The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1918-03-30

ed layman had any right TO form an
opinion on religion, and they would |
not realize it now if the layman had |
not insisted on obtruding the realizer
upon them. Emperors, kings and
princes do not think they are a priv
LEGGED class. They think they have
divine right. Leave anything in the
hands of family, clan or class for
time, and they will not look upon it
as privilege but property.
Mr.. Crimson says of teachers: "Yes,
indeed, they are privileged class.
Privileged to put years of hard work
into preparation for training your
children and saving them from ig-
norance and depravity, privileged to
pass most rigid examinations and
conform to most exacting conditions,
privileged to toll diligently with OBJ
streperous young America and to
meet in a diplomatic manner the
whims and in many cases the unreas-
enable and unreasoning notions of ola
America, and all this in many cases at
less compensation than the common
est kind of labor receives. Yes, sir,
they are privileged
Now, then, we honor the teachers
very highly; we know the world coulo
| believe most of them deserve more
pay than they receive, but in COM
parison with other classes they are
neither overworked nor underpaid.
The principal of the Ocala high school
receives $1,000 a year (and earns ev-
cry cent of it, for about eight months.
| He is a fair specimen of his profess
sion. He has four months of his own
time in the year, good deal of which
he has to devote to study to prepare
himself for the next term. But with
all that he has more spare time of his
own and better pay than the average
man of his age and standing. His
assistants receive from $50 month
up. They earn it all, but they are
better paid and not so hard worked
as women and girls in other callings.
Men school teachers do not work
nearly as hard as farmers or mechan-
les, clerks, bookkeepers and others in
their rank in life. And they are on
the average better paid than the men
in those avocations, except the me-
chanics. And mechanic has to go to
/ school of his own as exacting as
that the teacher goes to, and one that
always requires more work, and gen.
orally more risk to life and limb.
With women school teachers, the
school room is generally only step
ping stone to matrimony. They are
almost always attractive and by the
nature of their calling better able to
manage man than anybody but a
trained nurse. If you see a lady
school teacher over thirty years old
and single, you may be pretty sure
that she has refused a dozen or more
men and is absolutely welded to her
profession. Women school teachers
receive less money than expert steno-
graphers or telegraph operators, they
receive as much as telephone opera
tors or the higher class of clerks,
they receive more than shopgirls and
factory girls-and they do not have
to work as hard as any of the others
named. True, they have to study, but
studying is not as hard work as bend
ing over typewriter or a desk or
standing behind counter or by a
machine. Beside, teacher has a
number of social advantages and priv
ileges that other working women do
not have. In comparison with other
professions, the teachers do very well.
! AS for their guidance to the chill
dren-well, yes; but a child who
hasn't good home, or good friends
outside of school is dependent on his
or her own character a lot more than
on the teachers. We have heard a lot
| of that "guide, philosopher and
friend" stuff commented on with lev
| ity by scholars, some of whom after
ward became teachers. And of truth,
there was much more of the real
thing in the old days when there were
fewer studies, and teachers and pu-
pills were closer together, than now
and we think Mr.. Brinson will bear us
out in the assertion
In speaking of the obstacles teach.
ers must surmount, Mr.. Crimson for
gets that they are in a sense state Of
= ficials and that the state aids them