The free lance. (Fredericksburg, Va.) 1885-1926, 1904-05-21
OUR PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

We have received copy ola circu-
lar address. by Mr. A. +. Thomas
member OF the Virginia Senate, to
the people OF Virginia, entitled "Pri-
mary Education and the Race Pro-
blem," In which the Senator berates
the successive legislatures since the
adoption ofthe Underwood constitu-
ton, charging them with hostility
and uniriendliness to the public free
school system generally and that
they have Disseminated against the
county districts and IN favor OF the
towns and cities.
Whether Mr.. Thomas is correct or
not in his charges, IL is certainly a
fact conceded 10y all that our public
school system is in IA lamensable con
dition. Is is true that, as Dr. South
all says, some OF the buildings are
unfit for human habitation, that the
terms are too short and that the
teachers are both inadequately pre-
pared and paid but it seems to Us
shat the chief trouble lies in the mex
cusable tendency on the part OF our
people TO fail to embrace the oppor-
tunities afforded them by the free
schools. Not only do our people re-
fuse TO tax themselves for school pur-
poses and agitate school questions
during campaigns. but after "A school
has been opened they either do not
send their children at all or 80 irreg-
ularly that they had as we'll not
come at all. 1t Is observed that
farmers will often send their boys
during the winter months, when there
is nothing to be done on the farm,
and take them away as soon as the
first frog gives warning OF the ap-
proach OF spring.
Is it srue then that our Legislators
are wholly to blame, or that they
have Disseminated in favor OF the
towns and cities? Ii is hardly to be
expected that a representative will
rise much above the general average
OF his constituency. In any case he
Is going TO do those things which will
be acceptable to his constituents and
leave undone those things which will
not be acceptable to them. The
towns and cities, aside from having
more favorable conditions for good
schools than the rural districts, have
more progressive and up-to-date
people. The words pagan and
heathen were both originally synony-
nous with the word countryman as
now used. Just as the cities were
the first to embrace Christianity and
other new ideas as they were intro
duced, so the cities take the initiative
in educating the youth at public ex-
psDse. Christianity eventually be-
came widespread. viii our rural
parts any less surely eventually be-
gin to reach out for and approach
an ideal OF an educational system?
Mr.. Thomas is exactly right in bis
method Of bringing about reform,
namely, by addressing the people and
trying to stir up some enthusiasm
on their part, but not so much blame
attaches TO the successive legislatures
as he would indicate. 1t will be
found, when a thorough investiga-
tion OF the school question is once in
stituted by our people through their
Legislature, that compulsory edues-
cation with free transportation will
be among the most, if not the most,
important key to a solution OF the
problem. We look forward to the
day, and hope it is not far distant,
when Virginia shall have q public
school system and arrangement
modelled after, il not equal to, those
OF some her sister States OF the North
and West.