Evening star., 1936-03-15
RED RIDER SCORED
BY WOMAN VOTERS
League Article Calls 1t Un-
constitutional and Dis
aStrous in Effect.

The red rider" carried in the Dis
trict appropriation bill is a violation
of the spirit of the Constitution and
has had a disastrous effect on the
public schools of Washington, in the
opinion of the Voteless District League
of Women Voters.
In an article in the March News
Letter" of the league the story OF
the rider is told and the fight against
this controversial piece Of legislation
is reviewed. The league in tbs artl-
Gle recalls its protest against the rider
when it originally came up during
consideration of the District bill
year ago. The organization is sup
porting the Sisson bill, providing for
q direct repeal of the law.
The rider has made us all look
silly" it is stated in the item in the
News Letter, but it cannot be laughed
off, for its wording in the 1886 act
does not allow it to lapse with the
year of the appropriation; the rider
part is a permanent piece of leglsla-
ton, and must be definitely repealed.
Congress Members Told.
"The resolution passed at our Fall
League meeting was brought to. the
attention of each member Of the COM
mittees in Congress who is concerned
with the rider In February these
same committee members we're sup
piled with a carefully verified sum-
mary of the actual happenings that
eliminated in this astonishing piece OF
legislation, and at the public hearings
on the SiSsion bill the District league
was ably represented by Mrs. Lorenz."
The Legislative Committee of the
department of education of the league
has summarized the rider, its effects
and its history thus:
The red rider in the District ap-
preparation act had nothing to do with
any communistic teachings in District
public schools. for none has been un-
earthed. either before or after its pas
sage. The rider came up as an
incident in the contest over the adop-
ton of the character education prof.
ect.
Character Education.
In the Spring of 1884 the District
appropriation bill carried funds for
beginning a three-year experiment in
character education in District public
schools. After much argument on both
sides the project was approved. anc
the first year of the work was carried
through in the school year l934-5
Instruction was given by District
teachers, but educational experts from
outside were consulted on phases in
which they had specialized.
''In the Summer of 1885 the char
acter education contest was renewed
becouse the 1886 bill carried funds fol-
the programs second year. Those who
opposed the project then alleged that
one of the outside experts consulted
had Russian connections. This was
DR. w. w. Charters. a psychologist
director of curriculum research at
Ohio State University. DR.. Charters
once served on an advisory council in
vited by the Institute of international
Education New York; to arrange for
exchange visits between American and
Russian university instructors The
council is no longer in existence, DR.
Charters has never even travelled in
Russia and his studies have been con-
fined to the field of psychology. The
point was brought up only as a weapon
against the character education eX-
pertinent.
Ill-COnsidered Enactment.
1.-THE red rider was then offered as
the price of the life of the character
education project. It was buried among
miscellaneous school items and before
most members of Congress had heard
about it the rider had been enacted.
The rider is violation of the spirit
of the Constitution and its effect upon
Washington schools has been diSas-
trous. Teachers are literally afraid
to mention Russia. even in connection
with ordinary history and geography
lessons. Unscrupulous pupils are pro-
Vided with a means of terrorizing
teachers, which is fatal to discipline
Teachers are already obligated to sign
an oath supporting the Constitution
No possible good can therefore be at
tanned by compelling them to do more.
Conscientious teachers are handicap
ped in their attempts to instill ideals
of citizenship, and will continue to be
until this discreditable episode is wiped
ollt -"