Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1900-05-01
BEAUTIFY.
Superintendent Mathie Takes a Hand
in Booming Wausau.

/ ------e3
1t is going to be a surprise TO
many of the people living In
the southern, western or eastern
parts of Wisconsin to find what a
buStling city Wausau is, when
they visit US this summer during
either of the conventions. OF
course they are beginning to hear
ab0nt it now. through the various
movements that have had their
birth in Wausau, but eight years
ago, when first began to attend
teachers conventions in cities of
the Fox River valley, in Milwau-
kee, or in southern Wisconsin,
cities, the superintendent and
principals used to ask me such
questions as these:
Lets see! Just where is Wan
saul Way up north somewhere
isn't it 81
Have you a high school ~
Twelve Thousand people! You
mean 1900 don't you ~
"Do you ever have institutes 2"
"Over $50 teachers in the city
and county! You don't mean il Z,
isn't the pine all gone ~ Amy
indians 7"
When we took the pains to set
them right-the divine right Of
pedagogs they shook their heads,
and said rather luke warmly:
"Well, we should like to see it
sometime
In speaking about this matter a
couple of weeks ago before the
school for institute conductors |
told them that the name "Wausaun
was an Indian name, given our
town by the Hon. w. d. McIndoe
over fifty years ago, and that it
meant "far away" but that the
glowing imagry INDUCED in by our
papers and citizens had led some
to interpret it as meaning that its
citizens were sway off,
continued, saying that there
was certainly disposition among
my fellow townsmen to swear by
the city and its hospitable people,
but they need not think that every
Wausau father leads his boy cut
to the druid woods. much as Han.
nibaPs father led him to the
altar, and made him swear that
Rome should be doomed, with
this alteration in the vow, "Wau-
sau must be doomed"
A very fine institute exercise
on Duluth as "a commercial center,
had been presented by Prof. Nit
chell, | continued, and | felt very
much like the Minneapolis alder
man, Norwegian, who spoke in
favor of motion to have the
Bible thrown out of the public
schools. II tank | am in favor of
putting the Bible out of our
schoolso He said: II would throw
it out of every one of the rooms,
l read it through two or tree times
and find St. Paul is mentioned a
good many times, but not one
word for Minneapolis So while
Duluth should get her just dues,
Wausau should not be overlooked,
and took great pleasure in having
the courtesy extended me by the
state superintendent to say few
words for Wausau and the joint
meeting of the Northwestern Wis
consin and of Northeastern Wis
consin Teachers associations which
is to be held there early in the
fall.
| told them of what a beautiful
city we had to show them, how
nature has blessed it, what man
has done for it. and what pleasure
our people would take in enter
tanning them while here. That
free entertainment would be ac-
corded the ladies In attendance
met with hearty approval, but
when / added that fourteen teach
ers had been married off under my
administration the ladies present
seemed ready to start at once for
the metropolis of the Wisconsin
river valley.
A recital of what commodious
high school building we had. of
how easily we could accommodate
the general sessions in our magnifi
cent assembly room, aud what ideal
rooms for the section meetings
would be our gymnasium with its
gallery, our science lecture room,
our manual training rooms and
our class rooms on the first floor,
gave them a more vivid picture of
our building as it actually is than
they had had before.
That they would receive a cor
dial welcome and enjoy whole
hearted hospitality | did not need
to argue, for this characteristic of
Wausau's citizenship has long been
bruited abroad. Care would be
taken to place everybody happily
and do it with as little red tape as
possible. The meetings would be
so conducted and the seating so
arranged that the welfare of our
guests should be the first consider
alton.
From the remarks made after
the meeting | came to the con-
clusion that We should have a big
attendance not only from our own
sections, but from all over the
state. The southern section has
already had its meeting, so many
of the southern teachers are coming
up to get a fresh breeze from the
forests of Marathon. We may
confidently look forward to such a
gathering of the educational forces
of our state as has never before
been seen in Northern Wisconsin.
In fact, | should not be surprised
if our attendance exceeded some
of the state meetings at Milwaukee.
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