The united American : a magazine of good citizenchip., November 01, 1922, Page 33, Image 33

November, 1922
oubts let him read Roosevelt’s auto-
iography, or the daily papers. But the
chool will find it hard indeed to deal
nth the sins of the age while the men
f the age still live and move in the
lidst of us.
Fortunately the most important pro-
ess is not to exhibit these or any other
'rongs and arouse indignation against
lem: it is rather to awaken and enfiber
1 the minds of the growing American
lose positive principles and ideals
hich will make him spurn such deeds
I whatever form they present them-
ilves. Economic and political malefac-
>rs as often as not, are men of excellent
rivate character and charming person-
lity. How many good church members,
»voted husbands, loving fathers, public-
jirited townsmen, yielded to the lure
’ “post plus 10 per cent.,” and literally
>bbed the star-spangled banner? Sam-
»1 Johnson said that patriotism is
;he last refuge of a scoundrel:” un-
»rtunately it is too often the refuge
: an otherwise good man, who lacks
ther the intelligence or the firmness
> refuse to profit privately at the cost
: the land he professes to love, and in
liimted and half-seeing way, does love.
With all deference to educational
union and practice, but with deep con-
ction grown deeper for now many
jars, I urge far greater attention in
hools to our own American culture and
eals. We must know actual America
:tter. All the great peoples of the past
ive nourished their youth in the sub-
THE WESTERN AMERICAN
33
lime history and legends of their own
race; the spiritual ancestors of the
whole civilized world taught their child­
ren nothing about other peoples, but
filled their minds with the lore of their
own past. I have no desire to promote
narrowness or provincialism, nor to hide
from the young American the virtues
of other nations; on the contrary we
need to rewrite our own history in the
interest of truth and world-neighborli­
ness: but our own national history and
achievements, and above all our national
ideals, we must learn far better.
“Who was Herodes Atticus?” asked
the teacher of a high-school history
class consisting of about twenty young
American boys and girls; and some time
was spent in elaborating on that an­
cient worthy Being invited to talk to
the class, I chose to question them and
asked whether Lincoln was even in Con­
gress; what Washington said in his
Farewell Address; who Colonel Robert
Gould Shaw was: on all these questions
in American history not one of the class
could give one single correct idea; their
minds were absolutely blank on the sub­
ject. Not one of them could give a hint
as to the basic political principles con­
tained in the Declaration of Independ­
ence. Yet Colonel Shaw, probably un­
known to nine hundred and ninety-nine
out of every thousand Americans, is in­
finitely more worthy of attention than a
dozen Herodes Atticuses: and the small­
est significant fact, in the life of Abra­
ham Lincoln is of more value to Amer-
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icanism than two thirds of the whole
mass of ancient history which now forms
so dominant a part of the high-school
pabulum.
I must confess to an obsession for
Abraham Lincoln. I would clear a wide
space for him in the course of study,
at whatever cost. Lincoln is the very
embodiment of true Americanism: he
felt it in his soul, he lived it in his life,
he expounded it in the clearest thought
and words yet known to political discus­
sion. How strange that it should have
been left to an Englishman to write the
first Lincoln play: John Drinkwater’s
“Abraham Lincoln,” disfigured as it is
with its naive solecisms, not only capti­
vated England but swept America off its
feet in admiration. Is this another case
of a prophet being not without honor ex­
cept in his own country? In the reform
of our curriculum, needed so bitterly, as
a first measure, let us devote twenty
times as much attention to this “First
American.” ' I would have every child
versed in the fascinating stories of his
kindness and humanity, his patience, his
love of men and women and children,
his mercy to animals Ins modesty and
humor, his scrupulous conscience, his en­
tire lovableness; I would have the boys
and girls fed still more on all of these,
and add his passionate devotion to clear
thinking and truth, his magnanimity to
his enemies, his self-ignoring devotion
to the interests of his country and the
great causes for which he stood. The
young men and women, about to as-
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