People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1898-10-27
SCHOOL BOOK LAW.
George ". Crane Writes a Letter on
the Subject.

Topeka, Kau., Oct., 4.-ln a re-
ceDJ issue vi tile hal anu Breeze Is an
drtlcle heaCeu THOSE Pop School
Books The article contains state
menLs thai are erroneous and mis-
reading. As 1t concerns our business
aud Is d matter D! general Importance
10 the people VI The state, / ask space
for answer.
First | want to say that 1t Is neither
G cd policy, nor is it fair, 10 6 We TO
The fUpullsls Tile full credit lUr Tile
text book. The law has cone 10 stay
and probably will never be repealed.
Certainly the people OF the state do
not want to return TO the old way OF
having school book fight every year.
Nor do they want u return TO the
old system which produces high
prices.
The present system avoids the con.
tinued fights and enables publishers
to produce books at a fair price.
Under the Old system the great ex
pense of entertaining aud satisfying
school boards, the expense Of giving
away tons Of sample school books aud
books of various kinds as presents, the
expense OF making free exchange or
the giving OF a complete complement
of new looks for a county or a city in
exchange for the old bucks, the ex.
perse OF attorneys, newspaper help,
strikers, and persons having sin
Auence," together with the uncer-
tainJy OF the life OF a contract all
cOnduCed to make school books cost
twice as much as the pupils should Oe
forced to pay. The only valid law
authorizing five year contracts was
the county uniformity law, and only
about y per Cent OF the counties Of
the state were operating under con-
tracts made under that law.
Under the present law the books
are to be used five years without
change. That is best for teachers
and pupils. The people are spared
the nuisance and expense OF frequent
fights and the teachers the annoyance
and damage resulting from frequent
change OF text books. -
The article referred to says: "Ihe
teachers and educators throughout
the state are almost unanimous 10
cOndemning many Of the state text
books because they are Anticipated aud
not fit for present day methods. "
Now | venture the assertion that TN e
person who wrote that article knows
: nothing of what the teachers and
educators think. Or ninety per cent
of the county superintendent in the
state who have responded TO the
question:: "Are the books furnished
by us giving satisfaction 10 quality Of
material and subject natter fully
ninety per cent have answered en-
phatically in the affirmative. The
same caa be said OF city superin-
tendenss and principals. These peo-
pie, whose daily life is in and with
the subject, also say that 1.-THE law Is
generally approved by the peoples;
that sit is popular with teachers and
pupils" and that "the patrons Of the
schools express appreciation OF the
great reduction in the price of schoo
3 books" The immense number o.
S letters we have on these points satisfy
f, us that the writer OF that article il
, absolutely wrong in his conclusions.
= There is neither sense nor justic'
: in treating the subject as a partisan
e measure. IL is not and shoald not b.
y considered from partisan stand
s point. 1t affects all of the people o
t the state.
ii Governor Morrill, in his message :
the legislature urged the passage 0
y some such law, and had there the
l. been local school book publisher in
|. terested az that time, it is prObabl
O that a similar law would have bee
d passed at an earlier date by RepuOli
cans. But in all such matters, "wha
K is every ones business is no ones.
J. There was no particular individut
isi sufficiently interested 10 making th
e fight and it was not made till locs
y publisher stirred it up.
]. In Dumbsr Of the eastern state
is similar legislation is being urget
y We have many inquiries for sampI
d books and information. Our sales al
At nv no means confined to Kansas, an
1t if the critics of the school law cOul
is see the words o: praiseand encourag
~ ment we get, they would not be
E. loud in their depunciations.
10 Andy Richards, the mOutl
y piece of Chester Long in Sun
$ ner county, says vote for tt
I'll Populist and Democratic ticl
al cts is a vote to sustain til
H. h. Spanish flag. Every Populi
at Tor Democrat in the count