The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1860-09-28

of our fathers This is the question fo
Vermont to decide. Because, forsooth,
certain word, which is of infrequent occur
renee, and which Papists would render sd
penance," is translated "repent"- this i
the material difference in the version,-th
children of the State, of whom there are ma
ny, to whom if the Bible is closed in school
it is open to them nowhere, must be depriv
ed the privilege of its uses. No create
wrong can be done to the Catholic himself
than to exclude the Bible from the schools
No book can supply its place. Says Ro
man Catholic, "Who will not say that the un
common beauty and marvellous English of
the Protestant Bible is one ofthe great strong
holds of heresy in this country. 1t lives o,
the ear like the music that can never be for
gotten, like the sound of church bells, which
the convert hardly knows how he can forego
Its felicities often seem to be almost things
rather than words. 1t is part of the ma
tional mind, and the anchor of national seri
business. The memory of the dead passe.
with it. The potent traditions of childhood
are stereotyped in its verses. The power of
all the griefs and trials of man is bidder
beneath its words. 1t is the representative
OF his best moments and all that there ha.
been about him of soft and gentle, and pure
and penltent, and good, speaks to him torev
er out Of his English Bible. 1t is his sacred
thirg, which doubt has never dimncd. and
controversy never soiled. In the length and
breadth of the land there is not Protestan,
with one spark of righteousness about him
whose spiritual biography is not in his Saxon
Bible"
Our worthy Secretary, in letter published
IN his last annual report, says that the use o!
the Testament in schools is either an "act of
worship" or an "exercise in reading" With
all due respect for the gentleman's opinion, |
believe this to be an error. cannot see why
it may not be an exercise for intoxicating mo-
raj principles. And | believe its use, in nine
cases in ten, is with this latter design. In
deed, the Board of Education have unofficial
ly advised its use as an exercise in "moral
culture" Could not the Island Pond teach
er have used it for this purpose and enforced
It's use, as we'll as she could a text book in
Book Keeping or Composition, which the
Board also unotfcially advised? Is it claim
cd that 10 book can be used unless it hes re
ceived the official sanction Of the Board p
Then neither history nor penmanship can bt
taught in our schools. But by statute boti
are required to be taught. Is it right that
the statute does not expressly provide for the
moral culture of the child ? 1t provides tor
his instruction in good behavior Wha,
better text book than the Bible from which
to teach good behavior ?" Does the Stat,
not expressly provide for the caacation of it.
children That system which regards onl,
the cultivating the mind will fall far short of
educating the child. In an English case de-
cided in 1912, it was held that courts in tha
country Twill not sanction any system of cd
ucation in which religion is not included" -
In course of the hearing the court remarkc,
that "a scheme of education without religion
would be worse than mockery."
The constitution of the United States
which contains a clause similar to that fount
IN all our State constitutions, recognizing tn,
rights of conscience, in another clause pro
vides as follows: "Religion, morality an,
knowledge being necessary to a good GOV
ernment, and the happiness Of mankind
schools and the means of education shall for
ever be encouraged" The trainers of tha
constitution did not recognize system of
education in which religious as well as mora
instruction was not included. And if the >,
Article Of the Bill of Rights excludes al
moral and religious instruction from GU
schools it is in direct contradiction to the L
S. Con ,titution, and hence invalid. Say
Chief Justice Shaw, "The public school sys
tenn was intended to provide system OF
moral training" Says writer on the sui
ject of consttutionalinterpretation "Secur
ty and morality are the supreme law ofever
land, whether they be expressly acknowledg
ed or not" All morality is based upon rs
ligicn, and the only religion recognized i
this country is the religion of the Bible Bu
l need not dwell upon this point for the S.
preme Court of Maine held that "a rule rt
quiring every scholar to read particular ve
sion of the Bible 0hough it may be again.
the conscience of some to do so.) violate
neither the letter nor the spirit of the Stat
Constitution" Still tha, Constitution CO,
tains the following clause mo one sha
be hurt molested OF restrained in his perso
liberty or estate, for his religious propens
ties or sentiments" In 1906 the Legislatul
of Massachusetts, passed an act enforcing Il
daily use of the Bible in all public school
which has never yet been declared uncons,
tutional Yet the Constitution of Massach
setts contains provision similar to that a
ready quoted from that Of Maine also tn
clause, NO subordination of any one sect
denomination to another shall ever be es,a
lished by law Then at least this Isla,
Pond teacher might have used the Bible as
text book in "moral culture" and it need Il
have been thrust out of the school. Al