Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-05-22

NO. IL mas stopped smoking and is
improving.
No. 10 is type of hopeless unregen-
crate; has since been sent to the
school for feeble minded.
No. IA stops smoking by spells.
No. Is; his neighbors, teachers and
others regard him a nuisance.
No. 16 is low down in the human
scale.
No. Is is a liar and coward.
No. 10 is five years behind his grade.
No. 20 is simply young tough.
Twelve cases had poor memories and
ten of the twelve were reported as
very poor, only four had fair memories
ana not one of the twenty boys had a
good memory.
Eighteen stand low in department,
only one is good, and none are excel
lent. Seven of them very low, being
constantly in durance vile, because Of
their actions.
Twelve of the boys are in poor ply.
steal condition, six being subject to
sick spells" and are practically physi,
cal wrecks already. Eight were re-
ported as being in a fair or good condl-
ton, but none were excellent.
The table shows that the average eff
ficiency of the average boy in this
school who has never used cigarettes
lis represented by about 95 per cent,
or in other words, out of 100 such boys
Ininety-five of them are reasonably sure
of getting at least good, common
school education
The other side of the table shows
that of the cigarette fiends only from
to 10 per cent stand any show in
school, and they are two and one-fifth
years behind their own grade and
more than three years behind the
girls they started with in the first
grade.
| Only one of the lot could be called a
clean boy, and two were careful about
their dress, while twelve were careless
in dress, six being vry careless, and
evidently the same twelve are report
ed as uncleanly, four of whom are
downright nasty"
Ten, or just half the lot, are con-
frmed truants.
Eighteen have a low rank in studies
only two are even fair-none are good
or excellent Eight were not only low,
but very low in their standings.
Still, these smokers are from as good
4
the same teachers and other conditions
are the same as the boys who did not
smoke.
All but one had been denoted at
some time and the lot had averaged in
failure to be promoted four times. One
boy had failed ten times (half yearly,
four failed in promotion eight times,
and the rest from one to eight times.
i Nineteen of them were older than
the average of their grade and one was
younger. They averaged two and one
half years older than they should be
for the grade they were in.
Five of them were notorious liars,
five of them were known to be untruth'
i full, while the rest We're of different de
/ grees Of the Ananias class
u All but one We're slow thinkers and
none of them think quickly. Eight are
reported as very slow mentally, and
three absolutely dull
L The teachers who made this invssti
, CATION expressed themselves to the pa
| rents of the boys as follows:
!, 1--WE desire to call the attention OF
, parents to the fact that large major
J ity of the boys in this city are smoking
!, cigarettes that the boys who smoke
, are, on an average, years behind the
boys who do not smoke and still fartli
er behind the girls in the same grades;
that the mental, moral, and physica
condition of many Of these boys is ex
: tremely deplorable and will certainly
+ continue to grow worse unless the ha
! bit is stopped; that while the schools
; are insisting that this and all other un
, clean and undesirable habits shall no
! be practiced in or about our schoo
:. houses or grounds, still crowds of boy
. are daily seen around the saloons ant
+ floating places of our streets. smoking
|, Iloating, swearing, and cultivating othe
undesirable habits"
This was plain talk and it had al
, immediate effect.
: eve ask that parents co-operat
a with us in eliminating these condition
!. SO far as possible, to the end that w
), may give our future generation 0
:, = young men, not only an education, bu
g healthy bodies, minds, and morals.
: "We would ask parents to observ
from the table given, that the cigarett
smoker is already well on his way t
the conditions which indicate crime
trampdom. the Jail, and general worth
|lessness. Memory goes first, closet
followed by low department, low ran
!, in studies, bad physical condition, an
u general degeneracy.
/ "We would also point out to parent
that while pupils are within our dt
l. main as teachers (the school ward an
/ school house,, there will be no smol
r ing and that while we shall do all i
o our power to discourage it anywhere
e we are helpless to stop the difficult
without the personal cooperation {
s. the parents, and we may as well ad
g that we are unable to teach anythin
y to the cigarette fiend, as his memory
/ a blank, his power to reason damaged
IS ability to study ruined, and usually hi
s ambition to excel entirely gone.
g 1--WE would further point out to tn
n parent of the boy who smokes, thu
the desirable places in the bushes
y world are being rapidly closed to tn
r cigarette smoker, and that already tn
n banks, railroads, and many other bus
IS nesses by which the ambitious youn
X man expects to climb to fortune an
ct Isuccess, have closed their doors g
y tightly to the cigarette smoker as