The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1901-12-01
EDUCATION AND WEALTH.


II q series Of articles printed in these
columns last summer. we endeavored 10
show the direct relation between educa-
ton and the power of productiveness, and
we used as an illustration comparative
I education and industrial conditions in
the two States OF Tennessee and Massa-
chusetts.
Prof. Charles w. Dabney, president of
the University OF Tennessee, has issued
leaflet on the same subject. which is
worthy of the most careful study, and he
uses the same States in illustration. He
declares that statistics show that the
power of the people of the different States
to earn money is III direct proportion to
the length OF the period the average
citizen of each has attended school.
TO Illustrate" says he, 1.-THE average
school period in 1S9s-'99 OF each inhabitant
OF the United States was "A years: OF
Massachusetts. which has the best schools,
vas years; of Tennessee was a little
less than 3 years. The total annual pro-
duction Of the United States in t.c year
1900 was less than $50 a year, or 10 cents
q day. counting 3o6 working days in the
year, for each man, woman and child;
by 1850 the production had increased to
nearly 500 a year, or 80 cents a day; and
in 1899 it was about $40 a>year, or 50
cents a day. The production of Massa-
chusetts in 1899 was $3.50 for each man.
woman and child, or So cents a day.
The most favorable figures make the to-
tai annual production of the people of
Tennessee in 1899 less than SIG a year,
or IS cents a day. for each inhabtant.
Another way to express it is to say that
the average family of five in Tennessee
must live OH $3.50 a year, counting every
thing produced on the farm and in tho
home, as well as sales and money wages;
while the same family in Massachusetts
has 81, 800 n year to spend. and the aver
age family of the United States has
$3.50. Put these facts together and we at
once see their tremendous significance.
The proportion between the school pc
Rod in Massachusetts. the school period
in the whole United States and the school
period in Tennessee is expressed by the
figures Z. "A and 3, or multiplying each
by two, by the figures IA, SIS and 6. The
proportion between the productive ca
pacity of each person in Massachusetts,
in the whole United States and in Ten
nessee is expressed by the figures 260 11J
and JIG: o. dividing by twenty to brins
the terms similar to the others, we have
Is. S.5 and 5.S.
"Education is as II in Massachusetts
to SIS in United States. to in Tennessee.
"Production is as Is in Massachusetts
to So in United States, to 5.S in Ten
nessee.'
Prof. Dabney insists that this is not 4
mere coincidence, but it is the law of the
world over-the productivity of a people
is everywhere proportional to their edu-
cation; that is. 10 their intellectual pilysl-
cal and moral training. 1.-THE people arc
the city, said Shakespeare we nave
repeatedly urged through these columns
that the strength of a community is in
cation. or even in its natural resources
A thrifty man will thrive wherever he
may be placed. whereas a thriftless,
shiftless man will thrive nowhere.
Bat even energy and thrift are not
enough. In order to the best results
a man must know how to work TO
the best advantages, and that i'm
plies education, trained mind and d
trained hand
Proceeding on this line, DR.. Dabney
lation of Massachusetts is 2,S05,34G; of
Tennessee, 2,G2oGl6. Statistics show that
they have about the same number of chill
dren to educate, and that the enrolment
in the schools of the two States and the
average daily attendance is about the
school lSS days in the year, and her en-
rolled pupils attended on an average of
1875 days, while Tennessee taught school
only SO days and her enrolled pupils at
tended only CTS days.
Massachusetts expended for all pur-
poses of her public schools in 1895 80.
S1S,SS9,SSS, which was $3.50 per pupil in
average daily attendance and $5.07 per
capita of her population. Tennessee ex-
pended for her public schools in the same
year, Sl,62S,3l5, which is S4.G2 per pupil il
average daily attendance and only So
cents per capita Of population The aver
age expenditure for all the States OF the
Union is $500 per pupil in average daily
attendance and SGT per capita of the
population OF the entire country.
The power Of education in production
may be presented again in this concrete
way: From the statistics above it is
S1G,26l,525 more upon her public schools
than Tennessee. But see what q return
she gets. Each one of the 2.S05,345 cit-
zens of Massacl1usetts--rnen, women and
intants-has. as we have said, a product
i've capacity of S260.CO a year, against
$1,000 a year for the average inhabitant
Of the whole United States and Sl16.00 q.
year for the average inhabitant of Ten
nessee. Tho iIllabitant Of Massachusetts
has thus :in excess of $4,000 q year over
the average inhabitant of the United
States and Si44.G0 a year over the aver
age inhabitant of Tennessee. This means
that the people Of Massachusetts earned
last year S252 49,, 140 more than the same
number of average people of the United
States and Sio3 1924 more than tho same
number of people in Tennessee. Twelve
million dollars invested in superior edu-
cation yield 400 millionsfal year!
1t Will not do to say. that AIassachu-
sets spends more money on education
because she is rich; it is much nearer
the truth 10 say that she is rich be-.
cause she has spent great deal OF money
in educating her children. BY natural