The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-05-11
ST. PAUL, SCHOOL UNION NOW PRE-
PARED TO WITHSTAND ANY
ATTACKS
AGAINST ST. PAUL'S SCHOOLS.
STRONG ORGANIZATION COMPLETED
ny THE ELECTION of OFFICERS
LAST NIGHT.
MISS EVANS, OF NoRTHFIELD,
Reads an Interesting and Able Pa
per-Others Join in u Word
for the Schools.

Vice President, East of WabaSha Street
Mrs. A. l.. Whitcomb.
Vice President West Of Wabasha Street
Vice President West St. Paul-Mrs. ]. G.
Bryant.
Treasurer-W. G. White.
Directors-Rev. w. N. Jameson. Van
Buren,; Mrs. c. A. Dibble Ramsey; Miss
Francis Amery, Drew; Rt. Rev. M. N. Gilbert,
BY the election of the above officers
and the cementing of it's organization,
the st. Paul Public School union began
it's history last night,in real earnest
with a most enthusiastic meeting held
in the assembly hall Of the central
high school, at which there were pres
ent large number of business and
professional men, mothers of school
children and a goodly representation OF
teachers, all interested in the move
ment to bring teachers and parents IN
closer relation for the betterment OF
the general school system.
The attendance included the MEM
bers of the several branch unions
which go to make up the central orga-
nization, and those who were present
listened with genuine pleasure to the
opening remarks of President E. D..
Woodman, anent the general purpose
Of the union and later to the very able
paper read by Miss Margaret Evans,
dean of the Mortified college, on The
Public Schools, a Moral Factor in the
Nation" In opening, President Wood
man found it a matter Of congratula-
ton that the membership of the union,
so lately begun should have so widely
extended, that not less than 300 men
and women had already loaned their
presence and influence to the move
ment which almost daily assumed
larger proportions. To Prof. Virgil
Curtis he paid the credit for much time
and courtesy and intelligent effort in
accomplishing the wished for intimacy
between the parents and the needs Of
the schools and teachers. The citl-
Zens and teachers, he said, were alike
interested in the union, and in speak
ing Of the preliminary work, he ex-
pressed the opinion that nobody had
done more faithful work in exploiting
the matter effectively than Miss
Brooks, to whom he wished to convey
his thanks
When he had reached the end Of his
little speech, he said by way of taking
up the business of the meeting that
the union was gathered together for
the purpose of formally organizing, to
elect officers for the coming year and
mapping out a general plan of action
for the future. Mrs. Power, the Sec
rotary, read over the minutes of the
previous meeting of the union, after
which the election of officers were pro-
ceeded with by ballot, with the result
heretofore announced.
When the votes were being counted
the president introduced Miss Evans,
who delivered a thoroughly interesting
talk, prefacing her remarks by brief
anecdote of the late Gen. Grant, who
chided a servant for attempting to
spare his master an interruption by
telling a visitor that the general was
not in. The doughty warrior said
I am not in. I don't lie myself, and l
don't want any one to lie for me. "
From the premise that the bluff presi-
dent formed and expressed a moral
judgment upon the act of his servant,
Miss Evans followed with the view
that such moral judgments presuppose
certain first principles of morals which
are universal, self-evidencing and I'M
questionable. and further that it is i'm
possible to think the contrary of these
principles, or to apply their contrary
as a general law of conduct in rational
life. The ability to recognize these
truths, to know the Ought" spontan-
eously, and to perceive that it does not
rest ON experience or desire, or on es-
cape from penalty, or in authority,
since the fought" has nothing to do
with consequence-this is reason, the
test Of a rational being, the basis Of
human responsibility. The speaker
classified the fundamental laws as fol-
lows: Laws of individual life, self-de-
velopnent, industry, temperance, pur-
ity; laws of the moral relations; those
of the social life, justice with honesty,
benevolence, truthfulness. fidelity
those Of the higher life-reverence,
love, obedience and believed they are
the laws of moral conduct, not relig-
ious requirement Right action is right,
not because religion requires it or even
because God wills it, since God wills
the law as an expression of absolute
right The right is based on first prin-
ciples of morals inherent in rational
beings
Since every rational being has these
imperatives of moral conduct in him
self, and acknowledges their authority,
it might be supposed that a large ma
jority of human beings would obey
them. This superstition of general ODE
dience may be variOusly stated. To us
the political world offers a tempting
test, since there we have no glass
houses. The realm of conventional So
cial intercourse might reveal to our test
the too great fragility Of our building
material. AS our thoughts turn today
to educational interests, it may be well
to apply a test which has some direct
relation to our public schools. The
ranks of business men are largely re-
cruited from the grammar grades OF
of the business world then affords a
test Of the result of training in the
schools, as well as general test OF
obedience in the moral law, especially
in the two laws of social life most in
volved in business transactions, thu
law of honesty and the law of truth
fulness.
Miss Evans read from a number OF
replies received, the views of bankers
railroad men, manufacturers, lawyers
ETC., to the effect that possibly from
fifteen to fifty per cent Of the men OF
today would not lie or take dishonest
advantage of each other, the balance
being those whose actions would be
influenced largely by considerations OF
policy, of business reputation or fear
Of detection.
Miss Evans says that careful observ-
ers believe that in commercial life the
standard Of integrity is not as high as
it was five years ago, and, further
that 1t is still on the downward trend
She contends that the average bust
ness man is the product of the average
home, the average Ahool and the aver
age social environment, and that few
men in business, are recruited from the
pauber or criminal classes. So far as
education is concerned, these business
men come from the public schools, and
from the most part from the grades