St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-11-30
THE sCHOOL-BoOK LAW.

THE SCHOOL-BOOK LAW.
The matter of textbooks has been one OF
the most serious problems in connection
with the common-school system. All edu-
Gators agree that there should be some sort
of uniformity in the kind of books which
are to be used in the public schools. One
difficulty has been in getting the educators
to agree among themselves as to what text
books are best. A number of books of
geography. grammar, arithmetic, and of all
the branches usually taught in the common
schools have been published by number
of authors-all of them of prominence
and reputation in their respective
departments. One teacher will prefer the
work OF one author, while another teacher
of equal repute and proficiency will insist
that the textbook published by another
author is better adapted to the instruction
of children. And thus in the multitude of
good textbooks it becomes a serious diff
ficulty to make selection of the best. But
when the properly commission
ers have at last been enabled to make Sc
lection then comes the most serious diff
ficulty of all-that of having the books fur
nished to the schools at prices which are
not extortionate. Whenever good book
is to be published some publishing
house generally manages to make a
contract with the author by which
the house has the exclusive right to pub
ish the book. In this way the publisher
acquires monopoly. Now if this should
happen to be the book which it is most de-
sirable to use as textbook the public is
placed at a disadvantage. Prices cannot be
kept down and the public protected from ex-
tortion by competition. The only remedy
is in legislation. The state can protect it
self by legal provision fixing the maximum
price to be paid for textbooks to be used
in the public schools of the state. In this
way the publishers are compelled to accept
the price offered by the state or lose sale.
As a reasonable profit is usually, allowed
by the state, the publishers, as a
rule, are not slow to accept what is offered.
The law should always provide that the
price of the book shall be published on the
back. The experience of those states which
have adopted this method is that there has
never been any difficulty in getting all the
books that were needed. While the pub
fishers have monopoly in the way of pub
LEGATION, they are prevented from using that
monopoly for the purpose Of extortion.
The point raised before the district court
of Hennepin county in the case decided by
Judge KooN last Saturday was that the
statute which provides that one person
shall have the contract for furnish
ing all the books to the pupils
in the public schools of this state
creates a monopoly and is in this sense I'm
constitutional. The court however, decided
the case adversely to the contractor upon
another point, and the decision virtually
leaves this important point undecided. The
court held that the act of 1883, which re-
quired the county superintendent to make
his requisltion upon the contractor for the
necessary books to supply the schools of his
county. is invalid because it had no enact
ing clause. So far as the public is con-
cerned the monopoly feature of the law is
of more importance than the point which
was decided. The mere matter of
omission could be remedied by a
subsequent legislature passing the
same bill with the enacting clause
But if the law is unconstitutional upon the
ground that it abridges the privilege of free
market the people would like to know it,
so that some law could be enacted in its
place which would secure to the public
uniformity in the series of textbooks to be
used in the schools. The present law is
Objectionable because it does have monop-
olistic tinge and is contrary to the spirit of
American institutions. 1t is true that if
the legislature fixes the price which shall
be paid for books it doesn't make much diff
ference who publishes them or who
sells them. At the same time there is
something very repulsive to the American
mind in law which not only abridges an
American citizens right to the enjoyment
of a free market, but also assumes dicta-
torial character wholly at variance with
the spirit Of free government. That
feature of the law which provides for
state contractor, whether constitutional
or unconstitutional, is repulsive to Repub-
lican principles and ought to be abolished.
There are monopolies enough already in ex-
istence to meet all the requirements of this
age and generation. The people are in no
humor for the creation of new ones at this
time, and particularly when they are to be
made a feature of our public-school system.
The principal need in this matter is ca
pable commission charged with the duty of
selecting textbooks and from time to time
revising the price list. This commission
should be composed of professional teachers
and should consist of individuals whose
reputation for integrity would elevate them
above the suspicion of colluding with pub
fishers. Then give the commission power
to receive bids from different publishing
houses, and if any one agreed to furnish
books at less price than the law fixed, let
the commission be authorized to contract
for them at the reduced price, but in no
event to go above the price fixed by law,
and not make contract for more than two
years. A very good idea would be to have
this commission to consist of the state SUI
perintendent of instruction and all the
county superintendent. They should be re-
quired to meet at least once in two years and
agree upon the textbooks to be used in the
PuOli0 SSAooio 1oi eHO ACAs SuCCCcuilS JWO
years, and also to contract with publishers
for furnishing the books.
SHOULD the senate be so discourteous as to
elect president of that body merely to ad-
minister the oath to Gen. LOGAN and then re-
tire in his favor, the Illinois senator will
demonstrate the popularity of our politics by
| occupying the very position which the Ameri-
can people decided that they did not wish him
to hold. He will be in the unenviable posi-
ton of an unlimited guest in the presidential
family circle.