The sun., 1919-08-03

emit year! What an immense and
sfients Influence hygienic study has
welded in single instance-the use
OF alcohol! There can hardly be a
doubt that the teaching in the schools
on that point has been an immense
factor in the spread Of prohibition.
To the question how far should the
educational system carry the matter
OF hygienic study there will be two an
swers. one from the State system, the
other from the church system. 1t is
quite certain that the State system,
with its salaried theorists and its i'm
mense funds will push the study to
the limit. The discussion on sex n.y.
giene proved that tendency and dan
ger. The church system will be more
just, moderate and humane, because
from its lack of funds it will mot be
tempted to overdo. II will respect the
children, not Cypress them, and it viii
the teachers, who are too
often overstrained by pitiless system.
The hygienic teaching and practice Of
the church school will be benevolent
rather than despotic, as so often hop
pens to ruthless systems which de-
mand impossible results because d.
rected by hardened theorists. Since it
Is training Catholic American democ-
racy it viii be apt to take into con-
sideration three things not too intelli-
gently discussed or too widely known
even in America. The educational sys-
TENS Of the republic are training the
children for what We all hope to see
the truest democracy in the world. 1t
is assuredly different from the kind
in other countries. 1t has
no aristocracy and no economic
slavery, like England in her nobility,
her Ireland and her India; its con-
freedom embraces all the
people. unlike France, which knows
freedom only as defined by the de
facto Government, hated by the
sections of the community;
Its national Government Is the express
sion OF the national will, unlike the
South American republics, which are
republics only in name and express
the triumph Of factions. American
is the model for the world.
and the Catholic leaven in it should
work for its perfection.
That is the first important thing In
school hygienfc training. The second
s contained in the principle and; the
act that man must i've for this: NE :
Is wen as for the next. The overpious
,naor 90 @hfC- r,aK@ar - +ho, 3,-t,t1,,.
sneer at living for the life to come
They are the chief opponents Of n.y.
yiene in the schools. They pretend
hat a healthy body Is hostile TO a
ofty spirituality 1t is the INDUCED
body. not the healthy one. which is
hostile. The one asset of the poor, as
has already been said. is health and
strength. and capitalism Is forever
to steal that asset, as It has
'tolen all oth-rr. tools. factories. ma
,hines, land. raw material and oppor-
unity. 1t is the business Of a vigor-
,us democracy TO see that the one
lsset be secured to the poor The
:hurch withdrew its children from the
State system because that system neg
eected the life of the soul II seems
luite fit then that in addition to look
ng after the souls Of the children 1t
ihould also pay special attention to
he health and strength of the chill
iren, their one asset In the struggle Of
ife. With the church the life Is more
han the meat, not only the life eter-
lal. but the earthly life Hygiene
'eeks to develop, to store up, to con-
erve that one asset of the poor, the
lealth OF the body. Without that the
'ichest is very poor indeed. Without
hat the poor are wholly lost In iife's
,attle.
The third thing Is that school n.y.
yienic training must be Christian in
principle and methods. Some people :
nicer too at that idea Since hygiene
has merely to build up a heaIthful
,ody, what has the Christian religion
. do with 1t? The same class OF peo-
de used to say the same thing years
Igo about arithmetic: What has re-
ision. to do with arithmetic? Since
he predatory trusts began teaching
md practising their particular kind
II arithmetic the sneerers have found
,ut in their own losses how much re-
igion has to do with arithmetic AS
here is a pagan hygiene. so there