Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1878-03-30
THE JnHRNaT-nFMnGRAT AND NOR
NAL SCHOOLS.

l
THE JnTRNaT-nFMnGRAT AND NOR
NAL SCHOOLS.
Our contemporary tWarrensburg. |
in il last two issues, has continued
the discussion of the public schools
in replies to u views upon the High
and Normal Schools. The first ar
ticIe, upon the High School), We DO
not propose TO answer, because, TO
speak caudidiy, We think that it
neither needs nor deserves q reply.
The Issue of March ~, however.
contains & criticism upon our position
ola Normal schools, which is written
in i sober, dignitied and manly style.
W. propose now 10 defend our views
rs thus criticised.
The I'D. replies to only one of our
schools: thereby tacitly admitting
that they are, As now conducted, sub
siartIally public High Schools and
ureIIe>>ly expensive. Ii deyotes its
atteution TO the single effort to show
that they are Normal Schools, in the
tue sense, and are used for the pur-
pose for which they were established.
We might admit this, and vet the
main point of our objection to them
would not be touched. We chiefly
insist upon the point that they are
need!essly expensive and inefficient;
that Normal instruction can be given
to = much larger number of teachers
at q greatly reduced cost: that they
unnecessarily draw from the state u
large mount annually, which had
better be devoted to 4 more practical
system Of Normal instruction and to
tie perfcctIng of four District Schools.
But we accept the issue N tde by
the J-D. and will discuss the question
from its chosen standpoint. Its first
argument Is that we are ignorant
upon this question. that we do not
know what the Normal Schools do.
Possibly we are: possibly we do not.
Here is the proof OF our ignorance.
We asserted that the Normal Schools
We're not used mainly o exclusively
for thr r"nfessionQl education Of
teachers, aud A. on. .-onr Of tho f,c,
-,o,.l that only one teacher II o.
80 ~ .ight, according to their pub
r.,.t catalogues, 'rofesses to give
Normal instructed. The J-D. says
t.s herein We betrayed our igno-
.a.,e. For hi benefit we will state
I'll, II i custmary among educs-
'io'-,l iusritu'ons to display on the
page !. o,esrn,' Il. c. the one Civ
ing the tar,ty) "only the depart
ment of instruction v which each
member othe faculty exercises spe-
cIaf supervision. A part OF the work
may be denc by every member" We
confess or ignorance upon this
point, and are much obliged to the
J-D. for the interesting informs-
ton. We hav1 been connected with
four chqr.rred schools in three differ.
eut states, two of which are among
the best i'll Christendom, and in none
OF these did the custom of the J-D.
prevail. But we suppose that the
University of Virginia is old fogy.
Moreover it is more than twenty
years since we were there, and it NAV
be that they have now adopted the
improved J-D. plan. Ii not, it j.
strange that they have not, for its
excellence must commend itself al
once to every Intelligent mind. just
think OF 1t. In the Normal Schoo.
at Warrensburg, every professor
teaches a little of everything. We
had thought that Prof. Whiting did
nothing but teach vocal music, bu,
according to the J-D. he teaches
mental and moral philosophy, math.
ematics, the natural sciences. the
languages aud drawing. Professor
Bahlmann, Jul friend, varies the
monotomy by the same delightful
variety. lie simply Exercises spe.
ciaI supervision" over the language
lie does ''part of the work" of every
ether member of the faculty. This i.
certainly a most delightful arrange
meut. Yale, Harvard, Princeton
Cornell, and even Oxford aud Cam
bridge i'll old EuglanI ought at once
to adopt it. We advise the J-D. t
lake out a patent on il; for we are
sure hat there are millions in il
Seriously, this statement of the J-D
is absurd, aud will be secuted by
President Osborne and every mem
Der of his faculty. Our colleges ar,
usually III the hands of intelligcn,
men, who know the value of divisio,
of labor, and who seek therefore t
give TO every teacher his specially
for which he is we'll qualified ahl
t" which he is strictly to limit him
SELF.
As to the argument from the Prus
sian schools, it is merely plausible
No fallacy is more common than tina
ofhrawing a general conclusion from
4 single fact, without taking int,
consideration the variety in the con
ditions of the several cases. Ii
Prussia the church and the schoo
are both part of the governmental
machinery. In Prussia the theolo
gians of the state church are anon,
the ablest of the world. Therefore
according to the reasoning of tn,
id, we should rave q state churcI
in this country. In Prussia, the Ell
tire work of education from the al
phabet up is done by the governmen
teachers. Strictly speaking Their
are no private enterprises. TIL
whole thing is provided for by tn
state. AS a result they have SIX HUI
dred and tWnulY.tWo HIGH Schools O