New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1850-08-14
Education md CrImo-lmportnnt cory,ct,o,


To "a Edi,o' # TIE T gpue.
AT the late great Free School Convent q, AZ a..
raouse MIR. McMsster, of your CITY, tn, ye,.I.
man ny The ~aS-stated that the s.s.stics Of
France and England furnish "a no s-gu,.n. +, he
hah OF E6ucationi but they rather show that pop1
lar institution had increased rather than diminish
cd crime In France, he stated. it's criminals were
largely Fl n tie educated clsss; ad in Easlani.
While education has been Advancing, late a5le
critic IN one oil our magazines proved that crime
was advancing at n fearful rae
Now, II these statements are false they sh,uld
not 60 uncoroctcd, for the culightenment Of the
people is too important an enterprise 70 be inDeded
BY false ttatisiics; and a. have bei,re me the
facts % to France aid NJ cin explain Lis facts
as 70 England, 20 that a powerful a-gumeat can
be drawn IN favor Of the peoples great cause |
will correct SIR. McNsster uninten.ona mistakes
II France, for five years ending with 1882, the
numbers charged with crime were as GlogB
olsfted according % their education:
Unable 90 Tefd or
hhe o. resi- iup-riec.Y .....................iOl3l
1ut lo ieao &C VIC "ei.''''' .............,. 37s
Respectfully ecucR ed.......................... 85i
Those who can read lApedectiy should b. casa
ed With the totally uneducsted. We have thep,
this instructive staten. ent:
TSose psds.S az wei e5 10
Bus 1T os observe the foJ.ings q 10 those cJa.
vicfed Of crime.
Abie 10 resd imperecly ..................... 57Df
Ahe 10 read All write weil................. 1915
Respecihty uclted....................... 81
Or csssifg themtsia Tue second t-De ne have IN 80
M iolsl' uLequcale1'' 5ll
Tfofe p-Ilaij aud wei ed Ica.ed............... 22j
Thuf the proportion OF educated TO uned1ca,ei
convicis as al one u nine! Do these facts taken
fom an unimpeachabe authority. show that edu.
cation furnishes the majority If the culp-its OF
France! TIE same author states that atthst time
the educated were - the uueducatsd Of France
the proportion Of SO 10 lgO-thatis one 10 one and
oncthlTd. While more than one.third Of the popu.
lstion could read and write, only one ninth Of the
convicted criminals possessed ths ability, But in
the commutatOn o. the people children are nc'ud-
ed, while they are not iO1nd among the criminals
and If we could deduc. for them, " should fnd the
benefit Of education still more powerfully shown.
Women are also included in the general emu nera.
ton, while few women are found among our crm
nals. much smaller proportion Of women and
children are educated than Of men. In lsis
statement Of education il France Sas pub ished
in which one-hefof TIE people were said to read
and write.
AS To the statement that crime had increased in
England, while education had been advancing,
have TO remark, IS | old bt the late convention
"That Nr. McMasters derived his information from
that tory periodical, b ackwcod Magazine The
article was written b. pc it.csn FOR the purpose
of inuriDg the liberal administration Of that c0un
try. That article was triumphGlty answered at
the time By stating the facts as u the change in
the criminal law and IA the police regulations made
there & few years since. The writer IN Blackwood
compared the criminal returns for few years pre-
vous to those changes, with thoi e of a fsV years
after, snd made falaciOus exhibit against edaca-
ton What were these charges They were
Modification Of the severity Of punishments, and
more efficient organization Of police by which far
gre alter number we're brous git 70 punishment The
laws were so severe that the people revosed a! the
infection Of such terrible penalties for such smsH
offences accordingly they would cover the retreat
Of offenders when they could, and the juries wO1d
acquit whenever i. was possible. But after tho
laws were modified the people were willing that
all offenders should be punished and the police be-
ing more Efficient clean sweep was made OF
the "scoundrely class" as Carlyle terms them.
Hence, that article in Black wood was most wretch.
ed sophistTy.
But it would not be at all surprising TO hear that
crime is on the increase in Brtsn-for look no y
the people starved for several years aud few are
so conscientious 70 starvs before they steal from
the overlooking abundance Of the rich. No one
should starve long there is enough in the aad,
snd il there is o.her mode Of getting bread that
is molding in the larders Of the wealthy it ought
TO be stolen. Stealing under such circumstances is
n virtue