The American. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1857, 1857-08-08

1
Public Schools have been completed, and the girls
and boys have entered upon their season Of relax
alton and pleasure. We trust that their health
will be preserved, aud that they win return TO
their studies at the appointed time with increased
zeal fir the acquisition OF knowledge
IL gives us great pleasure TO be able 80 cordially
TO congratulate those lads and lasses, Us well as
their parents and glardians--on the very hand
| some and satisfactory manner in which they pas
ed the fearful ordeal From the oldest TO the
youngest, their prompt and intelligent answers to
the questions propOunded by the examiners aston
ished and delighted the admiring audience. None
could witness these scenes without expatiating in
his mind on the vast Importance of the institution
and exclaming that the great desideratum for pre-
pairing young men and women for usefulness to
their country has been found in the Public Schools
! In these schools may be found girls who, for
proficiency in arithmetic, aud the higher branches
| OF ma hematics-as well geography and history
need not fear a comparison with graduates of
colleges; and boys of fourteen and fifteen years,
who know ten times as much of political history
| the science OF government in general and of our
Federal and State governments in particular, as
| millions of voters 10 the United States High
school is greatly needed, and trnst il will not
be long before provision is made for one.
| Notwithstanding the manifest importance of the
institution and the admirable working of the ma.
/ chnery, there are among us-it liz sad to think OF
| it-deadly enemies to it They would now, If they
could, abolish the system, and reduce the chill
dren OF this community to&the state of sbject de-
| gradaton, Ignorance and superstition that en-
shrouds the children Of the laboring people of Ire
land and the Papal States in pail of moral
1 death.
| These foes OF our Public School system have for
| sometime been counting their aanibera and con-
| centrating their strength They believe their
power and influence are sufficient TO carry their
| schemes into effect. They know they have not
the requisite number to bear down all opposition,
but they know thai their number is such that the
| party to which they belong were dead without
them. With such AN influence in the two Boards
| and with the Mayor what may they nOt dor
| The scheme is, TO abolish the present system
now operating, and to. divide the school funds
among Professionals and Papists. Each religious
sect may then be able impart it's sectarian prin-
| ciples to the children of the Sect at the public
expense; and they who belong to no sect must
! have no education. The effect of this would be,
to foster sectaran prejudices and bgotry, and to
estrange the children of different sects from each
other--making them clanish and selfish thus
sowing the seeds OF bitterness OF tealousies
-envyings-mace, hatred and strife and civil
| bros. The present, system inculcates harmony
and kindness and brotherly love; banishes dis
tinctons-and puts all on the tame great level.
1t teaches lberalty, charity and respect for each
|
with sectarian peculiarties, and only teaches, in
respect of religion, the great fun damental princi-
pies of the Bible, acknowledged by all, both Chris.
| tian and Jew.
| if the effort to change this system shall fail the
alternative is TO Danish the Bible from the schools
| The only use now made of it in the schools is for
chapter or short lesson, to be read every morn
ing by the teachers to the scholars without note
or comment But even this is too much tor the
has asr ha oh; tb,,p
imbibe some pernicious doctrine from the Holy
word of God and, therefore, it must cease to be
read to them. And to effect this the first step to
| be taken is, to have new Board of Trustees. A
couple 80, of the present members are not objec-
tonable. But, every one who is a decided and
warm advocate of the use of the Bible in the Pub
lie schools is marked, and must not be continued.
WASHINGTON, July 20, 1857.
| Mr.. Editor Ny attention was called late on
| yesterday evening, by friend to the Washing
ton Star, in which debate is published which
| took place in the Board of Aldermen on Monday
last, on the report Of the Committee on Elections,
respecting the right of Mr.. Emery to his seat in
that Board, which contested by Mr.. Goddard
in which debate Mr.. Clarke, Mr.. Moore, Mr.. Smith,
and others, participated Mr.. Moore said in his
reply to Mr.. Clarke, that he had called several
times on Mr.. Sothoron and requested him 10 at
L
told him (Moore) that gang of Plugs had assem-
bed at the polls at o'clock, A. NJ, and that their
conduct was very outrageous all of which pro-
nounce to be false, and to have not shadow of
truth in it. He well knows that he never asked
me to sttend the sittings of the committee. He
| also knows that never told him that there was
Plug in Washington /; nor did ever tell any per-
son that there was one in Washington, for / do not
know TO this day, of my own knowledge, that there
was one here. have heard n great many OF Mr..
Moore's foreign party say that there were great
many here. | think Mr.. Moore must be hard
pressed indeed TO resort 10 such means to bolster
up his yoluminous report and that from all the
light that he had before him, he should have ar
rived at different conclusion but he is like the
owl that stood in open sunshine with pair Of
spectacles on his beak burning torch on each
side, and flaming brand in each claw--the more
light there was the less he was able W see Why
did not Mr. Moore come out and state the facts in
the case, and say that, although Mr.. Emery beat
Mr.. Goddard, marines and all by majority Of
nine, he could not hold or retain his seat Mr.
Goddard must have il, nor must il be referred
back TO the people. Oh, no. thar will not do, for
we cannot call out the marines again. We are all
sick of that business, and ifthey do not come out
Mr.. Emery will beat Mr.. Goddard loo majority,
and in that event (Which win certainly hsppen)
we shall be held up to the scorn and derision of
| the whole country | never saw Mr.. Moore but
once in my life to know him. or to talk with him,
which he well knows If he had asked me IL
would have attended the sittings of the commit.
tee, / should have told him, Yes, as | did Mr..
| Clarke, when he asked me, and l was looking
every day for a summons or request to come
before Il en- In the first and only conversation
that had with Mr.. Moore, told him all that oc-
cured at the polls Of the LIST precinct Of the 4th
ward from the opening of the polls in the morn
ing until the closing Of them in the evening. In
part of which, he (Mr. Moore) agreed with me,
Tor, he said, that he was at the market when the
fight occurred, and at the corner of 7tb and SITS.
when 1t ended but he said nothing about that,
only asserting that told him that the Plugs were
here at o'clock, A. NJ, and that refused to at
tend the sitting Of the committee which was not
so. Now, sir, think that there is not man in
the country, without prejudice, who will believe,
for a moment il had told Mr.. Moore that the
Plugs were at the polls Of the lst precinct Of the