150 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY St. Mary's Parish has purchased a tract of ground on West High Street for school and church purposes ; they have erected a temporary building pending the erection of permanent property. SOUTH CHARLESTON CHURCH The notes concerning St. Charles Borromeo Church in South Charleston were submitted by Rev. William A Casey, pastor, and relayed by Judge Tehan. The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was first offered there by Rev. Maurice Howard in 1850, who was then pastor of St. Raphael in Springfield. At that time there were only three Catholic families in South Charleston, with some others in the country. In 1849 these Catholic families came from Connecticut. As the number of Catholics increased, Father James Blake of Xenia came to hold services, saying Mass in private homes and in the section house of the Little Miami Railroad ; in 1854 the congregation rented Paulding's Hall, and in 1855 they purchased the Presbyterian Church where for nine months they held forth, but because of defective title the contract was broken off, and until 1865 they used Paulding Hall again. In that year a lot was purchased, and a building was completed one year later, being dedicated by Archbishop Purcell. Rev. John Conway was minister until 1868, coming from London ; he was succeeded by Rev. J. A. Marcney who continued it as a mission until 1872, when he became its regular pastor. He completed the church, adding a gallery and an organ, pews and altar of Romanesque type. The records of Borromeo Church begin with the coming of Father Marcney ; they had been kept in Xenia and London. In 1873 came Rev. John J. Kennedy who continued his residence in London, remaining only from June till November. In February, 1873, Rev. H. Sidley assumed charge, followed by Rev. James Aloysius Burns, both holding mission services, but in October, 1874, Rev. William Grennan took charge of the parish, building a house which was the home of the pastors of the parish until 1908, when a new one was built on the site of the original Catholic Church. In 1877 Father Grennan left, being succeeded by Rev. F. H. Remhawk ; then came Rev. C. W. Berding who paid all debts contracted by the parish, leaving in October, 1881, followed by Rev. Martin L. Murphy ; followed by Rev. M. B. Brown ; then came Rev. A. N. Bourion, succeeded by Rev. I. M. Sullivan ; Rev. Joseph Hyland ; Rev. James W. Kelly, who came in 1905, built the new Gothic church costing $15,000 and a residence costing $8,000, and in 1910 came Rev. Alfred D. Dexter, who died while the resident pastor. Since then Reverend Casey has been pastor in South Charleston. KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS A news item says 340 members of Springfield Council Knights of Columbus took part in the celebration, January 3, of the twentieth anniversary of the founding of the council, held in the Knights of Columbus building, the theme under consideration, "The Man in the Street," dealing with moral obligations of the members, and a plea for better education. The council started with fifty-four members, but Grand Knight John C. Cashman who was toastmaster reported 667 members, SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 151 the living charter members all present ; a memorial was held for deceased members. The council was organized December 22, 1901, in the City Hall. Rev. Father William H. Sidley and John O'Toole who had been members before coming to Springfield, co-operating with John Coffee of Springfield and Daniel Nevins of Dayton, effected the organization. The Knights of Columbus played an important part in the care of soldiers in this country and overseas in the World war. Many social affairs are staged by the Springfield Council Knights of Columbus. In the Dominican Order the mission is the life work of the priests, and missions are held in all local Catholic Churches. Honoring the memory of Pope Benedict XV, solemn requiem mass was observed in Springfield. CHAPTER XVIII THE SUNDAY SCHOOL IN CLARK COUNTY The fifty-sixth annual convention of the Clark County Sunday School Association was held in South Charleston, May 24 and 25, 1921, Donald Kirkpatrick, president ; C. D. Shelton, vice president ; Frank S. Nichols, recording secretary ; E. J. Carmony, treasurer ; James L. Welsh, adult superintendent ; Carl Mattes, young people's superintendent ; Mrs. Agnes Swallow, associate young people's superintendent ; Margaret M. Weeter, children's superintendent, and Mrs. A. Y. Edwards, associate children's superintendent. Since June 21, 1920, Howard Johnson has been general secretary of the Clark County Sunday School Association. The conventions are attended by delegates from the children, young people, adult and administrative departments, and as many visitors as are interested to be in attendance. Until the general secretary was installed who gives his full time to Sunday school' association interests, nothing in definite records were kept, but the office now has an 'accurate list of. the Sunday schools in Clark County; their