Evening star., 1922-12-09
SCHOOLFUNDCUTS
SCORED BY T|GERT
Commissioner Depicts Re-
suits of Ruthless Pairing Of
the Budgets.
PLEA MADE FOR TEACHERS
Municipal, County and State Au-
thorities Blamed for Lack Of
Education Requisites.
PLEA MADE FOR TEACHERS

Federal Commissioner OF Education
John j. Tigert, in his final Education
week statement today. took a parting
shot at those authorities responsible
for the ruthless cutting of public
school budgets and depicted the re-
suits as follows:
we are housing thousands of young
children in buildings in which We
would not house race horses or our
hogs OF our cattle.
I'VE are paying many teachers OF
our children salaries far below what
We pay day laborers.
We are failing to provide play
grounds and thus leaving our children
TO the education of the city streets"
With this. the concluding day OF
Education week. designated as
physical education day. Commits
sioner Tigert took the occasion to
deplore the lack of adequate physical
training in the schools of the nation.
Small Per Cent Benefited.
Only 10 per cent of all the chill
dren of school age in the country"
he said. ARE receiving anything
physical education and health train
ing. Only twelve states have state
supervisors of physical education;
only so per cent Of the rural districts
have any form of health inspection.
And yet he emphasized. during
the past two years municipal, county
and state authorities have ruthlessly
cut from school budgets requests for
funds for physical education. for
sites for Fairgrounds and for super
Vision Of play activities.
The United States is rapidly for
getting the lesson taught by the war
an to the deplorable physical condi-
rion of a large per cent of the youth
of this country. For year or so after
we were shocked by the realization
that more than one-third of the men
examined in the draft had to be re-
lected as physically unfit the nation
seemed to he aroused to the necessity
of providing adequate physical educa-
tIon for the children of the country.
But we are now rapidly relaxing into
our previous laissez-faire attitude.
Need of Physical Training.
1T is needless to argue the need O.:
physical education for our children
We all know how imperative that
need is. What We do need to have
burned into our consciousness is that
SIte IldtiOE WIitl refuses TO remember
The lesson just learned in regard to
The physical condition of its people
will ultimately pay terrible price
for its neglect.
"On this. the last day of Education
week. I wish to emphasize with all the
earnestness and force of which I am
capable that none of the improvements
and advances either in phyiSal educa-
lion or in any of the other phases of
public school education. which educators
all over the country have been so elo-
Tuertly setting forth this week. can be
brought about without funds, and also
that at present we. the richest nation
in the world. are failing lamentably in
providing adequate funds for the edu-
cation OF our children.
Children Inadequntely Housed.
We are housing thousands Of young
children in buildings in which We would
rot house our race horses. or our hogs
or our cattle. We are paying many
teachers of our children salaries far be-
low what We gay day laborers. We are
falling to provide Fairgrounds and are
thus leaving our children to the educa-
lion OF the city streets. These state
ments are all literally true.
1T is unbelievable that the American
people will fail to carry forward sue
cessfully the great experiment in demo-
cratic education started by our fore
fathers. But the time has come for ac-
ton. 1t is to be hoped that every voter
In every city and every county of the
country. when next he is called upon to
vote for school bonds, will remember
he facts brought out during the past
week and vote accordingly