Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1902-01-02
Question Discussed by President Of
Am, Association Of NaturaIsts,
TOO MUCH STATE DOMINATION
Science and Education suffer From
Temperance Propaganda unttl II
Has Become Intolerablc.

Chicago, Jan, 1,--sclenti0c temper
ance instruction AZ taught in the pub
Ito schools from The text books now In
use together with anti-yiysectlon. an
ti-YaccInation and Christian Science,
was denounced by Prof William IT,
Sedgwlck, president Of the American
Association Of Naturallsts, at a lanQuet
tonight given by the members Of the
scientific societies now in session at
the University Of Chicago.
1T Is notorious and disgraceful
fact said Prof sedgwick, that with
a view Of pleasing self-cOnsttuted
oligarchy some writer's have even made
alcoholic INSTRUCTION form the Begin
ming, the middle and the end G their
text books. or such books 1t may be
truly said that they have no perma-
nency Of their own, aud with difficulty
would BE- preserved in schools
President Sedgwick's address was
upon THE Modern Subsection Of Sell
ence and Education to TEN.
perance Propaganda. "I'ienthc
temperance instruction" he said,
has grown to such proportions
and has gained such power as to dom
mate almost all instruction in element
airy physiology and hygiene In America,
IL Is right, OF course, that pupils should
be taught the danger of alcohol and
narcotics, but teachers often go too
far and II even shows that all instruc-
ton In physiology and hygiene In pub
lie schools has passed to a great and
unjustiiiable extent into the hands and
under the subsection of the temperance
propaganda"
President Sedgwlck believes that
there should be little or no state regu-
lation OF what shall appear IN text
books Scarcely had science and edu-
cation he said, freed themselves from
the church when they began TO be
threatened by subsection 10 the state.
While II IL right that the youth should
be taught the dangers of alcohol, | be-
lieve that II is odious and unreasonable
that the exact amount of such teaching
should be prescribed by law; that the
method Of teaching by text books, ana
books, should be legally regulated by
law but especially that the kind OF
textbooks used should be largely de-
termined by a self-consttuted and UNI
official Observation-Disclosures of propa-
ganda which Is neither educational nor
scientific
The effect of these peculiar laws, he
said, had been TO create a peculiar class
Of text books, some Of which We're pre-
pared by competent writer's. but most
were inferior and some were distinctly
bad.
mo wise educator he continued,
"who has given any attention to the
subject can deny that the influence of
this powerful propaganda has BEEN In
most respects, injurious to the proper
teachings of physiology and hygiene in
the lower schools,
Teachers, principals and superin-
tendents and even school commissions
ers are seldom able to speak with per-
feet frankness on the subject from the
fear of influence. In my opinion, II Is
time for body Of scientific men Ike
the American Society OF Naturalsts
and the American Association for ti.a
Advancemnt Of Science to put on rec
ord their opinion that the subiugation
under which science and education are
today suffering from the temperance
propaganda has become lntolerable,"
The election Of officers OF the Amerl-
can Association Of Naturalists resulted
as follows President, ]. Mex Cattell
OF Columbia e-presidents, l.. O.
Howard of Washington and D. 7, Pen
hallow Of McGlll university; secretary.
r. G. Harrison OF Johns Hopkins;
treasurer, NJ NJ. Metcalf Of the Wo-
mems college, Baltimore
A resolution was adopted by the as
ISOLATION favoring the bin pending In
Congress providing for the preservation
Of the cliff dwellings In Colorado by
forming there a national park