Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-06-25


tests of after life have revealed many flaws
in the system. In fact of late years it has
been asked with increasing emphasis
whether this American educational system
really educates. And the answer is that
to great extent it fails to educate that
it usually leaves little more than smatter-
ing of knowledge behind it-so feeble a
smattering that it is very often rubbed off
and lost completely in few years of busy
world labor Nov an educational system
which does not so rouse and invigorate the
intellect as TO make the further acquisition
of knowledge as necessary to the mind as
daily food is to the body, must be set
down as virtual failure. a course of
physical gymnastic which did not develop
the muscles and tougher and supple the
limbs would be certainly regarded as a fail
ure and course of intellectual gymnas-
tic which leaves the mind as faced,
inert and unambitious as it found it, is not
lees defeat of all the more important
purposes involved.
But it must be admitted that this is the
case with the present educational system.
1t is seedless and rootless system. It
implants no aspirations, cultivates no in
tellectual discipline, but leaves the mind
falIow. And we see the results in society.
There is, OF course, a definite amount of
intellectual activity observable Our
presses pour forth new books in appa-
rently interminable quantities. New
periodicals and journals are constantly
being launched. Literary circles seem to
be full of life and health. Libraries, free
and otherwise, abound more and more.
Undoubtedly there is progress which
can be measured. The standard Of excel
lence in the matter furnished by the press
has been slowly but apprecjably growing
during the past twenty years. The field
OF the higher intellectual aims and emo
tions has been as steadily expanding. The
ever present restless ambition of the Amer
lean character to be climbing higher has
produced its normal consequences in
these and many other respects. 1t is not
at all true that there has been decline
of culture, in fact. The tendency has been
distinctly forward, despite all manner of
checks and obstacles, for although our
educational system is very defective it
still produces positive good, in so far as It
produces any effect, aud it helps the
finer organizations to the beginnings OF that
self-culture which is the one means of
important advances under the existing
conditions.
The system is in fact much better than
none at all, but when this has been said,
and when allowance has been made for all
the real progressive tendencies observable,
it is necessary to point out that there is
still no reason for rejoicing, inasmuch as
the appreciable intellectual growth of the
country is lamentably slow and languid,
and seems as yet to touch but very small
percentage of the entire nation. The truth
is that superficial survey of our educa-
tional and literary appliances is very apt to
mislead the observer. Our newspapers,
our libraries, our great publication houses,
dazzle and confuse. 1t is only when
cool comparison is made between the ex-
tent of the field and the extent OF the de-
mapd that we can see how very far from
filling the field the demand is. Take for ex-
ample the daily press. Statistics show that
not more than one person in forty reads
newspaper, and yet it might seem that
the press was everywhere. Compared
to other kinds of literature indeed it
is everywhere. Take the example of
popular book. 1t would be hard
to find better instance than "Uncle
Toms Cabin Not an intellectual work,
but story, and therefore appealing to the
widest circle. Now the sale of Uncle
Toms Cabin, which was unprecedented,
and considered enormous, reached some
thing like 200, 600 copies. Viewed by it.
self that looks like very large distribu-
ton but when it is remembered that this
book had practically field of not less than
10000, 900 souls for that field embraced
all the English-spesking peoples), it viii
be perceived that after all the sale was not
marvellous. If we examine the distribu-
ton OF other and less popular because more
intellectual books, we shall find that their
average sale is almost absurdly small
Here, in nation of $4,000, 900, book is
thought to have an unusually great vogue
if it reaches a sale of 10000 (; and scores
of books never get beyond the second or
third thousand, while yet other scores, and
these in many cases the most important,
are purchased only by the hundred.
The rapid and general introduction of
free libraries has stimulated reading, no
doubt, but SO far it appears to have exer-
cised its principal effect upon novel.read-
ing. Some increase of more solid reading
there must be, but it is not considerable
We find also disposition in many quar-.
tiers to organize societies for mutual cult
ure. These associations are far more nu.
merous than is generally understood. They
do some good, but it is to be feared that
there Is ne - tic r,;micry of fashion
taAn .ue e...-les. nsss u seiious purpose