The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-12-27
First Session of the state Association
Held Mt the StatehOuse i'm the
Evening.
THE PRESIDENTS INAUGURAL
SEVERAL SECTIONAL MEETINGS
HELD DURING THE DAY.
High school Teachers, the Classical
Section, Academy of Science and
Other Gatherings.

|
in the hall of the House of Representatives
in the Statehouse last night at the first
session of the forty-eighth annual meeting
Of the State Teachers Association to listen
to the inaugural address Of II. b. Brown,
president of the Northern Indiana Normal
School and president of the association, and
| TO begin the work of the convention. In
addition to the annual address of the
president, the programme was pleasantly
enlivened by two musical numbers, vocal
solo by Miss Effie c. Hessen, music teacher
in the Goshen schools, and violin solo
by Prof. Fred Noble. Miss Hessen sang
when in the Early Morn" and Mr.. Noble
played "Suwanee River"
After the Rev. H. c. Meserve, of Plym-
outh Congregational Church, had deliv-
cred the invocation, Robert 1. Hamilton,
superintendent of schools at Huntington,
and retiring president of the association.
introduced the new president, DR.. Brown,
in a short, graceful speech. 1T is quite
unnecessary" he said ito introduce man
who stands as close to the teachers Of
Indiana as II. B. Brown; man whose re-
markable executive ability, whose kind
ness as a man and whose charming per-
sonality are known to so many" Mr..
IldlillllOn llldIlhGQ TIC VI TIC as
ISOLATION for the honor he was about to re-
linquish and for their efforts to tighten
the burdens of the office.
Mr.. Hamilton before concluding said that
the pleasure of the meeting was marred
| by the death OF Will III. Glascock, late
superintendent of schools at Bloomington
and president of the State Association i'm
mediately before Mr.. Hamilton himself.
retiring president, introduced to the mem
bers of the association Mr.. Hamilton. He
was then, as the speaker said, a big manly
man full of life and vigor. Few men were
better known to the members of the as
ISOLATION at large than Mr.. Glascock and
his sudden death cast a cloud over the
| meeting. The last official act of Mr.. Hamil-
ton as president of the association was to
appoint a memorial committee to draft
resolutions expressing the feeling of the
State Association. William Lowe Bryan,
of Indiana University, was named as chair
man of the committee; Lee O.. Harris, SUI
| perintendent of the Hancock county
schools, and Robert a. Ogg, OF Kokomo,
| are the other members. Resolutions will
be presented to the association to-day.
A NOMINATING COMMITTEE.
Immediately succeeding the address of
DR.. Brown members of the association
from the various congressional districts of
the State met, according to custom, in dis
trict meetings and selected to represent
each district one teacher to act as a mem
Der OF the nominating committee which
will to-day select the new officers of the
association. With the exception of the
Fifth congressional district, which made
no selection last night the following teach
ers were named as a committee to nomi-
nate the officers of the association for the
ensuing year: First district, Ralph w.
French, Mount Vernon; Second district,
Robert j. Alley. Bloomington; Third dis
trict, j. p. Funk, Evansville; Fourth dis
trict, Charles 5. Royce, Ripley county;
Sixth district, ]. IL. Tomlin, Shelbyville;
Seventh district, r. A. Smith, Indianap-
oils; Eighth district, oscar NJ. Pittenger,
Anderson; Ninth district, w. c. Brandon
berg, Veedersburg; Tenth district, VIII II.
Hershman, Hammond; Eleventh district A.
o. Campbell, Peru; Twelfth district, w.
II. Brandenberg, Fort Wayne; Thirteenth
district, Victor Hedgepeth, Goshen. 1t was
announced also by President Brown be-
fore the meeting closed that meeting of
the General Council Of Education would
be held this morning at IL o'clock.
The annual address of the new president
while long and in many parts full of sta
tistics, held the attention of the audience
by force of the unusually interesting sub
JectS treated. DR.. Brown for years in the
educational world of Indiana has been
known as a man of original ideas and a
faculty for original investigation along GER
tain lines. In his address last evening he
talked Tor the most part of the steady flow
OF rural population TO the cities and the
effect on education of the overcrowding OF
cities at the expense of the country. DR.
Brown devoted much time also to a discus
sion of the necessity which exists for add
ing the study of agriculture To the curricu-
lum OF schools, city and country. general
study of the science. in the opinion of the
president of the association, would tend &c
oh IL ut h Il ,uaes
districts. DIR. Brown is an earnest advo.
cate of manual training schools, and a clear
exposition of the benefits of the manual
course was furnished TO the teachers.
LEAVING THE COUNTRY.
In part he said:
THAT which has had the greatest infu-
ence in changing the conditions that control
these activities of the childS life has beer
the wonderful trend of the people to the
large cities. Even in our own State, and
for that matter in every county in the
State, there are evidences of it's destruc-
tive influence. This is seen i'm the aban-
dOned farms and struggling villages, once
prosperous posts of trade; in the forsaker
farmhouse and dilapidated equipments, anC
the desolate, awful loneliness that comes
from a sense of abandonment. On the
other hand, the cities with their wonderful
attractions. their magnificent buildings
their crowded streets, their churches, theil
schools, their brilliantly lighted theaters
their cars, their educated men and women
their parks, their great department stores
their factories. their fOundries and manu-
featuring plants of all kinds, the manners
and dress of the people. the rush and pusl
of the masses, the apparent OppOrtunitie:
for preferment, the glittering of wealth
the palaces for homes, all cause the pulls,
to quicken the ambition TO be siren gtheneC
| nay, they change at once the whole beinl
and so often cause the young person To los;
| sight OF the charm of the country HON,
! and create within him an uncOnquerable de
sire to enter the great battlefield. He see;
not quick nor great returns a result o
/ his patient toll in the country, and vii
cheerfully endure poverty and all of il!
hardships in the city rather than live in
the country with every want supplied.
Under the present conditions, the com
pick life OF the city demands the highes
grade of intelligence. For those who ar,
; / prepared, opportunities for preferment il
the city are vastly superior 10 those il
the country. In the city the young maj
may become a specialist he may push hi
research to any extent desired; he may, a
he sees il. become a power in the world
: He sees the opportunity to manage grea
concernes that require as much powe
! and mental preparation that of tn
college president His ambition ono
; aroused really knows no bounds.
Again. il must be admitted that we low
society. In the rural districts the wan
Cf this is becoming greater and create
, every year. Even in earlier years Their
home that are not found at present. Tn
! all day looks out of his cottage windoy
when darkness is falling upon lane. an
tree. and meadow. and only the candle
being tell % where