American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1865-11-29
COMMUNICATIONS.


DIR. EDITOR The communication III
your last from the Trustees of the Butler
Academy, should receive, as it deserves,
the careful attention of the people of
the county, and, although it may be an
announcement and perhaps inclement sea
son OF the year to attend to such mat
ter, still we hope the people will meet on
the 23rd of December, as recommended,
and express by their votes what disposi-
tion they prefer making of the old Acads
emy fund and property now so long re-
naming idle. Nearly all, we think, will
agree that it is time something should be
| done.
The writer Of this desires to direct
attention to an object, for the application
of the money part of said property, which
way not enumerated among those men
tioned by the Trustees, but which has
been spoken of, and which, we think,
when understood, will meet with much
iavor--we mean the benefit aud cduca-
tion of the Soldiers Orphans Of our
county.
All the plans proposed, for the dispo-
sitiop of this fund, We presume will have
their friends. The writer would have no
objection to the Nyitherspoon Institute
receiving the fund, if it is thought that
the most good can be accomplished by
bestowing it upon that institution. The
common school houses of the Borough
are certainly insufficient for their purpos-
es, if not unworthy of the county sea-,
and if this fund could be the means of
obtaininga proper building, as has been
done with it in other county towns, then
would much desired object be promo
ted. In either of these plans the rights
of the county, as now existing in the
Academy, to the education gratis, of a
certain number of young men, would of
course, have to be retained and preserv
ed.
But we have the soldiers orphans among
u3. The poor children of men who fell
Or died in the service during the great
contest for the life of the nation. Many
of these children are entirely dependent
upon the labor of mother or upon the
charity of friends. The State, last
winter, made an appropriation towards
their education and maintenance, and
next winter she may make another and
larger appropriation. But the State has
built no school houses for them, nor con
templates the building of any These,
so far have either been rented or freely
rendered by different COMMITTEES aud places.
in order 10 get school located within
their limits. Beaver county procured a
school, at Sewicklcy, in this way Ale
ghcny county has succeeded in getting
two schools within her limits, and when
the soldiers orphans committee of our
county are advising and making recon-
mendations to the State Superintendent
of the proper place to send our soldiers
orphans, they have to recommend one
of these schools in Beaver or Allegheny
counties, because we. have no place in
our own county to send them. Many
mothers, very naturally, are unwilling to
let their small children be taken SO far
away from them and consequently we
lose great part of the bounty of the
State. Let then the money part of this
Academy property be obtained to repair
and improve the present building, and
make il a fit place to educate our own
soldiers orphans in. We win then have
a school withine our own county, and can
draw portion Of the annual State appro.
priation for that purpose. This school
will give employment to number of our
worthy citizens. 1t will be placing the
fund to a humane and patriotic object,
and will, all things considered, be max
ling the wisest and best disposal of it
that We can make at the present time
tits sufficient for this purpose aud not suf-
ficient for any other that has been named
and is the plan of one who served his
day in the, pas aaas 20 se6i ~
OLD ACADEMY.
Igo BnTT-TTT--- - T.
/ ..4s Eor the Citizen.