Richmond Palladium (Daily), Volume 33, Number 352, 25 October 1908 — Page 8

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F ALL APIIUM SUM TELECTAM EDeettnoini . NiflM, Teesdlay Evcetoji, MdDvemmtoeir

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INDIANA SCHOOL SYSTEMEXPLMHED Fassett A. Cotton Writes President of Western University. TOWNSHIP SYSTEM IS USED CHIEF OBJECTION TO THIS AR RANGEMENT HAS BEEN REME DIED TWO OTHER OBJEC TIONS TO HE SYSTEM. In a letter forwarded to Thomas F. Kane, of Seattle, president of the uni versity of Washington, Fassett A. Cotton, who has held the office of state superintendent of public instruction In Indiana for almost six years, offers 6ome Interesting comments on the fschool system of this state. Under the heading of "Unit of the School System," Mr. Cotton says: "The unit of the system in Indiana Is the township, in which one trustee, elected by the people is held responsible for all Bchool work. It may be proper to say here that the chief adverse criticisms to this arrangement have . been three: U) Too great power is placed in the hands of one man, with no check on th expenditure of funds,; 2) No educational qualification for this official; (3) Incongruity of the triple duty placed upon the officer, namely looking after the paupers, the roads and ditches and schools. "The first defect has lately been remedied by law by the provisions of an advisory board of three members to check up the trustee's accounts, pass! on bills, etc. The second is being greatly eliminated by the people, who attach great Importance to the office on account of the schools. Forty per cent of the present trustees in Indiana were elected from the ranks of school . teachers. Forty per cent more are the very best business men in the several townships men capable of considering In an intelligent way the importance of good schools and who are helping to develop our rural school system. Of the remaining 20 per cent, a large majority are not only willing, but anxious to follow the wise leadership of the county superintendents and are in this way doing splendid work in the townships they represent. As a consesequence of the above the third defect has been reduced to the minimum." County Is Unit of Efficiency. It Is explained however, that while the township Is the unit of the school

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Wire Reports

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IB IE THE IPAILILADIIUIWS GUESTS

system, the county is really the unit of efficiency. "The County Board of Education," says Mr. Cotton, "Is an exofflcio organization, composed of the county superintendent, of the township trustees and the chairmen of the school trustees of the towns and cities In the county. While the duties of this board are in the main general, the work it does is of larger importance than it would seem to be. It Is responsible for the school spirit in the entire county, and tends to unify the work in all the schools as to length of term, character of buildings, qualifications of teachers, salaries, work in consolidation of schools, etc The tendency is to unify the work in the entire county, the effort being to make all of the schools in the county as good as the best. The county, then rather than the township or the district Is the unit of efficiency." In his letter Mr. Cotton devotes some attention to the county superintendent. The appointment of county superintedents by township trustees, he believes removes this office further from party politics than it would be with the elec tion by the people. It is remarked also that in recent years the educational and professional qualifications and the salary of this officer have been increas ed and as a consequence better men are filling the places. The salary of this official is now $1,4000 a year. Office of State Superintendent. In regard to the office of state superintendent, Mr. Cotton says: "The state superintendent of public instruction is elected by the people, among whom there is a perceptible tendency to attach more importance to the office and to demand better qualifications on the part of the incumbent and to give this official longer tenrue. The present administration has been in power six years. It is the first time for forty years that one man has held the office three terms." Discussing the present educational tendencies In Indiana, Mr. Cotton says that the marked inclination throughout the state is toward industrial education and the consolidation of rural schools. The tendency toward consolidation, he says, has come with better roads and better facilities of travel and there is now a manifest desire to provide for every" country boy and girl just as good school privileges as are found In towns and cities. ARSENIC IN PIE. Death of Young Boys Due to Poison. Stanford, III., Oct. 24. Considerable sensation was created here when it was created here when It was discovered that pie eating a week ago with fatal effects by Carl and Frank Jones brothers, aged eight and ten years, contained arsenic. Their death had been laid to ptomanie poisoning. The coroner is now investigating. . .

THE RICH3IOND PALLADIUM AND

The World's Best Seller Is Sankey's Gospel Hymnal.

