The San Francisco call., 1896-08-24
THE NEED FOR CULTURE
Ignorance of the People Natu.
rally Hostile to Patriot
ism.
RIGHTS OF CHURCH AND STATE
Address of the Rev. w. T. Fleenor
Yesterday in Metr opolitan
Hall.

81 expect" said h. W. Outflow, the
chairman, in opening the good citizen
ship meeting yesterday afternoon in Met
ropolitan Hall, ''soon to make an an
nouncement that will greatly surprise and
please you"
Although the chairman did not specify
what was the surprise mentioned by him
the audience loudly applauded.
Then the Rev. W. T. Fleenor of Seattle,
the orator of the day. was introduced.
His subject was 'Our Public Schools, the
Palladium of American Liberty" and in
the course of his address he said:
1--WE possess brains and principles.
They are infinitely better than the dollars
of our enemies. We can also boast of q
good conscience, which is of far more
value than gold and silver. 1 believe in
education, and victory for our principles
is to be won only through the heroism
and patriotism of our people.
'tThe notes of liberty rung out by inde-
pendence bell mean far more to-day than
they did in the past. We are the custodi-
ans of the Declaration of Independence
and we must defend the rights of Ameri-
can liberty. Our public schools are a
heavenly boon, born and bred and devel-
oped with freedom. The little red school
house sat over on the hill and superin-
tended the building of Bunker Hill monu-
ment. Our schools gave the brain, the
blood and the sacrifice that drove the last
redcoat from American soil. The schools
are neither an incident nor an accident.
They are the germ of freedom on land and
on sea.
1--WE claim the divine right to educate
our own people, and we can never recog-
nize the union of church and state. This
country must analyze and determine the
quality of it's citizens, and what is needed
more than anything else for the salvation
of our Nation is to give character to its
people. American patriotism is purely an
American product. and it is in the public
schools that patriotism is implanted and
developed.
"The danger to our institutions lies in
imported ignorance, which can be trans
formed only by culture. Forty per cent of
the Irish and French of New
England can neither read nor write. JEFF
ferson has said that the public schools are
an essential feature of our Government,
and Grant said that not dollar of the
public money should be given to the sup
port of sectarian schools.
Rome is to-day hostile to our public
schools, because they mean death to Ro-
manism. We must have virtue as well as
culture, and | favor compulsory educa-
tion. In our public schools 1000 900 of
children are studying the constitution and
history of the American Republic. Papal-
ism Is the giant foe to our schools, and
an ally of Ignorance. 1t tries to destroy
them by public slander, and by demorali-
cation. If | had my way, would hang
every man and woman uttering any trea-
sonable sentiments against this Govern
ment. Bishop Hughes says the public
schools are disgrace to civilization;
Father Walker thinks them nurseries of
x-,an Drfa ~ fhx-1 IlcF ~ NoA. 81
frauds, and Bishop Ireland says they are
fit only to train horsethieves and murder
ers. Bishop Spauld1ng, however. asserts
that the public schools mean life to the
Republic, and death to Romanism, to
which sentiment say amen.
Rome now realizes that she must get
the Stars and Stripes off the little red
schoolhouse before she can tear it down.
The mutilation of the flag, even in the
privacy of our own homes, should be a
felony and amenable to a severe punish
ment. The trouble with US Americans is
that we are too tolerant. The parish
schools, which Rome wishes to substitute
for our free public schools, are arrant hum
bugs. They do not educate their pupils,
but teach only slavish devotion to the
church.
Il hold that no church should have a
voice in State education, and as l have al
ready said, that is where the danger lies.
To overcome these difficulties let all good
American citizens stand firmly by the
constitution and the flag of the United
States of America and the principles of the
American Protective Association"
Chairman Outflow announced that in
future admission to the Sunday gather
ings would be free, since in this way the
sentiments of the association could be
more widely extended.
After singing the "Battle hymn of the
Republic the audience dispersed.