The Weston leader. [volume] (Weston, Umatilla County, Or.) 189?-1946, 1917-02-23
THE FINAL CHAPTER

. houSt, was pasSeu ny the state sen
ate Friday evening: This wa
done despite the fact that major
!. ity Of the committee TO which !
; had been referred reported agains
the measure. Much work had bccl
done in It's behalf. and the South
; crn Oregon. Multnomah count,
! and Polk county senators were line,
up for il.
The Sheldon resolution submits :,
the people bill to bc voted W OF
at the next general election proyid
ing Sl25.00o and one twcnty.fif,t
Of a mill for each of two normal
schools one of them at Ashland ir
Southern Oregon and the other al
some point in Eastern 0rcgOh "a
be named by the state board Of
regents after the measure carries.
II Weston where the state owns
a normal school plants not SC.
lected. then the town which is
granted the plum must donate a
suitable site TO the state.
No illusions are entertained here
as to the effect Of this measure. II
is intended TO eliminate and will
eliminate Weston permanently ms a
normal school factor. Although Or.
egon owns a s75. 900 normal school
plant in this community. il will be
abandoned for all time. Weston
delegates to the normal school con-
ference held in Portland last Dec
ember advised Mr.. Sheldon-rcprc-
sentative from Jackson county that
they and Weston were opposed 20
any such measure. Circulars were
sent to every member Of the lcgis-
lature voicing Weston's opposition,
and photographs were sent Of every
building embraced in the Weston
Normal plant with the truthful
statement that this plant is ade-
quate for the normal school needs
Of this section of the state and that
of mill would be am
pie for its maintenance. One-for-
tieth Of mill would. in fact. have
given the Weston Normal twice as
much maintenance money as It ever
received before. although when
,losed in 1909 ii was the largest s
FORMAL school in the state. q
Had there been any idea Of re- !
opening the Weston Normal it ]
would have been named in the bill. i
I should have been named in the :
ill. Weston is as much entitled to
normal school as Ashland. II is v
urrounded by a richer farming ter a
itory. Nearby are many rural G
chools requiring teachers. With
he aid Of closely contiguous dis. "
riots Weston would be able 70 fur g
ish 300 grade pupils, If that many c.
ERE required for a training school. n
In the campaign Of 1910, when
My the Monmouth Normal was
istaincd by the voters. the Weston =
ormal received many more votes =
IAN the Ashland Normal. In the II
lmpaign Of 1914 it again received 81
any more votes than the Ashland IN
ormal. In the face Of this proof 70
at the first mentioned is more in 81
'pular favor, the Legislature -
mes Ashland for re-establishment ~
It ignores Weston. This in itself S''
sufficient evidence that the Wes- Ie
n Normal is marked for final cx- u
lction.
Weston is out 0f favor with the
'rominent educators" Of Oregon wa
cause they are obsessed with the COZ
s~town normal idea. The state PIT
ucational machine is now and al sul
ys has been opposed to the Wes-
Normal. II was through the
luence Of this machine that "
Of educators was sent here "e
or to the 1909 session Of the leg,
Iture 10 make sn unfayorable re. .
t Of the Weston Normal; al. his
ugh it was then the largest nor nni ,
In the state. PCy theGsme rea- maj