When I was in college, I lost my scholarship one year. I had enough money for tuition, but not room and board. So I camped in the hills.
Robert HassA movement got started for common schools, and by the end of the 19th century, 91 percent of Americans could read and write.
Robert HassAs I started reading about it, I saw that at the beginning of the 19th century, outside of New England - which was an unusually literate place - practically no one could read or write. And even in New England, the overall rate was only about 60 percent. That still means four out of 10 people couldn't put their name to a will.
Robert Hass