Carson daily appeal. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1873-1877, 1876-02-23
THE REPEAL OF THE COMPUL-
sorry EDUCATION BILL.

sorry EDUCATION BILL.
The course of the Assembly in repeal
ing the compulsory education law is
verv much to be regretted, and places
that body on the record III peculiarly
: bad light The arguments employed by
the enemies Of education were pretty
much what might have been expected
from those who could voluntarily under
take task so repugnant 10 all educated
intel!icenccs. 4 tiimsie- line OF oratory
than these speakers contributed indeed
would be hard to find. and it is tolerably
evident that the vote in behalf of repeal
Was inspired rather by the instructive
| dislike of c npulsory measures which
! lies at the bottom Of rock-rooteI Democ-
racv, than 10 the convincing force Of
! the speakers who Advocated the course
taken. The repeal of this bill Is bad
thing. because it Is in the nature Of
| step backwards. Il Is possible that c0m-
| pulsory education has not been carried
out with any approach to uniformity,
/ and that there is room for radical reform
in the plan. But the principle OF the
bill is one which is fully recognized
by the highest and best philosophy Of
the age, and its denial is an act OF Uual-
Logged barbarism. When gentlemen get
up and declare that they axe opposed TO
compulsory education because they are
so devoted u liberty, it seems TO Us thar
they really do l3s know VIVA. they are
talking about, o. that they would be
very much surprised i asked TO follow
their reasoning to is logical conclusions.
The principle upon which compulsory
education rests is the principle which
supports all social organization, VIZ: tie
right OF Society TO iusist Uuou the TAX
ing Of all due precautions against dan
gers aud evils lueuaCing the body polite.
Ignorance IS al evil and a danger, both
10 the individual and to Society, and the
latter las as full e right to say that it
shall not he INDUCED, Us 1t has - say
that burglary and arson ami murder are
crimes, punishable by the law. The
idea Of liberty which requires that there
shall be 10 cOmDulsiOa il education,
demands acceptance of the theory that
all laws tending TO restrain the freedom
OF the citizen are inherently vicious and |
objec,iona0Ie: and as this hypothesis !
completely ignores the sef-prOtective |
rights of the community, it is clear that |
under it even the prevention of crime /
is wrong. But Ignorance is the fruitful |
mother OF Crime. and the power which |
banlshes the one prevents the other |
What the Assembly, therefore, has done, |
Is to record its opinion that Society |
ought not to repress Crime, but that it |
is the inalienable right Of every free
born American citizen to be as hopeless |
a Ounce, as sodden fool, or as vicious
q knaye, as circumstances may make !
him. Certainly that is a curious posi-
ton for body of reasonably intelligent
men to place themselves in, but this,
and nothing else, is what they have u.s.
serted in fact, and there is no possibility
O. receding from the attitude now taken
up. Nor was the movement shrewd
one politically. Very effective use will
assuredly be made Of the repeal of the
compulsory education law In the COM
ing campaign. and the Democratic party
will be saddled with the responsibility.
of lneasure.for which no rational de-
Tense can be found. 1t was certainly
not worth while to have gone to so much
trouble for the sole purpose of manu-
an issue TO be employed against
their own party. but certain members
appear to have thought it necessary to
go upon the record, and they have had
their way Record-Union.
Vigorous and persistent acclsers and
very Industrious fault-fnders are the
Great UnwasheI-uot altogether worth
ess as detectives, il fact, but like unto
he race of critics, generally, their I
works and acts are beneath criticism. ,