The New York herald., 1876-11-12
AN INTERESTING LECTURE.


RACE EDUCATION OR HEREDITARY cULTuRE-A
LEcrUKE By PROFESSOR s. ROYCE
A small but refined audience gathered at chckcring
Hall last night 10 listen 10 lecture from Professor
s. Royce s.Rsce Education or Hereditary Culture
The lecturer commenced with the declaration that edu
cation was vast subject. which, embracing the
world Of mankind, was to form the interest OF the
hour Polished phrase and dreamy philosophy would
not feed the hungry, pay private public debt,
keep our goods In the great markets OF the
world. Writers and thinkers, according to their
Investigations based their systems OF education upon
religious and philosophical principles. as godlikeness
duty, humanity. usefulness happsess and SO on. And
yet the fact that children we're not educated
at all; they simply taught the three rules Many
were taught to get along in the world matter how
the world might get along, and . small minority were
educated in schools devoted to the promotion Of learn
,nS Su. regardless Of ,ns aavancsmen. Of
tions cared more for the propagation
OF their peculiar than for anything else Only
the education OF the fewesI children founded upon
the study OF the human faculties aimed their i'm
provement, and tho education OF took in the
" o. ,s ana me pl'nope ne
condition oil our people, and he maintained that tho
general tendencies OF mankind were TO deterioration,
and that they must be couneraced by race education
which aimed as amslioraton. Statistics he
claimed, put II beyond all possibility OF doubt that
deterioration OF the physical mental and moral
OF mankind, rooted in the nature OF man, and In the
structure OF society, was undermining the race.
Many Utopan theories had been advanced, yet
nothing but race, amelioratng education could stop
humanity In its downward career. Even II dis
trusted the complex theory of statistics, could not
the decay of empreR Egypt Assyria. Greece,
Carthage, Romc. the Byzantine Empiro and
the saracens, were all illustrations Of the de-
tcrioratng tendencies inherent In society. Only
an education that wisely directed its efforts 10 counter
act ina, de'erorang tendency could delay the doash
In Short, different forms OF government, had dif-
ferent vicious tendencies and had the different pur-
SUITS such as agriculture, manufacturing and com.
merce, or she different stages OF civilization. And
under each Of these varying conditions totally differ
serac. daorers or ' even opposite pos y tendon.
ces OF degeneracy. As the masses, whose
improvement happiness are the aim OF society de-
Perforated through their unavoraole social position
education must directly aim to counteract it Pauper
ism, with all the misery and barbarity inseparable
from itdrunkcnncss, crime, insanity, growing NOR
bidy, leading through herodity to race deterioration
and fearful mortality among young and old such
were the tendencies which surrounded US all SIDES
and must be combated by practical and efficient edu
cation. He claimed that our mental powers had
cumulative or hereditary effect oil thousand genera
tions, and must therefore, be capable of hereditary
Improvement in the future, as they had been In the
past Education TO be hereditary in Its effects DO
something moro different from storing the memory.
Education, he claimed was the constitutional improve
ment OF the whole man. Man aud not scholarship
was the aim of education. He needed train
Ing, which must be gradual, habitual and spon-
tancous II must take place IN the formation period
OF earliest infancy, In order improve the very
ganizaton, SO that might work rightly and automat-
cally through lite. Education must be functional and
effect the organization OF man II II TO be neredi-
tary Education, when hereditary In its effects,
sttuted artruiy national education An education
which effected tho constitution OF through
political training In the formation Of in
fancy, formed mans character. and II tho
training was of the right sort 1t
made him good man, and like training OF the
whole people formed noble national character. This
training he claimed meant practical training OF the
eye the the hand, the intelecy the will in the
formative period OF early infancy. That produced
eral training rendered nation industrious,
inventive and prosperous He would have
all children reared to knowledge OF
useful employment even In connection with all
the socallcd higher studies, and by dong he felt
that not only the nation but the individual would
be improved Race education, he said, put .
emphasis Brougham's celebrated word, and en-
dow ed II with she form Of an almost frcsh nspratJon
and So comforted and comforting, we call 10 the
suffering masses, "Despair not tho schoolmaster
Is abroad,n he 10 intelligent, Is in daily
tact with your poor children; bis laRors
and inspirations are for you; your welfare
s his success, his worldly prospects most modest
Your prosperity 10 all he works for and t Is the high
est reward Of his most ardent labors Trust hum no
will yet conquer tor you the Sphinx, answer her
queries and solve tho problem that presses upon you
hard to-day. Trust your teacher and the bent you
have. Your children, send them TO him, and he will
prepare them for better times than their have
ever seen.
when the applause which the lecturer received on
the conclusion Of his discourse had ceased he
stated that the timo for the lecture would be
announced in the journals OF tho day