St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1890-03-29

more numerous class than most people
suppose, there being iu' all 1884 on tht
rolls for the year, of whom 1909 were
white and 725 colored. The average
pay OF these teachers was slightly ir
excess of $50 per month, and this fol-
only five months in the year.
This exhibit will not surprise the
people of the State; in fact, it is, per.
haps, better than the most of them
expect,:sfor the total fund for the edu.
cation of the 10000 children within
the scholastic ages derived from State
revenues is only $32s,O0O year, OF
So GO for each pupil il all attended the
schools, and only a few cents over So
each for the 10000 children who did
attend.
With 10000 educabIe children absent
from the public schools it is fair to as
sumo that they sepresent approximate
~ the number of illiterates of their
generation who will in few years
grow to manhooti and womanhood, and
be merged into the general citizenship
of the State.
| There are two other statements
made in Superintendent Breaux's re-
port which are more startling than the
figures just presented. though fairly
deducble from them. The first is that
it will require twice as many schools
as are now provided by the State to
educate tho i!Ilterates and second,
that the sum necessary to maintain
the schools we now have for eight
mouths in the year is $S00,000, or more
than double the fund now available.
In the above computation no consid
GRAFTON is given to the fact that the
total enrolment of coored children in
the State falls about $4,000 short OF
the total enrolment of white children,
whereas the two races are nearly equal
in numbers in the State, and the dis
crepancy in the scholastic census ought
hardly to be apparent.
1t is q grave question, not readily
answered, what betterment of its school
system the State of Louisiana, by the
people and through the Legislature,
proposes to make. 1t is the settled
policy of all liberal and enlightened
States to provide free education for
their youth, and Louisiana caDnot af-
ford to ignore its duty in this respect.
can liberty and the great motor of
human progress, without which nations
retrograde and lapse into primitive
civilization. At this juneture, on the
threshold OF perhaps a new era of her
development, it would be almost suici-
dal for Louisiana to neglect her public |
school system, not only on account of |
the growing iIliteracy of her own chill |
dreD, but because the new population
from other States lately settled here,
notably in the Southwestern parishes,
and others who will soon seek homes |
among us, are so accustomed to the |
benefits of ample free school facilities, |
that they will not be satisfied with |
limited advantages under which their
children may grow up in ignorance.
To parents, pupils and teachers tiIjs
is question Of grave Importance, and +
hardly less so to the pnbiieist and
philanthropist, who look with dsfavor
on whatever tends to retaid the pro-
gress of education and enlightenment.
The system We now have is in good
hands, and Superintendent Breaux can
De relied on to de2elop it to the high
est efficiency possible under the cir
What the schools need is
more money and plenty of money, but
low to provide it is a problem not
EASILY solved. This duty devolves on
he Legislature, and at it's coming ses-
non it is hoped that plans will at least
,e inaugurated to put the educational
'ystem of the State on solid, progress
i've and permanent basis.