Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1915-12-15

proposal being received with an I'M
prejudiced mind. Compulsory attend
ance and consolidation of schools are
two things that have had and are like
ly still TO have determined opposition
in the rural parts of the State although
the edge of that determination is fast
being blunted More and more
thoughtful parents and custodians OF
children are coming to see that one
of two things must be done. The
scheme of public education must be
broadened and made more effective or
the great aims it has had for the past
two generations must be lowered or
abandoned The work of public edu-
cation cannot remain stationary. Ii
must go forward or retrograde.
Everybody agrees that through the
public schools, the greatest benefits
of government permeate all society.
Once it was maintained that the State
had no right to take money from one
taxpayer TO educate another's child.
Not a dozen men and women. in all
likelihood, would rise in Maryland to-
day and seriously revive this argu-
ment. How many others would seri-
ously listen to it? Public education is
the one policy of state and national
governments that is most firmly fixed.
We may differ as to the real worth of
the school curriculum; may want more
or less manual and vocational train
ing and all that; but it is the settled
and unanimous policy of the State that
all its children shall be given the same
benefits of education out of the public
funds. Expenditures for public schools
wisely and economically made, are not
going to be lessened. Instead. they
are going to be increased, when neces-
sary. Of course the people will insist
that whatever amount of the public
funds that goes to education shall give
a dollar in educational value received
for every dollar spent.
Herein lies the kernel of the present
situation. We spend money literally
for buildings, teachers, administration
textbooks, equipment. But we are now
just properly recognizing the fact that
the chief source of waste and extrav-
agance in the public school system is
the neglect of parents to take full ad-
vantage of facilities afforded. For a
brief period in winter, our Maryland
country schools are pretty well filled,
but this expensive system is maintain
ed for several months when the at
tendance is very small. The people
insist that the authorities shall pro-
vide ample facilities for the whole
school population at all times during
the school year and this must be done.
but this parent or that unthinkingly
or wilfully keeps children out of
school who should be there
Now, what do we find from the care
fully collected figures of the club wo-
men of the State? Our taxes for the
schools are apportioned on the basis
of school population under the United
States census. This takes in all per-
sons between the ages of FIVE and
twenty years, and last year, we are
told, the school tax was apportioned
on an enumeration of 252.0S1 school
children in the counties The highest
enrolment was 1876 OF course.
there is bound TO be a large discrep-
ancy between the federal school popu-
lation and the real number of public
school children in Maryland While
it is the purpose of our present imper-
feet and ineffective attendance law
that all mentally competent children
between the ages of eight and four
teen years shall be enrolled in the
public or private schools, and that
those below the age of sixteen, unless
regularly and lawfully employed to
labor at home or elsewhere" shall also
he in school. this purpose is far from
being accomplished The average at
tendance last year was only 105,003.
Here we have over $4,000 public school
children enrolled who were not in reg
ular attendance Surely such condi-
ton as this calls loudly for remedy
The remedy is rigid compulsory at
tendance law, and the coming Legisla-
ture cannot evade or escape this plain
duty
Let me say that | am one of those
who feel strongly upon this subject
There is merit in the contention OF
many fathers and mothers. especially
on the farms, that they need the serv-
ice of the boys and the girls in the
busy seasons of the fall and spring and
that they train them in habits of indus
try and usefulness. There is merit
too. in the contention that in many
cases, the growing boy or girl in the
teens is compelled, under conditions oil
today, to become a wage-earner. One
can hardly blame the majority of pa
rents-good, straightforward people
raised themselves. many of them, un-
der adverse circumstances, it may be
for resenting compulsory school
attendance when it was first presented
to them some years ago. But admit
ting all that may be said in this behalf
point has been reached in the pub
lie educational progress of Maryland
educational progress of Maryland
where the State must take the problem
in hand without further delay. What
rs the controlling reason for this
Well. it is not far to seek. / think
at this time the first grave consider.
alton to be brought forward is to be
found in the fact that.as to the mass Of
children. the elementary schools are the