The state chronicle. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1883-1893, 1888-07-20

IN 1887 TOV JARVIS appointed MAJ.
Finger member of the Beard of Directors
of the Western N. G. Insane Asylum. This
was the first Board appointed and upon it
devolved tie great work of making all
preparations for opening that magnificent
institution for the reception of patients.
MAJ. Finger, during the last year Of this
Ser\ ice, was President Of the Board and
gave much of his time and thought to the
duties which devolved upon him. He held
this position HntiI he was elected State
~upcrintenlent of schools.
Ia brief this is the record of MAJ. Fin
gers life, with the most important event
omitted. That event was his marriage in
1866 to Miss Sarah lloyle Rhyme, OF Gas
ton county. to whose practical common
sense, genuine worth, and lovely christian
character Mai. Finger attributes much of
his success III life. They are both mem
bers Of the German Reformed church.
In every issue in the present campaign
the Democrats have the ad vantage of thelr
opponents but in none Of them is the ad
vantage so great or so patent as on the
public school question. The contrast is
sharp and we'll defined
When the Republican party was in pow
er it gave the people no schools, but squan
dereG q large permanent school fund.
The Democrats have maintained a sys-
tenn of public schools which increases in
efficiency every year
This is the contrast squarely presented
between the two parties in the campaign.
The Republican attitude is: We favor the
education Of the children, but when we
had an opportunity of educating them. we
gave them no schools but stole part of the
school fund, and paid part of it out to
cocn-tield hands termed legislators at
800 Per day.
The Democratic attitude is: We favor
educating all the children in the State. In
proof, we are spending over $3.50, 600 a
year 10 educate them.
But the contrast is still more striking if
We have regard to the men whom each of
the parties have named as the head OF the
Public School System. The Democratic
4 parry ittS udllIt' hd.. ClOuty ~ luSti :,
the subject of this sketch, who has held
4 the Office four years. A wise. discreet,
. conservative, progressive man, he has
made so good an officer that he was re-
nominated by acclamation, and in the Re
publican Convention a speaker said that
the State had never had better officer
and he told the truth. Maj. Finger knows
the value of public schools for in them he
received his training.
But who is the Republican nominee:
And what fitness has he for the place, J.
B. Mason is the nominee. He is fourth
rate lawyer. He is notoriously incompe-
tent He knows nothing about public
schools, and he hasn't sufficient capacity y
to learn anything about them. He has nc
single fitness for the position for which he
has been named. We say this, not because
he is a Republican. We say it because
every man who knows J. b. Mason vii
agree With us nat Il is a correct estimate
Of the man
The election OF Maj Finger IS more i'm
portant than any other man on the ticket
because of the gross ignorance and stupid
ity of his opponent. 1t would be a last
ing disgrace upon the public school sys
TEN to have so ignorant q man as J. B
Mason at the head of the educational sys
TEN of the State.