Connecticut western news., 1900-05-03
CORN " ALL
THE SCHOOLS

Having taken little time to talk with the people of our town who voted iu the majority on the question of building new school houses, we find them among the best citizens, and not as your West Cornwall correspondent would have us believe men who had DO wish to see our town prosper We find among the number men who have conducted the affairs of the town for many years, men who were interested in all matters per taining to our town long before the per. son who signed the article published a few weeks ago in your paper drifted in to the metropolis of cur town and will no doubt continue to do so after he has found he is wasting his fragrance on the desert air and gone hence. One reason given by some is the financial condition of our town. We are in debt and with the building of new roads and repairing the old ones are likely to be more so. Many of us would like new buildings but we cannot afford them we have to get along until such time as we can afford the outlay.
 We understand that when tue ques- tion of appropriating $500 for new roads came up last year, prominent citizens of West Cornwall were inter viewed on the subject of building s new school house at that pace. Know ing that the town could uot build the roads and schoolhouse both the same year the assurance was given that the school house would do for five or six years until we have paid for our state roads and then we would consider the school house subject. These are facts that can be proven. At a meeting of the joint board of selectmen and school visitors held on June IS, 1895, it was voted "That tbe sum of $500 be appro- priated to the 10th school district West CornwalD the same to be paid only when said 18th school district shall pro- vide a suitable addition to its present schoolhouse so that the school may be divided into two separated rooms and suitable accon m odation be provided for the employment of two teachers in said district A meeting of the dis trict was held and it was voted by quite a majority not to take advantage of the liberal offer of the board, many of the voters thinking the school house good enough now.
 But when about 50 voters of our town voted to consolidate the school districts and IT voted against it. thereby placing the school property in the hands of the town, like the wonderful one hoss shay" the building all went to pieces at once and new one must be built. The 'sLord helps them that helps them selves" and that is good principle to apply to school districts
 We have had the pleasure of visiting | the school in West Cornwall when there were 52 scholars enrolled land that is more than there are no~) and have found an orderly, s ell kept school. A school that was credit to the town. The same teacher is now teaching in l town and ye have no doubt could take | the school (with some needful repairs on the school house) and with the same earnest effort which has always been found in her teaching could make a success of 1t
 Your correspondent was much mis- taken (to put it mildly in regard to the other schoolhouses in town. All of them have teachers desks, most of chem are we'll seated and have proper black boards and maps; in fact there are a number of maps in the chairman of school committees office now for dis tribution among the several schools
 We are all proud of our town; proud of what our "Backwoods freemen" have done in the past as we have heard about our Allen who .'thundered at the walls of Ticonderoga." our Foreign Mission school, and our heroes who gave their lives to save our country for the past score of years. We are also proud of our West Cornwall newspaper corre- spondent; proud of his elastic ima9ina- tion; he likes to spread himself and we like to see him as long as he does no harm; and if he does not try to initiate the "yaller" style of journalism, and keeps somewhere near the truth, will no doubt be credit to the profession.