Daily Kennebec journal., 1926-09-09
women in this rural and sparssly

women In this rural and sparssly
settled state.
Do you want to change the pres
ent mill tax for the Massachusetts
plan? Absolutely no, for 1t would
ruin the educational edif1ce which
our fathers erected more than one
hundred years ago, and In addition,
would practically destroy the ef-
fcacy Of our rural schools.
Keep in mind that 1t is the rural
schools that must be looked out Tor
in Maine, a condition which elimin-
ates any reasonable comparison with
the schools OF Massachusetts,. 1t IS
our rura! school system that Is at
stake where is found $50 OF our
school children. -,
The reason why we have not fol-
lowed the Massachusetts, system Is
because that by so doing we could
not establish and maintain anything
like our present high standard OF
schools That Maine and Massa- :
chusetts stand on entirely different
planes, in respect to their school
systems, is also recognized by Mr..
Smith wherein he is purported 10
say: "Maines situation. explained
Mr.. Smith, is not identical with that
of Massachusetts" This admission
states the whole story. A single
Massachusetts city contains a larger
population and is possessed OF more
wealth than the entire state OF
Maine. Nevertheless the state OIL
Massachusetts could be superimpoS-
ed upon and lost in the northern
Maine woods. 1t has, numerous
other great cities and rich towns,
and innumerable opulent citizens,
both men and women. It's popula =
ton is condensed Its towns are
large and rich. Almost every town
could maintain its own high school.
Notwithstanding these conditions
Mr.. Smith says: "In some instances
it has worked hardships." If, there
fore the recent amendment in rich
Massachusetts,, worked hardships in
any instance, in order to discover
and determine the wholesale hard
ships it would work in Maine. with
out, population. without resources
and without wealth. in any degree
comparable with those, of Massa-
chusetts, we must go I'd the history
Of Massachusetts,. and there learn
that the new amendment which
worked "hardships" was but a
slight modification of a system
| the principle Of which had been in
the law Of the Commonwealth for
period of Ga years.
Arthur B. Lord a member OF the
Department of Education at Massa :
chusetts writes as follows: "The
anti-amendment to the Massa :
chusetts constitution was originally
adopted in 1855 The original was
A,, A,tt, Skp (Cnn e. /.
| tuition of 1870. The provisions
of the inclosed amendment (from
| which the Maher Amendment was
! copied) are considerably more
drastic than the original amendment
of 1855.
He further says: "Many Of the
| stronger academies, with suffjcien,
private funds, and drawing students
| from various parts of the state. con
| tinued. sss and had become strong
secondary schools. Many of the
weaker academies. however, serving
| principally the communities In
| which they were located, ceased to
exist as academies" He finally
says that the Department Of Educa-
ton think that the anti-amendmen'
was wise. Undoubtedly it was wise
| for Massachusetts,. But what does
this history show? That the Mahei
Amendment had been the practical
| law of Massachusetts for 81 years;
| and even then, with 81 years prep
aration, that the change in 1919 had
| put all the weaker academies out -o1
! commission. What then will its
! adoption do = to the academies OF
| Maine. which have existed and beer
| maintained under a policy that has
| obtained for los years? For it is
| true that nearly all of the 55 aca-
| denies III Maine are weaker aca-
| denies, and are located in places
| where they are supported by their
| own and surrounding towns-not
! drawing students from various
/ parts of the state"
| 1t should here be noted with
| emphasis that our academies, all bu,
| a few, which it is proposed to elm
| mate from our educational system
are situated in localities where they
serve rural communities, which dc
| not have access to the larger aca-
| denies or the city high schools. The
! greater number are supplying COM
munities which neither maintain
! high schools nor have access to high
| schools. or facilities or means of at
tending them, away from their own
| localities.
Thus will the proposed change de-
| prive thousands Of boys and girls
| in this state of the advantages of a
high school education. thereby
! checking their opportunity for a
| higher education. Such a thing is
| little less than crime. For. as was
said by Judge Dana in the debate on
| the literary clause of our Constitu-
| ton: Experience and observation
! clearly show, that talents are not
| hereditary, and that greatness is not
of lineal descent; that the brightest
| geniuses are struck out Of obscurity,
and the noblest minds formed and
nurtured in poverty and wretched
ness. The germs of future eminence
should receive the fostering care of
the republic"
The eminent men and women who
have risen from obscurity. from the
farm and the country home. and
have received their early start in
education in the small academies.
without access to which they could
have obtained no advanced educa-
ton, have fully vindicated the glow
ing tribute of Judge Dana to the
country home, and justified the edu-
cational system which has served
our state so successfully and so long.
But now what does Mr.. Smith, as
reported. propose to substitute for
the academies that serve the COM
munity that neither have or can
have high schools? The interview