The call of the North. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1923-1924, 1923-08-03
EDWIN ERIE SPARKS. PRESIDENT PENNSYLVANIA STATE
COLLEGE. STATE COLLEGE PENNSYLVANIA

NOLLEIE, !
Go into many of the manufactur
ing plants in this country and you viii
find there a large receptacle int
which is poured the crude and raw
material; heat is applied beneath ant
then after a while the finished produc
is drawn off from this mechanism
which we call crucible. And wan
to compare in a few minutes, oul
great educational system, to vas
crucible into which we pour the crud.
and raw material of the teachers, TIT
parents, the taxes, and the text books
and then at stated intervals, usually
about the middle of June, we draw
off the finished product.
In the great crucible of the manu-
featuring plant there are certain tests
which they apply to the product, tt
find out how fine it is, and how poor
it is. And I want to apply, if you
will, in a word, certain tests to the
product of the public schools.
First Test-Service
Now, the first test I will apply, il
you please, is the test of serving,-
serve, s-e-r-v-e. 1t is pronounced
"serve." There is a noun derived
from serve,-servant. It is pro-
nounced servant. I spell and pro-
nounce these words because they seem
now to belong to the dead languages,
They have disappeared from our mod
ern vocabulary. The word servant
went out a few years ago about the
time that woman went out, and man
went out of fashion. You know now
we are all ladies and "gents." If ]
would rise here and say, "Men and
women" you would say: "There comes
that wild barbarian from the noun
tains of Pennsylvania, and he doesn't
know any better than to say Men
and Women" So I must say Ladies
and Scents" Ladies free, and Gents
fifty cents, as you know.
1 want to get the old idea of men
and women back, and the idea of
servant back. want to get the boy
and girl educated at public expense,
to be willing to serve. Let me use
that word in several ways. Let me
say in the first place willing to serve
the state because he is educated at
public expense. I hope that we can
drill that idea into the head of every
boy and girl in every high school, at
least in the state of Minnesota
educated at public expense. I would
commend to each one that line from
Othello in which he says 81 have done
the state some service" Why? Be-
cause after graduation, only too fire.
quently, the young man goes home
and then neglects to serve the state.
You say to him, "Aren't you the
young man who on graduation day in
the high school, or the graduation day
of the college, read that magnificent
essay on the duties Of citizenship"
And he modestly admits that he was.
And you say to him, ''Did you 60 out
to the election last week." And he
says, 81 forgot all about the election,
I was so busy thinking about the
duties of citizenship" And you say,
"Did you go out to the primaries held
not long since?" And he says, mo,
I didn't, the conditions in this town in
which live are appalling, why
politics are rotten here, they are
filthy, and I am an educated man and
can't stoop to soil my fingers with
common politics."
Prime Duty of Citizenship
Now my friends, I don't care how
much or how greatly or how expen.
sively that young man is educated,
claim he has not learned the prime
duty of citizenship, which is to serve
the state which educated him.
Or I will take the girl if you
please, she comes back from the high
school or college, and when I say to
her, "You have returned here to your
friends in the community, have you
joined yet this movement of the civic
club for the betterment of the city
Have you taken any part in the mis-.
sionary society work?" And she
says, "No." Why not? ooh, because
the women that make up these or.
CARNATIONS use such English that il
pains my trained and sensitive ear
they use ungrammatical expressions
and therefore / can take no part, be.
cause I am educated"
/ care not my friends, say again
how highly she is educated, I claim
she has not yet learned the principle
of serving the state which educated
her. ,..,
What should be our relation al
pupils and souls to the community
They should be practically these
fundamental and essential things thai
I am trying to present to you. Let
me use the word "serve" in anothe,
capacity. We have heard good dea
in recent times about the little brown
men, the Japanese across the sea. w,
know that for many years the serv
ants on our men-of-war have largel,
made up of Japanese. Why SO? Be
cause you cannot get an American Il
serve in that menial capacity, he con
siders it beneath his dignity as ,
free-born American citizens Of th'