Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1919-05-24
Its Activities For Bill Directed
Against the Freedom of
Education.
Government Publications, Daily
Press and Teachers Organiza-
tons Are Used.
The Action of Catholics in England
Against Objectionable
Bills.
PROPAGANDA TO BE OPPOSED.

The interest taken in the propa-
ganda conducted by the National
Educational Association in favor of
revised version of the Hoke-Smith
bill for the creation of a Federal
Department of Education by School
Life, a Government publication, has
been noted. Propaganda for the
bill, which aims at the establishment
of Federal control of schools, is also
conducted in a publication named
Americanization, likewise in the Vo-
cational Summary. Both publica-
tons, it seems. are. devoted to this
same scheme of Federal control of
all education. The comparative
newness of these publications they
are not older than the agitation il
question-and the fact that they are
published from Government funds,
prompt the question: BY what right
and with what money is this pro-
paganda of the n. e. A. being car
ried on in Government publications?
The N. r. A. has also made extern
sive use of the daily press for its
purposes; even the Spanish daily
sings the praises of this most recent
national movement.
In addition to the previously men
toned characteristics of the n. E.
A. propaganda denoting a measure
of fanaticism we must note the I'M
scrupulous whipping into line of all
who, under some title or other, can
be reached. The n. e. A. began a
campaign to secure 10000 new
members in order to obtain money
for the passage of the bill; the as
ISOLATION appointed a Field Secre-
tary in the person of President d.
B. Waldo, of the State Normal
School, of Kalamazoo. This gentle
man is supposed to devote half OF
his time-all of which should be
devoted to his work at the State
Normal School-to the work of the
N. e. A. Here is an item cleaned
from the Detroit Free Press which
illustrates the methods used to
bring the teachers into line:
"Co-operating with the campaign
instituted by the National Educa-
tional Association to procure the
backing of teachers associations
throughout the country for the
Smith-Tower bill. which will be in
troduced at the next session of Con
gress, a Detroit committee to pro-
mote the interests of the measure
has been named by Frank Cody,
acting superintendent of schools
The bill is am amneded form of the
Hoke-Smith bill, submitted in 1918.
It provides for a national depart
ment of education, with a secretary
OF its head. An annual appropria-
ton of $10O,00O,000 is called for,
with like appropriation from the
States.
This item refers to the agitation
carried on in only one State. But
from the plan of the propaganda
clearly enunciated in the literature
sent out by the N. E. A, we may be
sure that teachers in other States
also feel the sting of the goad. These
very methods are a foretaste OF
those that may be expected under
Federal control, when the teacher;
would be mere puppets and tools oi
the Government.
VIII the propaganda with its dis
astrous effects engulf the country
Il will unless a carefully prepared
active counter propaganda is at once
lnaugurated The National Catholic
War Council has sounded a keynot'
in its Social Reconstruction pro
gramme in an important sentence
/ touching upon this danger: "Wi
want neither class division in edu
cation nor a Stae monopoly of edu
cation. The rights of parents, thei