If we know anything about the way in which news is gathered, written, and printed, we know that sometimes news will be inaccurate, because newspaper work is done with speed. The work of a daily newspaper is to provide its readers with the day's news, and this must be accomplished quickly, or it will be to-morrow before we know where we are. It is the pride of a newspaper to publish correct news, as far as that is possible. But when we read a newspaper we must make allowance for the fact that some of the news is an estimate of what happened, rather than a statement of the absolutely true details of what has happened. Yet it is astonishing, considering all the circumstances, how few mistakes there are in newspapers. We read newspapers to be well informed; to know how to relate ourselves to the life about us; and to find out what has happened that particularly concerns us in many different ways, as, for instance, in sports and games, schools and education, business and employment, about our neighbours and companions, politics and public affairs, even the hobbies in which we are interested, flower shows, cattle shows, sales of stamps, puzzles, jokes, wireless news, discoveries, inventions, explorations. By reading a good newspaper in {243} the right way we keep in touch with current history. There are other periodical publications, besides daily newspapers, weeklies and many monthly magazines, each of which has its own use and purpose. Some of these publications we may need to read, according to what our interests are. These you can choose for yourselves, as you grow older. What is known as literature, writing of permanent value and beauty, not technical or scientific, but of general interest, as a rule finds its way into books. The time has come now when we can consider for a moment how many different literatures there are in the world. Some writers belonging to literatures of countries other than our own, by this time you can name for yourselves. You know that there was a great Greek literature, a Latin literature, and Hebrew literature. The first name that comes into your minds belonging to Greek literature is Homer. Virgil was one of the great writers of Latin literature. The Bible is Hebrew literature. Dante's work is found in Italian literature; Cervantes' in Spanish literature; Goethe's in German literature; Dumas' work and Victor Hugo's and the work of a number of other writers belong to French literature. There are famous Russian novelists. Hans Andersen was a Dane. Maeterlinck is a Belgian. _The Arabian Nights_, in origins at least, takes us to countries as far away as China, India, Persia, and Egypt. All these literatures come into our lives and into the lives of other people, and so we understand how famous books help to bind the world together. {244}