Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1880-08-11
Beecher ON Education.

| hhNnA w AMI DEHCHER leCLuTeu 8t Sn6-
boygan, in this State, delivering his new
lecture on The Profession of Teaching"
for the first time. AS 1t is one of Mr..
BEEcHER's characteristic efforts, and en-
bodies much new thought well put and
many old ideas revamped by master
hand, we give q synopsis as follows:
We are busy-and properly busy-with
the details of every day life that we sell
dom look abroad and see what Divine
Providence is doing all over the world.
We see the noisy but not the silent forces
Let us look at the condition of the people
of the world beyond the bounds of chris
tendon and within them. What are tue
governments and the people doing and
what are the ideas that rule the worldf
In Europe the governments are largely
engaged In protecting themselves. There,
the citizen is suspected and feared. It is
held to be the first duty of the govern.
ment to maintain itself and afterward the
community. Public feeling abroad Is
that Individual men are chiefly valuable
as the stuff with which to build the State
and when the State is strong and stable
you have the ideal government. Here, in
America, we reverse this theory. The in
dividual man is the central figure, and
the nation is the servant. In Europe the
emphasis is put on the government of the
nation; in this country on the man.
Abroad men are either neglected or
worked up into something which destroys
the individual. In Europe causes are at
work sucking up all the industries of the
people there. There are 100000 armed
men there, organized for physical VIC
lence. They are non producers, whose
business Is destruction. The annual
budget for war expenses is SIS, 1000, 900,
drawn from the industries of the people.
The war debts of the world are so great
that their payment is impossible Dynas-
ties have come to depend not On the will
of the people but on physical force. 1t is
no wonder that the people look abroad for
new home. Looking here they see a
stable Government, all the elements for
the acquisition OF wealth, and, greatest of
all, the development OF manhood in the
| citizen. The great force now working In
this country are those which tend to ele-
vate man and make him better and no.
bier. We seek knowledge-more than
that, intelligence We are developing the
manhood of intelligence among our peo-
pie. The immigrants were eggs in Eu
rope; they are Matched here. 1t is not
strange that emigration comes here. The
immigrant comes here to cast his lot among
US. Men Of all nations can live here to-
gether IN peace and harmony. They come
here bringing small amount of property,
industrious hands, the customs that be.
long to them. The Germans bring their
drinking habits, their religious opinions,
their political ideas. While there are
perils about these things, the benefit of
this immigration Is such that we ought
to be grateful and not feel timid about
the final result. We have the institu-
tons and public sentiment. We change
these immigrants to our own kind of
PEOPLE. Their children are the same as
If their fathers had never known any other
land.
Look at the probable condition of our
country ten, twenty five, fifty years hence.
Who are they who chiefly have charge of
the nationf Whose business is it to think
about the country tor all coming timer
theoretically the politicians. Of politi-
clans there are many; of statesmen few.
The politician is the least likely of all to
concern himself about the interests of the
whole country. There is no nobler pro-
fession than the law; but it is not adapted
to deal with the affairs of the whole
country. The newspaper is thing for
sale commercial goods. Almost all of
them follow instead of leading public
opinion; they are all refectors Of the
average public sentiment. They do not
take into consideration the wants of the
whole people. The ministers have their
hands full of parish occupations. Theol-
ogy has separated man from man. 1t is
divisive. In lis very nature it is not
adapted to the purpose we seek. There
must be a new profession. Teaching is
not new profession; but from those de.
voted to it there must come up national
profession. It our people are once edu-
Gated to intelligence we may hope for the
perpetuity of the Republic.
We have 100000 colored people and
100000 foreigners-al voters. Can We
drag this great load besides our own in
digenous ignorance? There should rise
up profession to undertake the work
a class of national educators. The new
profession is the old one, enlarged and
ennobled. We must have every where the
common school. In many respects it is
more important than anything else in this
country. It brings all classes of society
together. Its constant influence is to har-
monize and unite all classes-tO enlarge
sympathy all through society. It is one
of the most powerful democratic infu-
ences in the community. Our public
schools must be free. No man must be
allowed TO say that ne cannot afford to
send his children to the public schools.
Do not be afraid of foreigners hold
that the school Ia the stomach Of this re-
public. The schools of America are that
stomach by which all nations are digested
and assimilated into Americans. Educa.
ton should be compulsory. The free
common schools should be the best in
every community. 1t is burning shame
when public schools are not as good as
private ones. 1t is the foundation of the
American idea of the development of
manhood that the public school and all
its appendages should be better than can
be found anywhere else. Its architecture
ought to be better than that of the church;
It's rooms ought to be better than the best
in our houses. 1t is the duty of every
equitable and intelligent commonwealth
to make its schoolhouses the gems of art.
believe that democratic simplicity in