Duties.—­The teacher is one of our most important officers.  The State has confided to him the trust of teaching, of showing boys and girls how to be useful men and women, of training them for citizenship.  This is a great work to do.  The State has clothed him with ample power for the purpose, and it is his duty to serve the State faithfully and well.  The teacher should govern kindly and firmly.  Every pupil in school, of whatever age or size, owes him cheerful and ready obedience.  It is his duty, the duty for which he is paid, to insist upon this obedience; to govern the school; to teach the pupils to obey while they are children, in order that they may rule well when they become rulers; that is, when they become citizens.

SUGGESTIVE QUESTIONS.

1.  Why are law and order necessary to the peace and happiness of the people?

2.  Why are public schools sometimes called free schools or common schools?

3.  About how many square miles are there in a school district in this county?

4.  What is the official title, and what the name, of the chief school officer of this county?

5.  Why does the State want its people educated?

6.  Why should children be regular and punctual in their attendance?

7.  What can parents do to aid their children to acquire an education?

8.  What number of directors do you think would be best for the school district?  Why?

9.  Should directors receive compensation?  How much?

10.  Why should the teacher pass an examination?

11.  Should he be examined every year?

12.  Why does the law place the teacher in the parent’s place?

13.  Why are citizens said to be rulers?

QUESTION FOR DEBATE.

Resolved, That it is right for a man without children to pay school taxes.

CHAPTER III.

THE CIVIL DISTRICT.

Introductory.—­In our study, thus far, we have had to do with special forms of government as exercised in the family and in the school.  These are, in a sense, peculiar to themselves.  The rights of government as administered in the family, and the rights of the members of a family, as well as their duties to each other, are natural rights and duties; they do not depend upon society for their force.  In fact, they are stronger and more binding in proportion as the bands of society are relaxed.

In the primitive state, before there was organized civil society, family government was supreme; and likewise, if a family should remove from within the limits of civil society and be entirely isolated, family government would again resume its power and binding force.