The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-03-16

pointed a Teachers Institute, which met
at our school house. The patrons 1ur:.
nished dinner for the crowd. My schooi
by this time was so large and mad SO
many advanced pupils that the patrons
out OF their own private funds, paid ioi
an assistant, who heard the recitations
Of the primary classes in the vestibule
When they were not reciting they sat IN
my room.
The next session the trustees gave me
the money to order patent desks. which
did with exquisite delight, and also gave
us a ssS chart containing q little of every
thing. This reads like fairy tale, but
every word is the solemn truth. Here,
however. ends the story OF the CUTS.
Never again in the other seven years OF
my teaching (until last year, when got
everything / asked fcr) did we receive
aid from any source.
Every year, and sometimes several
times a session, the axe is stolen ana we
have to take up a collection to get an.
other In the same way. or paid out Oh
nv own salary. are supplied all the dip
pers, broonls, water buckets, When ne
cessarv. crayon and matches.
The School Board never furnished wood
in any school in which I have taught. ana
only at the beginning of the session glass
for the windows. The latter Invariably
amounts to a good deal, as the boys usu-
ally manage to break out several pahes
with their. balls or in other ways
The matter of fires is often Il serious
question, and 1t involves loss Oh salu-
able time to the boys who nave TO leaVe
the room to get wood, or cash pa1c OUT
OF, tho teachers meagre salary wnen the
scbool-housc happens not to be situated
near the woods. where 1t can De SotIeIi'
,,d 31,a ,,otronS do not haul {.
The contract always states that the
teacher shall, be required to see t:at Inc
school-room is swept ana kept ciea1'; nc
matter of personal neatness or cleanliness
of school-roOns needs no comment. 1t IS
simply q question of whether the teacner
is a. gentleman or lady, as the case may
be. On the monthly report the question
is asked: Are INDECENT pupils supnneq
with TEXTBOOKS from public funds? |
have taught many an INDECENT pupil VINO
had no textbooks or any description. o;lt
OF such thing as the boards supplying
them / nave never ncard- nave sup
other teachers who do the same. The
trustees arc not to h!anc foc this. They
use the money they have in hand ;ss judi
ciously as possible, but the supply is usu-
ally limited. =
intended to give some statistics In
regard to the salaries paid TO teachers IN
the different counties of the State, but
upon application for same [ have been
INFORMED IIldI tlc lSloi loI sSiIo'lo i VI
last year has not been received from the
printer. and as am not willing to trust
my memory in such a matter. even IN
regard to those 1 know. about. l shall
merely state that think I am safe in
saying that the average country teach
er's salary is about $50. In this Bucking-
11am) county it is sss for iirS St;
say in a speech made before a gathering
of teachers some time ago that in the
profession of teaching. men and women
should not consider the money at all. but
should teach for the love of it. But in
this case, at least. I must say l agree
with the person who first SAID: Amour
fait beancoup mails argent talt tout;
which bein gtranslated. I believe, READS
something like this: Love is potent, but
money is omnipotent." In many counties
the sessions are from four and half to
five months. Out of their meagre s sE,
ries. the teachers board must be deduct
cd. which through the country is seldom
less than $40 per month. When the. in
cidentals some of which I have mention
cd. have been paid, there is little lett
for the teacher to spend in taking pleas
ure trips, attending Schools of Methods
or the purchase of finery-
With all these facts before us, is 1T any
wonder that all of the teachers who can
possibly secure positions in tbs cities
where the salaries are better ana there
is no such drudgery do so and leave the
country to its fate?
However We know there are manEE/od
teachers in the country. many OF Wnom
are graduates of the State Normal and
other schools who cannot get positions
in the cities and who are not doing good
work simply because they are handicap
ped by even greater Inconvenience than
I have mentioned.
A teacher who is dependent upon srcls
salaries for a continuity of existence is
surely an object of pig, for I speak only
the bare, unvaInished truth. to which hun
dreds of teachers can testify, when l say
that the teachers of the country public
schools of Virginia are working on star
walton salaries.
New Store, Va, March II. 1902.