Many novelists, poets, philosophers and essayists, some of them having qualities which would seem to entitle them to more than a brief vogue and fleeting fame, have their little day, and are soon forgot except by a limited circle. Even the "best sellers" in fiction ten years ago the book which passed through many editions and was bought by a quarter of a million persons of more or less discriminating taste no longer keeps the presses busy. Its glory has departed. Its fascinating hero and heroine, exciting climaxes and psychological problems no longer allure. The classics of fiction still appeal to a certain element among readers. Age does not wither nor custom stale their infinite variety. But the demand for them is limited and can be estimated almost with precision by publishers. The "dime novel" still has a great vogue, and "penny dreadful" literature flourishes in the United States and Great Britain. In Germany, according to the report of a society which has been investigating this subject, the public consumption of cheap flashy stories of adventure with impossible persons wading up to their necks in gore and crime, has reached really alarming proportions. But there is one American book, unique among all publications of its kind, which has attained a circulation that throws the most lurid dime novel or the most morbid problem "novel in the shade." On the death a few days ago of Dr. Ira D. Sankey, the singing evangelist, who collaborated many years with Moody In evangelistic work in this country and abroad. It was stated that the "Gospel Hymns" which 4hey used in their services had at tained the extraordinary circulation of 50,000,000 copies. While the demand for this colelction of hymns which seems to satisfy the taste and express the emotions of millions of Americans has somewhat abated, great numbers of the books are sold every year. It is not that the hymns measure up to a high literary standard or that musical setting conforms to the conons of fastidious criticism. The popularity of "Gospel Hymns" can not be accounted for on that theory. But they were introduced to the public at a time when religious fervor was Intense, and they furnished a medium through which religious feeling could find expression in words and melodies which appealed to the " heart and to the emotions of the masses. Moody's earnestness and adaptlveness as a speaker at religious gatherings his eloquence of appeal and his magnetic personality found a powerful ally in Sankey's singing of "Gospel Hymns." Throughout the west and the south and in tdany parts of the

SUN-TELEGRAM, STTNDAT. OCTOBER 25, 1908.

BE GUESTS

AT THE ,'TT east the "Gospel Hymns" and the Bible are today found side by side. And some of these hymns will doubtless live a long time although none of them is fairly comparable with masterpices of Christian hymnology. But to estimate intelligently the power of "Gospel Hymns" and the extent to which millions of Americans were influenced by them it is necessary to go back to the time when Moody spoke and Sankey sang to audiences of 20,000 persons filled with the religious spirit Then it will not be difficult to understand the effect on the masses of such hymns as "Hold the Fort," "Pull for the Shore," "Where is My Wandering Boy Tonight?" "The Ninety and Nine," "Let the Lower Lights Be Burning," and "Scatter Seeds of Kindness. The enormous sale . of "Gospel Hymns" In the past and the continued demand for them indicate that the religious fervor existed to a remarkable degree up to a comparatively recent period, and that, while It may have moderated to some extent, it has not been extinguished. As long as the presses are kept busy supplying the demand for "Gospel Hymns," it will be difficult to accept the statements of those v pessimists who caintaln that religion has lost its power over the masses of the people. With 50.000,000 copies, of the Moody and uted in the United States, the phenomenal sales of the "best seller" in fiction sink into insignificance. This is a fact which should afford at least a certain measure of satisfaction to thosw who are mourning over the decline of the religious spirit. Baltimore Sun. NEW MAIL SERVICE. Hospital Benefited by Change in Delivery. The mail service to the Reid Mem orial Hospital has been greatly im proved and now the authorities are ! able to get their mail about three I hours earlier than they formerly did. The hospital has been taken off the city carriers route and placed on rural route No. 5. Formerly the mail was received at a box at the entrance of the driveway to the hospital but now it is delivered at the office. This plan is proving much more satisfactory. INSPECTOR HERE. W. T. Fletcher Visits Wayne County Postoffices. W. T. Fletcher, postoffice inspector of Cincinnati, was in the city yesterday on business with Postmaster Spekenhler and inspecting the posoffices at BeUial aad Whitewater.

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Plenty of Room for Every One Besides the large balcony and gallery, the skating rink floor will be used and chairs will be plenty for everyone. The women and children as well as the men will be welcome. Come and be a guest of the Palladium, get the returns from one of the most interesting elections this country ever has known. Be our guest. Besides our complete wire service, we have invited the Wayne county election board to be present and to be our guests. All news from the county and surrounding districts will be received here first and given to the audience as the returns are received.

