Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1871-01-12
~ isfella ,lea rs.
Public Education.

Inc u1uenlaUle lact Oh tile Stoauy grown
of the public free school system among
the civilized nations, for the last century,
creates presumption in its favor. 1t
aourishes under various forms of govern
ment, and when once tried, is never aban-
doned but on the contrary. is cherishe i
and perfected more aud more. 1t is OBJ
served, also. that its popularity is not
chiefly among the ignorant and moneyless;
but among the more intelligent property
holders, and often among those who have
the largest taxes to pay. This popularity
is not to be accounted for by the growth
Of the reput lican form of government; for
the system existed on this continent a
Hundred years before there was republic;
ana at this time, it is flo lrishing among
the monarchics of Europe And would it
be seen existing in "a perfection unknown
on this continent, and vitalizing the ener-
gics Of mighty, consolidated empire, be
hold the empire of Prussia As a mere
matter of fact, the pablo free school sys-
tenn is as clearly established as an clement
in the worlds progress as any ether of the
great developments of modern enterprise.
We are forced to the conclusion, that
there is something in the system which
is regarded by those who have tried it as
eminentiy conducive to the public welfare?
What is it? Its philauthropic aspects
No. However benevolent individuals may
be, nations are constltuionally selfish
It must contain a source Of individual and
nationol ACKNOWLEDGEMENT, or 1t would long
since have been abandoned
When.thc subject is studied as matter
of political economy, 1t is hard to avoid
the conclusion that the nations have per
sistently maintained their free school sys
TENS for the same reason which demands
the maintenance Of the Les islative, exc
cutive and judicial departments OF govern
ment. namely: that although very costly
to maintain. it is more costly to do with
out; and that the refusal to provide the
necessary outlay on the score of economy,
would be that sort of withholding more
than is meet, which tendeth to poverty
fhe idea has certainly taken root among
the nations that no money expended in
public affairs brings back larger or sur
er return of prosperity, than the mon
cy expended in the education of the peo>
pie; and this it does by drying up the
great source Of crime pauperism and by
quickeaing and guidinn the hand of every
worker in the land
Those who have studied the history Of
pauperism in Southern Europe and in Eng
land tell us, that the bulk of it comes
from the neglected freedmen of the Ro-
man empire and Of the feudal barons
Now behold the result in the lazzaroni of
the Mediterranean States and in the cloud
of paupers in England. In the later, the
education of the ruling Glasses has given
national prosperity, but in England every
eighth man is pauper, and while she
until lately, has expended but little for
the education of the common people On
the free system she is compelled to spend
forty millions year for the subslstece of
her paupers, and great deal more to pun
ish them for their crimes. The statistics
Of her prisons show that ninety-6ve per
cent of crime is committed by persons TN
able to read OF write inteliigently, and
also that not one criminal in two hundred
has what may be called an education. And
such is the testimony of prisons every
where as to the intimate relations between
ignorance, pauperism and crime.
When on the other hand. we turn to
those European nations which have estab-
lished public free schools, there is far
better state of things in these particulars.
Such is the case iu Norway, Sweden, Den
mark, Holland, Belgium, and most of the
German States. There they have COM
mon schools, and there pau perism is al
most unknown; and the testimonies 60 to
show that in proportion as the people arc
educated, they are free from crime and
improved in thrift and good morals Sim
iIer results are claimed in those States of
our own prosperous and powerful country.
where the system has been thoroughly
tried, and claimed with the greatest con-
fidcnce in those States where tie system
has been longest tried. The outlay is
great, but the income is far greater
Nothing is SO costly as crime, and igno-
rant. thrietless labor Nothing makes
public order SO difficult, reputation 50 in
secure. property SO precarious. governd
'ment in every department so COS ly an-