The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-09-05
BOUGHT UNDER A CONTRACT
ThePupiis Can Get Ready to Buy Inferior
Books at the Opening of Schools.
Principals to Become Agents. Practically. for
Becktolds Series-MinnesOta Geography in
D;sguise-Cutting Prices at South Bend.

For the past four or five days this city
has been receiving it's quota of the Beck
told-Williams school-books, Supply Agent
Hendrickson receiving the last shipment
yesterday morning, making total of ten
thousand of these cratic readers, arithme-
tics and biographies. These books he will
deliver to the various school buildings
Saturday afternoon and Monday morning,
so that they will be ready for distribution
to pupils at the beginning of the term.
They will be taken in charge by nineteen
principals in as many different school
buildings who will sell tho books to the
scholars. 1t is noticed that the complete
biographies" are yet green, while the other
books are in fairly good condition. The
more this complete geography is examined
the more its absurdIties appear. In the
few pages devoted to Indiana there are
a number of wood cuts. One of these
is picture of the State-house; picture of
q natural-gas well ablaze, taken from a
plumbers bill head; the soldiers monu-
four small pedestals that will not form
part of the completed monument; farm
scene. harvesters in wheat field; Indiana
State normal school at Terre Haute; library
of the Indiana University at Bloomington;
purdue University and an Illustration sta II on
of Evansville. ALI this, while Indianapolis,
the capital. mercantile and political center
of the State a city of 10000 is not pictori-
ally recognized. Mr.. Hawkins, who is now
a resident of Indianapolis, should look into
this matter. The members of the board
that adopted the books have received pic
torial recognition through wood cuts of
their educational institutions, and the Ohio
river town, where the immense establish
ment to print the books was to be located.
series, but Indianapolis has received moth
ing but cold shoulder.
A reporter yesterday turning the pages of
this complete geography, found on page 60,
part of the map showing the United States
and its principal cities gives location to
Cleveland, Detroit Chicago, st. Louis,
Louisville and Cincinnati. indianapolis is
not upon it at all, and by an even more in
excusable neglect. Evansville is also
ever, are both on the map, On page 100 Of
the same book are the words, Cuba, col
Ony of Spain, called the Queen of the An
TILES and regarded by Columbus as the
about half the sizeof Minnesota" On page
II of the little geography are the words.
England, Wales and Scotland form the
island Of Great Britain. which is only lit
tie larger than Minnesota. OF couraes as the
boys say, this. gives the snap aw< as to
the locality for which these BOOKS We're
designed. indiana scholars. to understand
these comparisons, will have first to learn
the geography of Minnesota thoroughly
and then begin upon their own State.
county, has also discovered that the Beck
told geography is being circulated as the
Minnesota book. with its identity con-
cealed. On the first page of the elementary,
G.. L..
Series; the Elementary Geography, In
dianapolis, Ind; Indiana School book Com.
pany, 1885," The first page of the title leaf
has the same print. and on the second page are
directions TO the Teacher" and Contents"
with this significant information at the bot
tom, Copyright, 1889; c. w. Willett." The
original cover of this book had been twice
removed, and underneath was found the
imprint .'Merrills Elementary Geography;
p mera Hiif Pabsber This disclos
ure shows that the like discovery at Hart
ford City, the other day. was not of a book
that had got in by chance or accident, but
that large numbers of them are old books
in new cOvers-bOoks that absolutely lie as
to the date of copyright. At Paoli, in
Orange county. the outside bark of this
slippery elementary geography was peeled
off, and, behold there was the Minnesota
copyright of 1885. These old books, at new
prices may not prove to be such great bar
: Lower Prices than the State Offers.
The South Bend Tribune, noticing the
compulsory introduction of the new school
books in that city, says: I'm order that the
expense may fall as lightly as possible on
parents and pupils, the Tribune store laid
in large stock of the arithmetics and
readers, which will be sold at lower prices
than are charged for the same books by the
State. These books were put into Michi-
gan. Minnesota and other States, just as
they have been in this State, but proved SO
out, as have several counties in other
States. The books are, most of them, as
good as new, are better bound, having
cloth instead of paper bindings like the
Indiana books. and will wear twice as long.
Many of the Indiana books are these same
standard series with the cloth covers
torn off and a paper cover, with Indiana
Series printed on it, pasted on. The
Tribune store furnishes the clOth-cOvered
books at from to 10 cents cheaper than the
State books can be sold, and at the same
time pays twice as much for the discarded
books as the syndicate pays"
Two Choice Problems.
The intelligence possessed by the average
Indiana boy is surely moderated when he
is given such problems to unravel as the
following, which are culled from the Beck
told Williams arithmetic, page 81. prob
lens and 10. The first is: jackson paid
10 cents for some peanuts. g cents for some
candy, and cents for glass of lemonade,
how much money did he spendf" The sec
ond reads: after Jackson ate the peanuts
and candy and drank the lemonade his
e. n 10 na RI faK A