Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1867-02-27
An Author Criticised.

EDITOR pSTuSluG Acoo
weeks edition of your paper, l find an
extract from the Lawyer in the School
Room" on systems of public education,
and was astonished at the assertion
made that. II quote the s%entence1
ga government that reserves the
honors for 8 privileged aristocracy and
at the same time forces the young to at
tend its schools, not for their adyan-
tage, but for the advantage of the gov
eminent and its favorites, may boast
that all its people can read, write and
cipher, but at the same time must sd
mitwhile bestowingthi limited amount
of knowledge, it carefully smothered or
crushed in them all their hopes, so
natural in youth, for distinction. In q
government having a hereditary aris-
tocracy, people of humble origin are
purposely kept in obscurity, and they
have and can have but few if any in
centives for distinguished ZEAL" etc.
Now, sir, those who know not better
take that for blank coin, form q corrup-
ted idea on this head, as this communi-
ty might have done by the very in
struetive delivery at this place by
a small man with q big name, on Errope-
an politics. Allow me to state that such
information or instruction does more
harm than good. The writer of the
above has probably read a great deal
upon that subject, but asneither lived
in China nor in Prussia, to give his own
opinion as s guarantee. He is wanting
in knowledge of the notorious fact that
in Prussia everybody, poor or rich, arts
tocrst or civilian, hiss the right 70 fire.
quent what kind of public school he
chooses, no rank Of family or distinc-
ton will facilitate or prevent 1t; the
wide doors to science and education
are open to the patrician and ple5eian.
Nv assertions are based on these facts,
that the not ~aristocratic population IN
Prussia cannot only ''boast of the abili-
~ to read, write and cipher" but rep
resents the intelligent part, in spite of
the privileges of the hereditary sristoc-
racy. Can the author mention ten
a~ristocratic names, but ten, distinguish
ed By education and learning in what
ever science, ETC., ETC., except military?
Who was the giant, Emanuel Kant?
Ficthe? Hegel? who is now the histori-
an Gneist? Who is GerTinus? Who is,
perhaps the greatest living SnGtomist?
Prof. Virchow. The great philoiogist?
Max Muller, at the Oxford University;
the blind venerable Prof. Munk, at the
Academic at Paris, and the legions,
pre-eminent, representing science, liter
AZURE, art, etc. They are all civilians,
and the most of them poor-borH. Nine
ty-nine per cent. Of them do not belong
to the hereditary aristocracy, but are
''people of humble origin and not kept
in obscurity." Every one travelling in
that part Of the world will soon be con-
WINGED of my statement. You need not
90 so far. / beg to refer to the
intelligent Prussian communities living
in large cities. There is no doubt that
in military spheres the aristocTat en-
Joys those privileges the writer was al
to. and there is good reason for
il: of course not 10 the credit Of the
Prussian ruler. The policeman or
Junker being trained in E military
& government institution,
wherein the orphans of officers or i'm
pogerished mobiles find their education,
and from whence they graduate into
The ranks of the army. But this has
1othing 10 do with education The
,iyilians find all other careers open, and
hey earn I~aurels, though sometimes
lot acknowledged. There is no doubt
hat young Prussia has since its l66th
of e~xlstencs, done wonderfully
veil, and there are hopes inst even
With 'fthat defective system of educa-
Prussia, if but progressive at the
anne rate, Will take a large share in the
part of civilization. She is
proud Of that system Of education adopt
d in many states of the old world,
UNUS PRO MULTIS.
WARREN. Fec. 25.