A history of public education in Rhode Island, from 1636 to 1876 ... Comp. by authority of the Board of education, and ed. by Thomas B. Stockwell ...

82 RHODE ISLAND.
of church schools in place of common schools; and the treasury of
argument and illustration accumulated on this subject in Mr. Potter's
reports has really cone the work permanently, and left little for his successors to do. Fortunately tie State had, in its school commissioner, a
man thoroughly trained in its constitutional principles, and the wise
cautions inserted by him in the decisions of the " School Manual," have
saved the State from much of the contest which has prevailed elsewhere.
In this Manual, which is the authoritative statute-book for every schoolcommitlee in the State, these principles are distinctly laid down:
" The constitution and laws of the State give no power to a school committee, nor is there any authority in the State by which the reading of the Bible, or
praying in school, either at the opening or the close, can be commanded or
enforced. On the other hand, the spirit of the constitution, and the neglect of
the law, to specify any penalty for so opening and closing a school, or to
appoint or allow any officer to take notice of such an act, do as clearly show that
there can be no compulsory exclusion of such reading and praying from our
public schools. The whole matter must be regulated by the consciences of the
teachers and inhabitants of the district and by the general consent of the community. Statute law and school committee's regulations can enforce neither the
use nor disuse of such devotional exercises. School committees may recommend, but they can go no further." *
Judge Potter was chairman of the commission which framed this volume, and the germ of this passage may be found in his report for October, 1854, where he stated his views as follows:
" The school committees have indeed the power by law to regulate the literary exercises of a school, but not to prescribe religious exercises for a school.
They have indeed the power to prescribe the books to be used in a school, but
this power, and all their powers, must be construed subject to the provisions of
the constitution relating to religious freedom. The constitution is the supreme
law, and overrides all other laws.
" It has been said also, that if one objector can drive the Bible out of school,
he can drive all other books out of school on the same ground, and so may render necessary an expurgation of our whole school literature to suit every individual conscience. This objection can only be made by those who misunderstand the principles I have laid down and endeavored to defend. As no one by
objecting can drive the Bible out of school, but will only be taken out of the
class which uses it, and allowed to pursue his other studies; so if he objects to
any other book, he could not effect its expulsion from school, but merely would
not be compelled to read in it or hear it read himself And knowing that he
could not prevent others from using the book, objections would seldom be made
from ill-will or obstinacy, but only from real scruples of conscience.
*R. I. School Manual, (1873,) pp. 198, 258.