Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1923-12-06
l. C. GREER MAKES BIG HIT
IN JEFFERSON, N. c. SPEECH

Ira T. Johnson in Ashe Recorder.
Delivering what one man pronoun-
ced the best speech he ever heard
in the Ashe county court house and
what many pronounced the best ed
ucational address heard in Ashe since
the days of Aycock, Prof. l. G. Greer
| OF Boone stirred his audience Sat
urday NOV. 18th and sent his crowd
away thinking.
snow storm came over the noun
tains about dawn and blew away a
large part of the effects of the wide
spread and faithful advertising done
by County Superintendent J. o. God
man. But in spite of the weather,
about fifty school committeeman re-
sponded to Supt. Goodman's invita-
tion. A sprinkling of teachers and
several other citizens completed the
crowd
The Lost Province band warmed the
crowd while the coal in the stoves
sizzled and the wind howled out
side. Professor Greer showed that
he was cast in heroic mold. He drove
flivver over from Boone and went
to the bat soon after his arrival.
Principal Jones of jefferson School
directed the crowds attention to the
Importance of service in his devo-
tlOnal exercises. Jim Goodman intro
duced Mr.. Greer. Catching his crowd
with humorous stories at which he
is an adept, the speaker piled illus
tration on top of facts, added logic
for sauce and eloquence for a cha
ser.
Speaking directly to the school com
mitteemen, he divided his address in
to three parts-first, the requisites
of school committeeman; second,
how a committeeman may serve his
community; and third how to make
school system more democratic.
The speaker urged moral charac-
ter in teachers and committeeman.
He showed how school committee
men can encourage worthy boys and
girls, and emphasized their duty to
help make their communities clean.
1t was in the third part of his ad-
Gress that Mr.. Greer especially chaI-
lenged the thought of his hearers.
Strongly advocating the countrywide
school plan, he moved his audience
to applause. every dollar of prop
erty in Ashe county ought to stand
behind the education of every boy
and girl in the county, he declared.
While this plan of making the en-
tire county a special tax district to
lengthen the school term to eight
months in every district will meet
with opposition, some honest, and
some from the usual crowd who op-
pose every progressive step, Mr..
Greer's exposition of it produced
thought that will bring fruit. 1t is
a pity that every school committee
man in the county could not have
been present. Every voter should have
heard the address. By such blows
as Greer struc kSaturday public SEN
timent is moulded, and an intelligent
public sentiment will demand welfare
work, county demonstration agent
consolidation of schools wherever
practical, and soon, the countrywide
school plan. This is as inevitable as
that day will follow night. Honest
but mistaken opinion politicians who
fatten on ignorance, false ideas of
economy, selfishness, stinginess, all
will hinder.
But Jim Goodman says he means
no backward step will be taken in
Ashe.
Attorney w. B. Austin closed the
meeting with brilliant speech that
emphasized the duty of school COM
mitteemen in solving the problems
that confront the county and in rails
ing the standard of school work in
the county.