The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1893-01-11

family visited by scarlet fever, or diph
iberia, or typhus, or other diseases, the
fatal germs at a succeeding term may
be sowed broadcast through an entire
school district. The readers used in
the infected family, on q redistribution
go possibly 10 two or three Other fami-
lies, the arithmetics to others, the geog-
raphies to still others, and so on.
Those who argue for textbooks at the
public expense try to establish an anal
ogy between a practice of this kind and
the furnishing Of irewood, for example,
at the public expense. The argument
hardly demands an elaborate answer.
Oh sanitary grounds we draw the
line at articles-on textbooks as infex'
IDLY as we would on clothing-wh;ch
become the objects of the personal use
of the pupils, which they handle, which
they take to their homes, with which they
come in constant and ultimate contact,
which may become saturated with an
infectious or contagious environment.
The cordwood argument goes to pieces
when applied to the conditions that in.
evitably surround the %peripatetic free
textbook.
The individual ownership and posses
sion of school books tends to establish
in every family a small but very select
and very useful library. In a great
many families the school books are
about the only literature, or the only
wholesome literature, in the house.
The readers are sthe repositories OF
selections of a varied character from
the best writers-instructive, enter
tanning, breathing pure sentiment, in
citing to high purpose, firing the young
heart with patriotism. In the regard
of many a man and opa to day, the
old " Rhetorical Reader" ranks every
other book. The reading-books have
unquestiouably developed many ga
village Hampden," and fred many a
young mind with a love of good litera'
ture. Their treasures of prose and
poetry, fragments of the drama and of
oratory, have been read and re.read out
of school, conned and memoriz d and
worked into the character of thousands
of boys and girls. The arithmetics,
biographies and histories are reference
books that would be missed in many a
family. Much effective studying is
often done out of school between terms.
A TERMS work is reviewed. Ground
imperfectly covered at school is gone
over again and the gaps filed up. Now,
by the adoption of the free textbook
system, the state withdraws these
books from the family possession, and
80 destroys a great and benefcent
mission they incidentally accomplish
The books become the town property
At the close of a term of school they
will be surrendered to the custody o
the town and locked up in the school
hOuoO VI oOIIC PiuSO VI cSSdiiJs Il
would be a calamity to the state TO take
these books from the hands of the PEG
pie; false philanthropy to relieve thu
citizen of the obligation and RESPONSE
bilily of maintaining this library of use
full literature in his family. There arr
some duties with which the either
should still be charged. To buy ant
own his children's school books is on
of these duties. If Senator Grout i
responsible for securing the burial il
the senate of the bill to relieve the citi
zen of this duty, he did the state goot
service.
We speak, Of course, against the gen
eral free textbook question as it ha,
uniformly come up for consideration
1t is not related to the few cases il
which the supplying Of school books
would be a work of charity. If there
is not already ample law under which
school officials may furnish school
books to families pecuniarily unable to
supply themselves, that is a fit subject
for legislative action.
Massachusetts has the free text.
book system and it works we'll there
Was there before the legislature at itc
recent session any measure of question
able utility or doubtful expediency-
from the weekly payment bill up OF
down-in support of which the example
of Massachusetts was not cited? A
law may be a very good law for the
Bay state, but a very bad law for Yer.
mont. Sense and reason should con
vince the judgment. The people oil
Vermont will hardly wish to enact into
law any proposition simply because
Massachusetts, has done a similar thing
Vermont's legislative tub can be safely
left to stand on its own bottom, Sense
and reason should be applied to locally
existing conditions and circumstances
THE Montpelier WATcHMAN signalizes III
eighty-eighth anniversary by al enlarge