Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1867-03-02

! negro by the Legislature, these function.
aries have been actuated purely and sole.
| IL by selfish motives, and not from any
regard for the black man or his rights.
When they have secured his vote, they
have no further use for the negro as 4
citizen.
THE NEW COMMON sCHOOI. LAW.
Education and means fer the general
diffusion Of intelligence constitute an
indispensable basis Of the support of free
governments. When all are admitted
to share in shaping the conduct Of pub
lie affairs, the higher the general stand
ard Of qualification the greater is the
security that they will be wisely and
rightly administered 1t is, therefore,
one Of the first duties of the lawmakers
Of a free people to establish judicious
and thorough system of public education,
and, if possible, make every citizen of the
Commonwealth a staunch pillar Of support
to government Few will deny these gene
raj truths or object to the outlay Of pub
lie money necessary to maintain well
framed and feasible system Of free com
mon schools There will be many, how
ever, in this State, who viii question, on
good grounds, both the wisdom and JUS
tice Of the law recently passed by the
Legislature in regard to this subject
1t is in ffty.sectious, andI We will be
mistaken, if it is not discovered to be as
cumbrous, injudicious, and inapplicable
to the condition of things at present ex-
listing in this State, as it is lengthy. We
infer it to be the work of some one who,
in the main, meant well; but, who has
committed the error of supposing that a
common school machinery adapted to
| Massachusetts, or Connecticut, was equally
| adapted 10 Tennessee-both of the for
mer having, for several generations, ex~
perienced the operations of very liberal
systems of this kind, while Tennessee has
never had the incomplete plan which has
for many years numbered her statute
book, properly managed Ii is too elabo-
rate and complicated, as well as too cost
ly for the times. We believe that a sim
pie system, requiring less expenditure
and few officers would be more practica-
BILE, and accomplish more for the object
desired In making this objection, We do
not depart from the wise rule, that holds
that anything that is worth doing at all,
is worth doing well We wish that the
completest scheme that could be devised
could be put in operation, and think that
the cost Of its maintenance wOald be mo-
ney wen expended; but We seriously
fear that the one under discussion
will entail all the outlay that the in
terest on what remains Of the present
school fund viii permit, and that the
two mills per dollar tax on property, and
the twenty-five cents poll tax will provide,
and yet not produce results anything in
proportion. There are too many boards
and sub-boards, and too many officers and
sub-oficers We do not impeach in add
vance the administrators of this trust,
but the fund requires to be filtered through
too many hands on its way from the
pockets of the people to the schoOlroom.
We fear that the people are likely to hear
a great deal OF the school fund and be
compelled to read many lengthy reports,
without seeing many scholars as aresult,
or any great reduction in the amount of
ignorance We believe that it would
have been both wise and economic to
have enacted some direct and simple
plan of giving the various counties Of the
State the benefit Of the present school
fund, and amended and enlarged the
field of operations at some future time
when success had crowned that effort,
and the finances Of the people were better
able to sustain the experiment
Among men Of minds large enough to
Appreciate the benefits Of general ,edu-
cational system, and soul enough to de-
sire them to be free to all and "broad and
casing as the general air, there can be
but one opinion of the narrow-minded
and illiberal spirit which excludes, in
the name of miscalled loyalty, any por-
ton of the tax payers Of the State from
an equal participation in the manages
ment of the system provided by this law.
If there is any one subject Of legislation
which craftsmanship should have permitted
to pass unsmirched by its polluting touch,
it is that looking to the good Of the com
Ing generations But this is not to be,
aud a free school system which cannot be
efficiently conducted without the moral
support Of all interested, is ushered into
trial under the same influence which Is
paralizing every other useful institution
and interest in the State, We augur
little good from the present law FOR these
and other reasons