^^ School Men Woefully Ignorant or Hopelessly Corrupt WHO IS RESPONSIBLE V ,^' riiis little book I dedicate To tliosc who wisli to know the truth Aliiiut tlie ways we educate I )ur cnnntr\ 's hoi^e — its Iwddino- youth. Copyright, 1913 By IA^rEs T. CuFFix Piihliratioii ri;^hts arc ivah'cd to the Labor Press, i. c. The OMcial Joiinials of the .Inicruaii Fcdeivlicii of Labor Piiblislied by JAMES T. GUFFTN 1C32 Park Ave., Chicagx), III Mailf'il on receipt of price. Scventy-Pive cents £> 1 I'RIXTTNG CO. REPORT OF THE HEARING ON SCHOOL BOOK LEGISLATION BEFORE THE JOINT COMMITTEE OF THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Lansing^ Michigan, Feb. 19, 1913 With an Appendix by the Publisher JOINT COMMITTEE V^ ^1> House of Eepeesen'tatives February 19, 1913. 8 o'clock P. M. MEMBERS OF SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS. Name, Address HON. FRANCIS KING, Chairman, Alma, Mich. HON. VERNE C. AMBERSON, Blissfield, Mich. HON. SAMUEL ODELL, Shelby, Mich. MEMBERS OF HOUSE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION. Name, ' Address HON. FREDERICK E. DUNN, Chairman, Croswell, Mich. HON. A. V. YOUNG, Big Rapids, Mich. HON. ARTHUR ODELL, Allegan, Mich. HON. BION WHELAN, M. D. Hillsdale, Mich. HON. FRANK CHAMBERLAIN, Wayland, Mich. HON. GEORGE W. SCHAEFFER, Sturgis, Mich. HON. JOHN HOLLAND, Bessemer, Mich. HON. D. P. McLACHLAN, M. D. Milan, Mich. The Michigan Federation of Labor appeared by its accredited repre- sentative, MR. HOMER F. WATERMAN, Secretary-Treasurer, Kala- mazoo, Michigan, and MR. JAMES T. GUFFIN of Chicago bearing credentials from the Chicago Allied Printing Trades' Council. And the Text-Book Committee appointed by the Michigan State Teachers' Asso- ciation and the Michigan Association of School Boards and City Super- intendents, CONSTITUTED AS FOLLOWS : W.'H. BRUNSON, Chairman, FRED WELLS, President Board of Education, St. Jolms. President Board Education, Battle Creek WILLIAM CARPENTER, E. E. FERGUSON, Secretary Board of Education, Muskegon. Superintendent of Schools, Bay City. E. A. LYMAN,* S. O. HARTWELL, Head of Dept. of Mathematics, Tpsilanti. Superintendent of Schools, Kalamazoo. E. W. YOST, E, C. WARRINER, County Commissioner of Schools, Secretary of Committee. "Wayne Co., Detroit. Superintendent of Schools. Saginaw. Committee on Text-books and Text-book Legislation. — And Others — *It is well known that authors receive royalties from publishers. These royalties are usually based on the net sum received by the publisher fi-om the sale of the books. The more the publisher .gets, the greater will be the author's share. I find by reference to the "Publishers' Weekly", the American book journal published in New York, in the issue of .Tuly 23, 1910, on page 4S4, that Mr. E. A. Lyman is the author of four books published by the American Book Company, a joint author on three published by Allyn & Bacon and author of "Geometry Exercises," published by D. C. Heath & Company. I refer the reader to pages 103 and. 10^ and to poems on pasjes 42 and 82. . r Matthew, VI. : 24 Mr. Carpenter showed in several instances, a lack of knowledge of condi- tions. Mr. Yost's testimony was an echo of the policy of the American Book Company and others on pages 33, 34, 35. Mr. Purgeson was unfair on page 36. Mr. Warriner was unfair on pages 38, 39, and Mr. Hartwell was misleading on pages 30, 31. Many sentences of their report, (not all of which has been dis- cussed herein), are woefully misleading, as an investigation will show. The Publisher desires to call attention to the date of this publica= tion on page 3 in the Preface; to the credential printed on page 86; to the date of its revocation on back cover; his reply to the same, and to the signed article immediately following. A man is responsible only for what he says and does; not for what is said about him. PREFACE This little book has been hurriedly prepared and the publisher is fully aware that it is in no sense a comprehensive treatment of the text-book question. It is issued at this time merely for the purpose of answering many questions and arguments of a confusing nature which have arisen. A full treatment of the subject would fill volumes. This much is axiomatic : — The money paid for school books comes from the pockets of the taxpayers as the children, themselves, are non-pro- ducers. It is impossible to see how the opponents of "Uniform" text- books can substantiate their claim of greater economy to the payer of taxes when it is herein positively demonstrated that school book prices are invariably less under a uniform system than under any "local adoption" system, WHETHER THE BOOKS ARE FURNISHED FREE OR ARE PROCURED BY INDIVIDUAL PURCHASE OF SCHOOL PATRONS. The much-heralded "home rule" cry is a conceded graft-producer as is admitted on page 69. What the people want is "home rule" over their pocket-books. They are more interested in this for they would prefer to send to the store only forty cents instead of sixty-five cents to get ex- actly the same book. When school board members and dity superintend- ents, from whom honest and faithful service is expected, connive, or are led to use their influence, to secure laws that will place the text-book busi- ness of the State in the hands of certain publishing houses without equal competition for all, at a cost (by the local adoption plan), greater than that for which the books purchased are sold under state-wide uniform- ity, ivhat must be thought? The people do not, under local adoption, have the right of choice of books save as the superintendent and school board members choose for them. In Massachusetts even this right of choice has been taken away from the school boards who are supposedly elected by the people for this purpose and the power has been placed in the hands of the superintendents. (See p. 20, last sentence Mr. Fitzpatrick's address.) Someone is even now seeking to take this power of choice of school books from the school boards of Michigan by means of another bill, (not a text-book bill), which has been introduced before the Legislature. As has hereinbefore been said, the subject is a wide one and one of direct interest to a large per cent of the population. If the following- pages serve to throw light into some of the dark corners, correct much mis-information and supply to the public facts that it has been difficult or impossible to get before them hitherto, the desire of the publisher will have been achieved and he will feel amply repaid for such effort as has been expended in this compilation. I welcome and court criticism of all kinds as it is only by such that we progress. In placing the facts of the text-book situation before the public I have used my utmost endeavor to be absolutely fair and it will be observed that the arguments -and editorials of the supporters of free text-books have been reproduced in an un-garbled condition. Only facts have been presented and these, without bias. Deductions as to the force of the arguments are left to the reader. In conclusion, I desire to make due acknowledgement to Senator Straight, Representative Young, Chairman Dunn and to the members of the Joint Committee for the many courtesies extended to me, without which it would have been impossible to collate this matter and place it be- fore the public. April 7, 1913. The Publisher. [3] CONTENTS PART I. Page PRESIDENT WOODROW WILSON— SENATOR ROBERT M. LA FOLLETTE. .6 PREFACE 3 THE HEARING AND THOSE HEARD 7-41 Michigan Federation of Labor, 7. Newspaper excerpts, showing- necessity for some educational policies of organized labor, 8-9. U. S. Commissioner of Education. Cook County, Illinois, Superinten- dent of schools and rural teachers, 9. Illinois statistics, 10. Mich- igan Teachers' Investigating Committee report partially criticized, 10, 15, 16, 17, 20, 21. Twelve advantages of State Uniformity over "local adoption". 11. Additional advantages, 12, 13. Sharp practice dealing with rural schools, 13, 14. Dealer trying to justify cost of hooks, 14. Legislature responsible, 14. Teachers' opinions formed by school publications, 17, 18, 19, 20. "Free book, local adoption" law inspired by superintendents in April, 1911, p. IS. How business in Michigan was originally acquired by the American Book Com- pany, 19. "Local Adoption", with the authority of superintendent above that of school board, extolled by Boston manager of the American Book Company, 20. Prices higher in Minnesota and Michigan with new plan advocated or old plan now in vogue than would be under State Uniformity with Dunn-Young substitute bill alaw,21,22, 23, 24. Why? 101. Tabulation showing economy of mak- ing change to State Uniformity system under existing conditions whether books are free or procured by individual purchase locally, 23. Mr. E. E. Carpenter, 25-29. Mr. S. O. Hartwell, 29, 32. Mr. B. W. Yost, 33-35, 40. Mr. E. E. Furgeson, 35, 36. Mr. E. A. Lyman, 36, 37. Mr. E. C. Warriner, 37, 38, 39. Dr. Smith, 39. Mr. Slau- son, 40. Mr. Guffin closes hearing, 40, 41. "UNIFORMITY (?)", "District, Township Unit Plan" 42-43 Verse by George L. Buttrick. INTERLOCUTORY 44-45 Individual rights vs. community rights, 45. DIXIE 46-47 Competition secured in Florida, 46-47. Workmen and tools com- pared; local conditions un-named as usual. Can the reader name them?, 47. Legislation in Michigan, 48-49. [4] CONTENTS 5 STRAIGHT-PATTENGILL DEBATE 50-58 Differences arose, 50. Misleading information, 50. Opening of the campaign for tlie "free booli, local adoption" law, and carrying out the policies of the managers of the American Book Company in preference to State Uniformity, 51. The invitation to- debate the question, 51-52. Invitation accepted, 52-53. Topic of debate sub- mitted, 54. Important facts in debate suppressed by "Moderator- Topics" and some mis-leading statements made in the debate by Mr. Pattengill, 55, 56, 57. Signed statement given. Purpose of Straight- Young uniformity bills published in labor paper. 57-58. Advocates of "home rule" really opposed to home rule, 58. PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISING MEDIUMS; CURIOSITIES; TEACH ERS' READING 58-69 "The bull," (Truth) "in the" (Pattengill) "china shop," 59. In- diana goes for Uniform high school books, 59. Somebody fears a probe, 60. "Moderator-Topics" paves the way for a forthcoming re- port after a two years' investigation, embodying plan laid down two years previously. Workings of the "system," 60-61. Was the same object in view as charged in Ohio 22 years ago?, 61. (Read second from last paragraph near bottom page 61; then re-read pages 11, 12, 13 and 14.) Of special interest to Ohio teachers, 62 (top of . page) . State ownership of copyrights and state publication imprac- tical, 65-66. Calling names; condoning bribery; "local adoption", by a manager of a leading text-book house, 69. NEWS AND EDITORIALS PROM THE PUBLIC PRESS 70-82 American Book Company opposes State Uniformity in Ohio; further lights on the system, 70-71. They use the public press to further the interests of their company. Who pays for it?, 71-72. What was the inspiration in article on pages 72 and 73? The power of the press used to coerce board members and others, 75. Bull Moose locking horns, 77, 82. "WANTED" 82 A poem by J. G. Holland (Timothy Titcomb). LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY AND ECONOMY, OPPOSED BY THOSE WHO DO NOT UNDERSTAND 83-99 Showing reasons and struggles for same and the opposition it has met and some who oppose it, as well as how some of its friends have been misrepresented. EDITORIALS 100-102 Sheep — and different sheep. Not sheep and goats, 100. Local adop- tion a "will-'o-the-wisp". Whx Jiaoks cost more under this plan, 101. Some workmen; some schoolmen; some politicians. Initiative of teacher and mechanic with conditions uniform, 101, 102. Mathe- matical problem. Low wages and morality. Why "local condition" talk is heard, 102. MICHIGAN INVESTIGATION ILLUSTRATED 103 The "system" explained by California Investigating Committee. "Who's wrong?", 103-104. THE STATE JOURNAL LANSING, MICHIGAN Monday, March 3, 1913. PRIVATE MONOPOLY By Woodrow Wilson. "/ take my stand absolutely, where every pro gressive ought to take his stand, on the proposition that private monopoly is indefensible and intoler- able. And there will I fight my battle. And I know hotv to fight it. Every- body who has even read the neiuspapers knozvs the means by which these men built up their power and created these monopolies. And any decently equipped lawyer can suggest to^you statues by which the zvhole business can be stopped. WHAT THESE GENTLEMEN DO NOT WANT IS THIS: THEY DO NOT WANT TO BE COMPELLED TO MEET ALL COMERS ON EQUAL TERMS. "I am perfectly willing that they should beat any competitor by fair means, but I knozv the ford means they have adopted, and I know that they can be stopped by lazv. If they think that coming into the market upon the basis of mere efficiency; upon the mere basis of knowing how to manufacture goods better than anybody else, they can carry the immense amount of water that they have put into their enterprises in order to buy up their rivals, then they are perfectly zvelcome to try it. "But there must be no squeezing out of the beginner, no crippling his credit; no discrimination against retailers zvho buy from a rival; no threats against concerns zvho sell supplies to a rival; no holding back of raw ma- terial from him; NO SECRET ARRANGEMENTS AGAINST HIM. All the fair competition you choose, but no unfair competition of any kind. And then when unfair competition is eliminated, let us see these gentlemen carry their tanks of zvater on their backs. ALL THAT I ASK AND ALL THAT I SHALL FIGHT FOR IS THAT THEY SHALL COME INTO THE FIELD AGAINST MERIT AND BRAINS. EVERY- WHERE. IF THEY CAN BEAT OTHER AMERICAN BRAINS, THEN THEY HAVE GOT THE BEST BRAIN:" United States Senator Robert M- LaFollette of Wisconsin, before an audience in the Auditorium at Minneapolis, Minnesota, is quoted in the Milwaukee Free Press, January 2, 1913 as follows: — "WE SHOULD MAKE IT POSSIBLE FOR SMALL PRO- DUCERS TO COMPETE WITH THE BIG ONES ON EVEN TERMS." [6] Sliort-Iiand notes by Ada B. Shier The hearing was long, tedious and difficult to report, but materiaUy the text is complete. Annotated by the Pnblisher For fear of changing the meaning, no attempt has been made to edit the remarks of the members of the committee Edited by George L. Buttrick Three general styles of type have been used in this work. Italics are used for excerpts from the public press and reports cited up to page 42. Matter not having been placed before the committee is enclosed in brackets, as well as the annotations by Mr. Guffin. The bold-faced type up to page 22 indicates exact quotations from the committee report. Foot notes, bold-faced type matter and editorials after page 42 are by the editor and the publisher. Due credit is given for matter quoted. THE HEARING AND THOSE HEARD MR. HOMER F. WATERMAN, Secretary-Treasurer, Michigan Federation of Labor, Kalamazoo, Michigan. Mr. Chairman, ladies and gentlemen : — At a convention held in Grand Rapids last fall, the question of school text-books came before our convention and was discussed at some length. The trade unionists from all over the country voiced their opinion as to which was the most logical in regard to text-books ; whether free text- books or a uniform system of text-books. After a discussion of three hours it was decided in favor of the uniform, free text-book system, Many arguments were used in discussing the question and one partic- ularly was this : — In Lansing you have a certain kind of text-books and a man with three or four children who moves to Lansing from Leslie would have to make an entire change of books for his family, and the Leslie child could not then follow alorig in the educational work that was being done in his grade but would have to fall back. Whether this is true or not I shall not attempt to say because I haven't moved around and had children to take with me under these conditions. That was one of the arguments, however, that was brought forward in favor of state uniformity. There is here tonight a representative of organized labor in this coun- try ; — a man who has made a study of this question, for a good many years and one who has books to show us which he has accumulated in the study of the same from the different parts of the country, and he is better able to discuss these matters — relating to state uniformity of text-books — far better than I would be and I ain going to give my time to him. This gen- tleman comes from the Allied Printing Trades' Council of Chicago — Mr. James T. Gufifin. MR. GUFFIN:— Mr. Chairman and members of the committee : — You have rightfully assembled her^ as delegates from all parts of the state to listen to those things which would be of advantage to all the [7] 8 HEARING AND THOSE HEARD people of the state. The legislature is organized into committees and any- one appearing before those committees is talking to the people of the state in an oflScial capacity. That is the only way to get around. The coun- try is too big — the United States is too large — too many states and the time is too short [to do otherwise]. I shall show tonight that the school men of Michigan, or their official representatives, are either WOEFULLY IGNORANT OR HOPE- LESSLY CORRLTPT [concerning school legislation]. Those are strong terms but I have the goods. I shall start first on what labor requires of the school people : — • THE SUPREME COURT OF MICHIGAN, Vol. 30, page 79 [last paragraph] reads: — "In the very first executive message after the consti- tution went into effect, the governor, in view of the fact that 'our insti- tutions have leveled the artificial distinctions existing in the societies of other countries, and have left open to everyone the avenues to distinction and honor', admonished the legislature that it was their IMPERIOUS DUTY to secure to the state a general diffusion of knowledge, and that 'this can in no wise be so certainly effected as by the perfect organization of a UNIFORM and liberal system of common schools'. Their 'attention was therefore called to the effectuation of a perfect school system, open to all classes, as the surest basis of public happiness and prosperity' ". Ycu will notice it says "UNIFORM". Now a thing cannot be UNI- FORM unless it IS UNIFORM. I quote from the Chicago Daily Journal, [Friday, January 3L 1913] : — "The object of American schools is not to furnish ready trained em- ployees for railroads and factories. It is rather to turn out young citizens equipped with an understanding of the rights, duties, ideals and ambitions of themselves and their fellows. Before going too far on the road of in- dustrial education it zvould be tvell to pause long .enough to assimilate this fact." I now quot-e from a letter of one who signs himself "Pessimist" in the Detroit Free Press, Sunday, January 26, 1913:. — "To the Editor: — 'Higher education' has been the slogan in Detroit's high schools so long now that one zvonders in zirhat does that term con- sist when applied to the young zvoman who has graduated from the high school and zvhose parents are not able to send her to college. "Detroit's present school system is, to my thinking, lamentably nar- rozv. Everything is planned with consideration for the colleges of the country, leaving it to the homes to teach the practical things of life. "Why is it not possible to have our high school course divided intO' zvhat zve might call two distinct courses? One voe might style the 'acade- mic course' , designed for those pupils zvhose parents are contemplating a college training afterzvards , and the other zvhat might be styled a 'domestic course'. ■ "Of zvhat use is it to make our city attractive to outsiders as a possi- ble place of residence if zve are not going to giz'e their children a means of education as broad as it can be made? "Is it not time that zve cut out some of the frills, get down to bed-rock and install a school system broad enough to become an e.vample to the zvhole zvorld?" NEWSPAPER ARTICLES 9 In the Milwaukee Free Press, Tuesday morning, February, 11, 1913, we find the following : — "Modern tendency of vocational training in the public schools was condemned as 'child labor' by L. F. Bozver, vice-president of the Allis- Chalmers Co. in a talk before the Parents' and Teachers' club of the West Division high school last night. "I have no sympathy zvith that system of education zvhich tends to give a boy zvhat he zifanti* because no boy at school age knozvs zvhat he is going to do or zvhat he is best titled for," said Mr. Bozver, "and the training that he receives, merely gets him into a rut and is so much time zvasted before the boy really knozvs zvhat he is going to be. "To my mind it is a sort of child labor. The child is forced to learn these things zuhen he ought to be getting that CULTURE zvhich he can- not get at his home but can get only in school. You are shrinking and curbing the e.vistence of the child zvhcn you take that thing azvay from him. "With all the hue and cry against them, I still have faith in the school curricula because, fundamentally, I believe they are right. There is no need of putting fads and frills into those zvho haven't the capacity to use them." Mr. Bozver pointed out that the proper subjects taught in school should be those zvhich train the mind so that zvhen the boy goes into his life zvork he has the capacity to grasp and solve problems he meets. DR. P. P. CLAXTON, United States Commissioner of Education, Washington, D. C, [in an address to the^teachers at Grand Rapids, Mich- igan,] says, as reported in the Grand Rapids Herald, Tuesday morning, January 28, 1913 :— "There must be more continuity betzveen the grades of the school. I estimate one-fourth of the teacher's time to be zvasted in finding out zvhat the last teacher taught. "Shozv the pupil zvhere his lessons Ht into the future, zvhich is half his life ; zvhere they zuill help hint to make a bigger, better man, and he zvill be eager to learn them." I want to say further that if it is true what Dr. Claxton says that one- fourth of the teacher's time is spent in finding out what the child knows or ought to know, if you can reduce that time to one-eighth, you will have saved for efficiency forty dollars [per year of the teacher's time] for every teacher in the state of Michigan, which means $600,000 ; [more than the yearly] total cost of all books. COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT E. J. TOBIN, [Cook County, III], in the Chicago Daily Journal, Thursday, December 26, 1912, says: — "It is almost criminal to permit the children of our rural and small vil- lage schools to be put under youthfid, inexperienced persons, zvith no one to guide, supervise or direct their efforts. *Thelwall thought it very unfair to influence a child's mind by in- culcating any opinions before it had come to years of discretion to choose for itself — I showed him my garden, and told him it was a botanical garden. "How so?" he said, "it is covered with weeds." "Oh," I re- plied, "that is only because it has not come to its age of discretion and choice. The weeds, you see, have taken the liberty to grow, and I thought it unfair in me to prejudice the soil towards roses and strawberries." Coleridge. 10 HEARING AND THOSE HEARD "The nezv street car man is always put under the tutelage of an ex- perienced motorman or conductor before he is given charge of a car. The young man zvho zvishes to become a plumber, bricklayer or carpenter alzmys has to go through a like experience. Even the nezv salesgirl or the office clerk is not told to go ahead on the first day zvithout some instruction. "In the rural schools there have been absolutely no requirements. Nezv teachers, zvho have never assigned a lesson or conducted a recitation, have been given certificates, assigned to schools and told to go to zvork and in- struct the children zvithout an hour of skilled preparation hi the art of teaching." In Illinois, of the 22,000 teachers, some 16,000 are not even high school graduates. Something has to be done, and the only thing to be done is to have a course of" study that fits into these books so closely that anyone can follow it. [STATE OF ILLINOIS Department of Public Instruction springfield March 6, 1913. Mr. James T. Guffin,' Battle Creek, Michigan. Dear Sir: — Replying to your Western Union night letter, concerning the number of public school teachers of Illinois, also the number that are not graduates of any school : — For the year ending June 30, 1912, there were 30,366 teachers regu- larly employed in the public schools of Illinois. The following is a state- ment of their professional preparation as reported to this office : — Number of teachers that are graduates of a College and State Normal School 528 College, only, 2,105 State Normal School, only, 2,169 Four-year high school, only, 9,425 None-graduates 16,139 Total 30,366 Many of those reported as non-graduates have had some training in high schools, colleges, or State normal schools, but did not reach gradua- tion. Yours sincerely, F. G. Blair, W/T Superintendent.] [IF YOU BELIEVE IN YOUR SUPREME COURT DECISIONS AND IN THE WANTS OF THE PEOPLE AS REFLECTED FROM THE NEWSPAPER ITEMS QUOTED, TAKEN AT RANDOM FROM ILLINOIS, MICHIGAN AND WISCONSIN PUBLICA- TIONS, NONE OF WHICH WAS INSPIRED IN SO FAR AS I KNOW, YOU MUST HAVE A STATE EDUCATIONAL COM- MISSION, UNIFORM BOOKS AND COURSE OF STUDY, AS CALLED FOR IN THE DUNN-YOUNG SUBSTITUTE BILL]. I will read from the report of the text-book committee appointed by the Michigan State Teachers' Association, and the Michigan Association of School Boards and City Superintendents, and headed : — "AGAINST STATE=WIDE UNIFORMITY OF TEXT=:BOOKS" "Reduced cost of text=books. — The first and last argument of the advocate of state=wide uniformity is that by using the same books ADVANTAGES OF STATE UNIFORMITY 11 over the entire state, a better price can be secured from the pub- lishers on account of the large volume of business involved in a state contract." I will now read from the 1911 report of the State Commissioner of Common Schools of Ohio, Mr. Frank W. Miller. "The Patterson law requires that all pupils who graduate from the eighth grade must pass the same examination over the entire State of Ohio. With such a variety of texts as are now in use, it is impossible to make a list of questions which is fair to the children. The child's exam- ination should be based upon the text he used in school. The nomenclature used in the different texts in grammar is chaotic in the extreme. It not only confuses the child but also often puzzles the teacher. To make a list of questions in granpnar zvhich zi'ould be fair to all children alike, is a physical impossibility until there is more uniformity of zvork in that sub- ject. No. I. "Not only does state uniformity of text-books secure to the child text-books at the lowest possible price, but it also adds to the effi- ciency of the schools." No. 2: — [It prevents all overcharges on the part of retail dealers.] No. 3: — [It insures an adequate supply of school books on hand at all times, thereby avoiding delay in getting books from the publishers with- out entailing a loss of time awaiting books, coupled with additional trans- portation charges. This would be the case in rural districts without su- pervision, and after the first order, transportation charges would have to be borne by the local district, even if a single book was all that was needed." This would apply under a FREE BOOK SYSTEM : LOCAL ADOPTION.] No. 4: — "It secures a better class of books to schools in general by having the selection made by professionally skilled and capable men. No. 5 : — "It gives unity to the educational forces of the state. No. 6: — "It makes it possible to p-oduce a uniform course of study; to plan institute outlines, based upon the uniform texts; to issue frequent