Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1873-10-30
VA.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 80, 1878.
The Conservative Party and the Pub
lie schools.

lie schools.
The utter fslsity of the assertion, so often
made by the Radicals, that they are, in special
manner, the friends of public education, was
so couclusvely shown by Major Daniel, of
Lyucbburg, in his recent speech here, that 1t
may be thought supererogatory for US to say
anything more upon the subject but as large
proportion of our readers had not the pleasure
of hearing him, it may not be amiss to give
some facts, showing how much credit is due
to the Conservative party 10 this connexlon.
According to the last report of the Superln'
tendent of Public Instruction, we have in Vlr'
GINA 1906 public schools, employing 1888
teachers, and giving instruction to 1851
children, at an expense of 1898, 1889 year.
The average number of months schools we're
taught last year was s. - and 40.5 per ct. OF all
persons, white and colored, between the ages
of five and twenty-one, attended public schools,
and this while there were GAS private primary
schools, 1877 high schools, aud 81 colleges and
technical schools, attended by 20,497 children
and youth Now. as almost all those attending
public, and large majority Of those in private
schools are over seven and under sixteen, 1t
follows that about SS per cent of all persons,
white and colored, between those ages, we're
under instruction in 1872, and 10 this city, as
was concusively shown in the report of the
Superintendent of Schools, at least S. per ct.
of those between six and sixteen were being
educated.
This, it seems to US, must be regarded by
every reasonable man, as very satisfactory
state of affairs, and that the credit of it is due
to the Conservative party is equally plain. BY
the Constitution the full operation CT the school
system is fixed for 1876, yet four years before
that time eighty-th per ct. of all those who
ought to be at school, if nine years instruc
ton is to be given to every child in the Com
monwealth, were receiving that instruction. 1t
is true that the Constitution required a tax OF
one mill from the beginning, but it did not re-
quire the local taxation which has built up the
system. 1t required that from three to four
thousand dollars, which would educate per-
haps three hundred children, should be ex-
pended in the city of Alexandria, but it did not
ordain that the city should raise seven thous-
and more and educate thousand. 1t gave the
county Of Alexandria eight hundred dollars,
which would keep open her schools three or
four months, but it did not give her people the
right to tax the property one half of one per Ct
and keep them open eleven months. That is
the work of the Conservative majority which
has governed Virginia for the last four years |
Bnt it may be said that had the Radicals |
been in power equal or greater progress would
have been made We can best judge of that
by the results which have followed their &C
cession to power elsewhere, and, luckily for
our purpose, we have at hand witness who |
cannot be suspected Of prejudice. Rev. DR..
Sears, the General Agent of the Peabody Ed
ucation Fund, is man whose whole attention |
is devoted to the oversight of the schools in
the Southern States; he takes no part, as far as
We know, in politics, but is generally under
stood to be Republican. From report made
by him to the trustees of the fund (among
whom were President Grant and Mr.. Hamil- |
ton Fish, Secretary of State) 10 session at New
York, in July last he shows conclusively that
in no other State are the schools 10 SO good |
condition as 10 Virginia, and. indeed, that 10
most of them the educational condition was by
no means what it should have been. 10 North |
Carolina the condition both of the public
schools and of education generally was ''far
from being satisfactory"
Of South Carolina, he says Few schools
are supported through the year, consequently,
we have not had opportunity for many appro-
priatious. Application was made for Charles
ton as follows: The Legislature, at its last
session, appropriated over $4,000 for educa-
tioual purposes. Not one dollar of this amount
has been received from the Treasury, and the
result has been that nearly all the public schools
10 the State have been closed.
As to Georgia, he quotes from a report OF
the State Superintendent to the Legislature,
as follows: There we're DO public schools 10
operation, under the general school laws of the
State, in 1872. The unlawful diversion of the
school fund to other than school purposes, and
the grave error in administration by which, in
the absence of resources, debt of near three
hundred thousand dollars was run up against
the State, by prcmaturely putting schools into
operation, were fully set forth in my last re-
polt."
Of Florida, he also lets the State Superin-
tendent speak, aud he says that many circum-
stances have existed unfavorable to the pro-
gress of education, naming among those causes
the imperfect collection of revenue and "the
inadcquacy of Legislative appropriations.
He quotes from the report of the State Super
interdent of Alabama, as follows II am in-
formed that large amounts of warrants remain
in the hands of the County Superintendent,
UNPAID" aud, again: ''The affairs Of this de-
partment cannot be satisfactorily administered
IL A |