The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1900-01-06
AN INTERESTING REMINIS-
cENCE BY FATHER LAMBERT.

Writing some years ago from Water
loo, N. Y, Father Lambert, the distin-
guished editor of the New York, Free
mans Journal, expressed some of his
experiences as follows in the public
schools while boy. and we feel the
readers of the Intermountain Catholic
will find his ideas interesting:
THE public schools of this village
will be opened on next Monday. While
we are opposed on principle to our
whole system of public instruction, we
are free to say that no schools could De
conducted in more excellent or thor
ough manner, under the system than
our Waterloo schools. They have, as
a general thing, had good and compe-
tent teachers, and the management IS
fair and just to all. If all the public
schools in the country were conducted
as are the schools of our village, many
of the objections and prejudices against
the system would never have arisen.
But in addition to the objectiOnal fea-
lures of the system there were added
in times past, and in many places still,
an anti-CathOliC tone and spirit and
exhibitions of bigOtry in the schools,
that disguised Catholic parents and
and compelled them, when able, to
build and support schools of their own.
1--WE speak whereof we know; in a
word we have been there. The re-
membrance of our early school exper-
fence brings back to our memory no
pleasant thoughts. The three Catholic
boys in the school had a bench to them
selves; they were thus always in
conspicuous row, like the three little
injuns' in the song. The teacher was
black-visaged man by the name on
Smith; they used to call him Coal
Smith, by way of distinction, perhaps,
from John Smith or Pocahontas Smith.
He had the habit, when walking of
throwing back his head and raising his
feet high at every step. like a horse
with the stringhalt. One boy used to
say that 'Coaly' reminded him of
turkey going through stubble field,
as he went clawing along.
"Now although 'Coaly' was by no
means a fellow of infinite jest, he was
the unconscious occasion OF infinite
merriment to some Of his pupils. He
was candidate for the ministry-of
what denomination is not matter now,
after the lapse of over a quarter of a
century. This plan of religiously in
clined young gentlemen making the
public schools a stepping stone to the
ministry and practicing on the boys
has had no small share in rendering the
schools unpopular with a large class of
people, If they be Jealous young as
pirants they forget their obligations to
their employers, the people, and be-
come propagandists of their own pecul-
lar theological notions. These theories
have been anti-Catholic every time.
When teaching geography they take
To oil &c n no
nighted region, sunk in the idolatry
and superstition of popery. showing
the whites of their eyes in the mean
time. If history were the topic, they
would give a disquisitiOn on the dark
ages, and if science were the subject
Of the lesson they would tell how Gal
leo was prosecuted and strike dra-
matte attitude in imitation of Calico
before the bloody inquisition. These
spring chickens have been
The occasion of much of the opposition
hat has been raised against the public
schools. We remember an occasion
when one of these spring chickens made
himself very ridiculous by showing his
zeal for the Bible at the expense of his
equation for a knowledge of English.
He tried to compel the Catholic chill
lren to read the Protestant Bible. The
parents objected but he was ineXor-
lble. One of these Catholic parents
hen sent Catholic Bible by his son,
With the request that the teacher would /
permit him to read in it. The teacher
'efused, and the Catholic requested |
him to give his reasons for refusal in
writing. He complied with this request !
md the following production was the |
'esult:
Dear Sir-Owing to my religious
views and tenements, 1 cannot consci- |
teach the Catholic Bible.
Yours. etc. N. ALMOND"
"He did not say what his views and
.enements were. but it is evident they |
lad no solid foundation in English lit |
srature The above statement is a |
act for which we vouch, and it is not
me of the tenets of our religion to
school teaching should be a perma-
lent profession, and not stepping
stone to medicine, law or theology
None but professional teachers should
,e employed.
But in this depression we had al
most forgotten our housekeeping friend
Coaly' Smith. AS we have said. 'Coaly'
vas an aspirant to the ministry as his
ugh steps would indicate, and he used
o practice praying and eXhortation on
is boys. We had to sit for him, and
many an eloquent prayer and many a
eXhortation was lost for
want of an appreciative audience. While
Coaly'S exterior peculiarities were a
ource of merriment to the pupils, his
Interior mental construction was a