The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1876-09-01
THE SENSE" OF THE TBAHOBRS'
INSTITUTE,

Chief among the sensible things done
under the auspices of the State Teachers
Convention held last week at Salem, we
note the following resolutions:
Resolved, That it is the sense of this Institute
that equal labor should receive equal pay re-
gardless OF sex.
Resolved, That this Institute respectfully ask
the Oregon State Legislature, at its next ses-
sion, to make the lawful age of school children
from to 20 instead of to 20.
The first of these resolutions carries
with it its own force and logic in the
imprint of justice that it bears. Upon
no class of women workers does the un-
just discrimination against the sex of
the worker bear so heavily as in the
case of teachers. Women of talent,
culture, adaptability for the work, and
great earnestness in its prosecution,
work side by side with men for half
pay, and for no other reason than the
one of sex. We see them classed in the
catalogue as male and .fomale teachers,
and their wages graded accordingly, as
though the fact of their being men or
women has any bearing whatever upon
their fitness for teachers. This distinc-
tion exists in all our schools from the
State University down to the most OBJ
scure country district, where the Hitter
ate director displays his eXecrable or
biography, sprawling chirography, and
narrow prejudiees by writing upon the
door of the cabin that does duty as
school-house, "No gurl need apply for
this skule." Not content with unjust
discrimination in the first place, the
school board is sometimes seized with a
spasm of economy, as was the case two
years ago in this city, and the half sala-
ries of the women teachers must be cur
tailed in order to quiet it, while the full
salaries of the men teachers go on as be-
fore. The "sense" of the Institute,
which numbered among its most active
and earnest members many women, is
that this unjust discrimination shall be
done away with, and equal pay for equal
labor take its place.
Of the second resolution above given,
over-worked teachers in over-crowded
school-rooms and judicious parents will
see the propriety, while those mothers
who send their children to school to
"get them out of the way" will doubt
less declare Unauthorized. 1t must be
apparent to every one that it is little
short of cruelty to children of four years
of age to contine them in school, while
the great influx of little ones in the pri-
mary departments wastes the time of
teachers and older pupils as well. If
there were a few sensible women in the
State Legislature, who, having reared
families, know something of the needs
of children, or having been under-paid
teachers in the primary department of
our schools, have experienced the utter
hopelessness of the task of keeping a
year-olds quiet, the Institute might not
appeal with its sensible resolution in
vain. Excluding women from taking
part in legislation, defrauds both them
and their children of rights and of pro-
lection that men alone can never guar
antee to them-flrst, because they don't
know how, or in other words, don't un-
derstand their needs, and second, be-
cause they don't wish to do so. That is
to say that one class of men don't know
how to legislate wisely and alone foI
for women and children, and another
don't want to, and don't know how, be-
sides