The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1901-07-28

Special Correspondence Of The Sunday Republic.
Sydney. New South Wales, June ID find
curious letters from our American boys in
the departments of public instruction in
Australia Some Of our school teachers an
terest their pupils in geography by having
hem correspond with school boys all over
Inc world. The school boy writes a letter
telling about his home and life in the
United States, and in return asks the Aus
traiian boy to reply with letter about his
home and how things are going on on the
other side OF the world. One such letter
which ] have before me comes from Archie
Ashmore. 13-year-old boy of Maitland,
Ncb. il has been answered by one of the
Sydney school boys. and young Archie al
ready knows how boys live in Australia
Here are q few sentences from his letter
on how he lives at Maitland. He says:
''I live in Maitland, Neb.. on the North
western Railroad. Not many years ago
there was scarcely anybody living here. but
some time ago people began to move here
from foreign countries, some of them from
Sweden. Norway. Germany. Denmark and
Bohemia This is fine place. only dry and
windy at times.
Next will tell you what we grow here.
We use pIows to stir up the ground and
harrows to level II eff. We plant oats and
corn with a machine called a corn planter.
We cultivate the ccrn with cultivator
three times. We cut the oats with binder.
shock II up and when It is dry it is hauled
70 the house and stacked. In the fall when
the corn gets ripe We have to husk it and
crib it up TO keep 1t for cur stock or sell
it il we want to-
''our school begins at o'clock in the
morning and closes at o'clock in the after
noon. Then we go home and do our chores
and get ready for supper. After supper /
help in my fathers store.
Most Of the girls help their mothers do
bousework. When they think they get old
enough they get married IL they can find
somebody to suit them. Well, guess l will
close. Yours truly,
ARCHIE ASHMoRE"
Australians Public Schools Are
Conducted in Systematic Manner.
/ find that the Australians have good
public school system. Every colony has its
own hooks and its own methods In Vic
foria The Board Of Educs ton publishes
school papers which conc out once a month
Il take TIE place Of the reading hooks used
in our schools. These Papers are composed
bi eNlrdCtS dlia SUCH JfiSltidt UllIVCr rs the
teachers think VIII benefit the children
They contain frequent references to the
Eews OF the month. and the articles pub
;ished are on current tories and on matters
Australian. There. are now many articles
about the Beers and the Chinese and the
wars which have been going on among
them There are papers On how plants
grow. stories Of geography, poems and
songs. The papers are illustrated and seem
very attractive. Some Of the pcems are
parodies. and one of the songs which was
published a few weeks ago has the words
and air of Columbia" beginning:
Britannia. the prize Of the ocean,
The home Of the brave and the free.
The remainder Of the ssng is about the
sane as our Columbia, the Gem OF the
Ocean"
In nearly all tho colonies education is
compulsory, and that notwithstanding the
children have to pay fer attending school
The charge is never more than 6 cents q
week per pupil, ard never more than O
shilling, or Is cents, Ter week Fer fa-niiy
In New South woies IL children between
6 and IL are kept out of schccl during
the school season, or during airy part
Of It, their parents are fined Sis fol