The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1861-03-22

I -IFT1TTe ~
PR1NcEToN, Gibson County, Ind.

MEssRs. EDITOR Courtesy tells me
that should have sent this communication
to the papers of our own county,but knowing
that your journal has a wider circulation,
the good of my fellow man tells me that
should ask from you an insertion.
We are told in the first chapter of the
Book of Truth, that God commanded our
fore-parents to be fruitful and multiply and
replenish the earth, and we are told toward
the end of the Book that he that provideth
not for his own household, is worse than an
infidel. - @ - ~
Now do not charge that we of the West
forget the first command, and most of US at
tend a sorter to the second.
Whenever parents are blessed with off
spring, it is their bounden duty to provide
for them, not only good sound food for the
body, and comfortable raiment to clothe it,
but they are also in duty bound to provide
| good and wholesome food for the. minds Of
those little ones for whom they are respon-
| sible.
To clear our skirts and die with a clear
conviction of having done our whole duty
in this matter, we must be industrious and
frugal-not only industrious in scraping to-
gether this worlds goods-wherewith to
feed and clOthe the bodies of our children,
but industrious, and not only industrious, but
willing to cooperate with our neighbors in
establishing good schools in which our
children may secure a thorough practical
education.
Have the citizens of this county done
this-are they industrious and frugal in this
matter-how stands the case with us p
From all the facts I can gather, nearly,
or quite, fifty of our daughters are sent
abroad to receive a Boarding School educa-
ton, and we are paying 30 those schools,
for tuition, board, and extras, about three
hundred dollars per head, for this kind OF
schooling which for this county makes a
grand total of (if l am right as to number
and price) fifteen thousand dollars that is
) paid 0ut per annum, and every cent goes
out of our county, except perehance, some
small portion may be returned here for but
ter eggs, and other eatables. And we are
: not the only ones that are acting thus fool
ishly. Pike county, which adjOins us, pays
out for like education about four thousand
dollars per annum.
= You will say that the school to which we
: have sent our daughters is a good boarding
: school, and our daughters viii return from
it with their diplomas in their pockets, aEC
we shall be astOnished to hear them talk O
2 the sciences, and wonder how they coulC
} have learnt so much in so short time
I But question them on those. branches thai
should be brought into use ia everyday life
and your wonder will be changed to cha
grin in having wasted SO much money to 81
: poor a purpose.
Our daughters should be with their moth.
ers at this time of life, they should be unde
their surveillance where they could have
q that care that mother alone can give, fol
!. be assured that it is the most critical perioC
, Of life, when the young mind and body
needs great care and watchfulness.
: Now l would suggest that we should
5 coma tqna4hn in the SAirit f,sf 60 thaRax n
= the welfare of our children, and see if W,
could not with the fifteen thousand dOllar
per annum, establish good school at home
and not only have our children with us
c but a school that we could visit every day
in the week and thus know what our child
rem were doing and not only this but hav,
the money spent in our own county.
{ am told that the whole expense of tn
+ Public Schools in Evansville only amount
: to about eleven Thousand dollars per annum
@ for teachers, and fuel and rent added to thi
the expense would not reach the amour
. pay for the education of our fifty daugh
y tiers. Whilst in Evansville they have enroll
: ed over fifteen hundred scholars, and sixtl
f of these attend the High School, where al
the branches, except music and painting
are taught, and Taught thoroughly, too, wha
t our daughters are instructed in at Boarding
n School
Now, Mr.. Editor, I will close, having,
know, tried your patience, adding only
> wish that we, OF Gibson, and our friends o
5 Pike, will look well to the interests of our
selves and our children. / am not a teache
never expect to be-bnt as parent ant
a well-wisher of our country, would like t.
see our children brought up to- be men anC
women ia the true sense of the word.
n GIBSON.