308 
MOOJIE’S RURAL NEW-YORKEJl: AN AGRICULTURAL AND FAMILY JOURNAL. 
'I 
; ; 
i 
(Siiucntioiiiil lE|uirtninit. 
IJV I.. WKTinniKLL. 
MEW YORK 
STATE SCHOOL 
IT WAS. 
SYSTEM AS 
Read what the Hon. Hoh-acb Mann, late 
Secretary of the Hoard of Education in 
Massacliusetts, said, in the Common School 
Journal, of which he was editor, of the 
New York common school system. It 
should be borne in mind by the reader that 
Mr. Mann, before writing what we are 
about to extract, had made himself thor¬ 
oughly acquainted with the common school 
systems of the several Suites within our 
Republic; and not only so, but he had vis¬ 
ited England, Scotland, Ireland, and Eu¬ 
rope, and made himself well acquaninted 
with all their various systems of public in¬ 
struction. After having thus acquired the 
knowledge requisite and necessary to com¬ 
pare the several systems of education, both 
at home and abroad, and form an estimate 
as to the best in operation, he says:—“New 
York has tlie best common school system 
in the world. The State has a magnificent 
fund. There Ls a library in every school 
district. Provisions are made for introdu¬ 
cing apparatus into all the schools. It has 
a Normal ^chool for the preparation of 
teachers; and it lias devised the plan of 
Teachers’ Institutes, which are short Nor¬ 
mal Schools. An educational paper is also 
sent, at the expense of the State, to every 
school district in it The school system of 
New York is not only superior in its struc¬ 
ture and organization, but it is worked with 
more efficiency than any other;—indeed 
the working may be said to result from the 
structure. It goes easily, power(iilly, and 
witl) as little friction as such a vast piece of 
machinery could be expected to do. 
“ It is true, that all the children are not 
roquinid, as in Prussia, either to go to a 
public school, or to obtain, elsewhere, an 
amount of knowledge equal to the average 
of common school acquisitions; nor, as in 
. Massachusetts are the schools wholly free; 
but there are other agencies—living and 
propelling agencies—stationed in every de¬ 
partment of the great whole, which move 
it v/ith a momentum and a celerity else¬ 
where unknown.” 
This was written and published by Mr. 
Mann five years ago. We do not hesitate 
to say that in our opinion, there is no other 
person in our country more competent to 
speak from observation concerning the ex¬ 
cellency of the different school systems of 
the civilized world, than the Hon. Houace 
Mann. This opinion w'C think will gener¬ 
ally be admitted. To whom, then, belongs 
tiic credit of having destroyed “ the best 
common school system in the worldV “one 
that was worked with more efficiency than 
any other,” bccausi; “ suj)erior in struc¬ 
ture ?” There arc many persons in this 
world that have yet to learn the truth con¬ 
veyed by the homely maxim, that, “It is 
best let well enough alone.” 
NEW PUBLICATIONS. 
“STRIKE, BUT HEAR.” 
NUMBER n. 
Mil. Editor : — In our last, we promised 
to give you more fully the system of super- 
iatendency advocated by a certain docu¬ 
ment entitled “Strike, but Hear,” freely 
circulated in this vicinity. Befon; doing so 
we will present some of the author’s views 
upon other subjects, clothed in liis own 
language. 
After saying that it is the duty of pa¬ 
rents to rear their offspring, and that it will 
create a corresponding obligation, he speaks 
of charity as “one of the brightest Chris¬ 
tian duties,” and says: 
We have no objection, that wo should com¬ 
bine and give governmental sanction, form and 
elficioncy to the exercise of this duty. 
But this is a thing entirely diflerout from the 
princiido involved in our school laws, and it is ap¬ 
palling to tho philanthropist, to contemplate the 
coiLsecpiences, that may result from tho adoption of 
this principle. 
Wo believe it to bo the duly of government to 
keep obstacles out of the way of all alike, grant¬ 
ing favors and throwing unnecossaiy' burthens up¬ 
on none, high or low, rich or poor, however this 
duty may have been performed by the government 
of tho world. 
It probably would ajipal a philanthropist 
of his stamp, to have universal education by 
means of free schools. But why need he 
find foult with the Ruler of the Universe, 
for the manner in which He has governed 
the world, especially when he talks in so 
different a strain immediately after: 
God has undoubtedly made differences and dis- 
crepai cies in man for wise purposes; and it would 
be worse than vain forbumnn legislation tc recon¬ 
cile those differences and discrepancies, and they 
should not attempt it—it is no part of legislation 
but suppose we were alike, morally and phys cal- 
ly, and each possessed an equal amount of prop¬ 
erty, would the human family be better off?— 
Where wjuuld bo the chance for the exercise of 
charity‘t Without mutual dependence, whence 
would flow mutual kindness ? Without mutual 
dependeiKie, we should be as cold and frigid as 
the nether mill-stone. 