officers, and an accurate status of each school. The association maintains a circulating library where books on up-to-date methods and teachings may be found ; pamphlets may be secured on every phase of work in the Sunday school, and maps showing the location of every Sunday school in the county. The general secretary has been consulted on graded work ; Sunday school architecture, Sunday school equipment, music and programs for special occasions; when the secretary has conflicting engagements, speakers are furnished when communities ask for them. The office of the general secretary is a clearing house for all Sunday school questions, and within one year he made 200 addresses, and paid 400 visits to Sunday school workers relative to different community activities; a conservative estimate is that with an increase of 30 per cent expenditure, the work has been increased 100 per cent in efficiency, through the purchase of an automobile and the aid of a stenographer. With transportation at his command, the secretary has no difficulty securing additional speakers. Beginning with. January, 1921, he held monthly meetings with superintendents ; they exchange ideas and receive much benefit. Rallies are held in all the townships, and the Daily Vacation Bible School project was tried in 1921, the experiment carried on at Covenant Presbyterian, First .Baptist, Pleasant Street Chapel and Grace Methodist Episcopal churches. This experiment was conducted by the Clark County Sunday School Association ; thirty-three different Sunday schools co-operated with an attendance of almost 2,000, the sessions being held from July. 5 to August 12, the association securing twelve public school buildings in addition to the four churches. In each vacation school was one paid instructor and two volunteer teachers. The children attend the vacation schools in the forenoon five days, and one boy who attended Bible school in the morning and went to the public play ground in the afternoon, said that if he must give up one pleasure it would be the play grounds ; the vacation teachers receive preparatory training at an institute conducted by Wittenberg College, 152 SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 153 and a community training school is held under the auspices of the Clark County Sunday School Association. Meetings are held in some central location—lecture room of the First Congregational Church in the beginning, with Wittenberg College faculty and Springfield ministers presenting the lessons. When the community training school was inaugurated only five Sunday schools maintained training classes, and forty schools affiliated in the community effort. Since the Clark County Sunday School Association placed an automobile at the service of its general secretary, Mr. Johnson refers to himself as "One Man on Four Wheels," and it enables him to keep up with the times. Through the co-operation of Springfield business men, and a few others, it became a possibility. "The power of God and the response of men," enabled Mr. Johnson to become familiar with 105 Sunday schools, with a constituency of about 18,000, and to meet many Clark County ministers and 500 special Sunday school workers. Mr. Johnson is the first general secretary employed in Clark County. Like the Farm Bureau agent, writing makes him an exact man, and although a recent acquisition to Clark County, he has been the source of much local information. JUNE 25, 1827 The man who gave the Sunday school to the world was Robert Raikes of Gloucester, England. He was interested in the welfare of the poor, and in 1781 he gathered the children together and employed teachers for them ; he taught Sabbath observance, and others soon caught the spirit of it. Within five years there were 250,000 children under Sunday school influence, and today the Sunday school is considered the most efficient branch of modern church extension service. While the first church was built in Springfield in 1810, it was not until June 25, 1827, that there was a local Sunday school. In his history of Central Methodist Episcopal Church, A. L. Slager accords the honor of instituting the first Sunday school to Rev. Saul Henkle, and presumably undenominational, and it seems the same man was instrumental in organizing a Bible society, August 6, 1822—and thus was he interested in the community. While the date, June 25, 1827, seems to be authentic for the beginning of the Sunday school in Springfield, Mr. Henkle who was connected with church publishing business wrote in 1829, saying : "A Bible society formed in September, 1822, for a while promised to be strong and healthy, but having been dieted for several years chiefly on annual reports grew very sickly ; of late, however, it has gained a little strength, and may possibly live to years of maturity ; though efforts are now making to effect its death by poisoning." Mr. Henkle does not state the time of meeting, and it does not seem to have been regarded as a Sunday school. Another account credits the original Sunday school to the Presbyterians, saying they met at the school