The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1902-03-06

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vantageoue and desirable. It in
wolves, and indeed develops, many
of the lower and baser qualities,
but these are the tares among the
wheat, and the wheat is essential.
Education, as we have stated
above, is typical of civilization; it
is the one real factor of national
unity and greatness, provided such
education has for its specific aim
career that will not only re-
dound to the credit Of the indi-
vidual, but also assures the great
est amount of financial success.
We should not use the term edu-
cation in its literal sense when
applied to men and women who
are illiterate or are only able to
pass an ordinary examination in
reading and writing, but we should
use the term in its broad sense.
Public schools are maintained in
this country for the purpose of
fitting our youth to become USE
full and honorable citizens. The
theory on which most-if not all
of our schools below the uni
versity are conducted is that in
tellectual training constitutes a
sufficient preparation for citizen
ship. AS consequence, the
graduates of our common and
high schools and universities leave
school with an intellectual culture
which does not fit them to enter
upon the practice of any trade or
profession. The man or woman,
who, by his or her ability to mas
ter the higher sciences Of intel
lectual attainment, is rewarded
with the title LID" Lift. D., "
"D.C.L.," AM, "Ph. d." or I'D.
D." is looked upon as a digni6ed
parsonage, but of what avail are
all these titles to him or her if
they fail to bring success? Let
such a person be in financial diff
fculties and it is only a matter of
time until he or she must choose
between right or wrong, and fire.
quently they choose wrong per
force.
But from what strata of society
are these men and women with
elongated titles recruited? Do
they represent the poorer class of
our social fabric? Hardly; they
are the sons and daughters of
wealth, born in the lap of luxury ;
they have special opportunities in
childhood to learn the A. B. C's., a
good preparatory school to pre-
pare them in youth for their en-
trance into the great institutions
of advanced learning. The mid
die class, on the other hand, go in
for education with the true phil
osophy that it holds out to man.
kind. After their course in the
graded schools, they begin to pre-
pare for the real battle in life
for it has been proven time and
time again that without this prep
aration education is an empty
dignity And what is this prep,
aration? It is the real and only
antidote for crime. Unless you
have this preparation, you are a
failure Intellectually. | refer to
an industrial education combined
with an ordinary education. Ed
ucation does not always enable
one to start higher on the ladder,
but it invariably hastens the as
cent Let an educated man start
in life as hodcarrier and it will
not be long till he is boss, while
an ignorant fellow is very likely to
stay where he started. The mid
die class of our social fabric are
the only ones who thoroughly ap-
preciate the value of such a CON-
bined education, for the rich do
not need it.
After the poor boy and girl have
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