Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1900-04-20
BAPTIST SOCIAL UNION.
Fourth Meeting and Banquet Last
Evening.

Inspiring Addresses by Principal ElIery
of Vermont academy and President
FRunce of Brown University.
The fourth meeting of the Baptist So
cial union with its accompanying banquet
was held in the social rooms of the church
last evening. After about an hour of So
! cial Intercourse the members and their in
vited guests to the number of 80 or more
! gentlemen sat down TO a sumptuous feast
| prepared by the ladies Of the church. At
| the close of the delightful exercises the
! president, Dr. H. D. Holton, introduced
! Dr. Edward Ellery, principal of Vermont
Academy az Saxtons River, who spoke up
on the subject of the evening-Education
DR.. Ellery spoke Of the wise action of
] Prussia after her great defeat at Jena, who
! then began anew 70 build a nation. She
! began at the foundation. Over in Swift
| erland there was a wise man, Pestalozzi by
name, 70 whom Prussia sent i of her
finest young men for instruction in funda-
mental training. Froebel was one of these
men from whom we have the great system
Of kindergarten schools and teaching. She
began with the children and on their edu-
cation has the great German empire been
constructed.
II is the business Of education TO make
competent, wise citizens, and the best all
round citizens are the educated ones. But
education must be along two lines-the de-
velopment of character and of capacity.
DR.. Ellery decried cast iron methods of
instruction which grind out every pupil
| through the same mill. The conscientious
! teacher thinks of the student not of stu
! ia; al NJ hru To
| develop his capacity for learning should be
! the constant study Of the teacher. The in
! dividual is the unit in the school, not the
class as a whole. !. To remove obstacles in
| the way OF the pupil and train the individ-
ual mind toward its own development both
Of character and capacity to acquire, is the
/ teachers privilege.
DR., Holton then introduced the honored
| president Of Brown university cf Prov
| idence, +. l. Rev. W. n. P. Faunce, D. D e,
/ who said, by way Of explanation, that pre-
vious TO his arrival here at q O'Clock he did
/ not know the subject OF the evening, but
/ had been informed since then that it was
| Education Without giving distinctly
/ educational address DR.. Faunce stirred the
/ hearts and minds of all present with his
! eloquent words upon THE Kingdom of
Cod He had been greatly impressed with
the manner in which the great things of
the world were constantly working toward
the bringing in Of the kingdom. In the mind
of Christ, the great Teacher, the kingdom
was the great central thought throughout
his years of public ministry.
DR.. Fauuce alluded to the development
of the use of electricity as tending in this
direction. The invention, for instance, of
electric lighting has done more to suppress
murder and all sorts OF iniquity in the city
Of today than laws and enactments. He
spoke Of the redemption of Five Points in
New York as an illustration. For years
the only light, morally, in hat locality was
| a little mission bu: il was a terrible sink of
iniquity, Just the same, and authorities
and philanthropists were at their wits end
TO know what to do, but with the coming
of the electric lights came the solution. A
row of brilliant arc lamps around that lit
tie triangle of iniquity had redeemed the
place and it was no longer the rendezvous
of thieves and thugs.
For many years the problem of the seq
! regation of the masses of people in the
slums Of New York had baffled the minds
of the wisest, but with the advent Of the
electric car the people we're given the ia
cility TO move out and occupy and enjoy
the outlying country and relieve to GER
tain extent the congested cesspools Of the
lower part of the city. For centuries the
caste question has batiled the English gov
ernment and missionary enterprises, but
the railway net work is solving it. The
high caste Brahmin would even run a lit
tie risk of contamination rather than lose
his train.
So an Edison stands all unconsciously
beside Moody; a Tesla beside a Spur
geon in the worlds redemption and the
bringing in of the kingdom. And the
kingdom is steadily pressing forward.
Then, too, in the bringing in of the
kingdom the educational must be a
large factor. DR.. Faunce had no conf
dence in that sort of religious effort that
did not lead 10 training and education OF
those coming under its influence. Jesus
called his followers and then made dis
ciples (students) of them.
DR.. Broadus once said to him that il
would be a great, grand thing If We should
stop, for awhile, trying to prove that We
are right and go to training leaders for thC
future. Far more than numerical increase
was the training OF those whom God gives
us.
That denomination will furnish the
leaders of philanthropic movements, which
best trains and educates its membership
We are not to stop with the conversion, il
is a crime; we must train for future use
fulness. God never uses any man unit
He educates him in His own school, Ed
ucation through life; life through educa
tion. May the kingdom come in oul
churches, our schools, our homes and oul
hearts.
Dr. Faunce and DR.. Ellery are men o
broad education, OF charming manner anC
graceful address. Great enthusiasm per
vaded and all voted il the best meeting o
the season. The next gathering will b
Ladies' Night" in June.