Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-02-02
UndevelOped People.
BY THOMAS CALLAHAN.

our definitions will be kept in sight
Our subject includes such as not being
properly aware of what they are capa.
BILE of doing, cannot either properly
settle upon the best objective point in
life nor determine the best methods OF
means of reaching that point.
BY standing on the ground Of non-
development a. the source of those evils
under which both society and tho coun-
try labor, we account for the arising
and existence of those evils by a theory
which is sufficient and open to no great
objections
It is sufficient, for it covers the whole
ground in the case, and provides means
Of escape from the evils complained of;
and it is open to no great objection,
because it puts in the right place what
ever blame may arise on the facts in
the case.
Among us great variety of causes
has conspired to produce this undesir-
able state of affairs.
It will be evident that all the causes
which arrest the development of a peo-
pie, must affect the people themselves
as individuals, rather than society as q
mass.
They must enter into the Chemistry
rather than the Natural Philosophy
into the Physiology rather than the
Anatomy Of society.
Passing by all the dogmas of the
Schoolmen, facts and not distractions
must be accounted for and accepted.
Passing by both the sectarian and par
tisau theories, which of necessity are
not only sectional, but practical in
their character, we must stand upon
great facts which, when merely leveled
out, will cover the whole ground.
Owing to the operation of some law
not yet fully explained, emigration fol-
lows the sun. This law brought into
this country the population Of the
States lying and situated directly east
of us.
The peculiar labor system of the
Southern States had to be supported by
laws making it indictable TO instruct a
slave, and the ruling class dared net
allow instruction among the humber
class of whites, for fear the blacks
might eavesdrop at least q little Of the
knowledge.
The ruling class either employed
teachers for their own families or
banded and established neigh borhood
acade mics, or sent their children from
home to be educated.
By this arrangement the blacks and
the humber class of whites were
placed on a level in repect to educa-
tion-in a condition that was their
misfortune rather than their fault.
And who can wonder if, when
they had remained in that condition
two or three generations with all hope
of advancement barred against them,
all stimulus to Improvements should dry
up and all motive to honorable exer-
ton grew rusty and weak.
And yet this class of people, carry
ing with them the influences which
bad almost destroyed them, formed the
basis of our social organization.
To this must be added another fact
Border-State politics, on both sides OF
the line, has always been problem by
itself. Located upon and covering the
ragged edge of the conflict between the
two systems of labor, it involved all the
annoyances of both with but few of the
advantages of either.
Causes of irritation on both sides
were continually arising, and the re.
suit was q state of chronic aggrava.
ton utterly inconsistent with healthy
growth.
Whilst other slave States had this
annoyance only ON one side, Missouri
had it on three, and had no base OF
moral support except Arkansas, whose
moral reputation was a little better
than that of Texas, because Texas was
farther off.
In . country where one-half of the
population watched the other half to
keep it from running away, but little
sound growth could be nationally ex.
pectsd.
Then came the war of 1861. How it
arose has not yet been nationally ex-
planned, and how it was condu eted is a
still darker problem. In Now far it
was, on either side, war for u great
principle, honest men may honestly
differ in opinion.
Whether the policy Of the Federal
Administration guided the war or the
war gave the Administration a policy,
are questions to be referred to someone
"who divide
4 hair 'twiAt north and northwest side.
1t is morally certain that but for the
tremendous outside pressure of the
civil war, Lincoln's administered ton
would not have held together six
months.
But, leaving those general questions