bulletins upon the best pedagogic methods of procedure in teaching th4 Conn's Introductorv Phvsiol- _^ogy . ■ ■ 30 .36 27 Conn's Elementary Physiology .50 .60 .45 Gordy's U. S. History '. .7':, 1.00 ..75 Erve's Leading Facts in Geo- graphy 90 • 1.10 .82 Walsh's Primary Arithmetic. . .22 .30 22]/, Walsh's Grammar School Arithmetic 45 .65 .49- Lessons in English Book 1 (Scott-S) 25 .42 .2,iy2 Lessons in English Book 2 (Scott-S) 40 .65 .49 I have here the Kansas state adopted books. In these books I have put the Kansas price and these books will be left in the office of the superin- tendent of public instruction where they may be seen if you care to look at *Indiana seems to be "satisfied with it." See page 59. **Retail prices compared with wholesale prices which are an unfair and un- just comparison. MR. E. C. WARRINER OF SAGINAW 39 them. I wish to make one point further. I have brought here two or three sets of the best books ; [Aldine and Riverside series] better in subject matter and binding than the books that are used in Indiana, Kansas or Texas. These books cost something, but they are worth it for the value of the material and the influence on the child. Assuming that the families inoving most frequently from one district to another are the poorer families, and I think every one will admit that, we favor legislation which will lessen the cost of text-books to these people and I think the free text-book system does it. I have a letter from the secretary of the Cleveland Federation of Labor dated Jan. 21, 1913. . CLEVELAND FEDERATION OF LABOR Cleveland, Ohio, January 21, 1913. Mr. E. C. Warriner, Saginaw, Mich. Dear Sir:— In reply to your favor on Free Text-Books, will say that organized labor in Cleveland has for years been trying to get Free School books and at this time are trying to induce the Board of Education to supply them. Organized Labor of this City not only believes in free text- books, but in free supplies, such as tablets, pencils, etc., which in our opinion costs more during the year than books. We are trying to have the Legislature pass a state law making School Books free. We have no particular publications or printed matter on the subject. Very truly yours, Peter Hassenpflue, Secretarv. STATE OF KANSAS DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION Topeka, Kansas, Jan. 23, 1913. Mr. E. C. Warriner, Supt. of Schools, Saginaw, Mich. Dear Sir: — The Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, proposed to purchase a certain number of supplementary books for use as text-books in the city schools and an injunction was secured in the district court re- straining the Board from such purchase on the ground that our law pro- vides that text-books may be purchased by Boards of Education provided that an election has been made in the city or district authorizing such pur- chase. Since no election had been held in the city of Topeka, the court decided that the Board of Education had no authority to purchase books as was proposed. The case was not appealed to the supreme court, since it was thought to be the wisest plan by those interested to let the matter rest for the present. In the city of Lawrence, action was brought in the courts to prevent the Board of Education from requiring pupils to purchase supplementary books, that is books in addition to those adopted by the state text-book commission. In this case, the court decided that the Board of Education had authority to require the use of supplementary books provided that the adopted texts were used in good faith and to the fullest extent. Very truly, W. H. Ross, State Supt. Pub. Instruction. It is absolutely true that in Saginaw it does not cost more than $5000 for the text-books which are used by the children of the city of Saginaw. DR. SMITH, Ann Arbor: — I want to call attention to the peculfer situation of the educators of Michigan opposing a measure as against a gentleman from Chicago ; it is the most analagous situation I about ever saw. The question has been asked me, where did this thing start? I have 40 HEARING AND THOSE HEARD been in different parts of the state and I liave never heard state uniforni- itv mentioned, excepting b}' reference to this bill. I have asked people in Ionia, in Lansing or Saginaw if they had heard anything and they say they have never heard the matter discussed. MR. SLAUSON, Ann Arbor:— This matter of a text-book commis- sion composed of five people, three of whom are exceedingly busy men and have about as much to do as they are able to attend to : The governor of the state, the president of the agricultural college, the superintendent of public instruction. It is possible that the governor might appoint some other man, but >-ou will also notice it will cost ten dollars a day for the work, and this lias to be ready for operation in September, 1914. I have been in the school business for 2>S years, and I know that it is impossible to prepare a suitable course of study in such a short time. You must remember this uniformity throughout the state includes high schools. In Ann Arbor we have high schools of which we are not ashamed, and we would have to use the same text-books that are used out at Dexter or Chelsea or Calumet in tlie upper peninsula, but the conditions are entirely different. The question of nationalities comes in. Agriculture ought to be taught in many of the schools, but if the course is uniform all this would have to be set aside, and no uniform course will fit all localities of Michigan. MR. DUNN : — Doesn't the superintendent of public instruction fur- nish the -list for the first eight grades? A. He does not apply it to cities. We have a five-years' course in the high school, seventy-five credits for the academic, 15 credits for the manual and 10 either manual or academic according to the choice of the pupils. Now in manual training we have cabinet working, etc. You understand cities of 2000 pupils have to have- certain requirements. This woull not fit in with a uniform course and you cannot get away from it. MR. DUNN : — I want to ask Mr. Yost a question. You have been to a good many educational meetings this year. Did you at any of these meetings advocate the free text-book svstem? MR. YOST:— I did not. MR. DUNN:— Why didn't you? MR. YOST : — Well, other matters took up the entire program and the question wasn't before us. MR. GUFFIN : — IMr. Slauson says that the course of study has to be established by September 1, 1914. That is not true. The books have to be in bv that time, but the course of study can go in any time by the help and advice of the school men of the state. There is special provision made for that. MR. SLAUSON : — Isn't it in the bill that the course of study shall be provided by September 1, 1914? MR. GUFFIN : — No, sir. It doesn't say anything about when the course of stud}' shall go in. The school men discuss the books continu- ously and the commission has the authorit)' ; it is given this leaway and elasticity. As to the statement that the state officers were too busy, they are obliged to find time to discharge any duty this legislature ma)' impose upon them. Mr. Warriner made the statement that the books would not be any cheaper. Take LTnited States histories for instance. If the retail price to the pupils under state uniformity is 7h cents, as is the case m several states, discount to the boards furnishing free books is 10 per cent and the taxpayers in a free book district would be getting this book for 67^ cents. However, when the uniform book is first placed in the schools they would pay 37 cents, less 10 per cent, or Z^i.Z cents. But MR. J. T. GUFFIN OF CHICAGO 41 under the free book local adoption plan, as in vogue in Minnesota and advocated by your Investigating Committee, the tax payers have to pay 75 cents net for the book and 70 cents exchange. On several high-school books, for instance, according to prices established under terms of the Minnesota law, the wholesale price to the district is 94 cents, whereas under the uniform plan, the cost to the district would be but 75 cents — a saving of 20 per cent to the tax payers. Q. Have you authority to say what history shall be sold ? A. No, but the commission has. The net price shall not be greater than received elsewhere in the United States for any publication. O. Didn't you say the list of any books. (Break in shorthand notes.) A. This bill provides for a contract for state uniformity on basal books. Many of the books were not submitted at all [in Kansas and Indiana] on account of the limited retail price laws only. I am not talking for that [Dunn] bill. I know what the provisions are in that bill and I know what is in this [Young] bill. The price is as low as it [the book] is sold for elsewhere in the United States, i. e. net price to publisher. O. You admit you can get books at that price? A. I admit that on an open list you cannot get the price because you do not have the market. You haven't read the bill. O. I want to ask you why you come to Michigan? A. I am speaking for the Michigan Federation of Labor, I was intro- duced by Mr. Waterman, its representative, for that purpose. Mr. Warriner says there is no demand for uniformity. Why do you have the Legislature ? Why do the people elect members of the Legislature to come to Lansing if not to listen to things that will be of benefit to the state? Now how can the people make an intelligent demand if they are not in possession of the vital facts in the matter? And the school men themselves know very little about it, not even the investigating committee. Mr. Lyman said that provision could be made in the law for the selling of books in case of removal. This idea of a child selling books to the district is an absolute farce for the reason that when the family moves away they will not take time to hunt up the school authorities for the purpose of selling two or three dollars' worth of books, or a less amount. I wrote to the secretary of the Text-Book committee of Indiana [ap- pointed at the 1911 meeting of Town and City Superintendents' Associa- tion] for five copies of their report and received the following letter: I wrote prior to December 18th and received this letter addressed as is shown here : — Rushville, Ind., 12/18, '12. Dear Sir: — We cannot supply you with more than one copy of the report desired. We have but three copies and have some requests for copies every week. We are sorry that the supply is so nearly exhausted, but hope that the copy which goes by separate cover may serve you. , Mr. James T. Gufifin Yours truly, Chicago, 111. (signed) J. H. Scholl. 59 E. Van Buren St. Room 608. The address on the envelope is as follows : — Chicago Allied Printing Trades' Council, Room 608, 59 E. A^an Buren St. Chicago. We could only get one copy, but they had plenty of copies [six weeks later] for the legislature of Michigan, as a copy was placed on each mem- ber's desk I am told. UNIFORMITY (?) District, Township Unit Plan Just suppose that you were living In a cozy, little flat, And each month you paid your landlord Thirty dollars rent for that; And you chanced to find out later That the man across the hall, For HIS flat paid only twenty Do you think you'd care at all? Or supposing that your butcher Sent you up two pounds of steak, And suggested half a dollar Would just make an even break; And suppose your next=door neighbor Bought two pounds of that same kind For just thirty copper pennies; Do you think that you would mind? There are many little wrinkles That the public never knows, As to how things are conducted. As, for instance, we'll suppose You know nothing about school books; You're entirely unaware Of this live and vital subject Which confronts us everywhere. There is made, for little children A geography by Frye; It's a very helpful text=book. But before you pass it by, Please note; Michigan edition, Sixty=five cents — binding gray; Tennessee; blue binding; forty — That's a bully business way. [42] Frye's Geography intended For your older girl or boy, Costs a dollar and a quarter In the state of Illinois. That same book in Alabama You can buy for eighty=eight Copper pennies — Do you like it? Do you think the deal is straight? That's the school book problem — Listen; When two books are just the same; When the plates from which they're printed Are alike save for the name That is stamped upon the cover, (Which is gray instead of blue). Do you think this alteration Worth near forty cents to you? If your boy is reading Latin And translating Cicero, And you live in Minnesota, You'll observe you have to go To a school which paid at WHOLESALE Ninety=four cents for this book, But come down with us to Kansas And we'll take a little look. Hunt up any Kansas book store Where they handle high=school books; Ask for Cicero's Orations; Note precisely how it looks. It's the very same edition, But the RETAIL price down here Is eleven pennies cheaper — Don't you think that somewhat queer? There is only one good reason That the text=book printers' "tools" Make these several basic prices For the 'free adoption' schools; Under systems so chaotic 'District,' 'Township Unit' plan. They charge every single district The most money that they can. — Q. L. B. [43] INTERLOCUTORY ":i= vs * ^j^ij ^Q breed up a son to common sense Is evermore the parents' least expense." — Dry den It is generally conceded in modern society that there is no one thing of greater importance than the thorough and adequate education of otir boys and girls who in a few years, will be the men and women of the country. Just at this time, while the leglislature is struggling over text-book legislation, some of our papers have suddenly developed a fear that the good people of the state are about to have a bogie slipped into a seat at this feast of reason. The name of this apparition is "uniformity" and this simple word has been one to be conjured with. The chief conjuror appears to have been one Henry R. Pattengill, a school book publisher, and through his mouth- piece, "Moderator-Topics," a school journal, he has used much ink and many pages of otherwise good, clean paper in pandering to the public with glittering generalities and crass absurdities which bear either not at all, or at most indirectly, on this most vital subject. While our humorists have long joked with the phrase that "figures will not lie," its inherent truth is recognized, and specious statements of a singular vagueness will never serve to combat plain facts put down in plain figures. The opposition to uniformity of text-books has tried to fire amunition, ad libitum, ad nauseam, at individuals instead of principles and it has loaded its guns with lamp-black, rather than solid shot. • The resultant explosion has been principally a case of back fire that has smeared the artillerists in a manner that water will not cleanse and only time can efface. This semi-gaseous style of ordnance has but resulted in a fog that only the sun ray of "common sense" can pierce. The cuttlefish, while quite innocuous in itself, resorts to a peculiar practice when hard pressed, having neither 'jaws to bite nor claws to scratch,' and ejaculates iiito the surrounding waters a merky fluid, thereby concealing its true position. Are the opponents of uniformity cuttle- fish? THIS is THE ISSUE:— The best interests of the public of any state demand the best educa- tion for each child. This is not the year 449 B. C. — Saxon and Angle have inbred and we move about the earth freely. We no longer seek a lair in some stone cave and there isolate ourselves. We, of the English tongue, demand that our children shall acquire, at public expense, an education suitable to fit them for the world's work. Spelling, reading, writing, arithmetic, geography and the other primal INTERLOCUTORY (Concluded) 45 requisites are necessities to the child from the Orkney Islands to the Isle of Wight and from Oregon to Maine. We have forty-eight states in these united governments. One child in Michigan may spend his life in a single town — Detroit, for instance. But under this absurd and chaotic system, dubbed "local adoption," he could plow through books galore and finally find that in County B, he was relegated to the 6th grade, having come from the 7th grade in County A, and all because he had forced upon him a different set of books. The main (and vital) trouble with Mr. Pattengill's arguments is that his premises are incorrect. If we set down a false syllogism we must nec- essarily arrive at a false conclusion. Let us take the most primary form of syllogism, A — -A — A, All dogs are cats — All cats mew — All dogs mew — Were our premise correct, we could not escape this conclusion, but the false premise knocks everything into a cocked hat. Analyze some of the "Moderator-Topics' " logic on Uniformity and see if you do not discover that "all dogs are cats." Mr. Pattengill appears to have been lashing his tail around through the dictionan,' and whenever a four-syllabled word stuck to his honey- smeared appendage, that went into print. (We might suggest that the Century Dictionary offers a wider field than an old Webster.) "In all government truly republican, men are nothing — principle is everything." Daniel Webster. The attempt on the part of self professed educators, or educational authorities, to confuse the issue by a fallacious comparison that seeks to .reconcile individualistic rights with those of a community, is futile. The history of civilization is conclusive refutation of such a claim, since all legislation clearly demonstrates that |he needs of the many DEMAND RECOGNITION IN PREFERENCE TO THE WANTS OF THE FEW, and this constitutes a fundamental principle of pure democracy and republi- can SIMPLICITY. Again I desire to call attention in no uncertain manner to the questionable motive behind the apparent word-juggling as evi- denced by use of the terms "standardization of mentality," "same mold," "free books," whenever text-book uniformity is referred to. It must be apparent, even to the casual observer, that there is a pur- pose in this substitution. Uniformity is a principle whose worth has been generally conceeded by every progressive and enterprising institu- tion. "DIXIE" Jacksonville, Florida. Claude L'Engle,* Editor and Publisher. EDITORIAL. Cheaper School Books. It was said by some statesman more or less celebrated but cer= tainly notorious, that there were five reasons against the establish= ment of the parcels post system, and these were the FIVE EXPRESS COMPANIES doing business in the country. There is but ONE REASON why State uniformity of text books has not long since been established in Florida, and this one reason is the AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY, KNOWN AS THE BOOK TRUST. Georgia school children buy certain books for 85c, certain others for 35c, and others for 22c. Florida school children pay $1.25, 60c and 35c for similar books. The only difference in these books is the binding, which is one color in Georgia and another color in Florida. Georgia has State text book uniformity. Florida has not. The American Book Company fought the establishment of State uniformity in Georgia and kept on fighting until it finally lost and then it surrendered and sold books between thirty and forty per cent cheaper the year the State uniformity law was passed than the year before — sold the same books — not different books and different paper with different ink and different kind of type, but the SAME BOOKS. In 1905 BrOward had a State text book uniformity recommenda= tion in his message. The book trust was in Tallahassee to fight it just as soon as Senator Crane introduced the bill and stayed on the job until it was beaten. BroM'ard came back again in 1907. So did the book trust. It had salesmen, professional lobbyists, vice=presidents and man= agers at Tallahassee making the argument against it in the same words, with the same gestures, the same appealing tones, the same dramatic dashing of text books down on the floor, as they had used in Georgia. They also had the same fake bill introduced, which provided for county uniformity, that is no uniformity at all, at least no uniform^ ity that carries the advantageous. In 1909 Senator Cone in the senate and Representative Carn in the house introduced the real text book uniformity bill. Dr. Bran= ham, agent of the book trust, showed up in Tallahassee and engaged the services of Peter O. Knight to lobby against State uniformity. Again the same old fake uniformity bill showed up in both branches of the legislature. This bill is known as the Kentucky bill. It was framed up by the American Book Company which succeeded in passing it in Kentucky when the fight was on for real uniformity. It is the hairy hand of Esau all right, but it is the cunning voice of Jacob, just the same. It is reported, now that this same old fight is on in the legisla= *The writer of this article was recently elected congressman-at-large and it is reproduced in its original form, the publisher not having taken any liber- ties in capitalization or punctuation. [46] BRIEF HISTORY OF FLORIDA LAW 47 ture of 1911, with the same old conditions and the same old Ken= tucky bill, that SUPERINTENDENT HOLLOWAY FAVORS THE KENTUCKY BILL. Superintendent Holloway has been suspected of allowing his oiifice to be made the center of the opposition to State uniformity for two or three sessions past. Just before the last general primary, in which State officers were nominated, Superintendent Holloway told me that when he opened his campaign for reelection, he would de= dare unequivocally for State uniformity of text books — not the Ken= tucky bill, not county uniformity, not any other kind of uniform= ity, straight uniformity. State uniformity, which means the Cone bill, which is the same as the Crane bill, the same as the Georgia law. Superintendent Holloway was elected to his office with a straight declaration for State uniformity as part of his campaign thunder. It is said that educators, meaning those employed to teach, which is often a very different thing, favor county uniformity. Maybe so, but this is not a reason why State uniformity, which means cheaper books for the children of Florida, should not be adopted. I have witnessed the fights for State uniformity since 1907. I am yet to meet a man who can bring any argument against it, that will stand for one minute against the overpowering, overwhelming, crushing and invincible statement that the SAME BOOKS can be bought THIRTY TO FORTY PER CENT CHEAPER under State uniformity than under any other plan. State uniformity has passed the senate this time. Last time it passed both houses and did not become a law because the same bill did not pass each house. It will be considered in the house next Monday. Here's hoping that these few lines may help to get votes enough to pass it. WORKMEN AND TOOLS Text=books are the tools of the educator. A good book might be likened to a chisel of good steel. The well=tempered chisel is as use= ful to the carpenter in Maine as to his brother in Oregon, and the poor chisel hampers good work as much in one place as in another, however different "local conditions" may be. What the workman wants is a tool that will cut and continue to cut. The ability of men of different skill to use the tool will, of course, not be equal. But it is surely true that not only can the good workman do his best with good tools but so can the poor workman, while poor tools would but make his indifferent work still more in= different. The chisel that has the temper and qualities to work the pine of Michigan is equally well fitted to work the Cyprus of the South. But the worthless, ten=cent store chisel is fitted for neither. The teacher=workman, supplied with a truly good book=tooI can find himself at any point from coast to coast and will be equipped to best hue out the character and shape the education of the child= timber that comes under his hands. "Then take him to develop if you can, And hue the block off, and get out the man." — Pope This space to be utilized after the outcome of the pending legislation in Michigan has been determined. BRIEF HISTORY OF MICHIGAN LAW 49 This space to be utilized after the outcome of the pending legislation in Michigan has been determined. STRAIGHT-PATTENGILL DEBATE Facts — Published and Suppressed Editorial in "Moderator-Topics," April 13, 1911: — Representative Straight comes along at the eleventh hour with his bill for state uniformity of text-books containing the especially dangerous feature of fixing the maximum prices. Being chairman of the educational committee he pushes the bill right over to the printers just exactly the re- quired 10 days before adjournment. The bill would change the texts now used in many schools. The 600 school districts now using free text-books including our largest cities would have to change. Can anyone give a good reason why a bill of such wide-reaching importance should be kept in hiding to be sprung at the last minute amidst the hurry of closing^ hours? This, too, with its author a member of the house committee. The good sense of the legislators will doubtless let the measure die. It might be well to call the reader's attention at this point to the fact that the well=trained and organized lobby in Michigan was caught napping and was without time to work, as indicated on page 87, as was pointed out to me through the kindness of my Wisconsin newspaper friend. From "Moderator-Topics," April 13, 1911: — SOME RECENT FACTS ON UNIFORM TEXT-BOOKS OHIO . The Ohio senate has defeated the uniform school book bill after a bit- ter debate, in which the motives of the backers of the bill were strongly attacked.* Every educational association in the state, including even the College Presidents' Association, was on record against the measure. The senate had been expected to favor the bill as its author was chair- man of the educational committee. The house was considered hostile to it. « KENTUCKY The last Kentucky legislature abolished uniform books. Kentucky's "cheap" books** were a disgrace to the state, according to all educational authorities. INDIANIA In Indiana two years ago 57 county superintendents protested against the bad features of their uniformity law, said to be the best that could be devised. Later one-third of the county superintendents favored abolish- ing the entire law,*** despite the pressure of political influence to make them "stand pat." MICHIGAN Michigan now has as good text-books as can be found in the world.