The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1901-04-16
TEACHERS MEETING.
Synopsis ofProf Wardiaw's Lecture Before
Teachcrs' Association April I3, 1901.

Teachers Association April I3. 1901.
In order TO thoroughly understand
the educational system OF any country
and OF any period Of history, there
must be a thorough comprehension of
the general history Of that country and
OF that period. There must bc also an
intelligent conception OF the dstin-
gushing characteristics Of the people
| displayed by their system of morals,
their religion and their government.
The government may be taken as an
| index to these characteristics.
The most striking characteristic,
then, OF all oriental governments is
their absolutism. This form of govern
ment seems to have been natural evo.
luton from the state Of society in the
early history Of the race; when each
| tribe was at war with its ncighboring
tribe, and none but the strongest could
survive.
Under the absolutism, therefore, of
the East, "The individual counted for
nothing, the State for everything"
Witness tho great expenditure of re-
sources and Of men the construction
Of the pyramids to commemorate the
achievements of one line of absolute
mOnarchs.
The natural outgrowth of this abso-
lutism was unquestioning obedience on
tho part OF the individual. Both the
priest caste and the soldier caste which
sprang up naturally, though often an
tagonistc in their efforts to influence
the individual taught unQuestioning
obedience.
This system Of abso]utism led to the
most slavish conservatism and ceremo-
nialism. Glance at China if you would
sec tn extreme type Of conservatism.
Take .rvcy Of India, would you sec
ccrcmonialism in the form of Brahman-
ism in full sway.
The education Of peoples whose chief
characteristic is conservatism must
necessarily be study Of tho wisdom of
the past.
From the teaching Of the fathers no
oriental teacher dared to depart. This
education was essentially utilitarian.
Among tho oricntals, there were no
culture studies. They never asked the
reason why.
The method Of teaching was that of
subjcction to authority. The oriental
teacher dared teach nothing that had
not been taught him. And everything
taught by him must BE- received on
faith.
Tho first stuges of education with
them consisted in verbal memoriziug
exclusively. The composition work
done by advanced students was simply
Initiative of the writings of the fathers.
When book after book has been learned
by rotc-that is to say the words have
been lcarned-then comes the stage Of
Interpretation. Most frequently the
meaning is never comprehcnded by the
great majority Of tho students.
In morals their system Of government
and education produced passive virtues
and slavish vices. On the one hand
the people were obedicnt to law, pains
taking and accurate In mechanical exo-
cutlon. On the other hand, they woro
untruthful, treacherous, unreliable, hy.
pocritical, dcceitful. Lying is the
refuge Of the oppressed"
Right here arises tho great question
of "The valuo OF authority In the form
alton of character" Tho oriental sys-
TEN Is not all bad. The great Chinese
empire by It's extremely long duration
has shown to tho world that, SIT has
its elements OF strength, or else it
would have been crowded out of tho
Garth; 1t has It's elements of weakness,
else 1t would have crowded all other
systems out"
While the present condition OF China
shows that it Is suicidal to live cxclu-
sivcly in the past; yet it Is more quick
ly suicidal not to respect the past at all /.
There Is ono people that stands in
marked contrast to all other oriental
peoples. The chosen people of God,-
while there were times in their history
when they were under absolute rulers,
were the most democratic Of all tho
ancient peoples. They, in striving to
servo tho unseen God, attained to tho
largest measure Of personal freedom of
oil oriental peoples. Teacher