Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-09-21


Tallahassee and Leon County
Correspondence of the Morning Nescs.
TALLAHASSEE, Sept. 1s.-Hon. f. X.
Foster, the superintendent of Public In
struction, left last week ostensibly to
visit the Louisville Exposition, but really
to attend the Educational Convention
now being held there. Though lawyer.
engaged in large and lucrative practice,
our educational interests have not suf-
tered in his hands. His whole soul seems
to be in the work, and in consequence of
his untiring efforts, our common schools
have prOspered, and the standard
of efficient teachers raised. Through
his efforts and at his suggestion, our last
/ Legislature made appropriations for the
establishment of normal schools and
/ Teachers Institutes during the summer
vacations. In Quincy a Teachers Insti-
tute has been organized and is in opera
/ ton under the superintendent of Prof.
/ ii. n. Felkel, and some thirty teachers are
in attendance. In Polk county an insti-
tute is conducted by Major f. r. Rivers,
| President of the Literary Depart
ment of Florida University. In
/ Madison and at other points, institutes
have been opened and conducted success
/ fully. In these assemblies an experienced
/ educator presides and lectures on the
/ methods of teaching various branches.
This has the effect not only of interesting
/ the teacher in his noble work, but eleyat-
/ ing the standard of the profession and in
| Producing all the modern methods of i'll
structiOn, so successfully applied else
where. But however energetic and
| capable the head of the educational
department may be, he can effect
but little unless he is sus-
! tanned by efficient county ysuperintendents
throughout the State. Accordingly. Mr..
Foster has endeavOred to select chose who
are best fitted for that postiOn-those
who have been teachers themselves, and
are of a progressive stamp. Accordingly,
however capable teacher may have been,
! il he or she holds second class certjf-
cate, it is available for but one year; and
if at the end of the year the teacher is de-
SirOus of being employed for another, it
is necessary again to undergo another
examination. The reason of this is, that,
the superintendent of the county may
assure himself that the teacher has ''read
up" kept pace with the times, in the
changes of pronunciation, etc. 4 teacher
holding a tirSt-class certificate is, how
ever, not subject to this ordeal.
AND WHILE UPON MATTERS EDUCA-
TIONAL.
will refer to what seems to me to be an
error of DR.. HaygOOd in his addresses at
MOnteagle August ID and at Chautauqua
August 18th. The error is this: That dur
ing the decade ending 1880 the increase of
the white race, aided enormously by for
eign immigration, was only 2S.S2 per cent
while the increase of the negro pOpula-
tiOn, unaided by foreign immigration, was
Bats per cent! Now, is this really true?
Is it really Il fact that the negro pOpula-
tiOn is increasing prOpOrtiOnally more
than the whites? If DIR. HaygOOd
had studied the mOrtuary statis-
ties thoroughly he might possibly
have avoided the error. Those statistics
| show that the mortality among the whites
i'll the late slayehOlding States, including
the District of Columbia, was for the year
ending June 80, 1880, l4.04 per thousand:
among the colOred 1922 per thousand.
Gen L. A. Walker, Superintendent of the
Census Bureau, in his notes under the
head of ''MOrtality," in referring to this
difference, says: ''The difference in NOR
marked IN the Southern States. and is
largely due to the relatively great
number of deaths among infants
in the cOlOred population. n.''-COmpendium
tenth census of the United States, page
1907. Besides this, it is well known that
the ninth census, so far as the Southern
States were concerned, lCds UerB iRdcCu-
rate. Incompetent enumeratOrs were ap-
pointed, who did not go from house TO
house, and who slurred over their work.
In regard to that census General Walker
uses this language: "While | had
the honor to submit the several reports of
the ninth census, | felt compelled, in sim
pie truthfulness, to say in respect to not
a few of the tables comprised in the three
.r,fE .t,ks,
to great extent incomplete and defeCtiUe,
and that i'll some cases the material
gathered by the enumeration was so far
deficient or inaccurate, that it would be
more creditable not to publish the tables at
all did the superintendent feel at liberty
to suppress them.'' 1t thus OfcjdJIy ap-
pears that the ratio of deaths among the
cOlOred far exceeded that among the
whites, and it is therefore a reasonable
inference that the increase among the
whites, assisted as it was by immigra-
tiOn, was greater. 1t also officially ap-
pears that there were gross errors in the
enumeration of the ninth census. DR..
HaygOOd, in two carefully prepared ad-
dresses, made the above statement as to
the relative increase of the two races
and commented upon those figures at
some length.
AT LAST
we are to have au artesian well in our
city. just previous to the disastrous fire
of last October Mr.. w. =. Slusser, one of
our most energetic citizens. had shipped
the necessary machinery here for boring,
but the building in which it was stored
was burned, and the machinery cOnsid-
erably damaged. Ill health and the loss
OF his buildings, on which there was no
insurance, so disheartened him that he
abandoned for a time the idea of prose
cutting the enterprise. With returning
health, however, and catching the spirit
of improvement around him. he has de-
termined to do his share. The machinery
has been repaired, the necessary sheds
erected, and work will soon be vigorously
commenced and prosecuted, it is hoped,
to a successful and speedy completion.
Tallahassee, too, will soon boast. !
trust, OF public library. The new brick
building of Ex-Governor Walkers at the
corner Of Monroe and McCarty streets, is
nearly completed, and it is the intention
of Governor Walker to donate the upper
story tor a public library. 1t is proposed
TO form library association and thus
raise the necessary funds for a nucleus,
comprising 1000 volumes. To this addi- !
tiOns can be made from time to time.
Governor Walker is one of our most public |
spirited citizens, and his cOmmendabl9
liberality IN devOting a fine hall for the
benefit of the reading public is deserving
VI pAstloCs gCdIo dGO du GHOEI was /
made to have public library, and quite |
a number of volumes was donated. But |
owing to the fact that no suitable hall |
could be obtained the matter fell through.
Now, with such a hall, centrally located, |
and with our ladies interested, a fine !
library in the near future may be regard |
ed as a certainty. We need it, we have |
discussed it, and now having planned we
will execute.
The Leon county exhibit to the Louis /
vile Exposition was shipped the latter
part of last week, and is probably in posi- |
tiOn by this time. Mr.. r. C. Long did not !
accompany the exhibit, as | stated he |
would, as he could not well leave home at |
this time. Capt. B. NJ. Burroughs went on
in the place of Mr.. Long as agent of the |
Bureau of immigration. He took with |
him great number of our immigration |
pamphlets for distribution, and as other |
counties will have exhibits the visitor |
cannot only read about Florida, but have |
ocular demonstration as to her products.
Warm weather still continues, and as it |
is uncomfortably so many fear that we |
shall have heavy storm. Yesterday we |
were visited by thunder storm of short |
duration, and the rain fell in torrents, and |
was accompanied by considerable wind. |
The cotton was damaged to some extent if |
the storm was more than local, for so !
much of this staple is now open in the |
fields. LION
Defaulting Tax Collector.
SELMA, ALA, Sept. 20,-Tax Collector |