The Brandon news. (Brandon, Miss.) 1892-1961, 1908-08-27

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theory. We find that the, State IS
now giving the white children Of
some communities only four months
while it gives others eight months
Of school without local taxi; that
the former have teachers who are
|paid in some counties as low as
$3.50 per annum. while the latter
are taught by those who receive
nearly $500 year. We find also
that those children who are thus
Disseminated against in length Of
term and quality Of teachers have,
as a rule, poor accommodations in
the way of buildings and equip
lment, while those of the other sec
tons are we'll provided in this res
Ipect.
/ We find that many of the children
OF the state have not access to
High Schools; that thousands Of
our children in the rural districts
are being taught by incompetent,
inexperienced teachers; that the
matter of supervision is sadly neg
lected in some counties, notwith-
standing the general Improvement
that has been made in this respect
in recent years. We find that in
some counties there are no school
libraries; that many of the counties
have no local levy for the rural
schools, to supplement the state
appropriation. and that in hundred
of districts the people are content
to see the schools run only few
months in the year, under poor
teachers, in wretched houses, while
they have not taxed themselves
Iocally) one cent to improve these
conditions. We further find that
the very hearts blood is being
drained from our rural sections be-
cause of the superiority of the town
and city schools.
Finally, we find that our state.
stands today the only civilized spot
on the globe that has failed to pro-
vide for the professional training of
rural teachers
In view of these facts, we earn
estly plead that the time has come
when we must improve these con-
ditions. We must have (I) a more
uniform method of distributing
school funds appropriated by the
State; we must have (2) not less
than six months school tor every
white child in Mississippi Git should
be nine months); we must provide
I(3) comfortable and attractive build
ings and surroundings in every
community; we must have (4)
scholarly and we'll trained teachers
/ for all our chi!dren;, we must have
o. intelligent and energetic super
vision in every county; we must
have (6) library in reach of every
school child in the State; we must
have (7) better salaries for our
competent teachers; we must have
(s) more local taxation, for this is
the basis for longer terms, better
houses and better teachers.
Most of these Improvements are
directly in the hands of the people,
some of them rest with the law
makers. But the people are the
lawmakers in this country, hence
the responsibility for all these mat
tiers rests on their shoulders. 1t is
necessary that the conscience of
the people should be aroused on
this important subject. Let us not
rest content with the advance we
have made but remember that moth
ing is too good for our children in
the matter of preparation for the
struggle of life. Let US not be de-
ceived by the cry that we are too.
poor! No people is too poor to edu-
cate its youth. els it not better
to spend money to make men and
women than to sacrifice children to
save money!" Shall we continue
to be dependent on other sections
for trained men to plan and con-
|struct our buildings, to superintend
our factories, and to furnish the
brains to work up the raw material
of our wonderful resources into the
finished product? Shall our boys
grow up to be ''heWers of wood"
only, because we refuse to. place
them in position to. compete with
brain instead of musclea Let our.
people arouse themselves to the
| fact that conditions have changed
since the time of our school days.
True, we went to- school in log
houses and sat on split logs for
benches; so, ALSO. did onr ancestors
ride in stage coaches. But neither
of these facts is ar argument why
1--we and our children should not
profit by the advancement that has
been made in civilization.
The world calls to day for pre-
pared men and women to do its