The Windham County reformer. (Battleboro, Vt.) 1876-1897, 1891-10-02

champions Of public schools give Catholics
rest now and then, and train their guns OF
others who are equally ofendingi II offenc,
there IL. Il have seen II stated that Episco
palians all honor to them have more church
schools than Catholics have, according Il
their respective numbers. Baptists snt
|, Methodists are also doing great work In thai
: line.
The last census emphasizes the fact thai
other denominations are far outstrippipe
Catholics In building and maintaining separate
schools. Mention Ia made Of one city q for
get the name) where sixteen thousand Protes
tant children are being educated outside the
public schools. Attention Is also called tc
the fact, that the attendance 10 the public
schools of San Francisco Is less to-day BY liz
than 1t was In 1885. Now this shows q great
falling off when the increase of the city since
1888 is taken into consideration. According
TO the Catholic directory the number of Catho.
lie schools In San Francisco has not Increased
much since 1885.
1t Is not true that the great bulk of the bet.
ter class OF citizens, especially In large cities,
(by better mean rlcher) never send their
children to the public schools! 1t may be
said that others have different motives from
Catholics In not sending their children to the
public scooos. Very likely. The motive of
the rich man. | suppose Is. that he would not
| allow his child mix with the rank and file of
children at public school. The motive Of
the Catholic is purely religious, and leave to
the reader to judge which Of the two Is the
more undemocratic.
In the face of all this, why, I ask, are Cath.
olics alone singled cut as enemies of the pub
lie schools? They are not enemies. Such
schools are necessary or something else to
take their place. And ia regard to the school
tax, few Catholics complain. Every sensi.
bic man knows that In civilized country he
must pay many taxes that he de-
rives no direct benefit from. He aces In
every town rich men, who have no children,
pay large school taxes. l, for Instance, who
have neither riches nor children, pay double
school tax without groan.
The article 10 question speaks of the ''iso.
lation of creed or race" as an evil. What 10
meant by the isolation of creed do not very
well know; but the iso ation of race Is surely
an evil. But schools, public or private, afford
no panacea for this evil. Every one knows
that all distinctions survive school days, and
are just as strong and as marked, as II the
young people had never sat on the same bench
or stood IN the same class. To illustrate ~
A colOred student of Harvard was chosen
last year to deliver the class Grafton. The
Grafton was delivered and everything was very
nice, loving and fraternal But the Boston
papers next morning told the blunt truth
when they said that one week from that date
not one of his fellow students would recog.
niZe him on the streets.
likely that nothing can wash 1t out. But
when the difference Is simply, that, one was
born on the banks Of the Thames, another on
the banks of the Shannon or the Spree, time
will surely efface this. And time alone can
do It.
think 1t might hasten this time, II GER
tain exclusive set would cease calling Amer.
lean citizens "lrish, ""Germans," etc. It's
matter Of daily experience to hear young
people born In the country and their fathers
and mothers born In the country, called
"Germans," "Irlsh." "French." whereas
they are In reality, In heart and soul, Ameri-
cans, and nothing else. How could It be
otherwise? They know little and care less
about any country, but the land of their birth.
As to this Rev. Jas. l. Conry, eulogizcd In
the REToRMER, do not know him, but l
suspect that he Is priest and 1t Is wonder
that there are not more of them who would
rather pocket his salary than spend II on
schools; and is driven to find high.sounding,
patriotic Fourth Of July reasons to hide his
avarice, and gain little newspaper notoriety.
2. CUNNINGHAM.