Mr. BOUTWELL. Mr. Speaker, the remarks made upon this bill by the Gentfrom Maine [Mr. PIKE induce me to offer a few words in its behal. As regards the expense of the organization, it is wise or unwise according to the judment we may form as to the expediency of the reposition itself. If it be at all wise to establish such a branch of administration in the Government, then of course the expense of 13,000 or 15 thou, sand or 20,000 dollars a year is a matter of no considerable consequence. It is to be observed in reference to this measurethat it does not contemplate the exercise of any power whatever over the school organization of any State for the education of any child in the country. So far as we in NewEngland are concerned we do not anticipate any considerable advantage from this measure, and I do not advocate it upon the ground of its advantage to us. The object of this bureau or dept, or whatever it may be termed, L.Q is not to control by force the sober 'qrwai of the country. It will exercisev “Wire power anywhere. But its advai “the ound in the dissemination 0 uMn every part of the country coi tems of education which PM in the sections most a 'H ‘5) popular education. ened to fiuyi the Ohio, high scbo which wa o erated vantageously without a A“. ’M'il zit whatever an xceptional casein edaimfwqlal matters, not only with reference to thied‘ed’"lin tNry but with reference to the whole wori‘dfl; ow, I do not hesitate to say that a knowl edge distributed through all this country of the means by which that school was organized, maintained, and made efficient for the purpose of education, would have been worn more than the entire cost of this branch of the public administration. It is also true that the system of normal school training, without which there can be no efficient system of public instruction, is comparatively unknown to the people of this country. And I think I do not state anything notknown when I say that in the cit of NewYork ten ears ago, while they had there a normal schoo, the men who administered that school had failed u to that time to a prehend the principle which lies at the fonnation of the system of normal school training. And in the State of Arkansas I refer to the matter only in the way of illustration we enrolled during the late war whole regiments of white soldiers for the Union Army, not one 10th of whom could sign their names to the pay rolls. vow, what we desire to do through this branch of the public administration is from this center or this seat of Government to disseminate throughout this whole country, to Massachusetts, Arkansas, Louisiana, SCarolina, and all the States information on the one side in regard to the best means of public instruction, and on the other side i the advantages to be derived from a good system of public instruction. In decidiu whether this branch ofadniinis tration shoulgl be established we undoubtedly must 1st consider whether the subject of edu cation is of such importance that the General Government is justified in gathering and disseminating information concerning it. In that connection I will refer to but a single fact. More than 30 years ago, in the great contest between Eli Whitney and the State of Georgia, in relation to his right to the invention of the cotton gin, Chief Justice Marshall said thatthat invention alone had then saved to the people of this country $500,000,000, and I have no doubt that up to the present time that invention has been worth to the people of this country an amount equal to 2/3rds of the aggre the expenses of the war through which weiiiive just passed. Now, that invention is but one of the 10,000 inventions which have been made in this country, all of them more or less valuable, and all due in a great measure to our systems of public instruction. You may go today to the Patent Office and ascertain from the number of patents issued, the condition of public information in each and every State of this Union The inventive power of a people is developed in exact proortion to the extent of their education and enlightenment. Now, ifthese be facts and I only make the general statement for the purpose of illustrating the great truth that the industrial power and productive force of the people of this country are exactly in proportion to the extent of their education then assuredly it follows that there is no branch of the public adminis tration more worthy of consideration than that of gathering and disseminating information in regard to the public school systems of the various States of this Union. For these reasons, and for manly others which I might adduce if I had time, have for myself no donbt of the expediency of this measure. It is no invasion of State rights; it does not seek to control anybody; it does not inter. fete with the system of education anywhere; u it only proposes to furnish the means by which, I grifrom a bureau here every citizen of every State, 9 of this Republic can be informed as to the‘ i means of education existing and applied in r the most advanced sections of this country and of the world. And if this information can be disseminated for $15,000 or $20,000 or $50,000 or $100,000 a year, it is an e enditure which in the course of time will 0 returned at least 100 fold in the ability of the people to apply their manual, intellectual, and moral powers to the productive industry and resources of the country.