There are occasions when a definite issue for the mastery occurs in the school-room, and this was one of them. Miss Nelson had no right to break her promise to a docile and obedient child, and reinforce the habitual selfishness of a spoiled one. She should have insisted that Karen take her turn with the rest, and if Karen had stormed it would have given her a good opportunity to show her that her usual methods would not work in school. The angry storming of a spoiled child is usually done with an alert eye to the effect produced on the audience; therefore, if Karen had wept and wailed, she should have been carried out into the hall, where she might have been left in lonely state to recover her good temper. Usually one or two such trials convince a spoiled child that he has met his match, and if such children are followed by tactful guidance, and especially if attention can be diverted away from themselves, the worst-spoiled children can in time be thoroughly socialized. COMMENTS In every case, the object of the teacher’s treatment is to show the child that he must conform to the conditions of the social group he belongs to, instead of fixing conditions to suit himself. She should remember, however, that _real_ unselfishness has not been attained until the child voluntarily surrenders some fancied good. Coercion may sometimes be a stepping stone in leading a child toward the goal, but it is only a stepping stone. True unselfishness requires that the child himself deliberately make the choice that crowns another with the happiness that he desired for himself. ILLUSTRATION (KINDERGARTEN) [Sidenote: Substitute Altruistic Ideal] Elmer Bronson, an only child, had a difficult task in adjusting himself to his social environment when, at the age of four, he entered the public school kindergarten in Grand Rapids, Michigan. At home all playthings had been his, with none to molest or take away. Moreover, as the grown-ups in his home were very indulgent, practically all objects that he desired to have were placed at his disposal. But at school a new order seemed to prevail. Elmer not only was not allowed to appropriate many interesting looking objects that lay about on desks and tables, but at times he was not even permitted unrestricted handling of his own things. The situation was perplexing. He couldn’t make it out. Miss Melbourne, Elmer’s teacher, comprehended the conditions of the problem better than he did. She perceived that Elmer, as yet, had no understanding of the meaning of ownership, nor had he received any training whatever in the recognition of the rights of others. She must begin at the foundation. To that end she utilized all sorts of games, stories and dramatic plays as a means for teaching these two lessons, but that part of the program which seemed to captivate Elmer more than any other was the singing of “The Soldier Boy.”