The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1907-12-23

ing the old man come 10 time: Moth
Ing wrong about that at ali, becanse
he, perhaps. Is "a poor man and can't
stand to pay a big fine nor lie in jail
on account OF his family starving
while he Is lying his time out, but
that amounts to nothing mitch, crack
IL to him, give the truant officer some
thing to do to get himself big name
and get people to praise the law. but
truant officers don't seem TO pay any
attention to the hundreds OF brats
fran the age OF seven years up to
the age OF twenty.one in the various
parts OF the country who have no
schools to go TO. What does Mr. Tru.
ant OMcer or his law think Of that?
Thirty OF forty pupils at Gray's Flats |
almost lost the whole livelong school /,
season for want OF school to 60 to |
because they have no teacher. Moth.
Ing said, everything running smooth
There Is some wholesale work to do
not only at Gray's Flats but other
places. and It's an Internal poor rule
that can't be applied only to ignorant
or poor people or that Is only applied
to oh generally. It's a cowardly.
ignorant. unconservative way to do
business or Its right one or the other
end there Is no way OF getting around
It and which Is 1t? Truant officers
hunting subjects need not want for
victims. They can get them by the
ly. no work for the children to do,
too had for them to be ont in the
weather. crowded at home. losing in.
terest, losing time. getting discourag.
ed. had a good start last winter, would
have gone to Fairmont to school per.
haps next year, but no. no. the Jig Is
up, missed d term, got discouraged,
lost pride, ambition, lost simply about
all, but the above cannot be applied
to all pupils. but indeed to great
many, and It's no joke. Hello, truant
officer. and law. come out from under
the present school system or school
law or whatever you please to call It
and whatever element OF Gods mortal
humanity that is to blame for the doz-
ems OF children whose conditions are
foreigners brat, or both.
such as Is above described, Get
your sharp stick and your truant law
! and line them up instead OF putting
in all the time looking after some
poor mans child or some ignorant
wholesale. boys and girls out OF school
nothing to do
Some POOR devil as It may he term.
ed arrested and jailed or fined for
not sending his brat to school and
some rich msn Or men wholly and
solely responsible for the dozens %
children playing truGnt or w"rse than
truant the whole livclong school sea.
son or at least up to date, which is
bad enough.
Just as unconscrvntive anil intolera-
BILE as big cowarlly officer who
would walk away from Il rough crowd
OF yiolators and run n lot Of little
boys away from quiet game of mar.
bles. Rats and long tailed ones with
the idea; wonderfully intcrcste, aho
the education Of the youth of West
Virginia and Marion count Oh yes.
hunt them up. make MS much over
somebody's little brat or big brat out
Of school as they would over catching
n horse thief with the big Inv and the
roads and briar fields lined with tr,,-
ants made SO or driven to 1t by some
shallow place in the law or in the |
heads OF the ones who made 1t, they
cant get oft of it.
No wonder the fields are lined dur
ing school ffotrs with school children |
yelling and following among n pack |,
Of dogs: no wonder 4 crowd OF boys
can b" seen loating during school days
and hours at stores and other places. |
The writer is an advocate of truant
law and carfew lava nj every other
kind of law that is right, hut when the
law becomes truant then It's time to