Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1914-02-24
PUBLIC SCHOOL
SUGGESTIONS
County Superintendent Hodge
Has Good Ideas and Makes
Them Public
CONSOLIDATE DISTRICTS
More School and Fewer
School Houses. Is Keynote
Of Hodges Advice

NUN EOANO, feD. Io.-AIIcr =
visit extending over week and in
Guiding all the Wishkah valley, Coun-
ty School Superintendent Hodge has
returned a great boomer for that sec
ton of country Speaking of his trip.
Supt. Hodge sad
"1here is quite an apparent effort
being made to develop that valley
There are a good many families in.
there now and the community is grow
ing. Many of the families are foreign
ers-Polanders mostly. We are try
ing to induce that class of people to
go in and improve our lands for agri-
cultural purposes-and they are doing
it, too. Now certainly, while they are
developing our lands we want them
to develop into good citizens, and to
bring that about we must give them
the best we can in the way of schools.
"At the present time there are four
school houses in less than township
of district a. None of them is more
than two and half or three miles
from the other. There is a. demand
for another school. Two of the schools
are fairly decent and roomy school
houses. The other two are Just
shacks-one an old bunk house and
the other rooted shed. Each school
has from ~ to IA pupils. There are
IS in all.
There should be one three-roOm
school building and three teachers
to take the place of the proposed five
schools and five teachers. It should
be located about in the center of the
Observation-Disclosures at what is call
ed the Landers neighborhood.
mo, don't think it would be
much of a saving in money. Possfb-
ly it would cost little more to start
with. here would be two less teach
ers but it would need about three
wagons to bring and take home the
pupils. But, it could then be made
up to date with modern appliances
and first class teachers.
81 want to tell you that 1 believe
the giving Of first class schools to
such neighborhoods as this-modern
schools, with appliances to teach ag-
riculture, manual training and other
modern branches-is as important as
the settling of the country. Those
are an Industrious people and it de-
pends upon us to make good citizens
of them.
Il talked the matter over with a
good many of the people and found
considerable encouragement. In fact
only one man seriously objected. How
ever, to make such a project feasible
l will have to secure the coopera-
tion of the commissioners in seeing
that the roads are made passable
to carry the children to school. Some
road work is laid out in that neigh
borhood this year, and possibly all
that is needed, although the people
up there are not certain they are to
get ridge for the East Hoouiam
road to connect with the Wishkah.
Such bridge would, If the schools
are consolidated, be necessary, and
there is one other small bridge tina.
would be needed"
Mr.. Hodge. in speaking of the high
cost of schools, today said:
1T is true our schools are costing
US too much-for what we are get
ting. But the problem as it appears
to me is not SO much to cut down the
amount we are paying for schools as
to increase the efficiency of our schools
so that we will get value for our mon
ey. From the talks I have had,
believe most tax payers do not be-
grudge the money they are paying for
schools when satisfied they are get
ting their moneys worth"
Mr. Hodge is not certain that the
consolidation of districts-the redis-
tricting of the county into fewer dis
tricts-will mean less money raised
for school purposes, though he does
believe the burden of schools will be
more equitably distributed. For in
stance, the district "a, under discus
sion, has valuation of $1,411,95O. 1t
has four schools and a demand for a
fifth. and IS school children. In other
words, there are $21,722 worth of tax
able property for each pupil in the
district. Adjoining this district is dis
trict u, with valuation of $820,192,
one school and four pupils, one of
them being an Aberdeen child. This
district has $205,048 of taxable prop
erty for each school child.
But, more important than q saw