Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1885-08-14

prlatl0ny Ii 1t is constitutional IL
make the appropriation, there can
be no constitutional inhibition mp
Oh the conditions that shall attach
to the appropriation.
What | want is this money tC
educate our people If this Govern
ment can cOnstitutionally give il
to us. We care not how it shall
be disbursed, so that the children
of Virginia shall be the beneficial
rics thereof, white aud black. L
Senators are ready TO meet thai
issue, then it seems To me we art
ready to vote.
State rights DO not impose
some conditions, do not IMPOSE
some books Why, sir, books are
imposed now. Books are imposed
in the State of Virginia; books are
included in the school curriculum
in Missouri, | suppose. The boob
agent comes along and he gets
what is called the educational
board to adopt his books, and when
they adopt it the town trustees Oh
the township trustees must al
accept those books. have &c
tually known in the county where
| live, and where there are about
100 or 40 cOlored voters out OF
$500, that a school book was in
use there that it was said advOcat-
ed social equality, and yet ! have
not heard fit hurting anybody in
that community especially. | have
thought the children were better
for the education they received,
and the more education they would
get the further they would be from
that kind of notion.
say, sir, that | want the gentle
men who represent what they call
the South in this discussion to say
whether they are for or against an
appropriation by and from the
Federal Government for the pur-
poses of universal education. That
is the only question. | want them
to answer that question. The
question of State rights does not
enter into it. II we can get down
to vote on that proposition there
would not be a dissentient any
where on that side of the Chamber
in my Judgment, and if you can
lug into it this question of State
rights, this abstraction, this will
o'.the-wisp, this thing that is buried,
and that when it existed was hard.
ly within the scope of any mans
yision-lug that in here, and you
then just simply make political
question of great practical meas
ure for universal education.
ask the Senator from Missouri
whether he is willing to accept
this? If he is not willing to ac-
cept it for his State, ask whether
he is willing to allow me and my
colleague to accept it for ours, and
we will take the resulting con-
sequences. We are not afraid that
a school commissioner appointed
by the Federal Government will
tear away the social fabric there or
destroy the law OF contracts or any
thing of that sort. We want our
people educated. We tax our
people 81, 100000 year for the
purpose of education. We have
promised the people to double the
schoOl.hOuses in that State in four
years. Four hundred thousand
slaves were turned loose there az
free men and we are trying to
educate them. We are laying the
foundations there of normal schools
in which to educate teachers who
In turn may educate their own
race. II the Federal Government
will come to our support with any
amount of money, no matter what
conditions may be coupled with it,
| am ready to accept it, because |
know that they can not, and it is
idle to argue that they can, couple
with it any conditions that would
compromise the honor of that State
or its status in this Union.
My own purpose in speaking on
this question at all is to eliminate
from it all these little side-doOr ar
rangements. | do not suppose
that | can change the convictions
of any Senator on the main ques
ton, but | do want it to 90 forth
and to be distinctly understood
who are Tor and who are against
this appropriation, and then let the
reasons be given.
The Senator from Florida Mr..
Jones' who is scarcely second to
any constitutional lawyer in this
country, has said that this bill is
Observation-Disclosures in
thls, tnat IL makes the apprOprla-
ton. That it is constitutional in
that | invite challenge, knowing
how thoroughly he is versed in all
that appertains to the constitution
al aspect of this case, whether
there possibly be anything uncon-
in saying row the money
shall be paid out. Then it comes
down to this; that the Senator
from Missouri does not want this /
money given for public education
in his State unless it shall 90
through o certain channel. We
want it, and we care not whom .
you may designate to give it to us.
You may do like Peabody, for in
stance, that great benefactor of /
education, and designate a Massa-
chusetts trustee to take charge of
the graded schools of Virginia, and
we will accept it. We will realize
the benefit of it as We have realiz-
ed the benefits of the Peabody fund
through our graded schools of Vir.
GINA up to this time. 1t is for the
benefit of education; and it is sim.
ply question as to whether we
want this money, and whether it is
constitutional to have it, aud
whether the Senate is willing to
give it to us. Let those who do
not want it say so in terms; but do
not try to belittle the subject; do
not say that it is in violation of
some abstract constitutional prin-
,iple that was long ago played out,
particularly in Virginia, that State
which, repeat, refused to accept
Ter proportion of the proceeds OF
he public lands and left the child
en- without the benefit of them,