Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1891-10-08
SCHOOL LIBRARY DAY.
An Earnest Appeal to Raise Smah <.
brary Fund on November "a. 1881 Ia
the school Districts of the state.

-
brary Fund on November 81. 1891, In AL
the school Districts of the State.
JEFFERSON CRY, Mo-, Sept. -, 1871.
To THE EpITog-I fondly look TOR
ward to the time when a majority OF
the country schools of Missouri VIII
have at least IA small library OF choice
books suited to the pupils of the hrst'
second, third, fourth and fifth readers
respectively. Probably not one in forty
of the school districts of the state has
library of any kind. OF those having
library, probably not one in i've has
library of choice books suited 10 the
capacity of the pupils of the respective
grades If you will examine the schooi
libraries and also the books found In
the homes, you will find that most OF
them are suited to grown folks. Ihese
libraries, as rule, are composed OF re-
Ggious debates, difficult works on ms
tory and large per cent of rubbish
patent office reports, etc. In the build
ing of these libraries very little atten-
ton has been given to securing books
suited to the children. suppose 1t was
thought that if these children were not
grown they ought to be, and would be
il they lived long enough and were well
fed
But why should the more than 500, 600
children of school age in Missouri have
access to good books? Have not they
open eyes and ears to all the occur
rences around them? Can not they read
nature? Suppose they do not have ac-
cess to books, have they not access to
nature and man? Yes, but access to
what nature? the little patch of earth
| called the neighborhood-to Mr.. Jones
and Mr. Smiths farms; to Turtle creek;
| to stretch of prairie: to a few hills
hardly to be dignified with the name.
| In good juvenile books this neighbor-
hood stretches away over continents
and seas, and brings the reader
| in contact with the great educator
nature in her most diversified and
wonderful forms. Turtle creek be-
comes the lordly Mississippi, making its
way from the melting SHOWS in the
mountains to the Eads jetties at the
| gulf; the Hudson with its palisades and
| it's highland; the Nile with its cata-
| racts. The miniature falls down in the
| meadow becomes the Yosemite, the
| awful Niagara The little knobs and
| hills of the neighborhood become the
sublime panorama of peak and pass,
spur and canyon, guarded by Pike
| Peak, the sentinel of the Rockies. The
| corn and wheat and oats are earnest of
| a bewilderinE variety of tropical and
| temperate productions. Through these
| books the reader is enabled to clasp
| hands across the continents and down
the centuries, to annihilate space; to
make the knowledge of the race his.
Through the reading of history and
| biography the commonplace and every
day occurrences are replaced by grand
achievements of peace and war; by the
deathless deeds of Caesar, a Crom'
well, Wilberforce. The gossip of the
neirhborhood becomes the annals Of
empires, statesmen and warriors.
But | said that these children come
in contact not only with nature. but
with man. With what man? With TIE
man of the neigh borhood-witl Farmer
Simpson and esquire Hawkins both
model men of their kind and performs.
ing well their part. Each with his own
little round of thoughts and feelings
and aspirations with his conversation
about corn and cattle and hogs, each
important in its place.
| buG tHt CeutuIlcS DdSb tiic
Creator has dealt out sparingly here
and there great and gifted souls whose
lives are an inspiration-men and wom-
en- full of lofty thoughts, high purposes
and noble aspirations. These, in their
best moments, when standing upon the
peaks of high courage and unselfish
purposes, with divinity streaming
through their souls, when thus upon
the delectable heights they wrote and
there in their books is crystallized for
all time the best thoughts and feelings
that stirred these great souls in the dead
centuries past. Few of these great char
acters lived in any one state or in any
one generation. but through choice
books the reader is enabled to come
into spiritual contact with these char
acters across the continents and down
the centuries. / read a book by an au-
thor who may have been dead for cen
turtles, and my mind is enlightened and
| nv heart kindled with the Thoughts
and feelings that stirred that author
when he penned that page. Such is
I literature 1t brings the reader in con-
tact not with the commonplace of the
neigh borhood. but with the marvellous
and diversified of the world: not with
mediocrity, but with the literary giants
and the inspired of all times.
Patrons of Missouri, and especially
the country schools, shall the children
of Missouri be denied this inestima BILE
privilege? Through the School Journal
and the institutes every possible effort
has been made to reach the teachers
upon this subject. This article is writ
ten to reach the patrons through the
columns of this paper, In order to Sc
cure success the teachers and the pa
irons must cooperate. Finally, per.
nit me to appeal to the patrons who
shall read this article not to fail to
raise at least a small library fund in
their district by private subscription OF
entertainment. What you need is co
operation-twenty-f cents or fifty
cents from every patron; five dollars OIL
more from some who are able to give
that much.
In the confident hope that this Lii
brary Day, Friday, November 81. 1891
will prove great day for the children
of Missouri, l am, very respectfully,
L. Z. WOLFE.