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’勒斯’曼
(HORACE MANN)
公立學’’’’
The Case for Public Schools
教’’’類創’’’有’’中最’不’’’類條件等化器’’’’機器’’平衡輪’
當’輕’民族成’’’’個’區都有’任’’爲’’童提’’少學’教’’’’’’區’學’教學質’’’’老’未’’’’’培’’體’’’普’’
麻塞諸塞’’立’機’’應改革’們’1837’提’’’’’創立’’教’’Ⅸ’’該’Ⅸ’’請’勒斯’曼(1796’1859)任’’’’’’勒斯’曼任’’’11’間’曼領導’旨’改善教’’改革’動’’1848’’曼辭’該職’’’國’’成爲國’內’奴’’’鬥’’’’’’’任’亥’’’蒂奧’學’’’’’’’’’’’個月’曼’’該學’’’’’學生說’“我懇’’們’我’終’’’’話’藏’心裏’’有當’爲’類贏’’種勝’’’’’’而’憾’”
本文’’曼’1848’’給麻塞諸塞教’’Ⅸ’’最’’’報’’報’陳’’’’’條’’’國普及教’’’’成爲’’’’’’教’’’’’’’’民’教’鬥’中’’’’’成’’場鬥’’’’詞’
’’’據歐’’’’論’’劃分爲階’’’有’’辛勤勞’’掙錢’’’’’’’’’’豪奪’揮’’’’’據馬薩諸塞’’論’’’都有’樣’掙錢機’’都有’樣’’’’’’們’勞動’’’’’有’’平等條件’’成’而’’’有’成最’裏’不平等’傾’’’’
我’議’’’’仁’’’’’濟’’’繫’’’’’都應當’有’樣’’’’’巨’’’盛’凌’’’有’産’’’國’民’’福’’面’’最’’’之’’’種’産’’成’’’’’’’’種比中’’’’’’’’’壓迫’’’殘酷’’’’’’’’’’部分’國’’商’資本’’’們’技’’’’’’’’’’境’’’’’’’遠遠’’當’’國’歐’’陸’’’’’們’’們’僕’’’’’奴’’’’儘管’們’用’手’不’’’’結’’’有驚’’’’之’’’’’’’’’’而’’’’’’錢’’’
’’’除’’民教’之’’’’’’’夠’’’種資本統’’奴’勞’傾’’’’’’’’個階’’有’有’’’’教’’而’’’’’’成Ⅸ’’’’’’’’’那麽’們之間’關’’’成什麽都’關緊’’’實’’’’’實’成爲’’’奴僕’’民’’’’’’教’’均衡’分
’’話’教’’成爲’有’引’中最’’’’引’’’把’’’給’們’’爲’個’’’實’’’’’不曾’’不’’永遠’’’當’’’勞動分屬’不’’階’’’它們’本質’’對抗’’’’’’當’’’勞動’屬’’個階’’’它們’本質’’’情’’’’’麻塞諸塞’’民’’種’’’’領’’’’個’’’本’’’’’’’’生’’舒’’’’’收’’’體智’’’’’平’’’’’’’本’’’’少’完’’教’’本’’’都’’’教’’’’’’們’’’識’’個’樣重’’’實?’’’’’’本’’’’’分之’’’’本’’教’’’爲’教’’’們今日未像當今歐’’’’民那樣’野’而’’暴’’縛’暴’之’’成爲’資本’式’’’暴’’奴僕’教’’’類創’’’有’’中最’不’’’類條件均衡器’’’’機器’’平衡輪’我’裏不’說教’’’’’們’’’本質提高’’不’’’憎’對’’’剝’’’’’’屬’教’’’’種屬’’我’’’教’賦予’個’’立’’手’’’們’’藉’’’’’’’’’’比’除’’對’’’敵’’’’’’爲它’’們不’’’’’’’’’’’’教’’階’’階’’普及教’’’’創’’個’’闊’天’’’’天’裏’’’中’’種情緒’’’’解’’旦教’成爲’民’’’面’’它’’最有’’’除’’中’種’爲’’異’
’’’’改革’’革’’’’條中’’’’’’有’’’’’’’爲’’’’有’’種’’’爲’’’’’’’’’’由’採’欺’’暴’’手’’’由’’’’’’’’’’’’分’’不平均’’需’解’’問’’’’’’’’’中’’部分’那’據說’’’’有’’手中轉移’那’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’手中’’’’’’說’’們’’論及’’景’改革’中止’’而’教’’改善’’永不’竭’’’’它’’平方’’除’那’由’巨’’’’’’’’’’’’而’成’’切’’’它仍’不’’竭’教’’有’高’’’’它除’’有分’原有’’’’’’之’’還’有創’’’’’’’’’’’欺’’’’比’它’創’成’’’’潤’’最成’’領’’’’比’它’成’’’’民族’資源’’’’竊賊’’攫’原’由’’’有’’’’’’’教’’’創’’’’’’’’’’那’未曾爲’’’有’夢’’’’’’’’
’’’個未’化’’’夠學’游’’’’’’脖’’掛’’’’重’’’’把它’’’條’’’’’’’’中等’’’’域’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’用它’倒’棵樹’’樹’爲’體’用’’’隻手’’’爲槳’’’’’’’’
’原’重’’’’’而’’’’’離’’’’’’’’’’’’掏’樹’’’’’’’’’’稱’’噸’’’’’載重’’’而’’’’’’’端’它’’’輕’’’’’’快’’’’把’棵樹’’’’’’’’’成’個木筏’’而’’’’’’’’’’’船舶’’’’’’’’有’孔’’端’’翹’’’’’用肋’而不’筆’’本’’’’’’’槽’肋’’’’’’’’用’種填’’’’隙’’’’不’’’那麽’’’把粗陋’木筏變成’’副’實’船體’’’’改’船體’’部分’’’船體’’裝’風’’’’成’’’驕傲’商’’讓風’’’’個’陸’’’’個’陸’’’’’’’’’還不’’’有’’精’’’’’’’滿’’’用鋼’’’船體’’’’用’輪’’替槳’’’’’’’’革’’而’’’’艙比’’還’’’’’’船體’鋼’’壁內’’裝’’’’有’’’’有不解之’’鋼’機器’’’機器內’’’’’’’’’’’’’’’雙手’絕妙創’’’假有’覺’有’情’生’’樣’’’’’’不’風暴’載著’滿’’’興高’’’乘’’’’’’’’’’’船’’智’’那麽’類藝’’’迹’’’輪’’’’落’’塊飄’著’木’’’’’’木’本身’’喪失’盡’’剩’那未’化’游’’’’’馱著’’’重’’’’
’不僅僅’’個部’’’’’’’類’個勞動部’都’’’’’像太陽’毀滅必’’’黑’’樣’’類智’’’滅必’’整個’類立’陷’未’化’’’’’’之中’’個’’’’’勞動階’’’生’’’之中’’’’創’’像我們’樣’生’’’之’’個’’’’’未’予太陽’’’’樣殘酷’’
