The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, November 8, 1903, Page 12

= SEE no particular reason why mar- ried women should not act as teachers, All other business women are permitted to marry and 20 one says, much less thinks, any- thing about it. And when it comes right down to it, the School Depart- ment should not be an employment pureau ready to take om a teacher because she enjoys single blessedness, or to put her aside because she has added the prefix Mrs. to her name. The best and most competent instructress should be employed, and she should be retained until it has been thoroughly oroven that she is not capable. Married life, any way you put it, is about six of vae and half a dozen of the other. * a teacher is indisposed, the first we warn of it is through a note brought tw the husband, who, for all we know, teay have been walking the floor for Fours with the baby. It seems to me the chief requisite of a teacher is knowledge and the ability to impart it, add if she is up to the standard required, her pri- vate life should be unquestioned. W. N. BUSH, Polytechnic School. Let Them Marry if They Want To. HY may not women teachers marry?” repeated Associate City Superintendent Thomas S. O’Brien of New York. “I would sub- divide this question into three sections, as follows: “No. 1—Shpuld women teachers marry? Yes. by all means. Let them marry the minute they find the man they think they can love all their lives, and who. they are certain, loves t nd will make them hapoy. No Board of Education has a right to interfere with the happiness of ecither man or woman, and certainly not with that of woman. 3 “No. 2—Should women teachers continue to teach after they marrv? No: and the ‘no’ should be as emphatic as the ‘yes' in reply to the first question. They should stay at home and take care of their husbands and the children after they come. No. 3—There are possibly some exceptions. Some women can ride more than one horse at a time. They can nurse a baby and teach scvhnol and write for the newspapers all at once. but these creatures are rare. Neverthe- Jess, there are some of this kind. and it is in their behalf I make the excep- ion. - “There may be 2 No. 4 but it hasn’t occurred to me up to the present e. No; the rule is not made to discriminate against women. Men are likely to have outside occupations that interfere with their efficiency as teach- If these duties cause them to neglect their school work or are of such ers. a nature that they are liable to do so. we do not hesitate to ask for their iage per se does not impair a man’s usefulness as a resignation d a teacher. He does no! ve to bake the bread and take care of the house if he is entitled to wear t INFLUENCE OF MON- ARCHS ON SUBJECTS By W. T. Stead. 3 users.” . HE influence of sovereigns upon their subjects is of neces- sity considerable. The King or a President is a living ex- ample set forth before the eyes of all men as to how the foremost man in their ‘state thinks life should be lived. Whether he is a figure-head, or whether he is the auto- crat, he stands equally supremely conspicuous; visible by the entire nations as no other mortal is visible, and if there is anything in the force of constantly repeated sug- impossible for any ruler to fail to influence, consciously th tative human herd. But this influence may easily gestion, then it is o1 unconsciously, the be exaggerated. The omnipresent crucifix in the courts of law in Catholic ies often fails to succeed in suggesting the ideas of pity and compas- the Judges who administer justice' in its shadow. Sometimes the ex f the sovereign provokes the subjects not to imitate him but to defy In our own history we have two nal illustrations . of the different in which sovereigns and subjects sometimes influence each other. ic tendencies Instead of imit g him, they rose in rebellion against him and cut off his head. But when the second Charles came to the throne AT ple of license and imriorality he found his subject to walk in his footsteps. In like manner the unfortunate Louis who lost his head on the guillotine failed to suggest to a nation pregnant with the great Revolution the respectable commonplace qualities of their sovereign. Hence it is impossible to generalize with any confidence as to the effect which the ues or vices, the qualities and the defects of any ruler may have upon those over whom he reigns or rules. Probably they act and react upon each other, but both alike owe their distinctive characteristics to causes which long precede the accession of the sovercign He and they are tk chil- of their generation. He may be the King Poppy in a field of poppies, t would be absurd to attribute to his example the color or the form of the other poppies which grow side by side with him in the same field. No doubt it sometimes happens, as was the case with Peter the Great of Rus- <ia, a ruler is born who is as much in advance of his generation and ideas as he is superior to the average man in genius and resolution. But such men e A Trio of Rulers—the King.