Book III - Age 12 to Age 15 - Page 2

less skilful had their training
begun earlier. If there is a difference, and I do not deny that
there is, it is, I repeat, much less than the difference between
the stormy passions of the man and the few wants of the child.
Moreover, it is not merely a question of bodily strength, but more
especially of strength of mind, which reinforces and directs the
bodily strength.

This interval in which the strength of the individual is in excess
of his wants is, as I have said, relatively though not absolutely
the time of greatest strength. It is the most precious time in his
life; it comes but once; it is very short, all too short, as you
will see when you consider the importance of using it aright.

He has, therefore, a surplus of strength and capacity which he will
never have again. What use shall he make of it? He will strive to
use it in tasks which will help at need. He will, so to speak, cast
his present surplus into the storehouse of the future; the vigorous
child will make provision for the feeble man; but he will not store
his goods where thieves may break in, nor in barns which are not
his own. To store them aright, they must be in the hands and the
head, they must be stored within himself. This is the time for
work, instruction, and inquiry. And note that this is no arbitrary
choice of mine, it is the way of nature herself.

Human intelligence is finite, and not only can no man know everything,
he cannot even acquire all the scanty knowledge of others. Since the
contrary of every false proposition is a truth, there are as many
truths as falsehoods. We must, therefore, choose what to teach
as well as when to teach it. Some of the information within our
reach is false, some is useless, some merely serves to puff up its
possessor. The small store which really contributes to our welfare
alone deserves the study of a wise man, and therefore of a child
whom one would have wise. He must know not merely what is, but what
is useful.

From this small stock we must also deduct those truths which require
a full grown mind for their understanding, those which suppose a
knowledge of man's relations to his fellow-men--a knowledge which
no child can acquire; these things, although in themselves true, lead
an inexperienced mind into mistakes with regard to other matters.

We are now confined to a circle, small indeed compared with the
whole of human thought, but this circle is still a vast sphere when
measured by the child's mind. Dark places of the human understanding,
what rash hand shall dare to raise your veil? What pitfalls does
our so-called science prepare for the miserable child. Would you
guide him along this dangerous path and draw the veil from the
face of nature? Stay your