Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1889-05-09

School bill, of quite different tone
temper and character. 1t is quite safe
to say that the writer of that article is
insoleat in meanness, and insulting in
. t,ne and temper. What right has he
to say, as he does, that the supporters
and advocates of Normal Schools are
1.-The coharts of boodlery, ever on the
alert for State appropriations" that
are dishonest? Does he not know that
among the supporters and approvers
of Normal Schools are many of the
most cultured, intelligent, upright and
| respectable citizens in their several
communities in the State? That such
persons have been the originators and
founders of these schools? If not, he IS
utterly ignorant of their history! Is
it not impudent presumption and as
sumption on the part of this writer for
him to say that Normal Schools tsare
needless expense to the State, and
there never was any warrant in justice
for their establishment" And yet is
it not true that nearly every well gov
erned State in the Union has said that
Normal Schools are necessity to that
State, and continues to maintain them,
and the people of such states are the
most intelligent and prosperous in the
Union, despite the expense incurred in
their maintaine nee, Notwithstanding
the assertion to the contrary? Again,
as he says, "a District Normal School
is founded on false pretence; that it
enables the children of people in poor
circumstances to obtain an education
otherwise beyond their reach" This
is as untrue as I have shown that the
originators and founders of our Normal
Schools, as of every Normal School
system in the country, have been
from the ranks of the most intelligent,
cultured, respectable and respected citi-
izens of the several States maintaining
such schools. The ''false pretence"
consists in the allegation ofthis writer.
No man of common sense and ordinary
intelligence suggests any such nom
sense as that any Normal School, of
itself, enables the children of any class,
rich or poor, to "obtain" an education.
1t is very true however, that the State
affords most excellent opportunity
for all the children resident In given
Dictrict to attend such District School,
but necessarily the opportunity effects
all classes alike. rich ami poor, under
one law, must provide food, clothing
and for incidental expenses, each for
him or her self, while 1.-THE additional
pittance required for tuition, Of which
this writer SO f1ippanty speaks, is
equally a gratuity to all pupils attend
ing such school. Thus far, and no
farther, does the State assist a pupil
in securing an eduction at II Normal
School, but in no other sense does the
State do more than this for any indi-
vidual pupil, and this it does for all,
rich and poor alike. Again; it is not
true, as this writer asserts, that sin
nine cases out of ten it Is the children
of well-to-do parents who attend thes
schools" In reality the true state of
facts as regards the pecuniary condi-
ton of children attending Normal
Schools in Missouri, is quite the re-
verse, as their reports to the legislature
have continuously shown that three
fourths or more of the attending pupils
have been the sons and daughters of
small farmers and mechanics, and
youths of both sexes, striving to secure
an honorable education without par
entail assistance. And it is not true
that the support Of our Nor NAL Schools
"takes thousands of dollars yearly from
the Common Schools OF our State"
The fund for the support of these
schools is fixed in our constitution,
and can neither be diminished or in
creased, except through constitutional
provision. And so I might go through
the whole OF this writer's and refute
his positions. His arraignment Of the
characters of the advocates of Normal
Schools is simply libellous. His state
ments as to facts are mostly untrue.
His reasoning, when he attempts to
reason is Illogical. His assumptions
nonsense, when not impudence. But
the most ridiculous and conflicting at
tltudes which the writer assumes are
contained ia the first paragraph and
the last sentence of his article. In the
first paragraph in attempting to belit-
tie the character of school teachers as
"a class, and with this intention, he has
this to say:
"a pedagouge, in nineteen cases out
of twenty, is ever on the lookout for
something better than his present
calling"
In his last sentence, in an endeavor
TO compliment representative RiDgo
for his hostility to Normal Schools, he
says this:
Hep (Mr. Ringo,) sis school-teach-
er and glories in the pedagogic art. But
he is rot crank"
Doubly fortunate is Mr.. Ringo!
Among pedagogues as class he is az
one in thousand. AS O pedagogue
by himself is as thousand in one. /
honor him, as a teacher in an humble
school house for looking out for 'some-
thing better,u and securing il Dy at
taininp it in a representatives. seat in
the Capitol of the State. ErcetSior,
Mr. Ri,,go? j. M.
Kaolin, iron Co., April 30.
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