The Indianapolis journal., 1889-11-21
BOOKS BECKTOLD SHIPPED
Complaints to the SchoOl-BOOk Commits
sioners About Defective Readers.
The Biographies Also Receive Uncomplimen-
tary Notice from uperintendents-A Sub
Committee to Examine Bad Bind n.

The State Board of Education COM
pleted its business yesterday, the forenoon
being taken up mainly with the prepara-
tion of questions for teachers examinations
during the coming six months. Aside from
this the only other business transacted
was the appointment of board of visitors
to the State Normal School for 1sS9-9O. 1t
has been the custom TO join distinguished
educator from another State with city
and county superintendent from this
State in making up the board, and that
course was followed in this instance. the
selections being DR.. William L. Sheldon, of
Boston. Mass. City Superintendent j. w.
Layne, of Evansville, and County Superin-
tendent George +. Felts. of Fort Wayne.
In the afternoon the members of the
board sat as school-book commissioners
and considered complaints against the
books furnished by the Indiana SchOol-book
Company. In most cases samples of the
books complained of accompanied the COM
paints, and the table at which the COM
missioners. sat was well covered with in
feriOr specimens of the bOok-binders' trade
containing alleged information and indis-
tinct typography that were objected to
quite as vigorously as the work which
held them together. The first complaint
considered was that from the Connersville
School Board, which objected to its con-
slgnment of literature on the ground that
when the backs of the volumes were opened
widely the wire with which they were
sewed ON cut through the paper, and all the
information contained in the books escaped
from the covering. Another objection was
that in the so-called Indiana Biographies
C0nnersville was placed OH the wrong side
OF Whitewater river, thus causing the youth
of that city to look with mistrust on the
pictorial illustrations of the book. and
statements of the text. Other important
cities OF the State, such as indianapolis,
Muncie and Anderson. also appeared in a
badly dIslocated condition, and the Con-
nersville board held the entire geograph-
Icai system of the Indiana School-bOok
Publishing Company Ill as low esteem as it
did the printing and book-binding depart
ments of the company. The complaint was
signed by Joseph L. Little, president of the
school board in the city named. and was
understood to represent the unanimous
opinion Of that body.
A complaint from Jefferson county was
of like character. superintendent w. n.
Amsdell, of that county, protested
against books sent there ON the
ground that they were gotten up in such a
way that they would not last long enough
for an average pupil to go through them.
One pupil had had two first readers go to
pieces on his hands already while endeav-
oring to extract information from them.
and. as there were seven months of school
yet to come before he would be advanced
to the second reader. modest calculation
would show that at least half dozen vol
umes would be needed to get him through
the first If the present style of Elzevir bind
lngs was continued. He. too, had something
to say about wire stitching and inferior pa
per that had disposition to part company.
and referred to the dim and illegible typo
graphy. intimating that the members of the
Indiana School-boOk Publishing Company
ought to start spectacle factory, and run
it as an annex to its publishing. business.
Gibson county's complaint, which came
through j. b. Knight. trustee of LadOga
township, was of the same order, and set
forth that the books sent there were de-
fective, imperfectly graded, bad in their
mechanical execution. and full of errors.
Commissioners Smart thought some eX-
pert testimony might be needed to de-
termine the questions raised. and moved
that u subcommittee of three be appointed
to consider and report upon them. Edward
Hawkins. who appeared for the publishing
company, read some correspondence between
it and President Little, of the Connersville
board, In which the latter stated that he
did not object to the age of the volumes
sent or the Minnesota books with the
new paper covers pasted over their ont
sides, but would like something that would
hold together long enough to permit AN ex-
animation of contents. The company had
written back that it would replace
any defective books. 1--WE never got
no reply" said Mr.. Hawkins. and then he
went on to tell of the bother the company
had had in getting the books printed. how
some of the firms to which it sent the plates
to have books printed had made bad job
of it and how other school-book agents had
got hold of these books in counties where
they had been sent and showed them up as
M
company did not want bad books to go out,
and had always offered to take back those
that were defective. With reference to dis
putes about drayage of books, which some
a consignment, he held that '.transporta-
tion and delivery" to the officers desic-
mated to receive the books meant
delivery at the depots but if the board
ruled otherwise the company would make
it's deliveries accordingly.
There was considerable discussion and
examinations by the commissioners of the
defective books sent in, but a unanimous
support of Commissioner Smart's motion
was finally secured. and Immediately be-
fore the adjournment the following reso-
lutions were passed, Commissioners Par
sons, Wiley aud Layne being appointed as
the committee named IN 1T:
Resolved, That a subcommittee of three be
appointed to investigate the complaints made
by certain school officials in Fayette, jefferson
and Gibson counties. that books supplied under
the contract of the Indiana School-book Com
pany are not up to the standard set by the law
and the contract, and TO take testimony upon the
same il necessary, and that said committee re-
port its conclusions to the superintendent OF
Public Instruction.
Resolved, That if deemed advisable by said
company the superintendent be instructed TO call
this board together at the earliest convenient
day thereafter.
1t is probable that the committee of in
vestigation will remain to-day, and have
the Connersville books brought back here
for its inspection. There are 960 of them.
and they have been lying for some time at
Connersville unaccepted. Of the defective
books exhibited yesterday. the defects.
apart from the literary blunders. were such
as resulted from using poor material and
putting it together in a cheap and bungling
way.
Costly Experiment
The aged adage, "You may lead horse
to the water but YOU cannot make him