The tibove needs no comment. 
After making a statement, (contradicted 
by the Hon. Horack Mann,) 'in regard to 
the schools of New England, we find the 
following language used with reference to 
that gentleman: 
citie.s, “ never having lived long in any city.” 
But most great men tire modest. 
After proposing several modifications of 
the present Common School Law, mostly 
perttiining to the collection and distribution 
of funds, making it the duty of “ County 
Treasurers to sub-divide and hand over to 
Supervisors of towns,” to use his own clas¬ 
sical jihraseology—requiring the latter offi¬ 
cer “to form and alter districts, and settle 
all scliool differences with the right of ap¬ 
peal,” (tc., he gives us the following plan 
for the general superintendence of schools: 
dpologinil 
POLISHED ROCKS-AGAIN. 
BY C. DKWK.Y, LE. D. 
Wc propose to permit, allow, and require 
trustees and people to choose and examine teach¬ 
ers, or employ a competent person or persons to do 
it for them, superintend schools, and do all the 
rest. 
It is a poor cornmontarj’ upon our school sys¬ 
tem, having now been in operation about 40 years, 
if wo have not in every school district, men com- 
]»etent to judge of the qualifications of tlicir school¬ 
master ; if they arc incompetent, their young 
children will find out in a few days, if their master 
is a fool and tell their parents of it. 
It improves our race to have intcresfing respon¬ 
sibility thrown upon tho people in the common 
walks of life—the more tho better—a thousand 
times better than all the free schools in tho world. 
W'e are principally indebted for our free institu¬ 
tions, to tlio wise provision adopted in FIngland 
many years ago, for trial by jury. 
By the adoi)tion of a school system, the outlines 
of which, arc hero hastily shadowed forth, though 
not without much observation and reflection, wo 
may coiifidoiilly hope in an easy and natural way 
to have schools advance in usofulnoss; in most 
ca.ses, justice to ho administered in tho first instance; 
if noL hopes aro held out of speedy relief; tho peo- 
{)lc relieved from usefulness, »&c. 
Till Crayon Reading Book: Comprising select¬ 
ions from tito various writings of Washington 
Irvin... Prepared for tho use of schools. New 
York: Geo. 1*. Putnam, 155 Bro.Tdway. 
Thifr book i.s composed of selections Irom 
all the writings of Irving. The variety of 
topics is such its will excite tho attention of 
the pupil and thus awaken an interest in the 
exercise of learning to read. The selections 
furnish good models of English Composi¬ 
tion. These are qualities that will com¬ 
mend the book to teachers of our higher 
schools. 
The Pkact.cai. Ebocutionist, and Academical 
Reader and Speaker: Designed for the use of 
Collogoe, Academies and High Schools. By 
John W, S. IIow.s, Compiler of tho “Shaks- 
periaii Reader,” and Professor of Elocution in 
Columbia Collogo. New York: Geo. P. Put¬ 
nam, Broadway. 
Tffie I'ractical Elocutionist, Reader and 
Speaker is composed of the gems of mod¬ 
ern literature—selected and tirranged by a 
practical teacher and professor of Elocution, 
in order to aid the student in learning the 
arts of reading and speaking. Many old 
and favorite pieces will bti found in the 
work, though the greater proportion of the 
extracts have never before been incorpora¬ 
ted into a similar compilation. 
I'he above works are for sale by D. M. 
Dewey, Arcade Hall, Rochester. 
SiwiTii, like rust, consumes faster than 
labor wears, while the used key is always 
bright 
It may be a kind of sacrilogo to question tlio in- 
falibility of Mr. Mann in anything pertaining to 
schools and systems, but we never heard of his 
being distinguished for originality of thought or 
brilliancy of coiiceiitiou, beyond lu.s laudations of 
schools and systems, any more than of a corlain 
other gentleman, in the State of Now York, (we 
verily believe him to be an amiable and good man,) 
who lias written some hooks in praise of men and 
systems, from which we can obtain about as much 
correct information respecting ihem. as from an 
old almanac. 
Happy indeed would it Juive been for 
both these gentlemen, could they htive spent 
a short time under the instruction of our 
very learned friend. Under such circum¬ 
stances, Mr. Mann might have been “ dis¬ 
tinguished for originality of thought or 
brilliancy of conception, beyond his lauda¬ 
tions of schools and systems!” 
