Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-12-05
Establishment of Truancy
School in East Des Moines
Has Desired Effect
EDUCATION LAW WORKS WELL
Threat of Being Sent to Truaney
School Drives Children Into Public
Schools-ProbabIe Modification Of
Rules Recently Promulgated Con-
cernins Military instruction.
ecial to Times-Repuhlican.


Des Moines, Dec. 5.-There is one
truancy school established in Des
Moines and thus far not a boy or girl
L has been sent there. The threat OF
being compelled to occupy the truancy
school is sufficient to dispose of all
truancy in this city. The West Des
Moines board did not establish a tru-
ancy school. One was established or
ordered in the East Des Moines dis
trict. In this district, if anywhere in
the state, the effect of a truancy school
would be tested to the limit. There
are very many families in the east
district that are very poor and there
lis much child labor among them. But
Superintendent Amos Hiatt, who has
been in charge of the east side schools
for many years and is one of the best
known educators of the state, hnds
that with the truancy schools estab-
lished and all ready and the fact well
advertised it is no trouble at all to
| get all the children of the district into
the schools. He estimates that not to
exceed 100 of the children of the dis
trict of school age are actually in the
schools and not more than 20 or 80
will fail to get into the ordinary schools
before the winter is over. The law has
helped wonderfully in making it pos
sible for the school officers to reach all
the children. If the new compulsory
.; 1oxxy rlrr nc n g
already worked in Des Moines it will
meet with general approval.
An effort is to be made this winter
to have congress compel a modification
|of the rules recently promulgated in re-
card to instruction at the schools anu
colleges where military men are de-
tailed for service. When Congressman
,1ull WAS here he had q conference With
Major Oimstead, of the state normal
school, In regard to the new rules. No
effort is being made to live UP to the
strict letter of the rules at that insti
tuition, or for that matter at any col
lege in Iowa. as 1T is simply impossible
with the equipment available. Capt.
Hull promised to use his influence to
secure a modification of the rules. If
they are allowed to remain there will
be no military instruction in any col
lege in Iowa in few years and the
Iowa people who want their boys to
have some instruction along this line
will have to patroniZe the colleges that
make speciality of this thing. AT
the state normal school it is certain
that military instruction will have to
be dropped unless there is modifica-
ton.
An annual event of great interest to
one Col Jeff Logan, barber and sue
cessful politician, occurs this evening
at his home on Lyon street. Logan has
had charge of the cloak rooms of the
senate at each legislative session for
these many years. He is comparative
ly rich for colored man and above all
likes notoriety and newspaper men
ton. He has followed custom for
several years of having a possum sup
per to which he invites state
officers and few boon companions
among the politicians. This year his
list of invitations runs above fifty and
so he makes a sort of double supper,
half going to the first table and the
others waiting for second table. Il
is said that he serves a splendid sup
per of possums and sweet potatoes and
native wine.
The state capitol commission, charged
with the duty of completing and per-
fecting the state capitol, occupies the
rooms of the lieutenant governor on
the second floor of the capitol. The
custodian is denied the right to allow
the use of the committee rooms for any
such purpose but the law does not pro-
hibit use of the lieutenant governors
rooms. The capitol commission has
meetings only occasionally and will not
make hard use Of the rooms The
plans for the new state warehouse have
been agreed upon and that building
will be constructed next year.
The latest complaint about the pol
icy of the state of Iowa in sending
inebriates and morphine fiends and the
like to the state insane hospitals to be
kept isolated for a time is that the
tendency of this movement is to make
democrats out of such men. One who
escaped from the hospital at Mt. Pleas
ant declared Ifldt he Iliu Iol pcCl u Sol-
ed right, that he was compelled to go
to bed at certain hour and get up
in the morning, and worst of all thas
he was made to do some work. AS to
the amount of work which the colony
of inebriates do it is stated by the SUI
perintendents that one ordinary insane
person is worth three or four of the
inebriates. But the complaint was
further made by this escaped inebriata
that when he ran away they made no
effort to follow him and just let him
wander at will He says that among
the colony of inebriates there is Bit
ter feeling against the state officials
and the state government for all these
things and more and that most OF those
who are there believed they would get
out as soon as they are well sobered up.
As a result it is said that the members
of the colony are becoming democrats
and will go out to fight the state adj
ministration and the whole republican
party. AT the rate they are being sent
to the hospitals this becomes matter
of much moment.