New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-02-20

hoDed for and when IL ID reinemoclo" '"
the South is likely to be the region where our
greatest growth in material prosperity Is TO DO
looked for during the next twenty years, per-
hans it would be wise to wait and give her
the chance to work out her own educational
salvation before insulting her by the offer OF
public charity. And if the South can get on
alone. surely the Northern States will be able
TO help themselves Does New York or Mass
achusetts or Ohio need any money! What
would New jersey with her excellent school syS-
TEN and ample means do with the funds sent
from the Interior Department or with the
$4,000 official who is to supervise their oiS-
tribution for such an ornament 10 oui
Civil Service is to be provided lor c'on
State if the Blair bill becomes law
Senator Blair, by the way in his earnest "u-
vocacy of this measure makes use OF soiiie al
legged statistics more "appalling even IMAM INC
census tables of illiteracy. 1t is plain that nc
does not fully appreciate the genius Vi 'io
Bureau of Education for mixing IhlnsS up
and he has, therefore, accepted some hsuI'S
pitched together by that concern without uuo
scrutlny Finding his facts in this JumDie' MI.
Rlair asserts that Gin Cincinnati-one OF
"the best of our great cties-nore thah
100000 children are to%day growing up III
IGNORANCE as dense as that OF inc Juh-ioS VI
iAfrica, while they are subjected to- Inc lhsuehco
of the sharpened culture OF civilized vice.
In the eighty-fve other cities named III tniS
lawful record he finds several more deauy
instances" and therefore he argues thaI
"ossistance from central power Is ndls-
nensable.n But all that the figures III
moan ANYTHING. is that 10000 OF the
young people of that city between inc
aces of six and twenty-onc years
(the limits of school age in Ohio were not at
tending school in 1850, which IS not TACT OF
lawful" or deadly" import. These infants
between six ard twenty-Onc constitute ABOUT
40 per cent of the entire population Oh the
citv. If they were all enrolled every year the
figures would mean that everybody IN ONO
remained in public school for a period OF
sixteen years. The figures, when compared
with those of other cities in the same table,
mean absolutely nothing, for in the different
States there are sixteen varieties OF "schooi
age" In Texas, for example, lhls perlod
extends from the age of eight To
that of fourteen years in other States, ~ IN
Florida and Maine, it extends from four TO
twenty-onc: and our Bureau oi Educailon
with plenty of money and the mails at lis
disposal. has never yet been able to evolve a
consistent table with uniform school age
throughout the country. If we assume some
reasonable period for the average instruction
in public schools-say nine years, or from tie
ages of six to fourteen inclusive-it viii be
found that the school attendance throughout
thc entire country would include more than
90 per cent of tho entire school population
while in the henighted cities the Attendance
would be greater than the total number oil
bows and girls between the ages of six and
fifteen inclusive. 4. This estimate ignores all
niiyate schools and church schools, takes uo
account of home instruction. and leave, ont oil
notice children who are physically incapable
Of school attendance, the exhibit is ON the
whole a cheerful one.
The good people who have been appalled,
by the census should study the figures little
more closely and take courage. The country
seems TO bc getting on reasonably well ~ pre-
cut. while each State attends 60 it- own bust
ness. And if the Bureau of Educ1tiou-tac
ONLY visible result of a ycaming ON tie part oI
the Federal authorities TO "cducItc The peo-
ple"-is q sample Of what is likely to bc
achieved by further meddus il tus direction,
the country can well endure a po-tpoucmcnt
of any fresh experiment N the way oil Ma
tonal aid TO State schools.