**** State uniformity is a long step backward. Compulsory free text-books is the next step forward. Lansing, Mich., March 12. Why do the leaders of teachers' organizations pledge prospective legislators against Uniformity when the latter are seeking election? *See bottom of page 98. Possibly the shoe may have been on the other foot. **Ninety-five ijer cent of the books alluded to are publications of the Ameri- can Book Company and some compare favorably with Michigan text-books. ***Latest! The county superintendents in one-half of the congressional dis- tricts of the state voted unanimously for uniform high-school books this year. ****This is untrue in four-fifths of the districts of the state. [50] SCHOOL MEN FRAMING LEGISLATION 51 Ex=Speaker Vining, of the Ohio Legislature, whose name appears elsewhere in this book, is my authority that this is done. If such is the case, what are we to conclude from the following, which is taken from page 13 of the "Unabridged Report of the Straight=Pattengin debate"? St. Johns, Mich., March 20, 1912. Dear Sir: — Please, Mr. Superintendent, we depend on yon to bring this letter to the attention of 3'our school board, for we are not sending one to them. Lansing, April 18th and 19th, gives you the place and date. Thursday afternoon will be devoted to school legislation, free text-books and school pensions. IT LOOKS AS THOUGH WE MUST CHOOSE BETWEEN FREE TEXT-BOOKS AND A POSSIBILITY OF A DANGEROUS UNIFORM TEXT-BOOK LAW. Mr. School Board Member, we want especially your advice and assistance as to what is best to do in this matter. We must also take action looking to the election of a Legislature and a Governor favorable to the primary-school fund. Do not think the danger is passed on this subject. The next Legislature will revise the tax laws, and we want one which will keep "hands off" the primary fund. THE TIME TO TAKE CARE OF THE PRIMARY FUND IS NOT WHEN THEY MEET NEXT WINTER. BUT WHEN THEY ARE RUNNING FOR THE NOMINATION NEXT SUM- MER. Members of school boards must see to this, or it will not be done. Come out and help us plan for this fight. J. M. Frost, President Superintendents' Association Will H. Brunson, Chainnan School Board Section Why do the school men decry Politics in the school systems throughout the country, yet play the game themselves? At this point read article in "Moderator=Topics," issue of Febru= ary i, 1912, reproduced on page 20, in which is a reference to the friends of Uniformity as "vealy thinkers," etc. Editorial in "Moderator-Topics," April 18, 1912. Because we believe the Straight text-book bill a bad 'measure and det- rimental to the schools, because zve despise and condemn the sneaky, shifty, tricky manner in which Representative Straight of Coldzvater tried to push it through the legislature ivithout giving any oppor- tunity for its due consideration, the editor of Moderator-Topics did his best to defeat it. For that reason Mr. Strait has become insanely angry, and has made his boasts that he zvill break H. R. Pattengill and ruin his business and reputation. In accord with this beautiful, altruistic spirit he has demanded of the Department of Public Instruction that Mr. Pattengill be given no more institute zvork in Michigan. Honorable Strait also accuses all the school superin- tendents and board members, 50 or mOre in number, that opposed his graft-breeding bill as being bought up or bullied by certain book compan- ies. Doesn't the Coldzvater statesman believe that men may be honest and oppose his measure?'* Does he not knozv that school men and book men have as good reputations as coal dealers and legislators? Why is Strait so vitally interested in foisting his peculiar brand of text-book bill upon the State? Of course some text-book companies are greatly interested in hav- ing just such a bill passed, and doubtless put some of their money into pushing it. The only paid lobbyist in the igii session that zve happen to know, zvas one who told us that he aided Strait in' preparing and pushing *Yes, but are they honest with the children? 52 STRAIGHT-PATTENGILL DEBATE his bill. Who pays Strait's expenses ivhile he goes about the state advo- cating his special brand of books? Representative S. is seeking election to a place in the senate on his text-book platform. We would like no better fun than to have a series of debates zuith him on the merits of the Straight text-book bill. THE COURIER, COLDWATER, MICHIGAN May 1, 1912 ACCEPTS THE CHALLENGE Rep. Straight is Ready to Meet H. R. Pattengill in a Discussion. The following letter written by Hon. Henry E. Straight to H. R. Pat- tengill, former State Superintendent of Public Instruction, will be read with interest. Mr. Straight accepts the challenge of Mr. Pattengill for a public de- bate on the subject of "Text-Book Legislation," to be held in this city. The letter follows : — Coldwater, Mich., May 1, 1912. Mr. Henry R. Pattengill, Lansing, Mich. My Dear Sir: — It has been with many regrets that I have repeatedly read in your paper, "Moderator-Topics," since the close of the regular session of the Legislature of 1911, attacks upon my character and upon the subject of reform text-book legislation, in which I am very much in- terested. Each new issue of the paper has surpassed all others in its slanderous attacks, by untrue statements. The issue of April 18th, has evidenced the desperate frame of mind you are in, and in its challenge, it has given me an opportunity to defend myself. By the circulation of your paper and the many calls you have to ad- dress large crowds throughout the state, you have felt yourself quite thor- oughly entrenched. Because I have no such opportunity, you have taken advantage of the situation and become more and more ungentlemanly and untruthful in each succeeding issue. During my short public life, I have, to the best of my ability, been working only in the interest of all the people. My most strenuous work for reform school book legislation is for the educational, moral and finan- cial welfare of the boys and girls of the state. In my opinion the nature of the arguments and statements made by my friends and the friends of the cause, even in my absence, at a recent meet- ing held in Lansing, of the State Association of City Superintendents of Schools and School Boards, and since the Superintendent of Public In- struction, Luther L. Wright, and his deputy, Mr. Keeler, have recently gone over the Straight- Young Text-Book bill and have declared their sympathy with nearly ever feature therein contained, your eyes have been opened to the fact that the demand for a state uniform text-book law is growing rapidly and that your entrenched and heretofore secure position is greatly endangered. Therefore you have become more abusive and in your desperation, have given me an opportunity, through the challenge, to make a defense, which I have long been looking for and will gladly accept. You state in your . editorial in the April 18th issue of Moderator- Topics, in part, as follows : "Representative Straight is seeking election to a place in the Senate on his text-book platform. We would like no better SUPPRESSED BY "MODERATOR-TOPICS" 53 fun than to have a series of debates with him on the merits of the Straight Text-Book Bill." Immediately after the meeting of the Michigan Press Association, held in Detroit last January, in which you made an unwarranted attack upon me and my text-book bill, and I challenged you to a debate upon the sub- ject, I made arrangements for the use of the Coldwater Armory hall, in which to hold the debate. In response to the challenge you have just made I gladly accept and will pay for the use of said hall and provide for your entertainment while in the city. While I am aware of your exceeding ability before an audience, I do not fear you because I am armed with honesty and justice. I can prove conclusively that every charge you have made against me and my legisla- tive methods are as false as any untruth ever uttered. I can prove that your arguments against my state-wide uniform text-book bill, which passed the House with only seventeen votes against it, are unsound as "punk" and simply childish. I did, as you say, demand of Mr. Wright, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, that he should not pay you out of the state treasury for institute work since you used every opportunity possible to advocate free text-books in the rural schools and to oppose state uniformity. In other words, I did protest against the method by which you were paid by the state to work in the interest of the American Book Company and against the best interests of the schools of the state. We are pa3'ing from one-third to one-half more for school books in this state than we should and getting no better books and in many cases the same books as are in use in other states at a much less cost. I am ever- lastingly against the present method. You say in your editorial of the 18th that "I have made my boasts that I will break H. R. Pattengill and ruin his business and reputation." I have never made such a statement but if your business and reputation are so closely related to the interests of the book companies doing business in this state as to suffer, should their grip upon the political and educational systems be pried loose, I would advise you to apply, at once, for a bill for "separate maintenance," if not absolute divorce. I regret that this matter has developed into a personal fight for such is distasteful to me, and, I feel, to the public of the state, but since you have made a political issue of it, of course the public is interested and demands a thorough analysis. If I have to fight the American Book Company and yourself for the nomination and election to the Senate, it will not be the first instance in the history of other states where such methods have been used as you are using~tQ^ defeat the efforts of the people to secure reform text-book legislation. If I have to fight the well organized association of City Superintendents of Schools who are defending the present methods, the sooner I begin, the better. If all this is necessary in order that the parents of this state be saved from paying at least $150,000.00 annually more for books than they should, then determine upon an early date for our debate. Remember that I shall spare none of your friends. As a public ser- vant I shall not only tell the people that they are being wronged, but I shall point out to them some of the parties who are personally active with you against their interests. Since this is a public cjuestion and since you have been using your paper to scatter your views on this subject, will you be fair enough to give this letter space in your paper ? Yours very truly, H. E. Straight 54 STRAIGHT-PATTEN GILL DEBATE THE COURIER Coldwater, Michigan, May 31, 1912 LETTER WRITTEN BY REP. H. E. STRAIGHT TO H. R. EATTENGILL The following letter of Representative Straight, relative . to the Straight-Pattengill debate that is to take place at the armory June 11. will be read with interest: — Coldwater, Mich., Mav 31, 1912 Mr. H. R. Pattengill, Lansing, Mich. Dear Sir: — Since we have agreed that Tuesday evening, June 11, 1912, shall be the date on which to hold our debate; that the Rev. George E. Barnes of this city shall act as chairman of. the meeting; that the debate shall be held in the Coldwater armory, I hereby submit the exact wording of the subject: — Resolved, That the enactment into law of the Straight- Young text- book bill would be for the best interests of Michigan schools ; that the ef- forts used to pass it were honorable ; that the efforts used to defeat it were dishonorable ; that its authors were working in the interests of the children of the state and a better school system ; that its opponents were working in the interests of the book trust and for confusion. Such a statement of the question will certainly afford you an oppor- tunity and plenty of latitude to attempt to "make good" on all the state- ments and charges you have made during the past year in your Moderator- Topics, and in 3-our letters to me of recent date. I regret that the readers of Moderator-Topics are not given, through its columns, an opportunity to know all that is passing between us in these latter da}'s. ^ This is purely an educational question and discussion. When the battle sm'oke has cleared .awa}^ the public will see more clearl)' the true situation and can act with greater intelligence and certainty in the future. That is why I am giving it all the publicity possible. As you have suggested, I will take the affirmative and use fortj'-five minutes in opening and fifteen minutes in closing ; you to follow my open- ing remarks by one hour's speech. Awaiting 3'our pleasure, I am. Yours truly, Henry E. Straight The bill referred to above provides for the appointment of a state school book commission to be appointed by the governor with the follow- ing duties : — First. The preparation of a uniform course of study to be used in the first eight grades of our common schools. Second. The selection of the best books published at the lowest price possible to be used in teaching the subjects prescribed in the said course of study. Third. To secure a binding contract from the publishers of said books to furnish them to any school patron or other person upon request. Fourth. All books selected to be used uniformly in the grades men- tioned. Fifth. "All books to be paid for as they have been in the past, not ''free text-books" unless the district so votes. SUPPRESSED BY "MODERATOR-TOPICS" 55 Taken from pages 8 and 9 of "Unabridged Report of Straight- Pattengill Debate." In 1890 there was organized — by the consoHdation of Van Antwerp, Bragg & Co. ; Iverson. Blakeman & Co. ; A. S. Barnes & Co., and D. Ap- pleton & Co., four book pubHshing concerns — a combination known to us today as the A^nerican Book Company. In a few months it bought up Harper & Bros., another book pub- Hshing house, at a reported cost of $1,000,000. Through the absorption of twelve or fifteen other companies it has become one of the gigantic trusts of the countr}', dictating prices of school books and determining legislation. I contend that its ablest representative in Michigan is my opponent this evening. About the time of the organization of the American Book Company public sentiment for a State-wide uniform text-book law culminated in the passage of such an act in Kansas and Indiana. Since that time the struggle between the people and the book trust has been fierce. Tonight, permit me to say, I stand before you as the most conspicuous champion of the people's cause in this State. I am made conspicuous by the attacks of my enemies. A cause is often assaulted into prominence. Therefore I welcome this contest; not because I enjoy it, but because it will be another battle won for the school children of this State. This is not a contest, as you can see, between Mr. Pattengill and myself, but between the people of this State and the great school book publishing houses of this country. Through all these years the book trust has contested every inch of terri- tory on which the people have met it in battle. It has, however, retreated from lost battlefields "in order," leaving just enough of its force on the surrendered territory to make it embarrassing for those attempting to perfect legislation and to execute the laws. As in the history of the war in which the boys in blue fought, we find the records of battles lost or won, campaigns abandoned or prolonged, and heroes slain. In each, the cop- perhead, the traitor, and the deserter have played well their devilish parts. The American Book Company is encamped on Michigan soil. It is •foraging off^ our fertile fields. Since its organization it has used its profits here to wage its terrific wars in other States. Since it has lost supremacy in twenty-three States, it must of necessity secure greater sales in un- disputed territory. The profits derived from sales in this State are not only used to prosecute its warfare in other States, but to make its position in Michigan more secure. It bites the hand that feeds it. Are you, my friends, willing to be duped any longer? Will the people of Michigan awake to the true situation and demand relief? Are our hearthstones to be used to restore life to the frozen snake that warms itself to bite our children? "Moderator=Topics" did not see fit to publish the foregoing in connection with that part of the report which it printed. WHY? From "Unabridged Report of Straight-Pattengill debate," page 27: — Mr. Chairman, just excuse me a moment. I would like to get a map here. [Mr. Pattengill produces a map.] It occurred to me you people would like to know the situation here of the text-book business. Now the dark part of that map represents the State-uniformity States — The States having text-book uniformity. The light part of it represents those that don't have it. The red cross represents States that once had such laws and have repealed them. Now you can see what the trend is. You will notice that the States hav- ing State uniformity are the Southern States and States of ven,' sparse 56 STRAIGHT-PATTENGILL DEBATE population, with the exception of Indiana and Kansas and perhaps Ore- gon and California. These are the only exceptions. The South had that stuck on to it by the carpet-baggers in the carpet-bagging days because they could get more money and get more jobs through uniform text- books, and they put these in, and they [uniform text-books] have been maintained largely because many of these districts have black illiterate population, and that it would be impossible for them [negroes] to select their books, and that has held them [Southern States] from getting out from under it [State uniformity], as Kentucky, Missouri, and Minnesota have. Minnesota, I believe, had uniform text-books for fifteen years, and had to have an amendment to the State Constitution to abolish them. They made one attempt, but it did not have a majority. So they had to let it go five years more; and the next time they cleaned it, [State uni- formity] out entirely. You can see how the States stand on text-book uniformit}' — nearly all in the illiterate and black States. I think 75 per cent of the population of this country today are living in non-uniform States, and go per cent of the intelligence of this country is in non-uni- form States. The tendency is away from it rather than toward it. According to the United States histories on the market at the present time, the "carpet=bagging days" in the South were over about the year 1876. A list of the states, showing the dates of uniform text=book laws, now operative therein, follows: — Hon. A. A^ Young, March 11, 1913 Dear Sir: — Replying to your request, the following states have uni- form books, with dates as to about when laws were passed in so far as I know : — Indiana 1889 Mississippi . 1904 Kansas 1897 Kentucky* 1904 Montana 1897 Oklahoma 1908 Texas . 1897-1902-'07-'ll Florida 1911 Idaho 1899 W. Virginia 1911 Oregon 1899 Louisania . . over 10 years Tennessee 1899 S. Carolina, .over 20 years North Carolina .... 1901 Utah ■ Nevada 1901 Arizona Virginia 1902 California**. over 15 years Alabama 1903 New Mexico Georgia 1903 THIS IS A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE EIGHT STATES HAV- ING HAD UNIFORMITY LAWS, AS AGAINST TWENTY-THREE STATES NOW OPERATING UNDER STATE UNIFORMITY LAWS, AS SHOWN ABOVE:— ■ Hon. A. V. Young, MINNESOTA Dear Sir: — Concerning the eight states having been under uniform system and having discarded it, will say, that no state in the Union having once discarded the systera now in vogue in Michigan ever went back to local district selection of books, except possibly Min- nesota, which passed their law in 1893, after having a very unpopular law, which did not include the cities, and a law under which good books could not be secured. *See explanation on page 57. **Tlie only state ever having had state ownership of text-hook copyrights and control of state printing of same, decided by popular vote upon uniform free text-books and these facts were misrepresented in "Moderator-Topics," which mentioned "free" but forgot to say "Uniform." See pages 103-104. SUPPRESSED BY PUBLIC PRESS 57 MISSOURI This state had a law that did not permit a revision of the books until further action upon the part of the legislature, which fastened upon the state books for an indefinite period of time. The revulsion of feel- ing against this condition induced them to change to the next best thing that they seemed to be able to get, which was county uniformity. MICHIGAN This state never had state uniformity. In fact they passed a law, but repealed it before it could go into efifect. KENTUCKY This state is still operating under a state uniform law, but went back to county uniformity for the rea- son that the very first adoption for the revision of their books, which were 100 per cent American Book Com- pan)r, antiquated publications which were necessitated on account of the provisions of the law ; were retained. VERMONT This state never had state uniformity as a letter from a state superintendent of that state will show. WASHINGTON This state had an unsatisfactory law, because no book could be sold at retail price in the state at more than 66 2-3 per cent of its list price. This put into the state a lot of worthless books. WYOMING Wyoming I know nothing about. DELAWARE Delaware I know nothing about. Yours truly, James T. Guffin THE OBSERVER The only paper in the city that has the sanction of the Trades' and Labor Council. The official organ of the Michigan Federation of Labor for Western Michigan. Grand Rapids, Michigan, Monday, February 10, 1913. UNIFORM TEXT-BOOK OR FREE TEXT-BOOK? The education of the child is vested in the state, to its own enchance- ment, and it is conceded that, the greater the intelligence the more valuable becomes the state, and more rapid its progress. We claim that because a boy is -born in a locality that will necessitate, when of school age, a long journey daily to get an education, is no reason why the state should discriminate in favor of the boy born in a locality where better educational facilities exist ; the place of birth being a matter over which neither boy can decide for himself. The state owes both boys an equal chance in so far as it is able to provide. The question of "uniform" or "free" books is not an affirmative or negative one, and should not be arrayed against each other, for the reason that books may be "free" but uniform, as in California, or they may be "uniform" but purchased by individual patrons, as in Oklahoma, or they may be free in some districts and purchased by individual patrons in others and still be "uniform" in all districts of a state. Our bill proposes uniformity in the books used, leaving it to local dis- tricts as to whether they shall be "free" or purchased by the individual patrons, and embodies all the good features of, and eliminates the bad, that have been found to exist in the twenty-three other states, having uni- formity laws. 58 PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISING MEDIUMS - The question is : — Shall our schools be conducted according to the con- stitution of the state and rules laid down by our Supreme court decisions for the purpose of securing a more efficient school system, or shall their efficiency be hampered in the interest of book-agents, school journals and monopoly. This is the issue. In the years we have spent on this subject, we can truthfully say, that not one argument has been advanced, that will hold against the provisions of our educational commission bill. PROVISIONS OF THE BILL No. 1. An educational commission consisting of five members. No. 2. Its duties are to select text-books to be used uniformly in the first twelve grades of our public schools. To determine upon a course of study and to be a stimulus, at all times, for advancing educational condi- tions. Henry E. Straight, Senator Ninth District A. A/'. Young, Rep. Mecosta County The foregoing article explaining tlie bill, as introduced by the members of the Legislature whose signatures were attached thereto, was given to the press January 27, 1913, at the time of its introduc= tion, but was suppressed and only published as indicated, insofar as I have been able to learn. This statement clearly shows that the bill does not interfere with the "Home Rule" provisions that have existed in Michigan for years, allowing each district to vote as to the question of whether books shall be purchased and used as free books or whether they sail be purchased by individual patrons. BUT THOSE WHO ARE ADVOCATING "FREE BOOKS, LOCAL ADOPTION" FOR THE ENTIRE STATE ARE TRYING TO FORCE FREE BOOKS ON THOSE COMMUNITIES THAT HAVE VOTED ON THE QUESTION AND DECIDED AGAINST IT. "Only the actions of the just Smell sweet and blossom in the dust." — Shirley PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISING MEDIUMS Curiosities Teachers' Reading The school book publishers support with their advertising, and the school teachers read the school journals, excerpts from which the following pages contain. From "Moderator-Topics," January 16, 1913: — " 'Alurder will out' is an old saying, handed down from our fathers' fathers. We have been looking for the truth to break loose in Indiana and go 'cavorting around' the china-shop arguments of the patriots ( ?) who infest our legislatures with hare-brained schemes to save millions ('mental' millions, 'stage money') while over-looking the real interests of their constituents. We confess, however, we had not hoped for so full. INDIANA FOR UNIFORM HIGH SCHOOL BOOKS 59 complete and irrefutable an argument against state uniformity as our neighbors have furnished us of their own free will and accord." "Murder will out." This proverbial word trio which Mr. Patten= gill tells us has been handed down "even from generation unto gen= eration" has become an exceedingly trite aphorism, yet it has as much truth about it today as the day someone in the far=distant past put it into the form of written thought. Roughly speaking, it is entirely true. The exceptions do not interest us here. But let us now take the second sentence of the "Moderator= Topics' " article: — ="We have been looking for the truth to break loose in Indiana." — Note how the said truth is expected to "go 'cavorting around' the china=shop arguments of the patriots (?) who infest our legislatures," etc. We are glad that the truth HAS 'broken loose.' We have Mr. Pattengill's word for it and nothing could please us better. Lest he may have some uneasiness on the subject we desire to state that the "Uniform" porcelain of the 'patriots,' (Pattengill expression), is still intact. (See following letter and telegram.) We have no fear of this animal, "Truth," and he may come and sleep in our china shop where we will leave him while we go home and rest with the certain assurance that when we again open the shop, we will not find even the glaze chipped on a single plate. STATE OF INDIANA Department of Public Instruction February 24, 1913. Mr. James T. Gufifin, Lansing, Michigan. Dear Sir : — I thank you for the newspaper clipping and your letter of February 24. Our Uniform High School Text-Book bill has now passed the Senate with a vote of 38-1, and the House by a vote of 85-7. It awaits the signature of the Governor to become a law. The lobby maintained here by the school book companies did not avail them much. With kindest regards to you, I remain Very truly yours, Chas. a. Greathouse Indianapolis, Ind., March 10th, 1913. James T. Guffin, Hotel Downey, Lansing, Mich. High school text-book bill has been signed by governor. Chas. A. Greathouse, 4:51 P. M. Psalms, VII: 16. Editorial from "Moderator-Topics," Feb. 13, 1913 :■ — ■ If anything were needed to show the extremity to which the profes- sional text-book lobbyist and his chief ally in the legislature were pushed, it would be Senator Straight's attempt last week to take the consideration of text-book legislation away from the regular committee on education in the Senate, where it belongs, and have a special committee appointed to "probe" the question. To the credit of the Senate this neat little scheme was promptly turned down. If. such a move had come later in the ses- • sion, when the committee had shown any indication that it would fail to give a fair consideration to anv text-book measures, or that the commit- 60 PUBLISHERS' ADJ'ERTISING MEDIUMS tee on education was made up of men incompetent to consider such ques- tions, it would not be so remarkable. But now, not much more than a week after Mr. Straight had introduced his pet uniform text-book bill, to have him seek thus to discredit the committee composed of most compe- tent, and so far as we know, of eminentl)', reputable and honest gentle- ment, is nothing more or less than an insult. Some comment on the above editorial is clearly necessary in the interest of truth. "Moderator=Topics," with its characteristic disre= gard of facts has so garbled the truth that an entirely false impres= sion is given and it would seem impossible that this could have been done unintentionally. The truth about the proposal to appoint a special committee is simply that the regular committee did not have wide enough powers to summon witnesses and adduce the testimony which it- seemed imperative the committee should possess. That there never was any