The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-08-12
Cleveland, Ohio, August 6, 1910.

Cleveland, Ohio, August 6, 1910.
Editor Burlington Hawk-Eye: l
have just received notice that at the
recent gathering Of the deaf, which
was held at Council Bluffs at the
state school for the deaf, petition
was drawn up and signed by $50 of
the Iowa deaf, to be forwarded to
the state board Of control, asking
that the resignation of the present
EXPERIMENTATION Henry w. Roth
ert-be forced, or that he be not re-
appointed. AS you may recall after
the trouble with the former principal
OF the school charges were brought
against Mr.. Rothert, and during the
investigation that followed they ex-
ploded and Mr.. Rothert came out with
/ flying colors, and after his term ex-
pired he was reappointed for term
of four years This term, believe,
has just about expired, as it was
previous to my marriage that he was
appointed. Under the regime of the
last four years Superintendent Roth
ert has brought the Iowa state school
up to a marvelously high standard.
i The old building, you remember,
| was burned, and the building erect
ed recently is a beautiful one. From
! having once been second rate
school with rather Anticipated sys-
tenn, the Iowa school has been
! brought out of the rut and is regard
ed as wonderfully up to date in sys-
1 tenn and management. Superintend-
ent Rothert, above all else, is bust
ness man and a progressive one, too.
4 All the latest plans in the instruc-
ton of the deaf have been sifted out
4 and the best adopted in his school.
4 A fine course of study-a model one
and one that we teachers were often
asked to send copies Of to other
schools-was brought to perfection
under Superintendent Rothert's guild
ance. The oral method was given a
4 thorough trial, and where it proved
successful and parents so desired, the
j pupils we're instructed by that meth
oG
/ 1t was probably because of this
oral method that the older deaf
of Iowa, who recently convened in
the session of the Iowa Alumni AS
ISOLATION of Deaf, were SO antago-
nized toward Superintendent Rothert.
The older deaf, who were not edu-
Gated under the oral method, have a
blind and unreasoning prejudice
against it, and even the deaf who are
receiving instruction under it which
will prove invaluable to them when
they are out of school and forced to
compete with hearing people, are op-
posed to being taught under the so.
called oral method because 1t UNI
doubtedly is harder and more wear.
ing to a deaf pupil.
Superintendent Rothert is by nc
means a rabid oralist, his school
is classed as a combined school,
where both oral and manual" meth.
DDS are used. The manual method
means instruction by use of the hand
alphabet or finger-spelling, the sign
Language is also used In the lectures
+ and in the school room in less meas
& urc.
q There has always been fierce war
between the advocates of the oral
methods and the manual or finger
spelling methods.
To one who is unprecedented there is
unbounded merit in both methods de.
pending upon the ability of the pupil
Poor eyesight, of course, is an insur-
mountable bar to educating a deaf
pupil under the Hp-reading, or oral
methods as their eyesight must be
extremely good to allow OF reading
the lips. Then, too, pupil must be
taught young to be successful under
the oral method before defects In
voice have developed.
BY the invitation of Superintendent
Rothert this convention of deaf alum
: nj was held at his school, and my re
ports of it from Cleveland deal
boy. who attended it. go to show that
Superintendent Rothert treated the
deaf royalty. In fact, his heart had
, always been with the deaf in much
, deeper sympathy than that of the ay
erage superintendent OF school loi
the deaf for he has a deaf son-a
! teacher now in the Nebraska School
for the Deaf-and 1t stands to reason
that he would understand the nature
and interests of the deaf all the more
for his knowledge of that sons handi
, caps in getting a proper education
In fact, 1t was when this deaf son
Waldo Rothert, was quite young thai
Mr.. Rothert decided to attempt tc
bring about reforms In the manage
ment OF the Iowa School for the Deal
because he saw its faults and finally
succeeded in getting the appointment
of superintendent.
1t scarcely seems possible that poll
tics can have been allowed to entol
In this disloyal and ungrateful deed
of the deaf, who, while guests of
superintendent, draw up paper pc
titioning for his removal. Mr.. Roth
ert was always deep friend of Johr
Cownie, and I have heard vague