Evening star., 1931-12-20
Competition Is Approved Off,
ciaIIy by D. c. and Ten
Nearby Counties.
STRESS WASHINGTON'S
ROLE IN CONSTITUTION
First Elimination Meets Will Be
Held After Opening of Second
Semester in February.

Approved officially by the District Of
Columbia Board Of Education and the
school superintendents of 10 neighbor-
ing counties of Maryland and Virginia,
the Ninth National Oratorical Contest
Is being launched in the National Capt.
ship of The Evening Star.
In giving its approval to the contest,
which has for its purpose the pro-
motion of interest in and respect for
the Constitution of the United States
and good government generally, the
District School Board waived its usual
procedure of referring student COM
petitions to its committee on student
activities. When the Ninth Oratorical
Contest was offered to the board with
the recommendation of approval by
DR.. Frank w. Ballou. superintendent,
Henry Gilligan, board member. asked
II the ninth annual contest was not
the same as the contest of previous
years. Advised that 1t was, Mr.. Gil
ligan said:
Then let us approve it right now.
The oratorical contest is a fine thing
and we should give it our commenda-
ton without delay"
Vote Is Unanimous.
Mr.. Gilligan's proposal was accepted
by the other members of the board. who
voted unanimously TO authorize the
contests administration in the schools
this year.
The county superntendents who
also have authorized the ninth contest
for their schools are: Maryland-F. B.
Gwynn of Charles County, Edwin w
Broome of Montgomery County, Mich
olas Orem of Prince Georges County
and Miss Lettie M. Dent of st. MaryS
County. Virginia-R. c. Bowton of
Alexandria County, Fletcher Kemp of
Arlington County, w. T. Woodson of
Fairfax County, w. H. Thomas of
Fauquier County, o. L. limerick of
Loudoun County and r. C. Hayden OF
Prince William County.
The contest this year, which is an
integral part of the Seventh Interna-
tional Oratorical Contest, will be con-
Quoted in the same intensive fashion
which marked its conduct in previous
years. The big prize of the national
contest for this area will be a two-and-
a-half-month tour of Europe with all
expenses paid. This award will be
made to the boy or girl who is adjudged
the best high school orator in a series
OF competitions conducted in the Dis
trict OF Columbia, the six Virginia
counties and the four Maryland coun-
ties. The winner also will have the
right to enter the national finals, in
which the best speakers in other regions
OF the United States from coast to
coast will compete for the right to
represent this country in the world
finals here next Fall. AS a matter of
fact, The Star areas champion must
compete in the national finals to clinch
his right to the European trip.
Contest Requirements.
Any secondary school student under
l9 years of age who has not previously
won the national championship is
eligible for participation in the contest
Each entrant will be required to pre-
pare an Grafton which can be delivered
in six minutes. During the earlier
stages of the contest only this memo
rized speech will be used, but in the
higher Stages-The Star finals, for in
stance-each contestant must be pre-
pared to speak extemporaneously for
four minutes on some new topic peril
nent to his initial speech.
While the subjects this year will be
the same as last year, special emphasis
Is being placed on George Washington's
association with the Constitution and
his part in its framing and subsequent
ratification. This phase of American
in salute to the Washington Bicenten-
nial. However, If contestant prefer.
he may speak on any topic relating to
the Constitution, as participants in
former contests did.
The plan under which the contest
will be administered in 1882 is identical
with that of last year. The Evening
Stars area is divided into II districts
the winner in each of which will receive
S100 in cash and the right to compete
in The Star area finals. 1t is in The
Star area finals that this newspapers
champion and representative In the
national finals will be chosen.
Nine Capital Districts.
Each public high school in Washing
ton constitutes contest district. All
the private and parochial schools in
Washington constitute another dis
trict," so that in the District OF Co.
lumbia there will be nine contest dis
tricts. The schools in the six Virginia
counties constitute separate dis
trict." and those in tie four Maryland
counties constitute another district.
Many high school students already
have begun their research for the prep
aration of their six-minute orations.
Heretofore the participants have taken
advantage of the Christmas holidays as
an excellent opportunity in which to
make their initial studies, and indica-
tions are that this years orators will
follow the same program.
With the beginning of the second
semester, In February, the contest par
ticipation will get under way in real
earnest. It is in that month that the
first elimination meets are held and
the contestants actually launched on
their way toward the flnals-and
Europe.