The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1885-03-26
GIVE Us Better HOUSES.

Among all 1.-The school, houses in the
County, used exclusively for free schools,
there are not more than half dozen
that are frst.class. The best are not
slMhat they oughtto be. And it isssrange,
&c Is 3 matter of wonder that intelligent
men will; allow their children to stay
from sixto eight hours day in house
which they would not think for NO
mont Of permitting them to live in
WHY'S i'll How il sis7 There, must be-
t accuse. 1ssmust be parsimony. inditier
ences or poverty. II il is larsimony,
may tho saints have mercy on the
parents; II indifference, the heavens
pity the children. It is not poverty.
No community in the County will admit
sthat It tis.povefty. Two successive "hard
I years have had their effect. but nc. com
smunity, is SO poor as to be truthfu'ly
suSdbb Ito build a decent, comfortable
shonSe for their,children. Let our people
take time to think little about this
mater and they will surely act. 1t isa
! sad sight in this day of enlightenment
aud intelligence 70 see a sprigh,ly boyor
sasuest, innocent girl sitting on q rough
slab .nhich is supported by four spradd.ed
slexs; TOO long or high to permit the feet
gof the child to touch the floor. Witl'
nothing to rest his back against be is
required to hammer away at his lessons
in spite of the Inconvenience aud pain
he experiences. This is no fiction, my
friend, no poetry, no highly colored ex-
aggerssion. We are dealing With bold
ffscts NOW, and facts that We, as q people,
ought to be ashamed OF. Much bad
Judgment Is displayed in the construction
Sof many Of our barus called school.
housea. For instance, in7one township
there is house about forty feet long b.
twelve wide with achimneyat one end
The teacher tells me he has abnut fort,
scholats. During the extremely cold
weather ne have had, was.it possible fl"
: that number, Of children to keep any
thing like comfortable in house of such
/, idimeusions? Is it possible for one fire
sst The end of the building to heat such
shouse9s Now crowd those forty children
! into 4 space tw. live feet square (for that
ID vhst you must do if you put them
near enough TO feel the firel and expec:
them to- study. Can they do it? j.
requires no philosopher to answer that
questionable most ignorant father iu the
County can answer it correctly. ti>
nonsense to claim for the public school
system the possibility of perfection, or
even passable success so long as we have
such houses. The evil ought to be rem.
edied. IT must be remedied. If the
people can not, or will not, build and
furnish better houses, the trustees mu>t
do 1t ont Of the public fund. That
would be- robbing the children, for
time, of their already scanty supply of
educational advantages, but unless the
people act, and act with vim, in this
matter, necessity will force such c"urse
upon US. The trustees have the right L"
use the public fund in that way, but it is
Enthusiastically the peoples duty to supply
good and well furnished houses, and
shame on them if they fail to do it. IL
Some sections. fair promises have been
made to-: set the ball in motion next
Summer when the crops are laid
by" We hope these promises and re'o:
lutions may be faithfully executed, and
that before the beginning of the nfx'
school year many neat, comfortable, but
not extrayagant, school houses may br
( found giving their refining influence to
the sections in which they stand and TO
the entire County.
There isa wide, unfathomable chasn
between Whist you want and what you