The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1889-03-08
LATIN IN THE GRADED SCHOOLS.
The Opinion of Leading North Caro-
lima Educator.
Especial Cor. to STATE CHRONICLE

! ed hoolsappears to cause some opposition
! to the schools. This is much to be +, gret
| ted; for If there is one thing III Raleigh
| whose continued existence and prosperity
IS very important 10 her steady growth, it
is her public school system
The study of Latin seems to be regarded
as an extraordinary privilege which no
man should enjoy at the public expense.
| 1t Is regarded a sort of special equip
ment for lawyers, doctors, preachers, edi
| tors, teachers and literary men generally.
Its value to these professions is undoubt
| edly very great and whoever would at
tain to eminence in any of them without
q knowledge of Latin may be sure that he
! Will need a natural talent bordering upon
genius or a habit OF industry that sur
! mounts every obstacle. | will not now
discuss the wisdom of teaching Latin in
| the public schools in order to make it
possible for the brightest boys, rich or
! poor, IN every community to enter these
! professions with their minds we'll plerar-
ed by early aiming. Suffice it to say that
| It IS a dlsadN dNantage TO any community
when its educational system is SO arrang-
| ed as to make it very difficult for the son
OF he average citizen to enter certain Iro-
| feSSiOuS and achieve eminence therein.
! The best interests of any community de
mand the fullest opportunities for the de
! velOpment IN every direction of all the
| talent it contains.
But the chief value of Latin is not its
! special utility to lawyers, doctors and 9th
er professional men. 1t has value of its
own, which entities it to a place in every
school in the United States that aims
either to tram the mind thoroughly or to
teach English grammar with good results.
How many schools are there of any preten-
siOnS in North Carolina that do not teach
Latin How many competent teachers
are there in North Carolina who would
teach a boy SIX years without trying to
make him study Latino Where is the
teacher who will not say that the effcit ncy
of his school is doubled by course in
Latin After boy has learned to read
write and spell fairly we'll and can calcu
late interest, he should begin the study of
Latin. This is the rule in most private
schools, and in some the study is begun
carrier. Why should a different system
prevail in public schools Is 1t not very
remarkable if boys mind needs one sort
Of training in a private school and another
sort in public school2
Opposition to Latin is opposition 10 eff
cient schools. The bane of cur public
schools IS now their inefficiency. They ac-
complISh poor results and therefore do not
command popular enthusiasm or even
popular support. This must be changed -
a beginning has already been made. The
graded schools by efficient work are show
ing the people what is really meant by
popular education. But the graded schools
must all teach Latin before they reach the
proper degree Of efficiency. 1t is not nee
es>ary here to point out the merits Of Latin
training. No competent teacher will deny
them. The experience and practice of the
whole world proclaim them.
If any school, public or private, has {.
six years course of study, the last two
years at least should include Latin. ! do
not hesitate to say that the last two years
OF such course would be worth as much
as the first four. y better knowledge of
English grammar and analysis can be
gained by studying Latin one year than
! by Supplying and dulling and confound-
ing the mind for many years with that in
| finite mass of abSurdItieS usually included
! in English grammar. doubt whether one
| child IN ten ever learns or can learn any
| English grammar for practical use by
! studying the average English grammar
Whoever has studied Latin to a good pur-
| pose will confess that his knowledge of
| English grammar was gained by studying
| Latin. The usual method of teaching En-
! giish grammar not only fails TO teach it,
! but even gives the mind at an early age a
| positive dlstaste and dislike for English
| literature.
II the graded schools are to teach only
! reading writing and arithmetic, let them
cut down their grades to two or three.
| But if any subiec. beyond the three rs"
IS to be included, that subject should be
/ Latin Show me a boy who can't spell
! correctly, read correctly, write correctly,
or pronounce correctly; and who has little
| or no power of analyZing sentences and
/ 81.
| boy straight and to get the kinks out of
| his head is to put him to studying Latin.
This does him infinitely more good in
every way than teaching him to bound
| Afghanistan, or to parse Gray's Elegy,
or to memOrlze the names of the Cover
nOrS of North Carolina, or to put John
rides the goat into four little pens yoked
together by lines indicating rare gram
matical horsemanship, or to ''instll into
his little mind the eternal truths of histo
ry, or to ''teach him early iu life the
fundamental maxims of political economy"
or to introduce him to the ''mysteries of
the Eustachian Tubes or the Cardiac Ori-
fee
There is not a boy in North Carolina
who would not be improved n thousand
WAYS by studying Latin. The ignorance
and pre- iudlce against the subject are
amazing and shameful. The high grade
public schools all over the United States
teach Latin, and the private schools Of
every grade teach it, if the teacher is com
petent. There is no competition between
the graded schools and the private high
schools except what is right and whole
some. The graded schools can never com
pete with the best private schools, like
Aorson Il Densons, St Mary's and Peace
Institute.
The best private schools in America
stand right by the side of the best graded
schools. Raleigh may we'll be proud Of
her private schools and we'll may she fos-
ter them But it is an insult to them, an
Injustice to the great multitude of her
public school children and violation of
the universally recognized principles of
education when Raleigh excludes Latin
from her graded school course
GEO. T. WINSTON.
She Broke the Engagement
because she saw that he had ceased tc
love her Her beauty had faded, her for
mer high spirits mad given place to dull
la5aitude. What had caused this change
Functional derangement; she was suffer
ing from those ailments peculiar to hel
sex. And 50 their two young lives drifteG
apart How needless, how cruel! HaC
she taken Dr. Pierce's Favorite Prescrip
tion she might have been restored tC
health and happiness. If any lady reader