對’’’創’’說’對’’個’足’’民’’足’國’’’’’說’智’’唯’重’’條件’當’智’選民(’’我’’’樣稱’’們’話)’’’’改’’’數’’’’’’’’’’’’’當今’’’’部分’區’不’百’分之’’’’’’’教’’’’’備爲藝’’’學’’’’’’’’’’’’’’種教’’那麽’數不’’’’’’’必’接踵而’’’’’’’濟僅關心資本’勞動’’應’需’’’’’’’’’’’平衡’’’而不考’普及智’教’’那麽’種’’’濟’完’’天’’蠢’’’’’濟中最偉’’技巧’’’’’變成生産’’次之’’’生産’’生産’’’’個目’’’’接’’’’生産’’智’’實’’
The Case for Public Schools
. . . .
According to the European theory, men are divided into classes,--some to toil
and earn, others to seize and enjoy. According to the Massachusetts theory, all
are to have an equal chance for earning, and equal security in the enjoyment of
what they earn. The latter tends to equality of condition; the former to the
grossest inequalities....
I suppose
it to be the universal sentiment of all those who mingle any ingredient of
benevolence with their notions on Political Economy, that vast and overshadowing
private fortunes are among the greatest dangers to which the happiness of the
people in a republic can be subjected. Such fortunes would create a feudalism of
a new kind; but one more oppressive and unrelenting than that of the Middle
Ages. The feudal lords in England, and on the continent, never held their
retainers in a more abject condition of servitude, than the great majority of
foreign manufacturers and capitalists hold their operatives and laborers at the
present day. The means employed are different, but the similarity in results is
striking. What force did then, money does now. . . .
Now,
surely, nothing but Universal Education can counter-work this tendency to the
domination of capital and the servility of labor. If one class possesses all the
wealth and the education, while the residue of society is ignorant and poor, it
matters not by what name the relation between them may be called; the latter, in
fact and in truth, will be the servile dependants and subjects of the former.
But if education be equably diffused, it will draw property after it. by the
strongest of all attractions; for such a thing never did happen, and never can
happen. as that an intelligent and practical body of men should be permanently
poor. Property and labor, in different classes, are essentially antagonistic;
but property and labor, in the same class, are essentially fraternal. The people
of Massachusetts have, in some degree, appreciated the truth, that the
unexampled prosperity of the State,--its comfort, its competence, its general
intelligence and virtue,--is attributable to the education, more or less
perfect, which all its people have received; but are they sensible of a fact
equally important?--namely, that it is to this same education that two thirds of
the people are indebted for not being, to-day, the vassals of as severe a
tyranny, in the form of capital, as the lower classes of Europe are bound to in
the form of brute force.
