The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-12-01
Very truly,
STARTOWN NURSERY CO.,

A. C. SHUFORD, Pres & Treas.
| Superintendent Joyner yesterday even
| ing commenting upon the letter, said:
This generous offer of the Startown
| Nursery Co. is another evidence of awak-
ened interest in public education and of
| the rapid realization on the part OF our own
patriotic citizens of the necessity, value
and Importance of building up our public
schools and making them adequate to the
great task OF educating all our people.
During the past two years there have been
numerous manifestations of this practical
willingness on the part of our people to
| help in the working out of this great
problem Guilford county raised by pri-
vate subscription over $4,000, Mecklen-
burg county about $4,000 for the encour
agement of local taxation and the i'm
provement of the public schools in the ru
raj districts. During the past year near
| ly hundred rural communities have vol
UNFAIRLY voted upon themselves a local
tax for the improvement of their public
schools Nearly 400 small school districts
at some sacrifice of convenience to the
people, have been consolidated into larger
ones in order to have better schools and
longer terms. Several entire townships
|
voted a local tax in every school district
but one. A large number of school dis
tricts are experimenting their public
school fund by private subscription IN
order to provide better teachers and lon
ger terms Some thousands of dollars
have been raised by private subscription
for building and improving public school
houses A number of leading cotton mill
men have provided, largely at their own
expense, excellent public school build
ings, and some of them are supplementlng
the public school funds for their districts
by large private subscriptions. One pa
triotic North Carolinan has, by private
subscription, made it possible to nave a
rural library in every public school IN
his county. Another has recently given
one thousand dollars for the establishment
of public school library in the Graham
schools. A movement has been inaugu-
rated by another patriotic citizen to raise
by private subscription from business
men a building fund of one hundred
thousand dollars for the Improvement OF
kpublic school houses in mountain aoun-
| ties. The women of the State are organ
izing associations in many counties for
voluntary work for the improvement of
public school houses and grounds. The
| Cunningham and Grimes prizes, worth
| $25 each, have been voluntarily offered
for the encouragement OF certain lines of
work in the public schools. Some thous-
ands of dollars have been raised by pri-
vate subscription for the esta blishment
of rural school libraries.
"These and other evidences too numer-
GUS to mention of spirit of self help and
| of growing confidence among our people
in the work of public education, encour-
| age me to hope and to believe that these
sturdy North Carolina people are rapidly
gaining faith in Their power to solve this
great problem of providing adequate
Ipublic schools for the education of this
and subsequent generations, and that out
of this new born faith will be born de
| termination on the part OF the most de-
termined people on this continent, who
have never yet failed to do whatever
they determine, to settle and settle soon
and settle right, largely through their own
efforts, this question of the education OF
all their children. I have long believed
that when our people reach the point OF
believing in their power to do this work
for themselves and of relying upon them
selves to do it, that it would be speedily
done. Such evidences as I have mention
ed above inspire me to believe that they
have about reached that point. 1t is the
old fable OF the Farmer and the Larks.
Our friends and our cousins can help, II
they will and their help should be gen
erously accepted, if generously offered in
the right spirit The work will never be
done, however until we determine to do
it ourselves and rely upon ourselves to
do it,