Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-04-09
NATIONAL INTELLIGENCER.
SCHOOL FOR IDIOTS.

paper emnenty worthy of the country and the age, ana
whatever may be the of the affecting appeal here
made its appearance marks epoch in the annals OF
benevolence and reflects true honor those who have
made it, The facts it dscoses of the most interest
ing character and, will venture say, to large
majority Of the community
The condition of has been deemed helpless
aud hopeless The blind may be taught; the deaf may
be reached by knowledge; and the dumb, if not by the
tongue al least by the hand have been made to speak
the IDIOT the poor IDIOT supposed to have been placed
by God without the pale Of has been CONSIDERED
as pso faco removed equally beyond the reach OF an
effort for his mental improvement He has been given up
by common consent being whom nothing can pehen
because nothing can change The idea of e9eatg HIM
has been deemed absurlity and all ever claimed IN
his behalf has been humane pity, leading indeed 70
erciful provision Of such outward comfort as his ororh
condition win admit but stopping there SO entire has
been this abandonment that the Divine wisdom and gooa
ness have even been taxed for his creations and since he
is incapable of faith it has been grayey doubted wnether
he is capable OF salvation.
But a new light has at length dawned upon the deep
and homeless darkness. In that unknown, unracked,
unfathomed ocean whose bosom adventurous sail was
never SEEM and whose desoate expanse no echoes
ever came back world has been discovered, and
living inhabitants clothed in the right mind have
been brought back in triumph as living demonstration
that it contains human beings capable of knowledge as
ourselves All honor to those who dared TO pass that
fearful boundary which, for many melancholy eentu-
RES shut large and suffering class OF our fellow
from the common charities OF our nature All
honor an thanks to those friends of their race, who,
against hope believed in hope that something might
be done for these poor In the face Of the
broken conviction of all past ages they have dared to adj
nit the thought that born IDIOT fit and hope
FIJI subject Of both intellectual and moral culture and by
experiment they have demonstrated the fact Prompted
by rodlike love- and sustained by not less god-like
patience they have achieved eyermemorable triumph
over the hopeless malady of man. During the past
SIX months" says observer every way competent to
Judge and TO testify, Il mean Mr.. George Sumner, of Bos
ton have watched with eager interest the progress
which many young idiots have made in Paris under the
direction Of Mr. Seguin, and Bcetre under that Of
Messrs yoisin and Vale; and have seen with less
qualification than establishment nearly hundred fel
low-beings who but short time since shut out
from al communion with mankind; who objects of
loahing and disgust many of whom rejected every article
clothing others Of whom unable stand erect crouch
ed themselves in corners and gave signs of life only by
pteous howl others in whom the faculty of speech had
never been developed and many whose voracious and
indscrmnae guttony satisfied itself with whatever they
could lay hands uponwith the garbage thrown swine,
with still more revolving ament; these unfortu
beings, the rejected Of humanity l have pro-
perry clad standing erect walking speaking eating in
orderly a common table, working quietly
carpenters and farmers gaining by their labor the
Of existence storing their awakened intelligence
by reading another exercising toward their teach
and among themselves the generous feelings of
nature, and singing in union songs of thanksgiving
Here is spectacle for the phiIanthropst, for the phi
losopher for the christian 1t is for angels to
look upon.
But are achievements like these for Europe alone For
bid it every American tongue No: have them on
our own soil: they bless they honor dear native
land. The names Of HOWE, WILBUR and RICHARDS, pio
this march Of humanity will long be conseerateC
by the blessings Of those whom heretofore all aban
doned 10 remeiles wrechedness The methods BY which
these results have been attained not given but Mr.
Sumner quotes the beautiful and modest words of W. Pa
as an explanation Of the whole matter ne aa Non
sur is Ia patience Il desr de 6en ae to which hi:
auditor Justly adds, il only patience
and the desire, but the talent to do good The effort to
establish that thing under the sun, SCHOOL FOR
Dors has been made in Massachusetts, by the State and
in Pennsylvania by private enterprise. The present APP
peal Of the amabe and gifted preate and his nobemind
ed associates is for the means Of establishing in Phla
delphia by the combined effort of the Commonwealth
and Of individuals institution which shall be open
be made for the children Of the poor God speed them
say /: and God will speed them. Such appeal can
never be made in vain to Americans any where.
and why Messrs Editors, may not have such an
institution Il there who will give his
'sTo stone
And ever-durDg brass"
BY becoming originator Of such enterprise this
the head and Of the republic Nay there
man Who actuated by nober motives than the love
fame Who from the love Of God, and Of man who
made in the image Of Cod will devote his time, h
labor and his the comforting Of such blessing
on poor fallen humanity? know that work so great
divine ths calls for great and long and sede
NAL The Of sentimentality will not do here they
do not last long enough their spring is not deep enough
Ii lacks Of that charity which tracked its sad but
unfalterng way from the manger to the cross Ii calls
for Of that sustained enterprise which dared 4
preach despsed and rejected gospel from Jerusalem
and round about unto lyricum" But the who shall
succeed II placing the demonstration that IDIOTS MAY d
this Union, viii send blessed truth and mighty mo
tive for good into every Of this broad land and
finite mind can estimate or bound the consequences.
Now, let us see what are the things wanting | begin
with the greatest We want the AAx--one man. and bu
one single mind alone successfully plan and pro
secute an undertaking peculiar. lie must be fitted
Heaven for his work and TO this end than en-
dpwment is demanded In the first place, he should
aNheart a Christian care for denominations name
nothing here; deeds, deeds are all. However fire
by ZEAL he be sustained by principle also, or in