Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-06-30
THE JOINT CHURCH AND
EDUCATIONAL MEETING

The joint church and educational
meeting held at the presbyterla1 4
church Sunday night was attended by
! large audience. The meeting was
held with the view of awakening a
greater interest OF the public in school
affairs.
An excellent musical program was
rendered. Rev. Ferguson offered a
, prayer, and Rev. Sanderson read from
the Bible.
The meeting was presided over by
Miss Edith Young as secretary OF the
board OF managers OF the Teachers
Normal Institute. Miss Young made
few appropriate remarks, explaining
he object of the meeting and urging
for a hearty cooperation OF the home
and church with the school. She stat
ed that in union there is strength. and
as God is the god of us all-of what
ever creed or denomination-th co,
operation of the church and home with
the school could not fail TO have ben
eficial results.
tiVe-minute talks were then made
by representative educators. j. c.
Sanford. as president of the Durango
school board was the first He said
that in olden times school directors
were chosen for what they knew about
education. but he feared that in these
latter days that order had been re-
versed and they were chosen for what
they did not know. He noticed that
there was certain absence of inter.
est between parents and schools.
! xtsb fal 10 la, q.
Hight than as being detrimental to the
schools. Too few parents visited To
see what was being done In the ed
ucation OF their children. lie made a
novel suggestion. He called attention
to the great number OF euchre parties.
high five parties, The whist clubs and
and Entire Nous dances and said in.
stead OF so many of these things It
would be well 10 have a Durango
School Visiting Club.
Mayor McEwen expressed his ap.
proval Of the tendency of the times to.
ward educating children in practical
way as well as a theoretical, and call.
ed attention TO the fact that he or she
who has learned how to do things as
well as the knowledge taught by their
books. is doubly fitted for life's great
struggle He mentioned the fact that
when Rome began to import teachers
from Athens who neglected all the
practical phases of learning, from that
| date the star of Roman asccndancy
began 10 set.
| Miss Luella Hall of Canon city who
is instructor In manual training and
| = m - IN ~.
Normal Institute being held here
spoke upon the subject of her own
work She could think OF no topic OF
more interest than this, She main
talned that the very early training of
children was the most Snportant OF
their lives and in argument OF this
mentioned the deep-roorcd religious
convictions found in so many chill
| dren. These convictions they pos
sessed, not because of any reasoning
but because they had early received
them from their parents or religious
Instructors. Hence the teachers re
sponsibillty was great Our country
| could not always take the foreigner,
but the school can always take the
boy and make of him "A good American
| citizen. The teachers reward, she
said. and the teachers work. were only
second TO the reward of the mother
Tor nowhere else could such devotion
be met with as in these grades.
| Prof II. f. Black. county superin-
| tendent of MOnteZuma county, made
an earnest plen for uniting on a bet
ter plan of understanding and brought
out the point that the growth OF edu.
cation comes from the growth OF indi'
| yiduals. -
| Rev. Ferguson said he had not re.
quested anybody to wink at him when
| his time was up. and nobody did. He
went at considerable length to show
that politics and schools should never
~ mixed; that school boards should
| be left alone to manage school affairs
and not be harrassed by factional
fights and prejudices. and that If any
such fights and preIudices did exist
they should be kept out OF sight and
away from the pupils. Our public
schools are the nurseries of our ma
tion. and the nurseries should be kept
free from strife and turmoil. Educa.
tion and patriotism are the twin daugh
| leTs OF our nation, ana II we look 10
one and lose sight Of the other the ma
tons downfall is certain TO follow. We
should remember that the destiny OF
the nation is wrapped up in our public
schools. The anarchist OF the present
was the neglected child Of twenty i've
years ago, and the criminal Of the fu'
ture may be the neglected child OF
today.
Prof. NJ F. Miller, city superntend
ent OF Fort Collins, and conductor OF
the Durango Teachers Normal lns,i
tute, was the principal speaker OF the
evening. He spoke of the teacher hav
ing 50 many children to look after
that the task imposed was very great
For every child present there were
really six to look after There was
Johnny as his mother thought he was,
and Johnny as his father thought he
was There was Johnny as his grand
mother thought he was-she was sure
neither of his parents knew much