“I have thought that time will be saved if you will help me distribute the books, and I will accordingly appoint four distributors, one for each division of the seats, who may come to me and receive the books, and distribute them each to his own division.  Are you willing to adopt this plan?”

The boys answer “Yes, sir,” and the teacher then looks carefully around the room, and selects four pleasant and popular boys—­boys who he knows would gladly assist him, and who would, at the same time, be agreeable to their school-mates.  This latter point is necessary in order to secure the popularity and success of the plan.

Unless the boys are very different from any I have ever met with, they will be pleased with the duty thus assigned them.  They will learn system and regularity by being taught to perform this simple duty in a proper manner.  After a week, the teacher may consider their term of service as having expired, and thanking them in public for the assistance they have rendered him, he may ask the scholars if they are willing to continue the plan, and if the vote is in favor of it, as it unquestionably would be, each boy probably hoping that he should be appointed to the office, the teacher may nominate four others, including, perhaps, upon the list, some boy popular among his companions, but whom he has suspected to be not very friendly to himself or the school.  I think the most scrupulous statesman would not object to securing influence by conferring office in such a case.  If difficulties arise from the operation of such a measure, the plan can easily be modified to avoid or correct them.  If it is successful, it may be continued, and the principle may be extended, so as in the end to affect very considerably all the arrangements and the whole management of the school.

Or, let us imagine the following scene to have been the commencement of the introduction of the principle of limited self-government into a school.

The preceptor of an academy was sitting at his desk, at the close of school, while the pupils were putting up their books and leaving the room.  A boy came in with angry looks, and, with his hat in his hands bruised and dusty, advanced to the master’s desk, and complained that one of his companions had thrown down his hat upon the floor, and had almost spoiled it.

The teacher looked calmly at the mischief, and then asked how it happened.

“I don’t know, sir.  I hung it on my nail, and he pulled it down.”

“I wish you would ask him to come here,” said the teacher.  “Ask him pleasantly.”

The accused soon came in, and the two boys stood together before the master.

“There seems to be some difficulty between you boys about a nail to hang your hats upon.  I suppose each of you think it is your own nail.”

“Yes, sir,” said both the boys.

“It will be more convenient for me to talk with you about this to-morrow than to-night, if you are willing to wait.  Besides, we can examine it more calmly then.  But if we put it off till then, you must not talk about it in the mean time, blaming one another, and keeping up the irritation that you feel.  Are you both willing to leave it just where it is till to-morrow, and try to forget all about it till then?  I expect I shall find you both a little to blame.”