Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1897-12-20
CARRYING PUPILS TO SCHOOL.


 1t has been nearly twenty-nine years since school boards began test ing the adyisability of transporting to the schools, free of charge, those pupils in attendance.
 The first act regarding this was passed in Massachusetts, April E, lS69 It read as follows: Any town in this commonwealth may raise by taxation or otherwise, and appropriate money to be expended by the school committee in their dis cretion, in providing for the convey ance of pupils to and from the public schools
 Very slowly did the author | ities in the several towns and cities of the State take advantage of this opportunity of beneftting the child ren in this way; in fact, it was not agitated to any great extent, and few statistics were collected regard ing it, until the year before the Chi cago Worlds Fair, then by Snpt. Eaton of Concord, for his exhibit. Dr. Wm. T. Harris, Commissioner of education, published some valna- ble statistics in his report of lS9i-5, 1S95-6, and included in the article is published letter from Mir, Seymour Rock well, of Montague, Mass. He says: "For eighteen years we have had the best attendance from trans ported children; no more sickness among them and no accidents. The children like the plan exceedingly. We have saved the town at least $500 year All these children now attend school in a fine house at the center well equipped. The schools are graded. Everybody converted to the plan. We encountered all the opposition found anywhere, but we asserted our sensible and legalrights and accomplished the work. 1 SEE NO WAY TO BRING UP the country schools but to consolidate them, making them worth seeing, then the people will be more likely to do their duty by visiting them"
 From the above letter you can see 1 at once few of the advantages to be derived from this system. 1t is one which may be employed equally well in the densely populated city or the sparsely settled country. Many other States have followed the ex- ample placed before them in Massa- ehusetts and soon had laws grant ing them the same privileges. New Hampshire, Vermont and Conneeti- cut may be regarded as leaders in this radical movement with Massa- ehusetts. New York, Maine, New Jersey and Nebraska havefound sim liar laws to work admirably in pro- noting efficiency and economy In the schools, especially in the rural dis tricts This system gives the shy boy living In almost entire seclnsion an opportunity of associating with q large number of pupils at the school centrally located in the district or township. instead of being eompell- ed to attend a school kept by q poorly paid teacher and to have for classmates four or five pupils with as low aspirations as his own. In the consolidated school his horizon is broadened and he becomes better fitted for the duties of citizenship. This system allows a far better grading than can ever be obtained in schools scattered over the entire country, and at tie same time will give the,eountry an opportunity o giving the country boy and girl tho same advantages in writing. draw ing, music and other special branches as are given to his city cousin. I No one can doubt ill a short tim,
 the work can be so systematized II this way that instead of hs xiag ! two or three months sci 'rs-r, ~ or thrice the time could beool, tW1s' J The fact that better tea given. shers an