The copper era. (Clifton, Graham County, Ariz.) 1899-1911, 1910-05-13
The School Situation in Clifton as i
Look. to the Average Patron
Just Now.
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Clifton has the third oldest school
district in Graham Co., and that is
saying a whole lot, when we come to
go back into the early history of Ari
IONA, to which Clifton dates. The
public schools, and the free school
system of the country should be
sourse of pride to the American Citi-
Gen, and Usually is, wherever we find
them: but we are sorry to find so many
people in our little town who APPEAR
to be asleep to the school interests.
Our last census showed 1900 school
children in Districts Nos and as,
and l dare say this years enumeration
will show even more. With an as
sessed valuation of 81, 740,0 900 the situ-
alton is ours, for the mere takingi
The school levy and taxes for the
maintainanee of public schools being
one matter which our law makers
have not left altogether with the tax
payer, and well enough that they
have not, for the future welfare of
our country, alone, depends upon the
education of our sons and daughters,
to whom we deliver Its keeping: And
we dare say, from among their ranks
will be found-those who rise to promi-
nence, not alone the sons of the tax
payers, but equally as many the sons
and daughters, who, in their early
school days, were dependent upon our
public schools for their school train
ing. --
In this article we will try to show
our schools as they really exist today,
while later, space will be given TO
present them as they should be, and
as they might reasonably be expected
to be found under as favorable cir-
cumstances az we have existing here.
Taking into consideration the
amount of money that has been col
lected, are our schools what they
might be, or even what they ought to
be2 Most emphatically 10. And we
defy any one to produce any argument
to the contrary. We have laws
governing our schools and if we de
not use them to the advantage OF our
children it is Our own fault and not our
peighbor S. Instead of SCRAP piping mong
one another over a few little differ
ences which exist only in our minds,
let the people unite for the sake of
our children, and work to the common
good of all. This is an age when we
are net allowed to stand in our neigh
boris way, the law of progress, which
| llO1Oo liz WI III Will AOl PCT LII
it, and it is right, as has been decided
by the inevitab BILE. 1t Is true that
our schools have been visited by mis-
fortunes. But we believe in
making the best of even a bad stu
alton, and with the true will of man
always giving the best there is in us. 1t
was our lot once upon a time to reside
in a town where a school-house was
three times struck by lightning and
!, burned to the ground, but each time,
: with the true spirit of progress the
: people replaced each school building
with a better one, and today the
young men and women who have
since passed through that public
school, stand as d monument to their
perseverance; at present we. have
fifteen teachers in both schools. Our
census show 1900 school childreni
: allowing 100 who have finished their
school course and are attending other
schools than public, we have 200,
thirty of these are receiving in
structions in the It'll, and Sth grades
! of their respective districts, leaving
11S0, to be instructed by the remain
ing ID teachers; which, if they were
divided equally among them, would
give 80 pupils to the teacher, which
no one teacher can handle and do
: Justice to. Yes! but someone says,
there are not that many pupils at
tending. Well, if not why not? To
this, we will reply; lst. Because we
: haye not the aCCommOdations,2n End we
do not make the proper effort to force
up the attendance, 3rd, we haven't
sufficient money wherewith 10 hire
| teachers.
We all know, or, should, that our
money for hiring teacher9 all comes
| f,-nrr hn hraf
portion of the town we find they are
holding months term while in an
other months. Here again, we wish
to ask if this is equal justice to the
children who are in no way to blame !;
but are the sufferers. Also, we find
pupils away from home enrolled in
rooms which are already over crowded.
Likewise children in the primary
: grades, are comDelled to pass
over the r. r. tracks and through
the streets in order to get to school,
whereas accommoda tions should be
nearer at hand. Lack of unity in
grading pupils who are advanced
from the public schools to the high
school is another source of much con-
fusion to teacher and pupils, also d
great loss of instructive force on the
part of the schools. Again $4,000,
each year is lost in apportionment
to our schools by having two separate
schools, as we'll as extra janitor hire.
Also the benefits to be- derived
from standing together is knowing
that each child is receiving
as much as our nei2 hbors as well as
gain of many a useful citizen that
night be added to our community, see
ling that we had good, well organized
public school system, would
make this their home, only d few of
the ills as they preSelt themselves,
are here given, which might be worse,
and are sure to grow worse with time,
instead of improving.
MOrenci Defeats Clifton in Hot Game.
Morenci defea ted Clifton Sunday
in fast game to 0. Clifton tried
out Pitcher Abbott from Redondo,
Calf. The Morenci bunch took very