Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1910-11-22
oregon HAS SPOKEN
A WESTON VIEW OF THE RECENT
NORMAL SCHOOL VOTE.
Editor Clark Woods Prints Spicy Ed
itOrial Telling Oregon What
He Thinks of 1t.
weston Leader.l

election in oregon IS amazing, vet
convincing. 1 am amazed, because
never had a moments doubt that all
three schools would win. I am con-
vinced-convinced that Oregon con-
tains more blithering bone-heads toI
the square mile than could be collect
ed by combing with a muck rake the
entire region between Kalamazoo and
Timbuctoo.
Who am I, that hath waxed so ar
rogant and presumptuous? Wen, L
was secretary of the Weston Normal
campaign, and now "concede my de-
feat" by somewhere between three
thousand and six thousand votes. l
am publisher of the Weston Leader. |
began as "roller boy and in the
course of twenty-five Industrious
years have worked my way around
the Washington hand-press until l
now manipulate the lever. You see,
speak with some authority.
The occasion of this letter is the
re-appearance of the bald and de-
crepit lie, by way of an editorial obit-
uary, that the Oregonian has used Tor
twenty years. After the defeat of two
of the schools, it says again that they
were local high schools" I am re-
signed that they should die, but not
that theX should be buried with this
slander clinging to their shrouds.
When hit between the eyes by the
fIn WnGfnn
Normal had a registration of 275 nor
NAL students only 10 per cent of whom
came from Umatilla county and the
rest from seventeen other oregon
counties. It had a complete training
school of 100 pupils. In it's faculty
were eight teachers who came from
leading iversities-including yale
and Harvard and our own oregon
University. 1t had $4,000 MAIN
building built by the state and well
equipped from top to bottom. 1t had
two dormitories and campus con-
tanning ten acres of ground presented
by the town of Weston. Its boarding
halls and six rented cottages were
overfowing with out-of-town students
None of these things were or could be
true of '1ocal high school,"
The Oregonian charges again tha'
the normal schools were constantly
"log-rolling" and constituted 1egls'
latiye scandal" 1t is true that they
had to fight for every appropriation
which never amounted to more thar
one dollar. where Washington gave
four dollars to it's three normals; pu
as President Campbell has tersely oo
served, they were generally under
the log"
Whenever they began to grow the!
were pulled up by the roots by an III
ouisitive state. They cost the towns II
which they were located thousands o
dollars when these towns had N
more concern with them than TN
state at large and should never nav
lbeen required to contribute cent "A
to legislative scandal, I again chai
Ienge the Oregonian to specify SIN
g,o instance wherein the norma
schools carried a vicious measure
defeated meritorious measure.
never has. 1t cannot now. 1t has kille
the normal schools by years OF per
sistent and merciless mendacity'
The victory of Monmouth afford
some consolation to friends OF euu
cation throughout the state. Yet IL WI
ha more than five years before TN
Monmouth normal can graduate
single trained teacher, unless IN
course of study is shortened, and D
that time Oregon will need the pr'
duct not only of one or of three MOI
mails but of half a dozen. Thoughtli
educators know now that what sa
70 true and a thoughtless public Wi
/, find II out. When the hard-fisted Sc
of the soil "bucked" because ne woul
: have to pay the cost of a good cls'
, annually for three normals tor eVe'
thousand dollars of his taxable prol
/, ertv-the appalling sum of IL cent
: a. 10 ouite exact-he virtually decla
. ed that an eighth-grade graduate WI
i, a third grade certificate is go'
n enough for his children; and TINS
about all the country districts VIII g
: NTH the cities constantly recruitll
= ,ha hest teachers. Not many train
q teachers from other states are ap'
y come TO oregon. with Washinston a
california paying better wages.
truth. we are losing some of our o"
: and are likely to lose more.
- There Is a rift or two in the clou'
= lane county gave handsome mac
q itv for all three schools, and 90
rasret the work I did in behalf OF I
= Irniversitv Of oregon when its appi
! nriation was raided by the refer'
ANN crowd. Several other west'
IN counties showed a progressive sph
wbile eastern oregon barely support
i,s own school. But to Jackson eoul
- soutbern oregon belongs the pa
a. for rolling up the biggest vote
- o,lv for the Ashland school--but
III ,hree And this reminds me q
a bo,b Ashland and Weston were libe
40 enough to recognize the fact that IN
=, scbools are needed. while Monmo
- snn,orters kept their own and NJ
.
- otber in view. 1t evidently pays
N ~paddle your own canoe
he Nultnomah county virtually
=. r,ca the one-school proposition
g,vinr a big vote TO Monmouth an
, Sir, one 10 Ashland and Wes'
"a Frankly. am disappointed 100
!. % wultnomah to save all the norm
a. "a n did the University Of Oregon
y stead. II has endorsed the one-norl
a., wbich obtains in but seven Of
states q the union
Portland was right. perhaps. N
ssr-ing that eastern Oregon need
W. t..,.b auvlurn more than Il need
ing ,o-nsi. but "a overlooked the
~ ,--e.ser need of Marion ] note an
iay ,s--o-nal vote of three 20 one q
on nat county. I suggest that saieii
-. 80 a. the srpsnss % the state
is -.-v.-tss into an asylum large enc
IN - ne entire county. and Tor 2
.so-.1 seiegztions q imbeciles
~, s-a c1ackannas and old fnla
d. T-.-ehs might be located under
Inf - for the beneht q the -
no. uhieh has sprOuted lately .
leg crop q hri-fies