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The Commoner
.VOL. 15, NO. 1
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PR"CURB6NT TOPICS 1i
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THE CHARGE AGAINST PUBLIC SCHOOLS
., Does our public school system really give our
boys and girls that kind of training and instruc
tion which will sond them out Into tlio world
with a good start toward their development Into
moral and ofllclont citizens? This question Is
being asked by practical men and women In .all
walks of life, not In a' spirit of adverse criticism,
but In an honest boliof that, under modern
school conditions, Instruction In tho prlnclples'of
sound and vital ethics is being subordinated to
,more material things. , Discussing this, subject
Congressman Samuel W. McCall of Massachu
setts, in an interview, reported, by AJloyne Ire
land in the New York World, says: .
"The. most serious criticism which I would
make of our schoPl system is that it does not pay
sufficient attention to character training, that it
neglocts to instil into theyoutli of tho nation, as
effectively as it might fairly bo expected to do,
the broad moral principles upon which alone re
liance can bo placed for a sane and healthy con
duct of lifo.
"IM had to comprdss this, crlticisip into'a sin
gle concrete phrase, I would say tnat'o.ur jclril
dron are taught a great deal about' tteir rights
and relatively little about their duties, that tho
gendral tendency of oui school instruction is to
make American youth vdry much alive' tp toe op
portunities of wresting something from its' en
vironment and not so sensible to the claims of
gentle and generous living.
"Nativb and foreign observers liave told us
again and again that in respect for authority and
ill regard f6r the rightti of others, our people fall
.behind the standard B6t by counties whoso gen
eral level of civilization is,' in our opinion, much
lower than, our own. '
, I '"Chero is a type of mind which translates con
tempt far authority into a noble independence of
,ppirit and which; interprets indifference to the
.rights of othe as a wholesome symptom of
sturdy self-reliance, but it is not by means of
such pleasant paraphrases that we can blink the
.fact that we too often hold laws, rules and regu
lations in contempt, and that we too commonly
regard the power to do something as an all-sufficient
justification for doing it.
"These, faults of character, to whatever extent
they exist, are, in some degreq at least, traceable
tp failure of our schools to meet tho responsibil
ity which rests upon them to give a human guid
ance to our children during their most impres
alpnablo years.
"I have found matter for adverse comment in
tho educational ideal which places too much em
phasis upon the acquirement of knowledge and
too little upon the teaching of sound, principles
of ethics and conduct. It remains to consider the
other side of the question, that is to say, whether
the object of American education- being to de
velop tho sense of individual rights and t;o equip
our boys and girls with the means of securing a
successful start in life, the results indicate suc
cess or failure to attain these objects."
'
KANSAS STANDS AS AN EXAMPLE
Kansas was pointed out aB the proof that pro
hibition actually does prohibit, in an address by
Arthur Capper, the new gqvernor of- Kansas, be
fore the national convention of the. Jntier-tcollegij-ato
Prohibition association, recently held in Tope
ka, Kansas. Mr. Capper assorted, that the fact(tbat
Kansas iB prosperous and at peace with, itself is
largely due to prohibition, and in his address
made some interesting comparisons on condi
tions, in Kansas and its neighbor state, Missouri.
The following is taken from a report of his ad
dress by the Associated Press:
" 'Prohibition is not an. easy condition to
achieve or maintain,' he said. 'It takes constant
vigilance and ceaseless enforcement of law.'
"Mr. Capper touched on woman suffrage in
Kansas when he asserted that in the state no
man, can gain office on what is known as a 'wide
Speii' platform; that tho women would defeat
im if tho men should faiU
"Kansas has reduced its per capita consump
tion of liquor to $1.25 annually as compared to
tke $21 annually per capita consumption of the
average state having saloons, the speaker pointed
out, He also asserted Kansas has the lowest percentage-
of illiteracy in the United States, largely
as the result of its thirty-two years of prohibi
tion, and compared conditions in Kansas with
those in Missouri, the nearest state with saloons.
" 'In Missouri one farmer in one hundred
owns an automobile,' he said, 'while in Kansas
oncfarmer in five' has a car.' Missouri has 4,'0OO
saloons into, which its peoplo pay eighty million
dollars a year. Missouri has but twenty dollars
per capita in the savings banks. Kansas,' With
two and a quarter million Jess population has
more than one hundred dollars for every family
Within its borders -in the savings banks. '
" 'Mlssburi ,has inillibns of dollars invested h
breweries and saloons, but Kansas lent, ?5"0, (TOO, -000
to New York in the panic' of ,1907, while
Missouri 'declined 'to send a penny: Mlssburi
wealth has been going to saloons and breweries
to an alarming- extent. Kansas wealth has been
going into silos and banks,, into safe homes, into
educational'' institutions', 'into town improve
ments ' '
"Jirview of these 'results, Mr. Capper said, ifc
is the duty of Kansas people to take the lead i in
an active propaganda for, making his- a saloon
less' nation. '
""On'the .west. Tie concluded 'Colorado has
joined-the elect. On the south is Oklahoma, dry
from its 'birth j on tlie, north, Nebraska fe striving
for" the right, and on the east Missouri is trying
to be free.",'
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WpratfjtHto'S. COMPENSATION LEGISLATION
The passaged laws giving compensation td in
jured workmen, or to their widows' and ch'ildre'n
when fatal injuries are 'incurred, isxbrisidered as
an immense advance over the old system of cofctf
pelling them to- fight for their rights' under the
common law. There is abundant evidence, how
ever, that legislation on this subject enacted in
some states, though a step in the right direction,
is as yet pitifully, inadequate in its provision for
benefits. Joseph A. Parks of the Massachusetts
industrial accident board, discussed this point at
a recent meeting of the American Association for
Labor Legislation in Philadelphia. Mr. Parks
declared:1
"Statistics show that' there are 19,000,000
working people, in the United States who earn
an average of less than $500 a year, and who",
with their families, Represent a populatipu of
more than GO',000,000.; These are the persons
who are affected by the scale of compensation
when incapacity or death Pvertaked the bread
winner. "With an average wage of less than ?50u pre
vailing throughout the United States, a 50 per
cent scale of compensation is absolutely inade
quate, unjust, and intolerable. The New York
state conference of charities and corrections de
cided that $825 was the necessary Income to al-
low a family, of five to maintain a fairly proper
standard of living in New York city and vicinity
and Strelghtoff, in his book, 'The Standard of
Living adds- that it may well be questioned
whether $600, is not too low a minimum for the
large majority of the smaller cities of the coun
try. Surely -the. 50 : per cent standard can not
be sufficient, if the average wage is too low to
permit wage-earners to live properly under nor
mal conditions."
