Mount Vernon signal. (Mt. Vernon, Ky.) 18??-current, 1914-03-06
Thugs THAT MAKE A TOWN
no. z.
(By .,Ev. o. S. WATSON }
IT'S SCHOOLS

has been the worlds greatest
problem. Modern society has
come to recog that the child.
undeveloped and imperfect tho
he be, has, like the tizen, GER
tain iralieriable rights. He has
certain phys zeal rights, the right
to know both the j)ys of work and
play. He has certain Intellectual
rights, tie rig ht 10 be tr ined to
study, totEink, to reason. He
has moral ard spiritual lights :
the right to knowledge of God.
and OF his dealings and require
ments of men.
That CONN unity Or that State
which has satisfactorily solved the
problem of the adequate educa
ton of her children has laid the
foundation of tutnre strength and
prosperity Therefore, we con-
sider one OF the leading factors
in the life and upbuilding of
town to be IT'S SCHOOLS.
What is education? We have
seen many definitions, some of
them so complex aud technical as
to be bewiIdering. For our pur-
pose we will be satisfied with call
ing it the awakening and training
of faculty; the complete prepare
ton for lie Ask the mechanic
the purpose of education, and he
will tell you it is to give man
that knowledge that will email lie
him to make an honest living.
Ask the statesman the same ques
tien and he will tell you that The
primary object of education is to
make citizens. Askthe pEilOso-
pher and he will tell you that it is
to make men think and reason.
| Ask the true educator and he will
tell you that it is to make charae-
ter.
Shall we say that any of these
answers are wrong? We think
not, we would rather agree with
: them all, ana largely with Herbert
Spencer, who referred to the pnrs
! pose of education as a means of
forming the worker, the parent,
the thinker, and the citizen" We
believe the immediate end of edu
cation to be to fit any man to earn
an Independent living Any man
, who does not earn such a living
becomes q burden on the State.
And the better and fuer work .
man can do, the more wealth he
can produce, ard the greater con
tribution he can make to the State
and to society. 1t hurts no int0l-
lect to be able to make boat or q
house or a chain. And the more
students the schools of Mt Yer
non tnrns out, capable Of max ing
e An independent living the richer
Il and the better Mt. Vernon viii
be.
But this principle must DE EN-
s phas:zed TOO exclusively, for mer
a have to live as well as to make {
. living. Success as a mechanic O.
Il merchant is ore thing, and sue
y cess as mau is another. Mo,
5 o; the studies in the grammar
Y grades are calculated to increase
e man S efficiency; but when h
l. gets into the High School, he
e finds studies there like Latin ant
e higher literature, that are.ca.cu
Is lated to broaden his horizon. T
le have efficiency in our work, whiSI
al perhaps. occupies eight hours
le day, is good thing, but to hav
II this, and this alone, is very un
81 fortunate thing. There are eigh
IS hours of leisure and recreation a
q well as eight hours of work, an
g the best educational systems in
S clude education for life as well a
I. education for a living 1t is
il pitable sight to see man capabl
ne OF making good living but il
y capable of enjoying himself out
u side of his working hours, an
lie who has not been trained for cit
OF zenship There is yet highe
phase of education. Knowl=dg
OF without morals is usually a mer
o ace to the State as we'll as to th
IS home. A man who merely has hi
81 head stuffed with facts, figure
no and definitions is not an educate
10 man. AS one of our KY. judge
ne recently said at banqut: "Tt
ne end and aim of teaching shou
en- not be the acquisition of know
ne adO1 hut the 11,,h,;fdinn rs o,r,