Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1845-10-07

ing power and wealh'-ta uise"e', -
have, by means OF armies Oh siaNe ~ al,
did nation? especially iTfc P'"p. ;.. "J
easy and frequent intercourse WIN o'''.'s -.
educa,ion-thal The natural ehuo" MEMS " ~" -
State have been less acyeored aid are more IN
want OF cul;ure ,hsn lie metal energies Of me
those energies atone can effect
that culture and develorment)-"that We have
system Of Educatiun-Jad though u Ge-hla d
fund 10 support il; while, as 10 Internal I,s
ment, we have not shadow u eilhei W.
MANY State works compe,cj, and the millions m
vested in them. and in works by corrora'lo!is'
which reduced The Stale 10 The verge oil rePuula,,
ton, are. then. not woriky 81 no'icc, colnPaieo
with Oulis's expectations that, before 'hc Pc,
pulalion can be taught, we must have one 10
lcach"-(nolhing lrucr: bal nave We hUn ;n; -
land, lastly, that while, IN a Pecuh'aiy lo III ~
view liberal school establishments "ou'u 80.
other Stale works, nothing VIII more sui! a.;
sist IL than the dividends nom s"ee''SJ -
rions investments OF thai kind"-(a most hopeless
dependence-wbat LAWYERS call a drgrenD-"that
system of Popular Education cannot oe esla-
blished in popnalion Of less than Twelve persons
10 The square mile"-Gt is II 6-loihs lhuecu,
over the larser portion ~ averaging about seven.
Now. there are other and aare7otatnS o.i,es,
who, with population. rot oil ~, nor u :, W,
of g. 5, and even 3 10 The square miie are liluIh
in advance of us in tie education oil !heir people;
as has been shown BY statistics already publishen
in your paper. Ru, what OF hiatt Uu'is
theory is, that the population OF al Least lhe larger
portion, i. G. The Western part OF virginia, Is
much TOO sparse 10 arempt 10 educate slt.n, an"
that what he calls "A liberal system % S.die
works" will bring 10 them wealth. power, euucd,
ton, morality and every other clement OF S!e:.l
nation. What his liberal system means, u IS
a, =, ,hSf
Education il must OF ccuisc be as general ana
extensive, and stretch It's arms into nearly every
county in the Stale, however mountainous ana
rugged" where, in the opinion OF louis, me
obstacle of want Of facilities OF transport ana IN
icrcourse inleIcepis The rays Of The vlViiyih9 san
of Education" What a system OF Internal I'M
provement would this be Who could caicu-
late The millions or hundred millions 10 lie ex-
pended By the State, before this could be accom-
plished? And vel, un; il is completed, i Is no
substitute for, nor promoter OF The general rcnca-
lion of The People. no, not even then does f.du-
cation begin 10 reap The benefit, ci This more 'han
IIerculean enterprise. Two ohcr effects must
first be produced before this consequence can en-
she. The population and wealth q these coun-
ties must greatly increase and these works (pre-
snmed 10 be successful AMI jndicious must
Weld dividends {Yha no public work has yet
these fdnciful abiicipalions fail, Education mol
only derives 10 btrefl from tbs nuly "h6cr0f
system Of State wolks," Int her claims 10 the al
teniion and care OF tie State nrsi he postponed,
un; The State shall recover Gil il ever canl tom
this utter exhaustion OF her resources and almost
hopeless Indebtedness, which such asysiem would
produce.
But the monstfOus consequences 10 which TINS
theory would lead, We're 80 Obvious, ihat 'aey
forced conviction OF their existence even upon
the enthusiastic mind and heated Imagination oil
oOuris" himself Forsei'ul or regardless from
The first Of the dearest insresls-ihe education oil
lhc PEOPLE of one half OF The Commonwealth, IN
his zeal for The ACKNOWLEDGEMENT solely OF western
Virginia, al The expense Of the whole State he Is
al length compelled, in his second article, 10 cut
off from their share Of tie spoils-hese sloi'd 'P'-
m0-lhe greater portio,, even hls own Nesleih
brehren-and conline lis 'HjcraP' system TO the
mes River and Kanawha improvement, ard
pcrhars one or Two Diners.
