The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1911-01-21
INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION.
America needs intelligent young men
willing to work with their hands as
well as with their brains.

mo CLASS OF people nave more pro-
found reasons for serious thought up
on the subject of education than have
the Catholics of America Unfortu-
nately at an early day the question of
taxing for the maintenance of the pub
lie schools those who did not desire
to avail themselves of the system, re-
suited in putting the Catholic body in
an apparently hostile attitude towards
State education, with the result that
our public educational institutions
have absorbed perhaps less Catholic
thought than any other department of
the Government
In the effort to make the schools
non-sectarian the public authorities
have felt compelled to avoid all re-
ligious teaching. They have, it is true,
endeavored to inculcate moral doc
trines, but almost entirely upon a
rather underlined theory of ethical prins
ciples, ignoring any definite authority
as the source from which moral law
obtains it's strength.
I think we can all agree this is un-
fortunate. The recognition of Divine
authority we believe to he necessary
for the highest development of human
ity; the recognition of civil authority
is closely allied, and it is generally
found that the denial of either results
in the denial of both. Parental author
ity is, of course, derived from the two
already mentioned, so that we easily
see that an educational system, which
after all has for it's main object the
development of mental processes
along sound lines and in accordance
with sound principles, must commence
by fixing in the youthful mind correct
standards of authority.
Without attempting to discuss
whether or not American Catholics
have in the past done their full duty
as citizens in this respect, or whether
it would not have been wiser to have
paid the school tax without murmur-
ing and have then insisted upon the
right to be consulted as to along what
lines public education should be de-
veloped, it is sufficient to say that
now, when throughout the United
States Catholics have everywhere
entered upon a system of education
all their own. there can be no question.
that the duty is upon them to furnish
one which will develop Industrious,
useful, and loyal citizens, whose lives
beneficial effect of the education so re-
ceived.
In material matters the first idea
the intelligent American boy receives
is that it is his duty to progress. No
fault can be found with this, but some
might disagree as to the proper defini-
tion of progression. Advancement is
not always secured by an attendance
upon college nor by entering one of
the learned professions. The need of
America today is for intelligent
American-born boys who are willing
to work; that is, for young men who
are willing to work with their hands
as well as their heads, who under
stand native and natural forces, who
have mastered the details of construc-
ton work, and know how great bodies
of workmen are organized, fed and
handled, how the complicated ma
chimes which do so much of the work
of the present day are constructed
and operated Nearly all the men who
laid foundations for great fortunes, and
all of the men who achieved greatness
in industrial life we're those who in
youth acquired a practical knowledge
of the details of the industries upon
which they were engaged.
I believe, therefore, that industrial
education is of prime Importance at
the present time. I do not desire to
be understood for a moment as decry-
ing higher education, but are we not
ignoring palpabIe truth if we assume
that any large proportion of the youth
of the country ever will be able to
take advantage of such institutions?
Fundamentally the American gov
ernment was intended to give each in
dividual, as far as possible, an equal
opportunity for development, hence
the most important institutions are
those within reach of and available for
the masses of the people. If more
than small proportion of the people
entered the professional or mercantile
fields they would starve, for being
strictly non-producers there would not
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