The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1913-11-09
Book Reviews
sShs Wez'is al the sfasel school, by
u. u. isggisssazi AID Robert W,
tsraesv. seasi,salGf Si.ta, Harper 4
xs..,siassAe. sSss,,.- St...A.

1s.ot4assRt -sSN ASsNN.e
III the thNasnhds st unsoifish, use.
n fni people whe ase striving directly
]. aAsd snaIrepsis to help the cause Ok
I e4iueatiea la the tiltisea States viii
fss.a thle ahsA, q ssveu -inesue stride
ss4s be sahsn tawefds sewing tAs pfvsas
L icra of the rural eehee3, Indeed, eae
ss44ssss 60 ga &ar "a ia saw that tbs
Sasanaa hs2p4v Ne IL actually tAe hsS
ITO tlie situation, The day all ut It's
ssssettsoax ere followed aaa It. latec-
A-a-S s.3.ttt ~ enthusiasm IT, felt in
i all tae highways end hTwaTH of the
ssnd VIII prove q b3esrcd day 4or the
II sceuntyy hoy and the country girl Nay
saego. ti VII prove = blessed day toy
ssssaS y 2ese = Ga+!e, s.acv the rural
school. iaefv sAaa any other one ia
4 ktEsfueat acSpTdlHg To the authors.
~eentrol the feed supply IS tho ma
uea~--the foundation ~ our spiritual
~ yget IS car pAysicai isfo,"
II should aot be tatetGrd, however.
"a tisaa Ivsssz. EgHloston and RrucrQ
Rosat OF; al easy path to those who
,awuuld aearsen 70 their advice, ana
lerd helping hand Ia the rural
school Thoir volume might almost
he styled militant s!gce 6: mentions
phs.ac3r aftsg obstacle ana difficulty
gSteT aatneulty. which must be over
come by hard. hard Knocks The
charm OF the work. however, lies ia ljs
!nyigerat1ng optimism and IL the cea-
Edence with which the authors write
OF the future, They know that the
world Is Elled with uarrowuess ana
fogyisrza, and that IN every commuu-
fty there Is "a disposition 10 shy at
Innovations and progress. but, 'fiKura-
lively speaking al least, they would
take the foSses and the o5struCtonlsts
by the nape Of their pecks and throw
Is thera aside.
y 4Hzzs.t
child ts-~or should be- everything
Some idea Of their views along the line
indicated may be cleaned from this
stirring paragraph:
lit Is otter said that the child
is the nations greatest assets.
This may or may not be true. The
child is raw material; he IA only
possible asset, potentially In
citizenship. lie becomes an asset
when he has three qualifications
health trained ability and "a liv-
Ing desire 10 serve the State"
In these lines we ind the pith and
marrow Of the whole book, though
the details Of the subject are splen-
dsdly worked out in the succeeding
pages.
OF pedagogical and educational lit
erature the twentieth century, young
as 1t Is, has had no lack. And a dreary
pile Of stuff the bulk OF Il Is, too,
with little or nothing Of the inspira-
t.oaal In Il and didactic plauudes
heaped on one another until the reader
staggeTE, or, what Is better for him
drops eff into uneasy sleep. But
the Egg!eston- BrueTe book Is neither
wearssome nor soporiferoua 1t is hui
man and brisk aggressive and con-
stractiye; practical and helpful: slim
ulat.ng and inspiring; "folksy" and
intimate. II concerns YOU and 1t con-
Germs me, II would hitch education
ug with life." and make the country
faaool the first stepping stone lead
. ing on and on and on 10 the great
ocean Of LIES experiences,
Esgleston and Bruerc--we wish we
ru-7.1 identity ttlrfr =rTaratG -uTTtTf=---
buttons to the volume--are tremen-
Gously In earnest. %aught will satisfy
tslem but na0on-wid awakening
thai VIII make tho rural school and
j las work what the authors think it
should be. In their volume they
9nveaten and they plead, they cajole
'aFsa tney entertain, they cite inspir-
Il ing examples OF what already has been
I accomplished and they demonstrate
What magnificent results may be at
tanned.
The book also offers It's quota II
ar eeotes and incidents whilo It's epi-
/ grams and eloquent appeals in be-
nsl2 OF the rural folk are "a trumpet
s,Gais TO action. THE Work of the
+ Rural School in shcr-. IS written SO
that he who runs may read Its con-
vincing literary style even when most
foroeful and earnest, is simple and
unaffected. The book Is sincere. And
/ being SINCERE IL is effective. Verify
there is no estimating the good il with
do.
Apparently, the authors have treat
, ed their theme from every possible
a
/. question that thu inquirer may pro-
pound. It would not be fair to say
that the volume is statistical. since that
adjective now suggests something al
most repelian' though the work as
suredly contains Il wealth NJ solid in
h formation interviewer between its
,s4glore discursive paragraphs or inu-
mlnating figures, 1t has a plenty. bu'
they are artfully presented and serve
to cllnch the arguments OF the writer's
After an Introductory chapter de-
scribing the growing interest in rural
education and offering some startling
facts concerning the decline in agri-
I cultural production the subject matter
is unfolded in thirteen charters, cap
~iioned as follows The Community
Survey; Health Of the Child; school
Government and the Course of study;
Widening Outlook of the Rural School;
FGe-operative Demonstration Work
Demonstration work Through the Ru-
ra! School The School Plant, Some
Neglected Factors in School Equip
ment; Consolidation and Transports
ton; The Teacher Who is the Citizen
Maker; First AID to the Citizen Maker; y.
The Opportunity of the County SUI
perintendenti The State superiuten-
3ent 81 Public Instruction.
As eager as Messrs Egqlcston and
sEruere are 70 hitch education up
with life they ara not drunk with
unitarian Ideas about education nor
30 they cry avaunt "a the "humani-
ties They see no reason why the
cultural" and the practical studies" =,
should be al war We beiehknthetst :,
Should he at war. We like the way =
athcy nave put this paragraph
To isolate the cultural" studies / a
In one school and the pre- ctical" :"
II studies in another ia a distinct ;,
menace to our democracy Each
needs and must have contact with -
the sym patty and the help OF the =
other, Our practical activities
need 70 be permeated with IDEAL =,
+ lsrn: our ideals need 70 be crystal +
HEED ,nto concrete results. The :
efforts 10 S4psrate the two GRE