Wilmington journal., 1873-07-04
~01sE PRACTICAL SU(.t:ESTIONS
TO ygKs:HNsANS ON THE SGIB-
JEG'T or LITIGATION.

Our esteemed cotcmporary the Nor
ok II,.JiI9i0n, las made some prs:c-
tictI suggeations to North CarOlinians
on the subject of Education" which
We appreciate very highly, so highly,
indeed, that we think they are we'll
worthy Of the consideration of other
people than North Caroliuians.
Thanking uur cntemporary, there
fore, for the interest that prompted it
to make such excellent Sugge tions to
ua, we beg t. call the attention OF the
people Of Virginia to 4 few fact, IN the
hope of demonstrating tothcm the i'm
lortance of acting, and of acting at
once, upon the suggestions of the Iir-
ginian.
According to the last census, III the
State of Virginia, with population of
l,225, lG} people there were 70,7Sl per
SONS in attendance on schools, or one
III seventeen. In North Carolina, with
a population of 1,071 ,361 there were in
attendance at schools 6J, ,3O1 or one in
sixteen.
In Virginia there are 800, ,913 people
ten years old and upwards, who can
not read, and AS, 1893 who cannot
write, and in North Carolina there are
'i;;;9, 7S9 people who cannot read and
397, 800 who cannot write, showing
that the two States stand side by side
e V,>
GINA one person in every 2.7 and
IN North Carolina one i'll every 26 can
not write i'll Virginia one person in
every 3. 13 and i'll North Carolina one
in every 3.15 cannot read. Virginia
beats North Carolina i'll writing and
North Carolina beats Virginia in read
ing and school attendance, without
there being anything for either to
boast of in the premises.
If, therefore, the suggestions OF the
IUgj,ian are of practical "alue for
North Carolinians, and we frankly adj
NIT they are, we think they are equally
valuable for Virginians and 50 think
ing we should be wanting i'll neighbor-
Iy feeling, did we fail to reciprocate the
generous interest our Virginia cotcm-
pOrary has manifested in North Caro-
lima affairs.
We are satisfied, from personal ex-
pericnce in North Carolina, that the
Firgi,Htnl is correct i'll saying parents
and guardians but too frequently feel
it necessary to retain the personal ser
vices of their children as wards,' and
the statistics we have just presented
incline lis to think like state of things
sure that this is one of the special diff
culties that the friends of education
will have to contend with in Virginia
even after their financial embarras-
ments shall have been removed.
1t is to destroy this "parental apa-
thy that the Ti1yinian makes its slg
gestions which are substantially that
the clergy of North Carolina of every
be enlisted in the cause
Of education; that each resident minis
ter in the State be pledged to preach
once i'll each quarter carefully pre-
pared sermon or lecture or address on
the subject; that the newspapers be i'll
vited to cooperate and publish short
articles from the leading teachers of
the State ''filled with facts rather than
with speculations.
We commend these suggestions
{ earnestly to Virginians, and sincerely
+ rust they will read, mark, learn, and
i nwardly digest them; for all datinagc
4 side, there is as much sound sense
4 nd practical wisdom in them, as there
/ 3need for them in Virginia We
a re free to admit, in North Carolina
a 30.