In any case it is generally a period of new awakenings, and if
things are as they ought to be, generally a time of deep happiness--the
ideal hour in the day of our early youth. All this is faithfully
rendered in the essays of that time; we unsuspectingly give ourselves
away.
After this, for those who are going to write at all, comes the "viewy"
stage, and this is full of interest. We are so dogmatic, so defiant, so
secure in our persuasions. It is impossible to believe that they will
ever alter. Yet who has lived through this phase of abounding activity
and has not found that, at first with the shock of disappointment, and
afterwards without regret, a memorial cross had to be set by our
wayside, here and there, marking the place of rest for our most
enthusiastic convictions. In the end one comes to be glad of it, for if
it means anything it means a growth in the truth.
The criticism of essays is one of the choice opportunities which
education offers, for then the contact of mind with mind is so close
that truth can be told under form of criticism, which as exhortation
would have been less easily accepted. It is evident that increasing
freedom must be allowed as the years go on, and that girls have a right
to their own taste and manner--and within the limits of their knowledge
to form their own opinions; but it is in this period of their
development that they are most sensitive to the mental influence of
those who are training them, and their quick responsiveness to the best
is a constant stimulus to go on for their sakes, discovering and tasting
and training one's discernment in what is most excellent.
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