idea of usurping the powers of the regular committee in Mr. Straight's mind, but that, instead, it was merely intended to assist this committee, is clearly shown by the paragraph printed below and taken from the resolution. "Resolved, That the said committee shall, at once, proceed to gather all information possible to secure, not only from within dur State, but from the several states, touching upon the several plans and phases of school book legislation, AND REPORT TO THE COM= MITTEE ON EDUCATION AND PUBLIC SCHOOLS, and from time to time to the Senate, the result of these investigations." No honest man or corporation need fear a probe and indeed, wel= comes it if there has been the slightest suggestion that there were things concealed. It merely serves to clear his or their reputations. On the other hand, a most excellent time to use the probe thoroughly, is that time when there are those who are fighting to avoid it. If there is anything irregular to be unearthed, the sooner the public is given the facts, the better. IT SEEMS ENTIRELY CLEAR THAT THE TRUE PURPOSE OF THE ABOVE EDITORIAL WAS TO STIR UP DISSENSION IN THE SENATE. Herewith is another editorial from the same issue : — For two years past a commission appointed by our State Teachers' Association has been making an exhaustive examination of the entire text- book problem in all its many-sided phases. The committee is_made up of business men and school men. Note the list : Mr. W. H. Brunson of St. Johns ; Judge Wm. Carpenter of Muskegon ; Mr. Fred Wells of Battle Creek — all excellent members of boards of education. Supts. E. C. War- riner, Saginaw ; S. O. Hartwell, Kalamazoo, E. E. Ferguson, Bay City ; County Commr. E. W. Yost of Wayne county, and Prof. E. A. Lyman of the State Normal College. Every one of them sane, capable, experienced, and irreproachable men. This board -was given full scope, and the asso- ciation provided funds to meet the necessary expenses of a thorough, can- did, careful study. For two years they have been collecting data from every state in the union, collecting it, studying it, summarizing it. The committee has knowledge, power, skill, and integrity. Its conclusion should have great weight with every fair minded, honest, and unprejudiced legislator. No snap committee proposed by the legislature to "probe" the question could even get the data together in one legislative session. No bill touching the subject of text-book handling should be reported out until this State Text-book Commission* has had a hearing, or several of *Not a State Text-book Commission. See page 2. "MODERATOR-TOPICS" FOR MONOPOLY 61 them if need be, before the joint committees of house and senate. The commission has a report just about ready now, and this should be care- fulh' studied by every member. Once the facts are known, a law satis- factory to every friend of the public schools, and believer in a square deal can be enacted. Look out for the person so eager to get his special text-book legislation foisted on the state that he will not listen to expert and painstaking testimony. Look out for the fellow* who claims that everybody who differs with him is dishonest. Teachers, write or speak to 3'our legislators. Condemn state uniformity, commend the Minnesota bill regulating prices of text-books. That's good whether we have free text- books or not. State wide free text-books and the Minnesota plan would T)e the ideal solution. School=book Publisher Pattengill in his "Moderator=Topics" has conducted a campaign of misrepresentation and vituperation for the past two years in the interest of the American Book Company in the advocacy of local adoption of school books. The Minnesota law is in the interest of said company and was put on to Ohio over twenty years ago, shortly after the American Book Company was incor= porated under the laws of New Jersey. The following was printed in the "Political Science Quarterly," March^ 1891. and republished by Henry Holt & Company in~"CITIZENSHIP AND SCHOOLS," by Jeremiah W. Jenks, under copyright 1906:—- "In Ohio, also, last winter the demand for cheaper text-books made itself felt. . . . Each local board has the right to adopt whichever books it pleases from this list. . . . It is worthy of note, in the first place, that the prices are to be fixed on the books 'in use in the public schools.' It is asserted that this special provision was made at the instance of publishers who had liiany books already in use, and who knew that some such meas- ure would probably be passed. . . . Others assert that the purpose was to avoid state uniformity." The American Book Company came into existence in 1890 and had about 90 per cent of the Ohio business in 1891 when the fore= going statements first appeared in print. From "Moderator-Topics, February 27, 1913 : — One of the best catholic priests in Michigan said to the editor after the merits of free text-books had been made clear to him : "Why, Mr. Patten- gill, we cannot oppose such a blessing as that would be to the poor. The cost is so trifling to our people, and the good so great to all. Children of our own communion in the public schools where we have no parochial schools, and our youth in pubhc high schools would receive far more than our people would pay in additional taxes. While I shall not question the authenticity of the foregoing state= ment, it is not in line with the facts as I have heretofore met them in my legislative experience in Wisconsin. From "Moderator-Topics," March 6, 1913 :— Uniformity is a fetich. One does not need to choose between free text-books and uniformity. Senator King's bill gives the advantages of uniformity and none of its many and, dangerous disadvantages. The professional lobbyist for state uniform texts left for "professional" zvork in a neighboring state for a few weeks, but he has doubtless been re- called or'tvill be at the psychologic time. Perhaps he went to secure muni- tions of zi'ar. Proverbs, XII: 23. *"Worth makes the man, and want of it, the fellow." — Pope. 62 PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISING MEDIUMS SCHOOL TEXT BOOKS. Mrs. R. M. Broinnell, Lapeer, Mich. We are glad to note that many of Michigan's best knozvn educators op- poses the so-called "Uniform School Text-Books" proposition. That plan would waste millions of dollars perhaps, now oivned, in . part, by resident pupils, under pretense of saving expense to transient ones — hut incidentalfy to create literary jobs, or political pulls for favorites. Were we to discard all these hooks now in use, who would be the greater loser — the many resident pupils, or the few transient ones zvho are imta.ved? Children whose parents are unable to buy their books are furnished with free te.vt-books, zvhich may be sold at the second-hand book stores on leaving toztm and nezv ones zuoidd be given them at the next place. However, the Ohio system of purchasing books is an improvement on Michigan's. No publisher can sell a book in Ohio until it has been ap- proved and listed zvith the state school book commissioner, {governor, secretary of state and state commissioner of public schools) zvho shall list it at not over y^ per cent of zvholesale price ; and shall keep a list of all such books with the prices. The publisher must contract to sell such books for five years. Every district school board has a copy of the list and may select there- from, (and if possible, contract for a less price) and may order for its pupils all necessary books, charging not over ten per cent for handling, etc. Competition thus lessens the price in Ohio, and no school book graft can be hidden in either regular supplemental or reading circle zvork as in Oklahoma. Taken from "Wisconsin Journal of Education," April, 1908: — UNIFORMITY VS. INDIVIDUALITY The state of Ohio is wrestling with the question of state uniformity of text-books. This is a worse calamity than county uniformity because the unite is larger. So far as Wisconsin is concerned, county uniformity has been repudiated by the school board conventions in every county of the state and Ohio wi'll do well to look out for the GREATER CURSE OF STATE UNIFORMITY. It is getting to be a difficult matter to take out of the hands of the people the home-rule privileges which they enjoy. As regards the text-book question, school boards today are getting the best books at minimum prices. Each district decides for itself what will suit its own immediate needs. Free books are provided in some districts and no poor people are deprived of the proper working tools of the school- room. The great competition between book companies insures to the pub- lic the best there is to be produced by both authors and publishers. The most serious objection to either county or state adoption is that sweeping changes are made every five years and that the opportunity for graft is so strong few have been able to withstand it. The history of the recent Missouri adoption is still fresh in the minds of all publishers.- The only possible idea for uniformity is based on migration. It is not probable that 3 per cent of school children change in a year from one county to another or from one state to another. There are in the United States today over one hundred companies publishing text-books which completely offsets the plea that this business is monopolized by any one concern. While uniformity is a good thing in many forms of government, we want to be careful in its application to public school instruction. We do not want all our children turned out in the same mold. It is this objection WISCONSIN, INDIANA SCHOOL JOURNALS 63 which has thrown vertical writing out of the schools. Individuality is a greater blessing than uniformity in the development of the child. Taken from "Wisconsin Journal of Education," September, 1911, after the defeat of state uniform legislation in Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, and the passage of such laws in West Virginia and Florida and the Min- nesota monopoly law : — THE STATE TEXT-BOOK INVESTIGATION • There was considerable agitation in school circles last winter when a so-called uniform text-book bill was introduced into the legislature which provided for uniformity of texts throughout the state and named a com- mission of five members, consisting of the Governor, two of his appointees, the state superintendent, and the president of the university, to determine the texts to be used. At first the bill did not attract much attention, but soon school boards and teachers realized that the passage of such an act would not only reflect seriously upon the professional dignity of the teacher, but would deprive local school boards of a power which they held was justly theirs. The bill was finally defeated and a ver}- sensible substitute offered and passed. This provides for the appointment of a committee from both houses of the legislature to investigate the text-book conditions in Wis- consin, and to report to the next legislature. The wisdom of such a move- ment is apparent to all educators of the state, for the charges made when the uniform bill was up for discussion, if half of them are true, are most serious. THIS COMMITTEE WILL BE ABLE TO DETERMINE FOR ITSELF, WITHOUT TAKING THE SAY-SO OF SOME DISINTERESTED OUTSIDER, just what the actual conditions are. IF THE BOOK COMPANIES ARE CHARGING DIFFERENT PRICES IN DIFFERENT LOCALITIES, THE REMEDY SHOULD BE APPLIED AT ONCE. On the other hand, if they are not guilty of the charges made against them during the debate on this bill, they should be exonerated. The committee which will investigate this subject consists of Assemblymen Thomas Mahon, Eland, Chairman ; T. A. Roy- croft, Chippewa Falls : Charles B. Perry, Milwaukee ; Senators Harry Martin, Darlington, and John S. Donald, Mt. Horeb. From "The Teacher's Journal," Marion. Indiana, December, 1908. Eleven editorials : — Justice to othe pupil would give him the best book in the market ; not the cheapest. The State Legislature meets in January. If you want something for the cause of education, speak out. Progress does not consist in reducing everything to a dead level. In- finite variety and change is its law. Have you some pronounced ideas on the school text-book problem? If so, send them to the Teacher's Journal. We want to know what you think about it. If a man has no property, other people pay the expense of educating his children. Is it unfair to ask him to furnish his children the necessary books? Theoretically, we have State uniformity of text-books. Practically, in many good schools, we have some splendid up-to-date supplementary books. 64 PUBLISHERS' ADVERTISING MEDIUMS A good many people have much to say about the cost of school books for their children when they spend ten times as much for needless and often foolish articles. We are hardly ready for free text-books, but if it is necessary to have free books in order to have first-class ones, those in harmony with the spirit of present day progress and adjusted to the needs of the various communities, then let us have free text-books. Does it not seem reasonable that a county superintendent, together with his best teachers and the trustees can select the kinds of books adapted to their needs very much better than those who know nothing of local conditions and are not particularly interested in them ? Why not adopt one kind of plow the State over for twenty years ? The soil does not vary as much as children's minds and the interests of the various communities. It would be a bonanza for the firm securing the contract, though a little hard on some of the plowmen ; but it might save the farmer two or three dollars a year. Is not that sufficient reason for "uniformity?" Here we have that old "plow" argument working back in 1908. Representative Odell says that uniform plows or uniform hats do not appeal to him because, when a man moves into the next county, he can take his hat with him and wear it, but the school books his children carried would not fit. Though our teachers are supposed to have a professional training and be thoroughly familiar with the subjects which they are to teach, yet many of them teach little except what is in the book, and a good deal of that not very thoroughly. Many of them have had little experience, are not good organizers, have vague ideas of essentials, have all the grades and many classes to teach. These teachers think they do well to teach what is in the book, to .say nothing of supplementary work. They manage to keep busy every minute and do not discuss facts or principles not found in the text- book. For this and many other reasons the pupil ought to have a book " that gives fundamental principles with other subject matter adapted to the development of these principles and the fixing of essential facts in the mind. It is nonsense to talk about the teacher taking the place of the text- book in developing principles, supplying facts and working out all defini- nitions. Possibly the teacher of science with well equipped laboratories might get along reasonably well ; that is, might teach many important facts and work out the laws of the subject so that his pupils would be well grounded in the essentials of the particular science. But it is pretty safe to predict that just as soon as the pupil becomes thoroughly awakened and interested in the subject he will want to know what some one else thinks about a particular fact or principle, and, if books are at hand, he will in- vestigate and such investigation, even though he find his own ideas veri- fied, will reveal other valuable matter that without the book he would not have known. If access to great libraries is indispensable to the thorough, scholarly man, why is not a good book or a few good books even more necessary to the individual who has been less fortunate in his educational advantages ? From "The School Century," Oak Park, 111., May, 1909:— The editor of this magazine setsup no defense whatever for the ques- tionable business methods which occasionally have been resorted to in heated contests for adoptions in various quarters. On the contrary, he SCHOOL JOURNAL DEFENDS AMERICAN BOOK CO. 65 has only words of condemnation for these methods. There is one method, especially, born in this fierce competition for business, which can not be too severely condemned, because it has resulted in placing the whole schoolbook business in a false light before the public, and which is likely to result in legislation inimical to the, business, as private enterprise, and thereby greatly retard the rate of educational progress. Reference is here had to the cry of "Schoolbook Trust," originated and directed against the American Book Company by the agents of rival houses, in the bitter con- tests for text-book adoptions. This 'epithet has been caught up greedily by a depraved public press and heralded as truth in most sensational forms thruout the entire country, tnitil many people have come to believe that there is really and truly a "Schoolbook Trust." Of all the questionable methods and base falsehoods indulged in by book agents, nothing that they have ever done, has accomplished half so much to their own dishonor, and to degrade in the eyes of the public a business that should occupy a place next in honor to the public school itself, as has their never-ending cry of "Schoolbook Trust." The newspapers, ever on the hunt for scandal, have multiplied the influence of the book man's cry by dealing out columns of sensational stuff with a disregard for truth that would put to shame the Devil himself. This cry more than all other influences has af- fected AND IS forwarding PUBLIC OPINION TOWARD ST.\TE AND CITY SCHOOLBOOK PUBLICATION. * =^ * * * Well informed school men, today, know that there is no "Schoolbook Trust" in this country and that there never has been one, and never can be one. A schoolbook is the product of brains and professional skill, and source of supply is absolutely unlimited and beyond the control of any trust or monopoly. The editor of tl^is magazine for several months has contemplated mak- ing some "such statement of facts as are here given, for the benefit of the readers of The School Century. He has- no ax to grind, no favors to seek, in thus denouncing the utter falsehood of the "Trust" epithet as applied to any schoolbook firm in the United States. He believes that every book agent, every teacher, and every paper that circulates the falsehood works an injury to the cause of education by furthering the movement of PUBLIC opinion toward ST.VTE AND CITY PUBLICATION OF TEXT-BOOKS. If that movement ever comes to fruition it will be disastrous to pro- gress in educational thought and educational methods. There is a great deal of agitation just now in Chicago and some other quarters over the many instances of unreasonable variation in the prices charged by publishers for the same text-books in different parts of the country. In attempting to reform this injustice by state legislation there is danger of doing a great injustice to education. Nothing said about uniformity, emphasis placed on state publica= tion. The very best teacher in ninety=nine cases out of a hundred, would be absolutely incapable of producing a text=book that would meet the general requirements of all teachers as a tool of instruc= tion. A teacher may have years of experience in teaching a given sub= ject, but that is no indication that he is fitted to prepare a text= book on his subject that would be practical and satisfactory. The carpenter who daily uses a chisel and is well aware of its merits would be helpless if required to forge and temper a tool to suit his purpose. The writer of a text=book may be called an author but it takes 66 PUBLISHERS' ADJ^ERTISING MEDIUMS more than a facility of verbage to compass the peculiar requisites vital to the production of practical texts. A mathematition of note might be totally unfitted to compile a primary arithmetic. A knowU edge of children and their idiosyncrasys — a knowledge of the re= quirements in the various grades — a knowledge of the science of teaching — all these are essential to anyone who would prepare a book calculated to produce the best results in the hands of teachers. We may start with a wide familiarity with a subject; we may prepare a learned text, we may call into play the best efforts of the printer and binder and we may produce a so=called text=book. And yet this carefully prepared book may prove to be almost worthless as a teachable text. Such a statement will be conceded to be well within the lines of fact when it is realized that even our best equipped publishers with their trained corps of critics may read, re=read and revise a manu= script, endorse it for publication and finally produce the book, only to find that it is an absolute failure. This is an experience parallel to that with which our dramatists frequently find themselves con= fronted. A play that has beeji passed by the critics of the big pro= ducers may fall absolutely dead when it is given to the public. These facts BEING FACTS, how could it be expected that a state could produce its own text=books with any measure of success? It is well known in the publishing world that eight out of nine text=books prepared are failures when put to the test of practical use. The State of Kansas will not get as good books on all subjects and at as good prices under their state publication scheme as they are getting now. It may be well to note that the American Book Com= pany has a very small amount of the business on the present list of adopted state uniform books. Successful state preparation and publication of school text=books is a Utopian dream. Again from "The School Century," Oak Park, III, March, 1913 :— The school people of Illinois and other states should be alert and on their guard. Wherever the proposition of state uniformity shows its head the school people should aim to down it. Everywhere the schooFpeople are against it. Note how the Michigan State Teachers' Association, 8,500 teachers strong, through a text-book commission has declared unanimously and unreservedly against state uniformity. Note the last three paragraphs in the following editorial wherein the same sentiment is expressed as in the foregoing. JOURNAL OF EDUCATION Boston, New York, and Chicago, July 27, 1911 A. E. WINSHIP, EDITOR HEROIC RESCUE IN WISCONSIN The educational forces of Wisconsin have triumphed gloriously. A combination of misgaiided and vicious forces, in and out of the state, drafted a bill intended to dethrone educators and enthrone politicians. The bill was focused to humiliate educational specialists. It denied to the school officials, the superintendent, and the teachers of BOSTON JOURNAL OF EDUCATION EDITORIAL 67 every city and town in the state the right to have any say, directly or in- directly, in the books to be used in the schools. For a third of a century there has been a widespread professional movement so to dignify and to magnify the office of superintendent that men of character and culture would make superintendency their profes- sion. One important factor in this movement to ennoble and profession- alize this office has been the tendenc}' to allow him to select the books with which to promote educational progress in his schools. Thirty years ago books were largely selected by members of boards of education, often in defiance of the opinion of the superintendent, but so rapid has been the change that in scarcely any city in Wisconsin will a publisher interview members of the board of education until he knows that the superintendent has no prejudice against his book. Superintendency in Wisconsin has become a profession with scholarly men and women of high character in office. The politician and the near- grafter have been almost entirely eliminated. Of course, this is distasteful to certain interests, and like a flash out of a clear sky came a legislative scheme to debase the superintendency, to undo in an hour that which it has taken a third of a century to do by way of elimianting evil forces and promoting professionalism. So thoroughly and quietly had these forces been at work that their strength was not suspected and busy superintendents and boards of edu- cation were attending to their own regulation duties while the evil was being, worked out. Almost as suddenly as the knowledge of the plot was revealed came the awakening of communities. First of all came the in- dependent action of Mrs. Mary D. Bradford, superintendent of Kenosha, who wrote to the representatives and senators of that section of the state this note :— "A bill for uniform text-books should be killed. It is not pos- sible that any commission could select books that would be ac- ceptable to all the schools of the state, and I feel and I believe that it is the belief of all the members of the Kenosha board of education that we should be allowed to use our own judgment in making up the list of text-books for Kenosha. Such a law would mean a change of text-books afifecting every school in the state, and there is no reason to suspect that similiar changes would not be ordered by the commission in the future. School boards in all parts of the state have gone on record as being opposed to the state usurping the power that is given to the school boards under the present laws, and they are opposed to any change." Immediately the board of education of Kenosha, the city attorney and other officials protested to the legislature, and cities without number fol- lowed until the atmosphere at Madison changed as by magic. There has been no instance in which educators of a state have asserted themselves so suddenly, so universally, so efficiently as in Wisconsin from June 1 to 10. We believe that in other states educational forces could be equally powerful if they had the courage of their convictions as they had in Wis- consin. It seems extremely peculiar, to say the least, that while the above editorial appears in a copy of the "Journal of Education," July 37, 1911, procured in Milwaukee, another copy of this paper BEARING THE SAME DATE and procured in Chicago, contains not a line of this article. It must be like Aladdin's Qeni and appear or disappear at the will of the editor according to the locality in which the paper is to be circulated. 