St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1911-11-29
Those political" Meetings.

eve do not know that there is any
law against any state officer taking
an interest in politics. On the con-
trary there is reason why every cit
izen should make an effort to see
that the right kind of public SER
wants are chosen and desirable
measures promoted - burlington
Free Press.
conceded by everyone and ques-
toned by no one. On the other
hand the state official should be
above the suspicion of having con-
verted what should be high grade
educational meetings, with trained
educators for speakers, into a species
of political vaudeville. -
The Messenger will credit this to
''Exchange' because it is hardly fair
and the author if it, on second
thought, would be readily willing to
admit it.
The suggestion is, first, that the
so-called educational or New YER
mont meetings that have been held
throughout Vermont for the past
six years under the direction of the
Hon. Mason S. Stone, state superin-
tendent of education, should present
simply Grained educators for the
speakers and discuss only technical
and pedagogical subjects. The Mes
senger, for reasons that may suggest
themselves to some of the newspaper
fraternity and perhaps a part of the
public of Vermont, will not attempt
to discuss this matter from an en-
tirely unbiased or disinterested view
point. Probably nothing that this
paper could say would quite disabuse
the minds of some people of the no
ie
strictly true. But The Messenger
will do this. 1t will propose to any
critic of Mr.. Stones propaganda that
a canvass be made of the school
teachers and school superintendent
in the regions that have been visit
ed by this vaudeville" performers
and their own honest opinion asked
as to whether it would be wiser to
make these public meetings merely
technical and pedagogical clinics, or
whether Mr.. Stones method of at
tempting to popularize the public
school question is the more practical
one. This question need not be de-
bated a moment. The Messenger
will be perfectly willing to abide by
the decision of such a canvass.
And it will remind it's critical
friends that may make it, that, while
the school teachers and school sup |
erintendents have their own techni-
cal and professional meetings to at
tend throughout the year, the real
fault of the public school system, the
real drag upon the more satisfying
success of the public school system
is not with the teachers and super
intendents, but with the parents and
taxpayers at home. These are the |
people, the great moral and econom-
ic force behind the public school,
that superintendent Stone has been
trying to reach through the past six
years. Ask the school teachers if .
he has succeeded.
So much for that. Now for anoth-
er word in connection with the re-
cent newspaper comment upon the
incident referred to in the follow
ing editorial paragraph from The
Rutland News:
f'The News was the first paper to
point out the unfairness of criticiz-
ing Speaker Howe's appearance in
the Greater Vermont meetings, .
held by the state superintendent of
education, because of the Benning-
ton mans possible candidacy for
the lieutenant-governorship. The
state press generally is taking up
the theme in harmony with The |
News utterance and such considera-