The Springdale news., 1913-01-24
Drom ti,e Deople
LongfeiIow Writes r.o,n Oklahoma.


 Clara, Okla, Jan. s0-Dear Edi- tor: 1 must have your paper. Two months' fasting is al, 1 can stand. l want to hear from Don't Worry, that grand old South Springdaler; and Celsius, the good roads, reform CT; and Evelyn, the dictionary student; and-all the others. Yes, and above all things (pardon1 want to hear from Whitener. Have you correspondent from there now?
 Enclosed you will find one dol lar and a half for the five hundred -or more-letters you are to send me from the above mentioned; not to speak of the many clippings from border county papers and synopsis of your views teditorialiy of the many legislative. and other. ealam- ities that so frequently beset us. Please remind yourself, ill the meantime. that this order does not come directly from headq quarters, and that you will obey only to the extent befitting our respective po- sitions of authority
 I should like to tell my Arkansas friends how like Oklahoma This is my fourth term teaching here and I like the people and country better each year. like the edu- eational system here especially well. The state uniformity of textbooks is a feature which consider com mendable in any state and think Arkansas should adopt 1t at once. We have a State Board of Educa- ton here, who receive bids from the book companies that desire to make contract with the state. The company making the best bid gets the contra. which provides that that company shall have the exelus- i've right to sell school text books in the state for period of five years. Al present The Oklohoma Book Company of oklahoma has the cont act TEis company sells thru the agency Of one book deal CT in each town throughout tie state The price is marked on the back of each book by the Commis- sion, after publishers wholesale price and the two commissions have been figured, and the result is that our school books here cost Us much less than yours cost you in Arkan- sas. Then, again, If q family re- moves from one county to anoth- CT, dad doesn't have to go down into his jeans for new supply of books for his dozen or 50 of kids. and though 1t is toss to tie book dealers at large 1t Is big saving for dad and he's number one with most of us poor folks. And ;, still again. when 8 teacher has qual- flied himself for teaching and has familiarized himself with the text books Of our curriculum he is ready for work anywhere }n the state, and when he goes over into the next county he is not handicapped with a lot of new text books. Fhe teachers Of Arkansas can readily understand and appreciate the ad- yantages of= State Uniformity ln thls respect.
 l am teaching now in Mcintosh County, some tReny=two miles south of Muskogee. Am just in the edge of the timber for which I am thankful and Deart the thriving Ht- tie city of checotah Ip fact I go to Checotah almost every Satur- day-everybody else goes and I must go if l want to be recognized as an 0klahoman.
 l don't think l am chronic knocker. but l do believe if the farmer here would buy the land they till, (instead Of renting all lie time) raise less cotton and more cow-peas, corn and alfalfa; stop buy ing their food in tin cans and pa per bags; devote their energies to intensive rather than extensive farm ing;-if they would do this with will, why We would have one of the finest countries farmer ever lived in. But, still, We have, as 1t is, an excellent country and I. for one, am proud Of the mistietoe State. .
 IOngfellow