68 PUBLISHERS' ADFERTISING MEDIUMS The following is a copy of the letter written by Mary D. Brad= ford, Kenosha, Wis. Compare it with the note credited to her in the foregoing editorial from the "Journal of Education," by Mr. A. E. Winship and see if it corresponds. KENOSHA PUBLIC SCHOOLS Mrs. Mary D. Bradford superintendent Kenosha, Wis., Ma_v 26, 1911 ^ AN OPEN LETTER Hon. Fred Brockhausen, Madison, Wis. Dear Sir: — Speaking as one who has worked in practically all grades and classes of schools, beginning with the little country school, permit me to say that I trust most sincerel)' there may be no foundation to the rumor that the State Legislature is contemplating legislation favorable to a uni- form system of school text-books for the schools in Wisconsin. Were there even approximate uniformity in the various school districts in grada- tion, in length of school term, in the ability, qualifications and training of their teaching force, in the equipment and librar5' facilities, in local con- ditions and needs, to say nothing of the home environment and advantages surrounding the pupils in attendance at the several schools, — were there even an approach at uniformity in these conditions, there would, never- theless, be grave reasons whv anv single, artificial and inflexible system of school text-books should not be enforced upon each and every school. While the compulsory use of one and the same series of school text- books in all the graded and city systems of schools in Wisconsin would ^ work most serious hardships and would impose handicaps for the success- ful conduct of these school systems, nevertheless the blow would fall most heavily upon the rural schools, the poor school districts, and the children of those parents who now find it difficult enough to give them even the beginnings of a common school education. The well-to-do districts and the parents in easier financial circumstances might be willing and able .to secure for their children the additional school text-books desirable and necessary for their school work even after the required unifomi books have been purchased. However, the very districts and the very children who need advantages would be just the ones which would have to struggle along with only those books which the uniform state law prescribed. Wisconsin is proud of her schools built up through more than half a century of toil and sacrifice and effort on the part of her citizens. Her taxpayers have willingly contributed millions upon millions of dollars to the support of the schools with a firm belief that the future welfare of the state is best insured by properly educating the boys and girls. Although there may still be avenues through which improvements may come to our schools, I hope that neither the present Legislature nor any other which ever assembles in Wisconsin will ever permit itself to be led astray by false gods to the extent of striking so deadly a blow to the cause of edu^ cation as would fall should an inflexible uniform state text-book law be placed upon our statute books. I am. Very respectfully yours, (Signed) j\1arv D. Bradford Taken from '^School Board Journal,'' Milwaukee, Wis., Nov., 1912 : — In Michigan the public interest in the state adoption of books as op- posed to the present district and city selection has been stimulated through the campaign led by Mr. H. E. Straight of Coldwater, a member of the LOCAL ADOPTION GRAFT CONDONED 69 legislature who introduced a bill for uniformit}^ in the last state assembly. Opposition to the measure has been almost unanimous on the part of the school people. 17. The whole trend of educational progress is far away from and not toward uniformity. Shall the welfare of our children be handicapped by the caprice, ignorance or cupidity of narrow partisians, fly-by-night publishers of inferior text-books, professional lobbyists, or politicians tinkering with things they do not understand and will not take the pains to inform themselves on? 18. It discriminates against the poor man's child. The rich can buy- supplementary books for the child's use at home. The poor man's child is limited to the scanty school texts fostered''' on him by state uniformity. 19. Boards competent to select teachers and adopt high school books^ are competent, with the advice of the teachers who use the books, to decide on the texts. They are close to the taxpayers and can be held responsible easily. Not so with the state board. Extract from an article in the ]\Iarch, 1913. American School Board Journal under an "Introductory Note" by "The Publisher," (William George Bruce) and said to be "An Interview with the ^lanager of a Leading Text-book House." The sales are promoted by extensive correspondence, circularizing-, and the personal attention of agents. These agents are selected with ex- treme care from among the most successful and reputable educators of this country, men who make a conscientious study of school conditions and give their support to the progress of the schools. Their constant and careful reports enable their Houses to select manuscripts adapted to and often in advance of educational progress. In fact, these men are the edu- cational missionaries, and the high standing of the schools of this country- is, to a large degree, attributable to their work. It is manifestly unfair to condemn all of these men because some mem- ber of a school board HAS DEGRADED himself to the extent of mak- ing a condition of HIS VOTE THAT OF FINANCIAL GAIN TO HIMSELF AND SOME AGENT HAS MET THE DEMAND. If "these agents" are a sample of the "most successful and reputable educators of the country" and yet resort to such ques= tionable practices as would appear from the preceding para= graph, it certainly places these "most successful and reputable edu= cators of the country" on a moral plane far lower than we would have cared to suggest. This bribe is very evidently not paid out of the agent's pocket and the question naturally arises, 'From where does the money come?' This is the first instance that has come to my attention where the "Manager of a Leading Text=book House" has dared to place the bribe=giver on a higher plane than the bribe=taker. Bribe taking^ could never have existed, nor can it exist, without the primal cause which makes possible this crime. Wherever we find a taker of bribes there must be first a giver of bribes, and while the former generally gets the prison sentence when discovered, the latter is the real criminal. It is just such "big business" that has corrupted our public offi= cials and has operated for the establishment of monopolistic suprem= acy in the respective states of the Nation. *Evidently "foisted" was the word intended. NEWS AND EDITORIAL THE PUBLIC PRESS From Columbus, Ohio, "Dispatch" : — SPEAKER VINING'S BILL. The speaker of the house framed the bill which provided for a uni- form system of school books. At the saine time Senator Yount had a similar inspiration, so these two statesmen put their heads together, and it was decided' to combine their ideas, and have them presented in the lower house by Mr. Gebhart. This was done. Then the book trust got busy. But they also had something else to keep them from a standstill. The Browder bill was presented, and stirred up the foam higher in the cruci- ble. This bill provided for the extension of the time of the present in- spector of schools to the third Monday in July, giving the school com- missioner the right to appoint his own assistant. But that didn't look good to L. C. Dick, who is hoping to be made state inspector of High schools, a place now filled by Snyder, so he jumped into the mails with letters to every school superintendent in the state, begging for their as- sistance. DICK'S LETTER TO SUPERINTENDENTS Here is one of the many he sent out : — I am deeply interested in having the Browder bill, "House bill No. 258," defeated. The present inspector's term expires in April, and Mr. Zeller has already appointed me and given me my commission for the position for two years. On the strength of that I leased our home in West Jeffer- son for a period of two years and leased a house in Colurnbus for the same period. The bill provides for the extension of the time of the present inspector to the third Monday in July, thus giving the commissioner-elect the power to appoint an inspector and knocking me out entirely. Of course, it is a partisian bill, pure and simple. If the law is permitted to remain as it now is, the commissioner-elect will get to appoint the man for the posi- tion before his first term expires, anyhow. You being a school man as well as a friend, I feel free to ask your aid in this matter. If you will write to your representative or see him person- ally and ask him as a personal favor to you to vote against the bill if it comes before him, I will be under lasting obligations to }^ou and trust the time may come when I can repay you in some way. I never dreamed of such a possibility, or I would have never been caught in the predicament in which I now find myself. The bill will be liable to come up any time after February 28. With kindest regards, I am, Sincerely yours, L. C. Dick The book trusts were right on the spot to help out Dick and try to de- feat the Gebhart and the Browder bills. They came out blatantly through their lobbyists, and swarmed around the statehouse. They did some brow- beating, and some cajoling; they beseiged the office of the speaker of the house, and tried to bully-rag him into a withdrawal or a modification of his expressed opinions regarding their practices. [70] AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY IN OHIO 71 From "The Evening Dispatch." Columbus, Ohio, Wednesday, April 12,1911:— TRUSTS FIGHT UNIFORM SYSTEM The book trust has been holding in a grip of steel the hands of all who favor a uniform S3rstem of books. The heads of the trust know that where state uniformity is in operation, it has removed the influences of school book publishing houses from local affairs. Members or agents of the American Book Company have written some letters within the past twenty years which may well be incorporated in the famous saying of Jim Fiske, "Don't write; send word." Some of^ those letters are now snugly put away in the private safe of Speaker Vin- ing, but one of the most recent ones, which bears more closely on the Gebhart bill of which Mr. Vining is the author, and which will be voted on Thursday, is here presented. The letter was written to L. C. Dick, in answer to the letter from Mr. Dick, which was published in The Dis- patch recently: — Cincinnati, Ohio, Feb. 28, 1911 Mr. Dear L. C. : — I have as you are aware been doing all in my power to prevent this bill from becoming a law, and put it up to our folks here and told them you must be protected. They have people in Columbus looking after matters and they promised me that this matter would be cared for as best they could. I saw Elza Limes last week, and he and I talked your situation over carefully. He has put Bill Durbin, the Hardin county Democrat politi- cian, and one of the leaders of the Democratic machine of the state, to work on your case. Durbin says he can defeat the bill. From what I know of Durbin and his ability to do what he says, I venture to say his statement is correct. He is in position, however, to have the governor veto it if it should pass the house and senate, and I am in position to do you a great deal of good through my friend, George Long, but I am in- clined to think from what I can hear, that the house will not pass the measure, and that it will not be necessary to attend to killing it in any place but the house. I do not mean to say now for you to quit work and take for granted that everything is lovely, but keep doing what you can to defeat it. Write me again if you hear of any new developments in that bill. I understand that C. C. Miller has actually accepted the deputyship under Miller, the commissioner-elect. Sincerely your friend. The name signed to this letter is one well known to Speaker Vining, as well as a majority of the Ohio politicians, and wijl be given on demand. He is an agent of the American Book Company, and its alleged represen- tative in this matter. The Browder bill became a law, but the Gebhart uniform book bill was defeated. COERCION ? Before reading the following editorial it may be well to know that the books in use in Findlay, Ohio, were published by the Ameri= can Book Company and were unsatisfactory. The servants of the people, (i. e., the superintendent of schools and the school board members), were about to exercise their wisdom and power by dis= placing the publications in use and did not contemplate taking other books published by the American Book Company. It is a safe guess that if the new books to be adopted were to be the publications of 72 NEWS AND EDITORIAL, PUBLIC PRESS the American Book Company, or if there was any prospect of the superintendent not recommencing a change to the publications of other houses, this wail in the interests (?) of the people would not have been heard. They evidently had a superintendent in Findlay who was what "big business" would term "unfriendly." In 1908, in Milawukee, Wisconsin, the agent of the American Book Company, Mr. S. B. Todd, (deceased), employed an ex= member of the legislature, a newspaper man, Mr. George Qrassie. Arrangements were made to run articles in the news columns as well as editorials and these were the directions: — "Well, the super= intendent and the committee have gone against me and I want you to raise hell — particular hell." Mr. Grassie volunteered this in= formation to me a few years after this occurred. The files of some of the newspapers in Milwaukee for the month of May, 1908, will show that a campaign of misrepresentation and mis=statements of the facts was conducted for the evident purpose of prejudicing the reading public against their servants in office who were attempting to discharge their duties faithfully and honestly. FINDLAY (OHIO) DAILY COURIER July 28, 1911 In one of our recent articles about the proposed change in school books we are informed that the same was inspired b}- the American Book Com- pany. What a great idea. That is good, very good. We thought that the .people of Findlay knew for what this paper stood. We believe that we stand for pure and wholesome thought. We are ear- nestly trying to interpret the thoughts and feelings of the citizens of Find- lay and neighboring towns. This paper has never been subsidized by any corporation, trust, or any other concern, in the heavens above, the earth beneath, or the waters under the earth. We intend to keep it free from any entangling alliance. We believe in a free and unrestricted press. We will talk out and talk out hard when it becomes necessary. Vox populi must be heard. We are here to listen. Remember that not always is the voice in the thunder or in the whirlwind. We have heard that our stand on the school question is meeting with approval by the rank and file of the voting population of this city. The parents who have to buy school books are satisfied with what we have in the schools. Over the plains a solitary horesman rode. The, poor old animal was almost ready to drop from exhaustion. The man raised his eyes and noted a dark speck in the distant sky. In a short time the horse dropped to the ground and the rider stood beside him upon the sand. The dark object was now above them circling round and round accompanied by many others. Where had those dark birds come from? They had scented the feast from afar. Here soon would be a banquet. That was Jhe reason the vultures were hovering in the blue sky above. But the horse was not dead. The feast was not forthcoming. In like manner hover the vulture book agents about Findlay. They have scented the feast from afar. The school board was going to make several changes in books. All the vultures want to be at the banquet. No, Mr. School Board, the old horse is not dead yet. You will find that it has a good deal of life left. You almost put one over on us. But we are awake. We are watching. We have been about the Phcenix Inn nearly every day. We see agents AMERICAN BOOK COMPANY (?) IN OHIO 71 of such gigantic corporations as the American Book Company, Ginn & Company, and others strolhng around. We are impressed with the thought that there is good money to any book company in getting new books into the schools. No wonder that the American Book Company can send their agents here who are traveling on big salaries and living on the fat of the land. From what we see as stated above it looks as though there might be some combination between the birds of prey to try to bring a big expense upon the people of Findlay. We may pa_v, as we previously stated, the fiddler, but we'll see that other people dance later on. God pity everybody in connection with this affair when it comes to settle this matter at the polls this fall. It is an old but true adage; "It is a long lane that has no turning." As we have said we have heard from the people how they feel but we have not heard from the superintendent and the board of education. Do they think that they can sit calmly by and go to the board meetings and listen to Supt. Smith recommend a change of books if he is so inclined. Of course they can, but will they ? To be sure the members of the board have implicit confidence in Mr. Smith. They don't doubt his sincerity. Why should they? He has the face that wins confidence. But don't be too sure of your man. You know him. He carries behind his calm exterior a furtile* brain. He wants to make changes. He believes that it is a good move. He tries to convince himself that some of our books are out of date. We strongly believe that that suggestion was given to him by some of the book agent friends. If he has not some such motive, why does he keep so still ? The board members tell us that Smith says, "Oh, I don't know what I am going to do." Well if you don't know what you are going to do, God pity you and the poor people of Findlay. You will be ready in due time to say what you are going to do, and we'll say what we are going to do. And the good people of Findlay will say, "and woe be unto them that try to do it hurt." Smith was not reticent about the proposed changes of teachers or about the remodeling of building, or the taking of music out of our schools. He talked freely with the men about town upon these things. Why does he not say something about text-books. We ask the members of the board this question: "Are you going to vote for any book change ?" We get the reply Supt. Smith has not made up hif mind yet and similar replies. Remember members of the school board, you are elected by the voters in your wards to represent them, their wives, and their children in all that pertains to the welfare of the schools. It is up to you to decide what to do on the book question. Of course you may say : "We don't know anything about the books." We must put this question up to our superintendent. That is all right so far as it goes. But it is up to you gentlemen, not Supt. Smith. You are the ones who will have to bear the hue and cry of a disgruntled populace. You live in this city, your homes are here. If he makes a mistake and thus shows his inability to handle the schools of Findlay properly he can be gotten rid of. We can find another man to take his place. We feel con- fident that there are many men who can and who would be willing to run the schools of our city in an acceptable manner to the citizens. And we'll have that man too if things go too far. Don't think, Mr. Smith, that be- cause the present Board of Education is for you, it will always be so. They are for you now because they have confidence in you. You have *Thls reproduction is verbatim, including mis-spelling. 74 ■ XEJVS AND EDITORIAL, PUBLIC PRESS shown your attitude toward the town by taking added burdens upon your- self and thus lessened the expense. That is very well, and good. We applaud your noble and generous nature. Mr. Board ^Member have you asked your neighbors how they feel about the change in books? Do the people in your district want any changes ? What do they say ? Come out and let us know. We would be the first to confess our mistake if we have sized up the situation erron- eously. A Democrat is lacking in loyalty to his party and his own town when he refuses to run for an office which affects his own and his neighbor's interests. The school board will make changes in the books tonight which will add burdens to the parents. This action should defeat many Republi- can candidates for school board this fall and to do it the Democrats should select their candidates at once and get out the petitions. To neglect this is disloyalty to your town. The school board has been Republican for years and today it is the poorest managed and the most expensive post of the municipal affairs. The women of Findlay should take an interest in this question. CHICAGO DAILY JOURNAL February 24, 1909 WHY NOT TEXT-BOOKS ? Nearly 1,000 school superintendents are attending the meeting of the department of superintendence of the National Educational association, which is now in session in this city. During their stay they will listen to fully 100 papers and discussions covering every phase of school work except — text-books. Why this exception? High prices of texts are a vital issue in nearly every school district in the United States. Book scandals are occupying the attention of legisla- tors and school officials in half a dozen states. Superintendents could perform no more valuable service to the schools than to grapple with this problem and aid in its solution. THE CHICAGO DAILY TRIBUNE Friday, September 13, 1912 SCHOOL BOARD SQUELCHES TOO BUSY BOOK AGENT Not satisfied with two reversals in his attacks on Mrs. Ella Flagg Young superintendent of schools, James T. Guffin, investigator for the allied printing trades and understood to be agent for a book publishing house, came to the school management committee for further action. He got it, but not where he wanted it. Guffin opposed the selection of several thousand copies of Howe's read- ers for use in the Chicago schools and tried to have other books selected. He went to Mrs. Young and sought the selection of the books he favored. Mrs. Young told him briefly she had named fifteen advisers, chosen from teachers and principals, to select the books. Guffin was disappointed and showed it. He is understood to have threatened to "get Mrs. Young's job." Then the advisers reported in favor of the Howe readers and recom- CHICAGO FEDERATION OF LABOR'S REBUFF 7S mendations were forwarded to the board. Guffin spoke to members of the board. .The members promptly voted against him and the Howe books were ordered. Guffin next wrote to Dr. McFatrich, president of the board, who told him he might tell his troubles to the school management committee. Guiifin attended the meeting, sitting at one end of the conference table. At the other end sat Harry W. Shroyer, the successful agent, smiling. "It was understood the books were to be union bound," began Guffin. "1 claim they were not, and by secret committee meetings that Mrs. Young- was imposed " "If you mean that remark that Mrs. Young has been duped I have a few remarks myself," interrupted John C. Harding, secretary of Typo- graphical union No. 16 and member of the school board. "I'll start by saying that I consider Mrs. Young thoroughly efficient." All of the foregoing article is untrue down to and including "get Mrs. Young's job," except "two reversals" and "James T. Quffin, in= vestigator for the allied printing trades," for the reason that I was not a book agent, as alluded to, nor have I had any conversation with Mrs. Young concerning school books within the past five years. I appeared as spokesman on both occasions for and with the committee authorized by the Chicago Federation of Labor. One of the "two reversals" referred to, was in the shape of a denial of a hearing which was ignored. Why should a committee of the Chicago Board of Education deny or ignore at any time a committee from the Chicago Federation of Labor? It may interest the public to know that Charles Scribner's Sons, publishers of the Howe readers, had many inches of advertising space devoted to their magazine and line of fiction books in the Chi= cago Daily Tribune during the months of November and December, 1912, and other years preceding. In connection with the above, it may interest some people to know that among the first Dunne appointees on the Chicago Board of Education was Dr. Cornelia B. DeBey. Dr. DeBey was told by Mr. Noyes, then in a managerial capacity on the Record=Herald, that she must not touch Cooley, (E. Q.), or the books. Think of it! Here is a public official, appointed to serve the people, being given instructions by a newspaper manager. Of course the good doctor did not understand and, being a woman, proceeded to do what she had been told by Mr. Noyes she must not. The result was that column after column appeared in the news= papers attempting to discredit the school board's actions and reflect^ ing on the appointments of the then mayor, (now governor), Dunne. These attacks were continued and in no small way aided in the de= feat of the mayor for re=election. All of this was naturally more or less of a mystery to those most interested who were hostile to the "big business" administration of school affairs in Chicago. Supt. Cooley's recommendation on read= ers was shelved by the school board after his having endorsed the MacMillan books. The only explanation that could be given was the school board leases, until it was discovered that during the months of November and December each year many columns of holiday book advertising were used by MacMillian & Company and other Eastern publishers. What show has MERIT, if it chances to lie with a publishing house that does not have holiday books to advertise, against this "you tickle me and I'll tickle you" business? 76 NEWS AND EDITORIAL, PUBLIC PRESS DETROIT JOURNAL February 25, 1913 MR. PATTENGILL RAISES A QUESTION ' Henry R. Pattengill of Lansing has refused to run for regent of the university on the Progressive ticket because the Battle Creek- platform in- dorses a uniform text-book plan for Michigan schools. The Progressive party thus loses the strongest and best known nomi- nee on its ticket for the sake of a vicious and uncalled-for piece of sum- mary legislation. There is something very queer about this agitation for a uniform text- book law at this time, and perhaps the Pattengill incident will bring out the hidden facts. Nobody of any consec|uence who is interested in legislation wants this lavy. Mr. Pattengill opposes it, and he was for years our superintendent of public instruction. Superintendent of Public Instruction Wright is opposed to it. The school authorities of the big cities are opposed to it because it in- terferes with their independence. The school authorities of the small towns and farming communities oppose it because it will mean the domination of city text-books over country needs and preferences. There is not a state educator of established reputation who has joined in the movement for a uniform text-book law. Our teachers seem to agree with Mr. Pattengill's words : "Uniformity in text-books is a decadent, waning and exceedingly vicious method." Despite this solid front of big and little educators there is a determined -efifort at Lansing to force this legislation on an unwilling state. Despite the declaration of the foremost educator in the Progressive party that the system is anything but Progressive, a plank declaring for it is forced into the third-party platform. All this is very odd, and it seems odder as the undesirable features of the plan are studied. Uniformity in text-books would require the creation of a central board with more power than any board could justly discharge. Temptations tQ •dishonesty would be innumerable and carelessness or incompetence would he almost as calamitous. Any mistake would be fatal to several years of the school life of our children. It would affect the education of every boy and girl in the state. It would hamper a generation of young people. The political and populationary influence of the big cities would sweep the country towns aside in the choice of text-books, and the majority of the state's children would be studying books not fitted for them or selected ty their teachers. What is the motive behind a legislative proposal that cripples a new party, that arouses all the teachers'" of the state to protest, that steals the time of a legislature away from wise laws and profitable discussions ? Who is responsible for this waste of our time and attention and the thought of ■our public men, and what are their motives? NOTE: — It will be observed that in the seventh paragraph UNIFORMITY is said to "interfere with . . . independence" of the cities, while in next to the last paragraph it is alleged that "the big cities would sweep the country towns aside," etc. Somewhat pari= doxical? "Any old port in a storm." BULL MOOSE LOCKING HORNS 77 DETROIT JOURNAL February 26, 1913. MOOSERS KICKING PLATFORM DOWN Winegar Votes Against Suffrage and Curts Denounces Uniform Text-books LANSING, Mich., Feb. 26.— Staff Special.