for serious application to hard study. In his "Book of the Spiritual Exercises," St. Ignatius pictures the inveterate enemy of mankind seated on a throne on the plains of Babylon, despatching innumerable demons all over the world, to every city and every person in order to ensnare and deceive men. This wily fiend has undergone a marvellous metamorphosis. He makes use of the doctrine of evolution, adapting himself to new circumstances. He is no longer the horned and hoofed monster of olden legends, but a polished, well-read gentleman, who manages thousands of printing establishments. And every mail carries countless demons, in the shape of bad novels, magazines and papers, to every city, every town, every village, every dwelling, no matter how secluded or remote. Shall we expect these envoys of Satan, "transformed into angels of light," to overlook our schools and colleges? Alas, how often do they sneak in, unnoticed by porter or janitor, to work their deeds of darkness among the young. Naught but the utmost vigilance on the part of school authorities will be able to counteract these evils. Certainly the principle of St. Ignatius and the Ratio Studiorum need not be further vindicated.[1]
We must make some remarks about sports, which take so important a part in our modern schools. We do this in connection with moral education for various reasons. First, because a moderate use of athletics helps to develop certain moral qualities. Secondly, because some moderns see in it a remedy for nearly all
- ↑ On reading see also Sacchini: On Dangerous Reading (In Latin); a new translation in Herder's Bibliothek der katholischen Pädagogik, vol. X, pp. 186-205. – Jungmann, S. J.: Gefahren der belletristischen Lectüre.
