The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1875-04-22
10 the Yoters of GiIes County:

I
refused to levy a tax for public school
purposes, and, in accordance with the
law, it has submitted the proposition to
the people, to be voted upon on the
first Saturday in May next, to levy a
tax of one dollar on each poll, and one
mill on the dollars worth of taxable
property for school purposes.
1t Is made my duty, as Superintend-
ent of Public Schools, to use all proper |
means to advance the cause of educa- /
ton in the county.
1t will be, 1 presume, admitted by all |
intelligent persons that education is |
necessary to the well being of society as |
well as the prosperity of the people. L |
will proceed to notice some of the OBJ |
jectjOns of those who oppose a system |
Of public schools upon the grounds that
it is not right that A should be taxed to !
educate BIS children. To view this sub |
ject from a private stand point, we
would naturally reach the conclusion
that it is wrong, radically; so, that A,
who rises early and works late, who has
accumulated property by hard and con-
slant toll, should take part of his hard
earnings to pay for the schooling Of
BIS children, who has spent his time in
idleness, or who. if he has used indus
try, has squandered what he has made
by extravagant living. This does not
seem right, and if there were not but
one side to this question, l, too, would
be driven to the conclusion that it is
wrong. But it is said there are two
sides to every question. So it is with
this subject. 1t is a well fixed fact that
all good governments have for their
foundation the intelligence of the peo-
pie. This is the case, even, with the
nations that have crowned heads, and
no republic can stand long without an
intelligent population. The crowned
heads of Europe as well as the large
property owners understand the impOr-
lance of this subject, and as a result of
their convictions upon this subject,
nearly all of them have a system of
public schools, supported by taxation.
They realize the fact that, with an in
telligent population, their governments
are more stable, and consequently that
theyhaVe better protection TO their prop
erty. History shows that in all ages that
those nations which have had an ignOr-
ant population, had unstable govern
ments, almost constantly engaged either
| in foreign or intestine war. The Roman
government had many educated men,
| some of whom were brilliant lights,
while the masses were generally ignOr-
ant; so it became necessary, in order to
prevent civil wars, TO be engaged al
/
she could not always be thus engaged,
and her aspiring men, pandering to
the Ignorance and prejudice of the peo-
pie, finally brought destruction to a
once great nation. 1t would have been
economy with that nation to have
spent the money which she used in
carrying on her wars in educating the
masses, TO have taught the people that
to live in peace was their true interest.
DIT .NsnNw
thought, as a great many of our county
now think, that it is unjust to pay any
thing for the education of other peoples
children.
We have stated before, that no repub-
Tic can stand long without an intelligent
population.
In republican form of government
the power is inherent in the people, it
originates with them and how can they
use this power Alright while in a COM
parative state of Ignorance? There is
no class Of persons more deeply inter
eSted, or should feel so, than the prop
erty holder. Property without ade-
quate protection is very poor posses
sion. Viewing this subject from pub
lie stand point, it is becoming alarming
to see how many children, even white
children, are growing up in a state of
ignorance. Our self interest demands
that this increasing tendency should be
checked.
1t has been said by distinguished
man, "That if in our haste to become
rich and mighty, we Outrun our re-
ligious and literary institutions, that
they will never overtake US; or only
come up after the battle of liberty is
fought and lost, as sPoils to grace the
victory, and as resources of memorable
despOtism for the peFpetuity of our
bondage"
Let us stop, and begin to study this
subject in its true light, laying aside
all prejudice. 1t is too much the case
| with US as Tennesseans that we rush
after that which is in sight, that we do
not look far enough into the future, so
as to avoid the breakers ahead. We, as
general rule, feel that we are toiling
for the benefit of our children. This is
right. The question arises, how can we
contribute most for the good of them /?
We hold that it is as much our duty to
labor to hand down to them a good
government as it is to give them prop
erty. If we cannot give them both, it
is better for them that they should have
a good, mild, protective gOvernm ent,
with but little property, than to have
much property and bad government.
But some one may say that the more in
|
History, 1 think, proves that it is often
more difficult to lead them in the right
way than in the wrong road /; and here
lies the danger.
The state of Tennessee is behind near
ly all the other States in the standard of
education. Even the Northwestern
States, the most of which were organ
lied long after that of Tennessee, have
outstripped her in the cause of educa-
ton. They have their systems of pub
lie schools in operation, and they are
much more effective than that of Ten
nessee. Even Colorado, which has
| sprung up like a mushroom, has her
public school system. BY educating
the masses we make the country more
! prosperous, and in proportion as a
/ country prOspers as a whole, to the
same extent the people prosper indi-
vidually. Educate boy and it makes
him respect himself, which causes him
to try to make something of himself.
becoming an ornament to society and
useful to his country.
Take the State of Massachusetts, for
instance, State which in some respects
we do not like, and we find that we are
| tributary to it. Much of our machine
ry, cutlery, and many other manufac-
| tured articles come from that State, a
State compared with that of ours in
respect of soil, is poor. Yet as small as
it is it possesses much more wealth than
Tennessee. Why is this? The answer
is that it has an effective public school
system. Education is general. 1t has
its educated mechanics, and hence the
source of its wealth. 1t takes brains to
direct the hand Alright. Let us have an
educated people, and then we may ex-
pect prosperity to follow. The time has
been when the farmer could get along
very well with but little knowledge,
his lands being fresh, yielding album
dainty with but little system but things
have very much changed. His lands
are, in general, very much worn, and
now it requires more knowledge and
system in farming. But say that they
would be willing to pay a school-tax if
1t were not for the negro. have made
an estimate which, think is approx
imately correct, of the amount we pay
for him. This estimate is based upon
the suppOSitiOn that the county will lew
the amount submitted by the County
Court. After giving him what he navs
himself, we pay for him about tWenty-
one cents on the thousand dollars worth
OF taxable DrODertV This IL n srooII