The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-02-06
Morality and Public Education.

1t is coming at last. What has been
seen and declared by clear-sighted
Christian philosophy, but denied or dis
regarded by the popular system is going
to be demonstrated by experience. There
is not only no successful way, but no safe
way, of educating human beings which
does not take account of the whole man,
recognize all the elements of his nature,
deal with all his capacities, train and or
der all his faculties, especially the highest
of them. An enterprising city in the
state of New York has been startled by
the discovery that its children of both
sexes, in great numbers, are growing up
with little knowledge of moral obliga-
tions, little reverence for right as the OPP.
posite of wrong, little respect for law,
little discipline of the conscience, the af-
fections and the will and so, with much
weakness of character, and with all the
perils, personal, domestic and social, that
belong to that condition. There is no
lack OF schools, or attendance upon them, or
expenditure for them, or pride in them.
The scbool.houses are in excellent order.
There is the usual lavish variety of text
books. The teachers are competent to
the work they are expected to do. The
stimulus of competition and emulation
is strong. There is vitality in all parts
of the business. The board of educa.
ton is an intelligent and capable body
of men. All the more impressive and
significant, therefore, is the fact that this
board has announced its apprehension
that these schools are bringing up a gen.
Grafton of boys and girls less concerned
about virtue than about knowledge, not
as good as they are sharp, not so pure,
truthful and temperate as they are smart,
rather knowing than wise, and quick.
witted than trustworthy. Most reasonably
do the members invite public men, legis-
lators, educators, parents, all thoughtful
persons in the state, to inquire whether
some course of instruction in civil law
and in moral and social trsining-such as
temperance, honesty, integrity, virtue,
reverence-may not be required in the
public schools" Most true and timely is
their statement that teachers are expected
to have good moral characters, the iufer-
ence being that they will instruct in all
social virtues, while "facts fully prove
that very little teaching on these subjects
is done in the schools at large" The
bad effects of disproportion are some
times as disastrous as the evils of positive
error. In one sense, it may be said that
the more the people know the better
that they cannot know too much. That
idea has been growing in the American
mind with accelerated rapidity during
the last sixty years. Why should it not ?
1t is only necessary to refer to the bound
less argumentative and hortstory speech
running in that direction, to educational
endowments and taxes, to the sacrifices of
ambitious fathers and mothers, to the
eagerness of students in all classes. At
the same time, whenever people are
set to reaching and striving after thing
under belief that it will do for them
what we cannot do, and what must be done
by some other agency, they are misdirected
and abused. They are looking for certain
good where it cannot be found, and they
are beguiled away from looking for il
where it might be found. The supreme
individual and national good is character
Character includes elements that are
moral and religious, as we'll as the in
tellectual; includes conscience, affee tions
and will. We are brought to confront
tenn. just as an inordinate passion fol
liberty cheats men out of the gracious
benefits of law, just as an extravagant es
innate of the value of wealth crowds out
the advantages of culture, just as an ex
elusive love of power hides the glory Of
justice and charity, so must an excessive
devotion to learning distort the true stature
of humanity, robbing the world so far Of
the blessings of mercy, faith, worship
even Of morality; for morality, as wei
as religion, gives way before the idolatry
of the brain. We have already literary
sect, shallow enough, but yet intellectual
teaching that there can be no morals In art
We have another, teaching that there car
be no morals in science. Include Ian
guages in art, include geography anc
arithmetic in science, and how far are yor
from the doctrine that there can be nj
morals in education And how long viii
it be, then, before practical immortality
penetrates and defiles both our public
schools and the community B? For wher,
is the moral training to be had ? Ask
rather, where it is had. 1t must be had il
the family, in a Sunday-school or othe
school where the teaching proposes to b
religious, or else in the common, secula
schools. In most communities there are
doubtless, many families, Christian AM
conscientious, where the children hav
adequate moral instruction and guidance
But, we presume, the fact is too patent t
be disputed that, taking the countr,
through, North and South, East and WesI
in those classes which supply the pupils
anything like such adequate instruction
and guidance is VIGOROUSLY and deplorabl
wanting. Either the parents themselve
are not moral, or they lack the care, skill
ability, to discharge the chief parents
trust. They do not even keep their chi
dren indoors, where exposure on the street
is dangerous to the last degree. AS t
Sunday-schools- becomes us to spea
without offense, If there are persons VIII
believe that most Sunday-schools, VIVA
ever else they do, address themselves t
this particular labor, methodically, ca
nestly and effectively, we are not likel
to gain their assent in the present line c
thought. Even they, however, will prt
badly allow that there is vast juvenil
population in our public schools not eI
tering any Sunday-school at all. All th
children in the United States sent to pr
vate schools conducted in the interest {
the Christian faith are at present too fe
to affect the argument. The inference
plain, and it contains matter for alarm
We do not question that there is