10
THE CHEM AW A
AM ERICAN
ribbons and a large and a small bow and arrows.
I asked a large boy who was able to understand a few words and who
could speak a few words to come to the mirror and brush his hair and to
tell them what he was doing. He said very slowly, ‘ ‘ I brush hair.” Each
child in the room performed some action before the mirror. There were
many in the room old enough to be called young men and young women
who were proud to “ brush hair,” “ button dress,” “ tie tie,” while
looking in the glass. Some looked long, turned and looked again.
Some smiled at themselves and at others that they could see.
After all in the room had looked and performed some little act and
repeated a few words, one of the most unpromising looking girls came
to me, took me by the hand and led me to the mirror and by signs gave
me to understand that she wished to see what I would do. Like a flash
the play spirit took possession of me. I remembered how much delight
I used to take when I was a child in “ making faces” at myself in the
glass. I went with her to the glass and “ made a face” at myself. Sim
ultaneously they broke into a joyous, hearty laugh. They tried to talk
to me—one of the oldest ones said, “ Indian do that when look in water
sometime.” One little fellow went to the board and drew a tree, a boy
behind it making a very ugly face.
That instant ot play spirit bridged the chasm between teacher and
pupils. It was no trouble to get them to play their games as they did
at their homes, in the woods and by the streams. In my years of experi
ence among the Indians I have been much impressed by the innocence
of the children’s games; while the games of the adult Indians are almost
invariably vicious in some feature. I think I am safe in saying that in
almost every case of social immorality it arises from some bad form of
play.
Besides the educative feature of play there is the hygienic feature of
the activity. The observing parent or teacher will say play is the great
therapeutic agent of childhood. Out-door play, fresh air, sunshine, hap
piness, give the children abundance of all; they will solve many a prob
lem for them for which there is no other solution. Let the play be
spontaneous, vigorous, calling into use many muscles otherwise neg
lected, they will return to their work refreshed, the vital organs strength
ened, the strain of the mental work in the classroom has been relieved
bv forgetfulness in their play. Notwithstanding the place my observa
tion and experience lead me to accord to play in the education of chil
dren and in the lives of all peoples, I must insist on a sharp, unmistak
able discrimination between play and work. I have not been able to
bring myself to allow a spirit of play to pervade the work of the class
room as some of our best educators recommend. There should be a
work spirit at the time for work, the child should be trained out of his