Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1916-06-01
voLuME XIX.
NUMBER 80

REPRODUCE the following very in
teresting dispatch from Jefferson City
to the Republic, dated May 10:
The eighth annual convention of the
County Superintendent of Public
Schools closed to-day,
More money for the support of the
schools, more free textbooks and the
enlargement of the high school sys-
tenn were the chief need emphasized.
D. W. Clayton, statistical expert in
the Office of State superintendent
Howard A. Gass, delivered an address
of instruction as to the reports re-
CURED annually by the department
both from the County Clerk and the
County superintendent.
Thomas j. Walker, Rural School In
spector, submitted figures showing
the number of illiterates in Missouri
to be slightly in excess of 111,O0O, or a
fraction more than 4 per cent OF the
population.
Walker advocated the establish
ment of "moonlight" or night schools
for adults. The convention Endorsed
this idea and it will be tried in
many places in the State.
Resolutions adopted indorse the
following:
A new State Constitution in which
there will be no restriction on the
development of the public schools.
The Missouri Federation of Com
mercial Clubs and its propaganda for
general betterment of Missouri.
Bankers and others providing funds
for testing seeds in the public schools.
Teaching of agriculture in the
schools.
Formulation of a code of ethics for
the teachers.
The antituberculosis campaign and
sale of Red Cross seals in public
schools.
Familiarization of the pupils with
the Bible.
Increase of salariesfo second-grade
certificate teachers from $40 to $50 a
month and salaries of first-grade
certificate teachers from $50 to $50.
An amendment increasing the mini
mum tax levy fer school purposes
from 40 to 65 cents on the 500 valua-
ton.
Our friends, the school teachers,
are too modest in their requests-not
to say, demands. They seem to have
the world by the tail-why not swing
it around to some purpose? The
removal of constitutional restrictions
in the levying of taxes and the bond
ing of school districts may be all right,
SO far as that goes, but why stop
there? Why not go n step further
and do away with the burdensome
and inconvenient and sometimes OBJ
structive privilege of voting on these
propositions now held by the people,
whose sole care and duty-so far as
the sacred cause of Education is con-
cerned-ought to be epitomized in the
word, "pay"?
Not they to reason why,
But simply pay and die,
when the exigencies demand-that is
to say, the school teachers. The
resolution asking the familiarization
of the pupils of the public schools with
the Bible meets with my most hearty
(though of course, untrained) ap-
proval. What interest it would lend
not only to the school, but to all of
us! To properly and fully familiarize
the pupils with the Good Book, it
would have TO be read and discussed
from every point of view and faith
one-sided familiarization would not
and ought not be tolerated. But this
may easily be avoided. Let the Book
be discussed by ministers trained to
their sacred calling: To-day, a Catholic
priest; tomorrow, a Methodist; and,
successfully following, a Baptist, a
Presbyterian, a Rabbi, etc., etc. Even
so, there will be kickers, | know; but
we can only do u best, and let it go
at that, unmindful Of them. Some
mentally half baked individuals will
contend that the school is out of its
rightful province; that the church and
the home should have exclusive
jurisdiction in matters of faith and
belief and worship. But they are old
fogies, or perhaps worse, seeing these
things not as we do, but as through a
glass darkly. Wen pray for them
and pursue u "onward and upward"
way in love and charity to all the
world and a new and n-restrict-
ing constitution.