II no, intended h,rc Ia remind '0ulis" OF The
unprcduclive million, which have already been
.pent in This work and Of he many millions
more which every PRACTICAL well nHmed man
must be satisfied will be required 10y It's compile
lion. Nor do | d.sre here 20 discus The eXpe-
diency cl This, or any work OF Inlcual Improve
m6ni To me, it seems that each >h1nld be con-
sile!ed ami acted on By The Legislature, wholly
irresncc,ivc Of all local interests an. ealcusies,
and .Iard or fall urcn its own mt,its as each
shall afford reasonable promise OF leing rroht-
able and beneficial 10 The Stale, or, al least, TO
some considerable portion OF il. Bu II should be
observed by "Oulis" and his reades, that even
according 10 his theory, his "iberal ysi"m" being
reduced 10 one or two lines Of internal Improve.
mert, can TO longer lie looked upol as means
of anording any substitute for . general system
If Education or even Of promoting Throughout
The State.
In supper, or his views, "Ouiis' has made
most "lherai" draft upon his iinasl aI'on, ana
in style truly poeic has given II graphic
pictur, OF what he hele.cs 10 be ihe deploranIe
condition Of Tie cou",l,> OF Western Vi'-in'd'
compared y iii that OF 'tn.ir more favored icIio~
beings" in Eastern Virginia. In such country,
any system Of Popular Education IS, he ihnEs,
utterly impractcable. So much ior Ao;g. Let
Us now consult, facts and experience
The Census OF 1910, returns over 900 more
white persons over 20 years Of age wlo cannot
read or write in Eastern Than in Weston Emgl-
MIA in a white population less than Tia of West
cn Virginia by Dip. FL the ID Authors Re-
nclt of December, 1874, it appears, ina IN East
crn Virginia there were 25l32 "iniisent chill
dren." Of whom l,7s5. or 1t per cen were al
school, whilst in Western VIRGINIA, l. G west OF
the Blue Ridge, there were = S33 "indicn; chill
dreD," Of HON lG,09S, or 81 per cent, larger
proportion by 10 PER cent. than in EaseIn Vir-
cinia,) were al school.
If we look in the same document br those
counties which have the smallest propori on-say
less than one-lhird-of their POOR children al
school, We find as appears IN the hfs' tai gwen
below al those in Eastern Virginia tTtce, with
Sis poor children. of whom l5:, or ony y per
cent, 20 10 school; whilst in Western Virginia
there are only sir such counties. containing $3.50
indieen, children. Of whom 191, or % pr cent,
are al school,
If we desire 10 see what counties hare the
Mrgeu proy ortion-say iwo-lirds-oi ihtir poor
instructed, the same document shows (se I'd Ia
ble) thar in Western Virginia there are 1'netccn
such counties, containing Q 80 roor chic.en, OF
whom 7,I9i, or II per cent, are taught. Il East
ern Virginia, only c,ghtsuch counlles, VIII 2,So3
poor children. OF whom 2,2l:, or - per cell, re-
ceive instruction. Many OF those counncs, which
rank highest in the comparative eaucaton CT
their citizens, are among the most rusge- anu
mountainous" The mos. tkialy populated AID The
most remote from market IN me Hta'e-Fhilst
very many OF those, that are lowest IN me scale Of
ignorance, lie urcn the tide water ana nay slore,
with market by means OF rivers ana other wa
and are among the most level and dcnse!y F0pu-
lated districts in The Commonwealth. What, then,
becomes OF The theory OF "Outis?" Where ar all
The incalculable benefits OF wealth, Industry and
sducation which, according 10 that theory, viii
inevitably result from satellites Of intercourse
and Of transportation" DO mol The statistics OF
The different paris Of our own State, as well IS a
comparison OF our State with others, beth North
and South cfus, conclusively prove al least these
positions: iha, our population, even where it is
most sparse, is no, Toe sparse for lar more eff
cent system Of Popular Education than We at
present possess-and that no system Of thermal
improvement, no 'ncreascd facilities OF inter
course and transportation" can supply tie want
Of an established institution for The general edrca-
ton Of The people, 50 essentially necessary to The
peace, prosperity and happiness Of the people, and
the purity and perpelu,y OF free Government
OF wha, use would railroads and canals be 10
people who are 100 ignorant TO improve the noiu-
'al advantages they enjoy, and have nothing 10
transport over them7. who care not, and know
Sc.