natural sequence of brain action in co-ordi-
nated movements. Such education not only
results in ph_ysical development, but in the
acquisition of courage, alertness, self-possession,
nervous control in many ways, general con-
centration of thought, and other expansion
of the higher nature. "If," to use her own
words, "the aim of education is to stimulate
thought, and its end to equip one for living,
then harmonious brain development is essen-
tial. It is now universally conceded that the
cultivated brain is not the largest nor the heav-
iest, but the one in which the most brain cells
are vital, and where the connections between
cells are must numerous and intimate: these
are the conditions upon which mental vigor
depends. No part of the physical brain, there-
fore, should be deprived of its fair share in
development, and our educators must sooner
or later recognize the fatal mistake, found in
all our school and college curriculums, of ex-
cluding to so great a degree the education of
those nerve centres whose ])rimary expression
is in motion, but whose vitality reacts in many
directions."
The attempt to bring about a wiser attitude toward this department of education, and to give her pupils a clear sense of the culpabil- ity of sickness, which is largely the result of ignorance and self-indulgence, has been the inspiration of her work.
This brief sketch would be quite incomplete without a few words regarding the personality of its subject. Miss Allen is small, slentler, and graceful, with great personal charm, and an unusual amount of that indefinable quality which we call magnetism. She is radical in matters of religion and politics, and takes an active interest in the principal reforms of the day, especially the Woman Suffrage movement. Although her sincerity is uncompromising, and might be called the keynote of her character, yet her sweetness and grace of manner always charm even those of widely differing views. She is an indefatigable worker, never sparing herself in her conscientious devotion to her life work in all its details.
As a teacher, she is most illuminating, always making her pupils think in connection with their work, so as to understand just what they are trying to do; and she detects with unerring wisdom the precise cause of their failures. The.se usually arise from a lack of co-ordina- tion on the part of the pupil: the physical task demanded has not been sufficiently im- pressed upon the brain at the outset, or the muscular forces are sluggish in obeying its behest. Often, in the case of adult pupils, it is .sufficient to call attention to this deficient co-ordination of brain and muscle, in oriler to remedy the trouble completely, whereas a teacher ignorant of this subtle truth might drill a class on the same exercise for hours, without removing the difficulty. This method of true scientific instruction is not only a great economy of time, but also awakens and re- tains the interest of her pupils, who are con- scious that they are always learning something new.
Another source of the unflagging interest aroused by this truly wonderful teacher is her constant introduction of new and vary- ing exercises, without destroying the progres- sive character of the work as a whole. She realizes that human nature loves variety, and that the repetition of one set of movements or one species of activity cannot fail to pall upon the pupil after a time. Accordingly, with inexhaustible fertility of resources, she is continually inventing fresh and interesting work, so that even pupils who have been in her classes for twelve or fifteen years can never sigh for novelty or change.
Miss Allen's strong and attractive pensonality has contributed in no small degree to the suc- cess of her work by winning friends for her on every side, and enlisting the hearty co-opera- tion of her pupils. Certainly no teacher in any field has gained a more . loyal following than hers.
The above gives but a very imperfect idea of the remarkable woman who for the last quarter of a century has contributed, perhaps more than any other one person, toward the vigor and well-being of our women. Her work will surely live after her, both in its con- tribution to educational science and in the increased efficiency of hundreds of human lives.
e. c.
