Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1871-01-26
ing discussion, an adjournment was
made till half-past one O'Clock.
AFTERNOON SESSION.


added to the proceedings by the intro.
duction of music by the choir Of the
church, which had kindly volunteered for
the occasion.
The exercises were opened by well
rendered selection by the choir, at the
conclusion of which Mr.. Henry Clark, the
President, delivered the following adj
dress:
In commencing, the speaker stated that
he proposed to discuss the subject OF
distinctive Education forVermont." This
is an important topic for consideration In
our Commonwealth. The State of Vermont
has been called radical in politics. While
this in one sense may be true, yet upon
many other questions it is highly con-
servative, and makes slow progress in re-
| formatory movements. Vermont in itself
considered is not of large size, yet in its
soil. mineral resources, the peculiar char
acter of its sturdy population, and its
solid material wealth, 1T possesses an i'm
| portance equaled by few, which is begin
ming to be acknowledged.
Our forces are, however, to no small ex-
tent still asleep. The State has not yet,
even after a century of existence, come to
the full apprehension and proper use of
its own resources. Much of its strength
has never been developed; and such force
as it has come actually to exercise is too
often put forth 10 q comparatively blind
way, without waking the insight and self
conscious purposes that should go along
with it to make it of complete account.
But the silent forces, which are now sleep
| ing, will in due time awake. The torpor
| which prevails on many subjects is not
that of death. 1t is the rest rather of liv-
| lug powers, which may be expected, with
proper effort, to break forth hereafter with
| a force proportionate to the long restraint
that has gone before. The State will not
only possess her present elements and ca
pabilties of power, bat these elements and
capabilities will be understood and turned
to account. Her forces will no longer be
u slumbering fact merely. The possible
will be lctual. She will know and feel
her proper strength, and will be able so to
use it, we may trust, that the whole ma
ton may know and feel il also, for its
own good
The undeVeloped wealth of our State is
at once both material and intellectual. 1t
is within comparatively recent date that
the physical resources which it CARRIES in
its bosom have begun to be properly Under
stood and improved; and there are still
greater ones reserved in this form for fu-
ture use But it la not too much to say
that the latent capabilities of our State are
fairly parallelel with the condition of her
natural resources quite as full of prom
Use, and, of course, much moro entitled to
our patriotic interest and regard.
la comparing one section with another
intellectually, it is not enough &c look
merely at the difference of culture, which
may exist between them at given time.
Regard must be had to the constitutional
character of the mind itself, the quality
If the intellectual evil, if we may aso the
expression, to which the culture is APP
piled 4 comparatively uneducated man
may surpass in capacity and fitness an
other, who in point of actual education
leaves him far behind, and just 90 it is
possible that ons people may be thrown
into the shade for the time by another
more conservative, though capable all the
while, in truth, of better order of Gull
tivation, and carrying in itself thus both
the possibility and the promise of "a better
! intellectual future. In this view, we
think it not absurd to magnify the mind
of Vermont, although it is fashionable in
certain quarters, we know, to tEeat It
with encouragement and contempt. We
believe Vermont has no reason to shrink
/ from a comparison with any other seotion
of our country. She may fall behind
some other parts OF New England in the
machinery of education. but stands their
peer in general knowlcdse among the
people.
That growth is not ordinarily the beat
which is most rapid and easy, and which
serves to bring into view With greatest
readiness all it has power TO reveal. 1t is
| by slow processes, rather, that what Is
uost deep and solid, whether in the world
of nature or ia the world of mind, is
i ripened and unfolded into its proper per-
fection. There is room for encouragement
in this thought, when we look at the de-
fioiencies and short comings of our State,
with regard to education. 1t was far
better, we may believe, that the peculiar
constituents of our life, the elements from
which it Was to be formed, in the end, the
common character of the State, should
not be- forced into premature activity, but
be left to work like hidden powers Of IA
ture for time, without noise or show, in
the way Of client and necessary prepara-
ton for their ultimate destiny and use.
All that is wanted nov to make them a
source of intellectual and moral power is
that they should be subjected to educa-
tional processes, answerable in their own
nature, and wrought into such form of
gener Il culture as they may be found to
require, and may we not say that the
hour of Providence is approaching for the
accomplishing of this work ? With the
prosperity Vermont j. now enjoying in
outward wealth, Is it too muck T. cherish
the pleasing belief that she is preparing
also force for the corresponding develop
ment of the rich energies that have thus
far slumbered to a great extent IN her
educational life aud that intellectually
as we'll as materially, her course in the
future is destined to be like the rising
SUI unto more Joyous day for the pub
! lie schools of our State
! It must be apparent to the careful OBJ.
server that in Vermont there has been an
indifference in may quarters to our sys-
tenn of public education. The spirit and
conduct of the legisl alive bodies aud con-
stituted authorities outside of the Board
of education, in regard to the progress
and elevation of our public schools, has
been one of apparent apathy.
linus III Is that our coiiegSS nave been
left to build themselves up as best they
could, without any endowment as was
needed to make them properly strong and
independent over against the Indifferent
views of education with which they have
been surrounded. They have been doomed
in consequence to a siokiy existence, the
unfavorable influence of which has ex-
tended itself TO the universal cause of edu-
cation in our State; for common schools
will rarely eyer flourish where no suitable
provision is made for education in its
higher character.
But amid this perhaps too disoouraglIg |
view of our popular education, there are
signs that a new interest is beginning to
make itself felt on all sides in favor Of our
public schools. Much. of course, very
muoh still remains to be done in this re-