The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1911-05-30

of pride should crown It's palaces and
bulwarks with the towering cross OF
the cathedral This I think no man
can deny" (Maitland: Dark Ages
Preface p. .. No. nor can he deny
that there were two fourishing uni
dred years before Harvard was found
ed, and universities all over Europe
with their thousands and tens of thou
sands Of pupils. all raised by the fos-
tering hand of Catholoctty long before
the American continent was discov-
cred. And yet IL is said that the Cath
Ole church is the foe OF education II
It were, then are the records OF the
past a web OF malicious lies to be
swept from the wall of time as ruth
lessly as we dash the offensive cobweb
from out our bones: il 1t Is, then why
still those numerous Catholic schools
and colleges and universities In nve
continents, why in the United States
of America alone those five thousand
Catholic or parochial schools with
their million and three hundred thou
sand children? The Catholic church is
not and has never been the foe or edu-
cation, but because we stand on our
divine inalienabke constitutional right
of liberty OF conscience and clearly
recognize that non-religtous education
IS, by the very nature Of things not
only ineffective but a failure, we build
our schools, where religion Is, as 1t
should be- the very life o. thought, and
make the necessary sacrifices gladfy.
Therefore It is that Catholics. while
bearing the burden of the common
taxation for the pubic schools, equip
and save the state the enormous sum
of nearly forty million dollars annual
ly. I may remark IN passing that l
hope the time VIII come In the not too
distant future when the Justice of our
claim for an equitable distribution in
our favor of the taxes yearly paid for
education Will be publicly admitted.
Not many years ago Judge. now Tres
ident, Taft in a ringing appeal to the
candor OF hts Cincinnati fellow citizens
fear1esS1y voiced the fairness Of the
Catholic position when he said:
These Catholics, COT our city, paying
Their proportion OF the taxes, are con-
strained every year, on conscientious
grounds, to yield to others their right
to one-third of the school money,
about two hundred thousand dollars
a year. This Is to say, these people
are punished every year for believing
as they do, to the extent OF two hun
bred Thousand dollars: and to that sex-
tent those of US who send our children
to these common schools become bene-
flc1aries of Catholic money. What
shame for on-Catholics to heve their
children educated with money robbed
from Catholics!"l Until, however, our
people, generally, WIN acknowledge
that we are not looking for unjust
discrimination we shall continue will
lingly, from our own resources, to per
petuate in wood and brick and stone
the Catholic and true idea of educa
ton What, after all, Is education II
not the consistent and harmonious
training of every faculty Of being?
Information is not education A men
tai prodigy with an undeveloped re-
lfgfous sense is a moral negation and
walking blasphemy.
More Than Literary Training.
TT is a mockery,- said Daniel Web
ster, on a great occasion, -and insult
to common sense to maintain that a
school for the instruction of youth
from which christian instruction by
christian teachers Is sedulously and
religfously shut out is not deistic and
infidel in It's tendency" Accordingly
we are not surprised to read the re-