Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1871-08-24
EDUCATIONAL.
Proceedlaas Of the National Educational
Convention at St. Louis.

ST. LOUIS, August 22.-The Elev-
enth Annual Meeting Of the National
Educational Convention took place at
the Polytechnic Institute. A great
number of delegates were present
from all sections of the country, the
large hall being entirely filed.
President Pinkard called the Con-
veutiOn to order, and after few gen.
eral remarks introduced Governor
Brown. who delivered an address,
most cordially welcoming the dele
gates to st. Louis, the great focal
noint of educational labor in the West.
| The Governor gave a rapid sketch OF
what has been done for education in
this State, and then touched upon
some of the phases OF the system as
generally taught in this country. de
was something Of a skeptie to the gem
eral dogma that schooling IN It's pres
ent accepted phraseology OF popular
education Is the foundation OF all VIZ
| tue and morality Of a community. he
| thought the value Of education TO So
ciety must be stated when thus pre-
sented. He said that education as an
aid to social life is chiefly serviceable
| in the first instance as furnishing bet
| ter facilities for the protection and the
provision for ones self and family In
the present social condition, and sec
Ond, for the larger comprehension IL
| ineulcatGs Of interest and cOnven-
| tiOnal dependencies that justify sell
sacrifice. Id sustaining the social or
der ii Is a very customary deelama'
ton to pronounce that education 1s
the great safeguard of RepuD-
lies against the decline OF virtue
| and reign of immortality, yet the
| facts scarcely bear out the proposition
that the highest civilization, both an
cient and modern, has sometimes
been the most fagitiOus. Nowadays,
certainly, your prime raseals are edu-
Gated rascals, and it is at least, doubt
| full, whether education in itself as 1t
| is now organized, and confined mere
ly to the acquisition of knowledge, has
| any tendency to mitigate the vicious
| elements of human nature, further
than to change the disposition, and
| dispOse of crime. This is not alleged
as the result Of moral culture or OF re-
| ligious instruction, but simply of the
education of the intellect be would
not enter into any analytical discus
sion of the problem, but he said ne De-
| lieyed that the best remedy for the
disease would be found apart from
moral and religious training. Else
where in teaching the actual cOmpen-
satiOns of nature In taking the crimi-
nal code into the schools and cOllating
the action with the retribUtiOns in de-
demonstration virtue as its own best
reward, not by axiom, but by illus
tration; and in showing forth by suit
able method that wrong is ever mis-
calculation, and therefore, foreign 10
the first law of education. Have you,
he said, any text books ol
crime and misdemeanOr in your
schools? Do your young men grow
up knowing what obtaining money
under false pretenseS means? Are
your Lessons of the penltentiary anu
reformatOry ever applied in the
schoOl.roOm, and yet whilst forcing
the faculties of youth to their highest
acuteness you would cave them un'
guarded amid sordid greed for gain
and unschoOIed in the principles ol
honor and integrity? If the object Oi
all education be to form and develop
peffeet life, then it is evident that II
must touch life-the life Of the present
not of the past-On all sides, and to
that end there will not be vast
changes in what is taught IN our
schools, no less than in the manner
il is taught. He then referred to the
changes which have been made in
late years in the high schools and uni
yersities by the introduction OF phys
ical and social sciences, supplanting
TO a large extent at least, in primary
instructions what he called the dead
beats of language, ordinary history
aad the philosophy u words anu
phrases. He then laid down the fol.
| lowing as what is specially needed al
the present timer The cultivation OF
the powers of observation and cOnse-
uuent thought in cur youth; the as
simiIatiOn of the knowledge thai
is in books by constant cor
relation with the world around
and the practical Illustrations
thereby afforded; the recognition
of more natural growing faculty thai
shall RdOpt the education to the i'm
pulse, enjoyment and capacity of tht
child-and all this, in place Of tht
parrot. like recitation, Chinese memo
riZiDg, text books cramming and dis
cipIines, bud of ease of the master
, but repreSsiVe altogether OF the human
nature OF the pupil, is what this ag'
demands with potential voice. Edu'
cation to be successful must CO.. -ordl
nate with a Joy and lightness ant
relishiDg thirst that shall make every
ACQUISITION of the Incentive to re
newed effort upon the question OF thI
relative advantage of classical o.
? mathematical studies. As agencie
, of mental discipline he would no
express an opinion, but he entered |
/ strong protest against national com
; pulsory education. The address wa
repeatedly applauded.
Mr.. Pfnkard, after thanking tn
Governor, introduced Hen. Eli Tap
! pan, who briefly referred to the in
portance Of the moral training in tn
, education of the youth.
S. II, White also made brief ad
3 dress, during which he stated tina
I General Garfield, of Ohio, was t
l speak tonight on the relations OF thu
: general government to education, bu
had been called to Washington OI
, important business, and would not
therefore, be present.
An invitation to visit Shaw's gar
den was received, and the Public
School library was placed at the us'
I; | of the Convention.
The Convention is divided into fOu
sections, in all Of which papers vii
be read and discussions followed, ant
reporting will, therefore, be sttende,
with difficulties.
SECOND DAY.
Il I orTru "a -TVa tho ann
tinuation Of the proceedings Of tn
Educational Convention, yesterday
President Pinkard introduced MI
Tappan, VINO, in the absence Of Pro
fessOr Elliott, Of Harvard College
spoke in behalf of g department o
higher education. After afew genera
remarks, he turned to GOvernO
| Brown, who was on stand near, an'
! said that no part of the human beinj
Is forgotten in our scheme of educa
: ton, and that, above ali we know ant
feel, and as the maxim OF our work
: the moral education is the most i'm
9 portant thing Of all. Not only do W
1 recognize its Importance, but we dis
j. cuss the methods to carry il out. w
9 recognize that the education Of ever,
1 child in the land should be based upol
Z the love Ofhis fellow-being.
A few remarks were then made by A
IC ShOrtridge, Vice President, on Ele
mentary section, who was followed b.
Is. ii. White, President Of the Norms
q section, who considered it eminentl
|. proper that this Convention should b
Q held In Missouri, State which hs
within q few years established such
u connDrehensive system of norma
= schools, and but the other day lai
. the cornerstone Of one Of the mos
b elegant buildings of the kind in th
, ooIsnfrv. and esDeeislly proper did b