The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1904-01-08

II
the library 10 the following stateipent:
Since the library lis an .essent ntial part
OF the apparatus OF q properly eQiii iipp-
ed school there is the same reason
ss= Sci: sx peaing pIblscc money on 1T as for
buying desks black boards or charts. y 2;
MIR. McCants Isl no less emphati In
his statementSon the same point;
know of no other plan whereby q
school board can get SO greata return
Unreal good to a community with SO
little expenditure of money. "a school
without5a library ought to be paced
In the same category as the school
without a teach as lacking In
a very essential particular. Wherever
possible school boards should make a
yearly appropriation no matter how
Small it must be for the library g
Practice is the basis upon which
Supt. Dreher endorses the expendi. /.
ture of public funds In this way: L
am heartily in favor OF this. Our
board does it every year. s;i
What is more needed than any
thing else, according to Mr.. Meg Ghee,
lis brains. 50 First OF all, regardless OF
any aud all other considerations,
trustees should spend their money on
brains that is, get good teachers
and pay them well.e II there is any
money left, provided you have a COM
Portable schoolhouse, then it should
be expended on the library" ".
The most impor tant of all, accord
ing to Prof. McLucas Is the teacher:
1T should be remembered that. q
library not used Is worthless. More
important than q library even is a
teacher who knows something about
books for children and is anxious to
interest the children in them.''
The person who's Is to direct the
reading is not to be overlooked as an
essential part in the successful work
ing of the library in the opinion of
DIR. Wallace: For some competent
person to guide the reading is almost
as important in most cases as to have
a library.
THE TEACHERS DUTY.
Not only is the teacher to take an
interest in the reading Of the pupils,
but must also be doing some good
reading. After naming several of the
strong books printed In the list else.
where, Dr.. Boldridge very pertinently
remarks: "Of course these are mostly
for teachers and they ought to be
read by all teachers. The advanced
scholars ought to see them enough to
know what they are and to have their
value explained 10 them. /"
While it may be new idea
with many teachers, Prof. McLucas
in the following statement makes it
very clear as to what should be expect
ed of teachers In respect to the
library Il have had no experience
in this matter and none in public
schools; but 1 should like to suggest
that it is the teachers main business
to introduce children to books, and
that they should therefore not wait
till a library can be established to in.
troduce them. For as little as 2E
cents from each child whole years
reading can he provided for class by
the method Of rotation. A circulat.
ing library Of this sort should be
established in each class from the pri
mary grade up, the teacher selecting
such books as the children would like
to read"
The value of the library is not a.
highly esteemed by Supt. Stuckey
as by the others: The value OF ar
extensive library to school is, in my
opinion, very much overestimated
Had l money to expend for such q
purpose 1 would simply purchase /;
few books to be used as parallel read
ing in the lower grades. For the
high school department / would pur
chase selections frnIn the various
authors whose lives and writing the
course Of study might embrace, SAY
such pamphlets as are published by
Houghton, Miftlin s. Co. After l die
this [ would then purchase an en-
cy clopedia cne an nnabridge diction
1uy' 1at ig@, ass7vl Value Ssfs; t.
the Sgs, . contains some
verN,s .ooKS."
.p SO Of the succeSsfulneSs of
X. rsr,yy Is the use that is made OF
..caSs-Asear ..caS-Aae.trlg rf.lg on this point Mr.. Nc
Cants makes the following very per-
tinent suggestions: There are
libraries and libraries. In some the
books are too clean--too nicely kept.
Inv w oSC oOOho SCu u WCdlIiS OuU
under fair and legitimate usage"
NOT FOR SOUTHERN CHILDREN.
Not only were suggestions asked as
to books that should be added, but
there was also question in regard to
books that should be taken off the
list that was sent out. The answers
to this question were of unit in re-
gard to the eliminating of "Uncle
Toms Cabin" where the matter was
touched upon at all. Then, too, II
was found that there were some other
books that did not meet with approval
on the part Of some
Prof. Wardlaw made the following
objections: Tom Sawyer and
'Huckleberry Fin are excellent books
for adults to laugh over; but in spite
OF what has been published on the
subject, believe that they are not
good reading for children, as they pre-.
sent the wrong sort Of boy for imita-
tion. Uncle Toms Cabin is not
book for southern Children to read"
In regard to certain books that
should be left Off, any list that might
be made up, Prof. McLucas has the
following to say about 'Thelma," one
Of the list that was sent him: 81
think almost any reading better than
none, provided the book is not dis
tinctively immoral; but boys and girls
SbOul1 ba 6jcrbprouo6 frppo roo1;po