The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-04-16
EDUCATION BY THE STATE
Address Delivered Before the Conference for Education the South Pine
hurst by President JudsOn,f Chicago University.


1t is highly important that there
should be a large measure Of agree
ment as to the legitimate purpose for
which money taken from US all by
taxation should be expended.
| would suggest u brief statement
OF what seems to me the main leSit-
mate ends of a course of public in
struction in the order of their impor-
t2nce. / am aware that exception may
easily be taken to the scheme. But
there are reasons cogent with \me for
maintaining these purposes in the or
der given and for excluding other
ends.
Some of these reasons / will try to
give:
First: The primary and that appears
TO me TO Justify education at pub
lie cost is this:
That the young man gets the power
and the inclination to earn an hon
est living by honest work.
The first necessity Of this life is
life itsHlf. True. there are things more
important than life; still, the funda-
mental employment of every creature
that comes into the world is to main
tain existence. The task may be easy
or difficult. individuals may find it,
done for them, by the good fortune
or providence Of ancestors, and SO
may be able to devote their time to
other pursuits.
But the number Of any leisure class
is after all not large. the great bulk
of men have TO get their living by the
sweat of their brow. Riches are the
exception and Ut least comparative
poverty the rule. And so long as all
ones poWcrs are absorbed III the mere
struggle for existence, there is little
good in speaking of culture. The man
who tolls to the limit Of exhaustion
to keen bread in the months of his
family cannot be expected to appre-
ciate the delights of aesthetic taste.
Tighten his toll. in other words enable
his work 20 be more effective. and YOU
make room for higher things: Eut
higher things presuppose that the
lower are provided
The great social questions Of the
present day are economic. The great
social disease that leads to a very
large share OF crime and ignorance
and misery, Is poverty.
The sovereign specific for this dis
ease has yet TO be found. Prophets
in abundance cry: 10 Here" or .I.o
There" But until we have some bet
ter assurance than at present of the
efficacy Of these loudly heralded dis
coNcrfes. we may as we'll adhere to the
Old notion that good degree of. in
uuStry and efficiency will tend very
surely to lessen poverty.
Is there anything more pitiful than
ineiticiency? Il matters little how in
telligcnt q man may be. If he can
not get along If he is unable TO
earn u living. not from that
hard fortune to which anyone is liza
bic, but because he lacks the ability to
put two and two together and make
more than three--he is q distressing
object. And am of the opinion more
over. that good deal Of what passes
for laziness comes only or mainly
from conscious unfitness. AS a rule.
OF one enjoys doing, what he can do we'll.
There is q delight in successful work
work that brings things to pass.
There is misery in the shiftless pre-
tence Of doing what one knows is i'll
done. So that if one becomes capable.
he is thereby far less likely to be in-
dOlent.
The second end Of public instruction
I should consider to be this:
To give sufficient intelligence to
understand the position aud duties of
citizen of {, free State.
put this as second in Importance
merely because it is second in the or
der Of nature. Next to ones own
maintenance comes the question of
his duties to his fellow men And in
republic, in which each citizen is
Oh par before the law with all
others. it is evident that this question
must be we'll understood if peace and
law are to prevail over anarchy. How
TO give this intelligence is a problem
that it is the business of every teacher
to settle for himself and for his school
But OF one thing I am positive: The
needful knowledge should come not
merely from q term or two IN the
of political economy The instruction.
like that in morals should be all per-
NaSiVe. The teacher should make it
his business just as early as possible
TO 'ead his pupils to understand what
IS meant by q republic. how it works.
what are the privileges of its citizens.
what are the simple principles of poll
ties, which all citizens can understand.
This sort Of training. ] repeat can
not be prescribed in a definite curri-
book. 1t ought to be the atmosphere
which every school breathes. How
ever the teacher may go about it.
believe that patriotism can be taught
and that there is no better place to
teach il than the school and the col
leGe. The flag of our Nation. the
great names and the great deeds in
our annals, the essential meaning
the world of our great derSocrauc
repubiiC--all these should be familiar
things in every school. Love of coun-
try. pride in American citizenship
these are the sentiments which be
come forces of vast power in our Ma
uonai developments Ana the school
Of any grade which is not inspired
with this American spirit is not wor-
Thy OF the free people who support it.
The third thing which 4 public
school should aim to impart is this:
Scn restraint so not to abuse power
at the expense of others.
II always requires self restraint for
men TO live together in peace. The
!npulsINe barbarian acts only as im-
peiieq by his desires without regard
to others. The civilized man learns tc
be hcedful of those around him and
thence to moderate his own selfish,
ness.
But there can be no lasting order
III society unless this lesson has been
naeasurably we'll learned hv tho pco-
pie as i whole. To DC sure. a power
ful minority may temporarily hold {
majority in check and compel peace
But sooner or later the minority. how.
over henificent at first. Will 1tSelf be