To the Editor:

Wabeno, Wis., Dec. 14, 1911.

Having published State Supt. Cary's letter on the State University, I trust you will not fail to publish also Regent Trottman's reply to the same, in your next issue. I read Regent Trottman's article in the December number of the Wisconsin Alumni Magazine but I presume it has appeared elsewhere.

State Supt. Cary, it seems to me, has very peculiar notions of the purpose of his high office. For several years he has utilized the clerical force of his office in writing and sending broadcast over the state circular letters attacking the high schools of the state. These letters have tended to destroy confidence in the schools and many students have been kept away from them who otherwise would have received a high school education. That the State Superintendent was not very careful as to the correctness of his presentation of facts was very effectively snown by Principal Parlin in his able defense of the high schools. Supt. Cary seems to have fallen into similar errors in his attack on the University. Is it not strange that an institution that is emulated not only by other states of the Union but by foreign states as well, should find so little commen dation in the eyes of the highest elective educational official of the state?

Very truly yours,

P. J. NOER.

REGENT TROTTMAN'S REPLY TO C. P. CARY.

AS

S president of the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin, I am asked to give my opinion on State Superintendent Cary's statement, published on November 21.

Mr. Cary is, by virtue of his office, a member of the university Board of Regents.

As to the propriety or impropriety of Superintendent Cary's publicly criticising the work of the regents or of the faculty, I shall not presume to speak, so long as he speaks only for himself; but I am satisfied that when he speaks, as he did in his published statement, for the board as well as for himself, he steps beyond the bounds of propriety and commits a breach of which a state superintendent should not be guilty, and which can only be explained by assuming that Mr. Cary should be classed as an enemy of the university. Personally, my relations with Mr. Cary have been and are uniformly friendly. With reference to the university, however, I believe Mr. Cary should be classed among her enemies. By so classifying Mr. Cary, we can the better judge of the merits or demerits, the sincerity or want of sincerity, of

his statements.

Whatever may have been the attitude of former boards, I know the present Board of Regents are not hostile to, but invite constructive, helpful criticism from the student body, from the faculty, from the alumni and generally from Wisconsin citizens. All facts of university management, down to the minutest details, including the books of account and other records of the university and the proceedings of the board, are open to proper inspection at all reasonable times.

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Mr. Cary's statement, "There is naturally a growing timidity on the part even of regents in opposing the university wants, etc.," is contrary to fact and Mr. Cary should not have made it. Nor should Mr. Cary, by implication, have charged anyone or more members of the Board with weakness or timidity.

I am satisfied that the members of the board who regularly attend the meetings (and some regents are negligent in that respect, including Mr. Cary) act sincerely, from the highest motives and according to their best judgment. So far as I am concerned, Mr. Cary will not say that I have shown any timidity on any question that has come before the board during the time I have been regent. If I have any fears or any timidity in reference to the university and its affairs, and I shall presume to say the same of every working member of the board, it is this, that the persistent attacks made upon the university by men who represent special interest and who for their own gain are opposed to the progressive tendencies of the times may, notwithstanding the loyalty of Wisconsin alumni and Wisconsin citizenship to the university, seriously cripple the great work the university has done in the past and is doing today for all the people.

The working members of the present Board of Regents fully appreciate their responsibilities as such. If Mr. Cary had suggestion or criticism to offer, he should be present at the regular meetings of the board, and make his suggestions or criticisms. He will soon learn that the present board will give them due and proper consideration.

Superintendent Cary criticises, specifically, the action of the board in nominating several work

ing fellows for the state commissions for the present year. This action was taken at the regular October meeting of the board. Mr. Cary knew the matter was part of the business to come before the meeting and he should have been present when the resolution covering the subject was up for discussion and when action was taken upon it, but the record shows that only one vote, and that my own, was cast against the proposition.

The resolution concerning this matter, as passed, commits the university to no permanent policy in respect to nominating fellows for state commissions and, although I voted against it, I stand by the action taken as the action of the board.

Mr. Cary is utterly wrong in assuming that the action taken by the board has any political significance. The policy involved is educational, not governmental.

JAMES F. TROTTMAN, '84.

THE DEPARTMENT OF SUPERINTENDENCE AT ST. LOUIS.

The Department of Superintendence of the National Education Association will meet at St. Louis on February 27-28-29. The headquarters are at the Planters' Hotel. The Journal will have two special parlor cars for the daylight trip from Chicago on Monday, February 26, to carry the delegation of Wisconsin and northern Michigan superintendents who will attend this meeting. Reservations for a seat in the parlor car should be lodged with W. N. Parker, Madison, Wis., at as early a date as possible.

THE PLEASANTEST TIME.

Little fairy snowflakes

Dancing in the flue;

Old Mr. Santa Claus,

What is keeping you? Sunlight and firelight

Shadows come and go:Merry chimes of sleigh bells Tinkling through the snow; Mother knitting stockings,

(Pussy's got the ball)Don't you think that Winter's The pleasantest time of all?

T. B. ALDRICH.

SUPT. E. M. BEEMAN

President of the Northeastern Wisconsin Teachers' Association.

ever held in the state occurred at Oshkosh, and with the backing of Pres. Keith of the normal school and Supt. McIver of the public schools, no doubt an even larger number will be in attendance next month. Within a radius of fifty miles of Oshkosh there are 200,000 people. Teachers in this part of the state should arrange to take in this meeting and to see that their boards allow them Friday off for the occasion.

A Happy New Year!

state!

Dr. E. C. Elliott of the University resumes his duties in what institution at the beginning of the

next semester.

Green Bay is very desirous of having the next meeting of the Northeastern Wisconsin Teachers' Association in that city.

Mr. A. H. Sage, formerly of Oshkosh normal school is reported seriously ill and has abandoned his agency work in Chicago.

