Knoxville Whig and chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1875-1882, 1875-11-10
Ebenezer Literary society.

This institution has been the center
of attraction in our community for the
past few weeks, and is awakening an
unusual interest among the l!terai of
the vicinity. The questions have been
practical, of vital and personal impor-
lance, and those which are being agi-
tated as national issues and command
ing the attention of our ablest states
men. The discussions are of the high
est order, and elicit the favorable
comment of all present.
Although all the debates have been
of a lively nature, the last meeting,
Oct. 10th, stands out unique and un-
precedented for interest, attention, un-
yielding disputants, and general
manifestation of the deepest feeling
among the citizens. The following
question was discussed:
Resolved, "That the laws of the
State should make education compul>
sory.u 1t would be impossible to give
even an outline of the speeches that
were made pro and con. We blush to
state that men who claim to be friends
to education, whose standing in socie-
ty Is irreproachable, those who claim
! inordinate devotion for intelligence,
whose feelings have been Unlisted in
the cause of education for more than a
quarter of century, will now, in this
day of progress and literature, with
| the experience of one-third of the
States that compose this grand repub-
| lie, and the example of the most pow
erful Governments of the old world,
who have so recently began to throw
| off the yoke of despotism, and rise To
| that state of civilization and intelli-
gence which can only be attained by ed
/ ucating the masses, and lifting from
| the pool of vice and ignorance the
brightest jewels who may some day
| rise to he sovereign of the ascendant
and beuefactors to the human race
We say il is mortifyiEg to know that
men, endowed with that attri
butte which distinguishes them
from the brute creation
and right in the face of these glorious
results that have passed into history
TO calmly, ispassioDatefy and senti
mentally raise their voices in favor o
that nefarious cornerstone of tyranny
and oppression which all history proved
to be the AaRry groundwork of despot
ic governments and the incubus tina
presses tyrant's heel upon the com
mon people.
Notwithstanding the affirmative
was ably defended by the best talent o
the country, and efforts thet wer
pointed, logical, eloquent, impressive
vehement and unanswerable wer
made in favor of compulsory educa
ton, the house decided in favor of tn
negative, and Ebenezer proclaimed
herself against the mother of Liberty
which is intelligence. When she take
her stand nobly and fearlessly upol
the side of education, when she buI
p ries antiquity and forgets the custom
, of centuries that have passed, then
aud not until then will this commuit
get rid of shooting matches, brin
Sunday loafers into the Sunday~schoC
and instead of our young men and th
rising generation proving curse I
our country and blight upon society
3 every Christian will be made to rejoic
as he looks upon the coming hosts c
: morality, and finally in death a salts
factory cOnscientiousness VIII perVad
: his dying moments as he sees hi
l neighbors Illuminated by the rays
{ intelligence and on their way
Heaven and 10 God.
: FREE THINKER.
: Ebenezer, Tenn, Oct. 10, 1915.