— Bull Moose legislators are showing symptoms daily of refusing to be held to everything the plat- form of their party enunciates. It was Senator Gittins' protest over the uniform text-books plank in the Battle Creek platform last we^ that .started a storm in the convention, which then affirmed uniform text-books^ but named Prof. Pattengill of Lansing, a foremost opponent of this scheme, for regent. "I don't blame Pattengill for refusing to stay on the ticket," remarked "Ed" Curts, Flint Bull Mooser. "He does not believe in uniform text- books and neither do I. When the matter comes up in the senate I will- vote against it. I don't believe in a man voting for something that he is satisfied in his own mind should not pass. For that reason I admire Sen- ator Winegar for voting against suffrage yesterday, for he would have been voting against his own beliefs if he had been counted for it." THE STATE JOURNAL LANSING, MICHIGAN (Thursday, February 27, 1913.) Who Pays the Fiddler ? It is expected that the uniform text-book bill, presented in the lozuer house of the legislature imll be reported out today by the committee. Inasmuch as this action means that the bill is before the house for de- bate it is pertinent to ask a fezsj questions which throw minor lights upon the -measure. The advocates of the uniform text-book plan claim that their measure zvill shake off the grasp of the book trust in this state. If that is true it naturally folloivs that the book trusts zvill oppose the measure. Yet a Mr. GufRn, who was openly connected with Chicago text-book interests a few years ago, and ivho zvas present at the legislative session two years ago zvorking in behalf of uniform text-books, has taken quarters in a local hotel, has employed a press agent and is again actk'e about the capital building. Again : a thirty-nine page booklet containing zvhat is purported to be the unabridged report of the debate between Senator Straight and H. R. Pattengill on uniform te.vt-books, and sent out over the signature of Mr. Straight is being freely circulated. Mr. Straight fathered a uniform text-book bill tzuo years ago. He has introduced another during the present term. The purpose of the pamphlet is to place his arguments for uniform text-books before the members of the legislature. Is Mr. Straight paying for these booklets? If not, then zvho is? Proverbs, XII: 19, 20, 21. . Any reader having progressed thus far in this text will find him= self already in possession of facts which thoroughly and completely refute the slurring implication contained in the above editorial. 78^ NEWS AND EDITORIAL, PUBLIC PRESS \ Battle Creek, Mich, March 24, 1913. Mr. J. T. Guffin, Chicago, 111. Dear Sir: — The Straight-Pattengill debates were printed for Senator Straight, by his order, billed to him, and shipped or delivered according to his instructions. Yours truly, Gillett-Farra Printing Co., W. B. Gillett. THE DETROIT FREE PRESS Saturday, March 8, 1913 SOME USEFUL FACTS Say ! Do 3'ou know how many school children there are in the United States ? Listen : There are 25,000,000 of them. Do you know how many of them go to school — some of them to wretched little unhealthy hovels unfit to house swine? Just 18.000,000 of them. That leaves 5,000,000 who don't go to any school at all. Some are kept away by poverty, some by illness, and some by vile, muddy, disgraceful roads. There you are — in these few sentences you have material enough to keep you talking for the next decade, material enough for another Dickens to use in a series of novels and for another Plimsoll to use in a crusade — haven't you? And what use will you make of it ? Organized labor is supporting laws that will eliminate such con= ditions. LANSING EVENING PRESS Wednesday, March 12, 1913 PROGRESSIVE COMMITTEEMAN SAYS SOME SHARP THINGS W. S. Kellogg Gives Version of Why Platform Favors Uniform Text-Books and H. R. Pattengill Was Nominated for Regent of University. The question of whether H. R. Pattengill said he would run or would not, and whether the national Progressive platform ought to be revised to suit the principles of Mr. Pattengill has caused considerable debate. In a communication to the Lansing Press, W. S. Kellogg, member of the state central committee and recently a candidate for congress says : — Editor Evening Press : — I have hesitated to participate in the controversy that is being waged over the nomination of Hon. H. R. Pattengill for regent of the university by the recent convention of the national progressive party and his declin- ation of that honor, because I have felt that the dispute has been brought about by the desire of certain local interests to discredit and weaken the party; but inasmuch as my name has been used in the matter, and espe- cially in view of the fact that many assertions have been made that have no foundation in fact, I have thought best to make a statement for the benefit of the progressive party members who have had no opportunity to learn the truth. Mr. Pattengill asserts that the uniform text-book plank was foisted upon the progressive convention bv a demagogue, referring to Sybrant BULL MOOSE LOCKING HORNS 79 Wesselius of Grand Rapids, intimating that the convention itself had noth- ing to do in the matter of declaring its platform. Had Mr. Pattengill been present when the vote was taken he would have discovered just what pro- portion of the progressive party was ''foisting the brazen effrontery on the convention." The progressive party is definitely committeed to the uniform text- book policy. The responsibility for this policy rests not upon Mr. Wes- selius, but upon others who make no claim to the title of demagogue. The plank adopted at Battle Creek is but a reiteration of the one adopted at the Lansing convention on October 1, and which was a part of the pro- gressive program during the recent campaign. The first plank was drawn originally by Judge D. S. Frackleton of Fenton and submitted to me early in Septeriiber of last year. I carefully revised the draft and eliminated several features, notably one which provided for utilizing prison labor in the publication of the books of the state. The draft was adopted by the committee and submitted to the convention without alteration and became a plank in the platform. There never has been an inclination to "bulldoze" or "insult" the teach- ers of the state in the propaganda for uniform text-books ; nor have I been able to discover the much-touted "syndicate of publishers who are financ- ing the uniformity propaganda." I have discovered a small army of book agents hurrying about the state trying to head off the movement. At least two of these agents solicited my support for their candidacy for the nomination for the office of the member of the state board of education, and one of them had been one of our presidential electors, I claim a large share of the responsibility of shaping the party's atti- tude in the matter of text-book legislation, but I resent any imputation of being actuated by ulterior motives. My views are the result of many years' observation of the workings of the system in vogue in Michigan and comparing the quahty and price of the books we use here with those of Canada, for instance, which have been uniform throughout the pro- vinces for 40 years. My sincere conviction is that the state is committing an egregious crime toward the rising generation in leaving the selection of text-books to incompetent authorities. The average school board has no more business determining the books to be used in the schools than it would have in picking the course of study for medical or legal students. The Lansing board of education is composed of better men than make up the average school board, and yet not three of them are competent judges of text-books. n The present system leaves the helpless user of books to the incompe- tence of board members modified by the wiles of petty grafting book agents ; state uniformity would give every rural district the benefit of the ripe judgment of a commission of experts. I maintain that the rural pupils are entitled to a square deal in the matter of equipment ; now they are being double-crossed at every stage of the game and the book trust is reaping a golden harvest at the expense of what should be the children's birthright. As to Mr. Pattengill's nomination on the progressive ticket, I opposed it because I foresaw that local interests who are. associated with him in the book publishing business would lose no time in putting him on record for the double purpose of weakening the progressive ticket by forcing his withdrawal and also of saving their portion of the school book harvest by attempting to head off the coming emancipation from the grafting of the book combine. This phase of the matter was fully discussed by the Ing- ham county delegates and the consensus of opinion was that Mr. Patten- gill would strengthen the ticket if he would run, but he had given no as- 80 NEWS AND EDITORIAL, PUBLIC PRESS surance to any of us that he was a candidate. Whether or not he had an agreement with Mr. Hollbeck exchisivel}' that he would accept the nomi- nation if offered to him, I protest that he had no right to expect that the national progressive party would change its principles to fit the views of any one man. Knowing that he was being considered for a place on the ticket and that Ingham county would support him for any position that he desired, a courteous course would have been for Mr. Pattengill tohave written a letter to the officers of the county committee stating his attitude. Thus he would have saved the delegates an embarrasing situation and himself much unwelcome publicity. W. S. Kellogg THE DETROIT FREE PRESS Friday, March 14, 1913 A Blow at Liberty It is evident that the federal constitution has no terrors for the people behind the uniform text-book law now pending in Lansing. This bill is going to settle the text-book problem for the state by taking home rule away from the voters in the matter of selecting the volumes their chil- children shall study, but is also going to settle'any persons who may dare to dispute the judgment or methods of the commission to whom this im- portant work is to be committed. Representative Straight, who proudly avers that he is the parent of the text-book bill, 'admits that if it stands as drafted newspapers will be pro- hibited from commenting upon the character of the books selected for use. But there was no necessity for this admission. A section of the bill speaks for itself and reads thus : — ■ "Any publisher, firm or corporation, or agent of such pub- lisher, person, firm or corporation, who shall connive or seek to discredit any book or books,* adopted under the provisions of this act before the expiration of the contract made, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction shall be fined not less than $100 and not more than $1,000 for each offense." Talk about conspiracy in restraint of trade, talk about restricting the freedom of the press ! Perhaps the Straight bill isn't trotting a hot pace in these directions. But you say, "Bah, if the law is unconstitutional the courts will over- turn it." Are you sure of that? The text-book bill is not the only bill now pend- ing before the legislature. There is, for instance, a measure which prac- tically provides for the recall of judges, the recall feature, like the re- strictive clause in the text-book bill, being in the nature of a joker. If this state continues in the way it is going, if the legislature follows the precedent it set in the Verdier bill, the constitution will afford scant protection to any one. Only the will of a tyrannical majority will prevail. The minority will no longer have rights. ■ Assume that the Straight bill passes unamended, assume that the re- call of judges also goes through — and stranger things than these may happen — the supreme court may then declare the attack upon the freedom of speech and of the press unconstitutional, but its decision will amount to nothing. The majority will immediately recall the upright judges and substitute others. Measures such as these we cite are iniquitous far beyond their imme- _ *The words, -43y false statements",' were inserted at this point or after the word "discredit." BULL MOOSE LOCKING HORNS 81 diate effect in any given case. They set precedents which permit the in- troduction of intolerable and continuing abuse. Laws of this sort are a part of the new "progressivism," which after all is only reversion to the tyranny of an unhampered majority and the trampling under foot of all the rights of the minority. It is the old policy of the Puritans over again, liberty for ourselves but no tolerance for the dissenter. We hope that the objectionable clause in the text -book bill will be killed, not so much because it is unconstitutional and opens wide the door for graft, but more because under the present order of things there is no longer any guarantee that the constitution will be able to protect against the oppression of arbitrary majority rule, sometimes characterized in un- conscious but ghastly satire as "the rule of the people." The minority in this country has only a "Chinaman's chance" and that is to abide by the will of the majority. DETROIT JOURNAL March 21, 1913 BULL MOOSE GO TO POLLS SPLIT Uniform Text-Book Fight is Rock That Has Shattered Cam- paign. Seven of Ten Progressives Vote Against Bill Despite Platform — Wesselius' Labor in Vain. LANSING, March 21.— The uniform text-book bill without a doubt is beaten in the house of representatives. The vote on its passage in third reading was 42 to 42, nine short of the necessary 51 to pass, and on the motion of Rep. Dunn, the author of the original Dunn bill, which was joined with the Young bill and known as the Dunn-Young substitute, it was placed on the table, the house morgue for "dead" legislation. It is very doubtful if the friends of the bill can muster up enough sup- port to bring it before the house for further consideration. The discussions were spirited and lasted for nearly an hour. Reps. Charles H. McBride and Warner, Republicans, took a strong stand against it, aS' did Rep. J. N. McBride, Progressive, and Rep. Fitzgerald, Democrat. In the vote party lines were not followed. Although the Progress- ives at the state convention held in Battle Creek indorsed uniform text- books in their platform, seven of the ten Progressives present voted against the bill. These seven followed the lead of Henry R. Pattengill, who refused to accept the nomination for regent of the university on the Progressive state ticket because of his antipathy to uniform text-books, and it is very, evident this is the rock over which the Progressives have split in this spring's campaign. Sybrant Wesselius, who was responsible for the insertion of the uni- form text-book plank, was in the capital, exerting his influences to have all the Progressives stand pat on the bill. Gradually sentiment against uniform text-books has been gathering. 82 WANTED (Poem, J. G. Holland) When the session first opened it was said that fully 70 members in the house favored the bill. And, now that nine votes are lacking to put it through, there is no likelihood that the bill will pass, with the sentiment still dwindling. It requires a majority vote to take it from the table and 51 to pass it on third reading, and the opponents claim today that they have uniform text-books smothered for the balance of this session. The PHYSICAL condition of the school child cannot be changed by law, but his MENTAL equipment is in the hands of the state and it is scarcely conceivable that any thinking man can read the here= with pages and fail to conclude that the educational progress of the Nation depends entirely on the action of our legislatures. WANTED (A Sonnet) God give us men! A time like this demands Strong minds, great hearts, true faith, and ready hands; Men whom the lust of office does not kill; Men whom the spoils of office cannot buy; ~ Men who posses opinions and a will; Men who have honor, — men who will not lie; Men who can stand before a demagogue, And damn his treacherous flatteries without winking ! Tall men, sun=crowned, who live above the fog In public duty, and in private thinking: For while the rabble, with their thumb=worn creeds, Their large professions, and their little deeds, — Mingle in selfish strife, lo! Freedom weeps. Wrong rules the land, and waiting Justice sleeps! —J. Q. Holland (Timothy Titcomb.) To anticipate any possible criticism of repetition of ideas in these pages we might suggest that such repetition has sanction in the Decalogue when Moses thought it advisable to reprint his ten cardi= nal mandates in the fifth chapter of Deuteronomy after having set them down in the twentieth chapter of Exodus. LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY AND ECONOMY Opposed by those who Do Not Understand Taken from Chicago Allied Printing Trades' Council "Monthly Review/' May, 1910: — The continual nightmare that haunts every waking as well as sleeping moment of the almost disheartened wage-earner of the present period, is the ever upward trend of prices, and these fancy figures are by no means confined to such absolute necessities as food, clothes and shelter, but em- brace many other commodities that cannot be strictly classed as luxuries. The bachelor's problem of how to make both ends meet, while serious in nature, pales into utter insignificance beside the task that confronts the benedict whose increasing family brings woe instead of joy in its train, as each additional little body calls for. care and nourishment, not forgetting that when the inevitable storms of infantile ills have been .successfully weathered the expanding child-mind clamors for attention and all these things demand money and plenty of it. These numerous drains upon a naturally slim purse, that is first to feel the effects of every panic and last to be spattered by even tha spray from the wave of prosperity, spells, poverty with its attendant misery. Logically the humane father and mother, actuated by the parental instinct, feeling it a sacred duty to shield their progeny from privation and sorrow, realizing that the cold, calculating and parsimonious characteristics of their industrial masters will deny them sufficient funds to meet their actual needs, losing sight of their many wants, justifies them in their determination to evade parental responsibilities when existing conditions render individualistic existence an unsolvable puzzle. The possessors of swollen fortunes preached economy as the road to wealth and independence, but offered no remedy for an escape from a de- pendent condition of industrial servitude that scarcely brought in suffi- cient revenue to keep body and soul together, much less providing time, food or funds for ambitious aspirations. Early in his industrial career the profound hopelessness of individual efforts at trade and wage betterment was forced upon the worker, under the sharp lash of denial. "Necessity the mother of invention," showed him the way, through UNION with his fellow-workers. This combination was immediately outlawed and per- secuted in the hope of bringing about fts destruction, but as truth, though crushed to the earth, is said to rise again and again, so TRADES UNION- ISM thrived on opposition and nobly fulfilled its mission of progressive INDUSTRIAL EDUCATION, gradually acquiring at least a portion, if not ail labor's just dues so long withheld from it by the avaricious and grasping employer. But while self-interest was the primal impulse that gave birth to organized labor, it did not constitute the sole principle or actuating motive of trades' unionism, for as experience brought wisdom it clearly demonstrated that recourse to strikes was an unwise proceeding, save as a measure of last resort, organized labor urged and adopted con- ciliation and arbitration as a logical means to the settlement of indus- trial controversies. With the history of the American colonists to guide them, trades union- ists believed themselves privileged to boycott any manufactured products created under unfair conditions, and firm in their faith in the supposed [83] 84 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY constitutional guarantee of their right to freedom of action and the pursuit of happiness, org-anized labor and its friends thus voiced its sentiments until enjoined by court order from so doing. Then in order that the world might be able to readily distinguish the product of the trades-unionists, whose joint labors have been conceded to be a most important factor in the advancement of civilization, the UNION LABEL was unfurled to the breeze and under that banner the work of the emancipation of the toilers was carried onward. With the advent of better wages and shorter hours, the need for physical health and safety reeived attention. Then the per- nicious system of overworked and underpaid women and child labor was attacked and through the uncompromising attitude of organized labor on all questions affecting the general welfare of the community, capital made a virtue of necessity and sullenly submitted to the inauguration of ACT- UAL, not pretended, civilization though capital's resentment is, has been, and always will be made manifest on every possible occasion and through ■every possible medium. Lideed, its boldness has prompted even a claimed subsidized public press to reluctantly charge wholesale bribery of govern- mental representatives and officials, admit the enactment of farcial and •distinctly class legislation, speak of judicial decisions as a travesty on justice, and acknowledge that even our boasted public school system had "been dragged into the mire by modern legalized methods of robbery, •courteously termed BUSINESS ETHICS. And who is the greatest suf- ferer from these admitted evils, especially the latter one, if it is not the toiler, for poverty stricken, though his lot may be, hard though the ■struggle for individual existence is, we find that the average adult worker is usually the head of a family and therefore the largest patron of the public schools, especially in the commercial and manufacturing cen- ters throughout the United States. Merit should be the deciding factor in the selecting of books rather than price ; for a cheap price means cheap work ; cheap work means cheap men ; cheap men mean cheap homes ; cheap homes mean a cheap com- munity and a cheap community is incapable of creating or maintaining a rich or powerful nation. Competition at one time was said to be the life 'of trade, but imder modern trust methods what passes current for com- petition is merely business murder, intended to clear the trust path of aggressive rivals, the cost of whose removal will be added to the selling price of the goods to the consumer after competition has ceased to be an actuality. Therefore MERIT should rule and not price, as the school child should have the best at any cost, especially the child of the laboring man who has little else to give except an education ; besides in spite of their vaunted cheapness, books to the man compelled to try to stretch a penny to a nickel value, represent a luxury and in such homes the children's school books usually constitute the only library the parents can claim as their own. Taken from Chicago Allied Printing Trades' Council "Monthly Heview," August, 1910. It will be necessary for me to call attention to what constitutes the -great educational body who are the important factors in the selection of our school books. These constitute, first, the teachers, principals and superintendents. Second the school boards, committees and officers who are selected under the various laws of the several states for the purpose of carrying on the schools. Concerning the first class, the}' enter the teaching profession for the most part, coming directly from our high schools, normal schools, col- ORGANIZED LABOR'S REASONS 85 leges, etc. After teaching a few years, those who do not leave the work to go into other lines of employment, become principals and superintend- ents of schools in the rural towns and cities on account of the increased remuneration they find in these higher positions. Some continue in the teaching profession and make it a life work. Concerning the second class in the case of school boards, we have the direct responsibility of main- taining the conduct of the school or schools under their authority which includes the building of buildings, the employment of teachers, principals and superintendents, under the state laws governing same. School boards are either appointed, or elected by the voters, and usually hold office from one to six years, and the election or appointment is gen- erally made so that the terms of office of school board members do not all expire at the same time. Thus it will be seen that while the people of the first class are in the teaching profession for a number of years, the school boards are constantly changing in their personnel, and while a teacher may not be in a position more than from one year up, they possibly may be in other positions in the same line of work for a lifetime. The reader will naturally see from the foregoing, where the bane of politics, which is so much decried by the public at large, creeps in. For you hear everywhere among the citizens and teachers, "Keep politics out of the schools," meaning Democratic, Republican, Socialistic, etc., but it is safe to say that there is plenty of politics in our school systems of different kinds, and one has to but scratch the surface to discover it, and it has been said that the school book publishing houses play no small part in the workings of this latter kind of politics mentioned. Let us see how this matter works in practice. Say we have a superin- tendent at the head of a school system who is friendly to one publishing house by virtue of having applied for the position which he now holds by reason of having been informed by the representative of some publishing house at the time a new superintendent was about to be selected. The agent who is sent out by the house because he knows his business ap- proaches the members of the school board something in this wise : 'T suppose, in the matter of selection of school books, you will leave the matter largely to the superintendent. Not being in active school work yourself, you recognize him as the educational expert in whose judgment you will rely." The school board member will reply something in this manner : "Oh, yes ; I don't know anything about school books ; that's his business. That's what we hire him for. We have enough other matters to worry about in the conduct of our schools without bothering ourselves as to the methods to be pursued." This report is immediately carried back to the superintendent and he learns, as well as the agent, that anything he recommends will be prescribed by the school board and must of necessity be purchased by the school children. The foregoing excerpts outline, in. a measure, the reasons why organized labor has taken up the interests of the people and has be= come active through an authorized representative, for the betterment of the school systems in which the children of its membership find themselves throughout the United States. . After a superficial investigation they based their line of action on the following: — We shall use all honorable means to further such laws in the interest of all the people to secure a more efficient school system at a reduced cost to the public for the reason that an educa= tion is the most that we can hope to give to our children, as it is not possible for us to accumulate fortunes. In accord with this, the following credential was issued: — 86 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY WM. P. MORAN, WM. J. BOENER, OTTO P. WASEM, PATRICK J. POLEY, President Vice Pres. Sec.-Treas. Sergt.-at-Arms. CHICAGO ALLIED PRINTING TRADES' COUNCIL ehicago. 