The Detroit times., 1912-08-06

GLOVERSVILLE, n. Y, Aus. b.
hid vnu ever hear of Gloversville?
Well, you ought 10 KNOW ABOUT
Gloversville. II is interesting In
number OF ways. For instance, II Is
the metropolis OF the cheaply paid
I. glove industry. 1t is the capital or
the glove trust. Also, and most re-
markable OF all, the public schools or
Gloversville manufacture human ma
chlnery for the glove trust
II Is a great experience land you
should have kodak TO pass through
the quiet streets OF Gloversville ana
see eray-haired grandpas and grand
mas at the windows. making gloves.
II It's between meals, there viii be
mothers and other home bodies on
/, the porches, making gloves. You see'
when a town has only one Industry
and all the manufacturers in That In
dustry unite 10 keep wages down,
everybody In the family has TO pitch
In TO help on the high cost of living. ,
But In Gloversville they go a little
farther than that-even the little chill
cren In the public schools make
gloves!
And why. you ask, must the little
children be dragged into this pursuit
in those first. fresh years when they
ought to be learning just beautiful.
useful things that will help M them
for things above glove making, II pos
sible.
Well. there are three answers
which YOU can pick up in Gloversville.
Here Is the first one-from Supt.
James A. Estee, who represents the
viewpoint OF the public schools In
this amazing situation. where public
schools are training pupils to enter
! one trade, and are teaching no other
trades.
I'VE have established our vocation
al school," says Supt Estee In his re-
port. because, as Gov. Foss OF Mas
sachusetts has said, in the lack OF
such training we find one fruitful
cause of many aimless careers which
can lead to nothing shat Is good and
must tend to swell the number OF our
ineffectives
Here Is answer No. 2:
This Is from Lucius ~ Littauer,
head OF the glove business In GLOW
ersville. Littauer. who was once
congressman and Is a millionaire, ap-
peared not long ago before the ma
tional ways and means committee
with arguments which persuaded that
committee to increase the tax on
women's and children's gloves.
"Of course the manufacturers asso-
citation Is for such training" says Lit
tauer. 1--WE aid II all we can. We
need helpers and the pupils need
work when they get out of school"
And here is answer No. g.
This Is from Leo Grinnell. Socialist
member OF the board of education:
Pressure OF the manufacturers has
established a glove making course In
the public schools because they want
to get the cheap, efficient help CT the
yery young and they do not want to
bear the expense of maintaining an
apprentice school for those who are
DESTROYS OF entering the glove trade.
Grinnell was elected to the board
OF education for two purposes-to
work for the introduction OF free text
books in the schools and for abolish
ing the teaching OF glove making to
pupils.
Before I said anything about II at
the board meeting" says Grinnell, i
made a personal Investigation and
found that of the $50 pupils who had
elected to take this two-year trade
course, but a very few took il be-
cause they wanted 1t. Nevertheless,
they were all learning glove making.
II found that the great need here
Is the installation in the schools OF
real vocational course where such
things as carpentry, machine shop
work, dressmaking and domestic sci
ence can be taught The pupils who
have technical bents long for such
things.
They say to me:
eve don't want to learn glove
making. We all know what nasty,
poorly paid trade It is. We want to