The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-10-20
MAJOR FINGERS LETTER

! !
Below is a letter that has the naiE-
hitting character about it:
RALEIGH, Sept. 22, 1891
Mr.. ". j, S1Ojnb Secretary QHd I7reas-
arer, Concord N. c.:
DEAR SIR: i enclose check fOr $3.50
Peabody money, to be applied to y0u1
| city public schools. You will bear IN.
mind that this money cannot be usax2.
for any other purpose than the pay
! ment of teachers for both races The
intention of the Peabody trustees " to
help such communities as VIII help
! themselves and will so conduct kh4,
| schools as to be most helpful TO- tle~
general public school system.
In some communities in which an
nual taxes are levied to NsuppleEAant-
| the general school fund ! have ROt.
found such support to the general pub
lie school system as l thought there
ought to be in the use Of the State list
| textbooks. This, I think, is an irupc,E-
tant matter. The State list books AYEs
non sectional, fair to the South and as
good as any books published As far
as they meet the wants Of the eity
schools l think they ought to be used
in fact that is what the law C0nbenn-
plOtes. The city boards ought 50 adsz
such other books as the additional
| length of school and the additional
studies desired indicate to be neces-
sary. | take it, of course, that T0aY-
board will add the high school COURSE.
There is a disposition on the part O1
publishing houses to presss into the
schools of the South books that aL8 en-
tirely unfit for use by Southern people
You may set it down as a fact that il Il.
impossible, III the very nature Of the
case, for q Nor, hCrn man to Wri ke q
| United States history that will bc fair
to the South, Even if he were dis
| posed to write an impartial history.
the probability is that he would be
| ignorant of the facts or would lay less
stress upon them than is due. As agz
instance, l refer to EgglestOns history
! which has not iii it even a reference TO
| the Mecklenburg Declaration - (pde-
| pendenCe nor to the battle Of Kings
! Mountain, which jefferson said wag-
the turning point of the Revolutionary
war, and it has not even a copy Of the
| general Declaration Of lndependeGce-
! This IS only a specimen Cf the si9S OB
| omission that Northern authors are
guilty of in reference to the South
| You will find the same thing running
| through their biographies, readers anG
! all other common school books. The
houses that publish these books not
| unfreQuently secure their introduction
! by unfair argument and other Unfair
means as well as by pleading specially
their fine mechanical execution, etc
Some years ago, when ! first came
into the office of Superinten3e3f Of
! Public Instruction, negotiated tor the:
revision of Holmes readers, and one
request that | specially made was thai
| hOOlyC ChO11l1 10 tbOTO71Ob1y- NON
sectional and should contain in stle~
selection of the matter as much recOg
milton Of the South as to it's products.
character, resources, etc, as q the
! North. Upon examination [ think yOu
VIII find that this request was com
! piled with, and, besides, thar the
books are thoroughly we'll graded and
adapted to our schools. The proof
sheets passed under my own eye, As
to Maury's biographies, they Ger
! tainly have no equal In this
country. Holmes history contains
more facts of United States history
than can be found in any book IN the
| same compass and at the same price.
and it tells the truth III a fair and i'm
partial manner, and is well written.
! For higher classes [ think Stephens
! history cannot be eXcelled. SanEOrd'ss
arithmetics are the product Of q South
! ern man and are most excellent bOOkSE
indeed it may be said that all the books,
on the State list are excellent Upon.
examination think you will find that
the prices at which the State list books.
are to be sold to the children are low,
and that the business arrangements by
which the books can be obtained from.
one depository by merchants all over
the State and at reasonable discounts
! to them, are all that can be desired
send you a marked copy of the school,
! law for information on these pointsl
would not write so much at length
on this subject but for the fact that
when the city schools and country
schools use the same books there is
harmony, much less confusion, and the
! public school interests are thereby bet
ter advanced. I do not know who your
superintendent will be; if I did I would
write him in the same strain. This Is
an official letter to you as secretary of
the board. Do me the kindness to lay
1t before them and your uperintenden&
when he is elected.
! Trusting that your schools VIII meet
with abundant success, I am,
Very truly,
S. NJ. FINGER.
superintendent Public Instructions