Evening star., 1898-07-12

LIBERAL SUPPORT
Relations of the Government to Pop
ular Education.
ADDRESS BY SUPERINTENDENT SEAVER
Public Schools and the Universities
Under Consideration.
THE GENERAL DEBATE
BY SUPERINTENDENT SEAVER
THE GENERAL DEBATE

| SSae>eheioii
| n. E. A. delegates at the session held at
| the National Theater this morning the
| last meeting of the series. Popular educa-
| ton promoted by the national governments
in America and Europe were compared and
the duty of the educated towards the state
| set forth. The principal address was by
| Mr.. Edwin P. Seaver, superintendent of the
| Boston public schools.
| Mr.. u. Y. Snyder of Colorado. was called
| upon for a report of the committee on nor
| NAL schools, appointed at the last session.
| He stated that owing to the difficult char
| acter of the work and the lack of funds TO
| meet the necessary expenses, it had been
| impossible for the committee to complete
its Investigations, and therefore there was
| no report to submit.
Superintendent Seaver's Address.
Superintendent Seaver argued that the
most liberal support of public instruction
| in all grades from university to kindergar-
| ten is the public policy most in accord with
| the principles of democratic government.
| Popular education had been adopted by
| monarchial governments to promote the
| national spirit, to increase national power.
or to promote the welfare of subjects. But
| in democratic nation. education was not
| boon conferred by the government on the
| people; it was a matter which the people
| themselves had chosen to promote through
the action of their governments. The
child's right to an education, which is also,
| much more, the communitys right that
| the child be educated, has been embodied
| in the fundamental law, or constitutions of
our republican state governments, as a Sc
| curty for civil liberty. There is limit
| 10 what government of the people and by
the people may do for the people in edu
! cation in anything else. Public support
| Of university education is no less legiu-
| mate and no less necessary to the welfare
| of a democracy than is the public support
of common schools.
| A democracy must educate its leaders.
! said Mr.. Seaver. An absolute government
can suppress demagogues; a democracy
can only hope to make them harmless by
| education. jefferson, the father of Amer
| iCan democracy. advocated general sys-
| TEN of free public il struction ranging from
| the common schools to the university, and
designed to reach every description of our
citizens, from the richest to the poorest
| The University of Virginia, which he per
suaded the legislature of his state to
| tablish. adorns his memory no less worth
| fly than does the Declaration of Inde-
pendence.
Public School and Universities.
| The public high schools, the speaker
argued. should be constantly kept in close
| and vital relations 10 the universities. They
| should be enlarged and developed until
| they reach thu standard of foreign schools
| of similar grade Much of the work now
| done in the earlier half of the usual COL
| lege course in this country should b. dcne
| in the public high schools. This accord
| ing to Mr.. Seaver. is the next step forward
| in the progress of our secondary educa-
| ton. For the benefit of the many youths
who do not find what they need III our
present high schools, there should be main
tained, at the public cost. industrial. tech
nical and commercial schools of the kind
well known in France and Germany. Were
| the United States as well provided with
| schools of this kind as Germany is and
were they well attended. we should
| have more pupils in them than we now
have in all our public schools. The remark
able progress made in recent years by
Germany in manufactures and commerce
| has impressed England with the import
| ance of industrial and commercial educa-
| ton, and schools for this purpose are be-
coming numerous and strong in this coun-
| try
| In Mr.. Seaver's opinion, we shall learn
| some time that the surest protection to our
| industries whether infant or adult, is not
| high protective tariff, but industrial educa-
ton.
All children, rich and poor alike. should
| be educated in public schools. While the
| right of the parent to use private schools
was not denied by the speaker he asserted
| that he believed it to be best that some
| part, at least, of every child's education
should be in the public schools. where he
may learn those lessons of civic equality
and fraternity and of patriotic duty which
| only public schools can fully impart. The
| struction, in all grades. is the education of
| the young citizens to good citizenship
| Universal suffrage is in itself guaranty
of civil liberty. Neither is universal suf-
frage Joined with popular intelligence 1t
was a highly intelligent people in France
| that voted to accept the second empire.
Duties of Voters
The American voters who deliver their
| city or their state over to the domination
| of the political boss are intelligent enough
men; they can read and write; they can
reason from cause to effect; they under
stand the rights and duties pertaining to
citizenship; but they prefer to serve their
own selfish ends, or they are culpaby in
different.
Therefore, said Mr.. Seaver, it is not more
| intelligence that we want, but more con-
science among those who hold the des-
TIMES of the nation in their hands Read
| ing and writing tests afford no remedy.
The only radical cure is to be found in
making public instruction universal and
also everywhere intensely patriotic. This,
declared DR.. Seaver, is the plain duty of
| the democratic state to education.
The General Discussion.
Miss A. B. Fisher sang very pretty So
prano solo, after which the discussion of
| the subject presented by DR.. Seaver was
begun by Superintendent McHenry Rhoads
| of Frankfort, KY.
Matter of Legislation.
1t was Mr.. Rhoad's belief that self-gov-
ernment cannot exist without thorough
popular education. If the legislatures and
public officers are wise and liberal in their
administration of affairs they must extend
popular education in a humanstic spirit.
The universality of popular education
should not only be the pride of the people.
but the guarantee of the future existence
of the state.
Problem for Superintendent.
"An Important Problem for the School
Superintendent" was the subject of paper
by Mr.. Richard Hardy, superintendent of
public schools at Ispeming, Mich The
problem Mr. Hardy discussed was the best
means for conducting the school for The
best interests of its supporters and at
tendants. Superintendents should give
more attention to the affairs of heir own
individual districts, because every commu-
nifty has its own peculiar problems to solve
The solution should be along pedagogical
and sociological lines.