111., Jan. 16, 1911. TO V?HOM IT MAY eONGERN:-- Thig will introduce Mr. Jamea T. Guff in, vlio is laboring in the text-book field in the interests of organized labor, especially the printing industry. Any favors shown him in this work will be appreciated by the un- dersigned. L. P. STRAUBE, SEAL See'y 0. A. P. T. C. CHICAGO ALLIED PRINTING TRADES' COUNCIL Room 516 - 275 La Salle Street Chicago, 111., May 5, 1911. Honorable John S. Donald,* Chairman Committee on Education, Senate Chamber, Madison, Wis. My Dear Mr. Donald: — Our mutual interest on a question of such vital importance to the State and Nation as the matter of legislation in the Educational field prompts me to assume the liberty of addressing you on a matter of common interest. Our Mr. Guffin writes me that the question has been raised concerning whom he represents, how long he has been engaged in the Labor Move- ment and other questions of a like nature that would suggest themselves to those desirous of securing authentic information on such subjects. Jus- tice to Mr. Guffin prompts the following presentation of actual facts in the premises. The gentleman in question first becaume acquainted with the members of the Chicago Allied Printing Trades' Council in the winter of 1905 and 1906 in an effort to secure the recognition of Labor's rights in the printing industry and the bringing together of the Publisher, Manu- facturer and Trades' Unionist. He left the emplo)'ment of Longmans, Green & Co., August 1st, 1909, and shortly after took up the question with the undersigned, of the School Book Combine and has been actively en- gaged in this work and in fact has devoted his whole time to the cause of Organized Labor ever since. In all the years that I have known Mr. Guf- fin, I have found him straightforward, truthful and square. To make use of a Rooseveltian expression, he has proven to be as clean as a hound's tooth. Both his knowledge and work conclusively prove him to be an authority on school books and school book legislation; the equal of any and the peer of many, even among the best and brightest employed by the school book trust. Organized Labor, in furtherance of the ethics and prin- ciples governing and underl)ang the trades' union cause, is taking up the cudgels in defence of the people's rights in the matter of education and *Senator Donald was elected Secretary of State at the last election and was a member of the Wisconsin Text-book Investigating Committee. REASONS WISCONSIN INVESTIGATION 87 we await Mr. Guffin's report on ability of the fair State of Wisconsin to purge itself from the pernicious activity of the notorious Book Trust and its agents. Any further information that you may desire and that is within the scope of my ability to aid )'0U in securing, may be had for the asking. Thanking you for the interest that I understand you are taking in this matter of common interest, I await your reply, and subscribe myself, Very truly yours, (Signed) L. P. Straube. Secy. C. A. P. T. C. A copy of the foregoing letter, together with the following, was sent to every member of the Wisconsin General Assembly at its 1911 session. Avenue Hotel, Madison, Wis., June 12, 1911. Dear Sir: — I enclose copy of letter sent to Senator John S. Donald, for the- purpose of correcting reports that have been falsely circulated. Labor demands a living wage, that it may feed, clothe and educate its children and in the matter of school text-books it demands the best from whatever source and that the price cannot be too cheap. I call to your attention that 790A was unanimously recommended for passage by the committee and hastily "slaughtered" to the interest of the "book trust" showing conclusively that some have been misinformed and do not understand the bill, as there is not a line in said bill that is not in the interest of all the people 3'ou represent whose children may be attend- ing any private, parochial or public schools within this state. It shall be my duty as a representative of Organized Labor to call the attention of the members of labor unions, Wisconsin Society of Equity, and other civic bodies in this state to the methods employed by the book agents and school superintendents to hoodwink the school boards ; the last named being servants of the people, not the "book trust." The people are the ones upon whom fall the continued high prices and use of inferior books. Shall be pleased to present }'0U with evidence substantiating all my assertions if given an opportunity. Yours truly, James T. Guffin After the defeat of the bill mentioned in the foregoing letter, the legislature appointed a committee to investigate the matter with an appropriation of $5,000. I was told by one of the newspaper men that I went against one of the best trained and organized lobbies in the world, which consisted of book=agents traveling over the state and among the school superintendents who, in turn, used their influ^ ence with members of the school boards and the legislature, and so well did they have the votes counted that one agent asked me, after the vote was had, how it was that a certain member voted for the bill, as they had him down as with them. In the month of January, 1912, Mr. Guffin was before the Wisconsin Text-Book Investigating Committee and was interrogated under oath as follows : — MR MAHON :— Q. Mr. Guffin, what is your business? 88 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY A. I am, 3'ou might say, an investigator, or interested in presenting the claims of organized labor on the text-book situation. Q. You ma}' state whether or not you are employed at the present time by any school book company ? A. I am not. O. Or company manufacturing, or selling text-books ? A. No, sir. MR. PERRY :— Q. Mr. Guffin, I understand there has been some suggestion — now, do not take unbrage at me because I am as non-partisian in this matter as any member of the committee — that you have stock in some school text- book company. What is the fact? Have you stock in some school text- book company at the present time ? A. Well, if j-ou or anybody else — I- will saj' no, — but if anybody else can find any I will give them half. Now, there have been all kinds of- ru- mors, and I am here to answer one and all, and I am under oath. MR MAHON :— Q. Mr. Guffin, this has come up two or three times, many times in: fact, ever since yoti have taken an interest in this Wisconsin legislature, and I hope 3'ou won't take umbrage to any question I might ask. I will ask you this : I will ask you if you have any relatives interested in any publishing house ? A. Not that I know. THE MILWAUKEE SENTINEL Friday, March 29, 1912 Discuss Book Problems Action of Legislature for Uniformitv Is Urged. The Educational Club of Milwaukee had a banquet Thursday night at the Republican, at which legislation regulating the choice of text-books for public schools was the principal point of discussion. , That school princi- pals are being influenced and that therefore the legislature should intro- duce uniform text-books in every state, is the opinion of J. T. Guffin, who" spoke at the banquet, representing the Chicago Printers' Trade council. "Teachers and principals are being paid by the people and are public servants. Consequently they should devote their service entirely to the people. But they are unintentionally serving the interests that are manu- facturing and selling these books. They are always, to some extent, being influenced by these interests. The only remedy for this evil would be a law that provides for uniformity of text-books in all the schools of a state. In several states the legislatures have passed such laws, and they have proved satisfactory." The following communication was transmitted to the Allied Printing Trades' Council and the executive officers of the Ohio Valley Trades' and Labor Assembly at Wheeling, W. Va., which they, in turn, presented over the signature of their officers to the State Text= Book Commission at Charleston, W. Va., and they retaliated by giv= ing over 50 per cent of the business of the state to Ginn & Co. The commission was made up mostly of school men and the kind the publishing houses like; a commission responsible to no one. COMBINE OPPOSED TO UNIFORMITY 89 CHICAGO ALLIED PRINTING TRADES' COUNCIL, 59-E. Van Buren Street, A. J. Spencer, Business Manager. Chicago, III, May 15, 1912. To Whom It May Concern: — Dear Sir : — The following publishing houses by communication or through their authorized representatives have gone on record as opposed to "State Uniformity" of text-books: — The MacMillan Co., Houghton, Mifflin & Co., Ginn & Co., ■American Book Co., Yet we find their representatives actively soliciting the members of the various Text-Book Commissions for the business of states. At the entrance of the publishing plant of Ginn & Co., the following sign has appeared for years : — "Notice"* "The Athenaeum Press is a free office. All our employees are entirely at liberty to be independent of any organization or to belong to any organ- ization that does not interfere, with their work. Neither union or non- union men are to be subjected to the least annoyance or discrimination as such by employers or fellow workmen. (Signed,) Ginn & Co." It is hardly necessary for us to add that this is an unfair shop to all members of organized labor and no union man in good standing works in this shop. Concerning the American Book Company we feel that enough has been said and no comments are necessary. Furthermore, the School Journals throughout the United States patronized by those who seek to monopoHze the school book business have publicly slandered and misrepresented those who have sought to loosen the hold of this educational monster as well as seeking to discredit organ- ized labor in its efforts to secure just and competitive laws, and, Furthermore, one of the claims set up by some of these houses and their educational friends is that State Text-Book Commissions do not secure the best books or get as good books as are had by local adop- tion, we Hereby bring these facts to the attention of Text-Book Commissions that they may properly safeguard the interests of the children of their State in not permitting any combination of circumstances that will en- able those who oppose "State Uniformity" to use their State as an ex- ample before other States. If the Text-book Commissions of States under non-restricting laws place inferior books in the hands of its children and teachers, it is the fault of the Commission and not of the law. Respectfully, [seal] ' A. J. Spencer, Secretary. The following letter, embodying telegrams, was transmitted to the officers of labor organizations in Montana who took the matter up with the State Text=Book Commission of that state, along the lines laid down in the article printed from the Montana Daily Rec= *The sentiments expressed in this notice have not prevailed in Ginn & Com- pany's plant since November 21, 1912. I found, however, union men in good standing, working in this plant on May 22, 1912.- 90 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY ord under date of June 21, 1912. This was another commission re= sponsible to no one; not even the Governor who appointed it, and they in turn ignored the rights of the people and played into the hands of "Monopoly," in other words, instead of serving the people who placed them in their position, they served the Eastern Publish- ers, as the evidence will show. CHICAGO ALLIED PRINTING TRADES' COUNCIL Chicago, 111., May 31, 1912 To Whom It May Concern : — The following is self-explanatory : — NIGHT LETTER May 29, 1912. Secretary of State, Oklahoma City, Okla. Is there a union labor clause in the existing contracts on school books between your State and the following publishers?: — Ginn & Co., Ameri- can Book Co., Heath & Co., Merrill & Co., Doub & Co. Reply, giving said clause to Allied Printing Trades' Council, Room 608, Atheneum Bldg., Chicago. (Signed) A. J. Spencer, Secretary. TELEGRAM Oklahoma City, Okla., May 31, 1912. A. J. Spencer, Secretary, Room 608, Atheneum Bldg., Chicago. Contracts with publishers named carry union labor clauses. (Signed) Benj. F. Harrison, Secretary State. Clauses : — "It is expressly mutually agreed that said books are to be manufac- tured by union labor. In case of necessity only, this requirement is waived for the first delivery." We have failed to secure evidence that these houses have complied with their contract. On the other hand, we have secured evidence, tangible and heresay, that they have not. Yours, A. J. Spencer, Secretary. THE MONTANA DAILY RECORD Helena, Montana, Friday, June 21, 1912 BOOK CONCERNS MULCT PUBLIC James T. Guffin Charges Manufacturers Practice Discrimination Ask Higher Prices Here than in Other Places Text-Book Commission Probing Matter — Possible That Number of Firms Will be Compelled to Change Bids That thousands and thousands of dollars have been unjustly taken from the taxpayers of the United States each year, by a few big book con- cerns which dominate the text-book supply, was the charge made by James T. Gufifin of Chicago, representing the Montana Federation of Labor at the public hearing held this morning by the state text-book commission. MONTANA, OKLAHOMA SHOWN UP 91 Mr. Guffin cited specific instances of alleged discrimination. These will be investigated by the commission, and it is possible that a number of the bid- ders will be compelled to reduce their bids before any contracts are awarded them. Mr. Guffin explained he did not mean to censure any text-book com- missions that have acted in the past. They did not have the information and had no way of ascertaining the imposition that was being practiced. The three principal concerns Mr. Guffin charged with discrimination were Ginn & Co., Merrill & Co., and the Silver-Burdette Company. ALLEGED DISCRIMINATION Frye's grammar school geography is published by Ginn & Co. Down south eighty-eight cents is asked for this book. In other parts of the country $1.25 is the price. Merrill & Co., publish a sixth grade reader. In orre of the southern states thirty-five cents a volume is the price ; the Montana bid is fifty cents. Second and third grade readers published by the Silver-Burdette com- pany were offered in South Carolina at twenty-five cents a volume. Here fort}^ cents a volume is demanded. Replying to Mr. Guffin's strictures, the book agents asserted the edi- tions to which he referred were of a cheaper grade. He declared prac- tically the only difference was in the color of the cover. MAKE NO ANSWER Some of Mr. Guffin's charges, according to members of the board, the book agents made no attempt to answer. Mr. Guffin also cited the fact that some of the leading concerns in their bids stipulated they would only allow thirty per cent in exchange for old books, whereas other firms agreed to allow sixty and seventy per cent. The following is taken from an Oklahoma City paper under date of July 14, 1912, and from the activities of organized labor in the people's interest up to this time, it is patent to anyone, carefully reading, why the Governor appeared, July 2, 1912, as noted in his letter reproduced below, urging postponement of the adoption. Why should the commission after having advertised according to law, in March, 1912, and putting the publishers to the expense of sending their representatives, refuse at this late day, to go ahead and let the contracts? My only answer is this, that after the awards were made, it was found that the American Book Company got dic= tionaries which they would get anyway and Ginn & Company, High School Physics. If you want another answer you will find it on page 96, in a letter from State Superintendent Wilson and in one from State Treasurer Dunlop on pages 97=98. PLOT THICKENS IN SCHOOL BOOK CONTRACT AWARD The board will meet at nine o'clock tomorrow morning to hear the rep- resentatives of the different book companies before finally letting the contracts. governor's letter Governor Grace's letter to Superintendent Wilson is as follows: — "Hon. R. H. Wilson, president of the board of education. Mercantile building, Oklahoma City. "Dear Mr. Wilson : — I have received no intimation from the board of education as to what action it would take upon the request that I made when I appeared before your board on the 2nd of July. At that time I made an urgent request that your board postpone the hearings from the 92 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY date heretofore announced, July 15, to a later date, a date not earlier than the 15th of October. At that time I stated in detail my objections to the adoption at the time as decided upon by the board. Having failed to be advised of any action on your part, I presume it is the intention of the board to go forward with the adoption as originally planned. "I shall not attempt to interfere in anywise with your legal or consti- tutional rights in this matter, but I feel that it is but fair to 3'ou that I state what my action shall be in connection with this adoption.* "The laws of the state, as contained in section 7986, Snyder's Digest, provide as follows : — " 'The bidder or bidders to whom any contract may have been awarded shall make and execute a good and sufificient bond payable to the state of Oklahoma in the sum of not less than $10,000, to be approved by the gov- ernor.' "Section 7988 provides as follows: — " 'Each contract shall be duly signed by the publishing house or its authorized officers or agents, and if it is found to be in accordance with the award and all of the provisions of "this act, and if the bond herein is presented and duly approved, the commission shall approve said contract and order it to be signed on behalf of the state by the governor.' "Section 7997 requires that the governor shall issue his proclamation to the people of the state immediately after the adoption of the books. "By a careful reading of the statutes it will be seen that the governor necessarily must have much to do with the adoption of the books, and in- asmuch as the law prescribes certain duties in this connection for the gov- ernor to perform, I feel that I have been warranted in taking this matter up as I have. "I believe you will agree with me that this is the first time since the creation of the board that I have ever made any request of any kind of the board. "Feeling as I do that it is a serious mistake from the standpoint of the public school interests of Oklahoma to have this adoption take place as advertised, I shall decline to aid in anywise in carrying into effect any at- tempted adoption at this time. "Please call this letter to the attention of the entire board, as I am writing only the one letter to you as president. "Yours truly, "Lee Cruce, Governor." The members of the board are President Wilson, Robert Dunlop, state treasurer : W. A. Brandenburg, superintendent of the Oklahoma City *Two weeks after the governor made the foregoing statement the first sub- ject for consideration came up. It was spelling and the Progressive Speller by Mr. J. N. Hunt, published by the American Book Company was defeated for adoption. Following this action the chief executive removed from office the State board members who had voted against the adoption but permitted the members who had voted for the adoption of the Progressive Speller (Hunt) to remain on the board. Hark! I hear our critics say, "There's your governor's influence." Yes, but it is the kind we do not advocate. However, the publishers and school men do. You may ask, "How is that?" The answer is plain. This is"a board created by the governor but of which he is not a member. This fact places him in a position, in case corruption developes or books of merit are not chosen, to say that he did all he could by placing supposedly reputable men in office, and not being a member of the board, he was not in a position to keep thoroughly posted on what was transpiring. The chief executive of a state has, as his primal duty, the responsibility of seeing that all laws are properly administered and the fact that the respon- sibility for blocking dishonest legislative schemes is thus specifically delegated seems to be distasteful to certain publishing houses and their henchmen. EDITORIAL IN INTEREST OF EDUCATION 93 Schools ; Scott Glen, superintendent of the Shawnee schools ; W. E. Row- sey of Muskogee, J. F. Warren of Oklahoma City, and Frank Hayes of Chandler. FORMING LEGISLATORS' OPINIONS LANSING EVENING PRESS LANSING, MICHIGAN Saturday, February 8, 1913 Time to Get Busy If the present legislature is to take any action to relieve the people wha are unfortunate enough to be obliged to purchase school books from the strangle-hold that the book trust has on their necks, it is up to the voterS' to get busy with a good sharp goad. The tendency on the part of the legislators is unquestionably to side- step their responsibility and pigeon-hole the bills that have been proposed.. The only sentiment that has been brought to bear on the legislature up to the present moment is from the different teachers' organizations that have appointed committees to work against uniform and free text-books. The people who have to pay for the books have not awakened to the fact that the trust, which levies tribute on every child that attends a school in the state, is working every influence to the limit to continue the present graft for another two years. The school books ought to be as free to the students as the schoolhouse and the fuel. That is, the community at large should bear the fullest pos- sible proportion of the cost of the educational system. The individual should be relieved of the expense of text-books as he is of the expense of hiring teachers and buying fuel for the district. Moreover, the pupil should have the advantage of the very best text- book on a given subject that can be obtained. There is but one best; all others are inferior, and should not be used for the pupils in any school in the state. Inferior books are used in a majority of the schools of the state because the book companies maintain an army of oily-tongued sharps to pass out dictionaries or other inducements to the district officers or other influential persons, if their arguments fail to have the desired effect. The argument advanced by the apologists of the present lack of system in regard to the text-book situation is that uniformity invariably results in . a poorer grade of books. What comment on the integrity of educators as a class ! Why should uniformity result in a poorer grade of text-books unless the officials who adopt the books are the victims of ulterior in- fluences? Are all teachers and educators subject to corruption? We re- fuse to believe it. Is it not possible for a commission of educators to de- termine which is a good and which is not a good treatise? Then why should the result "invariably" be an inferior book? Another argument, and the one that is worked overtime, is that with uniform books, competition would be destroyed and that a monopoly would be established. To the person who does not know the methods of the trust, the argument has an appeal. Here is the situation in a nutshell : The book trust is composed of 85 concerns, different in name, but one in iniquity and sin. The companies are interested in maintaining the highest prices possible for books. They recognize the fact that in order for all of them to continue in business, they must keep the people divided on the question of the merits of the dif- 94 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY ferent publications. They fight uniformity, because if one book is adopted in a state to the exclusion of others, it means that all but one of them are out of the business in that state. The most natural step for the state to take then would be to fix the price of that book at a reasonable figure which would cover the cost and yield a fair profit. Naturally the companies are opposed to this program. They realize the truth of the axiom that they "must hang together, or hang separately," so they try to scare the public with the "monopoly" buncombe and all the other nonsense. Competition is a fine thing, all right, but when it results in a species of highway robbery, it is time for the people of the state to take a hand in the proceedings and put a stop to it. This state is under no obligation to supply a market for the product of 85 book concerns. It is under no* obligation to sift the good books from the bad, absolutely driving the latter from the market and supplying the one best one to the pupils of the schools without cost to the individual. Can this be done? It can and it will be, and the sooner the teachers and others in the state quit pulling the trust's chestnuts from the fire, the higher will be their standing with the friends of progressive methods of education. Every victim of the present system should get busy with a pen and paper and let his member of the legislature know where he stands on this most vital question. The above editorial drew the following hot one — even too hot to be handled by the opponents of Uniformity, as the succeeding pages will clearly indicate. THE STATE JOURNAL LANSING, MICHIGAN Friday, February 14, 1913 Whose Chestnuts Are In The Fire? Two years ago when the, state legislature was considering a bill pro- viding for uniform text-books in Michigan one of the most prominent fig- ures about the capitol zvas a gentleman formerly associated zmth text-book companies. It is said that the quiet ivork zvhich he did then zvas zvhat is knozvn as "lobbying." This gentleman is again busy about the capitol. He appeared zvhen the present bills providing for uniform text-books were introduced. It may be pertinent to ask zvhose interests he is laboring in and zvho pays him. It is not the public schools of Michigan. It is not the people of Michigan. There is only one other interest — the te.vt-book companies. "What,"- you ask, "have the text-book, companies to gain?" Just this — under an uniform te.vt-book lazv, instead of competing in the open market zmth several lines of books they can print one book for all Michigan, thereby increasing their profit. AGAIN— THE GOVERNOR OKLAHOMA HAS JUST RE- MOVED TWO MEMBERS OF THE UNIFORM TEXT-BOOK COMMISSION IN THAT STATE FOR ACCEPTING BRIBES *Tliis word "no" should be omitted in reading, as it is evidently a typo- graphical error. THE STORY OF A SLANDER 95 _ FROM TEXT-BOOK COMPANIES AND RECOMMENDING CHEAP AND INFERIOR BOOKS FOR THE STATE. DOES THAT SUGGEST A POSSIBILITY WHICH SOME OF THE BOOK INTERESTS MIGHT NOT OVERLOOK? ■ THEY DID NOT OVERLOOK IT IN OKLAHOMA. Although alleged to he framed for the purpose of attacking the school hook interests, uniform text-book laws in reality protect them and enable them to increase their profits. "Economy" is the magic word used to arouse popular favor for this kind of legislation. But if we are to save the people of the state money on te.vt-hooks n'hy not institute a measure which will really affect economy? Why not free text-books. They will reduce the cost of school books to fifty cents a pupil. That is loiver than the uniform latv can possibly bring the cost. Evidently the "economy" cry is only a blind. Who is hiding behind the curtain? THE FOLLOWING LETTERS AND TELEGRAMS SPEAK FOR THEMSELVES, AND WERE BROUGHT FORTH BY REA- SON OF THE FOREGOING EDITORIAL:— NIGHT LETTER Lansing, Mich., Feb. 21, 1913 Hon. Lee Cruce, Executive Office, Oklahoma City, Okla. The State Journal published in Lansing, Mich.7 Feb. fourteenth, the following: The governor of Oklahoma has just removed two members of the uniform text-book commission in that state for accepting bribes from text-book companies and recommending cheap and inferior books for the state. Answer, giving names of men removed, amounts of money paid, and names of publishers paying same, to Hotel Downey, Lansing, Mich. James T. Guffin, For Organized Labor. STATE OF OKLAHOMA lee cruce, governor Oklahoma City Feb. 23rd, 1913 Mr. James T. Guffin, Hotel Downey, Lansing, Mich. Dear Sir: — Your night letter has just been received by me. The state- ment published in the Lansing Journal, as outlined in your letter, is en- tirely incorrect. I did remove three members of the State Board of Education on the 29th day of July, 1912. The removal, however, was not based upon any charge that they had received or entertained a bribe from any text-book company. Yours truly, Lee Cruce, LC-LW , Governor 96 LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY NIGHT LETTER Lansing, Mich., Feb. 21, 1913 Hon. R. H. Wilson, State Supt. of Public Instruction, Oklahoma City, Okla. The State Journal published in Lansing, Mich., Feb. fourteenth, the following: The governor of Oklahoma has just removed two members of the uniform text-book commission in that state for accepting bribes from text-book companies and recommending cheap and inferior books for the state. Answer, giving names of men removed and amount of bribes involved, to Senator Henry E. Straight, one hundred three Chest- nut St., Lansing, Mich. James T. Guffin, For Organized Labor. