The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-10-28
Continued from Page Five)


boots at s12 to SIS and all other articles
of wearing apparel at proportional cost,
it becomes difficult to figure out a
dress allowance. Teachers have been
criticized because of their clothes. The
experienced shopper knows that quiet
mplicity is expensive. SO the teanher
must pass by the plain tailored Suit
of conservative cut, beautiful texture,
subdued coloring and serviceable ma
terial and must buy what her salary
Justifies, namely, garish color, or ex-
IRENE style. The time honor state-
ment that all men are entitled to life
liberty and the pursuit of happiness. is
not applicab BILE to teachers The shah
Oily dressed teacher is cut off from
pract y all social pleasures. She is
reiuct,...t to appear among well-dressed
women and often is not asked to do so
Moreover she has little opportunity of
meeting much less knowing well known
men of her own social and intellectual
class.
Social welfare work is the next item
OF necessary expense. During the past
three years the calls upon the general
puphc Tor funds for various enterprises
nave peen so numerous that giving has
become automatic. But had you ever
thousht what part the teachers played
IN this patriotic service? Had Won
earn and give. the Junior Red Cross.
the French orphan relief, etc. were
made possible by the elementary school
teachers? 1t has come to be recognized
That II thing is to succeed in reaching
the masses it must be launched through
the public school, the only medium that
reaches every class, every age eyery
color. every sect. Teachers cannot urge
children to contribute unless they lead
the way. we protest against salary
so mea ger that we are denied the priv-
ilege of giving as literally as we de-
sire we gave what we could in money.
our pitiful little sums, and tried to
make up by the loving service the
deficiency, remembering
" Not that we give but what we share,
For the gift without the giver is bare.
do you know that when the cam
paign for the Alabama memorial to
soldiers of the great war was launched
teachers were told that So was consid-
cred as little as any teacher would be
expected to contribute? We did not re-
spond; we could not! Church obliga-
tons must be considered as the next
item. This too is a privilege we will
not be denieA but often we are expect
ed to contribute very liberally-for are
we not teachers, do we not receive sal
aries, while many church workers re-
ceive no salaries? No, they only spend
the salaries of their husbands!
"(2) Comparison with salaries of
other city employees.
COMPARISONS MADE
We protest against the injustice done
us when this comparison reveals such
facts as these:
The minimum annual salary of
patrolmen is $1,000, of firemen 1920, of
sanitary inspectors $1,000, with free
transportation on street cars. The
minimum salary of teachers is $3.50, the
maximum received is $1,000. with no
transportation. We are not Directing
to these salaries received by these men;
we are glad to know that $1,000 is the
minimum; we wish it were more. But
we do feel that the general public is
not to be blamed if it almost uncon-
sciously classes the elementary teacher
with her salary equals, namely, the
street sweeper, So a day $500 a year,;
the, ditch digger, SO a day. the garbage
collector, SO a day-and even these en-
ployes ride on the city wagons.
1--WE resent the implication, gentle
men, but after all money talks more
effectively to more people than any
other medium. and in these times of
allstoo-recent peace man is known by
the salary he gets-and so is a woman.
go. Docking of salaries.
1--WE protest against the docking Of
teachers salaries for absence caused by
illness We protest the more in that
in the educational system the only peo-
pie who are locked for absence of any
kind are the ones who can least afford
to lose even half a days pay.
"a. Recent raises in salaries.
I'VE protest against the recent discrim
inatoin against elementary school teach
ers We are informed that since sala-
ries were set and contracts signed in June
certain high school teachers have re-
ceived a salary increase We protest in,
that we accepted our salaries in good
faith and intend to keep our contracts
in good faith-but We do feel that if any
additional funds were available we should
have received our proportional share,
since we are the ones upon whom the
high cost of living falls most heavily.
In in ma vii