The Portland daily press., 1892-12-19
cry religious sect, and by the Catholics

cry religious sect, and by the Catholics
quite as much as any.
Nevertheless it is a fact that admits OF
no deni al that the proposed amendment
is generally regarded is specially aimed
at the Catholics and this opinion is
shared in by the Catholics themselves.
The reason is that they are the only num-
erous body of Christians that are sugges-
ting the diversion of public mon y to
sectarian uses. When a Catholic bishop
OF priest talks. about the injustice of
compelling Catholics to pay taxes for
the support of the public schools, he is
only laying the foundation for demand,
when the opportunity arises, for a divis-
ion of the school money and the turning
over of that part contributed by the
Catholics to the clergy for the support
of their sectarian parochial schools. This
may not be precisely the same thing as
tartan schools, but it is equivalent to it.
It amounts to practically the same thing.
The amendment to the constitution thai
is proposed would prevent this and that
is the reason why it finds no favor with
the Catholic priesthood. 1t must be
obvious to every thinking man that the
moment a division of the school fund is
begun, or is permitted, that moment
the death kneH of the common
school system . is sounded. If
Catholics are allowed to sequester the
money paid by citizens of their faith, it
will be but very short time before
other sects will demand the same priyil-
eye and the common school under the
patronage and supervision of the state
will soon be succeeded by denomina-
tional schools conducted and con-
trolled by various religious sects..
Nevertheless, if, as the Catholic clergy
claim, the assessment Of Catholic citizens
for the support of the common schools is
an injustice, it ought to be discontinued.
for the State cannot afford to be unjust
even for the preservation of the common
school system. Is it unjust? Education
is admittedly necessary to prepare people
for the intelligent exercise of the rights
and duties of citizenship. An intelligent
exercise of the rights and duties OF citi
zenship is necessary. to the preservation
Of the State under our form of govern
ment. Hence education Of the people is
necessary for the preservation OF the state
The State rightly, therefore, makes
education compulsory, and having made
it compulsory it is clearly it's duty to pro-
vide the mean of education. This it can
do only by taxing the people. The
kind and extent of the education
to be provided for is to be de-
cided, like all other questions, by
the majority, having due regard to the
fundamental law and the spirit of our
institutions. The teaching of sectarian
religion may not be permitted because
that would be an Infringement upon the
liberty of conscience guaranteed to the
people. The Catholics make no
claim that anything taught in the
public schools infringes the liberty of
conscience Their complaint Is simply
that certain sectarian doctrines
are not taught in them. This
is not sufficient ground for excus-
ing them from the duty of contributing
to their support no more than would be
the complaint that they did not teach
Hebrew or Sanskrit. So long as the ed
ucation they furnish is admittedly such
as prepares men for the duties of citizen
ship, and does not infringe upon the re-
ligious freedom of the citizen they have
no good ground for asking
to be relieved from bearing their
part of the burden. 1t belongs to them
as component part of the state which
protects their persons and their property,
and guards their civil and religious lib
critics. AS well might man refuse to
contribute to the expense of general
measures to preserve the public health
because those measures did not recog
nize a particular school Of medicine.