Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1892-05-20
AT THE WORLDS FAIR.
THE EDUCATIONAL EXHIBIT TO
BE MADE.
Experienced and Enlightened Educators
Have Been Put in Charge of the De-
partment aud u Good Showing Will he
Made.
WIN Show Our Progress.

WIN Show Dur Progrcsx.
One Of the traditional idens- that
Young America never fails to take in. is
that our free schools are superior to
those OF any nation OF the whole world.
1t is too bad to break any Idol SO gem
orally and 80, fondly worshipped or to-
smash u self-esteem too rldeiy. But
those who have Travelled III Germany and
in Sweden and Norway and some other
countries and have carefully examined
the school appliances and educational
systems, have. usually come back with
serious doubts, ut least, whether our
boosted free schools were equal to. the
systems of those countries.
Certainly those of our people who at
tended the Centennial Exposition at
Philadelphia must have had. their eyes
opened ON this matter. Dur own en-
hibit did not compare favoiabiy' with
even that of Russia in some respects;
for example, as to technical. schools,
manual training work and appliances
for hygienic Instructions. sw.den had
erected u model school-house and 1t
showed that that country was ahead OF
our WI ii this Was to be taken as tho
average country school-house. 1t is
pretty we'll understood that America has
been behind Germany in kindergarten
schools until within Il few years. Even
now little is done in the rural districts in
this most successful method Of teaching
the younses' c'li.dsen
AT q Gri -. - TIE American exhibit
was; better tina that at any previous
Worlds Fair. But it would seem that
Japan, SO lately awakened from barhar--
ism, showed more progress i'll some OF
fIhN Spns Inc vSS,n H. <vn,,r M ,,,. . .--l -. -
dergarten than most of her sister. ma
tons much older in civilization.
At Paris in 1889 the French had IA
model elementary sch olhouse, and here
again our average country ~srhcoihousc
was put into the shade. In the manuals
labor schools the French excel, as proved
by the objects shown from the schools
OF wood and iron workers, dress and
artificial flower makers, designers OF
jcwelry and bronze work.
Yes" some ono may say, w u adj
nit that i'll some specialties of schools
for skilled industry those countries may
excel our own; but in, the advantages of
common schools for all the people, the
United States must be ahead" Are we
quite certain of this? The fact that the
pilgrims, in the sixteenth century, start
ed free schools and higher schools and IL
college, and that this might then have
been an advance over what the common
people enjoyed in Europe, does not
prove. that W have. kept pace with all
modern improvements.
just here is where, ome in the. plea
for the fullest and best possible. edlca.
tional exhibit at the Columbian Worlds.
Fair. First we wish to show the rest of
the world what we have that is superior
in furnishing and equippins, the school,
house and in the appliances vi instfuc-
ton. But it is far more important that
we have there our best mode. S. from the
different States in order that each State
and our educators and all our people
may see wherein improvements may be
made, each in his own State and his own
school district.
1t is fortunate. that an experienced and
enlightened educator in the person If
DIR. Selim H. Peabody, OF Illinois, has
been put in charge OF the department
including education. Hon. w. L. Har-
ris, Commissioner of Education for the
United States, has for u year past urgued
that this great matter have u systematic
treatment; that ample space be allowed
to have the educational exhibits all to-
gether. The effect and the practical
results will be greatly heightened by
carrying out this suggestion. Even ii
we must blush TO find that frozen
Sweden and Norway, or Germany with
it's oppression of militarism or Switzer-
land with its poverty of agricultural re-
sources OF t~aX-burdened France, each
may excel us in some respects in their
educational systems and appliances, yet
if we gain information by the object
lesson and are stimulated to adopt what
ever is an improvement Oh our own we
will not regret the comparison. In this
way the educational exhibits of all ma
tions, grouped together 50 grandly as is
proposed, may prove OF incalculable
benefit to our country.-Westcrn Rural.