Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-08-19
Enrntng Glrat

Indications are that the first big
convention for Harrisburg's new
hotel. the Penn-Harris. will be what
is expected to constitute the most
important gathering of the educa-
tors or the state since the adoption
of the school code of 1911. 1t wilf~
be the meeting of the State Educa-
tional Association the last week in
December this year and the program
already being made up calls for gen.
eral discussion of the school situa-
ton in Pennsylvania. which has be-
come serious in dozens of districts
because of the shortage of teachers
and the rising cost of supplies. The
campaign for consolidation of rural
schools has been halted in some
districts because of inability to get
building materials or the expense
under present prices, while in others
cost of transportation is causing
worry to the officials in charge. The
State Board of Education recently
launched a movement for an in
crease in state appropriations which
would make the state aid about one
| fourth of the cost Of conducting
certain branches, which will be
/ NeANSiA up at NdIiouS EOuIlly anu ClJy
educational meetings this fall, while
a renewed agitation for the state to
pay the minimum salary has been
started in rural districts. The State
Association has been meeting for
more than fifty years and some of
the leading educators have been
among its presidents. The sessions
just before the legislative years are
held in Harrisburg and this year
] I1u 30 hA s,,k, a.
| Assembly convening in January will
be the principal themes of discus
sion. There will also be numerous
meetings held by educators who are
| connected with specialized branches
which are organized under depart
ments and representatives of school
directors and officials will attend.
One of the signs of the times
which can not be overlooked in the
farming regions of Dauphin and
Cumberland counties is that farm
ers, and even their wives and fami-
lies. are at work until late on Sat
urday afternoons. Saturday after
noon has generally been regarded on
the farm as a time to slack up and
to get ready for Sunday. but the
shortage of labor and conditions call
for more and more work and on
many a farm on Saturday men were
working and boys were doing their
share. The farmers say that they
are going to be hard put to gather
lapples and peaches this year without
help from cities and towns. Some
have profited by the loss of berries
and are willing to have city folks
pick ION shares" for the gathering.
The extent to which the Thrift
Stamp has entered into the money
affairs of the average American may
not meet with approval of some
churchmen, but 1t seems to be rath-
er deeply rooted. Saturday after
noon at a ball game two young men,
and not of the type that bets on
various incidents in a ball game,
watched two mines contending and
instead of wagering a quarter or a
dollar that a run would be scored
or a fellow would "die at second"
bet Thrift Stamps. And both OF
them had plenty of them in theH
pocketbooks. There are some poker
games known in town talk where
Thrift Stamps constitute the medium
and the gentle pastime of betting on
whether passing cars have odd or
even terminal numbers with Stamps
as the stake is said to be practiced.
At the State Legislative Reference
Bureau they are specializing on
whether Jim" Moore. the erudite
chief parliamenta adviser to the
legislators and court of last resort
on statutory enactments, will make
good on his vacation. Mr.. Moore
has been taking cat-nap vacations
for some years, which means that
he has been around most OF the
time. This year he started away to
take what he called "a real vaca-
ton" and has been gone ten whole
days. They are wondering whether
he can stand the strain of two weeks,
or even three.
! Harrisburg is commencing to get
some idea of the extent of the war
preparations by the long trains of
trucks which pass through the city
almost every day. 1t is said that
over 2,000 have passed over the
i bridges and out the Derry street
pike in the last two months. Fifty
in one day is not uncommon. Yes
terday one of the largest seen and
made up mostly of officers cars and
cars for moving headquarters went
through and gave some people an
excuse for "cutting church" The
train came from one of the southern
camps for the most part, with a
number of new cars sandwiched in
to be broken in.
The advice of Fuel Administrator
Ross A. Hickok to people to give
attention to the woodpile for use
in emergencies this winter is being
needed by many people very literal
ly. sAnd the wood-cutting industries
in the mountains north of the city
are benehtinR There is a LOT of cut-
ting going on on various tracts and
some of the material not being used
in the mill operations is being gath
cred up and sent to the city's deal
ers in wagonl@ds. The supply
seems almost inexhaustible. but the
price will probably go up.