Fremont weekly freeman. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1850-1853, 1850-08-17
Another of the "BoOby speeches.

AuOInoF OF the DOODy 0pooCHcSS>>
1t happened at certain State Education
Convention, as long ago as 1889, which was
attended by the present Wing candidate for
Governor, that learned professor in one of
our colleges, advocated the teaching of the
French and Spanish languages in our common
schools under certain circumstances which he
mentioned. AS might be expected, this drew
down a crushing response from Johnston,
which we give below: o.S.Jour.
| And here cannot refrain from remarking,
that nearly all our fashionable schools for the
education Of the wealthy classes of society, and
all the literary periodicals l have read, with
few exceptions, have an ant-American tenden-
cy. Indeed, such is the rage for foreign man
ners, and foreign fashions, and foreign tongues,
that your barber shaves you according to the
fashion latest from London or Paris! Your
lady's milliner dresses her out with Victoria
bonnet! and the dandies begin to curse their
grooms, and the naddames to scold their hus-
bands in French! while good, old patriotic
Yankee Doodle and Hail Columbia give way
to the Italian Air and Polish Waltz! And
here l fear shall come in contact with the
views of my good friend from Cincinnati, prof
Stowe,) in relation to the introduction OF some
of the living languages into our schools as
part of common school education. In doing so
hope, indeed know, l shall give no offence,
A gentleman, whose learning (great and ac-
knowledged as it isl is not so bright an orna-
ment to his character as is bis love of truth,
will pardon me all shall say from an honest
conviction of what is right, even if it should
not meet his views. l do not believe, as my
| friend does, that Spanish or French, or other
languages, either living or dead, except where
the necessity of the case may require it, should
ever become part of our common school ed
ucation. The attempt to introduce them would
defeat the benevolent object of the gentleman;
because at last it would be only the children
of the rich who could enjoy its benefits The
poor man who has large family TO educate,
| land children are the poor mans blessing) re-
quires the labor of the elder children to sup
port the younger ones; and indeed he cannot
support them without it; and when the popu-
laton of our country shall become more dense,
aud the rents of property and the price OF
land dearer the labors of the poor mans chill
dren will become Of more and more importance
to him. The period then to be employed at
school, being necessarily short, ought to be de-
voted to the requirement of the kind of knewl-
edge most important in the common operations
of life. And after reading, writing, arethme-
tic, English grammar, geography, mathemat-
les, mechanics, and other practical branches
shall be acquired, there will be no time left for
the study of branches to say the most of them,
of secondary Importance. And would it be
advisable to fritter away the time of youth on
such pursuits? But "there is no disputing
about taste" Give me the solid beef and
bread, and bacon and potatoes learning; and
let those who can, subsist on the sweetmeats.
But would be opposed to that course of ed
ucation, because our common school education
should be patriotic; and to be patriotic, it
should be American in its character. Yes, it
should be american in its character, even at
the risk of being homely. The association be-
tween the tune and the ballad is not stronger
than that between the sentiment and the Ian
guage of nation; and when you adopt its
| language, you take its feelings and its man
ners along with you "for better or for worse. -
And is there anything in the fddling frivolity
of France, or the biggoted hauteur of Spain,
that would be worth engrafting on the charac-
ter of an American republican? cannot be-
leve that the character of our people would
be improved by the contact with either. AS
for my own part, if driven to choice between
evils, would not know whether to elect a
French Revolution or Spanish Inquisition.
Do not mistake me Mr.. President. do not
make these remarks from any hostile feeling
towards foreigners. I entertain no such feel
ings I make them for the purpose of show
ing, that if those miserable clanish feelings that
now widen the'gaps in society-by setting the
Irishman on the throat of the Dutchman; by
stirring up the ancient prejudice of the Gaul
against the Briton; and by provoking the ieal-
ousy of the native-born American against them
all-can be broken down, it is by an efficient
and uniform system of common school educa-
ton; because no prejudice of family or nation
can be so strong as the bonds of youthful
friendship strengthened by the thrilling rec
objections of school-boy associations. make
them for the purpose of showing, that if ever
a patriotic devotion to the honor and interests
of our own country is to be made part of the
education of our own children, it can never be
so effectually done as by well regulated sys-
TEN of free schools; because nothing can so
much endear their country and its institutions
to them as the grateful recollection that they
are indebted for their education to the muni6-
cence of those institutions.