"As aresult of two years' experience, Mri
Parks continued, Massachusetts raised its scale
from 50 per cent to 66 2-3 per cent, and compen
sates occupational diseases as well as accidental
injuries, with. the unanimous consent of both em
ployers and employes.
, . .
A PARK FOR EVERY TOWN '
Parks, plazas ors public squares, children's
playgrounds and recreation parks are recognised
by thinking welfare workers as necessary "in
modern town and city building. This work has
too long been neglected by many cities, to their
sorrow, and this should servo as a warning to
every city and town, no matter how small to
whh 1JEYteUX f?r uture park Bunoaei.
Writing-on this subject, a. writer in the- Sacra
mento (Cal.) Bee, in -referring, to thP smaller
towns and citier says: '
"As these towns are growing fast, property is
becoming more valuable. Vacant blocks are be
ing' subdivided into building lots, and prices are
increasing. ',''" . .
"As individuals are buying now to escape high
er prices later1, so should municipalities acquire
sites for 'parks and plaza improvements, while
prices are low. The longer the?' inunicipality
waits, the- farther from the busfaess1 district
must the park site be located ' r
. "Parks cost money, but the expenditure is jus
tified over -and over. To the greatvmass, privil
ege born -of wealth and pPsitlotfar'e denied. Let
not : those of common opportunity -to breathe the
pure air, bask? ihi God's: healthgiving sunshine
and rest in 'the refreshing sharde6Y:overhangirig
trees bo cut' onT. ' ' .',
"Play-room for children, a resting place for
the weary man or woman, quiet communion with
Nature, or a brisk, invigorating walk, are boons
tP 'humanity"' ' '' JV ' " ?
"The wealthy, can adottt ."ripKTihdre '.'laudable
mariner 'of hatding down 'behPfltS Xq posterity
than by giving park sites .for pn'biip.us'e and en
joyment, fre'from unreasonable retractions.
"Playgrounds for children llpnV'rigb' proved
their worth!1 Properly conducted anil Supervised;
they are institutions. for any town to.be proud'o'f.
,'."Tb.e kveragVsniall-totyn : 'park,;, andcity parks
ad well, ae pbpular pnly dnfetivel' occasions.
Frequently they&re toe tiaYeh'jbf toe tranip and1
the' down' and 'outera haven Inruth; for vig
ilant police and empty pockets, 'as '-Well as weary
feet and souls, make the public square a needed
resting placet. And, pf ten the sprawling; .figures
on benches and the grass tend, to keep wpwon
and children from enjoyment of houW'-in the
open.- t . . 4 . '." i,ui !; L-
"Adoption ,of thd commoh-sense plan of re
serving certain seats 'and sections for women and
children only, combined with,a little .police vigil
ance to enforce the rule, commonly 'solves tho
problem." ' '
'''''
3pDAHQ'g; NEW GOVERNOR ",' '. .. f,
Amonfe the new governors' elidseh at the No
t vember elections was Moses Alejcander, who was
elected 'as -governor of IdahP'-on the democratic
ticket, ' With the progressive party endorsement.
Mr. Alexander is a native of Missouri and, it is
stated, is the first co-religionist in America to
be elected to a high. 'executive position in the
United States. In commenting on Mr. Alex
ander's career as a stimulus to the active par
ticipation of the Jew in American political life,
regardless of prejudices against bis faith, the
Knoxville (Tenn.) Sentinel says: '
"Moses 'Alexander will soon 'bp' governor of
Idaho, the first governor, it te kfd, of -any
American, commonwealth of Hebrew parentage.
f?,na8eea.mayor of Boise two "terms arid gave
satisfaction. lie was the son of ppor immigrants
and had to struggle against disadvantages.. But
Jewish parents, however poor 'usually strive to
give their children the advantages of the schools
the public funds support for all alike. Jews
have been .coining to the United State? several
hundred years, and in ever increasing numbers.
It is surprising that so few pf tbem have sought
or obtalhetf political olflce. Undoubtedly there
has been a race prejudice whicb. toey were wise
enough not to qhallenge. , Tbey have stucjc in
. the main tp the 'fields in which they have been
schooled. But this is changing;, A Jewish
younfe man has. been elected .congress from
New York. The newer Jewish immigration is
i???h5 fffleni f rom tn ' There is splen
did fund of. idealism among tb.e new-comers,
born of .the hard school of adversity. Jewish
boys in Boston and? New Yorjk pften amaze
teachers and other observers with, their insight
and reflection. They are not remaining in com
mercial pursuits. The college, pf the City of
New York,, Columbia university, the University
of New York are crowded with l Jews. They are
flocking into the . prof essions, 'Jewish lawyers
and doctors, dentists and engineers are becom
ing not ohly numerous but are commanding re
spect. We shall expect to see more Jews in
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