‘ Let us then glance in turn at the three most conspicuous rulers of our time—the King, the Kaiser and the President—how far are they influencing the peoples of Britain, Germany and the United States? Take our King first. Is his influence potent for good or for evil? There is no doubt about the fact that his influence tells. In society, for instance, the King more or less sets the tone. He can discourage, he can encourage. But even in so- ciety, although he has spared neither example nor interest, he has not made the rich Jew popular. It may be said that but for his influence the anti- Semitic tendency of our time would have broken out with violence nearer home than Paris or Vienna. If true. that must be put down to the good. On the other hand his influence has told—in society again—in favor of a re- laxation of the standard set up by 'his mother. He is what is called a free liver. He enjoys cards, and the turf, and enjoys himself in the socicty of pretty, witty and good-natured women. He has always favored this kind of life. So far as his influence extends it tells against Puritanism. But it would be wrong to credit or debit him with the self-indulgent temper and looser morals of a generation that invented Mafficking. The influence of any of our daily papers is more potent to spread the plague of. betting among the people than all the visits of the King to Newmarket. In political matters the King is not supposed to intermeddle. But there is no question that he and his mother before him steadily and successfully strove to promote the growth of a more friendly feeling between Great Britain and the American republic. The King has been less successful—for in this matter his influence was largely counteracted by his mother—in opposing the frenzy.«of Russo- phobia. en he was still Prince of Wales he administered a cutting rebuke to Mr. Chamberlain for his “long spoon” brutality, and in times of crises the Marlborough House influence was almost always in favor of a reasonable policy in the Near or in the Far East. His recent visit to Paris has borne immediate fruit. He set the fashion of being civil to France, and even those who had been blatantly rude to our brilliant neighbors became pane- gyrists of the French republic. We have, however, to witness the applica- tion of the most crucial test. The King has just returned from Ireland. where he set a brilliant and much needed example of being uniformly civil to every Irishman and to every Catholic whom he met. Will his example be imitated by the majority of Englishmen? We shall see. The Haiser. Next let us turn to the Kaiser. Is that brilliant, strenuous, irresponsible genius shaping the German man anew in his own image? I doubt it. Prince Bismarck rather than Kaiser William is the. type of the modern Ger- man. That the Kaiser exercises a constant and on the whole a very useful influence upon the administration and the policy of the German empire is true. But not the whole strength of his authority, exercised without stint for three years, could make a single German dissemble his whole-hearted detestation of our South African war. He has forced the navy scheme through, and he has seized Foochow, two acts which may profoundly in- fluence Germany in the future. But that has been done by the exercise of his authority in the sphere of state action, whereas what we are now con- O much bavoc has been wrought in the ranks of women teachers, both in this country and England, that the question, Shall women teachers marry? is a vital one. No one withholds from women teach- ers the privilege of exercising their own sweet will in such a mat- ter, but Boards of Educatlon have decided that resignations are in order as soon &8s vows are taken at the altar. Carefully compliled statistics go to show that members of the teaching fraternity may be depended upon for only about eleven years of service on the average. Although these figures constitute an admirable answer to those alarmists who profess a fear of race suiclde, they also cause concern to educators. Many authorities regard eleven years as little more than a novitiate for-the work of instructing the young. The fact that men teachers are urged to marry and women teachers are practically barred from so doing seems to be another instance of the in- equality of the sexes. The query arises: Why this distinctiop between the sexes? Why should matrimony disqualify girls for continuing In their profes- sian? ! The views of persons prominent in the educational lifs, both here and the East, are here quoted at length. o Women in Love Not Good Teachers. ¢¢ MUST support the general rule laid down in our by-laws,” said Dr. W. H. Maxwell, superintendent of the Public Schools of Greater New York. “It is not a matter of discipline with me: I indorse the rule be- :ause I believe in it. Women teachers must ruinn_ upon their mu:rizz:, If the husband dies, deserts the wife or becomes incapacitated through illness or accident from supporting his family, the wife may, three years after such conditions arise, and upon furnishing sufficient proof of the facts, be con- sidered for a position as teacher. This is the only recognized exception to the general rule, and we have found it to furnish the basis of a good work- ing plan. “When a woman makes up her mind to marry her thoughts are ;entercd on her home-and husband. If they were not she would be lacking in some respects, and we would not care to have such a woman as a teacher. She forms ties that bind her more closely than any cold allegiance to employ- ers who pay her a stipulated salary. Her whole life should be in hef little domestic circle if she is to make a success of marriage. y “Her position is fundamentally different from the man teacher’s. He has to take an interest in his school work in order to succeed and