The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1876-10-19


number Of this sortof people. Then a
/ further look at the crowd shows us come
anxious business faces There are men
| who handle money here. Who are they
and why are they here? Look at the
buildings,they are well constructed; look
at the furniture, it is we'll made; look at
the heating apparatus, it is costly; look
at the school-books, they are got up
without regard to expense--full of ele-
CANT pictures. we'll bound, and the DAYS
Of poor paper are numbered. Who pays
for all this? The money comes by tax
alton ard 1t is sure, and every bill for
these things will be paid That tall gen
tleman yonner witch snch an elegant gold
headed cane, is a publisher Of school
books. He Is reputed TO be worth a
million; yonder is another not so we'll
off, be- prosperous now and with good
prospect ahead. There is man who
makts school furniture and eisrjch too;
that dark-c0mpleXicned man ynndcr has
steam heating apparatus, and he ssys
tbe schools pay him best of all. There
is 20 army carpet 3ggers on board,
stepping on at every station. Those are
book agents, map agents, pen agents
there Is rot a single thing from pencil
or crayon To a globe or encyclopedia that
has rot an agent graspiDg slice Of the
'ru hie mercy" These men are well
paid, they soy. There Is one yoader
whose face is familiar TO educational
peopie--he can get books introduced"
where no one else can His power over
committees is something to be spoken
of with resrect. Nearly every other agent
retires when he appears. Yet he has been
defeated. His salary is reputed to be
| $40, 000-and commissions. What scores
of circulars, recommendation and cata-
logues those fellows are Distributing
How earnest they are in pointing ont
the excellent qualities Of. the arithmetic
Tor geography they have for sale! They
are no small part Of The carload. See
them converse with the tsrcfers the
school superintendent sometimes seems
to knuckle down to them; they even
have threatening words for some-hints
of Influence" in various quarters arc
thrown out-and the teacher can not
cross The pa of certain of them with
Iimpunity.
Then there are srs school sira and the
schoo lima ANS, They form large part
of the lead, but heY have little tc say
about the route er the car itself. Most
are busy in keeping the in.mense number
or children stjll--in ROY g. ut disks, over
books, and al swering questions. Vein
specf this dtvls,on with n, small interest.
They ar" passengers, bur with few ex-
+ ptions they exhaust ;, I'll and body on
Il iiS7t ..clr ~, -.
heed 10 the publishers, the book agents,
or other managers, and cOntrive 10 be
promii cnt IN one way or another The
majority ho and what are hey? Shall
lit be SAID that money" is the end and
aim at most of these people? Shall
the formation ut the opinions of The next
generation be trusted 70 those who con-
fess they 10 it for money? Can moral
impressions be made by such persons?
It is Impossible. Let us take vote as
they do for presidential candidates All
who work tor money may put IN red
ballot, and those W lo Labor with higher
motives may cast white bail0t. We
count up anil find that The white are rs
one to three and here is the danger to
the public schools Of this country. AS
it now stands there Is little or no tone
to them; there is Itaven in the lump,
but the mass is too great 10 be visibls
affected. The pr. ssins need is for teach
ers who have teachers puwers that are
cnnsecrated ~ their high work. "Prc-
fessIonal" teachers have been supposed
to be the need-bu! something more is
earnestly demanded. There are in the
country large number of high.minded
young men and women who prefer, for
spirit motives, rather 10 teach than 10 DO
aGght else. Money they must have toll
enable them to teach-but still they dol
not teach for money, Take these, put
them IN normal scbools thatare qualified
to train such persons, capable oil infusing
them with just IDEAS, methods of teach
ing,and TO train them In appropriate stu
dies, and the country viii have a corps
Of genuine professional teachers. But
a normal school is not necessary. The
best teachers this or any land has known
have never emerged from the doors of a |
normal school. The true teacher will
always have pupils who enthusiastically
admire and sympathize with tue work
Of their master. Every private and
every public school have such pupils. /
The oversight of the present time is that
such are not encouraged to ftthemselves
to De teachertand employed when fitted.
Fewer and fewer of the natural teache
ers are entering the school rooms Those
who teach, struggle to pass an eranai7ao-
tio11, and then GRIND like Samson at the
wheel. They are grinders-not teach
ers. f3g g5,
1t would be easy to note other chars
acters and incidents, but such are some
OF the prominent features observable as
the car Whlrls along. The history of its
progress, Its small beginning,the self-de-