The circle at New Gloucester, Maine, has recently closed a lecture course which proved successful beyond expectation. The circle has been flourishing in fine style this year, and the meetings have been of a high literary order. Essays on various subjects have been willingly contributed, while much entertainment and profit has been derived from passing round to the whole company written questions to be immediately answered.
The circle organized at Rockville, Massachusetts, in 1882, is still in fine condition. They meet weekly, and the program consists in answering the questions in The Chautauquan, abstracts from required reading, readings and conversations. In October the circle enjoyed a day at Diamond Hill, R. I., gathering geological specimens.
The local paper of Hudson, Massachusetts, says: Our local circle is doing excellent work. Here is the program of next meeting: 1st, Review of “Ten Reasons why we should know the great outlines of Grecian History and Literature.” 2d, Crayon map of Greece, drawn and explained. 3d, Conversation on “The Art of Healing” as known to the Greeks. 4th, Essay, “The Age of Pericles.” 5th, Conversation; some “Similitudes and Contrasts” in Greek and American Literature. 6th, One Hundred Questions on Biology, class. This means quiet, little by little, but constant and steady work to extend the realm of personal knowledge.
The secretary of the Centerville, Rhode Island, local circle gives the following account of how they made Political Economy interesting: “At the last meeting of the circle a member who formerly gave much time to the study of political science, delivered an informal lecture, in the conversational vein, upon that subject, using the blackboard freely and presenting a synopsis of the topics discussed in Mr. Steele’s articles. The treatment of the subject differed considerably from that of Mr. Steele. This talk was followed by a general discussion, participated in by most of the members, during which questions suggested by the lecture were propounded, answered by the member having the subject in charge, and further discussed by the members. By this means the subject of Political Economy, usually considered so uninteresting, was pronounced by all to be the most entertaining thus far considered.”
We want to commend the following model program of exercises to the attention of all circles. It comes from the splendid society at Troy, New York, and was the program for January 3d: 1. German History—Early Data of German History; Who were the Franks; Give an Account of Clovis; The Achievements of Charlemagne; Character of Charlemagne. 2. Political Economy—Uses of Political Economy; Define Production; Define Consumption; Exchange and its Necessity; Banks; Protection and its Arguments; Free Trade—its Arguments. 3. Physical Science—Air; Circulation of Water on Land; Rivers; Glaciers. 4. Monthly Events—December. 5. Round Table. 6. Conversazione—William Cullen Bryant.
What testimony could be more inspiring than this from Shushan, N. Y.: “Most of our members are hardworking people, with but little time for study, but they all unite in saying that every meeting is better than the last.”
New York State sends us so much and so good reports that we are embarrassed to find room for them all sometimes. We have a trio of remarkably strong reports here which we give in full.