Education, then, beyond all other devices of human origin. is the great
equalizer of the conditions of men--the balance-wheel of the social machinery,.
I do not here mean that it so elevates the moral nature as to make men disdain
and abhor the oppression of their fellow-men. This idea pertains to another of
its attributes. But I mean that it gives each man the independence and the
means, by which he can resist the selfishness of other men. It does better than
to disarm the poor of their hostility towards the rich; it prevents being poor.
. . . The spread of education, by enlarging the cultivated class or caste, will
open a wider area over which the social feelings will expand; and, if this
education should be universal and complete, it would do more than all things
else to obliterate factitious distinctions in society.
The main
idea set forth in the creeds of some political reformers, or revolutionizers,
is, that some people are poor because others are rich. This idea supposes a
fixed amount of property in the community, which, by fraud or force, or
arbitrary law, is unequally divided among men; and the problem presented for
solution is, how to transfer a portion of this property from those who are
supposed to have too much, to those who feel and know that they have too little.
At this point, both their theory and their expectation is of reform stop. But
the beneficent power of education would not be exhausted, even though it should
peaceably abolish all the miseries that spring from the coexistence, side by
side, of enormous wealth and squalid want. It has a higher function. Beyond the
power of diffusing old wealth, it has the prerogative of creating new. It is a
thousand times more lucrative than fraud; and adds a thousand fold more to a
nation's resources than the most successful conquests. Knaves and robbers can
obtain only what was before possessed by others. But education creates or
develops new treasures,--treasures not before possessed or dreamed of by any
one. . . .
If a
savage will learn how to swim, he can fasten a dozen pounds' weight to his back,
and transport it across a narrow river, or other body of water of moderate
width. If he will invent an axe, or other instrument, by which to cut down a
tree, he can use the tree for a float, and one of its limbs for a paddle, and
can thus transport many times the former weight, many times the former distance.
Hollowing out his log, he will increase, what may be called, its tonnage,--or,
rather, its poundage,--and, by sharpening its ends, it will cleave the water
both more easily and more swiftly. Fastening several trees together, he makes a
raft, and thus increases the buoyant power of his embryo water-craft. Turning up
the ends of small poles, or using knees of timber instead of straight pieces,
and grooving them together, or filling up the interstices between them, in some
way, so as to make them water-tight, he brings his rude raft literally into
ship-shape. Improving upon hull below and rigging above, he makes a proud
merchantman, to be wafted by the winds from continent to continent. But, even
this does not content the adventurous naval architect. He frames iron arms for
his ship; and, for oars, affixes iron wheels, capable of swift revolution, and
stronger than the strong sea. Into iron-walled cavities in her bosom, he puts
iron organs of massive structure and strength, and of cohesion insoluble by
fire. Within these, he kindles a small volcano; and then, like a sentient and
rational existence, this wonderful creation of his hands cleaves oceans, breasts
tides, defies tempests, and bears its living and jubilant freight around the
globe. Now, takeaway intelligence from the ship-builder, and the
steamship,--that miracle of human art,--falls back into a floating log; the log
itself is lost; and the savage swimmer, bearing his dozen pounds on his back,
alone remains.
And so it
is, not in one department only, but in the whole circle of human labors. The
annihilation of the sun would no more certainly be followed by darkness, than
the extinction of human intelligence would plunge the race at once into the
weakness and helplessness of barbarism. To have created such beings as we are,
and to have placed them in this world, without the light of the sun, would be no
more cruel than for a government to suffer its laboring classes to grow up
without knowledge. . . .
For the
creation of wealth, then,--for the existence of a wealthy people and a wealthy
nation,--intelligence is the grand condition. The number of improvers will
increase, as the intellectual constituency, if I may so call it, increases. In
former times, and in most parts of the world even at the present day, not one
man in a million has ever had such a development of mind, as made it possible
for him to become a contributor to art or science. Let this development precede,
and contributions, numberless, and of inestimable value, will be sure to follow.
That Political Economy, therefore, which busies itself about capital and labor,
supply and demand, interest and rents, favorable and unfavorable balances of
trade; but leaves out of account the element of a wide-spread mental
development, is nought but stupendous folly. The greatest of all the arts in
political economy is, to change a consumer into a producer; and the next
greatest is to increase the producer's producing power;--an end to be directly
attained, by increasing his intelligence.
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