^ Speaking of the law granting the privi¬ 
lege of appeal to the State Superintendent, 
we find the following strong and beautiful 
language: 
This law, granting such extensive and alarming 
prelaticul powers to the superintendent, laid the 
foundation of a detestable hierarchy, w'hich has 
be»n growing and increasing under .subsoquent 
legislation, in all cases dictated by the superinten¬ 
dent, till, if not equal in extent of territory, it is 
more absolute and more odious (no sprinklings of 
mercy being blended) than the prelacy of tho rope 
of Romo in the.plonitudo of its power. 
County Superintendents, next, get a por¬ 
tion in duo season: 
Never wa.s a greater outrage porpolratod upon a 
free people, than by the enactineutof tlio law pro¬ 
viding for tho creation of the office of county su- 
porintendents, with a salary of (.$500) five hun¬ 
dred dollars per year, of which, in the language of 
the senate committee’s report, they well might he 
■proud. Tliis law sent upon the community a 
host of iuvenilos fresh from tho schools, without 
practical knowledge of any kind, and frequently 
without common sense. 
He further says they spent their time in 
patrolling the villages and cities, “entering 
people’s houses, intermeddling and making 
mischief in other people’s matters, eating 
and sleeping upon the people.^' 
After expressing a fear, that if District 
Superintendents shall be appointed, we shall 
become as helpless and dependent as “ the 
poor Peruvians upon their sovereign Inca,” 
he says: 
Do you ask what wo propo.se in jilaco of all this? 
—F'or city schools we propose nothing, for wo 
know very little about them, never having lived 
long in any city. Wo suppose, however, some 
kind of free schools aro necessary to protect the 
inhabitants against tho masses of idle street chil¬ 
dren, if but for a few hours in each day, while tho 
children are at school; but wo propose nothing, 
leaving it for those who know to projioso. 
It is somewhat surprising to us, that one 
so learned as to be capable of instructing 
the Hon. Horace Mann and our State Su¬ 
perintendent, in regard to schools and school 
systems, should he so modest as to confess, 
he knows nothing in regard to schools in 
This Ave think might properly be denom¬ 
inated Domestic Superintendence, to be ex - 
ercised by trustees and people, competent 
person or persons, old ladies and young 
children. Upon reading such a plan we 
can hardly liel[) exclaiming, Shades of the 
great lAiurier, what an improvement! 
“We are all squires now,” siiid the chil¬ 
dren to their mother, when her husband was 
elected Justice of the Peace. “No, you 
fools you; nobody but your father and I,” 
was her laconic answer. But should this 
sage production sufficiently enlighten the 
people, old Avomen, children, and all, Avill 
be co-superintendents together, and be re¬ 
quired to examine teachers, “and do all the 
resV' 
No doubt it Avill improA^e the race to have 
interesting responsihilities “thrown upon 
the people in the common Avalks of life,”— 
and that “tJms in an easy and natural 
way'" we shall have “schools advance in 
usefulness.” JtThc young children tti/l 
find out in a fcAV days, if their master is a 
fool, and, tell their parents of it." This 
is the system, shadowed forth “though not 
AvithoutwiMc/^ ohservation andrefection,” by 
one Avho modestly attacks till the most dis¬ 
tinguished educatons of this and adjoining 
States. 
But let us listen again to Sir Onicle: 
With tho old sy-ilem, will fall of course, the 
Conimou School Journal, read by none, and used 
only for promulgating the decrees or bulls of the 
primate. And we may also confidently hope that 
the Normal School, of foreign origin, not adapted 
to the genius of our institutions, may soon follow in 
the train. 
After informing us that he is aware of 
“ the obstacles that any proposed new sys¬ 
tem for schools lias to encounter,” and, “that 
the great desires of their enterprising fath¬ 
ers for improvement, indicated the system 
imperfect as it is,” he closes us follows: 
The author is an humble retired citizen of 
Wosterii New York, not perhaps without vanity, 
noAv about sixty years of age, desiring neither 
place nor political distinction; and although ho 
claims to entertain principles, detests the very name 
of jiarty. 
All of which is submitted to an outraged and 
indignant people. 
