We Will Make Men of Them
Posted: Fri Feb 01, 2019 8:54 am
We have many young people going into debt to obtain worthless college degrees. It is nothing new. Here is a letter from 1744 concerning the same subject.
We’ve all seen the pictures of the friendly Pilgrims sharing their bounty with the deprived American Indians at Thanksgiving. Well, apparently those Indians didn’t feel particularly privileged to be the recipients of all the knowledge of the white man.
In approximately 1744, when George Washington was just a twelve-year-old boy, the Collected Chiefs of the Indian Nations met to discuss a letter from the College of William & Mary (founded in 1693) suggesting that they “send twelve of their young men to the college, that they might be taught to read and write.” The Chiefs sent the following reply:
“Sirs, We know that you highly esteem the kind of learning taught in Colleges, and that the Maintenance of our young Men, while with you, would be very expensive to you. We are convinc’d, therefore, that you mean to do us Good by your Proposal; and we thank you heartily. But you, who are wise, must know that different Nations have different Conceptions of things; and you will therefore not take it amiss, if our Ideas of this kind of Education happen not to be the same with yours. We have some experience of it. Several of our Young People were formerly brought up at the colleges of the Northern Provinces; they were instructed in all your sciences; but, when they came back to us they were bad Runners, ignorant of every means of living in the Woods, unable to bear either Cold or Hunger, knew neither how to build a cabin, take a Deer, or kill an Enemy, spoke our Language imperfectly, were therefore neither fit for Hunters, Warriors, nor Counselors; they were totally good for nothing. We are, however, not the less oblig’d by your kind Offer, tho’ we decline accepting it; and, to show our grateful Sense of it, if the Gentlemen of Virginia will send us a Dozen of their Sons, we will take care of their Education; instruct them in all we know, and make Men of them.”
From the Dan Miller website.
We’ve all seen the pictures of the friendly Pilgrims sharing their bounty with the deprived American Indians at Thanksgiving. Well, apparently those Indians didn’t feel particularly privileged to be the recipients of all the knowledge of the white man.
In approximately 1744, when George Washington was just a twelve-year-old boy, the Collected Chiefs of the Indian Nations met to discuss a letter from the College of William & Mary (founded in 1693) suggesting that they “send twelve of their young men to the college, that they might be taught to read and write.” The Chiefs sent the following reply:
“Sirs, We know that you highly esteem the kind of learning taught in Colleges, and that the Maintenance of our young Men, while with you, would be very expensive to you. We are convinc’d, therefore, that you mean to do us Good by your Proposal; and we thank you heartily. But you, who are wise, must know that different Nations have different Conceptions of things; and you will therefore not take it amiss, if our Ideas of this kind of Education happen not to be the same with yours. We have some experience of it. Several of our Young People were formerly brought up at the colleges of the Northern Provinces; they were instructed in all your sciences; but, when they came back to us they were bad Runners, ignorant of every means of living in the Woods, unable to bear either Cold or Hunger, knew neither how to build a cabin, take a Deer, or kill an Enemy, spoke our Language imperfectly, were therefore neither fit for Hunters, Warriors, nor Counselors; they were totally good for nothing. We are, however, not the less oblig’d by your kind Offer, tho’ we decline accepting it; and, to show our grateful Sense of it, if the Gentlemen of Virginia will send us a Dozen of their Sons, we will take care of their Education; instruct them in all we know, and make Men of them.”
From the Dan Miller website.