The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1958-10-10
A Box Lunch,
A Chair And A
Drinking Cup
HALIFAX GAZETTE
South Boston, Va.

schools are expected TO bring such
things as a chair. box lunch and
a drinking cup to Mrs. O'Hanlon's
basement room where education Is
being dispensed as though the chill
drcn were in Vcnable or Lane.
To those faint Of heart and weak
Of knee who said 1t wouldn't be
done. that parents would knuckle
under when the blue chips were
down this Is their answer This is
Virginia's answer to the Warrens.
the Pauls, the Oliver Hills
No, Mrs O'Hanlon's basement
room doesn't have all the frllls and
convcnienccs and comforts offered
at Vcnable and Lane. but it's cosy
and it's comfortable, and what S
more ii \ hvable for Virglnians who
would suffer infinitely worse before
they would surrender to the gang Of
cut throats depressing them at
every turn.
The Charlottesville experiment in
noble and courageous living Will be
repeated elsewhere In Virginia. and
perhaps the day may come when
private schools will replace all pub
lie schools The NAACP and the
Supreme Court are in ascendancy
now and the moves are up to them.
AS the state and It's localities
await the next bolts Of lightning 1t
is time for all of us to do a little
rcth!nkinR, little serious and
sober thinking about some grave
realities Of life
FIRST off, IL must be realized that
Civilization viii survive here in Nir-
ginia If the doors are padlocked
in every public school. No lnstitu-
ton. not even the church has been
50 cloaked IN holy raiment as have
the public schools, and this is
largely due TO the mistaken idea
that public education Is a panacea
for all the ills that beset us from
catching up with Russia in the field
, the social evils plaguing society. We
are living In the age Of the educa-
ZIONIST. an age that has permitted
the professional educator to take
over the responsibility OF the parent
and tho parson. Allowed this respon-
slbllity and taking other liberties
not delegated, the educators have
built up Id the schools a sort Of I'M
| touchable system that the outside
| world can do little about. Criticize
the schools [ Q d ay and one is
branded as ignorant, reactonary
and heretical
Il Is IN character that few Of
the dedicated educationistS. such as
the principal at Norfolk. accept in
tegratlon accept anything but the
closing Of public school. Happily
all educauonists are not SO dedi-
Gated, and fortunate. too, that most
4 teachers are willing TO teach even
/ II It means dispensing the 3 RS
| under an oak tree. as our good Con
gresham Tuck so aptly phrased it.
Secondly. 1t must occur to many
OF us that the tail has been wagging
the dog rather Justify. This genera
ton Of school children is coddled.
sugar-coated and pampered to such
a degree that some parents would
surrender to every Whim and ca
\ price Of their offspring.
If Johnny laments audibly (and SO
II the national TV networks can hear
that football will 60 with the closing
81 the public school. if Mary Weeps
on Obs that the sorority will be
i broken up just terrible, sob then
mamas and papaS will agree that
these are catastrophe things that
must be prevented at all costs So,
mama and papa join a committee
that isn't interested in segregation
or indignation at all, but interested
only IN saving SiwaSh and the So
rority. Boshl Pure Boshl
It's only human that parents want
something better for their children
than they had for themselves.
That's a warmly human instinct.
and 1t sells more autos, sweaters
and hi-fi sets. But in buying the
better life for the children. parents
sometimes barter away more than
they bargained for And these would
DC the priceless traits of industry
incentive, initiative and the battle
tested child who has wrestled with
\ adversely and won the scuffle.
How many OF the older genera ton
truly regret the experience of child
hood when lunches were taken 10
school N tin pals. when water was
brought to the poorly heated school
room from a well or spring, when
the likes Of Mrs. OHanlon's base
ment would appear as a castle by
comparison to the shabbiness OF a
one-room school? Such primitive
facilities as were offered con-
ditioned the child Of yesterday and
prepared him for manhood and res
possibilities. Furthermore. it incul-
Gated deep sense of appreciation
for books and the great world found
within their covers.
\ Society cannot and will not turn
back the clock. but the fact that
many present day leaders in all
walks Of life endured these hard
ships and came out Of them the