Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-10-10

recently and as 1t Is a subject in which
the public is deeply Interested. 1t Is
printed In full. Second Timothy, third
chapter, was read as an Introduction:
This Is a theme that was given a
great deal Of prominence during the
last school year. David II. Greer.
who Is the bishop co-adjutor of the
diocese OF New York. was the first
to open the question, and, when he
had said his say, the matter was
taken up by Dean Hart. Dean Hart
set himself to a thourogh investiga-
ion from the point Of view of crime,
and, all Of the statistics possible were
gotten together on the subject
The figures were as follows for
Denver: On certain day thirty-three
boys were brought into court from a
school in whose district are the best
families In the city. Judge Lindsey
found that all of them were guilty of
thievery. Some of them had stolen
vegetables, fruits and groceries from
the back porches of their neighbors;
some of them had gone into houses
and had taken things. and some of
them had been bold enough to enter
cellars. Many questions were put to
them to determine their feeling in re-
gard to their conduct. and-strange to
say-none of them felt that he had
done wrong especially
Besides, this was found to stand for
general condition, Judge Lindsey
stated he would estimate from his ex-
perience in his two years occupancy
of his office that half of the boys in
his own city are dishonest, and his
statement was given considerable
credence by an examination of the po-
lice register. Two thousand out of the
ten thousand there in single gener-
alton had been in Jail or one in every
five and that which was true there was
found to be the case elsewhere. Chi
cago's unenviable record for 1899 was
1900 prisoners under sixteen years
of age
This at once led to an investigation
or the schools of the country The
result was as follows; In 1850 there
were in them 1000 900 children at a
cost of $500 per child and there was
one criminal for every 1000 of the
population: in 1880 there were in
them l0,000.O00 children at cost OF
$1,000 per child, and one criminal for
every 1000 of the population; so the
indications were that there had been
wild growth in evil. Criminals had
been increasing fourfold as fast as
the population. and, desiring to put
check on the passions of men, an
effort was made to get al the real
cause of the downward trend
Well, the disposition of the dean
spoken of was to place all OF the
blame on the public schools. His dec
laration in sum and substance was
this: Public education is a farce This
is in evidence in its failure to do thai
for which education is undertaken, l.
e.. the discipline of youths. 1t fails to
train them to the yoke of obedience;
it fails TO develop in them the prn-
ciple which strengthens against tenn
ptation; 1t fails to induce them to ac-
cept the law of labor; it fails to make
patriotic citizens of them; and ii fails
in ethical teachings. Commonsense is
sufficient to convince one that this
over-much indulgence of boys and
girls In crime is due to the removal
OF public restraints from their moral
nature, and. while the present edu-
cational methods continue to be in
vogue. crime will grow.
| suppose there is little need for
one to point out to you here that there
is here fallacy. The argument to
the effect that the public schools are
responsible for all evil may be put
into a syllogistic form as follows.
There is lawlessness In the land;
therefore all the crime in the land
comes out of the public schools; and
you see at first sight that there is a
false premise in the syllogism. The
assumption Is that the public schools
alone are cause of evil but you
know there are many causes of evil
There are your homes with their neg
ligence; and there are your crowds
of immigrants with their low type of
manhood. All of these are sources of
crime. and. II you would come to a
fair conclusion in its investigation.
YOU must take all Of them into consid-
Grafton.
| may also say this: The dean
seems to have been led to his conclu-
sion by a desire to make point. The
thoughtful reader can see between the
lines OF his writing a sectarian bias.
His belief is that the parochial schools
are superior to the public. and, If he
had his way. he would stop the public
education at the sixth or seventh
grade, and take the money spent on
the public schools in the higher
grades. and devote this to parochial
schools with definite religious instruc-
tion. His plan would be to publish
textbook of extracts from sacred lit.
erature, and teach the ten command.
ment. and dr'll the pupil in the NOR.
al principles Of lie. and his Arm con-
viction is that boys and girls would
come from the public care at 15 or 16
years Of age by his plan with a much
more thorough aud accurate ground
work Of education than at the pres