Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1904-11-24


Harvard and Princeton then dignlhed
by tho names Of college. were In fact
nothing more or less than modern high
schools These institutions and colleges
like them were very few and far be-.
tween. Only here ana there we find
that a young man was able to 90 TO
one OF them. The great masses Of peo-
pie hundred years ago were entirely
uneducated If you do not ngree with
this conclusion. go and study the old
documents kept among the Revolution
airy records Of Boston You can see
them any time you 20 to Massachu-
sets. Almost without exception the
men who stood by Samuel Adams opd
James Otis in the struggle for Ameri-
can liberties were practically unedu-
Gated men.
But though n hundred or even fifty
years ago the man who had Il liberal
education was the exception, the man
OF the generation which is to come
after us who is an uneducated man
will be the exception. SO perfect hns
our public school system become. SO
lcges OF today. SO prevalent are libra
ries everywhere. that an Abraham Lin
coin getting an education by a pine
knot Will never again be known in
American political life. Now every
boy. every girl, can develop the brain
/ to the utmost Now all our boys and
girls. by the magnificent system Of
schools which we have can IT them
selves for any line of work that they
will. Oh. carping pessimist do you
not see any blessing today in the fact
that you can educate your mind SO that
you can daily be the associate of the
master minds Of the centuries? Do
you not see blessing in the fact that
Shakespeare and Burns and Scott and
Irving and Motley and Prescott and
Gladstone and Webster and Edison and
Millet and Raphael and Angelo and
Beethoven and Wagner and Thorvald-
sen can all be Invited 10 your study
desk any night you will, to paint, or
sing. or chisel. or preach, or teach for
you? Education is not mere affecta
ton Education "a the wings Of in
SEPARATION which MT man NJ so that
! ulS uOTlIOb taxes III III !hbNS, tlt efucs
all worlds and all ages
Il not the opportunity OF developing
the mind and heart and the pfe of
man by education great advance
ment over the educational opportuni
ties which were offered 10 the genera
tons that are past and gone?
Thus at this glorious Thanksgi
time find the world Is not only grow
Ing better. but II Is better than 1t has
ever been before hnd we have a
better government better church.
better homes, better physical and men
tai men and women and better chill
dren to take our places after We are
gone Let US thank God on this com
ING harvest festival for what be has
done for Us May we pray TO him to
give us strength to 90 on doing the
work he has given IS to do. and may
tho time come when our future work
may yield even far greater harvests,
mental physical End spiritual. than the
work % the past and tho present have
yielded In thanking God Tor tie bless
ings of the Tharksgtving ds! OF 1901
let ia als0 thank him that - tnls
, Thanksgiving is better than any
/ Thanksgi ing IN which OR ancestors
: lived. so we may employ al our tai
, ents ana energies to make this word
even a better world IN thc future than
II IS at the present time
We are standing on the threshold
We ara In The opened door.
, We are trcsding or border and
We have never troi before