The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1854-08-29

they read, as follows: "oix days snat thou Ia
bor," "Honor thy father and thy MOTHER"
"Thou shalt not kill, "Thou shalt not steal" !"
"Thou shalt not bear false witness" go. Are
these sectarian? AIRY they "diluted and fee
bieY The truth is the obligations OF man to
his fellow and TO God are altogether unsecta
,ian and as such thoy cannot be taught too
much.
1t is vain to say that the child would receive
sufficient information in these matters, else
where. Sermons arc above his comprehen-
sion. Instruction at home is often irregular
and precarious, and his moral nature would
starve upon the pittsnce which he gots, once
week. ut the Sabbath school.
have yet to learn, further, that there is
anything in the constitution Of the State which
forbds instruction in those religious principles
upon which, most assuredly, its government is
founded. The study of moral philosophy wo'd
not be found in the catalogue ofour State Uni
versity, nor would the State Legislature itself
ever have employed chaplin to conduct re-
ligious exercises, II such were the case. Pub
lie opinion is a sure safe guard against giving
sectaran bias in schools. But there is nothing
either in the State organization or the public
mind, which does not sanction pure moral and
religious instruction.
Levi Bishop spoke to the subject. He re-
GREETED that Mr.. Mayhem, tho Chairman, had
not been able to make a written report, as he
had desire to know his opinion. But he was
opposed to the report Of Professor Haven
He noticed that the whole Report yielded
throughout to the claims of The Catholic popu-
lation. He thought that nothing short of to-
tai yielding to the demands of this sect would
satisfy them. and therefore he told the Assoc-
alton that they need not recognize il. If we
give up the Bible and prayer and all religious
instruction at their demand, because they al
ledge these to be sectarian, after il s done
they will demand that religious instruction be
introduced of their sort. because schools are
goddess. So that in either case. and there is
no other aspect Of it, they are both inconsis
tent & imperious in their demands. Therefore
he believed in paying no attention to their de-
mands because ihoy arc unreasonable, and il
is useless. He kntto 1t was so, and theory
to the contrary, was good for nothing. If we
granted them n'nety-nne hundredths OF the
whole school question in dispute between Prot
estants and Catholics 10 the latter, they would
still demand and insist upon tho balance. He
had regard fo- them, and would do all that he
could to advance heirintcrests. but when they
manifested a persistent and unreasonable spir-
il In regard TO this importont branch of public
policy. he shoul openly disregard their wish
es and dennunce them as unjust.
Prof. Haven said that he did not wonder
that the Catholics in Detroit were opposed to
the schools there. if this was The spirit mani
Tested there. If teachers were there to be
found who insisted on forcing children to leave
the school supported by the common taxes or
receive instruction on matters of religion a
gainst which the parents has conscientious
scruples, if they insisted in pursuing such a
course he could not wonder that the Catholics
were opposed to the schools. He thought they
were so justly. If this rule wcro to be allow :
cd. then a Catholic teacher would have full
right to read tho Catholic Bible in the school
in which he was placed and To pray To the Vir-
gin Mary, crossing him or herself. Would we
as Protestanta agree TO thiss But suppose
that he was stationed in school on the boun-
dary line that separates Utah and Nebraska
territories. Twothirds of the parents that
sent children to tho school were Protestants-
one third Mormons. But unfortunately three
fourths were of Mormon descent and only one
fourth were Protestant. He opens his school
with reading chapter in his Bible and pray
er The Mormon parent who helps sustain
that school, hears of this proceeding. The
next morning he goes to the school with Joe
Smiths book Of Mormon in his hand. He
says you insist that you havo a right to read
before the scholars in his school the revealed
Word of God. Your Bible is no, thut revealed
Word-this Book of Mormon.
cannot consent that my children shall hear
that which l believe to be damnaoe heresy. ]
believe il is such as sincerely and firmly as you
believe it is not. / therefore demand that this
Mormon Bible be read Three -fourths of the
children in the school arc educated in its ten
ets-my claim is therefore proper. What
shall we do? This argument cannot be dodg-
ed-he, as a teacher of those children, has no
right dogmaticaly to decide what is and what
is not Gods truth for those children. Shall he
then read that book of Mormon in the school
will he?
Is there any other way to avoid this Difficult
ty tnan in entirely excluding the Bbe and oil
religious instruction in our Common schools
during the six school hours. If the teacher
chooses to instruct in the generally accepted
truths of religion outside of school hours and
scholars voluntarily attended, it is well enough
but he had no right to force attendance or, in
! effect, exclude the children from tho school,
The State had never, in creating Common
, Schools, agreed to teach or in any way propa.
: gate Religion in any form-on the contrary il
, had expressly disavowed such intention aud
guaranteed to overy man the sole right of hav.
, ing his ch ldren religiously instructed as he
3 pleased. II had undertaken to teach Gram
mar, Arithmetic. &C.. and had thereby taken
, TO Itself the right through its agent the teach
er, deciding what book should be used
: Therefore the parent had no right to demand
' that this or that treatise or any particular sci
ence shall be uscd. Tho Teacher should bt
sole judge outside the school hours in which
he bad faithfully agreed to work for tho State
the Teacher bad right to do as no pleased
and to teach what he pleased, as much as any
other man. He should always exercise tha
right. In the school room and before biz
classes he would never lisp word except up
n on the branches he had agreed to teach;-
outside of those hours and that room h. would
= discuss any subject within the whole range %
v thought and defy the whole world to put hin
J, down. Prof Welch had said in his report tha
s in the school room teacher was monarch o
! all he surveyed" and his ipse dirii was laid il
opposition TO anything which might be urRcC
: by those who supported that school and paic
J. him.
d 1t would then be equally true, with Post
: master. He, too, was monarch Of all he sur
n veyed," he would open and shut his Office wher
Q no pleased; he would have boxes or not as h
d chose: If man came to him and asked hin
4