Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1919-03-15
PRAISE PUBLIC
SCHOOL Result
DR.. Caroline Bartlett Crane Sees
Great Good in System, in Ad-
dressing WOman's Club.

Praise for the public schools Of
n the country. and of the system
III which is making it possible for the
II people of the communities to be
8 reached through the children as
II they are taught in the schools, was
En- emphasized in a talk before the
II members Of the city welfare depart
ment of the Rock Island Woman's
4 club by Rev. DR.. Caroline Bartlett
II Crane, of Kalamazoo, Mich. yester-
III day afternoon. speaking on After
iii War Work for Women"
DIR. Crane not only praised the
4 public school system but also the
Il LOYALTY of the teachers who prac-
Nj ticalIy give their lives in teaching
MI the children, acting as second
HI mothers to them. She endorsed the
II movement granting pensions for
the teachers, and expressed herself
as in favor of higher salaries for
III those noble young women who give
vi SO much.
She advised that the city welfare
Fl department work with the schools
as much as possible, as through the
H children. their mothers can be
NJ taught the true meaning of real
# characterization.
"If for one year" said DR.. Crane,
Fl in speaking of what can be accom-
pIished through the teaching of the
+ children, we would allow our chill
dren to go untaught, we would have
a repetition of the dark ages"
Continuing she said: I'VE know
4 that the capital for bolshevism has
been on the east side of New York,
f and was financed from there. The
children should be made aware of
the conditions in Europe, and the
N public schools are the best possible
means for bringing this about. And
4 not only in the industrial centers is
4 there danger of anarchy but in the
II isolated parts where foreigners
gather.
1.-THE highest taxes have always
been for the schools, and we be
ueve that the people who have not
a child in the school should pay
4 these taxes. The safety of their
property and everything they have
depends on what is taught in the
schools. We have had our system
so long we have grown accustomed
to 1t, and take it for granted. II
4 YOU believe in the schools as l do,
n you should go and see what they
are like, take an active interest in
what is being done in them and the
conditions in them.
You should get woman on the
Fl school board, and when you have
gotten her there see to it that she
does what she should do, and what
you are backing her up to do.
''Women's work is never done.
When the armistice was signed we
were told to stop our work, and we
were Mortified But we did not. Ours
had lust begun. Mems work during
the work was largely emergency
work, which could be discontinued
at any time Their work consisted
largely in the moving and equipping
A of soldiers There was a little for
them to do in the rehabilitation
work, but they had been so long do
ing such noble work, and sacrificing
their own interests, that we could
not blame them when they hurried
back to their peace time occupa-
4 tions. But this was not to be with
the work of the women. We found
ourselves during the war. We found
that there were so many dehclen-
cies in the men who were eligible
for the army, which would not have
been had we done what we should
when they were children.
1.-THE chiIdren's year was one OF
the first efforts put on. 1t started
in April. and was to have ended in
July, but the ending was postpon-
ed. and is now never to be diScOn-
tinued. We realize now that the war
has shown us what we have fallen
down on. and are going to carry on
the work for the welfare and future
of the children of our country, as
a composite motherhood.
Let us begin by considering
what we learned in the war. We
found that approximately 20 per
cent of the men of the country of
army age were unfit for duty. This
leaves only an average of 80 per
cent fit. These men in all their life
had not been looked after as they
should have been, and they were all
somebody's children. There were
only two-thirds as many fighting
men to put in the line as there
should have been. Hundreds and
thousands were found tuberCular
and it was learned in time SO that
many could be cured. Many had
heart disease and were discarded.
These defects were traced back to
children's diseases. This was trac-
ing the causes back to things that
the civic department should have
dealt with, and the failure in the
military program back to everyday
things.
MEN who had suffered with ven
ereal diseases before the war are
coming back better than the men
who stayed at home The military
authorities in fighting these dis
eases have done a wonderful thing.
For the first time many men have
had someone interested in them as
to whether they are polluting them
selves.
I'VE must institute a new pro-
gram of wholesome recreation