The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-10
ID educational regime away with all the

iaung to education that followed while
an aportlVe, bore testimony to the close
animation of democratic ideas and national
ilslructlon. The traditions of the old cuI-
lure still remained, and invigorate,l bv the
new spirit, were destined TO be ORGANIZED
INTO a series of national educationaI irsti-
buttons The Imperial University was not
louhded until 1906, and even then no pro
vision Tor the instruction of the nation
was made; while Guizot did not secure the
passage of the law that bears his name. or
sehu out mis- equally famous circular on
instruction until 1888
sun different had been the course of
history IN England. One hundred years
ago no other great country in the world
mad been SO little stirred bv the penius of
universal education. All through the 18TH
century, such schools as those described
by ohenstone, in The Schoolmistress -
tosether with a few Sunday Schools at the
ldst' furnished all the educational fscili-
leS that the children of the poor enioved
Joseph Lancaster, born in the same wear
as Froebel, had begun 10 teach some poor
schoiars in the shed back of his fathers
mousse IN London, in 1876, and DIR. Bell had
introduced the Madras system of educa-
,ioh INTO England in 1898. These were the
headsprings of movement that was soon
TO attract universal attention
But England was bound fast to the Tory
ana High Church shackles The French
revolution sat upon her bosom like a night
mare. 1t is, in fact, almost impossible
at this day 10 conceive the depths of in
dlnerence or hostility that the ruling class
es lett for the enlightenment and eleva-
tioh or the democracy. When the first
educational bill ever before Parliament
was voted down by the lords in 1917 Sir
Samuel Romilly, who supported the meas
| ure In the Commons, wrote in his diary
mat a majority of his fellow-members
thoueht 1t desirable that the people should
De Kept in ignorance In 1895 one Of tbs
olshops said, in the House of Lords that
ne did not know what the mass of
people IN any country had to do
win the laws but to obey them. and as
late as 1882, a lady of high social no.
sltlon demanded TO know what difference
IL made what the people thought if the
army could be depended upon Black
wood Magazine" a literary organ of con
sefVatsm, opposed the education of the
people en- tie ground that it made them
uneasy and restless, that ignorance was
the parent of conten1ment and that the
only education which could safely be
given them was religious education that
would render them patient. amiable and
moral, and relieve the hardship of their
present lot with the prospect of a bright
eternity"
With these facts before us. we are
not surprised to find Sydney Smith as
sorting that there was no Protestant
country in the world where the education
of the poor had been SO grossly and in
famously neglected as in England; or
Nautilus asserting that it was a great ma
tional disgrace that the education of the
lower classes of the people should be left
merely TO a few Sunday schools or, once
STA is before us. Switzerland is before us
France is before us; there is no record of
any people earth so highly civilized,
so Astounding in arts and comforts, and so
grossly generally ignorant as the Eng
lish."
In the United States the contrast be-
tween the beginning and the end of the
century, all things considered. is more
remarkable than that shown by any other
country in the world. So far as quantity
is concerned, education has certainly more
than kept pace with the growth of the
country. while quality has not Jagged be-
hind. In 1901, a number of the states had
assigned to schools a status in their con-
stitutions. Connecticut had founded her
common school fund and other states
were preparing to emulate her example.
THE national government had taken the
first steps in that line of policy which has
resulted IN endoWlng educdtlon Win
capital of about $500 900, 000.
New York had chartered, in 17S7, the
regents of the State University. In 1901
there were twenty-three colleges in the
country, all but nine of them founded since
IT'S, whereas we now have more than 400
west and south of the Hudson river not
even the rudiments of a state system of
public instruction existed, while the
boasted New England system were but
imperfectly developed and comparatively
inefficient. Save alone the few New Eng
lund grammar schools, there were no pub
lie high schools in the country, where we
now have more than 5000.
But few of the state governments were
doing anything whatever for elementary
teaching. The first State Board of Edu-
cation and first state secretary, as wei
as the first local superintendent, were
thirty-six years distant, and the first state
normal schools thirty eight years distant.
Horace Mann, four years of age was just
beginning to braid straw in his native
town of Franklin, Mass, while Henry
Barnard was not born until 1871. More
than twenty years were still 10 elapse
before George Ticknor would urge valua-
BILE reforms in Harvard College, or Thorn
as jefferson found the University of Nir-
ginia while Francis Wayland would not
write his book on college education until
| 1912, or read mis- more famous report to
the trustees of Brown University until
1850 The state universities of the West
were potent only in the implied promise
of Congress, to endow them with two
townships of wild land apiece"
Other Convention Matters.
At the department of Indian education
meeting papers on subjects of interest
to teachers in Indian schools were read
by DR. Charles B. Dyke of Hampton,
Va; Prof A. j. Standing of Carlisle; DIR.
| c. c. Wainwright of San Jacinto, Cal. !;
Prof. F. X Rogers and Miss Josephine
! Richards.
The national conference of Religious
day at the Citadel Square Baptist Church.
| Papers were read by Dr. f. B. Palmer,
! principal of the state normal schools of
! New York on THE Principles and Meth
! DDS of Bible Study" by Miss Buford on
The Bible as the Great Uuiffer of
/ Thought" THE College as an Agent of
! Biblical Instruction" prepared by DR.. w.
/ w. Foster, Jr, of Holly Springs, Miss.
| A lively contest is already in full swing
| for next years convention. Five cities
| have entered their claims-Cincinnati De-
| troit. Duluth Boston and Buffalo. The
| Cincinnati delegation, headed by Dr. X.
| q Boone. has opened headquarters in
! the Charleston Hotel and is making a
strong fight Detroit has made great
headway during the day, and the choice
is believed TO lie between these Two
cities with chances tonight favoring the