The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-10-17
Rev. DR.. W. s. Robinson
Upholds Civil Control
Of Institutions.
SERMON TO JUNIOR o.U.A.m
One Of the Greatest Dangers
to Our Country the Lust
for Gold.

preached 10 members Of the Junior Order
of United American Mechanics on sThs
Greatness OF Our Country" Sc said. in
part
We have reason 10 be proud Of our
institutions aud our influence upon ths
nations Of the Old World Castelar,, fhs
Spanish statesman declares that the
sight Of America has been an inspiration
to the friends of liberty in Europe. 4 IL
tie more than century ago all the gov
ernments Of Europe might have been cali
ed absolute despotsims. Today only rwo
absolute moAarchies exist in Europe
Russia and Turkey The people Of Eu-
rope are following the example of Arneri-
ca, and becoming governments of the peo-
pie. and by tbs. people. IN this country
we have demonstrated. first, that thers
can be religion without an established
church; second, that there can be univer-
sal education voted for and paid
for by the people themselves,
Second, that a popular government can he
the strongest of all governments. The
support OF education can be safely left to
the people under free institutions. The
census of 1850 showed in the United States
$50 public schools and 2350ia public
school teachers and 1896 100 public school
scholars; that the income Of the public
schools was s9e.s5 .5s4, and the income CT
private schools about half as much By
the 'Almanic of Gotha. it appears that
there was paid. in 1875 in France, for IN
struction, by the government, about 81,
10000, or not one-ninth the amount paid
for the public schools here. The same au-
thority tells US that the amount paid by
Great Britain the same year for national
instruction, was s1o,o0ooOo, or less than
one-sxth the amount raised by taxation
in this country
America, by all her traditions, by al
her sacred memories is bound to be tbs
leader of every fresh movement for hl-
man progress. 1t has given the world fres
schools, free ballot and a free press
wish to call you attention to two of the
dangers to our country first, the
lust for gold as displayed in
| the commercial spirit of the age and the
unscrupulous methods of the business
world I believe that the time has come
for us to lay emphasis upon the doctrine
/ that there are something's better than
money and that manhood is more than
| gold. Public opinion should be aroused
and taught that there come a time In
the history of wealth when it ceases 10
! obey law and presumes to defy 1t, It
must be regarded as an enemy of the pub
lie welfare. We give the money too much
power and place upon it too high a value.
If you give wealth the power to- buy
everything you must expect TO see
everything sacrified for wealth. The
| splendor of great wealth too often dazzles
! olls eyes so that we can not Sc the crime
By which it was acquired. Centuries ago
Dosenes with lighted candle wenI
an honest man; God pity the Republd
! if the day shall ever come when honesty
shall be cheaper than Gold,
THE second danger has relation to the
public school system, and the attitude or
] the Roman Catholic Church toward II. l
want to emphasize the fact that we owe
! our National prosperity 10 The lntetAl-
gence of the common people; the dlreet
result of onr free schools. The necessity
/ and duty of our free schools arises frem
! the fact that the whole government or
our country is in the hands OF the wnoie
| people. Our lives. our fortunes, our nd
critics are at the mercy of the majority.
| If they are ignorant they can be led py
/ dema gogues, by priests, by selrsh poll-
ticians Free institutions rest on COM
| mon schools The only danger TO COM
| mon schools in this country is from ina
| Roman Catholic Church. Do you ques-
| tion the assertion? Do you refer me 10
| the only and pleasant speech of Arch
| bishop Ireland TO the National Teachers
| Association a few years ago in which he
| declared that TO assert that Rome was
an enemy to the public schools was an
| insult to the Roman Catholic Church,
| Then / will refer you to his own letter to
! the Pope in which he explains that speech
to the Holy Father. That letter has
/ been published abroad and in this coln-
| try as well. In it he excuses himself to
I the Roman authority by saying in sub
stance:L LFirst-That he ives speaking TO
Sesond-That the Roman Catholics in
Minnesota are at present TOO poor TO
support parochial schools and that it was
true policy TO temporarily conclhaIe
public opinion until the day when his
own people could arrange for the support
of their own schools.
denunciation of American public schools
is to be found in q book entitled, Public
School Education, BY Michael Muller, q
is TO bef ound a note of Endorsement by
Archbishop Ireland, in which he states
that it should be in the hands of every
priest. / nthat book are TO be found
such sweet morsels as the following
Page 81, where you given to Sc a devil
same time, you would find the sight
or the devil more bearable than
that Of the infidel- Now, the public
school system was invented and intro-
generation into men of the above uescrip-
tion. Page IS and "a. The object then. Of
is 10 spread among the. people. the worst
of religions. the no religion, the religion
which pleaSeS the most hardened adul-
terers and criminals, the religion of ir-
rational animals l have nothing to say
tonight concerning Romanism as rs-
ligion. but do insist that among well ia
formed men. Protestant and Roman Cath
olics. as well. there can be no doubt as 10
the antagonistic attitude of Romanism
toward the American public school sys-
tenn. The highest Roman authorities give
all the testimony needed TO prove this.
The Archbishop Of New York onece sand,
$50 far as our Catholic children are con-
cerned. the Workings of the public school
system have proved and do prove higaly
detrimental to their faith and morals
The Catholic Telegraph one said. 1t will
be 4 glorious day for Catholics In this
country when Under the blows of Justice
and morality our school system shall oe
shivered to pieces.
"A careful study of paragraphs 45 AZ
and IS of the famous syllabus of Pope
Plus *. reveals the fact that the infalii-
Bile Pope eensures the oDinion that Il ID
right for the civil power TO have the en-
tire direction of public schools and that
the claims dor the church the right ID dio-
tate what text books shah be used, what
studies persued. and what teachers en-
ployed in our public schools. While R0-
nanistic Editors. Rlshopsx Cardinals and
Pnnes are thus found to be IA close az
cord Oh one side Of this question on the
otlser, lei the rank and iiie OF the Anaeri-
can people stara}. meeting the issue faiF-
lg. Justly ana courageauSax saying: In