All are agreed, that the increase of learning and good morals are

Hear now the words of Joseph Lancaster, the humble teacher and reformer, who proclaimed: “All are agreed, that the increase of learning and good morals are great blessings to society.” Though spoken in the early years of the nineteenth century, these words bear the weight of timeless truth. For Lancaster, who devoted his life to the education of the poor, knew that the strength of nations does not lie in gold, nor armies, nor vast dominions, but in the learning of its people and the morals that guide their steps. Without knowledge, a people stumble in darkness; without virtue, even the brightest minds turn their talents toward destruction.

The increase of learning is the light of civilization. It raises up the lowly, breaks chains of ignorance, and opens doors that were thought forever locked. Lancaster, whose monitorial system brought education to children who had none, saw with his own eyes how reading and writing could lift the poor from despair. But he also understood that learning alone is not enough. For knowledge without good morals is like a sword in the hand of a tyrant—powerful, but dangerous. Only when knowledge is wed to virtue does it become a true blessing, guiding the mind toward justice, compassion, and service.

History bears witness to this marriage of knowledge and morality. Consider the story of the American Founders, who, though imperfect men, understood that their fledgling republic could not survive without educated citizens shaped by virtue. Thomas Jefferson himself declared that liberty could not be preserved without knowledge among the people. Schools were built, not merely to teach letters, but to form citizens capable of self-rule. Where learning and morals grew together, democracy found strong roots. But where one grew without the other, corruption and division followed.

Think also of Athens, where the pursuit of wisdom and civic virtue lifted a city to greatness. Philosophers taught not only rhetoric and mathematics, but the duty of citizens to their polis. Yet when Athens forgot virtue and used knowledge to pursue selfish ambition and conquest, her glory crumbled into ruin. Thus we see the eternal truth of Lancaster’s words: society thrives only when both learning and morals increase together.

The emotional heart of Lancaster’s teaching is gratitude and warning. Gratitude, for the blessings that flow from an educated and virtuous people: peace, prosperity, and justice. Warning, for the perils that arise when one is neglected. A society that teaches knowledge without character may produce cunning minds but empty souls. A society that praises morality without understanding may be righteous in intent but weak in wisdom. Only the union of the two brings balance and blessing.

The lesson, O listener, is clear: honor both the mind and the heart. Seek learning diligently, for ignorance is slavery. Yet also cultivate good morals, for without them, learning becomes a weapon turned against society. Teach your children not only to read and count, but to love truth, to act with kindness, to serve the common good. For a nation that neglects either is a nation that prepares its own downfall.

What then shall you do? First, commit yourself to lifelong learning, reading not only for gain but for growth. Second, practice virtue daily—honesty in word, compassion in deed, justice in judgment. Third, support schools and teachers who, like Lancaster, strive to nourish both the mind and the soul. Do not measure education only by test scores, but by the kind of citizens it produces.

And remember always: as Lancaster declared, all are agreed on this truth, whether king or peasant, rich or poor, past or present—that the increase of learning and good morals are not luxuries, but the very pillars of society’s strength. Guard them well, for they are blessings greater than wealth, more enduring than power, and more necessary than breath. Let them be your inheritance and your gift to the generations yet unborn.