The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1903-04-23
heartiess hordes OF 'brick-killers and
fastening grinding shames and shackles.

And I fairly came to hate the mockery
of forcing the statues OF our noble dead
to look helpIessly down on their childrens
degradation and doom. and ! cried aloud
bitterly and long for memorials that
could and would defy the degradation and
redeem the doomed little ones, ms these
heartless, soulless statues Of iron, brass
and stone could not. And the question
kept coming: How can we give the cn,!.
dren show and grid them to WIN tne
fight, to the honor Of our ancestral name,
the freedom of their own and their on
springs souls. the checking Of these
demons OF greed and the glory OF human
ity? Then this plan rose UP out OF tho
confusion and darkness. and stood BEFORE
me clear and strong and hopeful and pos
siblo Let us build memorial schools In
stead OF dumb. helpless statues and mon
uments. Let us build one such school IN
every county OF the Southland, and make
these Just as full and wise and complete
as 1t is possible to do with the resources
attalnable, and add to their fitness from
time to time as means and needs order.
Found every such school so as to meet
the needs and develop tho resources ex-
listing in It's region. and would ever keep
an army OF scientific scouts seeking out
and reporting the possibilities of that
community and the hindrances from these
possibilities. and 80 teach the coming gem
Grafton how to throw off the letters and
shackles OF the past, see. grasp and weave
Tito highest forms OF success the things
God put about them, which arc crying for
higher use and nobler service. These
schools should have as many departments,
trades and occupations as the community
could utilize or the students fill. Then I
would go through the entire schools OF
that county each year ana promote
enough OF the best scholars from these TO
MI tho lowest class OF our Memorial
County Schools Of Technology" having
strict regard to manifested capacity IN
any and every direction OF power, and 20
ever keep full the memorial school WIN
tho flttest possible material to train Tor
life, ever crying needs and deepening bat
tie.
Then for every congressional district I
would build a still higher and moro per-
feet school, ono able to taltc the best
graduates from the county memorial
schools and give them, say. course OF
two or three years training as much IN
advance OF the county school as the
present high school Is In advance OF tho
grammar schools. Promotion to this
school would make subject to the same
rules Of fitness and success as prevailed
In tho admission to the county school,
Watching keeniy ard ever for special
bent or talent and going TO lit and
guide It to It's highest work. Above tho
congressional memorial school OF tcchnol-
ogy ] would favo the State school just
as much bigger and better and fuller as
resources and ability could make 1t, and
In turn keep 1t full from the best grad
yates OF the congressional schools. Then,
above all. the great Memorial University
OF tho South" in memory OF her greatest
horces, dead, living. or yet to come
This school, I would make It the pride,
the prayer. the purpose and the constant
md undying struggle OF tho South and
nil tho world TO Hottest education in the
land to make the wisest, best bro2dest,
| most perfect and roblcst school in tho
world, which should ever be kept full NJ
| our best md brightest and most SUCCESS
ful and promising graduates from our
| State schools, No money-loggcd, ambi-
tious fool should be able to pay his way
Into these halls OF honor and hope; the
proven worthy and they nlons should
walk there" and walking find pathways
leading into all the vastness of n worlds
needs and possibilities. with tho flash
lights from the worlds brightest and
best minds lighting these paths as far
as tho progress of human processes yet
permits and from here should 90 out
leaders, skilled. head. heart, and hand.
| to the head OF human!tys advancing
columns leading on, in vnstcr life, greater
living and lortier mastery. Such briefly,
| Is the outline OF the vision. know II
is within the reach Of our possibilities.
| L
| the first rough sketch, and may have It's
details worked over by thousand gifted
experts and then be revised by each pass
| Ing ngc. Unless we put such n system
.!n swaddlIng bands.' which bands can
be locsed as 1t grows. It VIII die.
| For fifteen years the plan has been In
my mind, and I have been startled and
| awed nt the way the events OF these
| years have seemed to come out. ripen
4 4 yrv llyn
| but few children had been gathered In
Southern mills. and no fragrant abuse
| was reported from any Of these. but
weeds grow rapid and rank. and to-day
| tho whole land is mortified Mt tho re-
| ports OF grinding young lives into gold
| In the dungeons OF hopeless drudgery.
| and ten thousand death walls arc blend
| Ing in the cry for reform now. where
| groan was not heard then.
Once more. This plan sketched opens
| UP a feasible solution OF the vast labor
| problems throughout the land, and II 1t
| can provide an antldote for these hydro
| headed monstrosities then surely 1t can
| command the resources OF tho entire
| country. II MT once reaches down to tho
| children OF the poorest Of the poor ana
opens for them n possible rising to the
! highest of the high. It knows no rich.
| no poor, no high, no low. but stands,
| heart to all, Come up higher" and filings
| wide open the door and waits for merit
| to pass In and up and he crowned. It
| takes out of the hands Of arbitrary and
| Ignorant labor dctators the power OF
| saying how many and who shall enter
| this or that trade or industry, and calls
| to all, whatsoever will and can, let him
come" and 1t glorfies the armies OF
| labor, of all sorts. with glory and
royal majesty never known by them be.
| fore. for 1t by this splendid process Ut
promotion on merit alone assures en-
cheney all along every line and crowns
| only the meritorlous the wise. the WIN
| Mig and the worthy with leadership, So
| It promises to weave Its symmetrical
| and homogeneous union OF Intelligent plan.
purpose and performances, the struggles
and achievements of the whole people.
guided by their own best and highest
| trained and mastering leaders, cheering
| all with the greatest possible hope and
orriohrp nil with the vastest attainable