BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1905-10-13

teach thelT peCuA1aA "Pt''"O' "0
nizers.
The government improves and rec
sifes nothing, it goes backward anu
forward along it's path witout knowing
where to 60 or which road to choose.
The naughty and self centered ou,
reacracy assumes An 1nd111eIen1 an"
disrespectful attitude towards tne w;s ;
hes and desires Of the people, or else
thew are received with the same pom
pous and lofty mien as is the homage
Of their acolytes or the servlle saiota-
tions of hired servants.
The elements that have positive va
Inc live far removed from the grey
atmosphere in which nothing snines'
not with a positive or. etiected llght;
The government, like tEe BIRDS OF
nioht lives III darkness enveloped IN
shadows of painful and dismal ooscu-
rity. , oh1a
70 co1nteract the effects of this pro-
longed eclipse. e:a,,oa
The proof of this has been turnlshed
by the same Mr.. Lord n the censura-
bic declarations upon which we are
commenting.
From these, it may be 3educed reg
arding education that n h beyond
experimental trials and anhappy proofs,
with text books zUhlc5t are net a6abff1
t0 condItz0Ns here have been M de.
And what is true of the books is
true.also. according to the inference to
be drawn from the expressions Of this
same acting Com njsslouei W IN We
rythipg here, with the 1unctlonarles
also.
We affirm that 1t is open to criti-
cism and censure for old representa-
|tives of houses publising DO ks to oc-
'cupy f1ciaI posts under the govern
ment where they may become book
buyers, and so be able to demonstrate
their sympathy and gratitude dis
charged at the expense Of others, buy
ing, perhaps, books more lifted Tor
the shelves of an archaeological mu-
scum than to be on the ia bles Of con-
temporaneous students. And it could
not help but proAuce amazement to
find functionari s who con,itler too
small the sum Of twenfy 6vC tn 'usand
dollars allowed in the budget for the
purpose of buying school books, when
there has already been spent tor such
books upward of two hundred thousand
dollars: and for twelve or fifteen thou
sand dollars all the new books neces-
sary could doubtless be obtained if the
contract were awarded by public bid
ding, which seems the only fair end
proper way of making such purchases.
: The department of Education might
save it self from the necessity of more
trials and iments-whose results
can be foreseen-if it were to accept
the books compiled by natives of the
country, of Porto Rican pedagogues.
of those who know the necessities and
aptitudes IF our children, returning to
the supplanted text books, infinitely
superior in scientific value, in method
and in fact all requisite particulars, and
discard those deficient ones which ha-
We cost the country so dearly.
With the exception OF the books OF
Mr.. Fernandez Juncos there are no
works of native authors used in the
schools. And we are so certain of
this that we challenge any Of the pre-
bendaries or acolytes of the depart
ment to refute it, and We should also
be pleased to have them prove that
the books now in use are as good as
the ones we had; we do not. say bet
ter, because that would be equivalent
to asking for the performance of a
miracle and impossibility.