Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-01-13
TRIP FOR CHILDREN
Plan Afoot to Take Students to St
Louis Exposition.
ROCKFORD MAN is FATHER OF PLAN
John r. Waller Is Originator of Gisan.
tic Scheme to Take Quarter of Mil
lion of Iowa School Children to See
Fair.

Fair.
Much interest has been awakened, |
especially among the school children,
in the plan of John r. Waller of Rock
ford, ILL.,, the originator of the NAM
moth educational and philanthropic
scheme of taking a. quarter of mil
lion Iowa school children to the st.
Louis exposition, Mr.. Waller was in
Des Moines last week exploiting his
project before the teachers and dele
gates assembled at the meeting of the
state teachers association and yester-
| day he was in Cedar Rapids comforting
with some of the officials of the st.
Louis exposition relative to his plans.
| Mr.. Walters scheme is to start a
central state bureau with representa-
| tives and sub-stations in each of the
ninety-nine counties in the state and
have the school children save $40 be-
tween now and exposition time in
1904; then each school to run eXcur
sions to st. Louis and the entire school
to go down, be boarded in lots of 1000
each, have their teachers and doctors
with them, spend ten days at the ex-
position and return home, the whole
trip, with souvenir buying, not to ex-
/ coed $40 for each pupil
/ Mr.. Waller is more enthusiastic
than ever over his rlan and
believes that with the COOP
Grafton of the exposition Off
cials he can carry it through to sue
zIcess. Discussing the outlook with
Des Moines newspaper reporter, he
said:
1.-The plan is meeting with wide
spread favor. | don't believe there
ever was a scheme before that sprung
so quickly into prominence and popu-
larity and received so much favorable
comment.
81 am in receipt of letters from Pres
ident Francis and other officials of the
st. Louis exposition commencing the
scheme and pledging the heartiest CO.
operation. They are doing all they
: can to- bring it to a ~crhsummation
am Just in receipt of a Telegram ask
ing an appointment for one of the ex-
position officials at Cedar Rapids some
, day this week. The officials are offer
ing inducements and aiding me all
they can to bring the matter to a head
There is in Des Moines today a
, representative of The Holy City ex-
, hibition, which it is proposed to have
, at the exposition. He is cooperating
! with me and we are perfecting plans
i SO that every school child in Iowa who
, attends the exposition can visit The
, Holy City for three days at a price sc
low that it will be included in the $40
limit. Possibly we can arrange it so
they can get in for nothing; we are
5 working on that now, and are cooper
aying with each other.
SIN this Holy City it is proposed
Z to exactly reproduce Jerusalem and
: vicinity. Ten acres of land will be
S used for the display and the, Holy City
a will be shown exactly as it is, with
/ natives curios from Jerusalem and
S the Holy Land and other valuable fea
k lures 1t will be an exact reproduction
S of Jerusalem in miniature and canno
l. fail to be an interesting and valuable
: display which every Iowa child SHOULD
: see.
:. "This scheme of mine is big one
6 no person can realize the magnitude
y of the work or it's scope until they ge
right into it. The first thing We will
: have to do is to incorporate: then per
feet state organization with man il
each county to work up local interest
There is not child in school but cal
earn and save $40 by exposition time
plant corn, sell a gander, turkey, pig
work before and after school hours
:, it can be done if they set themselve
:" to it, So we must interest the pupil
themselves and to this end must hav
an organization and a Representative
in each county in the state; then sa,
ings banks must be established, an
so the work will be immense.
I'd ct will take much money to pei
D. feet it. Why, the postage at one cen
20 each for circular mailed to ever
- available school child will be $500
ne to say nothing of the expense of prin
ing the circular and mailing it. l fiji
cs ure that it will take 100000 to max
:, the scheme an assured fact, but if
- goes there will be at least 100000 low
ID school children attend the fair, an ec
IN ucation which cannot be bettered i
% any possible way"