The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1880-05-25
Governor Roberts Model Free school
system
Ccrr.spo udeuce Galveston y WIS

When Il man makes II mistake in public
life. and his written words exposes it, he
OUGHT to correct it by An open confession,
and not ondeavor to so expain his own lang.
naoe AS to give it different construction
from that which its terms would ordinarily
imnort. Some people are SO blinded in their
qduMtion of Governor Roberts as to claim
him MS the friend of public tree schools. Gov
ernor Roberts has been in public office in
Texas nearly forty years, and much Of that
fine he has been judge Of the Supreme
court. Supreme court judges are supposed
10 weigh well every word used in their writ.
ten sentences, so that the meaning is made
Main to the common mind. Governor Rob
erts is opposed 10 an efficient system of pub
lie free schools, as contemplated by the con-
stitution, and out Of his own mouth | pro-
pose to substantive the assertion. In his
message to tie extra session of tho Legisla'
ture, in June last, he says;
"Public free schools is another subject that
mainly entered into the occasion of the gls-
lature being convened in special session, and
tits therefore proper that should give my
views thereon as predicate for such recon-
mendations as may make in relation there
TO. The best and most satisfactory schools
that we ever had were those during u number
of wears before the late civil war. Then the
State aided the peoples school with bounty
By paying for INDECENT scholars who went
to school,
The above extract from his message clearly
defines Governor Roberts idea of II free
school system. The Legislature had appro-
priated one-fourth of the State revenue for
public free schools in accordance with the let
nf ha nOpotitntinp and tho
Democratic platform. Under this law one
fourth ofall the State taxes would have been
returned to tho people and spent at home for
the education of all the children, rich and
poor alike But this was not
Governor Roberts plan. He ve-
toed the bill because it appropriated too
much money to educate the peoples children.
His plan was to dole out a little pittance to
educate the INDECENT chill 1ren only. Who
are the INDECENT children? The answer is
the children ofpaupers. Governor Roberts
did not propose to reduce taxation. he ex-
pected the people to pay the same amount of
taxes as before, but the money, instead OF be-
ing returned to the people, to aid in educat-
ing their children, would be used for other
purposes. According to Governor Roberts
message, the best system of public schools
we ever had YVES the one in vogue before the
war; when we had no public schools ut all.
H, says that the best and most satisfactory
system we ever had was when the State paid
81 or So only, to each INDECENT child before
the war; To whom could such system, So
called, be good or satisfactory! The men
who paid the school taxes were denied any
benefit from it. None but paupers shared
in the public school fund. Before
q man could send his child to public
free school in Texas, he would have
to be so far lost to every sense of true
manhood, as to stand up before the world
and say: 81 am pauper." VINO would
send his child to so-called free school, and
subject the child to the remark of all its play
mates-"Lhere goes the little pauper!' While
many Of our people are poor, yet, thank God,
the truu Texan is possessed of that noble,
innate pride of character which spurns the
thought of making his boy subject to that
modification which would result from being
educated as pauper. The child's inherent
pride would be wounded, and every manly
spirit revots at such class distinction as
would be entaled by the misery system
which Gov. Roberts says is the "best and
most satisfactory system of common free
schools we ever had in Texas. Texas, the
great, expanding, growing State Of the south
west, to be betIered in the development OF
her educational interests by a 'pauper free
school SYSTEM" Such an idea, emsnating in
1879 from the Governor of Texas, is calcu-
lated to create a impression that our Gov
ernor, like Rip Van Wrinkle, has just
"aHened rom lae twenty years s,eep;; n.,
but suGn are Ihg caieiui'S uiu.urgu so LI
menus Oh governor hooeEts. ne Ve'oeu I,io o.'
appropr'a'ihS .he au'unS ha'lleu III tuc con
su'utLoh 70 aih'aill al el'ie,V SYSTEM Vi ile'
schoo's' anu '1eh presented Tue pa4per S{s,
selii US ihoue-Ine pes' We oNer nuu. ~ ~
ieVorS Tue Pauper y s1eii' iio olnPe,lo" W.. .So
ahS'sa'urG 70 laNe Que i re'tos I'VE e'9P VIC
ntsI YEAR oy reuucinS 'ne scIVo' lunu l.oif
one,iourIh 10 ohe-siAth. WIN ne utVehlpH
!e.eiec'eu' TO WIPE OUT tua' ole.s,Atn anu ~
turh 70 Tue pauper sysIenl' wnieh ne says y
sne oesI we ever hsa! IS IL MOI .'.Sr 10 euu
oate Vne p"uPerS III private ru'ner tuah seII
t9en 70 u puoese schooli 70 DC sToJecV 10 VI,
Tlt'er uaui'Vs on oe'hg puolitiy ca!eu paup,I W
A. Is sat 70 DC pooF-' Is oit'er 70 urinh W. sh'
IIaeSs " poVes.y J3uv VINO can measure VIZ
hearl-o S.Ia ana keen ahsulsh Wnlch zen
sisye cniIu woulu ieei 70 pe puolc'y 9ranu
"a, IN our lree senoo,s, as pauper, ana nave
se"t orsnu rec pr "a t'is puol'c atel,!c'
ot the Sa'e lnere sno1Iu oe no d'sVhct.3l
III our free schools between .n'
o hnI Oh Ine rlch anu poor uiVe VII
.ni'a Oh poverty proper oPpertunitles 10 en-
Mr 'he "rela OF active ilte, win us lsa S
erect, It's price uh'oucned ana us hiihu cul
.ureq; FROM Tue ranks Oh Vne poor ah'
in.uule classes nave Always sprahS the i1as
VI great men whose names nave enricne(