The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1892-09-27

cost for books to the extent that the State
prescribes the use of them.
The claim is made that the State sys-
tenn is due to false estimates of cost and
1.-THE trucking work of tricky politicians
who pandered to the turbulent sociaIistic
element, opening new avenues for spo-
Hation through promises made to the
people only to be broken" As matter
OF fact the tricky politicians We're all on
the other side; the turbulent socialistic
element was not pandered to or consid-
cred, and SO far as its influence went it
was cast against the State, as it usually is
against all order under our form of gov
eminent. The RECORD UNION is not
amenable to the charge Of radical social
ism in its preaching; for years it stood
quite alone in battling for the State sys-
tenn Of textbooks, and only so late as the
last Legislature had to do battle almost
single-handed against large part of the
San Francisco press, into whose columns
the book rings worked their way, and by
downright falsehood, mendacious finan-
cial statements, and outrageously unfair
comparisons, sought to poison the minds
OF the people against the State textbooks.
The correspondents next charge is that
the system, by actual trial, has proved a
flat failure. Against that falsehood we
have the fact that it has infinitely les
sened the cost of books, has won over to
their support the majority of the teach
ers and has eliminated the Eastern and
the California book rings from State poll
tics. 1t is charged that the compilers of
the State books are incompetent and the
State as publisher is failure. For that
let the economy of the system and the
condition Of the public schools answer.
If the State books are "a disgrace 30 the
people," they are fortunate in not having
yet found it out, and the book ring that
prompts the correspondent can exercise
mercy by withholding its hand from lifting
the Supposed veil from the peoples eyes.
They are content, and till the public school
system in their estimation proves that it
is going to the bow-wows they can be
trusted to conduct it safely.
The system has not, as is charged,
proved extremely expensive" On the
contrary, its general economy and direct
saving are matters of such common noto-
riety that 20 discuss them is to Insult pub
lie intelligence. II, for arguments sake,
it be admitted that revision of the books
is occasionally necessary, it is no new
condition. Under the old system we had
revision and revision whenever the book
rings saw fit to order changes by the in
PRODUCTION of new editions. and when
ever their exchequer demanded the pres
ence Of agents before school boards to
work the ousting of one set of books and
the introduction of another, which, when
accomplished, resulted. so long as the in
famous compact exposed by the RECORD
UNION lasted, in a division of the spOils
between the elected and the substituted.
1t is urged by this correspondent, who
wears the ear-marks Of the Eastern book
rings too conspicuously to be over
looked, and which are made especially
prominent at this time when new Leg
islature is about to be chosen, that the
State system is above all other things OBJ
ioot;n,oIlo booorSo &c Cfo+oJ - +brot+Jos
competition. The same argument, with
equally as good reason, could be adj
vanced against the State conduct of her
asylums, prisons and State institutions
generally, and all other trusts which the
people impose upon their chosen repre-
sentatives.