The Adair County news., 1911-10-11
WHO'S TO BLAME?'
Some Kentucky Scho-l Superin-
tendents Make but u a Day.
EVEN PAY own POSTAGE
But With These Pitifui Salaries They
Must Put Up Bonds as High as $780,
o0o-Averase Territory Is Hundred
Square Miles.

Does the blame for school conditions
lie at the door of the county superin-
tendents or the people at larger
Many county superintendents receive
salaries of $500 year. and none Of
them receives more than $500. When
q man has salary of $500 he is Of
necessity forced to do something else
or starve to death.
No stream can rise higher than its
source. No underpaid man can put
energy and thought into his work. In
one of the fertile and prosperous coun-
ties OF Kentucky not many miles from
Cine matt, o., ! had an interview with
a county superintendent whom ! kne.
to be Give wire" eGucationaIIy. My
first question was.
"How responsible does the public
consider your position?"
DO you mean as measured by m,
salary or by the bond am asked to
sive?"
"Your bond"
"Well. ! have to 7ive bond of SEQ
ooo You see. have $4,000 to pass
through my hands annually to finance
the fcTty-six schools that are scattered
over the county. Besides. the school
houses with their equipment are an in
vestnent Of about S55.0O0."
"You say scattered over the county
How much territory does it covert"
"This is rather a small county. but
my schools that ! am forced TO visit
cover territory of hundred squar
miles, and they are on many kinds
roads. II IS quite a proposition to su
pervise the work of sixty-five teacher
in forty six schools, to say nothing O
the Office work and the INSPECTION tina,
is necessary for repairs and new build
ings."
] was silent for moment, thinkino
of the probable salary that would be
paid a manager to take charge of a
business with $4,000 in the plant
spending $24,oc0 a year running ex-
penses and covering a territory of a
hundred square miles. I smiled and
asked quietly:
what salary does this county allow
WV wi yOdI "OIN as SOAFISJ SGDSFln-
tendent?"
"FIvE HUNDRED AND TEN DOL
LARS"
"Oo the county ard state allow you
an adequate expense account"
He pulled pocket notebook from
his desk and smiled rather bitterly as
he said:
"They do not even pay for the stamps
or stationery in my Office work. Let
me run over this for moment and
show you how it goes. must keep a
horse and buggy or canno' get
about. As this county has never taken
over the turnpikes | must pay my own
toll. If ! am far from home in winter
time ! must stay all nieht at some
hotel. All this makes my expenses for
the past year $3.50. leaving me at the
erd. of the year $3.50. That's LESS
TITAN A DOLLAR A DAY FOR ABB
SOLUTE WORKING TIME"
"What is the highest salary paid
county superintendents in the state?'
"Fifteen hundred, and they are few
and far between. There are lots Of
them on the s4o0 and $500 basis. and
do life insurance, farm a little, take a
place in a store, make a living in some
way and then use what time he can
spare for the schools"
1T SIMPLY MEANS THAT OUR
RURAL SCHOOLS ARE NOT Ma
AGED AT ALL. THEY ARE MOI
COMMONLY MlSMANAGEO.
Education for the mass GO the. e.. =
pie is an investment and business
proposition. With a carefully edu-
Gated population state or commu-
nifty can move forward ira desert, any
where YOU place them With an H.
literste population the finest country
on The giobe cannot force them to
make o-o-' Brains. trained brains. is
the ;nsstrrt col q the twentieth CEN
fury Does Kentucky hear that call?
Business and prosperity follow brains:
acy kentucky will be out of step with
the onward sweep of the hurrying
twentieth century so long as she al
lows thirteen children out OF every
hundred to grow into manhood and
woma Manhood robbed of the divine right
of being able at least to read and to
write.
In order that Kentucky may occupy
a place in the forefront in the matter
of education, a movement has been in
auourated for the Improvement of
county schools.
Indifference due to failure to. ap-
preciate the real value of education is
one of the very serious obstacles which
have confronted every movement to-
ward a higher standard of educational
work. In the last few years greater
interest has been exhibited generally
over the state, indicating in a decided
manner that our people were shaking
off the Iethargy Of the past and were
aspiring to place the state on a sound.
progressive educational basis.
Every citizen must rejoice over this
awakening, and all should now unite
in continuous, earnest effort to atone
for neglect Of the past. II would be a
useless task, in view Of this growing
appreciation Of the Importance and
-e >I.,~>xs~. A. L.