The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1915-06-18

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clean it up an keep it clean.
The speaker dwelt largely on the
deadly work of the scavenger fly and
the mosquito.
We need "a National Department
of Health, with a Secretry in the
Presidents Cabinet Epidemics have
no respect for State rights. Deadly
disease germs abhor geographical
boundaries. We have Department
of Agriculture to look after hogs;
why not a Health Department to
| look after human beings?
8. Your educational equipment is
another of your most important COM
munity assets.
| Are your schools the best in the
modern world? Have you compared
them with schools elsewhere in the
United States and in Europe to as
sure yourselves that you are dealing
fairly with your children?
How much money do you pay your
superintendent? What are the salaries
of your teachers? The average teach
er's salary in the whole country is less
than that of farm hand, and she pays
her own board. Tens of thousands of
teachers in the rural districts are paid
annually less than the cost Of feeding
and clothing a convict in the State pen
itentiary.
No man OF first-class ability will re-
main in the teaching profession unless
he be missionary. The compensation
is too niggardly. Women are being en-
ployed almost wholly, because they are
cheaper. II woman does the work OF
man in the schoolroom or anywhere
else, she ought to have the pay of
man. If she cannot do the work of
man, she ought not to have the job. |
respect women and their ability. I would
open every vocation on earth to women.
| set no limit to their career. But there
are departments of school work that
men alone ought to fill. When boy
reaches the age of fourteen, fifteen, he
ought to be placed under the discipline
of strong, clean, wholesome men, and
kept there through that period. Give
your girls to women and your boys to
men, while they are passing out of boy
hood and girlhood into manhood and
womahnood. Are your school build
ings scientifically constructed? Are they
we'll lighted, we'll heated, we'll ventilated?
Have you ample Fairgrounds for your
children? Are they equipped as out
door gymnasia, and supervised by intel
ligent directors? The play OF child
determines character as definitely as re-
ligion or learning.
Your school buildings ought to be
established local centers, and voting
booths in every political campaign.
School should be taught eight hours
day and twelve months year. Our
school day is too short; our school year
is too short, Five years of boys life
might be saved and better work be done
by him through wise adjustment of
our school system.
The public schools must be related
more intimately to the industrial life
of the community that children may
be taught for vocation as we'll as for
culture.
4. Your municipal government is
the last asset of your community upon
which want to lay stress. Other things
being equal, the town that has the best
local government will forge ahead of
any other. The old form of town gov
eminent, modelled after our national
constitution, with mayor, council, alder
men, etc., is the least efficient and the
most expensive ever invented. 1t has
proved a tragic failure. 1t is based on
politics, stepped in politics, cursed by
politics. Did you ever elect mayor
or an alderman because he was Dem
ocrat or Republican? Why not elect
one because he is baldheaded or sings
bass? The conduct of towns affairs
is not political enterprise; it calls for
expert knowledge and ability of the
highest order. The mayor of Ger
man municipality is educated for his
task in the best universities of the mod
ern world. He is not a politician; he
is an expert. A town is business cor
poratiou and all the people are stock
holders. 1t is doing business along
many lines. 1t is spending thousands
of the peoples money. 1t is frequently
bonding unborn generations for public