The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-06-12
NO TRADE SCHOOL LAW.

| DGEll 6lCIGu uPOl VIII AS PAS9S0 VI 6C where the woodbine twineth. One of these, which should be thrown over- board at once, is the trade school bill, which authorizes towns to establish trade schools for boys more than six teen years of age, the expense to be divided between the town or city and State. In the end, of course, the large expense is to be born by the much en- during taxpayers, very few of whom will ever get any benefit from It,
 The bill has been reported to the Senate favorably by a majority but was then referred to the committee on appropriations, which regards it un- favorably. One hundred and fifty thousand dollars year has been ask ed for by the State Board of Educa- ton to put Its provisions into effect, and this is only a starter. It is one of those unnecessary projects, promoted by most worthy citizens, ostensiby in the interest of the working classes, but really working injustice to them, for it robs Peter to pay Paul. If the State has any extra sum to put into public education. the place to put 1t is into the common schools. where the pupils are during the period of compulsory education.
 Any educational institution which is Isupported largely from the public treasury for the benefit of youth more than seventeen years of age lnevita- bly, involves gross injustice to the wage earning taxpayer, for the great Ima5orlty of the children of such per- sons have to go to work by the time they are seventeen or soon after How ever selfish may seem the motives of the labor leaders in opposing this bill, we believe their attitude can be iusti- fled on solid grounds of sound cltizen- ship and justice to the working class es This bill facilitates a waste of :, public money in unproduetive invest ment for favored few, who can afford to support their children at school af- ter they are more than seventeen years old. It would fix the peoples capital in buildings. machinery and plant, constantly deteriorating in value, used a small portion of the time, and giving to few boys q manual training for trades, not comparable with the training of actual factory life, where the boy is at work all day, un- der the strictest supervision and criticism, knowing that poor work means financial loss, and good work means more money in his pocket, and steady advancement in wage-earning power.
 The manual training school in actual operation Is one of the most expensive forms of education for 1t requires not only the plant necessary for mental training only, but in addition large ex- tra space for workshops of different sorts, machinery and tools, with con- stant expenditure for steam or elec- tricity as motive power Yet few pupils get the benefit of this expenditure for more than two hours a day, and these are mostly boys. So far as girls are concerned the great expenditure in. volved in special manual training schools Is a great economic waste, as cooking, sewing and other branches of domestic science can readily be taught in an ordinary building without expen- sive machinery, tools or motive power
 To build trade schools in order to give at public expense what level-head. ed manufacturers are constantly giving without expense to the public, from business motives, is simply to increase unjust taxation of the wage-eafnins classes, This will be clear to any thoughtful man who will consider for how large percentage of the oc. equations of community 1t will bt impossible to give training in these schools, should any community be fool ish enough to build them. This list numbers at least eighty per cent o the workers in any community. In sucl Q list would be classed all farmers anC those working on the soil, all employe. on steam or trolley roads, and thos, engaged In commercial or business en terprises, those who follow the sea, al domestic servants, whether male or fe male, most women workers, and al whose employment is chiefly carried ol in the open air For these and othe sufficient reasons let us hope that tn, legislature will block this waste o money, which, if carried into effect vii suck just so much life blood away iron the common schools.
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