The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-12-09

into II at any time. the people did not take
hold OF college building. But when the new
Constitution of 1851 had all this eliminated
and competition with the States treasury
was not TO be feared. they took hold OF
college building with will. and within
ten years there were colleges begun IN
eighteen counties. Some Of these built
We're SO son" wei '' attended that in 1851 ten
years after the abandonment OF colleges
by the State. there was one college stu
ton. In 1902 there was only one Tor every
657 though the State had spent meanwhile
nearly S3.oo0,0o0 in crushing out most or the
embryo colleges that were begun IN gooa
faith that they would not be competed win
by the State and in greatly dwarfng those
that have yet survived the unequal com
petition. These figures are eloquent wnen
read with the figures that show how few
teachers are college graduates.
There are other companion fgures tnat
are equally eloquent. We have one OF
very best, in America, whose graduates
are as well equipped for service as the
graduates OF any normal school are. and
every lover CT education is justly proud OF
them, but as a class they are In no respect
more efficient than the graduates of our
local training school or the graduates OF
the private normal schools OF the state
and we have not been niggardly in our care
OF IL, having Given it from the State treas
ury In the thirty-six years OF its existence
the handsome sum or 81. i62.300.35. an aver
age or Sfo,6l9 per year from the beginning,
the amount increasing annually, until last
year Ii was Sa6950. Besides this. the cost
TO every student is not materially less than
at any of the private normal schools, and
much greater than at our city training
school. These are eloquent figures There
is still another class of companion figures
that must be read in connection with the
figures given in the excellent table OF the
superintendent, as showing the imperative
demand for more State normals or none at
all. From the very necessities of the case
all such institutions must be local in their
patronage. Thus. in the first twenty-eight
years Of our State Normal, there were
2.023 students enrolled from Vigo county
population OF Marion is more than three
times the population of Vigo. Sullivan
county had 24s to 20 from Switzerland
county, and Clay county had go TO Is from
Allen. and SO on. These are all eloquent
figures, but they will strike different minds
in variety of ways. Some will read in
them the imperative necessity of appro-
priating the 100000 asked for by the State
Normal TO enlarge its plant, though II
furnishes only 40 per cent. of the trained
teachers of The State. Others Will read In
them call for at least three additional
normal schools equal in plant and appro-
priations to the present one and so located
as to give every locality the benef1t OF the
school. There is much plausibility In this
contention. Others propose to give the
has contributed 200 toward ii. and let
that city run a training school of its own,
as Indianapolis. Fort Wayne and other
cities do, at their own expense, or, as sew
pense except the students. and this is very
little, If any, above the cost to every stu
dent that attends the State Normal. / ex-
press no preference. The figures speak for
themselves They are truly eloquent;
INDIANAPOLIS Dec. 6.