Carthage courier. (Carthage, Tenn.) 1913-current, 1920-02-19
Last week the National Child's Wei

Last week the National Child's We'll
fare Committee, under the direction of
the Rockefeller Foundation Fund, spent
three days in Smith County making
a survey of our schools. The work
began on Tuesday and was concluded
Thursday afternoon after members of
the committee had visited every school
that was in session in the county.
There are many good things to come
from this survey and Sup. E. L. HUFF
fines is to be congratulated upon being
able to secure this work, or rather
have Smith County included as one
of the ten counties in the State in
which surveys are to be made. The
chief advantages are that when these
people complete the surveys in the
state, they will prepare and make pub
lished records of the onditions of the
schools visited Pamphlets contain
ing the reports of conditions found
in the schools of Smith County, for
dnstance, will be printed and dlstrl-
buted throughout the county, and
from this report the pepole of the
county may learn the condition of
their schools as they really exist. All
the good points and all the bad ones
discovered in this survey will be noted,
and, to be sure the true conditions of
the schools could be ascertained, the
visits by the Committee were made
without any warning to the teachers
or patrons, and since no preparations
for the visits of the Committee,
they saw the schools as they
really ara. AS heretofore brought out,
the Rockefeller Foundation Fund has
thousans of dollars at its disposal
for the purpose of lending aid in
bringing about better school condi-
lions throughout the country and it
is not at all improbable that the sur
vey will call for portions of the fund
to be used in Smith County. Those
in charge of the survey at every
school visited made a complete and
thorough examination of teachers,
pupils, buildings, grounds and out
buildings, and those interested in our
schools eagerly await the published
report of our school conditions.
We call sharply the attention Of
farmers and taxpayers generally to
an article from a recent issue of the
GAINESVILLE Leaf Chronicle, reproduced
in another column of the Courier. 1t
relates to the new assessment law, and
the article is strong in its approval
of the law. The opposition of this
law is fast disappearing and when
the people fully understand it, they
Will heartily approve II. r or years
every we'll informed man in the state
fully appreciated the need of such q
law, but timid and time-serving poll
ticians were afraid to enact it, and il
remained for Gov. Roberts, the most
fearless and far-seeing governor the
state has ever had, to take the lead in
this matter. He had the courage to
shoulder the responsibility and to
meet the situation, and while his &C
tions invited some temporary criti-
.cism, he is about to be indicated il
his course, and in the years to come
he will be acclaimed as one of the
states greatest benefactors. The
states finances were allowed to lapse
into a deplorable condition, due to the
faulty and unequal tax laws, and much
financial detriment resulted to the
state. 1t is believed that the present
law will afford relief and without
injustice to the taxpayers. The peo-
pie at first dreaded the operation and