Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1880-09-02
SOLDIERS REUNION.
Immense Gathering of Veterans
at Canton, Ohio.
SPEECH BY PRESIDENT HAYES.
An Earnest Plea in Behalf of Popu
lar Education.
ESPECIAL By TELEGRAPH TO rHs RzooRD-us,os.l

CANTON (O.), September 1st.-From 1000
to so, 900 people are here, and every new train
is crowded.
President Hayes and General Sherman,
Secretary Ramsey, General Garfield, Gov
ernor Foster. Ex-Governor Bishop, and hun.
dreds of distinguished guests are in town.
There was an imposing procession in honor
of President Hayes.
Fifty-two thousand people were fed gratu-
itously from bounteous tables spread by dele
cations from outside towns.
There was speaking from several stands.
Every street is jammed. The procession
started at noon, with about 10000 veterans
in line.
At the reunion of the Twenty third Regi.
ment in the Opera House President Hayes
was introduced and spoke as follows:
SPEECH OF PRESIDENT HAYES.
I am firmly convinced that the subject OF
popular education demands the earnest at
tention of the people of the whole country.
with view to wise and comprehensive &C.
ton by the Government of the United States.
The means at the command of local State au-
thorities are, in many cases, wholly made
quate to deal with the question. The magni-
tude Of the evil to be eradicated is not, I
apprehend, generally and fully understood.
CONSIDER THESE FACTS:
First-In the late slave holding States under
the system of slavery, education was denied
to the colored people, and the education of
non slave-holding white people was greatly
neglected. By reason of this state of things,
in 1870 more than 1000 900 of peo-
pie in the South of school age,
and over that age, were unable to read and
write, and more than $50, 600 voters are too
illiterate 60 prepare or even read their own
ballots. This evil is not rapidly diminishing.
By the latest available statistics it appears
and colored in the late slave-holding States
was 5,1S7, 5S4, and that only 2,710,096 were
during that year enrolled in any school.
This leaves 2,477, 4sS-almost two and a
half-without means of education. Citizenship
and the right to vote were conferred upon the
colored people by the Government and peo-
pie of the United States. 1t is therefore a
sacred duty, as it is the highest interest to
the United States, to see that these new citi-
zens and voters are fitted by education for
the grave responsibility which has been
cast upon them. DIR. Ruffner, School
Superintendent of Virginia, says: 50 l know
not what is true of the Northern and West
ern States. but l can say for my State, and
for most of the Southern States, that we are
not able to educate our people in any toler-
able sense. We are tho poor to do it. A
few years ago 1 showed this conclusively by
statistics. There has not been much increase
in financial ability in these States since that
he in
State, so far as | can judge, and every we'll
man knows that whatever the
wants Of a State, her power of taxation has
a limit"
THE INDIAN QUESTION.
Second-In the Territories of the United
States it is estimated that there are over
200, 900 Indians, almost all of whom are I'M
civilized. They have been hunters and war
riors but now no one who observes the
rapid progress of railroads AID settlements
in the West can fail to see that game
and fish, on which the Indians hitherto
subsisted, ara about disappeared. The solu-
ton of the Indian question will speedily be
either the extinction of the Indians or their
absorption into American citizenship by
means of the civilizing influences Of educa-
ton. With the disappearance of game, there
can no longer remain Indian hunters or war
riors. The days of Indian wars are drawing
TO close There will soon be no room for
question as to the department to which the
Indian will belong. In few years all must
agree that he should belong, ike every other
citizen, only to himself. the time is not dis
tant when he should be chiefly cared for by
the civilizing department of the Government
the Bureau of Education.
EDUCATION IN THE TERRITORIES.
,r,i ~.
Mexico have never been provided with the
means of education. The number of people
in that TIE ritory il 1870, 10 years old and up
ward, who could not read OF write, was 5,220.
This was largely more than half the popula-
ton The school population il now over
Sc. 600, OF whom only about one-sixth are en-
rolled in the schools. II viii not be qaes-
toned that the power of the General Govern
ment to make all needful rules and regulations
respecting the Territories belonging to the
United States is sufficient to authorize it to
provide for the education Of the increasing
mass of iiiiterate citizens growing up in New
Mexico and in other Territories of the United
States.
INCREASE OF IMMIGRATION.
Fourth-The number Of immigrants arriv-
ing in the United States is greater than ever
before. 1t is not improbable from present
indications, that from this source alone there
will be added during the current decade to
the population of our country 100000 Of
people. One day last spring there arrived in
New York T. 907 impigrantS-alm0st 1000 in
a single day at that one port. During the
quarter ending the Both of June last the num-
Der Of immigrants in the United States aver
aged 1000 month, and during the four
months ending the 5lst of July last there
were nearly 10000 Happily for the
United States several of the large elements
of this Immigration contain very few people
who are wholly uneducated. The Germans
and Scandinavians have for the most part
been educated at public schools in their ma
tive countries but it is probable that from
one fourth to one-third of the present total
immigration into our country is from foreign
nations in which popular education is greatly
neglected. 1t may reasonably be estimated
that at least from twenty to twenty
five per cent. of the immigrants are
iliterate In the current decade we shall
probably receive from abroad more than
i 900, coo people of school age and upwards,
who are unable to read and write any Ian
guage, and of these about 100000 in few
years will share with US equally, man for
man, the duties and responsibilities of the
citizen and voter.
POPULAR EDUCATION INDISPENSABLE.
The President quoted the words of Jeffer-
son, Madison and Webster IN favor of free
schools and edncation in which they agreed
that the prerequisite to the maintenance Of
popular government was popular education.
Already III too many instances elections have
beco ne farce, which Madison predicted,
and the tremendous tragedy which We saw
when we were soldiers of the Union, and in
which we bore a part, could never