, 1877-06-02

bake unannoycd ut home; gain time 10
talk politics, study the last fashion plate,
drop into neighhor GrundY's tor nice
gossip and cup of tea.
Paying school taxes is not the whole
| duty Of man The burden of IA liberal,
thorough, practical education, is the
/ great toad OF life To drag on this caD OF
progrcs. every shoulder must 60 to the
VIII o.. None must ride Every hand to
the rope. Let us all take one spoke OF the
wheel. Skilled teachers will mind the
the brake. The old and useless must lie
lett by the wnysidc. The old that has
been tied and p,Oren must be daily burn
ished as bright as the new.
To sum up. We are far away on the
frontier. We are all adycnturcrs to
gcthcr. The children ARE our loved idols.
the public schools should be more prrc'
iOus than household Gods. We are in II
new country. A few years ago, this was
wilderness in which wild beasts and
savage men alone c0ntcndcd Tor the mas
trry. We are poor. Had we been rich,
none of us would have ever abandoned
the luXuricnt cast. Every steamer adds
to the juvenile element of our popuIa.
ton. New cooing voices are making
themselves heard every day. They nrc
our heritage. DmG We allow them
to be cankereu with ignorance :
Ignorance only, is vice in its
most appalling form, Dare we cramp
them tor room and saddle them with
mental and physical dctormity Shall
we allow the flock to become too large
for the shephard and the fold 2 If we do,
some must be smothercd, contaminated
and crowded out. Cold and hunger, in
childhood, shrink, and pinch the features,
and stamp into them II brand that after
life seldom etfaCe-. Mental psychologists
and philanthropists read the same marks
in intellectual manhood, curcessly placed
there in youth.
These facts are daily becoming
better understood. There is something o
higher importance for children to be
taught than the science of dollars and
cents. The brain is the safest bank of
deposit and pays the richest dividends.
The world is waking up and moving in
this matter. In spite Ofa tory house OF
lords. in England, IL mercurial and rev.
olutlonary POI ulation in Frsnce, II strong
monarchy in Germany and Prussia, II
despotism in Russia, and ultramontainism
at the Vatican, the cry OF the masses for n
more wholesome mental diet has reached
the ears of those who sit upon thrones,
and been trembingly granted. We are
losing our former priestage as nation.
The old world is outstripping US ir pop.
ular education, in the magnitude and
splendor of their school systems. Are
we rontcnt to follow behind, where we
have so long led 2 Are we to fall back or
advance Stand still we cannot, for in
activity is death, Will our people here
follow or lead We cannet be idle and
climb higher. Let US advance; forward
the watchword. Let US practice econo-
my and make personal sacrifices. Our
hands must go down in our pockets, and
ifany one growls obout taxes, we will
not "shoot him on the spot but leave
him alone to wallow in his own igno-
rance, short sightedness, stinginess and
degradation. Let him be oStracised, but
not mathematical. Punish him with
contempt without pity.
Neighbors, the wheel is large; there is
u spoke for every willing hand. Let us
steer our noble educational barque,
treighted as it is with all that is dear to
us under heaven, from darkness to light;
from the shoals, rocks, quicksands and
mad waves of ignorance, into the clear,
calm, peaceful haven Of true knowledge;
the silver sheen of whose pure sparkling
waters will be bright halo of glory
lighting us far out upon the untired
waves of etcrnities sea, when we come to
say farewell and turn our backs upon
our little ones, who will see our faces no