The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1870-01-20
The War upon Free Schools.
From the New York Evening Post.

"upon the Catholic view of the pubic
school question" By this announcement
we are of course to understand that ne in
tends to present the objections of his
brethren of the Roman Catholic priest
hood to our system of public schools.
Here is something for as to think of
Our public schools are political institu-
ton are neither Catholic nor, Protestant
their object is to train up the rising gener-
alton in such q manner that they shall.
become Intelligent, thinking members of
society, able 10 understand the nature Of
of our tree government, able to inform
themsel YES in regard to public measures
and to Judge of them wisely, able to com
prehend and willing to practise the du-
ties OF citizen. These are some of the
principal objects for which our system OF
public schools is established, and 1t IS easy
to see that they can be attained without
the Interference Of the priesthood The
Importance of these objects no one will
deny. The efficacy of public schools OF
this country in promoting them has been
proved by long experience, and forms one
of the deepest and most cherished coayict-
ions of an immense maj ority of the Amer
can people. lie d 81
But here is class of men who act at
the bidding of a power without the state,
seated in distant corner of Europe, and
who come forward with plan to subvert
those institutions which have been re-
garded as the pride and glory of our
country. The Pope has recently made
OFT list of what he condemns as pernic-
Gus errors. This has been published
under the name of the PsLal Syllabus !;
and among these is the public school
system of this country. It is directly
condemned in the forty fifth article, in
which the Pope denies that "theexclusive
control of public schools ought to rest
with the civil authorities ''-as is the
case here. The issuing of this Syllabus
has been the signal of vehement attack
upon our public schools. The Roman
Catholic journals have denounced them
with an intense bitterness. The Roman
Catholic priesthood have made war upon
them Such of the members of the New
York Legislature as could be influenced
have been persuaded to engage in a
scheme which has proved too successful
for bestowing large sums of money from
the public treasury to schools in this
city under the exclusive direction of the
priesthood of the Romish communion.
We are not surprised at this course on
the part of the priests In this country,
as in Ireland the Roman Catholic clergy
hold firmly to the infallibility of the
Pope. Here there is not, Us in several
countries of Europe where theirs is the
established church, any authority which
can in any manner come between the
Pope and his priesthood. Here the Pope
is directly the source of all ecclesiastical
authority and promotion. AS general
rule, therefore-and we are not prepared
TO say whether there may not be-, as we
hope exceptions--the Pope is regarded
as infallible by the American clergy of
his denomination. They do not need
the decision Of any council, like that now
assembled at Rome, to satisfy them on
this point Whatever doctrine he LAYS
down, it is their duty as good Catholics
to adopt implicitly; whatever doctrine
he condemns they condemn also When,
therefore, his censure falls upon any of
our political institutions, sach as our sys
TEN Of public schools, every one of his
priesthood in the country attacks it with
the instant obedience of trained soldier
and with all the zeal of religious enthu-
siast
1t is for the people of this country to
say whether they will submit to this die
tation of foreign power whether they
will give up their system of public
schools, because the Pope condemns it
In his Syllabus and sets his emissaries
here to decry and attack it. We do not
believe that our people are quite ready
for this If the enemies Of our school
system succeed III any degree, it must be
only through the influence exercised by
priests inthe elections, dextrously turning
the balance Of votes in favor Of the per-
sons with whom they have had some pre-
vious understanding.
But what do these assailants of our in
situations propose to put in place of the
present system of public schools? One
of their organs, and one of the most ex-
pliclt and out-spoken, the Tablet, says:
at Tthe government must leave the whole
question of education, as it does religion, to
the voluntary principle, or it must divide the
schools as is done in most European nations
ainto two classes, the one for Catholics and
the other for Protestants, with the education
ineach under the supervision and control of
its respective religious authority"
The absurdity of the latter of these al
tlrnatives we may take occasion to point
out hereafter. but suppose that either
OF these plans were adopted what would
b. the consequence? We should have
established at once among us a division
Of society into two classes, trained to look
upon each other with mutual dislike, per
haps with hatred. The Catholic schools
if Conducted in strict obedience to the
Syllabus of the Pope, would be schools
Of tie intensest bigotry. The Catholic
boy would be brought up to regard the
bow Who was not Catholic with the
same 4oly horror with which a Protestant