Americus times-recorder., 1920-05-12
-. WHAT THEY SAY
CURRENT COMMENT
UF The PRESS
Some Things Being Talked and
Thought About
MORE ARouT TEACHERS
"WHY bother with education? -

| Md1 DOJnof WIN eQucdIlOu. .
w teacher is reported to have ex-
claimed in disgust when she, getting
$12 week, watched the $2-a-day
hand scrubbing the floors of the
building. Bet she didn't say it, says
the Savannah News. If the salary
were all the teachers are concerned
about, if the amount of money they
get or hope to get in their calling is
the objections, the inspiration of their
lives of consecrated effort-there
wouldn't be any teachers. There are
some teachers who are more in love
with their high profession than with
the measly, meager pay they get.
Which is no argument for holding
down the salaries, however.
The above paragraph is reproduc-
ed from the esteemed Savannah
Morning News. 1t was intended to
stress one point ,to-wit: that we
should have higher purpose in seek
ing an education than to make money
from it, and that we should have
| higher purpose in our work than
merely getting money from it. That
/ is good.
The twelve-d dollar-a-week teacher
and twelve-dollar-a week floor clean
er coming fact to face brings to US
another thought Suppose the hum
BILE floor cleaner had been able to
read the thoughts of the teacher and
had inquired: ''Who made you su-
perior to me? Bv what law do you
claim higher wages than l receiver"
Of course the reply would come
like flash that the teacher had
spent years of study, and a lot of
money" preparing to teach. But sup
pose the floor cleaner had replied:
While you were busy with your
books eight hours a day | was busy
working for your father ten hours a
day, and the money that paid for
your education, was it not made from
my labor and from my Fathers la
bor?"
But the teacher would say that
teaching is a higher order of work.
1t is the work of the professional and
trained mind. Moreover, it has to do
with the development of the mind
and character of children, and con-
tributes to the advancement of civili-
zation. Before education there was
no civilization, and before civilization
there was no jobs of scrubbing. Peo-
pie lived in huts and srubbing had
not been invented. Your work is de-
pendent on my work.
The wielder of the scrub brush |
might well have answered to that:
"My work pertains to health and san
itation. My fellow workers produce
the meat and bread, and the homes
and the raiment that contribute to
the health and comfort and happiness
of the educated Is education more
than life? Is development of mind
greater than preservation of health?"
That would open up rather broad |
field of thought and discussion, and !
the teacher and the floor cleaner
would have been unequally yoked to-
gether in such a discussion. The |
teacher might have decided to end
the argument with the simple state |
ment that he was doing the work that
very few were prepared to do and the
law of supply and demand if there
was nothing else, would decree that
he should have better pay for his work
than that given in the ordinary marts
of labor where the work required
could be done by unframed hands and
by men and women of unlimited sup
ply.
The floor cleaner, if he was dispos-
ed to continue the discussion might
retort that ''the charter of our gov
ernment and the law of our God
teaches that men are born equal; that
is, they are entitled to equal chance
in life. Then all men are entitled to
an education, and if man performed
his full duty to his fellow man all
men and women would be educated,
and then the easy jobs in the office
and school room, store and factory
would be the jobs for which the mass
of humanity would apply, and the
scrubbing jobs would be filled by
specialists of physical strength and
humbleness, and would not these de-
mand higher pay for the work they
were especially equipped for doing?"
The teacher could end it all by
walking away, but he would probably
go in a meditative mood, and he
would try to figure out to the point
. of decision as to whether or not he
would, if he had to prepare for life
again, go through tire comparative
ly easy processes of preparing him
J self for scrubbing floors and digging
bitches, or whether he would apply
himself to the drudgery of going tc
school and developing his mind for
school room and office work.
We find ourselves winding up Just
where the Morning News wound up,
with the thought that all of the above
is no argument for holding down
teachers salaries.-Moultrie OBJ
server.