Newspapers / The Enterprise (Williamston, N.C.) / Aug. 28, 1936, edition 1 / Page 15
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High Local Interest in Schools Formerly Little Progress Is Being Shown in Furni KillU'Ut lrtl] riirm miutdiwit Probably the slowest moving of all undertakings is education itself. If it had not been so, the world would have been literate long ago. Present business meth ods were almost unknown in George Washington's days. Yet industry and the professions have made amazing strides, because of thi? TTnrrgB""Ti< industries in dustries includes farming only. Even farm and household labor are the only kind not organized. The lowest returns and compen sation are found here. Probably no other class of hon est workers have as hazardous, unremunerative, and unapprecia tive, and difficult and varied prob lems as have farmers. Why? Is it lack of education? No and yes. Many farmers are college graduates and show progressive attitudes, yet entirely too many of these are suspicious, prejudiced and otherwise blind to essential facts and methods for safe plan ning and forecasting. Just as trade journals, supply and demand statistics, cost data and related facts are necessary to industrial progress, just s? they are to the wise farmer. Statis tics do not appeal to farmers. Eco nomic interpretations are night mares. Crop "estimates and fore casts" are considered as aids to speculators only. Of all tha ctort P""1 *? North Carolina, cotton is the only speculative one. Tobacco and peanuts are not speculative but are so regarded by many. Even if they were, that still leaves some 30 crops which certainly do not interest the speculative trade at Even fee cotton, -the mere acreage report is of small specu lative concern. It may have no definite clue to the final crop pro duction which does affect the price. It is a condition, an environ ment, isolation, raw deals, neg lect to continue one's study and education. When one is physi cally tired out, study is difficult, even if there was a will to do. Pressure of work and lack of conveniences do not encourage study at other times. The strict need for sacrifices and pinching pennies by farmers, while others enjoy privileges and comforts de nied themselves, doesn't set well with country people. The prac tice of buying at retail and sell jag at wholesale is wrong, but there is a reason for this situa tion. Farmers can and should em ploy economics and business methods for combatting existing competition and production costs. This wil require much reading and STUDY. -a The nation's welfare depends on the sustained power of iU land and on the ability of its far. mers to produce iU needed sup plies and carry-overs of food and fiber crops, along with whatever additional quantities can be ad vantageously exported. Experience has proved that the nation's welfare cannot be served unless the nation's farm that will yield a . to farmers. Insure the improve ment and cwuffw" ~M soU .and be fair to J? Michigan Quads Have a Birthday Four famous children, the Morley quads, are shown here on their sixth birthday, in their home In Lansing. Mich., with books received as birthday ffifis. and dressed In their new birth lav clothes. Steady Decline in Farm Livestock Is Shown by Survey The number of horses on farms in North Carolina reached a peak of approximately 300,000 during the period 1915-1019. The num ber had dropped to on | January 1, 1936, or a decrease of 66 per cent. This shift was brought about by the use of au tomobiles, trucks, tractors, and a shift to mules. The trend in num ber of mules has shown an in. crease except for a alight dc crease during the depression. Since 1931 a definite shift from tractors to mules has resulted. The number reached an all-time high for the tttte at 296,000 on January 1. 1936. There has been a good demand for mules for the past two years. All cattle in creased from 507,000 in 1930 to 671.000 on January 1, 1936. an increase of 32 per cent. Milk cows, two years old and over, in creased from 285,00 to 365.000, an increase of 35 per cent during the same period. Although a gain of 35 per cent was reflected for the period 1930-1936, we need more milk cows on farms in North Carolina. The 1933 Unit ed States Census shows 33 per cent of the farms in the state without cows or heifers, two years old and over. The number of sheep on farms on January 1, 1936, was 77.000, or only one-fifth of the number in the state in 1900. More sheep should be included in the farm plan to more completely use all the feed available. When we realize that livestock are bringing approximate parity prices, while crops are generally considerably below the parity level, there should be encourage ment for increasing livestock. The new soil conservation pro gram should also encourage live stock production, since it calls for more hay. improved pastur age and feed crops. While the new farm relief pro gram may not greatly control pro duct ion of cash crops, yet it cer tainly should encourage diversi Mt a: ? - * - - a a * . . a ncaiton ana grcaici ieea ana iooa crops. This will be safer farm ing. The safest or I ing includes Jivestock. Negro Migration r r At Peak During ^orld War Days Washington.?The migration of negroes from southern fields to northern industries has given 8 big northern cities a negro popu tjt ion more than half of which was born outside the state in which the city is located The migration reached its full force during the boom wage days of the World War and has kept up with less force since then. During those duys. labor contract ors swept through the south en listing workers and sending them 10 northern industrial plants. Some of those who went re. turned to the South later but | most of them stayed to be fol lowed by relatives. A study of the Census Bureau today supplied figures showing the population make-up of 15 cities that have a negro popula tion of more than 50.000. The 15 were New York, Chicago, Phila-I delphia. Baltimore, Washington, I