house in Springfield, and organized the first Sunday school in town ; it was continued in the school house until they moved into their own church, and thus its beginning is shrouded in uncertainty. SUNDAY SCHOOL ARMY It is estimated that in the United States there are 60,000 adult Bible study classes and that 26,000,000 are enrolled in Sunday schools ; there 154 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY are 5,000 adult Sunday school classes in Ohio and 1,552,000 are enrolled in Sunday school, showing that attendance ranks high, more than one-twenty-fifth part of that from the forty-eight states. While Sunday school may be intended for children, many men and women continue their attendance. California has the largest men's Bible class in the world ; it numbers 2,000, and Springfield has a number of big adult classes of both men and women. While 105 Sunday schools are listed, there are about 2,000 Sunday school teachers in Clark County ; from the point of seniority, the honor goes to Mrs. Elizabeth Coberly of South Vienna who teaches the men's Bible class ; she was born August 29, 1825, and when the birthday offering was taken in 1921, she dropped nine dimes, one nickel and one penny into the collection ; she taught a class that day. Including the Jewish and Catholic Sunday schools who do not affiliate with the Clark County Sunday School Association, it is estimated that 20,000 out of the population of 80,000 are in Sunday school, and that is a big percentage. While all denominations co-operate in the work of the organized Sunday school, the Lutherans have been leaders in the work of extension. For thirty years Dr. B. F. Prince was engaged in Clark County Sunday School Association work ; he made many tours of the county as president, and as a speaker when Ross Mitchell was president. It was before the association owned an automobile, but Mr. Mitchell had a two-horse carriage, and thus speakers reached the place of meeting. Before the graded lesson system was in use the workers advocated Bible study and morality ; they did not do evangelistic work, but character building was the course pursued ; the Sunday school is the college of the church, and through his relation to Wittenberg College Dr. Prince was enabled to secure speakers among the professors, and among students of ability to accompany him. While denominationalism is not emphasized in county Sunday school campaigning, the f act remains that Lutherans have been more aggressive than other churches. Recently other denominations have become interested, and the county secretary happens to be a Baptist. While the official roster usually changes more frequently, for nineteen consecutive years Peter A. Schindler was superintendent of the Sunday school in the First English Lutheran Church in Springfield. He had unusual qualities as an organizer ; when he assumed the duty the attendance averaged 175, and in ten years it reached more than 1,000, that number often being present ; as early as 1865, he conducted weekly meetings for Surklay school teachers; he was in advance of the teacher training concerted effort today. Mr. Schindler was a natural leader, being chorister as well as teacher ; he could influence an audience and many Wittenberg College students were led into the ministry by him. Mr. Schindler had the missionary spirit, and he was active in both city and county Sunday school work ; his tactics appealed to both teachers and preachers. When the Second Lutheran Church went out from First Church, he went into it and for ten years was its Sunday school superintendent ; few men serve twenty-nine years in that capacity. Ross Mitchell who did so much for county work was among those transferred from First to Second Lutheran Church. Mr. Schindler always exercised fatherly oversight of boys from the Sunday school, and when two of them went fishing he investigated ; they made a full confession, and SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 155 when he smelled the fish they were frying he yielded to their dinner invitation. "Nothing succeeds like success," and they had "bait" for him. They were fishermen, and was a "fisher of men." ANOTHER SCHINDLER STORY One time while Mr. Schindler was engaged in county Sunday school work, he was driving a State Sunday school speaker to a township convention, along the way he said, "Brother, excuse me, I will just have to have a chew of tobacco," but since the State speaker also wanted a chew, there was no difficulty about it. Each had been afraid of the other; why had not Peter mentioned it sooner? The man relating the story said : "Peter Schindler was a great character ; he was a fine man, and had a 'world of friends.'