The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1886-11-06
THE AMERICAS SCHOOL SYSTEM.

The Philadelphia Times the other day
published some interesting statistics
bearing on our present system of educa
ton. The idea is entertained by many
that universal education is 10 be the
medicine that shall relieve society OF
the evils of crime in all its phases. That
as the people Of any country are in.
telligent "in that proportion" as the
Times puts it, will they be self-sup-
porting and law-sbiding. But" con-
tinues that journal, present educs-
tional systems must be so seriously de-
fective or the assumption that knowl-
edge necessarily makes men better and
more self-helpfuI. is false one." As
case in point the Times refers to the
State of Massachusetts, which stands in
the front ranks-nay, We may say
stands first among her sister States in
the diffusion of education, and says:
Beginning with 1850, when tae population
| of the State was 90, 5l4, the number of per-
| sons in prison was ], 235, or one to So4 Of the
population. Thirty years later, in 1859, the
the prisoners to 1859, or one in 4S7. In other
words the prison population, in proportion
70 the entire population. had nearly doubled
in thirty years. This increase might very
naturally be attributed 20 the great influx
of foreigners. which took place during the
period mentioned. But here again the fig
ures show that the increase in native born
criminals was proporti0nRtely greater than
that of foreign born. In 1850 the native
population was S27 $50 and the native pris-
oners 65S, or / in ,267 Of those born in the
country. In 1850 the native population
numbered ISIS ,594 and the nstive criminals
seen that in spite of schools, colleges and
churches the native criminal population OF
Massachusetts, in proportion to the entire
population of the State, has more than
doubled within thirty years.
Perhaps America had better not con-
clude that the school system of Amer
lea is settled forever however strong the
arguments may be in favor of having
them non-sectarian in their character
In the effort to make them strictly nom
sectarian the moral training of the
youth has been neglected, and the evils
Of this onesided imperfect education
are making themselves manifest in So
ciety, in the serious deterioration Of
public morals. France, that has adopted
q like system to ours, is developing q
similar condition of things morally.
The results in both republics are the
same, and that fact is significant. That
education is, or can be made q powerful
factor for good in the correction of
crime. and checking its increase,
we are well assured. But
the system Of education that
acomplishes this good for society must
do something more than merely train
and instruct the intellect. Intellectual
education absolute, we fear, will not
improve. materially, the morals of
society. We are rather of the opinion
that it would operate the other way.
On the occasion of Herbert Spencer's
last visit to America, in conversation
with q gentleman of no-e in our
country, he was pointing ont what to
him appeared the perversion of our
American institutions, and the failure,
in some respects, of our system of
government to meet the requirements
of society. But" said the gentleman
to whom he was talking. "don't you
think that our system 7of education
will prove q remedy to all these evils?"
To which Spencer replied, at is not ed
ucation that your people need so much,
my friend. It. IS your educated men
who bring upon you those wrongs. It
is not question Of education, but OF
character" We suppose Mr.. Spencer
has used education" in what has be-
come the common scceptation OF the
term-intellectual education merely.
And character" is made up of some
thing more than merely intellectual
development; it requires moral deyel-