The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1919-12-03
FUEL s 5iri iTIoN IN DENisO 81

ms 5liiRi SITUATION an henson crows
more intense from day to day. What
was II possibility In the way of q short,
age of coal a short time ago is now a
verify and every one almost without ex-
caption appreciates the gravity OF the
siLuation. The cold wave, which a day
oiTtMo ago sWooped down upon us but
aggrAsa tes the situation. Every day
finds JUS nearelsa coal famine and ar
cues IN favor Of reater economy in the
J fuel. S5s ST
Some Of oilr peope console themselves
with the idea that we have not had q
coal f1nineHup TO this time and as, there
are perhaps d number OF tons Of coal on
ll;iiad. therefore no occasion for antici-
RATED trouble, while those more con-
serrative appreciate the fact that it will
not tio to wait until the last car load Of
coal is consumed before an effort of
retrenchment in the use OF coal is de-
nlanded. . -.
a strong effort has been made to in
.duoa the school board to favor closing
the public schools temporarily at least.
JIp+to this time all efforts have proved
unayailing. and the school board refuses
10, listen to the appeals of a large ma
jority of the people who recognize that
the, coal supply is rapidly diminishing
because the schools are not closed. The
fact that the wages of the teachers will
20 ON. if the schools close seems to be
the argument of the school board in
keeping the schools going. They say
that the pay roll amounts to so much
a month and that the taxpayers Of the
. city will not allow the payment of the
salaries without teachers being employ.
ed IN teaching.
These people seem to forget that it is
liable to become a question of maintain.
ing the public schools to the prejudice
of life and health of our people.
If the coal on hand can be conserved
by strict economy the electric light
plant can be kept going as we'll as the
pump station which supplies the city
with water. When it comes to the
health and life Of the community the
public schools are Of little consequence
and should be given little consideration.
If the schools should be closed for a
short time it would result in nothing
more disastrous than retarding tempo
rarily the education of our children,
which could he made up at a future
time. but if the coal supply is exhausted
to the extent that there is not enough
left.in the city to furnish proper heat
for our people and they suffer in con
sequence, this presents calamity
which cannot be overcome. . l..
The point is made that the city could
have had a sufficient amount Of coal to
have prevented this emergency If the
authorities Hdu ordered coal III time.
The point is further made that the
school authorities had foresight enough
to order a large supply of coal. This
has nothing to do with the situation
which confronts us. The fact remains
that the school authorities have control
Of a large amount Of coal which may be
useful in maintaining the comfort and
lives of many families in Denison and
as long as this is true this coal must
be kept in order to insure the life and
health of our people.
We fear the school board Is inclined
20 take upon itself credit for LAYING in
4 large supply Of coal and to make that
an excuse for holding onto it regardless
of what the consequences may be to the
public ut large. We certainly think
they are to he commended for their
foresight but We also believe they will
readily recognize their obligation to de
vote the fuel on hand to the homes and
essential industries.
In other cities like Omaha. FIT. Dodge, !
.Des Moines. the public schools have been !
closed and treated as they should be as
important but not as important as some
other agencies in the community. If
the coal famine continues and human
beings suffer because of having been
denied coal which has been used TO keep
eile public schools running. those who