CARHEN

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KILL REFORMS If Democrats Gain Control of New York, Hughes Measures Will Suffer. WOULD RESTORE RACES. MANY OF THE MEASURES TENDING TOWARDS REFORM WOULD BE KILLED, SAYS FAMOUS DEMOCRATIC BOSS. New York, Oct. 24. If Lewis Stuyvesant Chanler is elected governor this fall, and the democrats are in the majority in the legislature, the program of the controlling forces will be to undo, practically all the reform work carried out by Gov. Hughes, if Senator McCarren has his way. This would include a repeal of the AgnewHart race track gambling law, a repeal of the present, registration law, and the radical amendment of the public service and insurance laws. That such a course will be followed in Albany ln the event of democratic success at the polls, those Interested in politics were brought to believe yesterday by characteristically frank statements made by Senator McCarren, who is &n ardent supporter of Chanler's - candidacy, and one of the most resourceful of the state legislators. . In expressing himself as being in favor of such a plan Senator McCarren took occasion to say that he was speaking only for himself, but those who heard were of the belief that in leading such a legislative campaign the Brooklyn senator would have the earnest support of other powers that be in the democratic party in this state.. McCarren is working hard for the defeat of Hughes and the election of Chanler. The senator made no attempt to dodge when asked where he stood on the issues of the campaign in the state. x In a speech at Arion Hall, the senator declared that If the democrats won In the state some laws probably would be repealed. Asked what laws he referred to, he answered: "We would repeal the personal identification registration law, and, in my opinion, we should try to repeal the state superintendent of elections law, lodging the power with the local authorities, where it ought to be. The registration bill was drafted in the interests of the republican party, aiming

North Seventh St,

to diminish the democratic vote. Many men are kept from the polls who are unable to write their names and are ashamed to admit it, although they are good citizens and entitled to vote. "As to the racing bill passed by the last legislature, personally, I would repeal it; repeal it in a minute, in fact. I am speaking for myself, only as a member of the legislature and not for the whole body, nor for Mr. Chanler. I think also that the public service law should be amended. In some respects it is unworkable. At the time this bill was passed I stated my belief that the creation of the commission for New York City as a state department was a direct violation of the principle of home rule. Such a commission should consist; of men directly responsible to the voters of the city. A REVOLUTION PLOT Republicans in Portugal Plan To Overthrow the Governmentc MONARCHISTS FOR MANUEL - Lisbon, Oct, 24. The newspapers are publishing startling details of an alleged Republican plot to overthrow the government, and the counter plans made by the Monarchists to retain King Manuel on the throne. It is asserted that the Monarchists, supported by the Clerical party, are storing large quantities of arms and ammunition in various convents here, knowing that the authorities would not dare to subject these Institutions to inspection. The Mundo reports that during last week twenty cases containing 500 rifles were stored in the crypt of the convent j of Loios. The Liberal and the Post de- ! clare that 500 rifles and a large quan tity of carriages are stored in the convent of Monicas and Quelhas, and that the Jesuit college of Campolide is a "perfect arsenal." The Portugas, the organ of the Clericals, asserts that at the first opportunity the editorial offices of all the Republican newspapers will be attacked, and that 1,700 armed men are ready for the purpose. The newspapers on both sides are unanimous in declaring that the situation is extremely serious, and the official organ, Correio da Notte, says that the authorities must take stringent measures to prevent a conflict. AH the convents and the Jesuit college are guarded by troops. For Peter's appetite trr baking- powder blacuita mad of Gold Medal Flour. Maeia.

Sinffl PROPOSES BY PHONE Muncie Boy Could No Longer Stand Taunts of His ; FriendSc J HE WAS ACCEPTED, TOO. Muncie, Ind., Oct, 24. Because Willard George, a well-known young man, was tried of standing the taunts of his frienla, who said he was afraid to be married, George after submitting to an unusual bombardment on the subject by Worley Dorman, one day, went to the telephone In the office where George Is employed and called up on the phone Miss Edna Grows, formerly of Ridgeville. When the young woman answered, George said: "I just wanted to know if you would marry me, and do It pretty quick. "Sure," came the young woman's reply. "How soon?" "I'll be down to see you tonight, and then we can arrange that," said George. ' The next day George and the girl who had so suddenly consented to be his bride went to Greenville. O., to be' married but a license was refused them there because of their nonresidenoe in that state. Not discouraged they went to Winchester, Ind., where the license was obtained without difficulty, and there they were married by the minister of the Friends churchThen the young people came back to Muncie and took up their residence with Mr. George's father. Their frienda are just now finding out about the romantic marriage. Mr. and Mrs. George had known each other for a long time but the wedding was an Inspiration of the moment, they say. A Thief s Rum. Early oae morning, many years age, a burglar was ruaniag at the top of bis speed aloauj a Loadon thoroughfare, pursued by a lady, who vociferated "Stop thiefr JL milkman Intercepted the fugitive, wm promptly exclaimed: Tor heaven's sake, let me to. It's my wife, and she'll Just about kill me." The milkman was a married man himself, and be allowed the malefactor to j escape. Looking the Telephone The telephone begaa to riag fa the lawyer's office. He unlocked the ttttte padlock oa If, answered the calL them carefully padlocked ft again. "I always do that bow," said he, "oa account of my frienda. I didn't the first month I took the office. At the end of that month I had a bill of $33.95, telephone calls. Oh. yes; long distance and every other kind. New York Press.

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