The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-07-20
Considering q Homely Theme,

During the past few weeks the
Springfield Republican has been print
ing a valuable series of articles by
thoughtful contributors dealing with
the need of better instruction in morals
and department among the young. The
subject is of vital Importance and, dis
cussion of it cannot fail to be widely
profitable. The tenor of the articles
seems to point to a recent growth in
rowdyism for which most of thescon-
tributors appear to hold the schools
chiefly responsible. But this elicits
from a Holyoke, Mass, teacher a spirit
ed protest that contains many thoughts
quite as pertinent to the subject of
proper education in Scranton as in New
England.
This teacher asserts that one cause
of the inferior department of the young
of today as compared with the young
forty or fifty years ago lies in the fact
that parents are turning their children
entirely over to the school for training
and purposely neglecting to do their
own duty. From much of the talk
that you hear" this writer says, you
would be forced to believe that the
school is the only agency in civilization.
Yet there are three great factors for
good that should be working together
for the saving of the young,-the home,
the church and the school. There Is
work enough to be done for all these
three factors-the load is heavy enough
for all The home is the natural nur-
sery, the other two being more or less
artificial Nothing can take the place
of the home,-the father and the moth
er,--and when we try to do this we
are simply substituting an artificial
for natural process. The home must
be first and foremost in it's influence,
and the other agencies must be assist
ants, We are, therefore, looking to the
school to do too much. We are asking
il to do the work that the home has re-.
fused to do, and that the church cannot
do because it cannot reach all the peo-
pie. So bold has the home become in
this line of. refusal to accept its share
of responsibility that mothers often
send their children to school a year
before the time, and admit it is because
they wish to get the children out Of
their way"
Coming to particulars the Holyoke
writer, condemns the almost omnipres-
ent practice of parents in permitting
their children to loiter after school
hours and in the evenings upon the
streets, thus learning both idleness and
vice; and suggests that another rem
edy would be to turn all lawbreakers
over to the law and have them prose-
cuted. 1--WE have too much favoring
people who are connected with educa-
tional institutions" he adds. There
is no reason for this. In law all per-
sons are the same, and 1t cannot but
have a bad influence on, pupils If we
give them reason to believe they will
be protected in wrong doing just be-
cause they are connected with some
school. When our schools protect their
pupils from the consequence Of lawless-
ness, these schools become promoters
OF crime. 1t should be a common prirfS
ciple OF moral teaching that the wages
of sin is DEATH that the breaking OF
law has its penalties and no one is
exempt from its operations. Much OF
our work has been just the opposite.
Many persons are so shallow as to
claim that pupils should be protected
when caught. their name should not be
hurt, etc. Very soon pupils come to