Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1858-04-09
ruBLrsnED By REauEsr.
Remarks of .Mr. Johnson,
or rAYLon,


Mr.. johnson said he should oppose the
passage of this bill. increasing the. ap.
preparation to the University, for reasons
that present themselves with great force
to his mind.
The Treasury of the Commonwealth
is in an exhausted condition. The con-
tinued and unexpected drains upon its
resources has caused its collapse. Its
recnperatiye powers will be barely sufi
Gent to meet appropriations already
made by the General Assembly. The
reports Of the majority and minority ofthe
Committee of Finance both recommend
that one half the capitation tax, hereto>
fore sacredly set aside for the education
Of poor children of this Commonwealth,
be taken from the literary fund and put
into the Treasury ofthe State. to be di.
yided out among the internal improve
ment companies. appropriated to the
University and colleges of the State
He was uncompromisingly opposed to
any division of the literary fund. II he
could do anything to increase its capital
he would most cheerfu!ly do it. He
would most certainly do nothing to
diminish capital already insufficient to
effect the great object of its friends.
II is proposed by this bill to give, in
addition to the annual appropriation OF
fifteen thousand dollars, twenty ive
thousand dollars per annum for four
years, for the purpose of repairing the
old and erecting new buildings at the
University. In his opinion the amount
now asked would be but the commence
ment of an expenditure Of. a quarter of
million; and four years hence we would
be told that numerous unforeseen expen,
SEES aud under estimates would render
entirely useless the heavy amount alrea.
dy laid out, unless we should make q
father appropriation for the completion
of the buildings. But the history Of all
such investments was too familiar to this
House to need repetition at his hands.
The friends Of this bill say that the
buildings are not large enough to &C
commodate the number of students at
tending the University. He found, in
looking over the report Of the Board Of
Visitors, that about one half the students
were from other States than Virginia.
While he aeknoW lodged the obligation
resting upon the Legislature to encour-
age the education and development Of
mind in every shape and form. he was
yet to learn what obligation. legal or
moral, imposed upon the Legislature Of
Virginia the duty of providing at the
public expenses institu; ions of learning,
furnished with philosophical apparatus
and professors and teachers, in part paid
from the public treasury. for the sole aud
acknowledged purpose of educating the
sons of wealthy citizens of other States.
Our people were already heavily taxed,
and for one he was unwilling to levy in
creased contributions upon the pockets Of
the hard. working men Of the country for
the purpose Of this bill.
He desired to call the attention Of the
House to the one hundred thousand per-
sons in Virginia over FL years Of age,
who could not read and write. (He
spoke in round numbers.) Charity be-
gins at home. and before we tax our peo-
pie. to furnish the means of education to
the people of other States. let us see to it
that every son and daughter of Virginia
is provided with an opportunity Of learns
ing to read and write the English Lam
guage.
We have been informed to-day that
the University is to educate teachers,
WIZ hI0 W IGRtuGIhbo Hkluth anu re-
move from the mind of the masses the
mantle Of ignorance that now enshrouds
it; and that the reason the people from
the North west do not attend the Univer.
sity is not the want of means, but the
want of interest upon the subject of edu-
cation.
The gentleman from Rockbridge (Mr.
Massie) had. he admitted. made an elo~
quent and beautiful speech in favor OF
the University-one that did honor to
his heart and his imsgination-but Q
simple statement Of statistical fact will
show how utterly mistaken the gentle
man was, in the beneficial results he had
so eloquently portrayed as resulting to
Virginia from the diffusion Of knowledge
through the teachers educated at the
University,
The census OF 1910 returned more
than fifty seven thousand free white per-
sons in Virginia. over g years of age,
who could not read and wrile-and in
defence of that section of the State which
is represented on this floor as not feeling
aproper interest upon the subject of edu.
uoation. he would state that more than
one half of that number resided east OF
the Blue Ridge Mountains-and these
statistics have been rendered in the face
of the fact that east Of the mountains
the people have had the great advanta>
ges resulting from the University. from
William aRd Mary. and from other ennis
nent schools OF learning: aud he regretted
to say here that he had been informed,
that in the county of Albemarle. in the
hearing of the University bell, in the
shades OF its Academic groves, a more
than average share of this miserable
mani of adncation axicinA