Appeal to Trustees, Inspectors, Teachers and Pupils—past and present—connected with Public, Separate[3] and High Schools, and to the other friends of Education in the Province of Ontario; from the General Committee appointed at Toronto on the 14th March, 1882, for the collection of funds with which to erect a Monument, or other Tribute of Esteem and Admiration to the memory of the late Rev. Dr. Ryerson, founder of the Educational System of Ontario:
"Although still young our Province has already been called to mourn the removal of not a few of her gifted sons, who have severally adorned the different walks of public life. In weight of character, wealth of manhood, and width of human sympathy, the late Chief Superintendent of Education, stood amongst the foremost and mightiest of them all.
Egerton Ryerson was a man of rare diversity of gifts, of remarkable energy, and of abundant mental resources. It would have been easy for him to have excelled in any one sphere of human greatness, but it was his to stand high in several. He was a many-sided man; richly endowed in various ways. He was a laborious farmer—a zealous student—a successful teacher—an eminent preacher—a prominent ecclesiastic—an influential editor—a forcible writer—a sagacious counsellor—a most efficient principal and professor—but he was chiefly noted as a great public educationist.
For a third of a century he was the head and inspiring genius of our school system, establishing, moulding, adapting, controlling it; and this, the main work of his life, will endure and command in the future, as it has in the past, the admiration of all, both at home and abroad. During all these years he was the teacher's true friend, and the ardent well-wisher of the young. His sympathies—tender and true—as helpful as they were healthy, went out to every earnest worker, whether in acquiring or imparting knowledge. The enquiring left his presence directed; the downcast, cheered; the doubtful, confirmed.
Unselfish, generous, disinterested, he devoted himself wholly to his work. How often did his lip quiver and his eye fill when he addressed the gatherings of teachers and pupils, upon whom he looked not only with the eye of a patriot, but of a parent,—"Ye are my children all."
We can never forget him; we profoundly mourn our loss; we fondly cherish his memory. Affection, gratitude, a sense of what is due to so eminent a man, impel us to perpetuate that memory in some suitable way, which will render such a noble life an inspiring example to young men now and in the coming days.
In obedience then, to one of the purest and loftiest instincts of our nature, let us unite in paying a common tribute of admiration and regard to the memory of him to whom we all sustained a common relationship, and to whom we also, without distinction as to nationality, political preferences, or religious belief, can pay sincere homage, as the founder of our present excellent and comprehensive system of education.
In honoring him we do honor to our common country, and recognize our obligation to pay fitting homage to the great men of our Dominion, whose names, with his, are inscribed high upon the roll of Canada's famous sons."
At intervals, during the years 1882-1886, circulars were issued by the committee to inspectors, trustees and masters of High, Public and Separate Schools, urging the collection of the necessary funds to erect the proposed memorial. In order to aid in this work, 7,500 copies of a biographical sketch of Dr. Ryerson and his educational work, prepared by the chairman, was sent to the inspectors for distribution. The chairman also made the following suggestions to inspectors (with a view to facilitate the collections from pupils), which was generally acted upon, viz.:—
"Permit me to suggest a simple way of securing a response from each school: You might request the teacher to give notice that, on the following week, he would devote five minutes at noon of each day to taking down a list of contributions (from a cent upwards) to the fund.
"In this way the pupils—and everyone in the locality, through the children—would have an opportunity of contributing his or her mite to the erection of a statue to one of Canada's most honored sons."