The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1886-06-04
COMMENCEMENT
OF gArRMoNp NORMAL SCHOOL,
The Occasion suGEsSH to Mr.. Hu MA.Wsll
Some Timely RsnuctiOuS-Ths MsHgsF
Aid the Normal sOhOOl' Receive from
the statS-WrOuES to bO Rightsd.
sptelaI oOreponae.ee ata hl.ltqnor.

'
/ graduating class this morning by Stat
, Superintendent B. s. Morgan, who tool
/. the occasion to remark upon the genera
8 prosperity Of the Normal Schools through
out the State, and Of the Fsirmont sChoO
in particular. The graduating class con
) sisted OF ten members, viz; Columbus ]
Allen, Tyler county; Jssptr N, AugIin
Lewis county; D. II. HamriCk, Webster
county; s. o. Higgins, Wels.l county; Il
=, Max veil, Tucker county; O. w. Robin
son, Barbour county; H. B. sCranage
county; B, W, Taylor, Randolph county,
and Miss Matte o. Fitzgerald, Marion
county.
All these are from West Virginia, and
although young, they are all practical
teachers, having In the aggregate taught
thirty leigh school years,
rhe entire enrolment for the year Ia
2SO, all Of whom, except three, are West
Ylrginians, They represent twenty-five
counties in this State, This Is the largest
enrolment in the history Of the school,
aud those who are In position 10 know,
say that more earnest, intelligent and
industrious class Of students has never
Oeen In attendance at the Falrmont Nor.
nal. Nor has there ever been q more
thorough and searching system Of instruc-
zion known to this institution. The teach-
Brs seem to have Conprehended that to
4duCate Is not to tell facts and explain
solutions, but 10 teach the pupil to search
Iut the facts for himself aud TO work out
lis own solution aud demonstration.
GROWTH or TUE LCHOoL.
The corps OF teachers consists Of Prof.
Conrad, A. Sips and Misses May jackson
md Mamie Cameron. That they have
lonea year OF faithful and profitable work
IS evident from its results, They have the
argest school ever here, and none other
Tas ever better organised, Thegrowth in
he past two or three years has been great
md OF the most permanent kind. Philo.
IOphiCal and mathematical apparatus
lavs been placed in the abratory, maps
And Chartsare on the walls and the liDarary
has Quadrupled its number OF volumes
A uniformity ofsystem exists In the school
rom the prep lratlon OF those just enter
ng to their graduation. So far as tho in.
,lde workings OF the school are concerned,
everything Is moving smoothly and the
Jest results follow the labor OF the teach
,rs and all concerned, But there are
,ome things which think should bs
criticised, not for the sake Of criticism,
Iut for the purpose ol correcting existing
3yils.
The Legislature approprlates $4,000
year for the support and maintenauCe oil
the six normal schools In the State, con-
ruOnlng, however that no one school
shall have more than $1,000 Of the money.
EACn county in the State has the right tO
,ppOint certain number oil pupils TO the
normal school, and for each pupil go Rp.
pointed the school is allowed s. 80 per
Month, or about $3l 50 per year, until the
.um 6f 81 900 has been reached.
About sixty -three pupils for a year reach
the ~, 1000, and II any more than that at
lend the school, no pay is allowed for
mem. The school will receive Its $1,000
ind no more. Nov, II is surely much
more work and mucn more expensive 10
each $50 pupils than to teach Sixty-three.
Yet the teachers receive no more Tor II.
The Fairmunt school has three teachers.
They lind 1t impraCtlCablO to care for 80
many students, aud accordingly assistant
teachers are employed from among the
advanced classes Of the school. II these
assistants are paid the teachers must do II
from their $1,000, which cuts their net
proceeds still lower, 80 II has come to be
that the more pupils normal school has
the less money the teachers realize for
thsir work.
A WRONG THAT SHOULD BE RGdHTRD.
This Is wrong that should be rlghted.
The next Legislature should look after 1t
and And some means to change the situa-
don. As It Is, there Is no financial en-.
enlargement held out to the teachers tf
the Normal to I'LL their schools with pu-
pills; for every pupil more than 90 Is q
dead loss TO them.
The State should allow So 80 for each
and every student appointed for each
month he attends the Normal. Then II
a school, by the excellence OF Its work and
the Inducements II can hold out, can con.
srol 800 students, II will receive money In
proportion.
AS the Fairmont Normal School now Ia,
II ought to have i've teachers and receive
5000, Of which the principal should have
S2,UOO. Then It could go forward with It's
work and build up aud Expand without
the embarrassment ot such penufious ap.
propriations. The schools of this Stale
will never rise 10 what they should be-
until the teachers are better paid. While
some grand successes have been achieved
IN spite ot poverty, yet many an effort
which might have been success, has fall
cd on account ot the sting Of those
who should be generous.
THE DIPLOMA QUESTION.
Another wrong which cries aloud for
redress is that the diplomas Of Normal
school graduates are utterly ignored and
despIBed when those holding them apply
to local examining boards for certificates.
The diplomas ouEht to be as good as q
number one certificate anywhere in the
State. But the Legislature declared that
Il shall not be 90. Those holding the
diplomas must pass examination the same
as these who do not and after the very
fact that they have diploma is a harm 10
them, for II causes the hoss.baCk examin.
ing boards In some counties 10 look
upon them with III will aud Jealousy.
The honor and recognition due the
diploma should be restored. Other States
admit graduates Of out Normal Schools as
Htst.gfAde teachers, without submitting
them 10 the formalty Of an examination,
and II IL no less than an insult 10 our MOI.
NAL Schools for this State TO refuse 10
recognise the graduates.
There has been a certain element Of
moSsbaCkiBm In Our Legislature that
should be hunted out BY the people aud
exterminated. The member who said
With an oath that he would not vote a
cent 10 an inRtltution 90 Insignificant as
our Normal Schools, and the member who
introduced q bill 10 have the Normals die.
continued, and The one who would have
destroyed them because, az he said, "they
are only local Ia thsir work, benehttihg
only the immediate .vlOlnlties where they
are loCated"-these members we're the ex.
ponents Of Ignorance and malice, which