--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Cummings, Horace H. collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 15 number: 1 published: 1911-11 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Cummings, Horace H., "The Church Schools," *Improvement Era* 15, no. 1 (November 1911): 65–69.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1501unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera1501unse start_page: 65 end_page: 69 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1911-11) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1501unse publication_year: 1911 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1911, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # The Church Schools The Church Schools. Their Development and Present Condition. BY SUPT. HORACE H. CUMMINGS. As an initiatory article for this new department of The Era, nothing would be more appropriate, perhaps, than a sketch of the development and present conditions of the Church schools, and a statement of some of the reasons for their maintenance. Since "Intelligence is the glory of God," it is not surprising that the Church, from almost its very beginning, has maintained the best schools that circumstances would permit. A revelation, given as early as June, 1831 — the year after the Church was organ- ized, with only six members, commands Wm. W. Phelps and Oliver Cowdery "to do the work of printing and selecting and writ- ing books for schools of this Church, that little children also may receive instruction before me, as is pleasing unto me." Another revelation, under date of Aug., 1833, says: "Behold I say unto you concerning the school in Zion, I the Lord am well pleased that there should be a school in Zion." The first issue of The Morning and Evening Star, June, 1832, shows the importance attached to proper education at that time: "The deciples should lose no time in preparing schools for their children, that they may be taught as is pleasing unto the Lord, and brought up in the ways of holiness. Those appointed to select and pre- pare books for the use of schools, will attend to that subject as soon sa more weighty matters are furnished. But the parents and guardians in the Church of Christ need not wait — it is all-important that to become good they should be taught good." An "Elders' School" was established in Kirtland in January, 1835, by the Prophet Joseph Smith, to prepare the elders for the ministry, though there were taught, besides, the subject of theol- ogy, "the sciences of penmanship, arithmetic, English grammar and geography." In a report of this school by Wm. E. McLellan, one of the principal teachers, he says: "The school has been conducted under the immediate care and inspection of Joseph Smith, Jr., Frederick G. Williams, Sidney Rigdon, and Oliver Cowdery, trustees." The school was first opened for both large and small to attend, but it became so overcorwded in three weeks, M IMPROVEMENT ERA that it was deemed necessary to dismiss the smaller children, and only the ones desiring to study the above subjects were retained. About one hundred and thirty students attended this school. In the winter of 1835-6, a Hebrew school was established in Kirtland, a Mr. Joshua Seixas being the teacher. He was paid $320. for a seven-weeks' term of school. The prophet Joseph had a great taste for languages, and studied both Greek and Hebrew. He remarked, "It seemed that the Lord opened our minds in a marvelous manner to understand his word in the original lan- guages.'' Other branches were also taught, a singing school being an important department. The Saints, in settling Nauvoo, early turned their attention to education, and established a number of common schools. A charter for the University of the City of Nauvoo was signed by Governor Thomas Carlin, December 16, 1840. These schools were attended by the Prophet and other leading brethren as well as by the children of the Saints. So thoroughly impressed with the necessity of obtaining all the education possible were the Saints, before coming to Utah, that when they were collected in the Old Fort, in their first winter, 1847-8, they established a school with Miss Mary Jane Dilworth, as the first lady teacher, and Julian Moses as the first male teacher. The former afterwards married F. A. Hammond, and went with him on a mission to the Sandwich Islands where she also taught school. Elder Moses taught school at intervals in Salt Lake county for many years. On February 28, about two and one half years after the pioneers arrived in Utah, the Legislature passed an act incorpora- ting the "University of the State of Deseret," now called the University of Utah. A system of elementary schools was also established, with the hearty support of Brigham Young, the first governor of Utah. The Brigham Young Academy was founded at Provo, Oct. 16, 1875, and the Brigham Young College, at Logan, in 1877, the latter being endowed with a valuable tract of land. During the next decade, a system of Stake Academies, or high schools, and Ward Seminaries, or elementary schools, was established by the Church under the supervision of Dr. Karl G. Maeser, the first General Superintendent of Church Schools. The Seminaries, however, did not continue many years, because of the inability of the Church THE CHURCH SCHOOLS 67 to maintain schools for so vast a number of children, and the state had in the meantime greatly improved the public schools and made them free. The Academies persisted better, though during the difficulties through which the Church passed, from 1885 to 1895> many of them were obliged to discontinue. Since that time, some of them have resumed, and new ones have been established. The following table shows the names, location, enrollment, and approximate annual cost, of each Church school, as taken from the annual statistical and financial reports for the school year 1910-11: NAME LOCATION ENROLL- MENT B. Y. University Provo B. Y. College Logan L. D. S. University. . . .Salt Lake City Weber Academy Ogden Snow Academy Ephraim Murdock Beaver 7. Emery Stake Academy. Castle Dale. . . 8. Uintah Stake Academy Vernal 9. Millard Stake Academy Hinckley 10. Summit Stake AcademyCoalville 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. Utah 1419 704 1224 492 313 228 151 197 171 97 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. Juarez Seminary 24. Dublan Seminary. . . 