Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 46, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 February 1909 — Will Make Children Attend School. [ARTICLE]

Will Make Children Attend School.

County Truancy Officer Charles B. Steward is getting after the violators of the state truancy law with a hot stick. He is requesting all the teachers to keep him informed about cases of absence and tardiness and he proposes to systematically and without any favoritism go after all violators of the truancy law. It is surprising what little interest some parents have in the education of their children. And it is surprising that most of these parents consider the truancy law an infringement on their personal rights. It is not an uncommon thing for parents to keep their children out of school for several days at a time, and to thus make it impossible for them to keep up with their classes or to get much benefit out of work. Thursday Mr. Steward received a letter from a teacher in the north part of the county, which went into detail about the conditions in one family where there were four children of school age. Within the past 20 days the records of these four children was as follows: One had been absent 7 days and tardy twice, her tardiness on the two occasions amounting to 3 hours. The second had been absent 9 days and tardy twice ; tardiness amounting to 4 hours. The third had bean absent 6 days and tardy three times. The fourth had been" absent 7 days and tardy twice. ' The family lives just one mi'e from the school house and the father offered the excuse that the roads were too bad for them to travel over. The teacher investigated and found this not to be the case. The father had been previously warned about keeping his children in school, but he is protecting them and planning to have them grow up in ignorance. There are other cases and Truancy Officer Steward desires to give broad- ' cast warning that he will enforce the law and that children must be kept in school.