The Progressive West Virginian. [volume] (Williamson, W. Va.) 1911-1913, 1912-10-17

rive ICdTS contract Mdue tut oSHoo'
Books For West Virginia Children
at Prices Higher Than Are Paid
For the Same Books In Other
States.
Now THAI the children have all
started to school again, and a new set
of books have been provided for each
OF them, the head of the family begins
to wonder why it is that the same old
books, which were good enough for
him and for his wife and for the older
children, are not good enough for the
younger ones and why the changes in
books come with such frequency and
with such expense He probably con-
tinues to wonder without knowing the
answer, for it is not every one who
understands the ways of a Republican
legislature and the reasons for its &C.
lions.
The fact of the matter is the school
book publishers are constantly en-
deavoring to have their books adopted
and can afford to pay the men in their
employ literally to have the books
which they publish selected for gen
eral use. At the session of the legis-
lature in 1909, the Republicans being
In control Of both branches of the leg
islature and a Republican governor
being in office. a law was passed pro
vfding for the appointment by the gov
eEnor of school book board and pro-
yfding that the books selected by this
board should be in use in the schools
of West Virginia for period Of five
years commencing July I. 1912. The
board selected practically an entire
new set Of books for all the schools
and made contracts with the publish
ers for these books to furnish them to
the pupils of the state at certain
prices
Change Costs Million Dollars.
The census returns for 1910 would
indicate that.sthere are*in West Vir-
ginia at the present time at least $780,
600 families. A conservative estimate
OF the cost OF the new school books Sc
lected by this board is at least four
dollars family and most teachers be-
lieve this estimate too low. Assum-
ing, however, that four dollars fam
lily is fair average Of the cost of the
new books, and that there are 25O,O0
families in the state, the total cost
to the pupils Of the schools Of the
change of school books will aggregate
one million dollars.
Believing that 1t was unjust to inn
pose an unnecessary cost Of this pro-
portion upon the heads of the families
in West Virginia, the Democratic
house of delegates in the legislature
of 1911 passed bill deferring until
1914 the time when the new school
book law should go into effect, hoping
that in the meantime conditions
might arise which would enable them
to repeal the law making the change
In the books This bill deferring til
date when the books should be
changed, was defeated in the senate
by Republican senators after the
house had passed it by large ma
jority.
Persons well versed in school mat
tiers did not hesitate to disclose the
pointed on this school book board to
select the books were in the employ
of certain school book companies. 1t
is also stated that a prominent poll
tician, whose influence was brought
to bear In the selection of the books,
openly stated that one of the com
panies whose books were selected had
been a large contributor to the cam
paign fund and should be rewarded
Prices Raised In West Virginia.
Whatever the influence may have
been, however, resulting in the selec-
ton Of an entirely different set Of
books from those already in use, one
fact is certain-that in many in
stances, at least, the contract price
agreed upon for the books in West
Virginia is larger than the price at
which the same books are sold by the
same companies in other states.
For example, one OF the books
adopted for use in West Virginia is
Montgomery's Leading Facts in Amer
lean history For Is years the con-
tract price of this book in Indiana has
been G5 cents, covering three different
contract periods of five years each.
From 1896 to 1901 the same book was
in use in West Virginia and the con-
tract price was SIS cents. Under the
new law of West Virginia this book
was adopted for use beginning July |,
1912, and the contract price as agreed
to by the board is 1916 cents. This
means that every West ). Virginia
school child who studies American
history during the next five years will
have to pay 30 cents more for the his
tory than PUPILS in other states pay
to tie same company for the same
book
Another instance of the difference
in prices is found in the case Of the
readers. The Jones Readers were
adopted fer use in West Virginia. the
contract for book muir Der one being
25 cents, while the price liz Indiana
for the sanre book is 10 cents. The
price Of the Second Reader is 81 cents
in West Virginia, and l. cents in In
diana; the Thii Reader Al cents n
West Virginia and rs cents in Ind
ana: the Fourth reader Al cents Ia