The record-union., 1893-03-25
SUPPORTED By ALL.

SUPPORTED By ALL.
Deriving from the people the means
LOT It's support, 1t has legal authority
and accountability and moral resn0nsi,
bility. Supported by all. and free 10 ali
there must be nothing about it to which
any unprejudIced citizen of the republic
can nationally object; and each mnst nse
IL so as not to interfere with the RIGHTS
and duties of others.
Inc governmental power which assesses
ana collects taxes cannot be emploved to
promote or repreSS the interest Of any
secular or religious section of the citizen
snip: or Tor any purpose less than the i'm
partlal and highest good of all. Religious
education belonging primarily to the
family and the church, the State. guaran-
teelng religious liberty, permits ali de-
nominations who desire to do so to estab-
Ash church schools, colleges and semi
narles at their own expense.
WHAT THE OBLIGATION INVOLVES.
The State cannot oblige the church to
teach the rights and needs and duties of
citizenship. This obligation. involves
both the rights of the child and Of tho
State, and rests largely upon the parent
Ihe State can compel the performance of
this obligation, and can secure these rights
by the enactment and enforcement nj
compulsory laws, binding upou parents
ana guardians, as the condition of the
1ree existence of civil and religious lib
erty. Ii Ine church pretends in its schools
TO give the education that the State riuht-
fully requires, then the State must know,
the fact by having supervisory access TO
these schools.
W hen the limits of church and State
authority IN matters of education are
properly defined, in accord with the pur-
pose and spirit of republican institutions.
and when by each their normal and legit-
n I'll Il. ..-e1
mony will enSue. The American peoDle
will secure this result even if they are
compelled to conquer a peace and make
that peace perpetual by constitutional
intrenchments.
THE SCOPE OF EDUCATION.
Compulsory education laws are pre-
supposed in the right of people to Goy-
ern themselves. Such laws are only on
posed in this country by those who
would employ ecclesiastical compulsion
to secure attendance on sectarian schools.
We trust the day is not far distant when
the scope of education which the State
has right to require in its common
schools will be definitely and uniformly
determined, and the debate concerning
the attitude of the State toward church
schools and concerning the opposition to
State schools and TO compulsory laws and
their enforcement will be ended.
1llb III Wis OCDdLG JlG tDldlc Will aSSur-
edly insist upon the right and duty to
secure for its youthful citizens sufficient
elementary education, including the his
tory and laws of the country.
Whenever the issue is raised, the great
majority of our thoughtful, patriotic citi-
zens will be found teuaciously adhering
to substantially the following platform OF
purposes and principles concerning the
American free common school system:
knowledge Of the exact situation bv
all intelligent citizens, all genuine Ameri-
cans, native born and naturalized, in
every community, resolving themselves
into a committee ofthe whole, to jealouslv
watch and Loyalty guard these nurseries
of our citizenship, and whenever they are
assaulted conducting the defense without
malice, without bigotry, without fear,
without compromise.
An honest recognition of the commend
able features of our school system.
MASTERY OF THE NATIONAL LANGUAGE.
An equally honest recognition of the
defects, with Willingness to learn from
any and all other systems, which, in any
of their features, may. suggest needed i'm
proyemeDts.
a readiness to face the patent defects,