Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1911-04-28
MEMORIAL OBSERVANCE
SPIRIT OF THE DAY SHOULD BE
TENDERLY OBSERVED.
State Superintendent Alderman Urges
Teachers and Pupils TO Render
Fitting Tribute.

State Superintendent of Public In
struction L. r. Alderman, in sendin
out the program for Memorial day b
the schools throughout the state, ha
launched a movement to bring the OBJ
servance of the day back to method
more in keeping with the sentiment
which prompted the creation of th
day.
Mr.. Alderman believes that the OBJ
servanee of the day has degeneratet
into something too much akin to q
carnival, observes the Salem States
man. He believes that there ought to
be one day in which the Nation should
remember the sacrifices made by those
who responded to the call to arms
when men were needed to preserve the
Nation.
The following letter which his Of
flee has sent out with the programs
explains in detail Mr.. Alderman's
ideas of bringing Memorial day back
to its real purpose:
Spirit of the Day.
Il send you this program with the
hope that you will do all within your
power to instill the minds of those un-
der your charge with the real spirit of
Memorial day. 1t is one of the most
sacred days we have. 1t gives a great
opportunity for you to drive home the
real lessons of patriotism. / am sure
you have observed in history that gen.
erations following national upheavals
have sometimes forgotten the lesson
learned at great sacrifice. 1 have not
iced that in too many cases our schools
have given their attention to athletic
sports and plcnics on this day.
81 suggest that If there is an or
ganization in your locality of the G.
A. r. or of the o. ~ c., that you in
vite some member of either body to
the school the day before Memorial
day, and that you make the offer long
enough beforehand to cooperate with
these organizations to the fullest ex-
tent. If your school is in a locality
where there is no G. A. r. or o. N. G.,
! ask you to have the school decorate I
the graves in the cemetery, and on {
the morning of Memorial day. go as {
body to the cemetery and there hold {
suitable exercises. / hope you will do
all within your power to see that ev
cry child under your control takes {
helps to beautify the cemetery. {
For the Unknown Hero. c
81 also suggest that if there is a
river or stream near your school, that /
you have some suitable exercise, and =
throw blossoms upon the waters in the c
hope that they will cross the grave of Il
some unknown hero who died at SCI p
'Also, let me suggest that you have a
your pupils provide the people of your
locality with a sprig of evergreen, so
that all may wear the sprig in memor!
Of our dead, and that you do every a.
hing you can to make this as univer A
sally done as possible. o-
Il know that the teachers of Ore II
son will be very glad to cooperate in in
his matter of patriotism, and will et
make a real effort to show that we er
appreciate what the G. A. r. and gf
,thers have done to give us our free on
ri
THE members of the G.. A. r. are al
asst passing away and we now have an tn
opportunity to show them that we ap- of
reciate their great service to our M
ountry. While the G. A. r. would er
OF claim this day as belonging to in
lem alone, let us in our observance of tr,
lis day do special honor to them so
lat they may feel that we are worthy
the sacrifices they made for u.s."