The record-union., 1893-10-20
AN OLD ASSAULT RENEWED.

AN OLD ASSAULT RENEWED.
The President of the San Francisco
School Board has rushed into print with
out any apparent reason at this time to
assail the State school books. He does so
in the most approved though rather worn
method employed by the book rings all
these years. Indeed, Mr.. Hyde lays
himself open to the suspicion that he has
been tutored by the enemies of the State
system, who have everything to gain by
the abandonment of that system.
In the very first sentence of his letter
Mr.. Hyde confesses that ne is not an inn
partial judge; that he comes to judgment
with prejudice. However, he attempts
to give some reasons for his enmity.
These may be briefly stated to be: The
State textbooks have been tried here and
have failed: the cost OF production ex-
ceeds what the same books would cost if
produced at private hands: there is no
competition between authors in their
making; that, finally, as the State officers
select the editors of the books they may
make mistakes in such selections, and
then, too, no books for high schools are
prepared.
Mr.. Hyde puts his whole case upon
these grounds. To demolish them is an
easy task, and while the books should
not be placed upon the defensive, yet
such is the form and source of assault
upon them that it becomes neces sary
from time to time to respond defensively.
For the books of private publishers have
advocates to advance their claims and de-
fend them from assault, while the State
books have no one except those of the
public press not hired to assail to stand
their friend.
The trial of the State textbooks thus
far made has not proved a failure. One
dogmatic statement is as good as another
in that respect. The cost of production is
not greater to the people ofthe State than to
private firms if they should issue smaller
books. Itmay be for argument's sake said
that it is probably true that the cost to
the State, working printers and binders
the short-hour term of days labor is
greater than to publishers who add from
two to four hours to that time. 1t may
for like purpose be said that it is possible
that private firms supplying a clientage
of some millions, issue books at less cost
to themselves but not to the purchasers
of the books, and that is the essential
point in all this matter.
But the actual fact is, that the State sells
the books to the people at far less cost
from 20 to 90 per cent. less-than private
publishers ever granted, and yet the State
receives sufficient returns for the books.
This ought to settle the whole issue as to
the cost. But if not, it is sufficient to
say that if the State books cost the State
more than she could receive supplies for
from private book concerns, it would still
Dt ZIG kdAA VI NlSuOlil W ISSUE our OWL.
for the simple reason that the people can
not afford to admit the corrupting book
rings once more to their State economy.
So far as regards the assaults upon the
State textbooks, it is to be said that dur
ing the whole time when the book rings
supplied the counties, corrupted the
Boards of Education, bought and sold
legislators and influenced" newspapers,
the several private series of textbooks
were the objects of more severe assault
from their rivals than has ever been
made upon the California State text
books. Atno time, we repeat. under the
old system. was there day or an hour in
which we were not told by the "outs''
that the books of the ''ins" were dis
graceful in the number of errors, out
rageously wrong in method, and alto
gether abominable. SO that so far as
abuse goes, the State books are not worse
off than were the ring books. The former
may not be as yet so complete as they
should be; they are the product of human
beings and therefore open to error; but
We venture to say that as whole they
are better than there was reason to sup
pose we would at first produce AS to
some three or four of the volumes, and
the more important it is the verdict of
people best able to judge that these
books are models of excellence and call
for no improvement of moment.
The complaint that there is no competI-
ton between authors in the production OF
the California books is not new. There
are, it is true. some ardent friends Of the