." When there was but one Lutheran Church, he encountered all the Wittenberg College students. When he transf erred to Second Lutheran, G. W. Billow succeeded him and served as Sunday school superintendent until he transf erred to Fourth Lutheran. Doctor Prince who was the first Lutheran to engage in county Sunday school activities remained in First till Fourth was organized, when h'e transf erred to it, and thus the leaders were Lutherans for many years. The record of Peter A. Schindler was later duplicated by J. H. Littleton, who served nineteen years as superintendent of the First Lutheran Sunday School, and he said this of Mr. Schindler : "He was a wonderful singer, and had a wonderful personality ; he attracted others." John L. Zimmerman has taught the men's Bible class for thirty years, but Mrs. S. F. Breckenridge who died in service spent forty-five years as superintendent of the primary department there. While other Sunday schools do effective work in the community, no other reported such long terms of service for officers or teacher. POLITICIANS IN SUNDAY SCHOOL While Howard Johnson, as general secretary, is the first paid Sunday school worker in Clark County, some of the foremost citizens are identified with Sunday school activities in the different denominations. Two members of the present board of Clark County Commissioners : J. L. Welsh and Frank Funderburg, are active Sunday school workers, and Donald Kirkpatrick, prosecuting attorney, is identified with church and Sunday school activities. While it was once said to be necessary to lock the doors to hold the convention until after the collection, a budget system now takes care of finances, and the county secretary checks up on the different Sunday schools. Before the day of the educated ministry, there was not much need of the budget system—no salaries and no expenses. The threadbare story of the little girl who explained her disobedience by saying: "You cannot serve God and Mamma," has been supplanted by another : "Susie Adams forgets Susie Adams," and W. H. Schaus will explain the "enthusiasm" of it. When athletics- was injected into the Sunday school, it was said they would have to rob the cradle to fill some of the positions, but the youngsters became enthusiastic ; when watching a game, a six-year-old exclaimed : "Treat 'em rough," showing that the infantile mind grasps it all. While in one of the township conventions an expert worker was defined as an "ordinary man away 156 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY from home," the fact remains that the Sunday school is the great volunteer institution which attracts many unselfish workers. SUNDAY SCHOOL MOTTO In some of the Sunday schools is this placard : "In time, on time, every time, and all the time except when ahead of time, and that's a little better time," and regular attendance is sought by all Sunday schools. The unique and unusual is resorted to, and December 9, 1921, a Bible Oratorical Contest was staged at Selma Friends Church by eight young ladies of the Sunday school, the orations selected from the Bible. The Church of the Brethren Sunday School at Donnels Creek won in a Bible reading contest in 1921 against thirty-f our other churches of the denomination in Southwestern Ohio. The average attendance at Donnels Creek was eighty-eight, and as a whole the Sunday school read 84,672 chapters ; eighteen adults had read the Bible through within the year, and one woman read it five times. A Negro woman who listened to a sermon, said it "went in at one ear and out at the other," but it made her better ; when she washed, "the water went through the clothes and made them whiter," and thus contest reading may be better than not to read the Bible at all. THE MODEL PRAYER When Secretary Johnson was conducting the Mad River Township Sunday School Convention, February, 1922, the Rev. S. Q. Half enstein, a Dayton publisher who was filling the Knob Prairie Christian Church pulpit that day, when leading in prayer asked the audience to join him in repeating the Lord's Prayer, using the word "debt" rather than "trespass," saying too many congregations depart from the text when repeating the model prayer. Since it is the duty of the Sunday school teacher to instill the habit of Bible study, it was an opportune time for the visiting minister to teach the correct use of the model prayer—the Lord's. Prayer. In urging the support of the Sunday school, J. M. Alexander of the National Sunday School Association said bef ore a Springfield audience that, "all the great problems are decided between the ages of twelve and twenty ; it is the formative period when the great pull of life comes; either upward or downward, which determines his future ; under the stress and strain of modern life the home, in a religious sense, is disappearing. Family prayers are a relic of a bygone age, and the last bulwark in the effort to maintain religion as a vital factor in the daily life of the nation is the Sunday school," but "One Man on Four Wheels," is the precaution taken by the Clark County Sunday School Association as a safeguard to the future. CHAPTER XIX. YOUNG MEN'S AND YOUNG WOMEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATIONS Springfield was early in its. Young Men's. Christian Association activi ties, effecting an organization in August, 1854, with E. M. Doty as president ; its object was the moral and religious betterment of young men. Many citizens supported the movement, and there