The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1902-01-15

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that virtue or morality is a necessary
spring of popular government. Pro
mote, then, as an object of prim II,
importance, institutions for the general
diffusion of knowledge. la proportion
as The structure of government gives
force to public opinion, it is essential
that public opinion should be en-
lightened."
Public opinion depends for its en-
lghtenment very largely upon the free
common schools, and the efforts of the
State shoull be directed principally to
The Improvement and perfection of its
system of common school education,
for it is to the common schools that the
great maj rrity of the children must
look for their education. This should
not interfere with our system OF higher
education, but the first duty of the
State is to prepare the great majority
of It's citizens for the intcllg mt use Of
the functions of citizer ship. The
ideal system is one properly artculatcd
from the common school to the high
,chool, the college and the university.
have higher institutions of learning
producing men of wisdom and power
unless ii has also a system of general,
nay, Of universal, education producing
popular respect for wisdom and power.
The university at the summit, reach
ing as high as human intelligence can
90, the common school at the base,
spreading as wide as human nature IL
self, and between them the best at.
tainable system of grammar schools
aud high schools and academies, and
spreading out from them an ever de
veloping organiza ion of technical pro-
fesslonal instiiutions-,hese arc the
defenscs of the republic"
But il is Of little or no use to have
an adequate system of free education
unless it be taken advantage of by the
children of the State. The attendance
upon our common schools is not as
large as it should be. No child shoull
be allowed to grow u, to meet The
high duties and responsibilities of citi
zenship without at least having ac
quired the rudiments Of good cduca.
ton. And yet many of the children
of this State arc permitted to come to
the years of maturity without being
able To read or write. either because
he chill cannot see 70: Itself the ad.
vantages, or the father is wifully neg
lgcnt of the welfare of his offspring,
or himself ignorant of the necessity of
IN education There is no greater
ell cmy TO the welfare of society and to
republican institutions tlian ignorance,
and the duty of the State is to require
the child TO take advantage of the edu-
cation provided,
The question of compulsory educa
ton has agita.cd the minds of educa-
tors throughout the State for the past
few yeats. Various public addresses
on this subject have been made, an
at nearly every teachers assocla' ion in
he State the question has been dis
cussed. 1t would seem that the ma
jority of our best educators advocate
the system of compulsory education
The objeclor to compulsory educa
tion will urge that every parent has
the right to determine what educailO"
hall be given his own child and that
the State has no right TO interfere in
he affairs OF the family. When con
agiOus disease invales the S ate no
question Of this kind is raised, but lib
state takes measures to stamp out III
lscoso and asks rot for pcrmi
establish quarantine against the
spread Of the IN ilaay. The two cases
arc similar. Ignorance is the worst
If diseases ami the S!a'e has the right
10 require that the children shlll he
brought up in such a way as to Nuke
| The best possible citizens. 1t is also
| urged that the cost will be too great,
the State IS now spending more than
Il million dollars on the education of
its children and the proper position is
that every child of school age should
reap its share.
But the greatest Objection which is
urged to compulsory educlti II in The
South Is the ever-present negro, and
he fear that if he is educated he can
not be controlled. The fallacy of this
argument Is patent to every thoughtful
man. 1t is fact known and re-
cogGiz ID that IN This State at present,
in proportion 10 the population of each,
there are a great many moro negro
children than whites receiving the
education provided. The negro is here
10 stay, and to educate HIN rightly will
but teach him his poslt On and be of
benefit 10 him and 10 us. To leave
him without an education Is but to
make him tool in the hands of the
designing and a curse TO society. 1t is
but suicidal not to require the white
children of the State to attend the m
mon schools for fear the negro child
rem will receive the same advantages
This argument means that we should
let the white children grow up IN igno
rance in order that the negro may no
> learn.
In this age there are many problems
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