thus make it possible to support his family. He may have worries, but they are not of that intimately domestic nature which characterize the home life of the wife. - To a large extent he can solve all puzzling problems by making a success of teaching and obtaining advancement thereby. He can be a model husband by so doing, as he will not be open to the charge of neglecting his family. His work lies outside. The wife would have to neglect her family if she put her whole heart into teaching. It would make her discon- . tented with her work in the schools if she appreciated that she was not doing her full duty to her family. “Most women teachers who marry are young or may be classed as such. Young women who are mothers or who are liable to become such do not make good teachers, This is putting the matter frankly, and it is one of the main reasons for our objection to teachers continuing with their work after they marry. We must insist on teachers doing their whole duty by their work, not giving it a half-hearted allegiance. If a woman is the right sort she will prefer devoting her whole time to her home and husband. “We insist upon the rule, but not as a barrier between our teachers and We do not care to interfere. with what they consider their happi- marriage. i ness. But we must protect the interests intrusted to us, and we believe those interests would suffer if the distraction of the marriage tie divided time and attention with the clagsroom. “QOur most efficient teachers are women who have passed the age when Cupid's blandishments are appealing to them. I do not ‘mean to state that attractive young women do not make good teachers. The point I wish to make is this: The fewer distractions a woman has the’ better her work. The bounding energy of youth, with its enthusiasm and ambition, counts for less than sobriety of viewpoint, experience and the wisdom imparted by experience. Those whose lives lie largely behind them are not wanted in many walks of life. They are not considered sufficiently energetic. But the born teacher has a love for her work amounting to inspiration, and it is not dulled by the passing years. Some of these women have been martied and they make good teachers, but the delirium of youthful love at least has passed and their responsibilitics have sobered them.” sidering is not so much what can be done by the power of the sovereign as what cah be effected by his influence. The German, it is true. took to twisting the ends of his mustaches upward to his eyebrows when the Kaiser set that fashion. But the Germans show little trace of the Kaiser's influence in weightier things. He is mercurial.*impulsive, meddlesome and dogmatic, They shrug their shoulders when they read his speeches, and resent his readi- ness to play the part of the Admirable Crichtoft, on all and everv occasion. And the Social Democratic vote goes up by million after million as the an- swer of the German nation to the rhetoric of the Kaiser. When all this is said there is no gainsaying the fact that the Kaiser has set or rather has confirmed the fashion in mahy things both political and social. He has played to his German gallery, and it has responded to his appealk He has set the Germans an example of versatility, of energy, of pas- sionate patriotism, from which they can hardly fail to profit. We could best realize what influence is actually wielded by sovereigns over subjects of we could imagine that one fine day the Kaiser and the King changed places. I will say nothing about the effect which Edward VII might have in Germany. But imagine what an enormous stimulus to serious and strenuous living, what an immense discouragement to inefficiency of all kinds, we should re- ceive, if the Kaiser were our King for twelve months only. I am not sure, all things being considered, that such a temporary exchange of monarchs would not be the very best conceivable thing that could happen, both for Germany and for Britain. A Tran-position. Suppose we test the personal influence of the three monarchs by asking what action each of them would have taken had they suddenly been con- fronted with such handwriting 'on the wail as the report of the Roval Com- mission on the way in which the military and political authorities prepared for war in South Africa. Is it too much to say that if either the Kaiser or the President had been in the Kings shocs, the men who were responsible for launching the King's army. ail uanequipped and unprepared, against the 3oers, would have been brought sharply to book? The army, be it -remem- hered, is the King's army. In choosing and dismissing his advisers the King has a wide liberty of action. No one doubts the keen interest which h's Majesty takes in the welfare of his troops. In this very matter of the Boer war, the King—then Prince of Wales—expressed to me his grave misgiv- ings as to whether Sir Redvers Buller would find the force at his disposal adequate to the task before it. This was within an hour of General Buller's departure from Waterloo. at a time when his Ministers were inc'ined to re- gard every one as a traitor or a pro-Boer who was not certain that General Buller and his great army would “steam-roller” the republics before Christ- mas. The report of the Royal Commission more than confirms ail the pres- cient misgivings of the King. Now what will he do about it? 1 it is replied that he can do nothing, those who make that reply speak in ignorance