were some distinguished speakers bef ore the association. A reading room was established; and there was the nucleus of a library. While the reading room was for the use of members, others enjoyed it. There were eighty members of the original Springfield Young Men's Christian Association representing the different evangelical churches, and it did the welfare work of the community. In effect, it was the first organized charity ; it distributed necessities among the destitute, and much suffering and want were relieved by it. While the records do not indicate the time it lapsed, the Civil war claimed attention, and those constituting the membership were eligible as soldiers. Many antebellum institutions lapsed because their leaders enlisted in the Civil war. RALLIED AGAIN. It was in the winter of 1867-68 that the Young Men's Christian Association was organized a second time: H. T. Miller, a blind man from Cincinnati, assisted to organize and install the association again. E. W. Mulliken became its president, and associated with him were Dr. Daniel Phillips, Dr. A. S. Dunlap, Nichols and Hastings, editors of the Republic; J. W. Gunn, G. W. Winger, E. C. Middleton; B. F. Prince, and many of the Springfield ministers. Through the efforts of Mrs. Samson Mason and others the new organization had charge of the books in the first circulating library attempted in Springfield. In 1868 Doctor Dunlap represented the Springfield association in an International convention held in Detroit ; in 1870 Mr. Middleton represented the association in convention in Indianapolis. The Young Men's Christian Association maintained .the public lecture course of the community, and among the noted speakers were : John B. Gough,. Charles .Sumner, Wendell Phillips, Theodore Tilton, General Woodford, Captain Hall, the Arctic explorer, and Paul B. DuChaillu, the African explorer. The course was financed by the sale of $5 season tickets ; each ticket admitted two persons. Tickets were sold in advance, thus securing money for the entire course. The lectures were delivered in Black's Music Hall, the religious people then opposed to the designation as theater. When illness prevented the appearance of Wendell Phillips, the association hurriedly secured George Kennan who was a Russian explorer, attracting large crowds in Cincinnati. He later became popular in Springfield. Mr. Winger had the foregoing data from Doctor Dunlap of Chattanooga. IN 1887 ORGANIZED AGAIN In its present organization the local Young Men's Christian Association dates back to 1887, having started and suspended twice, but the - 157 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 159 charm seems to have been attained in the third effort. It requires finances to keep any organization intact, and W. J. Fraser, who is still a Springfield citizen, was the first paid general secretary who devoted his full time to it. The organization was effected in 1887, in the Clark County courthouse, and it was sheltered there until it began activities by increasing its membership, and sought other quarters. From the beginning, including Mr. Fraser, the Springfield Young Men's Christian Association has had f our general secretaries, Mr. Fraser remaining till 1903; T. T. Long till 1904 ; A. E. Flint till 1911, and the present incumbent John L. Dorst coming at that time. When the Young Men's Christian Association left the courthouse it occupied a hall on Market Street (Fountain Avenue), and in 1900 the corner stone was laid for the building; it was completed in 1901, and there was an entire week of dedicatory service. It was fittingly launched into its field of usefulness, among the speakers being the world famous evangelist, Rev. J. Wilbur Chapman, Gov. James A. Weaver of Pennsylvania, Capt. Richmond P. Hobson, Dr. Henry Barrows of Oberlin College, and Pres. W. 0. Thompson of Ohio State University. Mr. Fraser was secretary through the building period, and Hon. Asa S. Bushnell was the honorary presiding officer through the dedicatory service. Mr. Bushnell and Edwin S. Kelly had each given $5,000 toward the enterprise. BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE While the cost of the Young Men's Christian Association building approximated $70,000, and Dr. John H. Rodgers who was association president throughout the building period, as well as other citizens of Springfield, thought the community had built for the future, twenty years later building plans are under consideration again. The association has outgrown its building and a site had been acquired at the southwest corner of Center and High streets ; its building project was delayed by war-time activities, its members again being called to arms as in the '60s when the first association functioned, the whole community expending its energy and its money in other channels. Notwithstanding the delay a drive was made for funds resulting in a $200,000 subscription toward a new building and plans have been approved for an edifice costing $500,000 to become a reality in the near future. With $200,000 as a nucleus, and with the building now in