“Public schools open to all children for the education of the young should be under the control of the Romish Church, and should not be subject to civil power, nor made to conform to the opinions of the ages.”—­Pope Pius IX.

    “When I see them drag from me the children, the poor little
    children, and give them an infidel education, it breaks my
    heart.”—­Pope Pius IX.

“It is desirable, therefore, venerable brethren, that in concert with your colleagues in the Episcopate, your efforts and your zeal guard Catholic children from frequenting schools in which their religious instruction is neglected and open danger incurred of spiritual loss.  Therefore we vehemently desire, as has already been intimated to you by the propaganda, that in approaching Episcopal meetings you carefully discuss the measure that may best help to attain this end.  We wish you also to use earnest efforts that the civil magistrates, who know full well that nothing is more advantageous to the commonwealth than religion should provide, by the enactment of wise laws, that the office of teachings, which is carried on at the expense of the public, including consequently the contributions of Catholics, should contain nothing that stands in the way of their conscience or runs foul of their religion.”—­Pope Leo XIII.

We could go on and quote diabolical denunciations of our public schools from hundreds and thousands of Catholic officials, as the followers of Rome make no “bones” of declaring their animosity towards the public schools of this country, and they are only waiting for the time to arrive when they will be able to wipe from the face of the earth every vestige of our public schools, and place in their stead their parochial schools, which are nothing more nor less than “mills of ignorance” and “institutions of superstition.”

An institution of learning is something that is not desired by Catholicism, for whenever you educate you destroy the doctrines of Romanism, as the hosts of Catholicism cannot stand the searchlight of wisdom, for whenever you educate the followers of Catholicism they become disgusted with their dogmas of damnation.

Our public schools are the bulwarks of this government, and all that we are to-day, and all that we may expect to be in the future, has come and must come by and through the public schools, which are the dearest institutions that adorn this country.

There must be no sectarianism, whether political or religious, in our public schools, but there must be truth and duty there.  The unchanging and undying maxim of moral rectitude should be taught to every child.  It is not enough that a boy or girl should be educated mentally.  The safety of our nation, as well as his own usefulness and happiness, demand that they should be trained to habits of truthfulness and develop a fine standard of honor.  They should be inspired to form exalted ideals of manhood and womanhood, charity, rectitude and godliness, and made strong in the resolution to defend the truth, which is never found in parochial schools, as the Catholic doctrine always tends to humiliate her followers.