Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1880-08-12
LECTURE ON EDUCATION.

President Of the Columbia Female College,
delivered an address to very respectable au-
dience in the Methodist church, on the subject
of education. While Mr.. Jones is canvassing
the State in the interest of the school of which
he is the head, he announced in the outset
that his address would be in the interest of
education generally, and that he hoped what
he had to say would be of advantage to every
deserving institution of learning in the land.
He commenced with the proposition that
character, education and mind constitute the
great capital Of any country, contrasting our
own with heathen lands, and illustrating the
triumphs Of light, Christianity and intelligence
over darkness, paganism and ignorance.
AS to the methods of imparting instruction,
he compared the present with the system of
only few years ago, which latter method of
teaching, he argued, was only smattering of
different subjects and branches, but imperfect
ly taught and equally imperfectly learned.
He contended that in educating the mind,
equal attention should be given to developing
the body, intoxicating morality and teaching
correct habits, not only in business affairs, but
in the most trivial affairs of every day life,
and especially in department. These divis-
ions of his subject were treated at length and
in mastery style. In the education of the
mind he advocated the eclectic system-ac course
of instruction suited to the business to be fol-
lowed. He, however, advocated the study of
languages, because it is impossible to fully un-
derstand the grammar Of our own without a
knowledge of the grammar Of others. He also
urged the Importance of teaching originality.
Where the teacher asks one question from the
book he should ask dozen Of a practical char
acter, bearing upon the same subject, from his
own mind. He said there is too much fiction
not only in our schools, but in politics, mer-
chandising and all the other ramifcations of
society.
As to the cultivation Of the body, he said it
is as impossible to have properly developed
body without cultivation, as to expect crop
of cotton without tilling the ground on which
it is planted. Motion is the law Of health;
rest is the condition of death, and this apo
thegm applies equally to mind, body and soul.
In this connection he advocated calisthenics
as now taught in most of the principal schools.
His remarks were directed mainly to female
education, and he took the high ground that in
common justice woman should have an equal
opportunity with man for obtaining an educa-
tion fitting her to take her place in the battle
of life. The times demand that she must
come to the front and take her place as the
equal of the opposite sex. He impressed upon
his\ hearers the Importance of young women
PROPERLY learning the details Of housekeeping
and m Mastering domestic economy according to
the spirit and advancement Of the times and
while he advocated industry and economy, he
did not mean that they should take the place
of our frandmothers and spin the thread and
weave the cloth for dress pattern, when, in
this day and time, the material could be OBJ
tained at less trouble and expense. BY actual
calchlation, he had found that to spin enough
THREAD for dress pattern, a woman would
walk sixty miles. In this there is now no
economy. 1t is like wagon attempting to
compete with railroad.
In discussing the moral feature Of his SUBJ
ject, he said there is too much moral infidelity
taught in the present day. To the neglect Of
the Bible, the works Of Darwin Huxley, etc.,
are read, by which means the young are too
often imbued with infdel ideas. Stigmatizing
the Darwinian school of philosophers, he said
if we repudiate science, we must repudiate
the Bible, and if we condemn the Bible because
we cannot understand all Of it, we must also
condemn science.
The address, of which we have given only
the merest outline, occupied over two hours,
and was listened to with deep interest.