The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1886-07-01
INDt STRIiL EDUCATION.
SOME PRACTICAL VIEWS FROM 4
PRACTICAL MAN.
North Carolina Can Live Without Indus.
TRAILS Trained Men Hut IL Can Never
Get Rich Without Them.

|, h.., been a matter of regret 10 the
writer that any advocates OF the new cd
ucation should take the position that there
+ can be any Kind Of conflict between il and
the University
Certainly when the project began to be
mpotcd in this State there seemed Ia b..
H. valid ground To suppose there csull
/ possibly Ice any friction hetw cen the two
or IN other words that the one would
be IN the May Of the other
The Industrial School feature. unless we
/ are greatly III error, was Intended 10 till
gap not hitherto occupied. II did not pro
/ pose 10 infringe upon anything the nj
/ Terslty was then doing, or 50 far as the
I public knew, intended doing.
80 far as our Industrial School Com
mlttee Is concerned, II has never been our
! purpose, directly or indirectly, 10 urge
( that the school should obtain any part OF
/ its income from, To put it plainly
should thrive at the expense of the Uni
Versity. In the beginning of our work
certain rumOrS were brought 10 our atten-
/ ton, coming, as we understood it, from
the earnest friends of the University. to
/ the effect that the scheme would be likely
to work to the detriment of that institu-
ton; whereupon the writer, ;a chairman
of the Industrial School Committee,
promptly wrote to President Battle, ask
NIX MS l'itStiiCc slitl III
and formulating suggestions for the in
ception of the work.
quote an extract from this letter rs
follows:
I'm this preliminary meeting II was dis
tinctly stated by the writer and others,
| and was understood to be the sense of the
meeting, that the Industrial School must
not be allowed TO conflict with either the
graded school system or with the Univer-
sity and colleges of the State"
In his reply President Battle says:
Il agree with you that the new school
need not conflict with the University and
colleges"
| mention this particularly TO show the
| animuS of the committee, which has on it
many warm friends of the University who
desire its prosperity to the fullest extent.
am aware that the industrial school idea
is looked upon in some parts of North Caro-
lima us a Raleigh scheme and nothing more.
1t is vastly more And if there were good
and valid reasons why Raleigh should not
have the school and these reasons could
be shown, believe | know her people well
enough to say that they would make no
further claim for it and certainly would
not seek to prevent its establishment else
| where.
From our investigations we are impell-
ed to believe that the interests of North
Carolina need such a school.
Why is it such a popular thing to cry
out against Raleigh Is it because in
North Carolina there is an abundance of
unemployed mental talent which enables
opinions to be grasped and clung to which
would not gain a foothold if our people
had active constant employment of head
and hand as we'll
believe the time will come when, un-
less one desires to become a true specialist
III some profession requiring mental train
ing alone no education will be counted
approximately perfect unless it embraces
reasonable cultivation of all the faculties
with which we are endowed.
1t can be safely asserted that in four
fifths Of the education offered in schools
in this State to male youths, apart from the
training the hand receives to WELD pen,
that It's remaining faculties as a factor in
individual support and in the accretion of
wealth are entirely ignored. When we
consider in the economies of the world the
immense proportion of wealth which is
the product of manual work, (and is not
all material wealth so derived = it appears
to be a prodigal waste of opportunities to
neg lect in early training this all lmpor-
tant subject. Is it not time to cry "A halt,
to yield some of our fixed and deep rooted
prejudiccs and to assume what must be
a reasonable attitude to the all important
subject of fitting our sons for real life
1t is but fair to claim that industrial
education is but little understood i'll
North Carolna-.even by the majority OF
what may be called the educated portion
of her citizens. This is scarcely to be
wondered at, for the reason that it Is not
} to be expected that any considerable
number Will make special study of this,
or any other subject involving new me
| tbo6S i6aaS unless thpV n.
tinually forced on the public mind.
There is no country that needs indus
trial education more than a country like
New England, where there is a poverty OF
natural resources, where the life of the
commonwealth in each case is derived from
manufacturing the products of other and
oftentimes distant sections. Whenever
[ such a condition exists, competition de
:, mands and it becomes matter of prime
Importance to have the most exact and
} economical information on all industrial
} subjects; lacking which, their supremacy
in manufacturing ulsuitS is lost.
/ In a State like ours, it is possible to ex
t ist without this special training, just "a
l one may exist without the comforts oi
horle life which wealth can readily supply
Just as long as our people are content te
2 see the riches of natural resources going
. to waste around them, or again, going of
to New England 10 be manufactured duC
resold to us-just so long we can do with
out Industrial training.
t 1t must be remembered, however, tha
, the largest profit in nearly all kinds o
e commodities, is not made by the produces
/ of the raw article, but in the manipula
r ton and after handling of the same ma
{ terial.
Thus even if it We're true that our raw
products could be carried 500 10 700 miles
manufactured and resold to us about a
cheaply as the same things could BIC afford
E.: ed by home manufacture, it must be born
in mind how much Is lost to Us that woult
be paid out in the various stages Of mani
pulation. If we 90 step further an'
4 grant that the various articles Of machin
. cry needed in manufacturing could b
= produced at home, this, added to the for
: mer item would constitute an immens
source Of revenue 1t may be claimed tina
. it is idle to expect any great results fron
industrial training IN North Carolina.
= They will be seen in the course Of time
h and il is our purpose to attempt u brln
that time nearer.
One Of the most important condition
to Je fulfilled is industrial training and
have no hesitancy in saying that this train
L u