use to be converted into collateral, there will not be tedious delay in beginning the new structure. When a drive was made in March, 1922, f $30,000, it went "over the top," amounting to $30,559, the whole community responding to it. In its latest organization, George W. Winger, who was identified with association work in its first and second efforts, is its president ; he was elected president for the fifth consecutive year, and being a pioneer Y. M. C. A. man, he will be a valuable member of the board through its building era again. The first and second vice presidents of the association are : C. L. Bauer and Dr. R. E. Tulloss ; the corresponding secretary is C. H. Rhodes ; the treasurer is George S. Raup, and the general secretary Mr. Dorst. The local association entertained the state association in its annual convention recently, and Mr. Bauer was honored by being elected its president. In 1892 the Springfield association instituted voca- 160 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY tional education work in advance of the public schools or other educational institutions the first teacher was a skilled mechanic, D. F. Graham, and the classes were conducted in a room in a factory. It was the beginning of night school in Springfield. Men and boys enrolled in numbers, and since then the association has maintained gymnasiums for both men and boys. The Springfield Young Men's Christian Association numbers 1,400 active members and 2,000 contributing members ; for want of accommodations it does not push the industrial features, but Bible classes are maintained with special attention given the Sunday afternoon religious meetings. Good speakers are furnished, and these meetings are growing in popularity ; they are maintained only through the winter months. There are only twenty-eight dormitory rooms, but the new building will house many non-resident members who become residents of Springfield. The gymnasium sometimes becomes a banquet room, and the Young Men's Christian Association is the recognized social center for the young men of Springfield. SPRINGFIELD CONVENTION CENTER Four times has the Ohio Young Men's Christian Association held its annual meetings in Springfield, and when the new building is completed it will become ambitious again. The association met in Springfield in 1891, 1897, 1912, and again in 1921, and the homes of the city were thrown open to delegates. The Hi Y is an accomplishment of the Springfield association, there being ninety-eight such clubs with a membership numbering 2,000 in Ohio. A Hi Y speaker before the convention, said : "Real religion is a manly thing," and there is demand for Hi Y secretaries. When the Older Boys' conference was held in Dayton, a torch was brought from Columbus and a relay of Springfield boys carried it to Dayton, the torch having been carried between many cities by members of the Older Boys' conference, as an effective method of advertising the convention ; the boys were distributed a mile apart, and each boy ran one mile with the torch, giving it to the boy in waiting; except running one mile, the boys were carried to Dayton in automobiles. AFRICAN YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION The Negroes of Springfield support the Center Street Branch of the Young Men's Christian Association and are active in all departments. They maintain a Dunbar and 'Washington debating society, and a Hi Y club. Their reports are separate from the Springfield association. The Ohio Young Men's Christian Association is raising $150,000 for the foreign work of the organization and $4,000 has been asked of the Springfield association. A summer camp for boys is planned by the association and special attention is given Y work in Wittenberg College. If a church has collateral significance—and all real estate dealers point out the churches and schools to prospective citizens, then the Young Men's Christian Association is an investment, and attracts people to the community. THE BOY SCOUTS The organization, Boy Scouts of America, was incorporated February 8, 1910, and it was granted a Federal charter by Congress June 15, 1916, and Warren G. Harding is the honorary president with William H. 162 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY Taft and Woodrow Wilson as vice presidents. Rev. Harry Trust, president of the Springfield Boy Scout Association is unable to supply the data concerning its local organization, but there is considerable activity among Springfield Boy Scouts. The Exchange Club is financing the organization, and the local troops observe National Boy Scout week with enthusiasm. Rallies are held and programs are arranged and there is an increased interest since the Exchange Club has fostered the Scout organization. Hikes are enjoyed, and a Scout camp is an assured thing; the appeal is made through the churches, and eight troops are under process. In Springfield there are 3,600 boys of Scout age, and other boys are invited to ally themselves with Springfield Scout organizations. William Smack is chief scoutmaster and instructor. In a