Professional Documents
Culture Documents
7. And to the end that the children of the poor [Sidenote: Indians
people, and the children of Indians may have and the poor to be
the like good learning with the children of the educated
cost]
free of
SUMMARY
This chapter treats of the attitude of Friends [Sidenote:
towards education. At the beginning there is Summary of
presented a criticism of S. H. Cox, which is a Cox’s position]
concrete example of the type of criticism referred to
in these pages. Following this there are presented the educational
views of several Friends,—Penn, Barclay, Benezet, Woolman,
Whitehead, Crouch, Tuke, and Thomas Budd, in order that the
reader may judge of the truth or error presented in the criticism. The
chief points made in Cox’s criticism are: (1) hostility of the Quaker
system to classical education, (2) general hostility of the Friends to
colleges and seminaries of learning, and (3) that the “light within”
was sufficient without any education.
From the material next presented it is shown [Sidenote:
that: (1) Penn recommended both practical and Summary of
higher education, (2) useful arts and sciences are points maintained
by certain Quaker
recommended to be taught in public schools, (3) leaders]
the classics were introduced as a part of the
curriculum in the Penn Charter School, and also in other schools
established by the society, (4) Barclay explains that the society holds
a classical education not absolutely necessary for a minister, though
it is useful, (5) the learning of languages is recommended by the
London Yearly Meeting, (6) education is advocated by Benezet as a
religious and social duty; the education of the poor and unfortunate
classes and races is urged; a higher education for schoolmasters is
recommended, (7) Woolman urges the education of Negroes and
Indians as a social duty; the responsibility is placed on the individual,
(8) Crouch states that Hebrew, Greek, and Latin are recognized as
useful and are not opposed when taught for that purpose, (9) Budd,
one of the early Quakers in Pennsylvania, introduced a very
comprehensive and Utopian scheme for (a) industrial education and
(b) higher education, proposing to organize it under the control of the
General Assembly, and (10) indications are that progress, within the
teaching body in Friends’ institutions, is quite comparable with that of
other institutions, though there is no attempt to produce conclusive
evidence either to that effect or the contrary.
CHAPTER IV
EDUCATION IN PHILADELPHIA[124]
The plan for education as above set forth was [Sidenote: Quaker
not destined to be the one followed consistently for Council provides
more than a century and a half of development, a school]
though throughout the first decades the relations
between the schools of Friends and the governing Council were very
close.[136] It is significant that the first school was actually ordered by
the Council, in keeping with Penn’s provisions. About one year after
Penn’s arrival in Philadelphia the educational problem came to the
attention of the Council and received decided recognition, as the
following witnesses:
On “11th month, 9th, 1682,” the Friends met and [Sidenote: The
enacted business relating chiefly to the sick, a first meeting of
meeting house, purchase of books and such other record]
details of importance, but made no reference to [Sidenote: The
schools or the education of youth.[144] This probable length of
Flower’s tenure
remained true for all meetings till 1689,[145] the as teacher]
chief part of business in the meantime having to do
with either (1) strictly religious affairs or (2) raising money for the
poor and the orphans. The absence of any remarks or any plans for
schools from 1682 to 1689 is more easily understood when it is
recalled that the school under Enock Flower was set up in 1683.[146]
There is no evidence to prove definitely that Flower continued as
schoolmaster during the whole of this time, but (1) the absence of
any record of change, (2) no record of schools kept by the Friends
Meeting, (3) the fact that he was a teacher of long experience
(twenty years) and probably as satisfactory as any to be found, and
(4) the absence of keen competition on the part of neighboring
places to draw him away, would lead one to believe it probable that
he remained there for the greater part of the period at least.
In 1689 Friends determined to establish a school, designed to
meet the demands of rich and of poor,[147] which does not seem at
all strange since they were known to have been supporting their poor
and the orphans by subscriptions since their first establishment.[148]
The transaction of the business relating thereto was performed in the
monthly meeting and referred to the quarterly meeting (higher) for its
approval. The following extract from the records of the meeting gives
the result of their decision: