Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1909-04-16
Mr.. TUCKER And COM
PULSORY EDUCATION
(Culpepcr Exponent.l

The Richmond dTimes-Dispatch report
ed Mr.. Tucker as declaring himself,
in his Emporia speech, in favor of COM
pulsory education in the state of Vir-
ginia- Many papers of the state,
among them the Exponent, discussing
Mr.. fuckers position on this matter,
emphatically disagreed with him, and
predicted that his advocacy of such a
measure would be a source of great
weakness to him in his race for the
gubernatorial nomination.
Soon after this Mr. Tucker, in n
newspaper interview, stated that the
newspaper report of his speech had
misquoted him, and that he had not
said that he favored compulsory edu-
cation. He said that what he had said
was that he was in favor of the various
counties of the state being given the
right to vote on this question.
This apparent discrepancy, regarding
such an important matter caused the
Exponent to look into the question
more carefully than we otherwise would
have done. We remembered that Mr..
Tucker. in the past, had had some sort
of connection with the Ogden educa-
tiOnal movement. This was "a move,
upon the part of a man by the name
of Ogden, and other rich men of New
York, who with more money than
brain conceived the idea that the
\ manila of fhA Snnfh 10
of dealing with the question of edu-
eating the children of the South.
Once year this party of conceited
philanthropists makes a pilgrimage, in
special train, throughout the various
states in the south, and prate loudly
about the illiteracy of the children of
our fair Southland. And it was this
party of Northern money bags who
first started this assinine talk of COM
pulsory education, concluding, in their
ignorance, that the people of the South
were unable to deal with the all impor-
tant question of education for their
children. Therefore they decided that
what the Southern fathers and mothers
needed was law which would force
them to send their children to school,
They styled themselves the South.
ern Education Board" And the Elk.
ponent, in its investigation, has founc
that the Hon. Harry st. George Tuck,
er was ''Field Agent of the Southern
Education Board" We have beer
told that his salary as such was So, SOC
per year. And, we mistake not, anoth.
er "Field Agent of the Southern Edu
cation Board" was Booker T. Washing.
ton, the negro who conducts a negro
educational institution in the state oil
Alabama, and yet sends his children
to the state of Massachusetts, where
they attend mixed schools, and receive
their education sitting side by side
with the white children of Massachus.
etts.
And what did the Hon. Harry st.
George Tucker do in the service of this
Southern Education Board?"
In speech in the city of Athens, Ga.
in April, 1902, he unfolded grea,
story about the illiteracy of Virginia
children. He said:
"We had in Virginia a couple OF
years ago about 670.O children oi
school age. OF that number we hac
about 450. 600 enrolled in the publif
schools, and of that number we haf
about 22O, 900 who were actually in daily
attendance on the schools-a potentiaIity
of 800 and an actual daily at.
tendance of 220, coo. There is less thay
one-third of the school population OF
the state of Virginia in the schools fo,
five months in the year. Now dom
care how the ignorant child is going [.
infect the neighborhood, whether b,
infection or contagion, but friends, yoI
know and / know that the 'durne,
thing is ketching'. We are goins
Ito drive it out with a compulsory educa