Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1906-07-12
APPRENTICE SYSTEM IS ABUSED
Instead of Being Correctly Taught
Youths Arc Keep. In Ignorance and
Thrown on World In Helpless Con.
d't'on--Fu.ure Anything Blu. Prom.
isIns.
my Associated prcss.)

Wy AHsoclutcd PfcBao
NEW HAVEN. CONN, July H.
The American boys right to be
taught II trade In school instead or
under the restrictions OF labor union
the members of which are Jealous
of his achievement. was assorted by
President +. s. Luther. OF Trinity
College. Hartford. In today's conven-
ton of the American Institute OF In.
S'rnc'ion. 4 sal
President Luther said, In part:
To-day there arc few apprentices
aud such rs may still be found are
learning very little. The labor unions
restrict tho number OF apprentices to
limits grotcsQucly below obvious
needs. The boys suffer from Tho
jealousy, III Will and Incompetence
OF, those who arc supposed to teach
them and from the greed of employ.
ers, who try to get mans work
out OF them for a boys wages.
impossible Is Demands I. I, i Is !,
The The, sIItAsttpiS ei3I Sssfs
MISREPRESENTATION him siaaasia,
aud whose employer wishes him ftSs
do tho impossible, Is certainly ill.,
inevitable. Partly as result of
these things, the standard OF ex.
ccllcnce in workmanship. In this
country, is surely detcrloratlng.
"'rho number of workmen who do
good job is growing smaller and
smaller, Manual skill, knowledge OF
how TO do 1t. and ability to do It.
seem to be vanishing factors In Am.
ericnn society. Our best workmen
nrc elderly men Or are imported from
Europe
"fhe amount of poor. mean ~.
skilled dsreputabIe work now folst,
cd on the public aud paid for by Tie
public is an Indication Of the worse
conditions which may be expected
unless some radical Improvement
be undertaken at once.
Germans Do il Better.
1T Is amazing that we should take
SD much pnins and spend so much
money In trimming boys and girls in
our ordinary school curriculum and
then turn them loose without the
| slightest knowledge how to do one
single thing rs The world wants 1t
done. The German people know bet.
ter than this.
OF 16 years who does not fancy a
clerical career Is not encouraging
He must begin rs a doer of odd
Jobs, with nothing to feed his AM.
billions, aud presently become an
xiou5 for soft snap.
One sort Of boy In such cases,
will force his way forward honorably.
| cxpiating the sins of his fathers by
hard work. picking up by native abil
ity IN many years what should have
been taught him in a few.
"A second sort dIscontentedly do.
all their lives, what all of us should
do part OF our lives, the meaner,
lower tasks. hope dead. ambition
forgotten, aspirations unknown: the
saloon haven Of rest, and the
yellow journal the literary diversion.
"A third sort makes grafters. And
we might save most of these two
classes OF failures, many of them at
least by simply educating them in
some chosen industry
Trade schools. manned ny compc.
tent instructors. whose sole business
Is to instruct, exacting standard
so high that American workmanship
shall again become matter OF ma.
tional pride: trade schools maintain
ed by public funds and free as other
public schools are free these may
solve this great and pressing prob.
lem.
"A bright boy can probably learn
more In two years in trade school
than in four years apprenticeship,
simply because those over him arc
interested in nothing but his prog.
ress." I