The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-12-17
MISS PARRISH DID NOT MAKE
OBNOXIOUS STATEMENTS.
State Normal school Commission
Found Her Entirely BIameRess.

| STATE normal SchOOl commission
Found Her Entirely BIameRess.
Athens, Ga, Dec. 16.-The State Nor
NAL School Commission met here this
afternoon and were in session from
o'clock until nearly midnight.
At the request of Miss Parrish,
teacher of pedagogy in that instltu-
ton, the commission made a full in
vestgation of the article in the Macon
Telegraph from Atlanta, urging that
she had rather improper views on the
subject of the negro education, and
the result was her complete exonera-
ton. President Branson, Miss Par
IRISH and other members of the fac
ulty were reelected by the commits
sion.
All day long the members of the
commission have been receiving tele-
grams from representatives Of the
American Book Company relative to
the rumor that the company was seek
ing to compass the defeat of President
Branson on account of his having re-
fused to order his heads of depart
pany. The commission replied to these
kilograms that they had not been APP
preached by the company and that
they knew nothing whatever of any
effort to interfere in the choice of
books used at the Normal School
The commission passed unanimous
ly the following resolution: There
appeared in the Macon Telegraph of
the 18th. instant an article in reference
to the teaching of Miss C. C. Parrish,
teacher of pedagogy at the State Nor
NAL School, alleging that before her
class she made use of the following
language: That the highest honor ever
paid her was when she was rendered
the principalship Of a negro school,
and that she urged the policy of send
ing out teachers from the normal
school to engage in the work of edu-
eating the negroes of the state
These statements, If true, are call
culated to do this school a great in
jury; II not true great injustice would
be done Miss Parrish. At the request
OF Miss Parrish the State Normal
School Commission, in session to-day
in Athens, has made a full and COM
plete investigation Of the facts inVoIy-
ed with the following result:
After having before the commission
all of the present senior class and
members Of other classes, who were
present at the time of the statements
MISS Parrish is alleged to have made,
the unanimous testimony of all the
witnesses was that Miss Parrish had
never said that the highest honor ever
paid her was when she was rendered
the principalship of a negro school
and that she has not urged upon them
the policy of sending out teachers from
the normal school to engage in the
work of educating the negroes Of this
state.
1T further developed in this investi-
cation that the only reference. so far
as the evidence discloses, that Miss
Parrish made to the question of in
structing negroes, was in response to
a question asked her by Normal School
Commissioner A. d. Hancock of Rock
dale county, touching her views on the
subject, and he states that she never
used the language or expressed the
sentiment attributed to her. and con-
Guiding his letter. he says: Il think
this was about her view, that the edu-
cation of the negroes Of the South
ought to be directed by the Southern
white people, and that their institutions
OF learning ought to be controlled by
us. that as teachers, we ought to feel
an interest in their intellectual devel-
opment and have the spirit to lend
them a helping hand in the school
room, If conditions really demanded 1t,
and that II we did not educate the ne
gro and teach him to love us and to
love our institutions, that Others would
educate him and would probably teach
him to hate us. and to hate our insti-
tutions. ! never did hear her make
statement that would have offended the
well-informed, refined Southern gentle
man, and 1t affords me pleasure to be
in a position where ] can render some
service to Miss Parrish. In seeing that
she is not misrepresented in this mat
ter
1t was also developed in the investi-
CATION that the discussion giving rise to
the statements contained in the teIe-
gram delivered before tine Freshman
class some eighteen months ago, about
the middle Of April. 1902. This whole
matter was investigated by the facul-
~ Of the State Normal School a year
ago, and the findings were expressed
In the following Language: I'm the
opinion OF the faculty. Miss Parrish
has been guilty OF nothing worse than
expressing q generous Christian inter-
est IN a backward race. The State
Normal School Commission ind In the
remarks made by Miss Parrish nothing
offensive whatever, and completely ex-
onerate her"