surprisingly short time Boy Scouts become Junior Y's, and the Scout oath and Scout law put the boys into the highway toward good citizenship. "Teachers in the Boy Scout movement must build Americans who will stand for a united humanity ; one of the great forces for good in the movement is the democratic spirit which permeates it. * * * Boy Scout activities kills the influence of the `gang' spirit, and teaches boys they can be redblooded—that they can be regular he-men, and still be pure and virtuous." A Scout keeps clean in body and in thought ; he stands for clean speech, clean sport, clean habits, and travels with a clean crowd. Now that the Exchange Club is big brother to the Boy Scouts, some record will be kept of the organization. YOUNG WOMEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION The Young Women's Christian Association, including administration building, residence and cafeteria, is located at 250 East High Street, Springfield. It is the outgrowth of work done by the Woman's Christian Association organized November 6, 1896; it has served the community in different locations, but since 1913 in its High Street property that was once occupied by a private. educational institution. While the organization was known as the Woman's Christian Association, Mrs. Fannie P. Watkins was its secretary for thirteen years, and its mission was to aid indigent but worthy women. It promoted the moral, social and physical welfare of women and girls ; it cared for children whose mothers worked, and dispensed the most practical charity. Its first president was Mrs. Rebecca Brewster, and the leading women of Springfield supported it. Mrs. F. L. Davies reviews the history of the Woman's Christian Association, saying it was started as a home for girls and later the aid of the churches was asked by the women supporting the effort ; the furniture was secured from the Deaconess Home, and the real organization was effected in the home of Mrs. Sarah Willis, and a home was opened on the site of the I. C. & E. Traction station. A group of women assumed the expense, and every week they went out and solicited the necessary money. As their needs increased they moved into more commodious quarters, and finally enough younger women became members that the organization was changed and today it is the Young Women's Christian Association. In the beginning the young women met for pastime, but they began sewing for the Association and a real spirit of helpfulness was soon awakened in them. For a time they called them- SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 163 selves "Brownies," and then assumed the name : Charitable Afternoon Club. Mrs. Watkins has been mentioned as secretary of the original organization, and when it merged with the Y in 1909, Miss Eleanor Taft served for two years as secretary, and after a lapse of a short time Miss Rosetta Reynolds was secured, and she remained two years. After another interim without a secretary, Miss Marjorie Williams assumed the duties in 1915, and there has been constant growth at the Central Y, and in its branch departments. The Young Women's Christian Association has the supervision of the Clark Memorial Home, Lagonda Center and Clark Street Branch, and many people frequent the different centers. The community has pride in the organization and when funds are needed drives are made and it is given the necessary financial support. It maintains a cafeteria, and a great many patronize it. The annual meetings are open to the public, one having been held in Memorial Hall, when a program was given that attracted many visitors. It was in the nature of a jubilee, the organization having been effected twenty-five years ago. CHAPTER XX SALVATION ARMY IN SPRINGFIELD While the Salvation Army has been in Springfield since the '90s, Adjutant E. D. Dinkelacker and wife who have been at the local post since July 1, 1921, have no definite record of its beginning ; it has a fluctuating membership, there being twenty-nine enrolled at the time of the inquiry. The Salvation Army owns its own home at Columbia and Fisher streets, it having once been the Evangelical Lutheran Church property. It is centrally located, and there is a standing offer of $16,000 for it ; in time it will be sold and something better suited to the requirements will be secured. The Army holds regular street meetings on the esplanade, and meetings are held in its auditorium. While the organization in Springfield has never lapsed, it has been at low ebb and up again ; its welf are work is extensive, although it co-operates with other Springfield agencies—the social service department correlating all charities. For a number of years the local Army has used the unique boiling pot as its symbol, and the citizens assist in keeping the fires burning by dropping money in it. "It takes a hardened individual to pass one of those tripods with the pot suspended, and the woman or man in attendance half frozen under the chill blasts of winter ; it is the penny or nickel the passerby drops into the pot that swells the Christmas dinner for those