The state chronicle., 1893-06-25
VERY INCORRECT.

WIN lNOonnhO1.
"Worst OF all was the enforce
ment in North Carolina Of the
Schism act, repealed in England in
IT'S, which prohibited auy one from
keeping a school in the province
unless he had obtained a certificate
from the Anglican authorities.
There is not doubt that the en-
forcement Of this act up to the pc
riod of the revolutionary war,
through the wide spread ignorance
which it engendared, is directly re-
sponsible for the large percentage
of illiteracy, and for the backward
ness of intellectual activity chara,
teristic of the State today"
The above is clipped from an ar
ticle reprinted from the New York
Sun by the Charlotte Democrat. It
has also been republished by sev-
eral other papers in this State. The
authority for the statement is a
book written by DR.. Weeks and re-
Gently published by Johns Hopkins
University. Although we have not
had the leisure to read DR.. Weeks
book thoroughly, we read it over
partly some time ago and think that
it sustsins the statement made in
the above extract There is much
in the volume TO commend and
there is reason to praise Dr.. Weeks
for diligence and Investigation. It
seemed to US, however, that he was
not content to narrate the story,
| but had en- objective point to
| work up to. Now as matter
Of fact, so far as we know, the
''schism act" never WAS in force in
North Carolina. What DR.. Weeks
is driving at is this: After the
King bought his interest in North
Carolina be claimed the right to
disallow any act passed by the leg
islature. It was along about 1866,
fifty years after the schism act had
been repealed in England, (and ii
never had been in operation il
| North Carolina), when the legisla.
ture proposed to charter an incor
| porated academy with trustees 81
| New Berne, the act, if we are cor
rect, making an appropriation fol
it, and the point was made on be-
half of the King that since he had
the right to disallow the act, h
would do 80 unless provision wa
made requiring the teacher to be
long to the established Church
Thus likewise in regard to the Eden
ton Academy, and in regard to tn,
, Queens College, at q later date pro
posed to be chartered at Charlotte
{ the King having negative OF
, North Carolina legislation, used
in his discretion. For reasons @
State he deemed it proper that in
corporated academies should be un
, der the influence of the estsblishe
) Church, which was supposed to b
| reliably attached to the Grown.
/ But with schools rot dependin
for their creation on his will, he ha
/ nothing to do. Any man in Mort
Carolina was we believe at liberty t
r teach school, and schools were kel
\ We suppose in every neighborhoo
e where circumstances permitted.
d And we are especially surprise
" that newspaper published in Mecl
! lenburg county could print tn
above extract, without question, 8
it is familiar to all that when Mecl
{, lenburg was settled, as far back s
las, the Presbyterian ministers {
n once established very excelle1
IS schools there. Although the MI
It MORALS of those early days 8,
| scant and imperfect, yet as far as "
n know there was no such provisic
d as DR.. Weeks mentions, except
d regard to the academies establishe
It by law at New Berne and Edento