Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1898-04-07

| 9.W-L1teratufe.. .Ifln. "A. IL. JOlley
autobiography. "A. Hardy
Hoo Arithmetic. ......A. II. Jolley
| 1:W-Language. .......... A. Hardy
| 2:30-Literature. ........A "A. X. Jolley
autobiography ..........A. Hardy
Miss Emma G. Underwood, county
superintendent of schools and Prof.
Schuster, of Dodgeville, were present
and ably assisted in the work.
At the city hall, on Friday evening,
Prof. Hardy delivered an admirable
lecture, which was filled with good
thoughts and wholesome admonition
for teachers, pupils, and all Others in
terested in the subject of popular ed
ucation.
THE LECTURE.
The subject of Prof. Hardy's lee
ture was Ideals in Education" He
said. in part, we educate our child
sen to fit them better to live and to be
more successful in life; to live a
happier, purer, nobler life. We prac-
tical Americans are sometimes in
clined TO distrust the ideal, to dispute
the theoretical. Nothing useful or
good ever existed or now exists, that
did not first exist in ideal. The differ
ence between the savage and the
|civilized man is in their ideas. There
is not only individual ideals, but
national ideals, ideals Of government
of national honor, of national ex-
istence of national destiny. The idea
of the American people, since the
foundation of its national government,
has been lofty, noble and true, no less
than the practical realization of the
brotherhood, of equality and freedom
OF humanity. This national ideal has
given birth to our national, or rather
our universal system of education
the education of all the people. Ours
Is the first nation since the foundation
of the world, to establish system
of universal education. Among the
ancient nations the few were born to
rule. The masses Of men were hewers
of wood and drawers of water; hence
they had no need of education. Educa-
ton was, therefore, limited to the
higher castles. This was true even in
Christian Europe downtomodern times
although the Master taught the uni
versal brotherhood of mankind. The
old system of authority; their method
was memorizing not investigation.
They dealt with the dead past, not the
living present. Their education was
the natural outgrowth of their ideal
humanity: of their narrow standard
of worth of manhood. Our stysem
of universal education is the result
OF our American ideal of manhood +,
that call men are created free and
equal" 1t was once reported by an
ambassador to his royal master that
the Roman senate was an assembly
of kings. Ours is u nation of kings.
Every with man us is n lawgivcr and
n ruler. What " privilege? What n
responsibility? This being our ideal
of education, what is our IDEAL
of the education fit for II nation of
rulers? For such people no educa-
ton can be too good; the best is none
to good not good enough. Owing to
the simple conditions of life in the
early days of our republic the demand
was for only II very elementary edu-
cation. Thus to read, write and cipher
were all the educational requirements
necessary ut that time. New con-
ditions exist today, and new questions
call for solution. "Old things have
passed away; all things have become
new. This revolution embraces all
life, and all things of life, great and
small, modes.of travel, production
and distribution, manufacturing, COM
merce, farming. This is what the
invention of machinery and the APP
plication of steam and electricity, as
motive powers, have done for us.
The conveniencies and luXuries of
life have been increased u thousand
fold: thousand new occupations
have been opened to labor as means of
earning II living. But with all the
inventions and improvements the
struggle for existence is increased
70 make " living is harder for the
individual. New and difficult prob
lens of society and government have
sprung up, and demand solution at
our hands The problems mnst be
solved 10y this nation of kings; but n
newer and higher idea of manhood
must first be created, First, educa-
ton should "malie for Righteousness. :"
The first and most important aim of
education is to develop character, to
cultivate in the child all the domestic
and civic virtues, respect for and
obedience to law Both in the family