The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-09-24
ROGERS ADMINISTRATION
IND SCHOOL BOOK JOB.
Continued From Page One.

change in great proportion Of cases.
The ruling Of the state superintendent
Is distinctly in favor Of the publishing
company. as II makes II incumbent on the
scholar with book TO exchange to bring
to the dealer a volume practically as good
as when first taken from the shelves.
Teachers all over the state declare that
this provision Is harsh and unwarranted
and made for the purpose OF limiting the
number Of books purchased by exchange
OF old volumes and increasing the num-
Der Of those sold to the pupils at the re-
tail cost
The teachers OF Washington are in re-
volt against Gov. Rogers board OF edu-
cation and Superintendent Browne In
many OF the larger counties in the state
the geography adopted by the board has
been repudiated. In many counties the
school authorities have ordered supple
mentary books for the use OF the pupils.
finding the geography adopted by the
board worse than useless. In King.
Pierce. Kittitas. Whateom. Yakima and
Thurston counties the geography has
been condemned and the school authori
ties have made provision for the use OF
other books. They have been compelled
10 take this position by the worthless
character OF the Wagner volume. al
though the parents OF the school children.
thanks 10 Gov. Rogers and the state board
Of education. will have TO foot the bill.
Many worthless Books.
or the books themselves many columns
might be written. The speller OF Prof.
Hughes, Of Fairhaven IL one Of the worst.
1t is filed with errors and unneces sary
Implications, Mt. Rainier page so IL
spelled "Rainer:" Mt Olympus, same
travelled is spelled page 81 travelled"
These are but few of the many errors.
/ The book Is printed on inferior paper and
Is wretchediy put together. II was COM
piled by Prof Hughes, OF Fairhaven, who
was given insufficient time for the work
by superintendent Browne The proofs
were revised by an incompetent, as the
work itself shows There are over 100
errors OF various kinds In the work
But when one inspects the new Pacific
geography adopted by the state board OF
education he is appalled, by the utter In
competency shown by its author. and
more appalled, by the action of the so
called educators who have forced II upon
the unwilling teachers. the helpless tax
payers and the innocent children of the
state.
Those who are most familiar with the
course Of educational events In Washing
ton during the past two or three years
are NOT surprised lNey expected nolninR
better from the ignorance Of the author
of the book. Two years ago he was hired
by County Superintendent Meredith TO
come to King county and lecture before
the teachers institute. II is believed that
mt that time the job. as far as Harr wag-
ner and his geography were concerned.
was MANNED II was known at that time
that ffarr Wagner desired finger in the
million-dollar pie which was to be dis
tribu'ed. The teachers at that institute
who were obliged 10 listen to the misuse
of the English language by Wagner hoped
against hope that he would not be allowed
to write a geography for our state. Day
after day he spoke on his favorlte sub
ject. occasionally giving lecture on Ian
yuage. clothed in such hand-me- down
verbal garb and false syntax as to be
veritablc curiosity,
Evidences Of Incompetency.
Even after this opportunity for the
state board OF education 10 become ac-
quainted with Harr Wagner's incom-
potency and ignorance. he was given the
job OF writing a geography. He did pro-
vide one. Parts OF II ne either borrowed
or obtained in some other way, but the
most OF Il shows the unmistakable wag-'
merriam errors Of smelling. rhetoric and
fact. There is hardly page In the book
that does not abound with misspelled
words. The book a1 ks ~ the ''routs"
20 Cape Nome and ha Yukon: Of rain
deer" moss; Of "volcanos': or Lakes "su-
pcrio" aud Michigan" Of ''cslazier"
peak; OF MASSACHUSETTS" st Hellens"
"Greeland." "Cacpttn." Hawaiian" ISL
ands and Cap Hsitien When the an-
thor Of the book writes ccurt-h house he
starts In very properly. but by the time
he has reached the hyphen he recoliects
that IN that building is the official resi-
dence ~ the county superintendent who
helped Rim 10 get HIS share Of the mill
lion-doilar steal and he spells the last
part ~ the word with CAPITAL ". and
thus the word stands In the book-court-
House, along with the score Of others to
harass the teachers and mislead the child
I rem OF this county and state.
when ne places Plyallup on the man Of
the state he recoliects the source frou,
which all blessings flow and he distrib-
utes his capital letters With amazing H.
erality spelling the word pUyanUP
In spite o. All this the author states IN
the preface that regarding spelling with
{ ore or two exceptions he has followed
the rulings of the United States board on
geographic names.
A fsw examples Of the sentences win
serve 20 Illustrate 70 the people ~ seat
Ito ana the state generally what sort %
erammatian and rhetorician this Harr
Wagner is. He says, The source " In
come from the fisheries Ia over six mill
Hon dollars annually" He speaks ~
'ChinA and Japan and other cities af the
New pRciac go
To show that the geography was writ
ten hv one who Is grossly inconsistent
ana adopted hy a state board the n,aior-
i'y ~ whom were venal or crlmlnslfv
nexHseni, Z Is only necessary to state
that The book tells ~ Spokane and other
places in the Cascade mountains" AnH
then q tells what nearly every rhn4
knows is not true. that Dawson fs one ~
the chief eit,es - Alaska When Wa.
Dswson City moved within the furfxdi-
tAon ~ the United Safes WIN state su-
Z reF3ntenfe0t Browne or County surarfn
tenAenf Meredith please ter fhs as,al, -
,his state What excuse they can}F Nav,.
( Tor adopting Nni paying a htKA price -.
( hooks whlch teach such errarss
May other Errors.
IT, orc aiacs tho area 81 North America
I e gwen a. 9Aa0 10 square -nlss ara -