The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-09-13

this or that is proposed and sometimes indignation and horror as witness one i occasion when our principal stated the 1 plain fact, that many children were rest less and ill or having constantly to be | excused on account of headache be- cause of ill-prepared lunches or perhaps no lunch at all; or often requesting per mission to go to the store for bag 1 of doubtful cakes or still more doubtful candy. And the result? Right then and there the lunch question was settled and l the breakfast question also, for many are the instances, as we all know. of 1 children allowed to sleep late, hastily l dressed, books snatched up and posted 1 off to school with the merest excuse of l a breakfast and expected to apply them selves to the momentous subject of an education when they should more prof 1 itably to both body and mind be deep l in the mysteries of some wholesome l bread and butter and milk.
 1 Then that note business disappears like | the dew before the morning sun. such cordial understanding exists between the l teacher and mother. And how does it help my boy of the soiled garments and his mother asleep on the hill? I shall 1 tell you now as I unfold to you a prac- tical plan successfully pursued and car ried out by the Barker association to which I belong.
 city association, it is true, but the plan in general applicable as we'll to any school with certain notifications. It Is understood that this is a mothers meeting, therefore all our officers are mothers. We lay no stress on dues; get the mother and you'll get the dollars or if you don't, don't mention the matter. Mothers are very sensitive on the sub ject of money, as few of us have a uro hood. Listen to these figures: We had last year 8 membership of 62; a paid membership of 34, ana raised and ex- pended S634. We require no dues of our teachers nor are they asked to serve on committees but how faithful they are to usi We had the largest per cent of attendance of teachers on our meetings last year. I don't tell you why, as Phil lip said to Nathaniel, Come and see"
 Of course, much depends on principal and teschers in the beginning of the or ganization but as soon as everything can be gotten in working order they should constitute an advisory board as it were and their presence at its meet ing should not be made an irksome duty The business of our first meeting Is made as brief as possible and we turn it into veritable tea party. The officers see that everybody is introduced to every
 
 ing dainty cup of clear tea with It's slice of lemons and a simple wafer, and you should see these mothers over the cup that cheers but neer inebriatesl
 Now, don't say you can't do this. or cast the idea aside saying. 'Oh, well, you have your domestic science depart ment with everything necessary for serv- ing" Yes, but we had our tea parties before we had any domestic science de- n P m nnfC r3r1,~ r1l lf..I.. across lots and down alleys to the school. And now let me tell you how we got our domestic Science department by working, working consistently and everiastingly keeping the matter before our superintendent and through him be- fore the board of education He was so polite as to say he liked for us to go so often to his office and call him up almost unceasingly over the phone As Tor the long-suffering gas man, he dared not set his foot in Norwood so per sistently after him did the committee keep till finally he put in the gas free to get rid of usl Then the board of educa- ton put in our equipment because, like the judge and the widow, we wearied them with our importuning.
 But l digress-back to our organization. After election of officers the chair ap- points the following standing commit
 
 Home lunch, and in addition special com- mittees are appointed from time to time, the chair appointing only the chairman and allowing her to select whom she pleases.
 Third. and lastly, as my dear old pas tor used to say, we do not as mothers ask the right to vote; we have some one to do our voting. We haven't yet asked the right to sit on the school boards, but we have the right to ask and the further right to have answered the following questions, published editorially in a re- cent woman's magazine::
 Have sufficient precautions been taken to prevent development of contagious dis eases in the school? Are all children ex- amined by physician before being ad- mitted? Are children with colds, coughs, sore threats, tuberculosis, pediculosis, scabies, sore eyes, etc., excluded? Has the schoolhouse been thoroughly cleaned. aired, warmed and disinfected? Is there a thermometer in each room, and are two opposite windows always raised? Is the room cleaned every day? Is dry cleaning permitted? Are individual towels and in dividual drinking cups insisted upon? Has the plumbing been inspected; are the toi- lets kept in sanitary condition? Can every child read normal print at his desk with out eye-strain? Are highly calendered text books or shiny blackboards that strain the eyes permitted? Is too much "close range' work given to young children? Are the windows clean, or so clouded that they dim the light? Are the desks adjustable to the height of each child? Is there reg ular instruction in personal hygiene and in the sanitation of school and home? Do teachers receive such instruction? Do children have defects of eyesight, hear ing, lungs, bones or teeth that make school work injurious? Are study periods too long? Are recess and recreation taken in the fresh air? Do all children have substantial hot lunch? Is the walk to school longer than a child should take? Is too much home study given?
 "All this may seem a great deal to think of. but no parent, school board or law has the right to compel children to go to a school that gives them diseases that may permanently undermine their health or manufacture physical defects. So important did one school principal con- slider protection from contagious diseases that he had a culture taken of every Those in whose mouths were the germs of diphtheria, tuberculosis etc., were ex- cluded, not because they were sick, but because they were able to infect other children. This prevented an epidemic in that school for the first time in it's his tory. Mothers, if you find that proper precautions arc not taken to protect your children from contagious disease and phy- scal defects, keep them out of school. Arouse other mothers to do likewise and to interest or coerce your health board. school board, physicians and council to