New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1869-11-12
TIE BIBLE-SCRooL QUESTION

The World discusses the appropriation of over
100000 from our City's Treasury to the sup
port of non public UNCONVENTIONAL schools in q
cautious and moderate fashion, but with what
we believe an imperfect apprehension OF the
facts. 1t forcibly premises that e
The private schools benefited by the recent dlstTbu'
ton entirely beyond the control OF the public
scribng their studies regulating their discipline pro-
vdng for the health Of their puPs or seeing that the
public schools the other hand under the supern-
and SS to h nS the q oao 9S e
anime their qualifications inspect their work, stimulate
Of responsi6ity The authorities also attend the
cleanliness warmth, ventilation and comfort OF the
in private schools whose pupils come from the middle
and poorer casses IL schools be supported at the
Should exercise some control over their character With
render them efficient which can be best done on
uniform system" ..r....
Yet The World proceeds to explain if not
excuse this anomalous dispensatiOn of public
money by
Tho fact that large portion of the community isso
dissatisfied with the public schools that no ndncement
will prevail upon them to send their children Whether
their objection the public schools Is welfOunded or
ill.founded. the withholding of their children Is equally
matter regret SS Of e
In all which, we heartily concur. But The
World proceeds
1.-The majority OF the compainants are Catholics 1t
that part OF the money has been bestowed upon
comes from Catholic Inspiration What the Catholics OBJ
iect to Is the daily reading OF the PROTESTANT translation
practice excludes mutitudes OF children from the public
schools IL ought to be discontinued The Catholics may
be unreasoraby scrupulOus and fastdiOus this point
but n is an equally unreasonable fasdiOusness In the
Protestants 10 insist upon it,
Are these the factsi Do the PrOtestants
insist that Catholic children shall listen to the
reading of translation of the Bible condemned
as erroneous by their church, If they do,
they put themselves clearly in the wrong, and
we will do our best to Overbear their wrong
Whatever the relative merits of the Protestant
and the Catholic versions of the Scriptures, the
partisans of neither have right to force the
use of their version upon children of the adj
verse communion. Though the Catholics were
but small minority, Gas they are nOt) their
rights of conscience are equal to and as sacred
as those of ever so large q majority. This is
not land of religious federation merely, but
of Equal Rights.
But we are grievOusly misled If the Catholic
objection to our Common Schools is not far
broader and deeper than The World repre-
sents it. Bible-reading in any form is but a
minor incident; the Catholics object Gas we
understand them) to sending their children to
any schools not essentially Catholic. Though
the Bible were wholly excluded, or their YER
sion exclusively read, they would still be dis
satisfied with schools from which the inculca-
ton of their faith was excluded. Hence our
discouragement as to the feasibility of satisfy
ing them or preventing the open and general
withdrawal of their children from our Common
Schools.
Are we mistaken on this pointH Would the
exclusion of the Bible satisfy and reconcile the
Catholics If it would, we shall hope that our
Schools can be saved. Who that is authorized
to speak for the Catholics will set forth pre-
cisely and definitely the extent of their de-
mand, and what is required to commend our
Common Schools to their approval and sup
port Let us have the whole case clearly set
forth, so that we may know exactly what
must be done to save our Schools. We can
not act intelligibly nor decide safely until we
have full and clear knowledge of the facts