The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-10-31
OVER.TEACHING.
THE APPEAL TO BOYS AMBITIoN-sTCDY AT
HOME-EMINENCE.
To the Editor Of the Tribune:

Sr-It is painful to be misunderstood, to be
made to feel that you do not make yourself intel.
ligible it is deviation to suffer in good COM
pany. One can only conclude that people do not
read newspaper articles, they only skim them,
and get either cream. or froth, as it may be. The
good company of correspondents in the Tribune,
with keen irony, give censure to an article on
Studying at Home" and then remark to the
writer that the article in question had no refer
ence to pupils studying out OF school, which was
the point against which he argued.
They had answered the heading wrote
meek little letter on Overteaching," mads up
chiefly of quotation from the pen of another
person. Because she speaks OF employing . q
girl to take care of baby" am told l can't be
nuch Of q mother because did not cay the baby:
Again, l have argued against overteachlng, and
| am charged with Undertaking. education. So if
l SHOULD write against over eating, doubtless
| there would be cry that wanted to starve ev-
| erybody. 1t would be as wise. Again, another
says 'endeavor to show that girls while at
| school should be taught cookery with their other
| Duties" In this one ID reminded OF the country
nearer who told his parson he thought hes could
"draw an inference " with good strong pair OF
| hore es
| Again, the "School Girl of the Nineteenth
Century, writes uncommonly like one Of the
older Ones and makes some very decided state
ments. As this: Common schools are our bull
wsrk against the Catholicism which, finding its
power waning in Germany and Italy, seeks new
| asylum in thus country" Are they? Again, boys
G. the boy goes forward to fulfill the aspirations
which have b. en- encouraged in him to tread the
| path to eminence and culture"
Now here is one point touched, which, with a
| lit more time and strength, 1 should have
taken up in speaking of " overteaching" in the
case Of boys. Why need every boy in the coun-
try tread the path to eminen, ?" For natural
| consequence is that, as political power 10 most
| easily gained, in that way the eminence Is
sous hit. Ambition is as old as the world, perhaps
older and is the last trait that needs cultivating.
| And yet hear the addresses made all the way up
from orphan asyums and newsboys meetings to
public high schools.
The boys are told 70 how how many times we
have heard it). "Wno knows but one of you may
be President of the United States?" In one
ylum two little boys were 80 penetrated with
| this noble ambition that they ran away, in order
to get on faster
over-teaching is that such multitudes OF boys
learn just enough to dread or fear good, honest
| worK, and think working with their hands be-
meath them.
This is why there are such swarms Of clerks
and book-keepers, always bouncing in scores
upon a vacancy for one, and living or starving in
anxious expectation, and barely living even in a
situation. 1t is, rs q rule, the most hopeless,
dreary life, the most monotonous and wearing.
But we shall all state our own opinions and prob
ably all hold to them. And it seems one must be
wiser than the Tribune, not to be misappre-
hended "Cau,ion" will therefore take the liberty
to state, since so many people In one page OF the
paper have expressed their intent, that she does
not undervalue educa lion, has been well taught,
speaks several language, can read, write and CT
pher, wash and starch and iron, make butter and
bread, take care OF children, sew aud knit, play
| on two or three musical instruments. and darn
stockings and teach school. This is only men
toned to show that she may possibly have some
| make brief" Confession of Faith"
The public school system is growth. 1t be-
gan when the meeting-house and the school
house were set side by side, when we had Church
and state and every man was taxed to support
| the Church and school ard State. When each
was taxed for the school, Church and State were
| severed. School and State grew; and yet is
there not an inherent injustice ia taxing one
man to educate another mans child 1T is
done in Germany" Yes, but this is not a
paternal government. There and in England,
hundreds, if not thousands, are brought up to
be dependent on, to be provided for, BY the
| Government. And should we like it For 1t
makes tie most helpless people living. Again,
keep it as it is: In q monarchy, government
might do so if it could, but where the majority
will not have the Bible read, and the majority
choose to interdict certain schoobooks they will
| do as they please.
We may have compulsory education to teach
children the merest rudiments, rs measure OF
public safety. but beyond that comes in our vol
untary system. No one has advocated giving up
schools or eQucatlOn. lno people VIII profloe
them if they want them. The people provide
them now, aud those who were able would pay
for the teaching of their children as they do for
the other luxurles or necessaries OF life. would
not have children kept in school year after year,
to the exclusion Of everything else; but would
have them learn something of other work in
| life at home and if there is no other way
for girls to learn lewing, would have that taught
them in school. When you talk of eminence, it
is not being borne along con fowery beds Of
ease that makes men eminent; II man has it
| in him he will succeed ask Elihu Burritt, ask
other men who have fought their way. And yet
eminence is for one, mediecrity for the million:
Most of ne must be content with quiet lives, good
hard work and plenty of it, and the healthfru dis
cipllne of being denied most of the things we
have set our hearts upon. Which Is wandering
too far from the point ever to get back.
| CAUTION.
| New York, Oct. Is, 1875.
| An editors hair shot right up on its ends
the other night when large cockroach arose
to the rim Of the paste-dot and hoarsely in
quired: "Have you got anything more about
| r1axy Ca,yx;er-. Io7fYrznI