The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-12-02
DAILY Y%PRESS.
PORTLAND. !.
AeaGay sGorning. December g. 1867.


moaGa5 sN ornlng. Dtlembof q 1867.
-s-.--.- = = - : - -L--.----4--,L-tI1E !
81 A ne vivai Of nieress In Isdncasion.
For year or two past colleges have been
the recipients OF. unprecedented tavors
There has been a perfect hail-storn of dona-
tons, endowments, scholarships, professor
ships and bequests--- Difiidenee about asking
-an in'requept weakness OF academic COR.
porations-has alone prevented their all be-
coming rich. Harvard and Yale, well-to1do
magnates in the commonwealth OF. learning
are tieading close upon the heels of their old
er sisters OF Cambridge and Oxford and
Bowdoin, Colby and Bates, in our own State,
are all making excellent progress both in OBJ
! tanning aa increase of their funds and in De,
voting their resources to good purposes. j
The prosperity of the higher class OF edr,-
catiOnal institutions must be source OF the
liveliest satisfaction to all who have witness
edit BIT it is a singular lact that, so far as
Maine is concerned, at least, the prosperity Of
common schools has been in inverse proper
| ton TO that OF universities and colleges.
While the latter, have beea- enlarging, the
| sphere Of their usefulness and approaching
more and more, nearly to the standard OF ideal
excellence, tho former have fallen ints thai
| species of decay that comes of standing still
| Within a lew years the amount Of money
which each town Is required to raise fer each
scholar within its limits has been hcreased
to- correspond with the advance In the salali
ries Of teachers. This single legislative oct
measures the whole progress Of common
schools for series of years. We have the
old methods OF State and local supervision,
the old lack sof uniformity with respect 10
textbooks and methods Of Instruction, the
old negligence on the part Of teachers, school.
agents and municipal officers In making their
proper returns.L Everything about common
schools is at d stand-still, though they consti-
tute the distinctive feature OF our American
educational system. England and other for
eign countries, where the wealth is eoncentrat-
I ed in the hands of a few, will probably con-
tinue for long time to keep a little in ad-
vance OF US in securing university culture
IN the GREATEST perfection. But IN common
schools America has always led, and with re-
speet to them it ought still to justify the
coarse but emphatic old American boast.
r. We knock sthe wnrll, isil-f~ss5ehe Rreigu
ssysssmsa predueen splendid specimens of spe-
cial culture and highly educated q upper
Glass; but for an educated people, for culture
reaching down through an classes an 1 per-
,meating all parts Of the social organization,
our own system is. immeasllrably superior.
rs necessary connection with the perpetnity
OF democratic institutions should make it
the object of the eyer.yigi liant care OF cur
LEGISLATORS. It is the irm basis upon which
the Republic rests.s Its perfection would be
specific against rebellion, caste, corruption
extravasanee and all the evils which now
affliet us. Whatever is second. let the inter.
sests 6f tgiacation YER he first fsS9l.f 20 y
q :Tha Sfafe F,,,,caf;,sn,al ronvanf;one he'll at
ar o...,l,.,,, 49,. y III i
o..,aai1T ...s.g - .a.S !. .';,T ~
b : - - - 81 q
:, .,
S1s fe--' ,'ss' 10y =
WIN s4s@Ao'' 'op'"'s' ''na' i''''enrs r'e
ess'hnns " new wa VI poe's.. "e p'o
pooo :" I" y s',' -
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oo's - "a ~ \. -
.''ose fs'ts s.', ~ ou' .oi,' "n" @ =. =
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''s,1"n ~ 'l ,in.1n a.e = s'.." Ia
pefllaneh. o'sa''1a..on " wn'sn ans ie.'I
A'ay "e',o's = r.
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=. =, = " rs "op.. ~ -.
a'' sa''As' sen.s" .".os IN ~
."e .a'.e 'a'is, oua.a'.o" - !. -, sas M .r,;
a'so. ''1 -. ~, ~, ' - -
es w., j -. :. 49, ,arta;o1
aa' aa', - - ,,,,,,aa.,a M.
nhIat s,rrn ana ora,,,,,o,,s o;ro,,,a,;a,, of ,ho
ran;,,,s aaarosses dol,vered :, ,ha onn,,a,
mer,,... IA or ,,,o uaxv. o,hor,s;so nrosar,,
ed. Only in this way can r,,s M t,,rad views
| tLs combined experience of the best eau,,,,,'
tors, be made available for the whole State.
As it Is now. only the few who are able to A.
tend these conventions are profited. Nearly
+ every teacher is now Obliged to learn his art,
| de aoro. for himself. He cannot avail him
| self OF the experience OF Others. The same is
| true of nearly all who have the Supervision OF
sehaols 4 Cart ainly this sbould not he 40 the
exnerieuce of our best educators should not
be so nearly all lost as now. 1sg eaoais4
| The Convention also appointed commu-
tee 70 present TO the Legislature plan ior
the SUPERVISION OF schools. Rev. Df. baiiaid
The present state superintendent, IN his all