Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1876-05-12

SPEECH OF HON. JUSTIN S. MORRILL,, OF YER
MONT, IN THE SENATE. APRIL &c, 1876.

the proceeds OF the public lands to public educa
ton, and to provide for the more complete endow
vancement OF scientific and Industrial education
Mr.. Morrill,, of Vermont, said:
Mr.. President The measure | hay,
called up to-day has for its object the aiC
of common schools and some further as
sistance to the natio Al colleges. Other
propositions are pendiul, both here and il
the other House, in relation TO this subject
but with all earnest men. ii the leading pur-
poses mentioned can be secured, the details
will be of minor Importance.
| start with the proposition that all OF
our public lands, which are hereafter to be
sold and are not called for as free home
steads. should be held exclusively for edu-
cat ional purposes-purposes that tower
high above and dwarf all others.
SCHOOL LANDS DONATED.
We have already given to States, without
regard to their population, lac. 900 900
acres of land for the support of common
schools. and eighteen of the States thus
aided have school fund of S43 $50. .7S5.
| The western or new States, as to common
schools, would appear to have been literally
provided for. In the North and East the
system of common schools has long held a
foremost place in the hearts of the people,
and cheerful contributions to their support
by self-imposed taxation are made with all
the regularity Of the seasons. At the South
they are far less advanced, and having no
accumulated school funds, their people are
at present unequal to the task of establish
ing and adequately maintaining such schools
without some national assistance, not ma
tional control, although not unmindful of
their utility and fully appreciating their
urgent necessity. When even in Spain it is
no longer immoral for women to know how
TO read, and when Sweden and Turkey en-
gage in universal education. no American
State will be found to hold back.
SCHOOL POPULATION.
Our school population of five years of age
to seventeen inclusive Is l2,O55. .4i3, or
nearly one-third Of our entire population.
| A mighty host. led now and controlled by
US, bat soon to control US and lead the van
of civilization in the land Of their fathers.
Only about one-half Of this number, or
! 6,545, ,ll2, attend schools of any sort, and
among all Of the four or five million Of cJl-
| ored population only lo0, ,312 attend school,
| or hardly enough to furnish a silver lining
to a cloud so dark Five millions and a-half
of our population cannot write and four
millions and half cannot read. Of litter
ate male adults, twenty years of age and
over, we have ,6ll ,2l3, of which number
| 74S SO are whites There are thus more
| illiterate voters, among either white or
colored, than the usual majority Of any
party taking part at any national election.
/ They are, therefore, the potent auxlliaries
| Of all parties, the decisive make-welghts,
and must more OF less control the destlnies
! Of the country. Can any happy augury Of
ages TO come be drawn from these dismal
facts? " Do men gather grapes Of thorns ?'
The several States are greatly interested
in the removal of the deep-seated illiterscy
TO which have referred, but by no means
exclusively, as the interest Of the General
Government covers the same territory and
embraces all and the same voters. The
election Of President Of the United States
and of members OF Congress cannot be
reckoned as less grave and important work
! than that OF State governors and Leglsla
lures The parts are not greater than the
whole Universal suffrage must be made q
/ blessing and an honor TO our country, not a
curse TO the citizen, nor to the States and
the nation. Every one Of our citizens has
! been crowned with equal power in the
guidance Ot national and State affairs but
/ they have thus lar had toe little Of our aid
/ 10 iii them even TO guide themselves Many
| Of the States resolutelY assume their full
| share of the great responsibility, and raise
| by taxation and expend nearly SlO0, 900 900
annually for common schools; and, when
50 much more Is obviously required, shall
/ the General Government look on with total
| Indifference, contributing nothing?
CONSTITUTIONAL POWER.
! Not only Is the General Government pro-
| ioundlY interested in the enlightened and
virtuous character of our whole people, but
| it has the exclusive power touching the dis
| posal Of the public lands, the largest and
! most appropriate educational resource by
which that character has been and may be
elevated and its Deficiencies remedied The
! language OF the Constitution Is
The Congress shall have the power TO dispose o..
and make all neediul rules and reu at 0ns respect
! in the territory or other property belonsin to
the United States.
No grant of power could be more ample,
none more explicit, and it must be exercised.
Ii should not sleep and il cannot be delega-
ted TO other parties Congress itself must
dispose of the lands and make such rules
and regulations as 1t chooses. II It appears
needful and proper to dispose Of this pro-
perty for educational purposes, the noblest
of all purposes, the power of Congress is
| supreme, and il can and ought so to ordain.
Even If the pathway were less obvious. We
have an unerring guide-board in the great
ordinance of l7e7, rejecting so much honor
upon our ancestors, which not only proyid-
ed the flaming sword ito keep the great
West free from - slavery and involuntary
seryitude, but also proclaimed this educa-
tional purpose IN the strongest and most
uneQuivOcal terms, as will be found in one
of its prominent articles, namely
ART. 3 Rel gon, morality, and knowledge be
| ing necessary 10 good government and the happi-
ness OF mankind, schools sndIthe means Of educa-
tion shall forever be encouraged.
These terms, made and declared at the
time OF the eessi0n OF the lands a. - q com
pact between the original States. are man
datory as to our duty-natonal duty-in
the premises - Schools and the means OF
education shall forever be encouraged,
not by States alone but by this national
fund. The logical cOncomitants OF rell-
gion. morality and good government. could
not otherwise ne secured. We must adhere
for all time Ito this compact. or be justly
charged with plain and palpable breach Of
a sacred trust.
If Congress has binding duty to perform
relative TO educatiOn-next to religion the
highest concern of mankind II has also Il
duty scarcely inferior in Its scope as to the
discharge of an important trust, no les
than that of the disposal OF the residue Of
our whole public domain. in such manner
as will best promote the present and future
welfare, moral and material, OF a great. en-
terprising, and exacting people, and IN
strict accordance with the terms OF ouI
compact
Is it not providential conjuncture that
while this moral exigency looms up before
US, national resource OF ample dimensions
is also waiting as a remedy for this very exI
geneva resource unexhausted even by un
thrifty husbandry, and which the common
voice of the country will agree by acclama
nation should not be disposed of without 9
full equivalent, nor for any purpose les
than the most sacred2 The high duty o
ownership. the great trust OF the OrigIna
States. long swaying to and fro, can now b.
fully, fttingly, and nobly discharged.
EDUCATION THE RIGHT OF AMERICANS.
But while general education must be rec
ognized as the common outfit of all mel
and the indisputable right OF Americans, ,spe
cial and more comprehensive education hai
become more than ever necessary to qualify
each citizen for his OWE peculiar duties anC
position in life. Our latest civilization ant
the division of labor have opened new des
TIMES and greater fortunes to mankind by
wondrously multiplying the more produc
tive and more renunerative occupations II
f modern society. New educational wants
keeping pace with century and half o
marked original research, have been rapid
ly created, and nowhere perhaps more con
spicuouslv than in the United States. Th
older colleges and universities have servet
well and, although the relative value o
studies is not settled, with the modihca
tions going on. will serve well TO continue
, the eminence accorded to their system o
: literary education for those who are to ob
tain subsequent professional or specia
training yet, as the sole relian nee and las
, resort of the whole people, they are no
only unequally distributed. but they hav
, been hitherto either unable or unwilling tt
indulge much curiosity for any exploration
! outside of moss-covered traditions, and hav
given too little prominence to such scientif
studies as might be most useful to the larges
numbers. and strangely because of an OBJ
, solete theory that such would be accounte
! as of some use in practical life. A still