The menace. [volume] (Aurora, Mo.) 1911-1920, 1914-01-24

The fifth graders are then sent e
the public school on the back end
Of the lot. Here is 70 be found one
teacher with an average Of some,
thing like 25 10 80 pupils. all boys
These boys are taken through the
eighth grade-dHd tAsir education
4 hHishsd-so far as the local school
Is concerned.
The grades are quite easy and
most Of the BOYS finish az ~ 10 Ia
years Of age. There are in German
town, 80 | am reliably informed, be-
tween twenty and thirty young men
from 10 10 10 years old who wish 10
pursue the higher grades, but they
are prohibited from doing so. A
movement was inaugurated by some
Of the patrons Of the school to Sc
cure the ninth and tenth grades, but
when taken before the school board
no satisfaction was given, and Il was
not till the priest was heard from
that any reply was secured. The
priest was reported as having said,
Eight grades are plenty; when they
get above that they get too smart. "
Thus the matter ended, as the direc-
tors and the county superintendent
refused 10 60 contrary to the ad-
vice Of the "holy father" l saw q
letter from the state superintendent
Of instruction in which he said that
the state Of Illinois is compelled to
supply its children with school ia
oilities up to the age Of l6 years, but
in Germantown, under the rule Of
autocntc Rome, those boys and
girls must 60 away to school or 70
through life with an eighth-grade
education-all because a Catholic
priest says Eight grades are
plenty" and because the officials are
too craven and cowardly to do their
duty by the young people in their
village.
IF Rome Wsre in poper, and hs
entire United States Were ruled as
Is Germantown, That Would be ths
result on the coming gsneratioHf
II is not for lack Of funds that
Germantown has but eight grades,
for the community is comparatively
and the state stands pledged
to supply the villages shortage.
Why, there is a school two miles
from Germantown, in the country,
so l am informed, where neither
geography, grammar nor physiology
has been taught for six years. BY or
der Of the board-this is known as
the "Sendel school," which is re-
ported wholly Catholic.
Here is the daily program in the
public school, as i was informed by
one Of last years graduates:
Session begins at 1880 a. m.
Mass, conducted by priest.
Half-hour one day given to COM
mitting verses in Bible.
Next day half-hour given to cat
echism.
1000 a. m. pupils march TO
church where priest has charge till
1880.
Balance Of day given to regular
studies.
The program in the parochial
school, ] am told, is similar.
When the eighth grade is finished,
the priest, the sisters and the teacher
all have an equal hand in the e1er-
cises, but in the school, as in other
matters, the priest is the power that
rules.
The school lars are not enforced
IN Germantown any better than the
saloon ldUS are.
1 have said nothing Of the pope
of Germantown. His name is Rev.
NJ. Roth. He is about 60 years old,
a native Of Germany and he has
scarcely any English education. He
is ford of face and rotund Of form.
He is autocratic, ruling with an iron
hand; and not often is his advice
questioned. He is said to be quite
Jolly at times and takes "a social
nip" with the brethren-saloonkeep-
ers, at their expense. No less than
three Of his members told the writer
that Rev. Father Roth sometimes
gets spiritually full-too full for ut.
terance-and the instance is told OF
his being so full on Christmas day
that he got high and low mass
mixed, and through his abuse all the
members of the choir but one left
the choir. 1 know there was but one
person in the choir New Years day
and that was the public school
teacher.
Now, l have given MENACE read.
ers as brief and simple a history and
description of a little community
wholly ruled by Rome as / could. ]