Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1907-10-16
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 The report from the records on at tendance and punctuality compiled by clerks of the school board that since the roller skating season reached full sway tardiness in the public schools has decreased 30 per cent has aroused interest. Upon investigation it was found that the terror striking prestige of the tardy gong in the schoolhouse i.; doomed at least temporarily by the roller skating fad.
 Unconsciously Chicago's army of school children, 1sO0OO strong, has been solving its traction problem. It has erased from the blackboards all public school records for punctuality. It has made going to school a joy to such an extent that the child who used to be pitied because he had to walk a mile to school or run the risk of catch ing street car now is the object of envy of his schoolmates. The farther he lives from school the longer the skate.
 skating fad is reaching beyond the school children and that the grownups, ; as well are becoming inoculated.
 "Out in Oak Park it is a standing joke that after the children go to bed their mothers and big sisters-who are noted for their tiny feet-sneak out the roller skates and try them on the back sidewalks under the shelter of dark ness." said John Farson recently. Mir. C0r ic yn1 fhn ofr.io orol, of the new fad in Oak Park.
 "Oak Park intends to maintain it's lead by building the first society skat- ing rink. Then the society women will not have to skate only in their own back yards
 But like all popular diversions, tha' of roller skating has its vexing prob- lens. It has been observed by teach. CTS that the children often fall asleep at school. They skate to school in the morning They skate home for lunch at noon and back to school again. The result, so some teachers claim, is drow siness. Teachers in the public schools of Pittsburg recently complained that roller skating had spread an epidemic of "that tired feeling" among the chill dren, so that they neglected their studies and mapped when they should be studying.
 Members of the Chicago school board who have pinned their faith on roller skating maintain that Chicago chi dren are stronger physically than those of Pittsburg. They credit any evi dence of the "tired feeling" to the an nual advent of spring fever"
 Dr. James r. Chvatal, member of the school board, believes in roller skating
 'I am heartily iu favor of it," he said. "Of course suppose 1t will not be long before my colleagues on the board come out for public ownership of roller skates. Roller skates make the school children as independent as automobile owners"
 Dr. Wladyslaw A. Kufewski of the school board does not attribute thc tired feeling to too much roller skat ing. He said lack of proper nourish ment and nervous strain of city life were two causes of fatigue.
 As to the tired feeling feature. John Farson went one better than the mem. bers of the board of education.
 .Tll bet it isn't the children who are sleepy. It's the teachers" said Mir. Farson. Anyhow that's what's the trouble out in Oak Park-not only with the teachers, but the school board toe They ought to adopt the children's amusement of roller skating as 6 means of getting walked up.'
 The latest in the roller skating fad is to go shopping on skates. On ! recent Saturday afternoon couple uI fifteen year-old girls were seen i'll State street buzzing along on roller skates, their arms full of department store bargains ] The shopping feature" is co'9mon ou the south side. along most of l!' cross streets So desrous are the .,,ildren ] to "go somewhere" on thejr roller | skates that the delivery wolS of the grocery and meat shops of late has l been relieved.
 The superintendent of c,r:nr,a2"y ed ucation was duty bound ;'sA other day | to convey to small boy tAe sad mes sage that learning from books and at tending school was of greater impor- tance than learning how to manipulate pair of roller skat2s.
 "A small boy who attends the J. NJ. Smyth school was mysteriously absent from school couple of days during the week without excuse" said Super intendent Bodine the other day "The lad was found going through all sorts of gestures and star seeing on smooth sidewalk in Fourteenth street on new mir Of roller skates The child broke | out crying. admitting he was playing hockey
 ".Well. the boys made fun of me be cause I could not skate good he told me between his tears. so just had to take time to learn.'S