The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1903-01-07

before the Minnesota Educational
association, of which he was Presi-
dent, last week, and from the ad-
dress we are permitted to make ex-
cerpts that will be OF local or gen
eral interest.
| recently visited a large stock
farm where immense buildings were
erected, where machinery of all
kinds were found for making it easy
to care for the vast number Of diff
erent grades of cattle. Everything
betokened a complete arrangement
of all details, even to the quantity
of feed to each animal The owner
of this tract of land, which consti
tuted his farm, said to me: All
our work is done under competent
supervision. I said to him: do
you hire and pay all these men?
Do you see to it that these numer-
Gus grades of cattle or sheep or
swine, or horses, etc., receive daily
attention? | would think your
Office work would engross your
time so completely that you would
have little or no time for the details
OF oversight of this immense farm.
ooh, said he, my uperlntendent
manages much as schools are man
aged. He selects the men for their
special fitness. He knows by ex-
perience and training man that is
fitted to care for sheep; he knows
equally as we'll men who are espec-
| tally fitted to care for horses and
| the various grades of the different
kinds OF stock that we keep upon
| the farm. He knows the value of
all kinds of stock that we keep upon
the farm. He knows the value of
all kinds OF food stuffs. which are
the best fitted and adapted for the
| climate at certain seasons OF the
year. He has power to hire and
discharge competent men, just as
a superintendent has to hire and
discharge teachers. He selects
what he believes to be the best
kind of machinery for doing the
work in the best possible manner,
/ just as superintendent select
teachers to teach certain schools, or
just as they recommend certain
kinds of books that they are in his
Judgment best fitted to educate the
child from our present point of vie W.
Teachers are, after all. human
They have certain disabling quail
ties. So | said. this man. your
superintendent is authorized by
you with power to act when neces-
sary for the general betterment of
the FARM Yes. he is: so too.
should every uperintendent be,
else, he is not worthy of the name,
for what is superintendent trained
if it is not that we shall receive the
benefit of his experience his judg-
.ment, and his supervisional ex-
pertness. But, said I, county or
city superintendent do not exer-
else any such authority over the
schools in the city or county over
which they have supervision. Coun-
ty superiptendents have DO power
to select a teacher, nor to select the
tools with which the teacher is. TO
train the pupils to become worthy
men and women. They have no
power conferred upon them by law
even to nominate teacher whom
they believe would do excellent
work. They have no power con-
ferred by law to select books, APP
paratus Of any kind, which they be-
lieve would make better and easier
1 the work of teachers and pupils.
Do you mean, said he, to tell
me that county superintendent,
who has under his supervision 40
teachers, and these teachers are
teaching daily over 5000 children,
and he is supposed to be the chief
educational executive OF the county,
has no statutory power conferred
! upon him to manage these schools