Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-03-18
AT THE CAPITOL TO-DAY.
MILLIONS FOR COMMON SCHOOLS
BILLS REPORTED IN BOTH HOUSES.
The Senate.

PROPOSED REWARD FOR THE GREELY PARTY
Bills were introduced and appropriately referred
as follows:
By Mr.. Hawley-To authorize the Secretary of
the Navy to offer reward Of So. 600 for rescung
or ascertafnng the fate OF the Gree!y Arctic expe
Mr. Hawley said such a reward might induce
some OF The many ships cruising In or about the
party, or TO turn occasionally OF their course
oroer 10 gather Information about it.
MILLIONS FOR COMMON SCHOOLS
Ihe Dill to aid In the establishment and tempo
rary support OF common schools was taken up. Ut
approprtates for the first year SI5OOOOOO the sec
ond, Sl4,OOO0O; the third year, sl3OOOOOO, and so
on 1or ten years. decreasing 81 100000 yearly, to be
expended for common school education, the eX-
Pendlture In each state TO be the basis OF illit-
eracy, the money to be paid by the United States
IN the st instance to the treasurerS OF the respec
i've states OF Such other agents as the states may
deslgnate-the secretary OF the Interior to have
charge OF the portion going to the territories The
Dill asserts the object to be not to establish an in
dependent system OF schools, but simply to
ald IN the maintenance OF the state schools, and
provines That no part of the money appropriated by
the OH snail be paid out in any state which shall
not during the first five years OF the operation OF
the act, annually eXpend for common schools at
; deast one third the sum allotted to 1t by the BILL
anu curing tne second five years sum equal TO the
Whole amount II shall be entitled TO receive under
M ..ie acl. One-tenth OF the moneys paid TO the
states may be expended In training teachers
Mr.. Blair addressed the Senate on the bill This
was Ine most important bill brought before the
senate since the war. Had common schools existed
everywhere, and In sufficient numbers, all the
1nlted states, there would have been no war.
knowledge and virtue were naturally associated.
ana We're essential to the maintenance OF republi-
can government and free institutions. Ii was
therefore paramount duty OF the nation to
l!at ltS citizens were educated. The American
cltHen mad continuous public life, even without
noiulng pubic Office. He was the governing power
OF his country; he was king
THE EDUCATION OF THE COMMON SCHOOL
was all mat twentyfOur twenty-ffthS OF our citi-
Zehs could secure, and the effort OF the nation
should be to secure to all the highest possible good
from the common school. More than one-ninth OF
the citizens of the United States were unable to
Iead or write. Mr.. Blair cited statistics TO show
lhe varying proportions OF tlltterateS to the whole
populiLlon Tor several years past The average i'm
migration was now, he continued, equal In intelli-
Eehce 10 the average OF our native pOpulat iona
TACT not familiar to the public mind. Nearly three
!ourthS or The iterate voters OF the country We're
IN tne southern states. those states having one
lhlIu or tnc voters OF the country. Between 1870
ana 1871 there had been no dmnution in the pro-
perloh or llllterateS to the whole population, as
shown by the census tables Not NOR. than three
louIths OF the voters, Mr. Blair thought really had
S'lcn a measure of education to enable them in
ulngently To weigh the reasons for and against
the pubic measures which must come before them,
anu Whlch must ultimately be adopted or rejected
by the body OF the people