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

preston that the moral education OF
American children is somehow provided
for. That to this vague impression is
due an equally prevalent unconcern in the
general mind, making the present alarm
ing condition possible, is also true. But
what grounds are there for that impress
sion That is the point to which grave
attention ought to be turned. If Chris
tian men and women, who hear Christian
preaching and read Christian newspapers,
do not attend to it, who will ? Two diff
fculties are to be met. One of them, al
ready referred TO, is common fallacy
that, if children are sent to school and
"get knowledge" they will get all that is
needful to make them good citizens. 1t
may be that nothing but time aud suffer-
ing will uproot and kill this fatal delusion.
Time and suffering have done good deal
that ought to destroy it already. Where
on earth has an active cultivation of the
mind, and the mind alone, produced
pure society, strong commonwealth,
happy homes On which of the CONT
nents In what age2 Does it need to be
said again that, in every period, not few
men of the richest intellectual endow-
ment and ripesS culture, have been the
worst men 1t has been published that,
within thirty years, the records of crime
in New England have shown enough
names of medal scholars, and other prom
ising pupils to knock the fallacy just men,
toned to pieces. In New York it is well
known that the most desperate and dar.
ing criminal lately before the courts was
an adept in several sciences and master
of many languages. What horrible mis-
chief the introduction of printing with
out Christianity does for region in India,
President Seelye has reported. There are
sometimes pernicious relations of the sexes,
and circulation of obscene publications,
which are not favored by the teachers, but
for which schools furnish facilities, and
for which the teachers are guilty if they
do not use all their power and constant
efforts to prevent. Furthermore, there
are forms of sin that, instead of being
displaced are aggravated, if not engen-
dered, by mental activity. Long ago, an
English statesman, in parliament, warned
his countrymen that, if they educated the
intellect of the nation without the con-
science, they would only prepare accom-.
plished villains to pick the locks and
break into the treasure-houses of civil So
ciety. 1t will be terrible if, being coun-
try of school.houses, we are rou'ed to our
duty only by the development of gener-
alton, corrupted and depraved by what
are supposed to be the very fountains of
health. The other difficulty is in the COW
enant, whereby doctrinal religion is ex.
cluded from the public schools. Spiritual
and ethical Christianity is so related to
formulated truth that it is not always
easy to say what is doctrinal and what is
not. We are not to enter here into the
complications of that part of the subject.
| Those who believe that the Christian life
is inseparable from Christian dogma, or
definite doctrinal belief, can hardly be ex-
pected to look favorably on any education
that is religiously colorless or even creed
less. Stephen Girard thought he could
separate a nurture in morals from the
Christian religion. We all know what
Daniel Webster, not being preacher, said
on that question and we believe that it
is fact that, when the college went into
operation, it was found that the only salts
factory textbook in morals was the New
Testament. Teachers are sometimes en-
ployed by Christian committees in public
schools who disbelieve in Christianity,
and somehow their pupils are apt to find
IL out. WneneVer IL suail pe proVou tuaI
religious freedom means freedom from
religion, or that some mistaken notion of
liberation condemns our children to a
heather tuition, it is 10 be hoped that
prophets will appear who will tell the peo-
pie what God has been teaching mankind
ever since there were men to be taught.
At present it would be step in the right
direction if course of study in the ele-
ments of civil law, and manual like
"Whateley's Ethics" were introduced into
our chools."-Bishop +. d. Huntington, ii,
Independent.