II
THE CHILD AND THE PICTURE
In selecting pictures for children we must take the child’s point of view. He likes a picture for what it shows him. His interest is in the subject, not in the art. He does not know or care whether it is beautiful, or cleverly treated, rare or famous or what not. He wants to know what it is about. If it represents something which pleases him, that is enough. He has reasons of his own for his preferences, apparently growing out of very simple psychological principles. It is for us to study and gratify these childish preferences, making them a stepping-stone for the higher appreciation of art.
I recently asked a young mother what pictures her little boy likes best. “Animals,” was the prompt reply. Glancing around the nursery, I saw a perfect menagerie of toys: horses, dogs, cats, sheep, etc., in every imaginable material from rubber and china to the most realistic imitations in skin and fur. The father had begun in the child’s infancy to bring home toys of this sort, and it was a natural transition from toy to picture. A baby girl’s first toy is commonly the doll, and from this the natural transition is to pictures of babies. If daddy happens to be fond of yachting, the boy’s first toys are likely to be boats, and from these he is ready for shipping scenes. If mother has
