prayer, it can hardly seem possible that the teacher who wishes to be faithful in his duties should hesitate in regard to this.  Some teacher may perhaps say that he can not perform it because he is not a religious man—­he makes no pretensions to piety.  But this can surely be no reason.  He ought to be a religious man, and his first prayer offered in school may be the first act by which he becomes so.  Entering the service of Jehovah is a work which requires no preliminary steps.  It is to be done at once by sincere confession, and an honest prayer for forgiveness for the past, and strength for time to come.  A daily religious service in school may be, therefore, the outward act by which he, who has long lived without God, may return to his duty.

If, from such considerations, the teacher purposes to have a daily religious service in his school, he should by all means begin on the first day, and when he first calls his school to order.  He should mention to his pupils the great and obvious duty of imploring God’s guidance and blessing in all their ways, and then read a short portion of Scripture, with an occasional word or two of simple explanation, and offer, himself, a short and simple prayer.  In some cases, teachers are disposed to postpone this duty a day or two, from timidity or other causes, hoping that, after becoming acquainted a little with the school, and having completed their more important arrangements, they shall find it easier to begin.  But this is a great mistake.  The longer the duty is postponed, the more difficult and trying it will be.  And then the moral impressions will be altogether more strong and salutary if an act of solemn religious worship is made the first opening act of the school.

Where the teacher has not sufficient confidence that the general sense of propriety among his pupils will preserve good order and decorum during the exercise, it may be better for him to read a prayer selected from books of devotion, or prepared by himself expressly for the occasion.  By this plan his school will be, during the exercise, under his own observation, as at other times.  It may, in some schools where the number is small, or the prevailing habits of seriousness and order are good, be well to allow the older scholars to read the prayer in rotation, taking especial care that it does not degenerate into a mere reading exercise, but that it is understood, both by readers and hearers, to be a solemn act of religious worship.  In a word, if the teacher is really honest and sincere in his wish to lead his pupils to the worship of God, he will find no serious difficulty in preventing the abuses and avoiding the dangers which some might fear, and in accomplishing vast good, both in promoting the prosperity of the school, and in the formation of the highest and best traits of individual character.