The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1853-1911, 1866-03-08
For The Je6ersonian.
MIR. WHACKHAMMER'S LECTURES.
NO. XI.
OUR COMMON SCHOOLS.
Our Common Schools, that is The text,
Blu, Just as we'll might you expect
To drive a windmill without wind
AS these without money and mind.
Our common schools are just about &

Our common schools are just about as
common an article as the very plainest
numsculi of friend of education could
we'll desire. They are so very common
that quito plain people hesitate long to
decide between the two evils, whether to
keep their children at home and lose their
school tax or to lose the tax by sending
them. As the arguments on both side of
this question were like the auc,ioneer's
" too tedious to mention," my wife pro
proposed that we decide it by tossing a
copper, which we did, and the children
went to school,
But before any one gets angry | might
just as we'll say here, that | do not pur
pose crying down the profession or de
nounc,ng the " faculty." nor jet to touch
character. In short shall not find fault
with our " teachers" at all. Money is a
medium Of commerce, and where there
is but very trifling sum of this medium
in one scale expect but very little in
the other. If young man can't fad
anything better to do than teaching a
common school, for twenty dollars a
month, with beard thrown in by IA
ther, !" why, l say, let him do it. 1t acMt
be less laborions for his physical self aud
give time for his mental self to write lit
erary essays on education" and expati-
ate generally on the powers of the mind.
say it may even be good for a young
man TO have an opportunity to thus erpa
fiate, as will thereby be impressed with
the idea that there is difference between
mind and matter, and also between man
and beasts, birds aud fishes It is real
ly astonishing how sooa young teachers"
arrive at these conclusions after they
have beep installed behind the only four
legged desk 10 a schcolhouse and have a
dozen light haired linseys as subjects :
Wherever they may hit the young liuseys
they are sure 20 hit these conclusions on
the head man has IN intellect and Is
quite superior to all other animals. Per
haps the teacher" receives this knowl-
edge as perquisite to be added to the
salary Ifhe does he should thank some
body, and as the Directors get no pay
and not even thanks, | would suggest
that such thanks be given unanimously
to them.
But, seriously, friends of education,-
aud hunanity,-our school system has a
noble purpose and it tulfl!s that purpose
in localities where men are willing to do
their local duty, and in no other. We
don't pay enough to obtain good article
aud then grumble because it i, worthless.
Taxes nearly choked all the dutch-A-
mericans to death, in cur State, before
the war, aud what can We expect now p
A real silver half dollar would, just now.
completely cover all the ''education" in
half dozen sons, to say nothing abont
the "gals. No matter what the boys
write compositions about, the old man
says, money is better than larning >
4 great many who are not dutch act on
the sane principle, though they do no,
express the sentiment. [ wish the com
monwealth would take these hard fsted
customers in hand and pass State law
that there shall be four times as much
money raised for school purposes as what
We have now that we have hdif as many
paid directors less form in the ''board"
and more duty. After we get the thing
creased up, and in running order, | rath
er think it would pay to send one of our
{" Institutes" over to see how the Scots
do this thing. The schoolmaster, in Scot
land, is a fret institution, but be is not
thus installed until there is no doubt Of
his qualification. His support is sure ;
he is a gentleman GU a par with the cler-
~ and welcomed and respected every
where. Teaching is indeed his profes-
sion, and the children of rich and poor
sit side by side whilst he teaches reading,
writing, English Grammar, Latin, Greek
aud mathematics. He is not forced to
dig esculent roots from farm during one
season of the year to deal out square roots
during another.
Great assistance has been given to the
com mon schools of Scotland by bequests.
When will we see the like in this coun-
try? We often hear of endowments to
seminaries, colleges and Universities.
but who so eccentric as to bequeath mo-
ney to our common schools? Girard