The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-04-24
Ambassador Bryce Is Welcomed Cordially By An Immense
 Crowd
EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS
 THOROUGHLY DISCUSSED
Bishop Bratton of Mississippi Delivers An Address Principally Upon the Negro and Shows Benefits
 of Good Education.

Memphis. Tenn April 2S.-The presencz l of British Ambassador Bryce drew the
 largest crowd tonight of the present
 conference for education in the south. l When presented by President Ogden, Am bassador Bryce was given a hearty re- 1 eeption.
 Hardly less cordial was the greeting l given to Bishop T. D. Bratton of the Mississippi diocese. who spoke on "The i Christian South and Negro Education
 Prof P. P. Claxton of the University
 of Tennessee opened the evening meet
 ing with a discussion of Ways and
 Means of Educational Campaign" He
 recited plans used with varying degrees
 of success in all parts Of the south for
 erousing educational enthusiasm.
 Bishop Bratton took the position that
 the negro must be looked after in his
 advancement with Christian care and ten-
 der sympathy, ever keeping watch to
 strengthen him in a fight against many
 odds for better mental and moral condi- | tions
 The bishop declared that the negro is
 capable of mental development, that
 majority are children intellectually and
 little short of savagcs morally and that
 the relations between the races is after
 all kindly and affectionate.
 .'No one will be marsh enough to main
 tain that ignorance is wise as enilghten-
 mept," he said, "at the same time con-
 tending that results must be acquired
 by both races working together. The
 negro must be taught to keep himself.
 this being a duty of the Christian south.
 ..I do not believe that any one who
 knows the race would venture to say
 that it is wise to leave it entirely to
 it's own leadership" said the speaker.
 "T would not detract one iota from the | distinction which l rejoice -a which any
 of the great negro leaders have achieved
 but in my judgment the negroes are not | ready to emanciyate themselves com
 pletely from white guidance and white
 leadership Ideal educational art among
 the race is being done, more largely
 by schools which are under white man 1 agement There is a deep reason Tor my
 contention for white supervision of negro
 education The negro's life must be llNed
 among the whites. The adjustments or 1 life are not always easy to be maae.
 The arrangement would be intolerapis
 if they become extreme to the point or | hatred" ,,.,, l Bratton He said:
 1 .It is a pleasure to the returning Visllor
 to note how strong has become the intel
 est in the progress of education In thls | mart of vour country. You are so coh- l tinced of the worth of those services, l however that l need not stop to descaht l unon them What l desire to do tonigh- i is to go straight to practical lopics aha
 supply such facts or give suen counsei | as my study. of English edncation proo-
 lens, continued during 40 years places at 1 my disposal .,,.,. 1 "After we had established elementary l schools all over the country we tried Tor
 some years to get on without eonpuisory
 school attendance laws. But we iouhu
 them indispensable
 having the elementary schools supported
 partly by local taxation and partly by a
 state grant Supervision by the central | anthority is of great value. In cities
 where a school committee controls con
 siderable number of elementary schoois | ii has been our practice for the commit
 tee to ;rppont for each school number
 of persons men and women, whom we | call managers. The managers are usually | the best citizens in the neighborhood- | They form d friendly semi-official link be- 1 tween the school and the parents ana tho | local community.
 | d l importance to establish proper con | nection between the elementary schools | in which children remain till about lS wears of age ton an aVerage) and the secondary schools--what you call hign | schools-where children remain till To or | 15 so that the best pupils of the former may be passed on to the latter and pursue | their studies there. 1t Is especially needed i in rural districts where high schools are | comparatively few. The boy who shows | ability is sent forward to the most avail 1 able high school and if hls parents cant l afford to support him he is helped to re- main for two or three years at school ! ''The most vital part of a good school | system is to secure good teachers. On 1 him or her depends the advance of the scholars-their intellectual life their moral | tone. Good teaching consists in much more than showing children how to spell | and write and do sums, or in hearing | them repeat the names of the states and l the dates in your history. The real aim 1 Is to quicken the intelligence of the pupil. l make him love knowledge and wish to | 20 on acquiring it. To do this the teacher must himself love knowledge, and pos | sess much more of it than the mere rou- | tine of school work demands. ''These educational conclusions drawn | from our English experience seem to be l applicable generally. I suppose what you desire to have in the south is broadly as l follows:
 '1. You desire that the laborng man | of the country, by whom it's manual | work skilled and unskiled. will be done | should not only be industrious but intel | ligent
 | .2. You want those who are to be the | leaders in the development of your re- l sources the employers in city and coun- | try merchants engineers and professional