St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1889-06-30
Has It Departed From the
Pristine Purity Of Ameri-
can Principles?
Personal Liberty Threatened
if All Are TRAINED to
Think Alike"
Remedies Suggested by s
Lifelong Student Of
the Subject.

and happiness of the people of the
United States. Either the present sys
tenn is right or wrong. If wrong, We
are guilty of an incalculable and un
pardonable injustice not only to II, 900,
COO of school children to-day, but tt
posterity for generations to come. II
must be equally evident, l think, to ali
those who have followed me through
these articles that the present system
is radically defective in more ways than
one. 1t has departed from Its original
aim and plan, and is becoming emphat-
ically un-American in its character
Its evident tendency now is to become q
huge monopoly and despotism pro-
tected by penal enactments, first of the
seperate states. finally of the federal
government. Its legitimate effect must
be to destroy all personal liberty IN the
matter of education, and its aim, as
stated by the United States commission
OF. education at page 200 of his official
report for 1867, THAT they (the peo-
ple) may be trained to think alike" (D
1t may not be inopportune in this cen
tennial year to see how the system can
be nbrought into better harmony with
the pristine purity of American
principles. This must be the work,
however, of no more amateur stu.
dent of the question of educational
reform; no mere tyrO in political and
legal lore. TO suggest the proper rem
edy without in the least offending
against the great fundamental principles
of constitutional liberty would be the
work of one whsoe very position sup
posed an intimate acquaintance with
the scope aud meaning of these pfi2-
ciples, and who had in addition made
the question of educational reform a
life study. All these qualifications l
find in the honorable gentlemen who,
BY reason OF his legal ability, was consid-
cred worthy to occupy for four years the
responsible position of assistant attOr-
ney general of these United States,
and who has. moreover, made the ques-
tion of educational reform the subject
of earnest and exhaustive study for
more than twenty-five years. AS he
was the first to call attention to the
startling revelations of the United
States census reports, as they affect the
question of education, so his shall be
the honor of suggesting remedy. His
principles are laid down in seven propo-
sltions, and though each one seems to be
self-evident, yet they are pregnant
with wisdom and far-reaching cOnse-
quences: and, deserve, therefore, to be
read and reread, and considered, and
pondered with the deepest attention by
every true American citizen.
Their adoption would involve a thor
ough remOdeling Of the present system !;
but it appears to me that the obnoxious
features of that system would thus be
II wit IN 70 r,f
parents to control and direct the educa-
ton of their children would be fully pro-
tected; and the interests of the state in
the thorough and proper education of
all of its citizens would be amply Sc
cured, to say nothing of the vast saving
of expense to the government, which
now amounts to more than 100000, 900
per annum.
PROPOSITIONS.
First-Parents are bound, by the law
of nature, leach according to his ability
to properly feed, clothe and educate
their own children, and unwilling par
ents should be compelled, by appro-
pirate legislation, to discharge these du-
ties.
Second-It is public duty to assist,
at public expense. In furnishing the
necessary means wherewith to properly
feed, clGthe and educate children whose
parents are unable to so feed, clothe and
educate them.
Third-No citizen of this state should
ever be taxed for the feeding, clothing
or educating of children-not his own
whose parents are amply able to feed,
clothe and educate them.
Fourth-All such parents as are
neither mentally nor morally unfit to
have the custody of children are en-
titled, and in duty bound, to select for
the education of their own children
schools wherein they believe that
neither the teachers, the associations,
nor the kind of instruction given, will
seriously endanger either their health,
their lives, or their morals. but will best
promote their temporal and eternal
welfare.
Fifth-Neither the state. nor any mu-
nicipal or other government organized
upon the child of any parent-not
unfit to discharge the duties of the
parental office-any particular teacher,
book, or system of religious or non-re-
ligious instruction. against the conscien-
tiOus objections of such parent.
SiXth-TuitlOn, when at public ex-
pense, should embrace good common
English and business education, added
to such a thorough training in one or
more OF the mechanic arts, or the manu-
featuring, domestic. or productive in-
dustries, as will best prepare youth for
the practical business of self-suppOrt,
but should not extend to the merely Or
namental or more abstruse arts or sci
enceS, except in limited class of cases
Ito he provided for by law as reward
for exalted merit, when coupled with a
high order of talent and special apti-
tude for such arts or sciences.
Seuenth-The whole business of edu-
eating and training the young should,
like other professions, be open to pri-
vate enterprise and free competition:
Provided, that the state should estab-
: liSh and maintain such necessary educa-
tional institutions as private enterprise
shall fail to establish and maintain; and
every parent or guardian entitled to
have his or her child or ward educated
at public expense, should select for
such purpose his own school, and the
teacher or principal of such school
should be paid periodically for teaching
such pupil compensation, the maxi
mum of which shall be fixed by law,
which compensation should be proper
tionate to the progress made by the
pupil during sucn .neri0d OF tuition in
the legally appointed secular branches.
Said progress to be ascertained by ex-
aminers duly elected or appointed in
SUCH manner as may be provided by
law; but no religious tuition which may
be given in any such school should be
at public expense or subject to the
supervision of said examiners.
TOW intelligent citizens of all classes
regard these propositions, can best be
told by their author.
The friends and opponents Of the
in the city pf oakland on the evening
Of Oct. s, 1879, for the purpose Of con:
sidering their merits. In referring tC