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION OKLAHOMA CITY Mr. James T. Guffin, Lansing, Mich. My Dear Sir: — Your telegram of February 21st received. I note your statement relative to the item which appeared in the State Journal pub- lished in Lansing under date of February 14th. In reply I beg to advise that the entire story is false. It is true that the Governor removed three members of the State Board of Education, but at no time were they ever charged of accepting bribes ; neither were they charged of recommending cheap and inferior books. Everyone who is familiar with ^he books adopted, even the defeated book agents, have admitted that the Oklahoma Text-Book Commission has made a very superior adoption. It is a fact that there has been con- siderable opposition to the adoption in this state caused by the book com- panies who failed to get business and some who objected because we re- quired them to furnish the books by either union or fair labor. For further information I direct you to write to the Governor of this state, Honorable Lee Cruce. Yours truly, R. H. Wilson, February 22nd, State Superintendent 19 13 RHW-n NIGHT LETTER Lansing, Mich., Feb. 21, 1913 Robert Dunlop, State Treasurer, Oklahoma City, Okla. The State Journal, published in Lansing, Michigan, February four- teenth, the following: The governor of Oklahoma has just removed two members of the Uniform' Text-Book Commission in that state for accept- ing bribes from text-book companies and recommending cheap and in- ferior books for the state. Answer, giving names of men removed, amounts of money paid and names of publishers paying same, to Hotel Downey, Lansing, Mich. James T. Guffin, For Organized Labor. THE STORY OF A SLANDER 97 THE WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH COMPANY 19 Ch 14 Collect 2 X Oklahoma City, Okla., Feb. 24, '13. Mr. Jas. T. Guffin, Care Hotel, Lansing, for Organized Labor, Lansing, Mich. Statement false. Will demand copy of publication with article as pub- lished. ROBT. DUNLOP, ^ State Treasurer 12:27 PM STATE OF OKLAHOMA Treasurer's Office oklahoma, city February 25, 1913. Mr. James T. Guffin, 1632 Park Avenue, Chicago, Illinois. My Dear Mr. Guffin:— I have your letter of February 21st, written at Lansing, Michigan, and in reply I wish to thank you very much for your kindness in regard to the text-book matter. The article that you enclosed is one of the many malicious and dis- graceful newspaper articles sent broadcast throughout the country. It is true that the governor of the state attempted to remove five members of the board, but at no time did he make the charge that we were guilty of grafting or anything of the kind. It was one of those political "stunts" that some men attempt to pull off if given the power, and probably in a great many states the governor has the power to summarily remove offi- cers ; but in the State of Oklahoma, under the terms of the constitution of our state, every man is entitled to a fair hearing. When the governor attempted to remove us, I took the position along with the other four members of the board that I would not be removed unless the courts of the state so declared. We joined in a law-suit and enjoined the governor and attorney general and his new board from par- ticipating or even holding a meeting of any kind in regard to or having any connection with the State Board of Education of the text-book adop- tion. Then the governor called a special session of the State Senate, but refused to send my name along with the other members of the board in to the Senate to have our names confirmed. He sent in a complete list of six names to be confirmed, but the Senate refused to confirm them ; and to make it more embarrassing to the governor, the Senate took judicial notice of the fact that I with two other members he had attempted to re- move were the legal members of the State Board of Education and pre- sented our names for confirmation, but refused to confirm us along with the other six names the governor sent in. Since that time he has sub- mitted four other names that have been confirmed. I am sure that there has never been anything since the investigation of the special session of the Senate or the regular session of the Legislature that has in any way reflected upon any of the members of the Text-Book Commission who made the adoption last suriimer. As usual, the American Book Company and Ginn and Company have been standing around the Legislature attempting to get some legislation 98 * LABOR FOR EFFICIENCY, ECONOMY through that will perpetuate their former contract or to abrogate the con- tract of last summer. However, up to this good hour they have been unable to make any headway. I have no personal feelings against the American Book Company or Ginn and Company, but I do not intend to let them and the governor's law firm or Cruce, Stewart, and Gilbert, dominate and dictate to me as a member of the State Board of Education or any other board how I should vote or for whom I should vote. The clipping that you have sent me reads very much like a purported article by some of the representatives of the American Book Company or Ginn and Company, or some of their henchmen. I assure you that the citizenship of Oklahoma and the members of the Legislature of Okla- homa who have known me for the past twenty years, have spoken in no uncertain terms as to whom they regard as being grafters. They have also made it plain to the governor on every occasion and to his henchmen that attempted to dominate the text-book adoption last summer that this was only one of his many blunders. The statement that we adopted an inferior class of books is absolutely groundless and without any founda- tion, and an investigation will certainly vindicate each and every member who participated in the adoption. Again I wish to thank you for your courtesies and assure you that I am a friend of organized labor, and those who know me best are the best recommendations that I can give. I shall gladly furnish you with any- thing that would be of interest, but as the Legislature has thoroughly and unqualifiedly vindicated me in every particular the records of the State Senate's proceedings in special session are the best evidences of the busi- . ness-like and straight-forward manner in which the adoption was held last summer. With kindest regards to 3'ou and to the people you represent, I am, Yours very truly, ROBT. DUNLOP, RD-HKG State Treasurer. NIGHT LETTER Feb. 21st, 1913 To Hon. S. J. Vining (Ex-Speaker of the House, 1911 Session Ohio Legislature), Celina, Ohio I am told that Senators Andrus, Hufifman, Cetone et al., who led the fight in the senate against the Yount uniform text-book bill, are now in the Ohio state penitentiary for accepting bribes. Is this true? Answer, Hotel Downey, Lansing, Mich. James T. Guffin, For Organized Labor WESTERN UNION TELEGRAPH COMPANY 62— DEA 16 Collect ANS Celina, O., Feb. 22, '13 James T. Guffin, Care Hotel Downey, Lansing, Mich. Huffman and Andrews are in penitentiary and Cetone is sentenced for 3 years ; all Senators. S. J. Vining 11:12 A.M. ORGANIZED LABOR MISREPRESENTED 99 Taken from "A'loderator-Topics" Feb. 27, 1913 : — "LABOR URGES FREE TEXT-BOOKS Florida State Federation of Labor urge compulsory education and free text-books. In fact the National Federation of Labor in its meeting at Atlanta some years ago voted well nigh unanimously for free text-books." Mr. Pattengill, S=b=p'r, in his "Moderator=Topics" in connection with his line of argument, undertakes to convey the impression in the first paragraph that the Florida Federation of Labor stands for the plan he is advocating for Michigan. The facts of the matter are that in Florida a bill has been passed providing for uniformity throughout the state, covering districts which had free books, as well as those in which the books are purchased by individual pat= rons. See pages 46 and 57=58. This provision does not interfere with the rights of those districts which have provided in the past, or may in the future provide, free text=books, but they must be uniform books. The same conditions would have prevailed in Michigan, had the Dunn=Young substitute bill become a law before the Evans' amende ment, which Mr. Evans tells me was only for the purpose of ex= empting the cities that now have free books. The law in Florida does not interfere with any district that may want to secure free books in the future and neither would have the Dunn=Young substitute bill. (See page 10.) For the up=to=date truth concerning uniformity as endorsed by the American Federation of Labor, I print the following, taken from the report of the 32nd annual convention held at Rochester, N. Y., last November: — WHEREAS, We believe that one of the greatest prob- lems confronting the workers to-day is the proper education of their children, thereby fitting them to meet the exigencies of modern conditions of life ; and WHEREAS, The American Federation of Labor desires to insure to the children of the workers of our country as thorough a schooling as may possibly be obtained in the public schools of our nation ; and * * * RESOLVED, That the workers of every commonwealth demand of the state authorities the enactment of a statute providing for uniform school books in the public schools of their respective states ; and RESOLVED, That such books shall be of the highest standard of excellence and workmanship ; and * * * The Georgia Federation of Labor passed resolutions at its annual meeting in 1912 favoring uniform school books in all the schools of the state, permitting each district to say whether they should be provided free or by individual purchase. Why does "Moderator=Topics" misstate the facts concerning a subject about which it assumes to know so much? EDITORIAL Sheep and Different Sheep — Not Sheep and Goats These strange and mysterious "Local Conditions," of which we so constantly hear (and no one can name in the presence of one who knows) in this text-book controversy and which appear to be the sine que non of the anti-uniformity argiunent. must be strange indeed if they demand that the children of each separate thirt_v-six square miles be ladled out a differ- ent mental diet from that which serves well to nourish properly the minds of their little cousins in the next township. • The knowledge gained from books has, from time immemorial, been referred to as "food for the mind" and the expression is most apt. TSTow, if there is some peculiar condition in County A, which makes useless a geography that has been found excellent in County B, would it not be well to go further and ascertain whether or not the roast beef that strengthens the little muscles of the sturdy boys and girls of County C is not deleterious and unwholesome for the children of County D? Michigan is but a small section of the earth's surface. We are admit- tedly a mixture of various races and into our American centers of pop- ulation is being constantly poured a foreign stream which in due time is assimilated. The condition has no parallel in the world. The immigrant that arrives at Ellis Island without command of sufficient English to make himself understood, is replaced by a second generation that has mastered not only our tongue, but our methods of thought and action, as -well as our national spirit. This rapid assimilation of scores of thousands of individuals from •every corner of the globe must be continued, and can only be continued through the medium of our public schools. We are educating our child- ren with the idea that from whatever stock they may have sprung, they are to be trained to be intelligent Americans with a character built on a foundation that is not sand. The child of the. Hungarian or Bohemian, Italian or Greek, may and will, have a harder time with his spelling and grammar than his native- born seat-mate but this cannot be helped. The influence of heredity, racial characteristics and a foreign atmosphere in the home must needs handicap the immigrant's child. However, we are not teaching him to spell in Greek or to conjugate in Italian and the "Local Conditions" must "be so shaped, (if they are not already so shaped), that the texts in our ■schools shall be the best that can be procured and suitable to be used as a solid foundation for a practical American education. Clear texts, scientifically constructed, are best for all concerned and ■differences in the mental calliber of the children are always adequately adjusted by the system of gradation. The text-book that can be taught.with the least effort on the part of ■the teacher and which is most easily understood by the child is the best book for all classes of pupils, foreign or native born — bright or dull. Because of the foreign child's handicap as pointed out above, he may find that he is not able to make as rapid progress as the child native born and as he advances less rapidly he will be found in classes of a less average age than his own. This has no bearing on the value of the text- books used. The best book for him in any grade, if he would acquire a well-grounded American education, is the SAME book that is the best for the American child in that same grade. [100] EDITORIAL 101 "Local Adoption" A Will-O'-The-Wisp A moment's consideration will make another point plain. The big book houses, under the present system, employ a small army of salesmen to get their wares before the school boards of the country. These men travel thousands of miles. This costs money. They go to the best hotels. This costs money. They draw good salaries. More money. And as the book houses are not philanthropic institutions this money must come back from somewhere. — It does. — Every time that Johnny or Mary gets from you the price of a new geography or grammar you are paying IN PART FOR THE BOOK ITSELF, WHILE IN PART, THE SUM YOU PAY GOES TO THE BOOK AGENT AND TO THE RAILROADS ON WHICH HE RIDES AND TO THE HOTELS WHERE HE STOPS. Under the state uniformity bill all this useless burden of expense is lifted from the shoulders of the patrons of the schools. Therefore the point is to eliminate this unnecessary selling cost. 3ut mark this well. The local adoption free text-book plan does not IN ANY WAY eliminate this useless expense. The agents, under this plan, are as imperatively necessary to the publishers as under the present system and must still go to each school district if the children are to have the benefit of competition and the teachers be given the opportunity to inspect the various publications. There is here another thought. When the agents are sent out to se- cure, if possible, the sale of a bill of books, it is not one firm alone that is represented but perhaps a dozen. Only one can secure the contract. The expense of the others, however, is a constant factor. Some day, some way, their houses must reimburse themselves for this expense. Thus it may be plainly seen that added to the price — the legitimate price — of the books bought from the successful agent must be the expense of the trips he has before made on similar missions and failed to negotiate a sale. If the publishing houses should eliminate this selling expense, as has been shown to exist under the Minnesota plan, free book local adoption, (see pages 21, 22, 23) it would stifle competition and educational progress. It would put the prices of books where the business would go indefinitely to the firms now controlling it by unfair competition as shown on pages 12, 13, 14, 19. This would mean, under the free book, local adoption plan, a law in the interest of those publishers whose books are now on sale and would necessitate the purchase of only their publications for many years. Some Workmen— Some Schoolmen— Some Politicians It is scarcely conceivable that anyone today would maintain that a modern automobile factory turned out mechanics who were inferior in ability to the young mechanics who received their schooling under old conditions in the hap-hazard, hit and miss shops of civil war times. The old system was for a boy to go as apprentice into a four or five- man shop, learn the ways of the foreman and, after following this beaten track for years, perhaps become foreman himself. Such a mechanic if called to another part of the country, under the old system with its lack of uniformity, would find that he had to "drop back a grade" by reason of his meeting systems with which he was unacquainted. Strange sys- tems, strange measurements, strange methods relegated him again to the infant class. Today a mechanic who has thoroughly schooled himself m the opera- tion of a standard lathe can jump from Massachusetts to California and go to work in his proper position at once with a full grasp of his duties and a full ability to perform them. 102 EDITORIAL But the modern standardization of threads, tools, etc., has by no means made a "mere machine" of the workman. On the contrary he is as free as ever to show his individuality and profit by it. The fact that his tools are uniform is an assistance rather than a hindrance to the exploitation of his ingenuity and the display of his initiative. It may be well to mention that the "uniformity" of the type setting machine has served to develop the versatility of the compositor rather than to restrict it. These pages were prepared and printed in a "five-man shop." The man who tapped the keys and cast the lines and the men who made these impressions, received a fair wage for their work. This work was no more mechanical than the product of the corporation correspond- ent who chances to use a typewriter as a vehicle for the expression of his thoughts. It could scarcely be argued that because our greatest authors find it convenient to write their manuscripts on type-writing machines, their resultant product is mechanical. Is the teacher in a different class? Every human proposition is susceptible of argument, unless we ex- cept those things which have come to be considered axioms. Even the commonly accepted axioms have had their disputants and there are those today who would, if they could, fill columns of space to attempt to prove that two and two do not really make four. They may be as conscientious in their beliefs as any of our most distinguished scientists. We should respect them for their sincerity even though their conclusions are as wrong as the footings of an adding machine with a half dozen broken cogs. In truth it is broken mental cogs that give us the fanatics that spend their time in trying to disprove that a straight line is the shortest distance between two points, or other equally plain propositions. With such it would be useless to argue, but there is another class with whom we have to deal. I refer to those who exercise their wits to adduce specious reasons and sophistical arguments to combat truths, per- haps unfamiliar, but patent to any who will acquaint themselves with the governing facts. In judging who is right and who is wrong in the matters discussed in this booklet, I have only to ask that the critic shall acquaint himself with the facts, which are of record. I feel entirely safe in leaving con- clusions in the hands of such. Mathematical Problem:— (The Publisher) + (The Politician) = x. Anszver: — We are all free American citizens and can sell our services where we please. We can accept positions at pleasure and 'throw up the job' when we will. This is true in the abstract, but in the concrete, where is a teacher in a small school placed? Quite likely he has a family of a size in inverse ratio to the proportions of his income. The unfortunate result is that he feels he must hold to his position, inadequate as the salary may be. Now comes the publisher's hireling, the book agent — ("the Devil in the Bel- fry.") Standing above the under-paid pedagogue with an implied threat of dismissal, he says "thou shalt" and "thou shalt not" or attempts to gain his ends by offering to secure for this needy instructor a position elsewhere at a better salary. A slim larder was never an incentive to the highest mor- ality and it is not an unknown condition that the teacher has barkened to the voice of the siren and has recommended books contrary to his best judgment. The scholars of that school and the teachers who may follow for the succeeding three or five years are the ones to suffer. These are some of the foremost "local conditions" that have bearing on the text-book question. MICHIGAN INVESTIGATION ILLUSTRATED 103 THE RING THE STORY CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE ^ Fortieth Session ^& SENATE DAILY JOURNAL Twenty-Fourth Day "Wednesday, January 29, 1913 REPORT OF SELECT COMMITTEES The special committee appointed under authority of the resolutions of the Senate of January 23, 1911, and of March 25, 1911, to ascertain the law and the fact regarding text-books used in the common schools of the State, presented a report, which was, on motion of Senator Thompson, ordered printed in the Journal of the Senate: To the Senate of the State of California, at its fortieth session : — METHODS PURSUED BY BOOK PUBLISHERS TO SECURE ADOP- ' TION AND SALE OF SCHOOL BOOKS As to improper influences having been exercised by school text-boolc pub- lishers, their agents and employes, upon and over the educational department of the State and its subdivisions, in the matter of selection of text-hooks for the elementary and high schools of the State, your committee finds from the testi- mony adduced: That improper influence in the sense that any person connected APR 12 1913 104 CALIFORNIA INVESTIGATING REPORT with the educational system has been bribed with money, that any one has con- sciously traded promotion, that any one has consciously taken entertainment or deliberately received any quid pro quo, whether social or material or of any other sort from a book agent or book concern in return for a favor, has not been shown. But if "improper influence" is construed to be any adroit, insidious per- sonal influence that may be used by a man whose purpose in education is purely commercial, whose relations toward the people who are Interested in and control factors in the adoption of books are as those of a commercial traveler and a salesman seeking friendship in order that personal confidence may be estab- lished, in order that when he makes a statement the statement may be accepted, in order that his argument may go with good weight, and in order that his rep- resentations may be accepted for full value and for greater value than some one else's not so well known personally and whose personal confidence is not so well established, then it appears from the testimony that there has been a marked in- fluence exercised upon the educational system of the State. Nearly all of the agents and active representatives of the school text-book publishers have been teachers, principals or educators employed in the State schools and since becoming employes of book publishers have been and now are members of some one of the State teachers' associations. These book agents have not exerted their influence for the sake of the children of the State or for the cause of public education; on the contrary, it has been exerted in behalf of the corporations and companies which they represent and for the commercial profits which accrued. They kept a close account of the social and the personal relations which they established, so as to know where they could find people to whom they could speak in confidence and with some authority. They have been vigilant in the matter of noting vacancies and anticipated vacancies among teachers of the various educational institutions of the State, and made it their business to recommend teachers to fill such vacancies. They have uniformly, and apparently without exception, opposed State- wide adoption of text-books and favored county, city and local adoptions. Your committee also finds that there was a community of interest among all book companies doing business in the State. They are and have been interested in common in maintaining various rights and privileges that have been accorded them by the teachers of this State, in their relations with the State Teachers' Association and in their relations with the State Board of Education. They make common cause against low royalties; they make common cause against State free text-books; they make common cause for local adoptions, and make com- mon cause against State-wide adoption; they make common cause against State uniformity; thus making common cause in the direction of increasing their sales, because it is upon sales that text-book companies thrive. Your committee finds that local adoptions, county, city and district, are in the interest of and conduce to the benefit of the book publishing companies, while, on the contrary, State-wide adoptions are in the interest of the people in bringing about uniformity and in standardizing and in lessening the cost of text- books required in the educational system of the State. In connection with this portion of its report, your committee desires to ex- press its absolute confidence in the integrity, loyalty, ability, intelligence and discretion of the teachers of this State, and so that its attitude upon this subject cannot be misunderstood or misinterpreted, asserts that nothing herein set forth should be construed or understood as being intended to reflect upon the teach- ers of this State. The criticisms herein contained are alone directed to and lev- eled against the system adopted and the methods pursued by the book publish- ers and their representatives and agents for the promotion of their business in- terests which system and methods have a tendency, however conscientious a teacher or educator may be, to prevent Impartial consideration being given to books offered for adoption. * * * * * * * * * * With the adoption at the last election of the amendment to the Constitution providing for free text-books, the people of the State, by a vote of more than two to one, declared in favor of the reorganization of the State Board of Educa- tion and in favor of a uniform series of text-books, to be furnished and distrib- uted free to all children in the elementary schools of the State. I know that the majority of school=board members are honest; I know that the majority of superintendents are honest; I know that the majority of teachers are honest; I know that the majority of the people are honest with the children; but one bad apple will spoil a barrel, and this "little rift within the lute, will bye and bye make all its (local adoption) music mute." "^^lu c;in trust the people Id (Id tlic rii;ht tliinc ilie ritjht tliiiitj' is." — An(")ii. If iA,._. On April The Fourth Nineteen Thirteen. Dear Sir:- You are hereby notified that at the regular meeting of Chicago Allied Printing Trades' Council held Thursday, April 3rd, the credentials you now hold from that body were revoked by a vote of 22 to 8. Kindly govern yourself accordingly. Very truly yours, (SEAL) A. J. SPENCER, Secy. C. A. P. T. C. Mr. James T. Guff in, Battle Creek, Mich. Rattle Creek, .Mich., April 3, ]''13 Mr. A. J. Spencer, Secy. C. .\. 1'. T. C. Jvoemi 608, .Sy E. \'an l.!urcii St., Chicago. DqcU- Sir and Bro. : — \'our official letter of the 4th inst. reache