Thus ends the document in question—a 
production Avith which the enemies of free 
schools e.xpect to tirouse the enlightened 
yeomanry of our land to liostility to the 
jiresent Ihav— a production Avhich a distin¬ 
guished lawyer of an adjoining county said 
he was obliged to read the second time, to 
convince himself that it was not a burlesque 
upon the encmie.s of Free Schools. Per¬ 
haps an apology is due for having said so 
much in regard to it, and for quoting so 
largely from it. We deemed it due to those 
engaged in its distribution to say Avhat Ave 
have said— avc could hardly say lcb.s;—and 
Avo have quoted largely from it, in the full 
belief tliat it would best ansAver itself, and 
thereby prevent the mischief it might oth¬ 
erwise do. We fully believe that the intel¬ 
ligent citizens of W^estern Ncav York un¬ 
derstand Avhat is for tlieir OAvn best interest, 
and knowing will maintain it. If they do 
this, we have no fears for the cause of Free 
Education, hut are confident it Avill triumph. 
Wjikatland. 
Dost thou love life ? then do not squan¬ 
der time, for that is the stuff life is made of. 
Fo.<>sits in them — Other Fossils rest on them — 
Distant period of polishing, grooving — Boul¬ 
ders of different hinds — Iransported — Cause 
— Glaciers. 
Some account of the polished Rocks was 
given in tlie last New-Yorker, to prepare 
the way for presenting som»probabIc cause 
of this and similar phenomena. 
Tho subject is attended with many diffi¬ 
culties. Not the least, that no well known 
causes, operating at the present period, seem 
to be sufficiently powerful to produce such 
a result. The observer of nature is obliged 
to throAv back Ids vision on the past and dis¬ 
cover the result of actions which must haA^e 
prevailed in periods anterior to any records 
left by tmy portion of the human family. 
That the greater part of the land of the 
present Continents and Islands has been 
submerged under the waters of the Ocean, 
is rendered certain by the remains of ani¬ 
mal and vegetable life found so abundantly 
as petrifactions and fossils in the rocks or 
earths, whicli contain no trace of the works 
of man or any remains of him. The Avell 
ascertained knowledge of the races of men, 
animals and vegetables, which haA-o lived 
on the earth for G,000 years past, places 
this result beyond disputation. The earth 
has been to a vast extent covered with 
Ocean, and the scene of immense and con¬ 
tinued changes. 
Again; the remains of elephants, masto¬ 
dons, and other animals of extinct species, 
in countne.s not inhabited by.thcm—in the 
frozen regions of the north, in the earths 
of Siberia, in our country and in our own 
vicinity; and of whales on mountains or in 
valiics far from the Ocean, prove that the 
earth has been covered or washed over 
a fiood of Avaters, since the immense multi 
tude of petrified and other animal remains 
were deposited in the rocks and earths of 
Avhich they now constitute a part, and often 
so large a portion. As these belong to ex¬ 
tinct species and arc found in such peculiar 
locations, it seems to be cerhiin that they 
must have been destroyed by some mighty 
convulsion of Avaters over the earth, before 
man and tho present races Averc placed on 
the earth. 
Again; as boulders, or masses of roclis, 
different from the rocks of the place, are 
found scattered OA'cr our countr)^ and over 
England, France, Germany, and much of 
the e.'irth, it is certain that the boulders 
have been removed, by some mighty force, 
from their native locations and transferred 
to their jiresent positions. In some parts of 
our country they are called lost rocks, as 
they belong not to the rocks of tho section 
of country, ft is a beautiful designation of 
their removal. By Geologists they arc call¬ 
ed the erratic group or wanderers, for the 
same reason. They are rolled or rounded 
masses, small, or weighing a few pounds, or 
hundreds, to many tons. Over New Eng¬ 
land, they abound; over Canada, New 
York, and thence Avestward to tlie Rocky 
Mountains. Sometimes they have been re¬ 
moved only a short distance, and sometimes 
hundreds of miles. They lie over this sec¬ 
tion of the State, on the surface? or buried 
at some depth in the loose earth. Thus, 
the sandstone, so abundant along the south¬ 
ern shore of I^e Ontario in layers of hun¬ 
dreds of feet thick, is found scattered over 
the country in rounded masses for twenty 
miles south of the Lake, and sparingly 
many miles farther. The limestone toAvards 
Bull’s Head, which extends from Niagara 
far qast of Rochester, has been torn up in 
part and carried in loose blocks southward. 
A boulder of it, like that Jiere found polish¬ 
ed, has been found the present season in 
the loose earth excavated for the County 
Poor House at Geneseo, polished like tliat 
from which it had been torn Jind boriiQ 
RAvay to very different rocks. 
