The Washington herald., 1921-10-12
UTAH LEGISLATOR
RECOGNIZES NEED /
OF ADDED MEANS
Declares Congress Should
Maintain Highest Edu-
cational Standards.
5000 CANNOT READ
William Mather Lewis Gives
Chamber of Commerce Sta
tistics on nIiteracy.
5000 CANNOT READ

Senator King Of Utah, before the
monthly meeting of the Washing
ton Chamber of Commerce last
night in the New willard Hotel
declared himself in favor of giving
washington the best school build
lnss and the highest standard of
education in America He followed
william Mather Lewis. of the
United States Chamber of Com
merce' department of civil develop
ment. who stressed the need of a
better compulsory education law
for the District.
The meeting was the first gem
eral assembly of the membership
since the summer recess. Albert
Sehulteis. president. presided. Col.
Snaries Keller, engineer commits
snoner. was a guest
tomorrow we of the Senate Dis
trlcts Committee meet to discuss the
school problem here" said Senator
King. The District Of Columb bia
needs increased school facilities.
we ought to have in this city the
pest school houses in the United
states. There ought to be the high
est standard of education here of
thing that in a generous way can
be done for learning. here in the
nations capital Congress should
do"
rive fhousand Illiterates Here.
william Mather Lewis spoke of
the lessons of illiteracy and its
heavy cost that this country had
learned from the war. The recent
census. he said, shows that 5,0o0. 900
persons in this country cannot
write their own names or read a
simple sentence.
And more than 5000 of these
illlterates are in the District of
Columbia" ne continued. Most
cities require a minimum of eight
years of schooling for children.
Here we.require but six and we
let them go at Il regardless of
whether they have passed out of
the first grade or not. Other cities
require that they shall have hn-
ished certain grades before they
can go TO work. We need such a
law here"
Lewis said too many boys are be-
ing trained for commerce and too
few expect to become farmers. He
deplored the apartment house sys-
tenn that is making of America a
nation of "cliffdwellers." Instead
there should be housing legisla-
ton, he said, that would tend to
preserve the one-famfly home with
its yard and chores and youthful
responsibilities. In the final test.
he declared, the best business and
the greatest success is coming to
that nation that has the best hous-
ing. the best schools and looks to
the soncoming gen
Grafton.
Refers to wharf situation
Col Keller. introduced to the
meeting as washington's new Engi-
neer Commissioner. referred to ac-
tIon of the chamber in urging :
commissioners to preserve the
status quo on the wharves until a
comprehensive plan of improvement
had been agreed upon. The par
ticular wharf in question, he said,
was an Immediate reproach and a
source of humiliation to the city.
al anyone looking across the water
front could not fail to see it.
He said he felt that members OF
the chamber. when they had seen
the thing, would not ask for de-
law. He urged they attend the
hearing called for next Wednesday
Secretary A. E. Seymour an
.pounced forty-fiye new members
enrolled since the last meeting.
President Schulteis complimented
the city upon the cleanup in con-
\ naction with fire prevention week
He urged that more be done to
make Washington a credit to the
nation in the eyes of the distin-
cuished foreign visitors soon to