Year: 1867

not little exercised that HeT1tuS should
have charged that the famous produc-
ton emanRted from onewho is an ayow-
ed enemy of public schools; that all
his productions bear as heavily against
the present school law of this city, of
the State, and of all systems of public
instruction, as against the Wheeling
Bill before the Legislature; that the
author is one of thirty Cor there abouts,) }
who, under the old law of Virginia
voted against the establishment of pub
lie schools in Ohio county, &c, and
after charging that the above is ''from
the pen of the Superintendent of
Schools for the Wheeling District,
submits whether it is not strong
evidence of his unfituess foI the
position he now occupies" He then
proceeds to say that "any sensible or lib
eral gentleman, in replying to 'Remon-
strance' would have supposed 1t was Il
matter of no Importance who wrote the
paper" Now, if the Superintendent of
Schools is the author of the article sign
ed PeTitds it Is not probable that he
will feel disposed to shrink from the
responsibility, particularly of that part
which relates to the "Remonstrance," !"
since the "writer OF the demonstrates"
sustains him in the leading charges
which most concern the people OF this
school district. He seems to forget,
while he-charges VeritGs with having
made the subject "the occasion of per-
sonal reproach and odium, % that he had
first charged the superintendent of
Schools and part of the Board of Ed
ucation' with having attempted TO force
upon this community a school law
which he has labored to prove an unpar-
donable iniquity. sFl


The only charge which the "Writer''
labors to disprove is that he was one of
the thirty, (or thereabouts,) y who voted
against the establishment of public
schools in Ohio county, and he states
that 1t is untrue, according to his T-eLnenI-
brdnce, that he so voted. 1 will not say
that the remembrance of the gentleman
is at fault in this matter. / certainly
of citizens of Wheeling, who labored
Zealously for the establishment of
that system of public in.
struction which has for twenty years
been credit to our city, are decided
in the conviction that the gentleman
did so vote. The testimony of the gen.
tleman himself, were he positive in the
assertion, would of itself be sufficient.
would not for a moment question his
veracity. But while he expresses 1t as
his belief that he voted for, instead of
against the measure, his language is
evidently such as TO imply shadow of
doubt in his own mind relative to the
matter. Were it matter of any vital
Importance, it could be determined be-
yond a peradventure, by reference to
the records of the election. Cannot the
gentleman furnish the names of those
"thirty or seventy" who, in voting
against public schools, manifested, as
he frankly avows, quite as much ''vir-
tue and wisdom" as those who voted
for them? This very assertion of the
gentleman virtually proves all that was
charged aguinst him, as being an avow-
ed enemy of general education. Our
schools for nearly twenty years have
hnPns RnnnnRtRH fhn
plan, as the schools in all the other cities
of the country. But the gentleman
avows himself their enemy on the
ground that they provide for the educa-
ton of rich and poor alike,-in other
words, that they provide for General ed
ucation. In his demonstrates he saws.
"this bill is unquestionably plan for
the education of our youth by means of
public SchOOLs-a plan for the organiza-
ton and establishment of Il system of
public schools, which shall virtually
supersede private ones, and private ed
ucation and instruction. This is proved
by the provision for the establishment
OF primary schools, Academies and Col
leges under the name of Grammar and
High. Schools, and for the education of
rich and poor alike. l for one am will
ling to say that this charge is true, epe1u
toord true, no Gospel more SOL The OBJ
ject of the bill is, evidently, to make
our schools equal in merit and ddUdH-
tdgeS to any private or select school,
or academy. To afford to rich and
poor alike the advantages of thorough
education. And 1 most unhesitatinEly
affirm that the man who can pen such
a paragraph as the one from which 1
have above quoted, as an objection to a
school law, avows himself an enemy to
general education, a friend of class leg
islation, an advocate of the abhorent
dogma that wealth implies north, and
penury, de1rGddtioM-that the rich and
the poor should never mingIe on terms
of equality. re


Lam charged with having asserted
that the remonstrance bears as much
city and the general school law of the
State, as against this bill. Irepeat that
suchis the fact. The gentleman him
self will not undertake to controvert
the position. Let him point, if he can


to one argument in the entire paper,
which he regards as of any weight,


which does not bear alike upon the
State school law, the present city school
law, and the pending bill. The last
clause in the gentleman's production
of Thursday, fully commits him on this


point. Hesays: al have heard of late
much about Radicalism, but 1 have
failed to see mach that is substantially


more 1niSchieUouS or radical than this
bill and the oHeIt processes to amend"


ARd now, while 1 give the 0aIthor of
the Ren101LStTd7lces the credit of consist
ency in having been uniformly oppos-
ed TO all systems of general education,
charge that the paper itself contains
glaring inconsistencies. 1t charges
that the bill before the Legislature pro-
poses to increase taxation, and urges
this as a reason for its reiec-
tiOn. At the same time it demands
that the State law in the matter of tax
alton, should be made to apply to the
Wheeling District, since the constitution
provides that taxation shall be equal
and uniform" Now, 1 assert, fearless
of contradiction, that null nineteen out
monstrance, did SO without so much as
. having read IL, but upon the represen-
tation of a few persons, that the Bill
before the Legislature, proposes TO in
crease taxation for school purposes.
Numbers of intelligent citizens can be
brought forward to prove that they
were induced to sign the paper upon
this representation, and that they
would by no means have done SO, had
they taken time to consider its true
character. @ .t--
Now, would be glad to have the at
tention of every tax payer of this Dis
trict, while 1 undertake to expose the
Inconsistency of the author of this Re
RJOHStrdnce upon this one matter of tax
alton. Let 1t be understood that he
urges the rejection of the Bill on the
ground that it proposes TO increase
taxes within this School District, and
then undertakes to make it appear that
the rate of taxation should be the same
as that fixed by the State law. Let us
compare the powers conferred by the


pending Bill upon the Board of Educa-
ton of Wheeling School District, and
those conferred bY the State law " fich