"
"And you think such a system might be applied to a Government
appropriation?"
"Certainly. The amount to which the county, township, or school
district would be entitled might be easily ascertained, and
upon the organization and maintenance of a school complying with
the reasonable requirements of a well-drawn statute in regard to
attendance and instruction, such amount might be paid over."
"Yes," was the reply, after a thoughtful pause; "but would not that
necessitate a National supervision of State schools?"
"To a certain extent, yes. Yet there would be nothing compulsory
about it. It would only be such inspection as would be necessary
to determine whether the applicant had entitled himself to share
the Nation's bounty. Surely the Nation may condition its own
bounty."
"But suppose these states should refuse to submit to such inspection,
or accept such appropriation?"
"That is the point, exactly, to which I desire to bring your
attention," said Le Moyne. "Ignorance, unless biased by religious
bigotry, always clamors for knowledge. You could well count upon
the forty-five per cent of ignorant voters insisting upon the
reception of that bounty. The number of those that recognize the
necessity of instructing the ignorant voter, even in those states,
is hourly increasing, and but a brief time would elapse until
no party would dare to risk opposition to such a course.
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