The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1875-11-29
Ght Daily Arens.
Continued from second page.
no BIBLE IN THE SCHOOLS.

Thirdly, they should be 50 constituted
that men of all creeds should send their
children without any fear of propagandism.
They must not be called religious in the
Just sense of that word. After the manner
and speech of men the common school
must not be regarded as a religious
institution. Ii is secular; it must be kept
secular aud defended against anything that
will uIake it other thal secular. Only on
that ground can you have national schools
1t is not just and fair that should be
taxed Tor the education OF my boy when L
canuot send him tn the common sch5Ul
tor fear his conscience will be perverted
and where he will be taught the things
that | abh0r. 1t is not fair to compel the
children of Jew-a citizen like me. a
AK payer like me, free American citizen
like met is not right that he should be
compelled to pay muney so that his child
may hear the New Testament read day by
day, which he dose n't believe in Applause.
Ii is not right that our substantial Catholic
fellow citizens cho1ld be compelled to send
their children to schools where the Bible is
read. when they do not believe that the
Protestant version is the faithful version OF
God 's-will Applause. it is not right
hat they should read their Douai Bible in
tie common schools and compel US to hear
them, Fair play! Fair rlay! And 1t is
Mt fair play that the majority should
dictate to the minority. A little while ago
the enuncation OF this doctrine would not
have drawn the appreciation of your feet,
Laughter Those journals that at first
were disposed to vindlcate the old order of
| things, BY larger reflection, by the light of
better second thought, have come, or are
rapidly coming. to the ground that our
common schnols must be secular and not
religious institutions, and that only on that
ground can the state support them. they
are secular the state has Il right to support
| them, because in doing So il is preventing
us own decline and overthrow, Does this
make ii dly school? La on sense it does
| Special functions being developed, specia'
rgans must perform. In the education
| Il the community there is another work To
oe done: there is school work We do not
axe the ground that a child can be educat-
1t With III religious culture. You must put
he child through different institutions.
fhe cummon school does not undertake ~
ducate the whole man. 1t educates him
- far as is Necessary to make him good
citizen, and says to the father and t. the
priest,"Y must do the rest" When
therefore you say the common school is
godless, L say it is goddess in precisely the
the same way that hatter's shop Is god
less, the same that u tailurs shop is god
less. Suppose should have shop toI
manufacturing chairs, and man shout,
C me and say, DO you manufacture
b bles?" No Then you have god
les shop" The spirit Of the common
schools is not to circulate religious culture
and the school is not gouless on tina
account The common school system uoe
nut take away from young citizens tn
religious elements. 1t. merely says tina
that must be performed elsewhere. 1t be
t longs to the parent and to the priest
Commonechools do by religion just wha
they do by trade. bv the farm, by the sho
by the ministry. So far as the chur-he
are concerned, if they choose to hay
parochial schools, there is no law agains
it; but as matter OF pulley, | think
would be bad. Inc tendency is to max
the church Il KIND ut Noah 5 ark. Ii cal
not uuderfakc the management If AN thus
interests that are developed 10y lis vitali,
Ii there be anything III which Ged's prov
dence Is clear ii Is this, that the church [
IJd Is to be simply power, a stimua
my influence. The growtns are to tax
place from their own root. The cultivate
Is to come as well from different institl
iInn