Roseburg review. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 1885-1920, 1885-09-25
OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

life. The public school Is a growtl
and Is deeply rooted In the soil of ou
existence. The enemies Of the scheo
system have been the enemies of th,
American governmental system. The
friends of nationality are the bulwark.
of the public schools. The whole
American system is open to transfor
nation or abolition. Either arm orles
of the body polite may be amputatee
by the consent of the whole brain ot
that body, when a movement was made
either against suffrage or freedom O.
education, the purpose if accomplished
would be the dismemberment Of com
pact living holy. Those who assail
the purpose of popular education must
bring proofs of the falsitg Of this re
eeived dictum, ''tilat we must educate
our masters"
The uncultivated mass Of Americans
simply thiuk of the schools as a means
of giving their children chance to get
a better living. Cultivated people
whether poor or rich, thiuk of tie
schools as at least producing a certain
B1ental furniture for the children's s
mind whereby they may make use Of
the advantage which "a free social com
petition offers them. Thoughtful peo-
pla belieye that whatever amount of
education can raise a young person IN
the social scale tends to make that per
son respect his own opinions and that
of others. 1t raises him in the social
scale, makes life more worthy of living
by increasing its horizon, and liberty
more enchanting by eulirging its pos
sibilities and property more desirable
by developing TIE advantages of it's
possession knowledge introduces US
into world full of chances which are
denied to the illiterate. However
much we may lament a defective
methol in edncatlon, or lament the de-
fective material upon which it has to
act, the thing itself is, beyond ques-
tion one of the most potent agencies III
the Advancement of modern society.
Nothing pays 50 quick an average profit
as brains, and that country whose
brains is tho most cultivated IS likely
to lead tie rest in commerce and III
useful arts. Education supplies It's
possessor with efficient help to satisfied
physical wants. Education sees wants
in the person Of its happy possessof
which leads him to rise into a more
svirtuous position in society, and III
both WAYS men are removed from the
temptation to ordinary crimes, and So
ciety saved from corruption. Educa-
ton is the mi9htiest machine we have
for the civilization Of the world.
Americans bel;eye tits, and are not
asking shall the people be educated2
Bat how best can we reach all classes
with our schools, especially tie lowest
and poolestl IS it not fact the mass
# the people are better edpcatcl now
than the upper classes were seventy
years ago Is it not a fact that the
average American boy or girl out ranks
in general intelligence, the yoath OF
any country under Hcaven2 TIE
proof of this is we publish more books
and newspapers than any nations in
the world according to population, we
use the most correct forms and means
of speech. These and more than these
are hs,result of our public school sys-
tenn which has given the best general
erudition the world has ever seen.
While we are painfully forced to ac-
knowledge some defects In our systems
of education. We need stability, the
department is suffering from too many
changes in it's course of work, it has
shifted and drifted like sand hills,
there are too many loose ends, toe
many opinions and not enough con-
centration, too many standards and
not enough conformity to any one.
Let us as teachers use our utmost
efforts to makesknown the relations
Of our schools to the home and society
and to show it SO clearly TO all thought
full persons that the future advance
ment of the schools must be mainly
along the line of professional training
and higher qualifications of the teachers
for their important work. Let us not
under estimate the dignity of our call
ing, this has been a serious trouble
with great many teachers, there is in
many quarters a stolid Indifference to
all the remotest relations too many, far
too many, are mere spiece workers"
and sadly unskilled at that, they see
nothing beyond the task Of the hour.
The thought that they are equiping
human beings well OF i'll for the hard
struggle of life never comes to them,
no as open before them in which full
grown men and women are joyfully
winning their way because Of faithful
ministry. The efficiency of the public
school depends upon the efficiency of
the teacher. The school committee
the superintendent, rules and regula-
tons, are practically impotent unless
The teacher is capable, energetic, poss-
essed of due disciplinary and attractive
power all the machinery of the law, all
the distribution of money, is 50 far in
effective as it or they fail to furnish
competent teachers. 1t is the teacher
who comes into direct contact with the
pupil, who inspires or repels, who
guides or fails to guide. To-day our
marching orders are, educate the chill
dren. We have In orr handsa foo rf,,l