Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1878-02-15
THOSE TEXT BOOKS.
rEsr1nAr1os STILL CONTINUING.
What County superintendent Says--He
Shows that the People of Steele County
Don't Want the Fifteen Year Force Meas
ure--And Exposes the Weak and Object
iOnable Features of the Law Generally.

The 23d of January, Mr.. Hall introduced
a bill supplementary to the act of last winter,
providing cheap text books for the public
schools of Minnesota, which contains these
two items:
LIST, that five per cent. shall be added to
the prices named in the law, to meet any ex-
penses which may be incurred in the trans
| mission of books from st. Paul to such
school district and I'd, any school district
may designate some person to sell these
books, and such agent shall be entitled to
add to the price of the books commission
not to exceed ten per cent.
Thus book which in st. Paul is worth
one dollar, costs the pupil one dollar and
fifteen cents.
We do not find any fault with this pro-
vision. It is right that the laborer should
receive his hire Possibly this may have a
bearing on some other parties upon whom
! tho text book law devolyes extra duty, e. g.
county auditors; county superintendent and
| district treasurers.
The point we desire to make is this: How
much are our districts going to save after
| paying these percentages including certain
losses which come to tho trade?
| A petition has been sent i'll to our Leg sla-
ture praying for a repeal of this law. This
petition was signed by about 200 citizens of
Steele county. Double the number might
have been obtained. Nearly all of them are
property holders in the country districts.
| We would say for the information Of the
| Pi0necr-Press that this county was not
combed with fnc-toothed comb and none
| of the signers are school naa1nas.
Neither has the State superintendent ex-
erted any undue influence down here nor has
the county superintendent worked up any
sentiment against the law But one general
expression has prevailed 50 far as he is aware
i'll regard to the bill.
But what are the points at issue? The
| figures grow in our favor. Last week [
showed that it would take $4,000 to furnish
our county with new books in the spring if
this law goes into operation. With the sup
plimentary bill we must add Is per cent. to
this amount making 5000 more-almost
$1,000. Thus books are going up instead of
going down.
[ have spoken of the grammar. In short
the Legislature entered into contract for a
grammar. One was found, but it was not
large enough. TO make it larger, selections
such as might be found in reader, were
bound in with the grammar, headed "For
Parsing.''
And now for the readers. The law says
ga fourth reader not to exceed 40 cents, (the
present price is 90 cents.)" I wish to show
the intelligent voters of Steele county the
kind of honesty implied in this law. "a
fourth reader not to exceed 40 cents-the
present price is 80 cents.'' Is not the true
inference, and the only inference that can be
drawn this? That the contractor
proposes to sell the fourth reader at
that time retailing for 80 cents at
40 cents; or at least one equal in quantity
and quality. No reader is named, but as the
price is given think it fair to tax the amount
of reading matter, then, costing 80 cents,
and compare it with what the contractor pro-
poses to sell for 40 cents. The National
retailed here for IS cents. It is larger than
the standard fourth reader Of the law. That
contains only 24O pages; the National has
2SS pages; the lines are longer and there are
more lines on a page. The difference
amounts to one-third the size of the book.
This will be a difference of at least 1873
cents to be added to 40, or 5315 cents. Add
Is per cent. to this and we have 81 4 cents.
Now deduct the 4Oper cent. which publishers
make to jobbers and we have 36 cents to be
taken from 80 cents, leaving 81 cents. In
other words the text book law gives us for
G1h cents, an amount of reading matter
which could have been bought for 81 cents
in Chicago during the reign of the book
ring, OF if we add freight, that per cent, a
little less than IS cents. Verify, school
books are cheaper! That ring is broken.
But the standard fourth reader is not suf-
fcient for our district schools. A fifth
| reader is an absolute necessity if the text
book law succeeds. Any series of text books
may be made cheap if the quantity of mat
ter in the book is small.
| Another fact should be known by the peo-
pie. The county superintendent were
thought amply sufficient by the trainers of
| that law to decide upon series of text books,
involving at one sweep, at least four hundred
thousand dollars, to say nothing Of the ff-
| teen years to come. Whereas, a State super
intendent, three principals of normal schools,
several professors of our State university,
fifty or more-county superintendent, are
all in league with the book-ring.
But the cry is now for uniformity. Fash
ions change. When the memory of the old
book commission was still green, State uni
formity was dangerous monopoly. Now
it is perfectly safe. But do We get uni
formity? Our graded schools are exempt,
and ne small number of children will have
to buy two sets of books when they move
from the country to the city. The argu-
ment for uniformity fails. st. Paul, Min
neapolis, Winona and all our other cities
would not have the books.
One word on the geography question. The
proposed geography is very cheap. We'll,
Monteith is new book and used to sell for
$1.GO The proposed book is net to exceed
80 cents. history worth GO cents may be
added, making $40. Increase this Is per
cent. and we have SLIGO. Now Monteith' s
geography contains, in connection with the
geography, an outline of the history Of each
State and country, which is highly priced by
our teachers. Monteith's comprehensive re-
tails for $1.3O. Which is the cheapest? We
speak now of what the child really needs in
district school, whose average length is
or 5 months in the year.
/ I have no desire to mislead any one in
these statements. They will bear examina-
ton.
Steele county is up with the times in bel
series of text books. Let us see what a SCI
of books will cost child of II or Ia years
at present prices. Rudiments of arithmetic
carrying the pupil through interest, &C., AZ
cents; fourth reader, Monroe's, 60 cents; ge
ography, containing outlines of history
$1.20; grammar, As cents; total, 1915. Th,
grammar and geography contain all that on
district schools require. The arithmetic con
tains the rules in common use. The grading
of the proposed series is somewhat diferen
from the books now in use. But with tn,
per cent. added, the district pupil would fnt
} it necessary to exceed this amount in orde