The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1922-11-23
NICHOLAS MURRAY
BUTLER ON EDUCATION

subject of special article written
for the American Legion by Nicholas
Murray Butler, president of Columbia
University. John J. Tigert, United
States Commissioner of Education,
and the National Education
Association are cooperating with the
Americanism Commission of the
legion, in making the week success.
President Harding will issue a
national proclamation, which will be
followed by proclamations from
governors and mayors.
Education week should be a time
for Strengthening our understanding
of the foundations of American
education" DR.. Butler says in the
article, follows:
"From the beginning the interest
in education of the founders and
makers of America has been unique.
Harvard College was established in
Massachusetts Bay only sixteen years
after the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth.
The common school quickly grew up
in New England and spread over the
whole United States as a typical
American institution. Horace Mann
and Henry Barnard put new life and
higher ideals into the American school
system nearly century ago. The
Ordinance for the government Of the
Northwest Territory, made in 1887,
out of which territory so many of the
middle western states have been
carved, contained express provisions
for the support and development of
public education. Long ago it became
established public law that an
American state, or subdivision there
of, might maintain by public tax
any type of instruction that it saw
fit, however advanced. This
principle underlies the public high
schools and the unsupported
universities and technical schools.
1T is American doctrine, fortunate
ly,that while education is a proper
state function, it is in no sense state
monopoly. Schools, colleges and
universities flourish and are encour-
aged to flourish in the field of liberty
as well as in the field of government
The former are not supported by
public tax, although frequently their
property used directly for education
is exempted from taxation. This is the
states way of encouraging private
initiative to develop educational in
stitutions in the field of liberty By
this unusually happy combination of
tax-supported schools, colleges and
universities, every public interest is
met, while provision may readily be
made for every shade of opinion and
belief. In this way the American
! people keep their educational system
free, elastic and adaptable to their
every need, and avoid the hard and
fast government-made and govern
ment-regulated educational systems
of continental Europe.
Every American who understands
the fundamental principles which un-
| derlie American education and justify
the faith of the American psople in
1T, will resist all attempts to break
down those principles, to substitute
federal control or central regulation
for local initiative, to displace eiast-
tic.ty for rigidity, or compel conform
ity in Prussian fashion instead of up
holding liberty in American fashion
"From one point of view the faith
of the America people in education is
sublime, while in another 1T is path
etic. 1t is sublime in that it shows
the American people, at their best, in
the full expression of their faith in
the progress of mankind, in their un-
shakeable confidence in the power of
intelligence and disciplined character.
Their faith is patheic in that schools,
colleges and universities, do what they
Will, fall short of their own ideals and
of what the American people have a
right to expect of them.
Education Week should be time
for reexamining the foundations of
American education, for increasing
our understanding of those founda-
tions, for strengthening our conf
dence in them, and for resolving to
do all in our power to make our
schools, both higher and lower, bet
ter able to justify the nations faith
N them and their influence. Schools,
colleges and universities cannot be
made by money, but only by person
alities; must live, and the economic
basis of schools and of the teaching
profession must be sufficiently broad
sufficiently stable and ample enough
to invite and to retain the consecrat-