The White Pine news. [volume] (Treasure City, Nev.) 1868-1906, 1898-11-03
THE CALIFORNIA STATE SCHOOL,
BOOK SYSTEM.


The creation and development of the
California State school book system
form an interesting bit of local history,
which at this time is of more than
passing interest to the people of the
State.
The present State school book sys-
ten was established by Legislative act
in 1885, and was called into being as a
protest of the people against the extor-
tions of the private school-book pub
fishing houses of the country, under
which parents of children had suffered
for a long series of years, and under
the manipulations of which combina-
tions of publishers the local school
boards were, in very many instances,
either corrupted or cajoled into still
further increasing the profits of the
publishers by frequent and unnecessary
changes in the books used in the
schools and in the courses of study pre-
scribed. 1t goes without saying that
the proposition to place in the hands OF
the State the publication of her own
school books met with the most deter
mined opposition Of the private monop-
oily, and after the State system was
established this opposition became so
vehement that the people deemed it
necessary to place a provision in the
constitution protecting it from direct
destruction at the hands of any II
friendly legislative enactment that
might be attempted against 1t.
Ever since that time the efforts OF
the combined publishers have been
united in an endeavor to discredit the
books published by the State, and TO
destroy, as far as possible, the States
ability to furnish them to the people
at a cost that would continue them in
popular favor. The aggregate wealth
of the American school-book trust
amounts to millions OF dollars, and
when such an aggregation of wealth
undertakes to accomplish an object it
can call to its aid, by mere attraction,
as it were, some of the most irtiuen-
tial agencies.
Thus, at every session of the Legisla-
ture, from the adoption of the consti-
tutional amendment above alluded to
until that of 1897, the corridors of the
State Capitol have been crowded with
the agents and attorneys of the trust,
whose endeavors have chiefly been
directed toward the abolition and de-
struction of the State Printing Office,
the object being to deprive the State
of the ability to publish the books at
a cost to the people that would justify
a continuance of the system. Fol it
can be easily seer that the cost OF pub
fishing the books must be much greater
when the entire expense of power,
maintenance, administration, insur-
ance, etc, is borne by the school-book
fund, than when such general expenses
are divided between that fund and the
fund usually provided for general State
printing. These efforts of the trust
were entirely abortiye until the legis-
lative session of 1897, when the Cover.
nor did, with one stroke of his pen,
that which he book trust had for years
failed to accomplishing vetoed the
appropriation, thereby causing a sus-
pension of all State printing, thus
throwing the entire expense of publica-
ton, maintenance, power, administra-
ton, insurance, ETC., upon the school
book revolving fund.
The books of the California State
series will compare more than favor
ably with any similar books published
in the United States. Important re-
visions and new compilations have
been made, and although this branch
of the work has not always been en-
trusted to friendly hands, still, in spite
of the fact that the development OF
the series has been beset by enemies
ON almost every hand, the texts of the
books are now much better than those
of any other series which have under
gone repeated revisions.
The firm stand taken by A. j. john
ston, Superintendent OF State Printing,
in behalf OF the State books, and the
determination he displayed in MAIN
tanning them in popular favor, in so
far, at least, as his department could
do so, has called down upon him the
displeasure of the private school-book
trust, and it is now their desire to
prevent his reelection as Superintend-
ent of State Printing il possible, for at
every stage of the contest between the
trust and the State books he has met
and baffled the attemps of the former
to uproot and supplant the State sys-
sem.
The present stage of the contest is
most interesting, and one in which the
people are much concerned; for, if the
influences friendly to the trust can rid
the printing department of this stall
wart defender Of the State school books,
their fight for their destruction is all
but won. That the stake is worth
contending for is shown by the state
ment founded upon official statistics,
that during the ineumbency of A.. j..
Johnston as Superintendent OF State
Printing alone, there have been printed
and sold by the State nearly 2,O0O,-
900 school books, and at prices repre-
s%enting a saving to parents of about
$500, 900, or a saving per capita OF
something like $3.50 for every child
attending the public schools OF Cali
%fornia; and that, too, within a period
of less than seven yearsl
The danger that threatens the very
existence of this institution of the peo-
pie had become so manifest that a
number of the friends of the State
school book system formed an associa-
tion, some months ago, called the
" California State School : Book