The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1891-03-19
FLEEcING THE STATE WITH BOOKS.
| Surprising Results of an Examination by
| the Superintendent of Education.


some days State Superintendent of Ed
ucation Maylield has been making pri-
vate examinations into the mode OF
charges for school books in vogue in
South Carolina, and has made tie sur
prising discovery detailed below.
superintendent Maylield gave the
following to the press last night, show
ing that the state schools have been
annually neeccd of nearly 100000.
l received the other day a copy of
the Arkansas Daily Gazette, published
at Little Rock, in which the prices of
some school books are given as offered
the State of Arkansas. no quote the
exact words, Superintendent Shiun,
| state upeTntcudent Of public instruct
tlon, has shown us the school book
committee Of the Arkansas lrgislaturcl
Il proposition from G.. $. Burgs, manag-
ing director of the American Book
company, of Cincinnati, Offering TO
furnish the schools of the State Of Ar
kansas books at the following prices:
McGulIey'S readers from ii cents to 80
cents each, Rays new arithmetic On-
| tellectuaD, 20 cents; QracticaD, 90
cents; IIarvey's grammar, elementary,
81 cents; revised, 80 cents; electric elr.
mentary geography, IA cents: Red
paths history, 6l cents,
AS these prices are so much lower
| than Te nor 2Uy l was led to make
some calculations as to how much
more we were paying than we ought to
| pay. The result Of the investigation
was SO startling that could hardly he.
| lleVc L had not made Il mistake in my
calculations.
70 begin with, take readers. Apple
tons readers are used almost o, elusive
| ly in the state. y set Of live books
cost So a set of five books of Me-
Gulfey's is offered the state of Arkan-
SaS for $l.TO. The Inference is 81 cents
Divide this difference by the number
OF books In the series (0) and we have
| an average difference OF eleven cents
According to the last report Of the
superintendent OF education, the num-
Der OF children studying reading IS
| O,lG9, and assuming that only one
book each has been bought since our
last adoption (Septembrr, 1889, we find
that we have paid over and above the
price of books offered another state
$l6,OSl.S9 Q1 X 146,
Barns United States history Is as
generally used throughout the state.
From published price list as per con-
tract made with the state board,
Barnes history is sold for $117. By
referring TO prices given Arkansas YOU
will see that Rcdpath's is placed at Of.
The report says that we have 81 ,5O7
pupils studying history. BY mulliplv-
ing this number by the difference in
price we have $1S,2SS.7l, which we pay
over and above what we ought to pay.
Take arithmetic, according to report
we have in
Mental arithmetic. 1892
| W rlttcn arithmetic. 50 aga
Total . 13I I-C
The two books (Sanford's) and the
cheapest cost Soutu Carolina 81. \
reference to the prices offered Arkan-
sas will show Rays (two books offered
for GO cents, a difference or 40 cents on
the two books. Then suppose that each
child has bought one book. In that
case they will have paid an average
overcharge of 20 cents each.
2OXlo1,3IG gives. $50. SIS. 20
lie takes biographies in the same
manner, and shows that the state pays
more than elsewhere. For grammars,
it pays $o,l91.57 more. Spelling, 81,
97S.74.
lie concludes thus: Now, if you will
add up these totals YOU will he as
startled as was. Now, remember
that these figures don't represent the
cost Of text books. They simply indi-
cate the eNtortiOn practiced upon us.
Look at the area Of charges:
On readers s.............t.... $1G,0SI.S9
On arithmetics. tics.............. 3O,S75.2O
On grammars. ............. o,i97.57
On histories. ................ 1S,2S8.71
On biographies. leS............. 11,2S999
On spoilers. ................. 4,918.74
Total ............. $S7 ,Ol2OS
What am | going to do about it ?
Sec. T'3 sub-dlv. 5. Says: That the stat G
board Of examiners shall not have DOW
er, without permission Of the general
assembly Of the state, to change "a text
book within (o) five years from date OF
its adoption. When was the adoption
made? September, 1883. SO we yet
| have two more wears unGer Our adnn-