Daily Kennebec journal., 1913-11-27

of them devotes any attention to the
subject, all confined to personalities,
they will not be published. bat return
ed if the writer's wish them. Our
views and manner of life may not
agree but the cause of making the
conditions of farming household better
is not aided by personal nings. If
these writer's wish to discuss condi-
tions and not each other we shall be
glad to use their letters.
Condemners of Vocational Schools.
Editor Kennebec Journal:
VIII you kindly publish the follow
ing open letter to Or. James L. Nc
Coanughy of Bowdoin College, Bruns-
wick, Me-?
Dear Sir: | saw by the Boston
papers that you recently addressed the
New England Association of School
superintendent in Boston and that
YOU severely condemned the sugar
coated methods of the high schools
and the vocational schools in toto.
l thoroughly agree with you in con-
demning the vocational schools. as ]
have been a condemner of them from
their first inauguration. They have
had many years in which to prove
their ability tn turn out capable work
ers along all lines; but the cry comes
from all over the country that incom-
petents are the product. In Chicago
at this minute 100000 are looking for
work and they have demanded the
shelter of unoecupied buildings fer
the winter
The craze as You properly call it,
for vocational training in the schools
has followed the passage of COM
pulsory education and child labor
laws. These laws having made i'm
beetles of the children, it was plainly
to be seen that work was needed foi
their upbuilding; but that educators
and faddists might hold their own
State work-or 'monkeying'-in
State schools was called for, rather
than work in factories, shops, homes
and on farms. State work, if sue
eessful would prepare the child for
state work all along through life-and
that would be Socialism.
Educators should begin to see this.
Right III your own New England State
of Massachusetts there is just now a
popular uprising against an extension
of the child labor law. Poor people
are finding it is bringing them down
to starvation and that state pensions
are not satisfactory reeompense for
the denial OF paying labor to their
children. 1t has been proven time and
time again by Edward Box and other
investigators that the public schools
kill and injure far more children than
the mines, the factories and the farms.
Yes, DR.. MeConaughy. let US get
down TO something definite. Come
with me and do as | have done in the
New York Globe. the Baltimore
American and many other leading
papers-call for the abolition of the
National Child Labor Committee, with
owen r. Lovejoy as its chief worker.
Call for Liberty and Labor. Some
thing must be done. Governors Cox
and Dunno tell us the high cost of liV-
ing comes from the exodus of boys
from the farms. while at the same
time Mr.. Lovejoy is preparing TO stop
all child labor on the farms, just as
soon as he finishes up the cities.
Perhaps you will be pleased to know
that Gov. Ferris of Michigan is also a
denouncer of vocational schools to
some extent. In part, he writes me;
Il do not advocate with enthusiasm
the turning of our schools into voca-
tional schools in order that corpora
tions and manufacturers may have
better human machines with which 10
turn out larger dividends. Some OF
our vocational enuthuiasts are going
altogether too far and they are strik-
ing blow at Democracy Exactly.
And it is time that you, Gov. Ferris
and all others, who see these en-
croachments of Socialism, cried for a
halt in the child labor laws that are
bringing them.
A fitting rebuke has just been given
educators and child uplifters' IN
Chicago. They were seeking 10
prove poor girls preference for
schools and asked 500 of them, VINO
were at work in Chicago factories, IL
they would not prefer school to rae
tory if their fathers were making
enough to provide for them. Exactly
412 of the girls replied that they pre-
ferred the factory. That should set
tie it, The girls know the grind Oh
the schools is more terrible than the
alleged grind of the factories. Thus
it is that the young people OF the
country yearn for honest toll ana are
too often denied it. They are COM
PEELED to lead idle lives until minus
and bodies revolt at work and vice
is the only refuge. The country must
come my way or see matters get
worse yearly.
Very respectfully,
FRANCIS BUCK L1VESEY,