25. Diaz Seminary 26. Morelos Seminary. . . 27. Pacheco Seminary.. . 28. Chuichupa Seminary. 29. Garcia Seminary- • ■ • 30. Oaxaca Seminary.. . . 31. Guadalupe Seminary. 32. San Jose Seminary. | Opened (Sept. 1911 . . Idaho St. George Academy.. .St. George Ricks Academv Rexburg. . Fielding ' Paris Oneida Stake AcademyPreston " Cassia Stake Academy Oaklev Idaho Thatcher Stake Acad.. St. John Stake Acad . Snowflake Stake Acad San Luis Stake Acad. . Knight Stake Acad. . Big Horn Stake Acad Thatcher Ariz. .St. John " Snowflake " Manassa Col. Raymond. ...Canada Cowley Wyo. Juarez Stake Academy Col. Juarez Mex. Juarez " Dublan.... " Diaz " Morelos.. . . Pacheco. . . " Chuichupa. ' Garcia " Oaxaca. . . . Guadalupe. ' TEACH- ERS 85 32 47 21 14 11 7 - 99 260 216 265 113 197 84 128 167 227 133 468 294 207 201 127 84 103 51 25 85 13 12 13 6 8 5 6 7 7 4 17 COST 81,255.34 31,025.15 66,953.61 21,763.46 14,333.95 13,050.00 6,197.00 5,324.60 6,532.40 4,395.00 14,348.69 12.525,10 10.212,00 4,554.20 8,748.48 4.416.30 5,738.53 6,785.23 6,595.42 3,687.50 12,404.10 2,833.30 1,982.00 2,629.11 964.77 833.00 1,060.00 120.00 250.00 116.31 San Jose Note— On account of the war in Mexico the statistics froin some of the Seminaries are estimated from last year's report, this year s report not having reached us. The schools of the Church are now being maintained in the midst of most excellent free public schools, for the express purpose of teaching the young people the principles of the gospel, and faith in the Lord,— an object that the public schools do not attempt. 68 IMPROVEMENT ERA They were founded on the principle that the religious instincts of the child are as necessary to his welfare as are those of the intel- lect and the will; whence, it follows that they should receive the same care and training, and be given equal opportunity to develop and exert their due influence on his life, as the others receive. It is a great mistake to suppose that the moral and religious qualities can be neglected during the entire school life of the child, while the intellect receives the entire attention of ihe teacher, under the theory that religious truth is so different from other truth, that it will dawn upon him without effort at maturity, and bring forth its beneficent results in life. One of the most unfortunate errors of modern society is its strong differentiation of truth into secular and religious truth, and then causing its schools to say to the latter: "We have no need of thee." True morality, which society pretends to desire so strongly, cannot be successfully impressed upon character except through the religious instincts, yet, sad to admit, a Christian nation has become so divided on the teachings of Christ that all mention of his doctrines are excluded from the public schools. The school superintendents of our largest cities have instructed their teachers to have no mention of the Savior in their Christmas programs. Think of a Christless Christmas! A.s valueless as a footless stock- ing, without any leg. But we are in society, and must treat it as real, not ideal. Under existing conditions, the introduction of religion into public schools would no doubt do more harm than good, and society, in leaving to the home and Church the task of teaching religion to the children, has probably done the best it could do. But neither of these institutions can do the work in such a way as to equal the work done in schools. Few homes can give any systematic instruc- tions at all, to say nothing of five hours a day. The hour usually given to religious training by the churches, on Sunday, it seems to the writer, only serves to widen, in the child's mind, the difference between the two kinds of truth, greatly to the disadvantage of the neglected one. Religious truth is taught only on a special day, by a special, though often unskilled, teacher, under special circumstances, in a different place, with a different method; and, like the Sunday clothes, it seems to be designed for use only on special show occasions. THE CHURCH SCHOOLS 69 Think of the psychological difference to the child when the gospel's truths are taught by the same teacher, — in the same place, at the same time, and with the same methods, and under the same conditions, as the truths of history, science and mathematics! As soon would the child question the truth of the multiplication table or the law of gravitation, as those of the Sermon on the Mount. If society really understood and believed the latter, as well as they do the former, what a change there would be for the better! This comparison is not made to cast reproach upon the public schools, nor to belittle their' most valuable work. They teach in a most effectual way some most important truths, but not all that children need; and we would gladly check the modern trend among educators to exclude more and more of the religious element from the public schools. Schools are costly institutions, and children are numerous, especially among the Latter-day Saints; yet, as many Church schools as possible~are being maintained, and have been from the beginning, and they have most assuredly acted in many ways as the leaven that leavened the lump, in keeping alive the spirit and knowledge of the gospel among the young people. President William H. Taft began an extended trip through the west, on September 15. The circuit was to include a distance of about 13,000 miles, through 24 states, over 26 railroads. He was to make speeches in more than a hundred cities. The President visited Utah, October 5, and was received with enthusiasm by the citizens of the capital and of the state who had come to conference and the Fair in Salt Lake City. He spoke at 10 a. m. to a large audience of old folks at the Tabernacle, on peace, being much impressed with the pioneers and their reception of him. He spoke, again at the fair grounds, at 3 p.m., reviewed the live stock, and "took in" the big state show. Receptions of various kinds, commercial and politi- cal, were freely accorded him, and at night, tired but much pleased, he left to continue his journey west. Of his speech in the Tabernacle, President Joseph F. Smith later stated publicly that he endorsed ev- ery word of it, and hoped that the newspapers would print it in full, for everybody to read. President Wm. H. Taft, and Governor Wm. Spry.