of the immense influence which the sovereign can wield in our constitutional monarchy. If the Kaiser were the King how much longer would Lord Landsdowne be Foreign Minister? Would Mr. Chamberlain, who declared at the very moment he was leading the nation into war that no reinforcements were needed. escape with merely a royal wigging. I trow not. But the Kaiser is not our King, and his Majesty is at Marienbad, and no one expects that so easy-going a good fellow as Edward VII will bestir himself to bring the culprits to book. And so far the influence of the sov- ereign will operate for evil and not for good. And the President. There now remains to be considered the influence of President Roose- velt upon the "American people. An American President is unlike a Euro- pean monarch in this above all else, that he is not born to high office. In his youth he is unknown. It is not until he is a mature man that he sud- denly looms as the most conspicuous of all citizens before the eves of his fellows. His term of office is short, even if it be renewed. There is not so much time nor opportunity for the personal factor to make itself fe't. Nevertheless President Roosevelt's strenuous cult of strenuousness can hardly fail to have a profound influence upon the impressionable nation _with which he has to deal. Strenuousness is no new product of the United States. Mr. Roosevelt neither invented it nor revised it. It was first glanted in America when the Pilgrim Fathers landed at Boston. and it has een fostered by circumstances and nurtured by the climate ever since. But of late years the immense accumulation of wealth in the Statesand the growth of luxurious habits among the well-to-do citizens have brought into clear relief the need of some of those sermons which the President has been preaching to his countrymen. The need is even more urgent in this country than it is in the United States. Our youth is much more disposed not to be strenuous than the youth of America. The knack of taking things easy, and of endeavoring to get through the day with the minimum of exertion, is cultivated much fore diligently here than it is in the States. And it is probaple, just because we need a President Roosevelt more than do our American kinfolk, that we do not get him. He is the one growth of the same conditions which make American business men so much keener than the business men of Britain, and which lead tuition by correspondence to be a flourishing business in the United States, whereas here no one seems to take the trouble to learn. * (Copyright in the United States of America by D. T. PIERCE.) 11 g " only be attained by this application. BELIEVE the rule which declares the position of any lady teacher vacant upon her marriage to be a very good one. The occupation of a wife is sufficient in itself to re- quire her entire time and attention, and any other employment must of necessity destroy her natural interest in a2 home and its accompaniments. _The teacher, male or female, should give his or her undivided attention to their pupils. The best results, both for advancement of teacher and pupil,. can : In Federal positions in the City of w:nhxnggon many married clerks work \ side by side through their natural lives, | but add-nothing to the population of ’qf- our country or to the home life or cul- (g ture of our race; and such unions should be discouraged. The profession, however, is always / open, and affords a very proper shelter / to the teacher who has lost her husband & ( through dcath or unfortunate marriage. / Z : G. H. FOULKS, g Lincoln Commercial Night School. Married Women Should Not Teach. (X3 = HERE are some occupations a woman might follow even if she should be married.” said Miss Evangeline Whitney, Superinten- dent of Vacation Schools and Playground of New York. “Teaching is not one of them. A bride might keep on with her work as sten- ographer, clerk or bookkeeper. The work may be arduous. but it is, to & certain extent; mechanical. and does not require the initiative demanded of the teacher. “But why should a woman become a wife and go on teaching? Where is the home she expected to make for her husband? I fear she could not display much enthusiasm as a teacher and then be as devoted a wife as her husband would wish. Some women have a heart big enough for their hus- band and their pupils, but in many cases—most, in fact—one or the other would suffer. The school authorities have determined the pupils shall not suffer, and as they have no jurisdiction over the husband they expect him to look out for himself. “Married women often make excellent teachers, but these paragons do not come under the category of fluttering young ladies who have been teach- ing two or three years and suddenly fall a victim to Cupid. Those whose children are no longer a care, but nevertheless entail a sobering responsibil- ity, may be trusted to do their work to the full extent of their powers. The rule that applies in this-case never would have been formulated if it had not been intended to remedy conditions that were harmful to the public school system. It works well, seldom does anybody an injustice, and, like all good rules, it can be broken when necessary.” HOW THE BAD BOY \ . CAN BE MANAGED 7 \\7 Eighth Talk by Wm. J. Shearer. HAT shall be done with the bad boy? How shall he be managed? Is it possible to save him? These are questions which are old but ever new. They constantly