New Orleans, Detroit, Birming-, ham. Memphis. St. Louis, Atlan ta, Cleveland. Houston, Pittsburg and Richmond. Some of the figures disclosed by the study were: More Virginia-born negroes Norfolk. Almost as many Mississippi nc groes are in Chicago as are alto gether in Vickaburg, Meridan, Greenville and Natchez. More Georgia negroes are in Detroit than are in either Augus ta or Macon. About as many South Carolina negroes are in Philadelphia as are in Charleston. Virginia gave more negroes than "any other State to New York. Philadelphia. Baltimore, Washington and Pittsburgh. Mississippi gave more than any other state to Chicago, Memphis, St. Louis and New Orleans. Georgia negroes predominated in Detroit, Cleveland and Bir South Carolina negroes went delphia. Washington, Detroit and Baltimore. T neisisna negiues went mostly to Chicago and Houston. FEWER ON FARMS past ht inn, i Just rmalli released far the period 193* to IMS showing a decrease mi mare Uua 1SSS Wilson ; decrease mi i fat toe toias i?* the ptii?d. la 193* Ike Martin Cauuty farm papal iliaa aulrrnl ?W*. aad in rears later it was only ISj31. County Teac-hers Required to Favor ^ ar Back in 1918 The extent to which the Amer ican people were wrapped up with the war spirit back in 1918 is recorded in the minutes of the Martin County board of Educa tion as of July that year. Patriot ism had swept the people nearly off their feet. Hatred and the spirit to kill left the people un balanced, and the pacifist was not to be tolerated Much has been said in recent months about school teachers be ing required to pledge their al legiance to the American flag, but as far back as 1918 the Martin County school authorities were requiring just that and more. In July of that year the board passed a resolution which reads. "Our government is involved in sources and powers are taxed to the limit, requiring the united and patriotic cooperation of all our citizens; therefore, no teach er shall be allowed to teach in the schools of Martin County who is not in sympathy with the aims and purposes of our govern ment..** The resolution was never chal lenged, and. as far as it is known, no effort was ever made to test the patriotism of any teacher in this county. Just prior to that time, however, liberty loan drivel were carried into every section of the county through the chil dren in the schools The Alabama movement wa Cleveland and Pittsburgh. Those from North Carolina let tied largely in New York. Phila delphia. Baltimore and Washinf The Maryland lor was most! to Washington. Philadelphia, an New York. * Arkansas sent them principal! to Chicago and St Louis. _ Those from Tennessee chos Chicago. St. Louis. Cleveland an Detroit. Kentucky sent them to Chi cago, Detroit and St Louis. More of the Pittsburgh negroe are natives of Virginia. George and Alabama than of Pennsyl In Baltimore and Cleveland, one out of every five negroes was born in either Virginia or Geor gia. SO per cent of the ncgmci in New Orleans, Patrons Paid Much Of E\|>eiise Out of jOwn Resources ??? That there was a greater reop eration on the part of the general public in advancing the educa tional facilities for the youth of the county 30 years or more ago than there is now is evidenced in tiie records of tho Martin Ceun ty Board of Education. Parents in years gone by were interested in having their children^ taught the fundamentals, and not mere ly in creating a gathering place for sports and play and to get them away fioni home for so many hours each day. It was a real sacrifice for the parents to forego the help of their children in the fields and around 'he l.ome ?n those days. And while terms were cut short by agi lcultural conditions, the parents only stopped their children when it was absolutely necessary to keep them at home to help sustain life. Patrons in the districts met a bout one-half the costs of tho schools directly from their own resources. Some districts had better schools than others, but the drive for education was uni versal. and the census shews prob ably a fewer nuhiber ot * illiter ates in 1905 among both white and colored children than thero are today. As hard as it is to lielie*e a complete census in July. 1905. showed there were only 130 while and 282 colored Ichildren in the county who could neither read nor write. The interest patrons held in the educational prugram of this 1 county 25 or 30 years ago is well demonstrated in the creation of Brooksville school in Poplar Point. In 1908 a schoolhou.e was built there and equipped at a cost of tfoo. The county board pah] J395 of the amounl. and lhe late If. W Ballard and J A. Ev erett paid the rest from their own pockets Nearly 100 pupils en i oiled in the Brooksville school that year, the records show. School Sanitary Conditions Bad As Late As 1919 According to records in the minutes of the Martin County I Board of Education, sanitary con ditions as near back as 1819 were in a bad way. Open toilets were the usual custom at that time, and Oie first attempt to remedy the situation was made in Oc tober, 1919, when the county school authorities placed an or der for 12 sets of sanitary closets or about enough to equip one fourth of the schools at that time. The order for the sanitary toilets was acknowledged, but they were never received, and the sanitary condition, as bad as it was, remained unchanged un til the school consolidation pro gram started getting underway and new buildings were erected a few years later. The improvements made iii ex isting conditions in which the sanitation of that time tuinMl? an example, are probably respon sible for the increased costs in schools today. Much complain ing is heard about school costs, but Ik" .are few people Who would surrender the improved or Ider of things for the old, even if I they knew costs would be low ered.
The Enterprise (Williamston, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Aug. 28, 1936, edition 1
15
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