The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1914-06-11

is easy to be enthusiastic and uncriti
cal; to praise all that happens to bea
the brand of education; and to con
denim all who question any part of tn
system as foes of the whole cause
Today education is proving the pro
verb Faithful are the wounds of
friend" in the persons of those VIII,
do not falter over the conviction O
error in the present method, but d.
not waver in their eternal faith in thu
ideal of education.
Want Better Results.
In the midst of the almost passionate
demand in our own state for retrench
ment, which seems at this moment tt
threaten educational progress, many
men and women of light and leading
insist that what the people want is
better results than reduced expendi-
! lures. 1t is not so much what we pay
| for the schools that troubles us, but
rather the uncertainty as to what we
are getting in return for it. :
1t is up to the friends of the schools,
from primary to university, to get
results and show results. We must
do better with the funds now avail
able, then the people will grant more
if needed.
For the state board of education I
do not hesitate to say that they are
cutting the coat according to the
cloth, and intend for the present to
exact higher efficiency from all the
funds which they control before they
ask the state to increase those funds
For myself 1 am frank to say that
the present ratio of cost between the
elementary schools and higher edu-
cation is unfair to the vast army of
elementary pupils.
Good Judgment Necessary.
Above all things we must not let our
enthusiasm blind our judgment; l
do not know any audience that more
needs to lay this to heart than uni
versity assembly. The old Roman
proverb says that "a great house
makes proud servants" and the uni
versity is usually the great house of
the educational system. Let me say
here, to be repeated later, that what
is wanted from university people is
not pride but service, not sense of
superiority but a sense of obligation,
not a sense of importance but a con-
viction of debt and duty. The univer-
sity has no rights except that eternal
human right expressed in the maxim
"The laborer is worthy of his hire"
The noblest of royal notices is the
ancient Itch dien," l serve. Educa-
let him who would be the
greatest be the servant of all. Shall
a friend of the University of Idaho |
ever be Indifferent to the claims of his |
civic little brothers in the vast far |
reaching primary school? Shall en-
thusiasm for this most conspicuous |
and brilliant of the states education
al houses weaken any mans fidelity
to all the children of all the people?
God Forbid
Education Great Project.
Education from the viewpoint of the
state is a great manufacturing pro-
cess. 1t takes in its raw material,
nodifies it, and sends it out again.
Here are three great questions:
Where does it get the raw material,
and what kind does it select? What
loes it do to the raw material? and
Whittier does it send them out? These
Ire stupendous questions No one
lnows the answer to any one of them,
wen for the little state of Idaho
do we draw our students for
his university? They are the ex-
eedingly few picked in some way
rom the vast many. The dwindling
rmy of Gideon from. to. 80. is
parallel, numerically at least, to the
winding army of youth marching
p through the elementary grades
Will huihUcio oui luhlH6, SuIluhlu6, |
years by years. If all the +
Dung people went to college and c
raduated, the graduating class i
yould fill this hall to the exclusion of +
II the rest of US, and make up twice +
ne population of Moscow in addition. !
We should arrange to have the exer- q
ises somewhat like this: There would n
e a series of sections, each filling the !
all to the exclusion of everybody r
se except the president and the ora
n; we should have to have two sec
ons a day, forenoon and afternoon, !.
I'D run all the week Sunday included. :
he student body of the university it
IF would fill every house in Latah
,unty and overflow literally into the
region. What would the :,
Guilty do then? And the state board :,
education? and the legislature Their :,
Use would far surpass even that of
e historical old lady who lived in
zoe. :.
Fail to Reach the Goal. !,
But, fortunately or unfortunately, =
It all go to college,! few get to high ;,
hool; most of them fall by the way
lie; and only sort of vanishing
inority get to the university or any :,
diversity; then they keep on vanish =
g until, on commencement day we