Besides tlicse boulders, which we knoAv 
wlience they came, there arc others of a 
very different kind, large and smtdl, of gran¬ 
ite, gniess, quartz, micti slate, and hypers- 
thene rock, scattered abundantly Avitli the 
others, boulders far harder thtin those of 
our rocks and less worn by attrition. These 
hiive been transported from tho north part 
of the State towards the Canada line, or 
from tlie range of like primitive mounhiins 
in Canada and north of Lake Ontario.— 
Only one boulder ot primitive limestone 
has been found in this section near us, and 
for the good reason that sucli limestone 
would have been it'orn to powder, if it had 
been transported, in the attrition which has 
operated on the hard boulders: A few 
boulders of^ray-wacke, a peculiar tough 
congfoifierate, but of large size, have found 
their way with the others from districts less 
remote Avherc they abound. These primi¬ 
tive boulders arc admirably fitted by their 
extreme hardness for cutting and wearing 
away and scratching or grooving all our 
rocks, provided they can be made to act up¬ 
on them by any adequate power continued 
long enough even to polish the surfiice.— 
These facts about boulders arc mentioned 
to arrest the attention. One need then on¬ 
ly remember that they are mere specimens 
of Avhat the country exliibits over thousands 
of miles in extent. 
These facts can not but lead us to be¬ 
lieve that one extensive and powerful cause 
has operated to produce the polishing and 
grooving of our rocks, the mountain scratch¬ 
es and furrows, and the removal of tho 
boulders, and that this action took place be¬ 
fore the present race of men and kinds of 
animals and vegetables had begun to exist 
on the earth. No doubt the same poAver- 
ful action heaped up the earth, formed of 
disintegrated rocks, upon the various strata 
in the form it now gives to the surface of 
the earth, as the liills of grtivcl and sand 
are found to contain a portion of tho same 
boulders in their beds or masses. 
Wc know that the grooving and polish¬ 
ing of tho rocks about us, Avas accomplish¬ 
ed even before the extinct elephant was de¬ 
stroyed, as a part of one of them was found 
in our own city in a dense chiyor hardpan, 
resting on the polished rock. Wo knoAv, 
too, that it Avas at a period later than tho 
formation of the petrifactions in tho rocks 
about us, for we find the fossil cyathophyl- 
lum and other fossils, polished beautifully 
in and Avith the limestone. 
Next— is there any known cause Avhich 
produces similar results ? 
Agassiz lias slioAvn the world thtit gla¬ 
ciers of the Alps contain masses of rooks 
from the precipitous mountains which 
bound the glaciers, and that some of these 
glaciers move downwards at the rato of 
throe hundred feet a year; that the masses 
of rock and sand borne along and pressed 
down by a glacier of ice forty, sixty, and 
even a hundred feet in depth, wears and 
smooths and polishes and grooves the rocks 
over which it passes; that tho stream of 
water issuing in the At?armer season from 
tho glacier bears along its current tho fine¬ 
ly powdered earth ground to dust by the 
friction and attrition. Agassiz has shown, 
too, that by the glaciers, large boulders 
and huge rocks have been transported, 
across wide vallies and to considerable dis¬ 
tances. 
Here, then, is airadequatc cause for all 
the facts and appearances connected with 
the polished rocks. It is only necessary to 
suppose the action of glaciers and moving 
masses of ice of magnitude adequate to tho 
effect. Who can say that such a cause may 
not haim existed? Who knows that such 
masses of ice have been impossible ? Only 
a small motion is necessary in the giaciera 
of the ^Alps for similar operations there; 
and who is able to maintain with certainty 
that such motion in similar masses has been 
impossible on no small part of the earth's 
surface ? But—more hereafter. c. ». 
-. , 
A QUESTION FOR PHILOSOPHERS, 
Arout one year since a mass of rock, 
covering an area of some fifteen by twenty 
feet, suddenly burst up during the night 
creating a rumbling sound that was heard 
by persons in the immediate vicinity. 
Upon one sidg there is a seam, but upon 
the other there is none, and judging from 
the scaling up of the rock and the size of' 
some of the pieces which were thrown to a 
considerable distance, tho force must b.av« 
been tremenduou.s, tearing up rock to the 
depth of over two feet 
This occurred in Mill Creek, in the town 
of Lodi, Seneca county, and the question 
arises, Wliat Avas the cause of this strange 
phenomenon ? Will persons versed in these 
matters have the goodness to communicate, 
through the “ Rural,” their ideas relative to 
the cause? uu-uo. 
Lodi, N. Y., Sept., 1660. 
A LITTLE neglect can do a great mischief 
—for tho want of a nail, tho shoo was lost; 
for the Avant of a shoe the horse was lost; 
for the want of a horse tho rider was lost 
There arc no gains without paina 
