piano was opened but three or four times.

In closing, we would recommend to schoof directors who can afford the expense, and who have teachers permanently employed, that they place an instrument of this class in the schools under their control. It will prove a wise inves tment. If the teacher plays so much the better if not, it is no difficult matter to learn how to touch the keys, as we have said, in a simple air or easy accompaniment; and a beginning made, an interest once excited,-progress is certain, and lasting good will result to the school.-Pennsylvania School Journal.

SHOOLS IN THE SOUTH. Schools are being organized rapidly in the South by the Freedman's Bureau and private enterprise. All of our exchanges complain of scarcity of teachers.

Dictionaries.

lie

upon

Many seem to act on the supposition that dictionaries were made to the table or desk, not to be soiled by use. A dictionary should be used constantly, and every teacher and student, yes, every reader, should keep one by his side as a constant companion while reading. Our education should not cease when we leave the district school, the academy or the college; but whenever a word presents itself, whose meaning we do not know, we should refer at once to this constant companion, and inform ourselves. Should we meet with a word, the pronunciation of which gives rise to any doubt in our mind, we should at once satisfy ourselves. Should any public speaker use a seeming inappropriate word, or, to our minds, give the wrong pronunciation to a word, we should go to our rooms and post ourselves; in this way and only by this means can we prepare ourselves to use the proper words with the proper pronunciation. The question is often asked us, "What dictionary shall I use?" We always say, "by all means use the best." With dictionaries as with most everything else, the best is the cheapest. We consider that Webster's New Dictionary is the nearest to perfection of any book that has ever been made. It is complete in all its parts. Each department of it has been for years under direction of the most skillful and scientific men in that branch of science. definitions, Webster has always been considered by scholars in this and European countries to be superior to any other lexicographer. In all cases may Webster be relied upon as being the best definer, and the many words with different shades of meaning are so classified and divided that the secker may at once cast his eye upon the identical case before him, or a parallel one, so that no confusion can possibly result. In orthography and pronunciation, Webster is regarded as the standard by nearly all the great publishing houses in this country, and their text-books all conform to it.

In

The present New Illustrated edition of Webster embodies EIGHTY large quarto pages, which in the previous edition were devoted to a treatise on Synonyms, in which more than two thousand of the principal words of the language, having similar shades of meaning, have their resemblances and precise shades of difference carefully pointed This is quite different from a mere collection of words having

but.

some similarity of meaning, but with the points of difference undiscriminated. This, the latest considerable work of the late lamented Dr. Goodrich, it is believed, forms, in many respects, the best treatise on English synonyms, for popular use, extant.

Pictorial Illustrations constitute a very attractive feature of the present edition, are over three thousand in number, of a size truly to il lustrate the words in question, executed in the highest style of art, and are far more numerous, larger, and better executed, than are found in any other work of the kind published in this country. They often convey to the student a much clearer conception of the character of an object, and the true meaning of a word, than it is possible from any mere verbal description.

Having been thoroughly revised since the war broke out in our own country, it's definitions of military terms are more complete than any book extant. Another feature which makes it valuable to us is the "Explanatory and Pronouncing Vocabulary of the Names of Noted Fictitious Persons and Places;" this alone has been pronounced by many to be worth the price of the book. Many thousand newly coined words are found in this dictionary only. The press are unanimous in its praise. We have seen these books, handled them and examined them, but not until recently have we had the pleasure of owning one. Words fail to express our gratification in being the possessor of this book, second only to the Bible. In turning over the leaves, we have no occasion to find fault with any omission or negligence, but rather seem lost in wonder that one book could contain so much, and that any one could think of the many wonderful things that are contained in it, and the many valuable changes that have been made since the edition of 1859. An effort will be made, no doubt, among lexicog raphers to compete with this work; but the present generation may hope in vain for an improvement to it. In the language of Mr. Ray mond, we say : "The New Webster is glorious-it is perfect-it distances and defies competition-it leaves nothing to be desired!"

MASTER AND SCHOLARS. When I was a boy," said an old man; (2 we had a schoolmaster who had an odd way of catching idle boys: One day he called out to us :

Boys, I must have closer attention to your books. The first one of you that sees another boy idle, I want you to inform me, and I will attend to the case."

"Ah!" thought I to myself, "there is Joe Simpson that I don't like. I'll watch him, and if I see him look off his book, I'll tell. " It was not long before I saw Joe look off his book, and immediately I informed the master.

"Indeed!" said he; "how did you know he was idle?

"I saw him," said I.

"You did; and were your eyes on your book when you saw him?” I was caught, and never watched for idle boys again.

If we are sufficiently watchful over our own conduct, we shall have no time to find fault with the conduct of others.

In Memoriam.

The following resolutions were adopted by the Regents of the State University at their last meeting:

WHEREAS, Prof. Dan'l Read, LL.D., has resigned his professorship of mental and moral science in the Wisconsin State University to ae cept the presidency of the State University of Missouri, therefore be it

Resolved, That the Regents of the University of Wisconsin cordially testify to their appreciation of the able and faithful services which Prof. Read has rendered to the University, and express their wishes for his success in the important field of labor upon which he has entered.

Resolved, That while we regret the loss of the valuable services of Prof. Read through his resignation, we extend to curators of the University of Missouri our warm congratulations in securing for President of the University such an efficient officer, thorough scholar and competent instructor.

Resolved, That the Secretary be requested to forward a copy of these resolutions to Prof. Read, and to furnish a copy also to the Madison nepspapers for publication.

Resolved, That in the death of our late associate, Regent Jackson Hadley, the Board of Regents recognize the loss of a most worthy member, whose long public services have been of value to the State, and whose memory we shall ever cherish.

Resolved, That the family of the deceased, in this, their affliction, are tendered the unanimous sympathy of this Board, and the Secretary is hereby instructed to transmit to the widow of the deceased a copy of these resolutions, duly attested by the signature of the President and Secretary and the seal of the Board.