The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-12-28

depends upon continuity of effort ana
teachers. proved after fair trial to be fit
and meritorious, shall be assured OF tnelr
positions without further election.
s..As look further into the section on
teachers in this reform bill I find the sum
and substance of its further contributions
10 the maintenance OF the teachers spirit,
the following
the year without good cause she may have
pay for the rest of the term, but she need
not be reinstated.
Il don't see any great help to the teach
ing spirit in this section.
"lls. If a teacher leave during the year
without written consent she shall pc
deemed guilty Of unprofessional conduct.
III. She must keep her register ana re-
ports in good shape or she shan't have her
salary.
II can guess who put hat in.
.1ls. She needn't teach on legal holi-
's Ills. She shall be responsible for chill
dren on the way to and from school.
s120. She shall not fog.
"12t, She shall hold a certificate.
"l22. She shall not be religious TN
.a2s. She shall not sit on a jury.
.sThose are the contents of the section
on teachers in the proposed reform law.
Il beg leave to suggest that whatever
may be the theoretical ideas of the law
makers of New Jersey as to the means
70 put teacher into a better spirit Tor
teaching, citizens in their parental
capacity know better than to make a
bill like this. If a parent has a boy IN
YOUR charge that she was particularly
well taught that parent is particularly
good to the teacher who has chage OF
that boy. Why the State in dealing with
the teachers in mass should expect human
nature to change so that good work is to
be secured by rohibitions, restrictions and
threats. instead of by greater respect, ana
helps and pay, is to me inexplicable. IL
is particularly puzzling when it Is remem-
bereG thai the great majority OF the
attaching force consists of women. A
moderate amount Of reading In the
literature of the world ought to convince
the former that women are not best IN
huenced by driving.
mo gentlemen, may n who has been
deeply interested in education for many
years, respectfully suggest that your edu-
caional horse doesn't need the whip, but
more oats"
This paper savors of materialism. It
SAYS nothing of the noble devotion OF
women that keeps up their spirits by the
consciousness Of the nobility of the ser
vice they are rendering. 1t says nothing
of 1.-THE missionary spirit" and the
grandeur of duty that are the highest
praise of tn eteacher's work. 90 | omit
them from ignorance or ~disregard2 do
not believe it. / omit them ~purposely
deliberately. First. because as a citizen
| scorn the idea hat the commonwealth
should or needs to beg for schools at half
price, or should attempt to maintain
schools for the purpose of cultivating the
missionary spirit in its teachers. Schools
are not for tha purpose. I omit them
secondly. from reasons of practical
observation; a boy is better taught by a
well paid teacher h by an underfed
missionary.
81 omit them because the women will
sweeten their work with a missionary
spirit even if you quadruple their pay"
Previous to this lecture, however, was q
report from the Committee on Educa-
tionaaI Progress, which staten IN speaA-
ing of Jersey City.
"As to school b~uildings"-
Some idea of the progress achieved UNI
der this head ear be had e 1t is
stated that in this city alone Jersey
City, there has been expended Tor new
buildings alone during the past three
years the enormous sum OF So32,00U. Eight
new buildings have been opened during
this period, seating altogether 5,614 pupils;
"a new building for a primary ana
grammar school is now being erected at
a cost, when finished, Of upwards OF
$171, 900. The plans for all these build
ings nave been made by architects OF the
highest professional standing. So also
the engineers employed to devise systems
of heating and ventilation, are best known
I'm Jersey city alone 1000 children are
compelled to attend half day classes.
AT the conclusion of the meeting Mr..
James Mackay moved that at the con-
clusion of the Thursday morning session
Miss Allen be given thirty minutes in
which to answer the accusations made
in yesterdays daily papers. To this the
president. Mr.. Haven, seemed to object.
He did not see that it had anything to do
with the convention; that the proper place
to answer was through the papers.
among Miss Aliens friends. It was snow
ing outside. The same element might
have reigned inside, SO completely was he
frozen out and showed under. Miss
Allen is a teacher and this Is the place to
yindicate herself" said one. 1T not only
affects Miss Allen but the whole associa-
tion," said another. 1T might affect any
position of honor for which she was a car-
didate.' and SO on, until the president
tapped the gavel and called for the mo-
ton, which carried.
MORNING.
Morning dawned for the teachers in
NO. l School at nine o'clock. Music
opened the programme. There were three
addresses, all excellent in their respective
ways. The first speaker was Prof. John
On. Tyler of Amherst College. His subject
was .sThe Teachers Problem Prof. Ed
ward Howard Griggs came next. His adj
dress was on Education for the Art Of
Life, who said
1.-The educational movement OF the
present time rests upon something still
more fundam ental-a transformation in
our view of human life. In this new
spirit there are thre create fertilizing
IDEAS. the thought of life as always per-
sonal, gathered up not in abstract forms
and institutions, but in the individual
spirit. Again life is positive and not
negative, realized not In a desertien OF
the world, but by a strong, helpful. self
affirming life in harmony with others.
The third of the fertilizing ideas is the
conception of life as always progressive.
Life mans growth in life. The moment we
cease to advance we begin to deteriorate.
"These three ideas means that lie
always involves an element of experiment.
1t cannot be reduced to a mater of exact
science. but is always a question of art.