The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-02-08
WILLIAMS ACTIVE.
IN SCHOOL BOOK
Plan FOR YEAR
Leads in Move to Advance
Meeting When Books Shall
be Adopted for Schools.

Charles o. Williams, county super
intendent OF schools and member OF
the state board OF education, took an
active part in arranging for the hold
ing much earlier than usual the meet.
ing at which the board shall sit as
board OF text book commissioners and
adopt books for the public schools. &C
cording to Indianapolis advices.
Usually the books are adopted some
time after the board reorganizes May
/. Williams, at a meeting OF the state
board Thursday, introduced a motion
which was carried by the faction,
which does not include the college
presidents. that the board "open bids
for the purpose OF adoption" on April
4. The regular meeting of the board
is on April II, so that the inference
that the opening Of the bids and the
adoption Of books was to take place
within an unusually short time.
In this connection 1t has been point
ed out that the terms Of 8. l.. Scott
and Frank Duffey, appointees to the
board by the Ralston-Taggart admins
tration, will expire April 80. The
speeding UP Of the book adoption. II
such is eventually accomplished, will
result in the adoption of the books
before their votes are lost to faction
which is alleged to control the board
now.
Range In Prices.
Much greater liberty in the range of
school book prices upward Is permit
ted now than formerly, It is said, be-
cause the 1917 legislature repealed. at
the instance of certain vigorous work
ers, q law which provided limit of
Sc on the amount of prescribed books
a pupil might be obliged to buy in any
one school year.
The work of selecting the books and
opening the bids is usually done in &C.
cret sessions, and by an arrangement
which Is said to amount to secret vote
for the books to be chosen. Governor
Goodrich made determined effort at
the time of the last book adoption, to
have the board ballot openly on the
selection, but without avail, for
enough Of the board members voted
against the proposal to continue the
secret method.
1t is said that the effort to bring
about open balloting will be continued
so that the coming adoption may be
freed from some of the suspicious
which are SSH to have surrounded
the last session.
Adopt Standard Books.
Another measure in which Williams
took decisive part was the decision
to adopt standard text books from
which to teach industrial arts and to
adopt standard text books from which
to teach home economics.
Last fall a special committee re-
ported in favor of deciding on text
books for these subjects, which drew
spirited opposition from the four col
lege presidents of the board, who said
that few IL any other states in the
Union had ever prescribed a fixed
course of book study for industrial
arts and home economics.
The fight was carried to Governor
Goodrich, who was suffering from an
accident at the time, with the result
that the matter was dropped tempo
rarily.
viii Determine Cost.
At Thursdays meeting the propo-
sails were forced through, however,
with opponents of the plan assuming
an attitude which one of them ex-
pressed as Whats the use to object?"
since they are out numbered by
friends of the proposal These includ-
ed principally members of the COM
mittee that recommended the adoption
Of the texts at the former board meet
ing. and also s. l.. Scott, H. G. Brown,
c. o. Williams, r. U. Graf, and L. p.
Benezet, all superintendent Of city or
county schools.
The books for this new plan will be
contracted for along with Ave readers,
one primer, two arithmetics and six
copy or writing books, the contracts
for which expire at the end of the
present school year. The board Of
school book commissioners virtually
will determine the prices OF the books,
which may be new ones or may be re-
adopted. They will be used by pu-
pills in every public school in the state
and the book company or companies
that obtain the contracts, prize them
highly for the sale Of the books will be
large.