Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1860-1862, 1860-08-09

| ties occupy the mother S time. 10 ma place
to which children foEr to eight yes of age
conld be sent where you could low they
were safe under such kind sympaeIic fe
male influence as would make the sool room
amusing. attractive and instrnctivby maxi
ing bodily development means icultIva-
ting the reasoning powers and raing the
| manners and the feelings. whore ndrodigles
are to be ma1e for exhibition. VIE teach
ing and not memorizing is to be one and
where they are never in danger rom the
sports of older boys.
By whose advice are You depriT of the
blessing of a safe place for yonr ildren
TO 6 years old to get air, exerciSand in
structiOn at the same time. for wan,f which
yon must turn teacher yourself Gree them
loose two of the most valuable yea of life?
Read the advice of Mr.. Pearl in report
dated Aug. 4th. 1855, and the the Ia passed
nineteen days after by which childn under
six years are excluded from Scbl. He
says, "My opinion was and is, (OMurray
where are thy rules) that. for pla' no lar
ger than Nashville, concentrate of the
schools in n single point. is for manTeasons
to be preferred" Did the sagaeioI Super
intendent think that Nashville won never
be any larger. 1t may be cOnvdent for
selling books for Crosby. Nichols Go.. as
it would save the boys the trouble { going
to the book store, but for every 9th reason
| to hurdle thousands of children tPther is
| an abOminable practice. Go to clrch and
stay for two hours, breathing the anne air
| Cthers have breathe6. If you find iuncom.
Portable to yon, then go to theHoward
Building and in the large halls by $50
and see children kept there five ours. and
then say if you would like to ocupy the
| central seats. Say then whetherii erection
is great waste of money greatbto the in
convenience of pupils when thanoney thus
used in Is inch walls would hse supplied
| the whole city with cOnvenientud healthy
| building with II inch walls. Arsnot such
primary schools more important tan an ey-
pensive Chemical and Latin department.
| The first eight years are the mostmportant
| of life. Properly train the child p to that
age. and the labor both to tether and
pupil is mostly over for b course
afterwards will be one Of use and
pleasure to both pupil and teaaer. But
put him on the duncifying proSs during
| these years, and pity the one wb is after,
wards TO be his teacher. and he I'll, most
likely. be an intellectual slave fohife-per-
haps learned fool, who knows iall aud a
little more, in his own estimation, imply he
cause his intellect is so beclOude that he
cannot see that his argument defess his own
course. and it causes him to teach eror to 9TH
eTs while he wishes to teach truth. Such per-
sons however benevolent, do muclharm, and
are always dangerous in every siuation in
life. This subject of intellectualslavery. a
dangerous and most pitiabe coalition, de-
have time to give it.
Should children be sent to schol at four
years of age? Yes. by al means to school.
but not TO Ounce factory. Chilren at that
age ought, they must and they will have i'm
plOyment. They will not be idle and if they
do mischief it is the fault of those who fail to
furnish Employment for them. They should
be with children of there own ap. under the
direction OF one who can furnishimplOyment
that Is exercise and amusement: amusement
that Is instructive, and instruction that is
amusing. The habits of attentbn, observa-
ton and doing, should take the pace of that
abomnation of the schOol-rOOm, he memoir
zing of books.
Why have not districts or waIl schools of
this kind been provided as the Law required?
Why was the law changed? Rcause Mr..
Pearl says, concentration of The schools at
a single point, is for many reasons to be pre-
ferred. September the 18th. 1856, law was
passed by which the school-funt was to be
kept separate. Nine days afterthe law for
electing the Board by the people was repf al
ed, (Why was this?) and the "shll be elected
by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen at the
first regular meeting in Octoberr December
18th, 1854. That in order more effectually
to enable the Board Of Education to put the
system of Public Schools into operation the
Public School funds shall be placed at the
disposal of the Board of Education"
SEC. 4. 1t shall be the duty of the Treas
urer TO pay all orders that may be drawn on
him by, &c.
These laws follow each other in singular
ba oil e ,ly,
the people when the experience of older cities
caused Mr. Hume TO repeat three tines over
the importance of leaving it with them. This
is attended with much danger. Tie Board
can have powerful influence in controlling
the election of Aldermen. The Board are
thus dependent on the Aldermen, and the
Aldermen on the Board. you tickle me
and I'll tickle you" Another great evil is,
it deprives the wards of their iralienable
rights, the right of representation in the
school Board and leaves schools dependent
on city politics, instead Of leaving them with
the people where they belong. Hal this been
done, each ward or school district would have
been supplied with good primary schools for
very small children, with good Play grounds.
These should have been the first Objects of the
Board. These would have been schools for
the people at large, and far cheaper than
Latin, Greek, French, Chemistry, Geometry.
Nc.. which are only for the few, and the build
ngs far cheaper than-a fort with sentry
boxes at each corner. Each ward should
nave elected one member of the Board, three
trustees to have charge of the house, to hire
teachers, and control with the aid and ad-
vice of the Boardl all money matters, and
.wO school inspectors. Had this been done,
schools would have been far better and S40,-
300, besides what has heretofore been men-
toned, would have been saved. Grammar
schools, and finally High School, would
nave been the result,
The Second Ward School will yet be es-
when the people investigate for
themselves. The High School will not then
e made up of pupils unskilled in orthogra-
,hy, and by Orthgraphy l mean something
more than that ridiculous force of an admis-
ion test, the spelling Of Twenty-Five words. A
Cw persons tell us It would be dangerous for
he people TO elect their own Board; but how
appens it that where this is done their
chOols are twice as good and cost about one
bird as much? This is an important CUES
ion for the SolOmons to answer.
The people of Nashville are but little ac- |
uainied with the details of the organization,
7hich gives the Free Schools ofother places |
uch economical efficiency. They only need |
D understand these things to demand reor- /
OF the school system, and to make /
heir demands heard at the ballot-box.
But we are told that the bad effect of the |
Letting of Boards by the people is shown at |
Iemphis. L heard gentleman who had Wis
heir school, and who had the nerve to say |
ne truth in the cause of education, tell them
public lecture, that their schools were
isgrace to the place, but L remembered that
r. J. F. Pearl had hand in the early
and | remember, and the peo-
10 nf Nashville will vet hava t0 1
emember the warning that Alfred Hume
rought to the people of Nashville. Beware
Ow you begin the system. Be sure you be-
in right. Spare no pains to put your schools
n the proper basis Mt first. 1t is much cas-
r to put things right at first than to get |