The Savannah morning news., 1904-12-31
SPEECHES MADE
To The EDUCATORS
JACKSONVILLE CONVENTION
ADDRESSED BY GOV. AYCOcK AND
COL. MELDRIM.

'LeRdership-Col. MeIdrim Spoke on
TndustriaI Education," Making n
Plea for the Negro.
Jacksonville. Fla, Dec. S0.-The first
session of the Southern Educational
Association to-day discussed the for
ward movement which was participant
ed in by Superintendent of Public
Schools Merritt of Georgia, Supt. Hill
of South Carolina, State Superintend-
ent of Education o. b. Martin of
South Carolina, President Charles Nc
Iver of the State Normal School of
North Carolina, DR.. Purington of the
University of West Virginia, Dr.
Abercrombie of Alabama and DR.. An
drew Sledd of the University Of Flor
ida.
Gov. Aycock of North Carolina oc-
cupied a box during the session and
followed the proceedings closely.
Florida Teachers Officers.
At the afternoon session the Florida
State Teachers Association elected
the following officers:
Presidential A. Murphree presi-
dent of Florida State College, Talla-
hassee.
Vice President-M Mary Sydney
at DeFuniak.
secretary-J. G. Kellum of Gaines
vile.
Treasurer. M. McClung of Tampa.
H. ]. Kendall, Mulberry; r. M. Ray
Plant City, and George Scott, Starke,
were chosen as members of the Exec
utive Committee.
Miami was selected as the place for
holding the next annual meeting.
While the Southern Educational AS
sociation held no regular afternoon
session. a number of it's departments
met and listened to addresses.
The committee appointed for the pur-
pose reported constitution and by
laws.
At the meeting of the department
of superintendent. papers were read
by Supt. S. Phillips of Levy county,
Florida, on Things Not Seen" and by
Lawton B. Evans of Augusta, Ga, on
the securing and training of competent
teachers.
Officers of the Association.
The following officers were elected
for the ensuing year:
President, j H. VanSickle of Balti-
more.
Vice President. Lawton B. Evans OF
Augusta, Ca.
Secretary, Allen j. Barwick. super
intendent Of city schools of Thomas
VILE. Ga.
Two prominent speakers consumed
the time of the night session. One of
them was Gov. Aycock of North Caro-
lima, who spoke on 'The Education Of
the Masses" !" The other was p. w.
Meldrim of Savannah. chairman Of
the Georgia State Industrial College.
whose subject was Industrial Educa-
tion."
Gov. Aycock spoke for over an hour
and thirty minutes. He has way of
expressing himself and impressing his
thoughts upon his hearers. which is
distinctively his own. and no one can
move his hearers. with him In his va
rious and often changing moods, with
greater effect.
what IL the SOUth's Partf
After quoting from a tribute paid the
people of the South by the late Sem
ator Hoar in an address delivered at
Charleston a few years ago, in which
he predicted that a great and magnifi-
cent future for our country was to
be based In large part on the strength
and beauty of the South, Gov. Aycock
said
"The question now arises among us,
however, as to whether, despite this
prediction, we have any large part in
the life of this nation, and If not. how
can we secure and make good our
proper share in the affairs of the coun-
trv."
II seems, said Gov. Aycock, that to-
Lx
thought and action of the nation than
at any period of our history" Before
the Civil War, he added, Southern
statesmen directed the politics OF the
nation and filled the largest place in
the eye of the people. They wrote few
books, but their speeches Illuminated
every subject which they touched, and
set the fashion of political thought, but
''in this day II is not too much to say
that what any Southern man thinks
of political questions or governmental
duty carries no weight in their final
settlement" :" The only remedy for the
South's loss OF power in the nation was
universal education. The people Of
the South must build their own foun-
dation of character, temperament and
inherited traits. Continuing, he said:
"we Must Develop"
I'VE must not repudiate. but de-
velop; we must seek out and appreciate
our own distinctive traits. our own
traditions, our deep-rooted tendencies
and read our destiny In their interpre-
tation. We must put away vainglory
and boasting and take an impartial In
ventory Of all the things we have and
are: and these things can come 10 us
only through the draining OF all our
citizenship"
Gov. Aycock called attention to the
fact that the South to-day had It's
Hills. It's Lamars. its Becks. its Vests,
its Vances and its HamptOns, "all OF
them products Of the period before the
war" but said that no man could 90
throughout the country and lay HIS
hand on the head OF any single child
and say here II a Lamar, q Vance. a
Vest. a Hill Hampton or a Beck"
u WAS the business OF the schools TO
find for us these splendid children and
develop them into these great leaders" D."
n, he went on. he believed IN uni
yersal education for no other reason.
that would be for him "A sufficient one.
Could Take Ifs HiRbffuI Place.
After declarinS that the finest things
can BE- done only BY the education N
the masses, Gov AycOck said III Ia
education that flDda and brings out
fOf 10 fhe DOblfsf and the best. n
stimulates these best ~ the utmost exc
eFfi0n and fullest development by put.
tng 'hem in composition win ofhers
tlef ~ well ifalued a. fhamnfiven.
an1 a gives 20 ua fhe b0blefi and most
apDrfciaNFe au1Ifnrfr When fhir
Continued On Fihb Page