Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1872-11-28
Compulsory Education.

Compulsory Education.
From an excellent Report in the
1rgus Of Henry Ward Beechers' re-
cent Lecture in Portland on ''Compul-
sorry Education," we extract the fol-
lowing:
Education should include political
| principles, morality, social duty. 1t
should be made compulsory. Every
State should provide for the education
of its whole people. Such provisions
had been made, such principles settled ;
but as farmers sometimes plow up the
old sod and SOW again. so it befts Us
to deal with moral growths, and it is
| time now to discuss this great matter
| once more.
All old ideas and matters OF thcolo.
gv should bc ripped up once in fifteen
years and bc discussed. so that our
children snail know what we were
learning when We were Young. The
influence Of foreign elements in our
population demands 4 lively interest
IN the whole matter. The State has a
right To make it, own existence secure
and security to the State comes only
from the education OF the whole ppo-
pie, which thus becomes self-defencc.
Dogmatic religion is not necessary to
Che existence of the State intelligence
is. School houses should be multi
piled till they are ample for the ac-
enUumrdei ImJHs shu aRd the ..teecher
( the land. No one stands so near the
father and mother, in influence upon
the future of the country, as the school
teacher-not professors in colleges,
but the educators of the masses.
That nation is best governed that
knows how TO govern itself. Nations
have all along tried to find out how to
tax people. There IS 30 way ~
easy rs by devrIopin. the intelligence
Of the whole people. intelligence.
too, makes a man as much better sol-
der rs ANYTHING else. 1t also increases
in a remarkable degree the wealth.
producing powers of the State. lie
...tl ,n..i.Tf.1 ,.y,tn,lin,.,,t
in general, fol the frugality and the
economical management OF their
homes. Oar schools do not teach
enough. They should include the dis
tiuction between good am evil incul-
cate truth. honesty, temperance, self
control, fidelity, economy and patrio-
| tsm. 1t was not imperative that the
use of the Bible be insisted upon, for
really it was not the most felicitous
school book but more truth should be
taught Every man could improve in
I the use Of truth. ..Do YOU always tell
the truth" said the speaker, looking
| at tue audience, every day and all
| the time The merchant. tie law
| yer. not even the minister. ALWAYS ellis
| tile truth. Nor are we all honest. We
| grasp for more than we deserve. and
| find ourselves chchtcd Ia the quality.
/ Society i, perfectly honeycombcd with
/ dishonesty. Those That don't manu-
/ ftcturc arc Il, bad rs those that do
! When You 20 inio Il shop, the spirit OF
the devil takes possession Of you.
Not that YOU intend to steal, but you
want to get a thing that is worth a
dollar for a good deal less. He that
wants more than is equitable is dis.
honest.
One Of the curses of society is that
it has to support such swarm OF
drones,- -men who are unwilling and
incapable of doing anything. Young
men flock to our large cities who car
do nothing but drive quill. In the
busiest season there is not enough fol
them all to do. and in dull times thou
sands are ont of employment. ant
hold up their hands and cry for work
But what can they do? Nothing, lbso
lutely nothing and then they beg 70
soft positions under government, ant
in fat offices. They are too lazy ano
incompetent to labor at anything hard
Young men should be educated $,
that if one thing fails they can turn thei
hands to another. But too many mel
don't want to work with their hands
but want to get their living by thei
brains. The poorest man in the worl,
is the man educated intellectually, ant
not able to work out the thought. 0
his brain with his hands. 1t is a si
for a man to bring up mis- boys in thl
way; they should be Tau ght to tax
care of their mouths and backs wit
their own hands. 1t is shame t
teach our children all about the Jol
dan. and the Black Sea, and the Indies
and nothing about their own State G
Maine. or the United States, or tn
! workings of the Federal government