The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-09-10
LACK OF BOOKS EMBARRASSING Country Schools Unable
 to Get Them. MIR. BALDWIN MAKES PROTEST Montgomery Has a Supply for
 Two Hours. Governor win Confer With State Agents in Birmingham--Trou- sIe is With Publishers Who
 Say the Time Was
 Too short.

As the month of September grows older, the confusion on account of lack of text books increases. Schools by the score are believed to have been opened Monday and other days of this week without the new books. And the su- perintendents in some of the counties are still wondering when the new books will be available.
 The Departmet of Education officials have no way of estimating the num- Der of schools that open each week. The opening of the schools is a mat ter of local control. Only when the pay rolls begin to pour in can the State Superintendent of Education tell what schools opened on given date and how Ion gthey have been running
 1t Is said that Baldwin County school authorities have protested 10 the Gov ernor that they were forced to open schools this week without the new books. They relied upon the law which compels the books to be sent to three places in each county by September 1 and so made no preparations to use other than the new books.
 Many other counties are known to be in the same condition. The belief was expressed yesterday that Cover nor Conner, who has gone to Birming- ton of the book trouble. He will prob. ably make personal investigation of the book trouble. He will probably call upon Loveman, Joseph and Loeb for an explanation of why the books are not on hand in the counties. That corporation, however. which is the of- ficial depositary of the State may ex- cuse themselves by declaring that the publishers failed to come across on time. It is understood that the BIrm- ingham distributors have contract which will protect themselves against the States penalty of s5 a day. This would throw the blame and fine on the publishers.
 Not ali the publishers are said to pc delayed in furnishing the books at Birmingham. The majority, however are placed in that category.
 The book department of the Mont gomery Fair was visited by a reporter of The Advertiser yesterday. The man. ager said: If the schools would open here today we would have enough books to last two hours"
 Since the first spread of news that fine would be imposed on patrons or teachers using in the schools bother than the new text books a section of the law has been found which gives some consolation. fn fact, 1t is the opinion of lawyers that it gives immu- nity to those who use old books when the others cannot be obtained. This section reads as follows:
 '"rhe patrons of the public schools throughout the State may procure books fin the usual way in case no contract shall be made sor the contractor fails or refuses to furnish the books provfd- ed for in this article at the time re- quired for their use in the respective schools"
 Yet there is no way to undo the con- fusion resulting from starting a school with the old books and then having to discard them the instant the new books are available. There would have 10 be a retracing of old ground covered by the several branches of study. Then. too, the teachers have had no oppor- tunity, in the absence of specimens, to familiarize themselves with the con- tents of the new books.