The Department of Superintendence of the N. E. A. at St. Louis, Feb. 27-28-29. Make your reservation with the Journal Party.

The Kenosha county board of supervisors by a vote of seven to nine has finally killed the establishment of a county training school.

Mr. Amand Olson, a teacher in the Glenwood City high school, mysteriously disappeared last month and has not been heard from since.

It was necessary to close the Nekoosa schools last month because of a case of smallpox in the hotel where a number of the teachers were boarding.

Freeman L. Lord of River Falls and C. H. Crownhart of Superior have resigned as normal school regents. Their successors have not yet been appointed.

The Stoughton school board has adopted a drastic resolution in that no pupil known to be a cigarette smoker shall in the future be graduated from the high school.

Supt. Oscar F. Matson of Pierce county has issued a very attractive manual and directory which also includes his annual report to the county board of supervisors.

At the school board convention held at Onalaska, a free dinner was served to all members pre

Edgerton is among the new cities of the state to employ a visiting nurse, and a vigorous campaign will be inaugurated at once looking after the heath of public school children.

Many schools in the state are flooding their grounds and maintaining skating rinks for the children. This makes good winter play-grounds. Why should it not be universally adopted?

Mr. Emmet D. Angel has accepted the position of physical director at the Milwaukee normal school. He was formerly connected with this same line of work in the University of Wisconsin.

The new address of The Parker Educational Co. is No. 12 S. Carroll St.-on the ground floor -just two doors from the Park Hotel. See announcement in the Publishers' Personal Page of this issue.

Prof. Alexander Kerr, emeritus professor of Greek in the University of Wisconsin, has just translated Book VII of the Republic of Plato. This has been published by Charles H. Kerr & Co. of Chicago.

The teachers of Green Bay have organized a teachers' club which meets on the second Friday in every alternate month. They plan to get speakers from outside the city to address the club at its meetings.

E. J. Shives, formerly superintendent at Monroe, and later at Menominee, Mich., is now principal of the high school at Everett, Wash., where a former Wisconsin man, Mr. C. R. Frasier, is superintendent.

By vote of twenty-four to six, the board of supervisors of Eau Claire county decided to establish a county agricultural school to open next fall. This will be run in connection with the county training school.

The text-book committee of the state legislature will meet again January 24 in the Plankinton House, Milwaukee, for the purpose of further looking into the matter of conditions relating to the subject in this state.

Owing to the protracted illness of Prin. S. P. Reese of Clinton, he has been granted a temporary leave of absence, and Mr. L. G. Schussman, formerly of Rice Lake, and later in the insurance business, is filling the vacancy.

The Orange Judd Company of Springfield, Mass., are bringing out a new paper called School Agriculture whose object is to open the eyes of the boys and girls of this country to the possibilities of farm life and to efficient home-keeping.

The result of the dental examination of all the grade children of the city of Kenosha resulted in the finding of only 28.69 per cent with perfect teeth. A vigorous campaign is being made along this line under the direction of Supt. Mary D. Bradford.

Supt. A. G. Meating of Outagamie county strongly recommends the use of the rural schools for social center gatherings. In his annual report, Mr. Meating states there are three schools in his county with an enrollment of less than six pupils each.

On January 5-6 an institute will be held at Antigo which will be along the line of practical agriculture. Prin. M. H. Jackson of the Wood county training school, and Prin. J. F. Kadonsky of the Marathon county agricultural school are the conductors.

State Supt. Cary reports that there are 1,200 rural schools in Wisconsin whose average attendance is ten or less. This would indicate that the missionary work along the line of consolidation should not cease until these conditions are materially changed.

In the annual report of Supt. Bertha Trudelle of Chippewa county, she states that there are only four male teachers in the 121 districts, and these receive an average salary of $40. The remaining schools are taught by women at an average monthly wage of $37.87.

Supt. Theresa A. Leinekugel of Eau Claire county reports that 236 children were not in school last year according to the requirements of law. She states that while the compulsory law has improved the attendance, there is still need of a stronger enforcement of it.

By a vote of eleven to ten, the county board of supervisors of Taylor county adopted a resolution

providing for a county training school building at Phillips to cost $25,000. There was considerable opposition to the project, and the matter does not seem to be definitely settled.

The question of making the Norwegian language an elective study in the Eau Claire high school was under consideration by the school board last month. Undoubtely this language will become a part of the high school curriculum by the beginning of the next semester.

Supt. G. W. Davies of Sauk county has enlarged the size of his county bulletin, and we note in the December number some very interesting items relating to school work. A number of county superintendents in the state are adopting this method of reaching their patrons.

Supt. H. A. Aune of St. Croix county is one of the progressive superintendents of the state who issues a very comprehensive annual including a directory of school officers, courses of study, etc. The one for 1911-1912 includes his annual report to the county board of supervisors.

The county board of Door county has opposed the erection of a joint training school at Algoma, Kewaunee county. They have tendered the old county jail building at Sturgeon Bay for the use of the training school if Kewaunee county will consent to its removal from Algoma.

Prin. A. J. Herrick of Cumberland goes to the science position in the Stevens Point normal school recently vacated by W. F. Lusk. Merl M. Ames, formerly principal at Stanley, and recently in the employ of the Laurel Book Co., is reported as Mr. Herrick's successor.

The common council of Sheboygan has had under consideration the erection of a new high school. The present building, according to one alderman, h asnot the best hygenic conditions for young girl students, and the same author states that the building is also a fire trap in many ways.

In the November number of The Student published by the pupils of the Marinette high school, Supt. Landgraf contributes a very interesting article on "Twenty-five Years Ago" which recites some interesting incidents in the Fort Atkinson schools. This publication is now in its fourteenth

year.