Wilmington daily commercial., 1875-10-05
FIRST EDITION.
the HibIe in the chicago scnooIs.
PROCEEDINGS TO ABOLISH ITs READING FEELING
or THE LEADING RELIGIOUS PEorLE-wIAT
THEY BAY ABOUT 1T.

OF THE LEADING RELIGIOUS PEorIE-wHAT
| THEY Say ABOUT 1T.
| Correspondence gf the Neiu York Times.
| CmoAdo, Friday, Oct. /. 1875.
| Tho Board Of Education of Chicago took up a
subject at its meeting last night that required
the utmost niccty of handling. | refer to the
| question OF excluding the Bible from the public
schools. The question thas been periodically
| agitated for two or three years, without result
| ing in any definite action, but il had become a
| matter of pubic comment and bitter criticism,
| and had, indeed, become an important issue in
| the selection of officials. The Bible question
| here was much like the Bible question elsewhere
Catholics, Jews, and non-sectarans advocated
its abolishment, both Oh the ground of its being
no-eisentlal to the spiritual welfare OF the peo-
| pie, and that 1t taught doctrines not in keeping
with the belief of the several classes.
The change was accomplished by a
| change of ono of the rules,n committee of the
whole. This rnlo made it imperitive to begin
| tho morning service with appropriate singing,
| reading of the Scriptures and the Gord's Prayer.
The new rule provides for tho appropriate sing
| ing" only, and leaves the Bible and the Lords
| Prayer ont entirely. When tho subject was ap-
| preached Prof. Welch. n member of the board,
and gentleman who, although bred under Pu-
ritiuica influences, has grown broad i'll his views
and radically liberal III his religion, moved tho
adoption of the amendment Tho surprise of
having been seconded, tue vote WAS taken and
but one inspector voted against it. Not word
was said for or against it. They evidently pro-
ferred 10 settle the matter without an airing Of
sentiments, and challenge criticism Of their ac-
ton upon tho mute yet expressive registration
OF the vote. or course tho action of the board
has caused great deal OF comment throughout
the city, and il yariousy viewed by representa-
tive clergymen and laymen. 1t seems TO be a
matter of surprise to many that an alteration OF
Is.ap nI.4 "A. altlsu
radical IN its tendency should have been accom-
plished no unanimously, aud with an utter ab-
sence of debate. Many religious leaders are
disposed to make fight upon this issue. On
the other hand, there arc many who are firmly
convinced that the holy book has no
proper place in the public schools. Robert Coll
yer believes the action of the board to have been
just. lie thinks the reading Of the Bible in the
public school is not wholesome, but hurtful to
tue children, because it is done IN such way,
u rule, IN TO rob their natures of any growing
reverence for it that may be gathering in the
home or the church. He believes it the bost
plan for tho safety of the common-school sys-
tenn to make these concessions to the Catholics
on ono hand, and to the freethinkers oil the
otller that " we may occupy tho strongest pos
sible ground il there is TO be fight"
Prof. David Swing believes that the reading
OF tho Bible in public schools is contrary to the
spirit OF the Constitution, which assumes that
no religious test shall be submitted to the pa
rents and therefore not to the children. 1t deals
with mon, he says as men, and not as Christians
or Jews. Tho Government has no more right to
teach the Bible than to teach the Koran. Even
If the genius of the country permitted the teach
ing OF the Bible in tho schools, he would doubt
the propriety OF continuing the custom, because
no valuable moral results ever come from read
ing few verses hurIiedly in the school house.
Tho removal of the Bible from the public schools,
he thinks, may make the churches assume the
moral education Of the children, aud may stim-
ulate them to greater activity in field which
they have too much neglected.
The Methodist Presiding Elder of this confer
ence regards this action rs political concession
and a dangerous one. lie believes it to have
been done upon the " demand of the Catholic
and what he calls the German infilel interest
DIR. ". W. Evarts, Baptist, feels che greatest
apprehension of the consequence of the action
OF the board. lie regards 1t ~ a direct move
toward irregious education. DIR. Kohler, a
loading Jewish Rabbi, thinks this action will
greatly strengthen the cosmopolitan views of
the people, aud tend to greater liberality and
Christian feeling. Rev, o. II. Tiffany, formerly
of Washington, but now of Chicago. ls another
who does not believe in religious indoctrination
in the public schools but he regrets the action
of the board. | have hastily skeched an out
limo of the sentiments of some of tho leading
clergy OF Chicago on the subject, which show
them to be pretty evenly divided upon the in'
pOrtant matter.