Pocahontas star herald., 1916-01-21
An Open letter TO The People Of
Randolph County
wv. A. Cummrngsl }

iH' N'HllhaHt note OF tue present
day is preparedness Not only
is this true m the military activities
Of the world, but m every phase Of
our complex life. The question
that is nov put to every aspiraut for
any position in the Political, the
Commercial, and the Educational
Realms is not "Who were your
parents?n, or "Where were Won
born!", but "Are you prcparedg",
aud "Can you do the work." Even
the up.to.date farmer is no longer
satisfied with the employee whose
agricultural knowledge extends only
to the "bull.tongue plow" aud the
"twister", but he wants a man who
knows the soil aud the conditions OF
productive plant life aud who can
extract the greatest contribution to
his wealth from the forces Of nature.
The one department of our intn
cately complex civilization that has
for its sole mission the preparation
Of our citizens for the efficient per
formance or all duties Ia the school.
This being true, all other depart.
ments Of our work will prosper ac
cording to the support We give our
schools. Then should not every
loyal citizen give his support to the
school? Ienter a plea for every
school IN the county.
My especial purpose IN this arti
Gle is TO lay before the people in
this part Of Arkansas their response
bllites to and the benefits to be de.
rived from The Maynard Academy.
This Is not an appeal for personal
support neither Is il the wall of de.
SPAR Personally you are under no
obligation TO me. / am prepared
and well able to take care Of myself.
Neither is the school IN danger of
dying. We have been tried in the
fires and we are going to live. /
pledged my word that we would
have a school here this year aud we
are going to have IT if we have only
two students and those my own
boys. | am here to stay. didn't
come here defeated man and am
not defeated yet. / am and shall
speak of the school as an institution
belonging to the people Of this
county. If 1t prospers they will
receive the benefits, il It fails, they,
not !, will receive the injury.
FIRST, | shall speak of the benefits
TO be derived from the school.
Cast balance of your assets.
What do you owe to this lnstltu
ton for the present wealth of the
county? ! am not speaking now
of dollars, but Of character. Look
into your Official life, look among
your merchants, lawyers, doctors,
and bankers. Look 1t the roll of
your teachers. Make list of the
wide awake thorough going farmers
who are contributing to the pros,
perIty of your county. How many
of these got part or all of their
training IN the school in cOnsidera.
uon? How much would you be
impoverished il these assets were
removed and III their stead you had
unprepared men? Does not school
that has given so much to youl
country merit the support that il
needs to insure It's prosperity?
Were the facts of the preceding
paragraph the only things we have
upon which we might base a CLAIM
for your support, ] would not remain
with the school another day, bu
would fold my tent and like th,
"Arab silently steal away" Tn,
old mowing-blade was valuable ant
served our progenitors faithfully
but 1t has been sentenced to til,
sorap-heap because we have some
thing better, the Self Binder. Hav
you anything better TO take th
3 place Of this school in your educa
tional eauipneni? The peopl