demand answers from many loving parents. Let us be honest about the matter. Is he really bad? It is very much to be doubted. Years of experience with many thousands of boys and girls convince the writer that ninety-fi out of every hundred who are said to be bad shoul be condemned by the use of any such word. Very often a boy is condemned because he is blessed with too much Iif and energy. It boils over and produces “the noisiest boy you ever saw.” Too many parents do not understand the truth of the statement that “bovs must be boys, with their racket and noise.” Many times a boy is criticized because he is mischievous. This is no crime. - Why should he {e condemned for this> How many can point to a successful man who, as a boy, was not often in mischief? Some are condemned because they are not respectful, or because they at times are impudent. This is a great fault; it should be corrected. It is frequently the result of improper training, for which the parent is responsi- ble. It is important that the parents find some way to train them awav from the habits already formed. It is also hoped that they will be fair and not blame it all on the boy. Others are said to be bad because they do not tell the truth. Others because they sometimes take what does not belong to them. Others because they tease. Others because they sometimes get into a fight. For these and othc!: (l;easons we are only too ready to condemn boys and decide that they are bad. Expecting Too Much of Boys. Is it not just possible that we are expecting too much of boys? They are not saints. None of them show any indications of budding wings. They are probably not even so nearly good as their parents were at the same age. Forgetful of our own shortcomings of the present and past, we are too apt to look for the development of a higher sense than we have any right to ex- pect. These boys must pass through all the stages through which the race has passed. First the savage, then the hali-civilized, and after that the civ- ilized and enlightened stages. All pass more rapidly through these stages than did the race; yet you have no right to expect any great amount of goodness from any child. The germs are there, but it takes time for their development. Though they may seem to he, few, if any, boys are naturally depraved. Careful examination will convince all that what seems to be natural has. in reality, been acquired through imitation. There would probably be no hoodlums among the 'boys if there were none to be found among the men. Even the very bad boy is vicious only upogp the surface. His toughness is only skin deep. The utter disregard for the rights of others, the insolence, the profanity, are mere imitations of the actions, the manners, the language and the vices of some swaggering bully who, for the time being. is the boy's ideal. Be assured that the boy not saturated with the poison. as in the case of the men. The bov is simply .inoculated. With him. as with the growing body, it is easily possible to throw off the poison, if only proper steps are taken to secure the much desired end. How to Save the Vicious. Let it be acknowledged. then, that while most of those said to be de- praved are not really so. vet some do show most vicious tendencies. What shall be done with these? Though a very hard question to answer, it may be a solution can be found. It is. indeed, a difficult problem. Especially diffi- cult, because what will apply in one ¢ase may not be of special value in an- other. Each boy must be studied carefully, and the general principles ap- plied in the light of the information gained by most careful study of the par- ticular boy’s peculiarities. See to it that you understand his nature, character |) and temperament. Locate his particular weakness. Strive to find their cause, and, if possible, remove them. A change of environment. of companions, and of methods of manage- a ment, will often cause such a change in the boy's nature as to astonish those most interested in him. In many cases it will result in reclaiming those who have already been given up as hopeless cases. If the ideals are low. strive to raise them. Some ideals he will have. See to it that they are the best possible. This may be don placing the right kind of books in his hands.s ¥ dat nhad by Study closely his likes and dislikes; also his companions and his reading. than which nothing is more important. See to it that he is in good com- pany at all times, but especially after dark. Recently I met a young clerk in a lawyer’s office. Less than a year ago his mother pleaded with me for the third time to help her have him sent to the reform school. I refused. and said, “You can save C if you will keep him off the streets at night.” She did so, and the boy was saved. The parent who permits a boy or girk to gun the streets after dark should be dealt with by the law. . From what has been said it is hoped the reader will allow that no boy is altogether bad. No matter how sure one may be that such is the case, it is probably a mistake. Somewhere in each boy’s nature there is a hidden germ of manhood. Find it. Having found ‘it, stimulate it into healthy growth, and you will have saved your boy from a life of shame and your soul from endless anguish. The sympathetic soul that can discover and develop what is best in one of these boys has a high mission in life. It may take much patience, love, knowledge and wisdom, but he can be saved.