The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1880-06-17

ceed only 10 bursting open that narrow
measure and in scattering those huddled
pleasures in the dust Mighty respon-
sibilities rest upon those who dare to
measure by the units of q grander scale
than the present moment. Those who
are acquiring an education now must
show their faith in a future need Of it.
While travelling in the level valley OF
to-day, they must carry on their backs
the ladders with which to scale the pin
nacles Of tomorrow.
The immediate questions, then, are
these: What are we going to do with
our education when we get it? What
is it going to do with US? What effect,
through Us, is it going to produce on the
world?
To answer these questions, let us no.
tice that man has two natures, animal
and spiritual he lives two lives, indi-
vidual aud social ; two objects to work
for are set before him, himself and man.
kind. Each man has his own body to
feed and clOthe, his own mind to train,
his own passions to regulate, his own
conscience to satisfy but he is thrown
into daily contact with other living,
loving, hoping, immortal beings. There
are other bodies for him to feed and
elothe; there are other minds for him
TO train there are other hearts for him
to gladden.; there are other souls for
him to save. This is mans social
sphere; this is the domain of duty.
Each man, like planet, rotates on his
own axis, and this makes night and
morning for himself; but he also re-
wolves around the great central sun OF
all life in an orbit whose dimensions
have not yet been calculated. In this
eternal orbit, the light which he catches
and reflects reaches countless other orbs.
His slightest deviation from his course
makes perturbations throughout the
brotherhood Of worlds. This illustra-
tion contains the answer to our ques-
tion, What is the fundamental purpose
Of education That noble, grand, sub
lime purpose is TO fit individuals to com
prehend the needs and the way to sat
isfy the needs Of the great mass of hu-
mauity. 1t is to grind of the crusted
edges Of each mans heart, making it a
diamond. flashing all around the rays
of light that touch it. The purpose of
education is to humauize individuals.
It is to make each individual type of
the lofiiest qualities of his race.
The properly educated man is no more
an American, or Freedman. or an
Englishmau; he is no more a Catholic,
or Unitarian, or Methodist lie is no
more Democrat or Republican, Wing
or Tory; he is a man. When Socrates
was asked his nationality, he said, 81
am a citizen Of the world" After the
restoration Of the Stuarts in 1860, Mil
toms wife besought him to seek the
favor Of the king. Poor, old, frieudless,
blind, how could he withstand the anger
Of the mo0arch Millions stern rebuke
Of his faiut-hearted wife contains the
finest possible presentation Of the aetu-
ating principle of his life. "You," he
said, "are thinking Of the preservation
Of our family. am thinking Of pos
terity." To the grand old poet, what
was the worth Of the tallow candle of
one little family compared with the
midday sun Of unborn generations
/ When some one criticised Xenxio by
saying that he was long time ia paint
ing a certain picture, he replied, ''Yes,
and am painting it for long time"
Education must overleap the bounda-
ries of time aud place ; it must see the
eud from the beginning must look be-
fore and after. Public spirit is the pur-
pose Of education. When individuals
unite into a social compact, each resigns
some portion of his personal desires for
the public welfare; otherwise society is
organized (or perhaps disorganized) rob
berry. Il is the business Of education to
stretch its cords of steel over time and
place so as to bind society together into
one compact mass.
Educators must undergrad their struc-
ture with that central motto of Chris
tianity, NO man liveth unto himself
and no man dieth unto himself" Edu.
+ cation and Christianity, then, are tC
each other as the two blades Of a scis
, sors. Their apparent contradictions arr
merely neutrality-suspicious. of both. Pure
Christianity has convinced cold educa
tion OF its seIdshness, and thorough edu
cation has convinced dogmatic Chris
tiauity Of its total inapplicability t.
human nature. Fifteen centuries o
. Christianity without science, aud thre,
. centuries Of science without Christian
! ity, have impressed the world with th'
: vital need Of both.
How many realize the vast RESPONSE
; bilities Of education? Our Greek anC
Latin, our mathematics aud philosophy
, are chiefly a means, not an eud. They
1 are the sticks Of dynamite with which
I to blast a roadway through your socia
kingdom but, unless TIE rails be laid
and unless the rolling stock be put on
y: and unless there be the furnace of I
I burning heart to set the driving wheel
, in motion, the precious human freight
r around you may lie and rot.
r We have seen what education ough
r to be. We may now inquire il It Is
q We shall fiud that it is not.
For the fret fifteen centuries of th'
] Christian era, education was wasted il
!. proftless metaphysics. After a thou