unable to provide it themselves. At Thanksgiving and Christmas the Salvation Army provides for those who would pass the day without the holiday cheer. Commander Evangeline Booth says the story of the Salvation Army is like the wildest of dreams come true ; the beggar has been raised from the dust and set among princes. The Salvation Army band is the poor man's organ ; to the dying outcast it is the heavenly music of the angelic choir. It maintains 26,181 bandsmen, 750 day schools and 41 naval and military schools scattered all over the world. The Salvation Army endeared itself to the soldiers in the World war by its untiring efforts as a relief agency. - 164 - CHAPTER XXI CLARK COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS—J. M. COLLINS, SUPERINTENDENT There was an educational provision in the famous ordinance of 1787, under which the Northwest Territory was organized, and thus Ohio and the other states carved out of the Old Northwest attracted the best class of settlers ; in Clark County, as in other counties, one section of land in each township consisting of thirty-six sections is set apart for the support of the common school ; this was written into the first Ohio Constitution in 1802, and it is still embodied in it although it has been revised twice—in 1851, and again in 1912 ; it is decreed that section No. 16 in each Congressional township shall be the school land, and one who has distinctive remembrance of the three R's as the entire educational curriculum, is inclined to take some note of the panorama—the evolution of the educational system in Clark County. An investment in the mind and heart of the child, is laying up treasure where moth and rust do not corrupt ; the school should develop in the youth a sense of responsibility for the welfare of the community. In the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan and 'Wisconsin there is an income from the land alone amounting to $5,000,000, and from the beginning these states have led the world in educational progress. In Athens County, Ohio University occupies one of those school sections, and since it is the oldest university west of the Alleghany Mountains the fact is significant. One writer says : "From select to free ; from schoolmaster to teacher ; from academy to high school, education has been no laggard in the march of progress," and since in the beginning there was little taxable property there were select schools. THE FIRST SCHOOL In 1806 Nathaniel Pinkered opened the first school in Springfield ; it was in a log school house on the northeast corner of Main and Market streets, and since this building was used for religious meetings, it was the community center of Springfield. It is referred to as Pinkered's school, leaving the impression that it was private property. Without question it was a subscription school. William Bloxum who was an early teacher received $1.50 tuition for sixty days for each scholar : it was customary in such schools to admit younger children as half-scholars, although no mention is made of it. Some of the burly young men were inclined to rowdyism, and when they defied Mr. Bloxum he said he "would have order if he stood in blood to his eye brows; he gave the ring leader a severe whipping, and there was no more trouble." It seems that the "Master" had more need of muscle than of mental attainment, carrying out the saying: "Lickin' and larnin' are inseparable." The earlier Clark County histories do not carry much information about the pioneer schools, but there were enterprising teachers who combined training the young idea with other occupations ; it was necessary to "make both ends meet," and an Englishman named Samuel Smith served as a justice of the peace while teaching school in Springfield. - 165 - 166 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY He was a hustling, square-shouldered man of "no ordinary talents," and "Treat 'em rough," was his method; he regarded "flogging" as an indispensable part of discipline, and full grown young men and women were often compelled to stand and receive the savage strokes of his ferrule. In the language of a popular cartoonist : "Them days is gone forever." Justice of the Peace Pedagogue Smith had nicknames for boys : Lucius, Mark Anthony, Julius Caesar, Pompey, etc., and while he was a man of truth and veracity as far as business was concerned, he had a passion for telling marvelous stories ; had there been such publications in his day, he would have been a fiction writer. Stories of doubtful origin were always attributed to Smith; for ten years his school was regarded as the highest seat of learning in Springfield. Smith's wife, a tall, sharp-nosed Yankee woman, assisted him in teaching the smaller children ; the school was in their cabin. One Christmas when Smith was locked out to compel him to treat, he visited Granny Icenbarger's cabin, and the youngsters had visions of cakes and apples, but they "reckoned without their host," for when he came back he climbed to the roof and dropped brimstone on the fire, laying a board on the chimney. They soon tumbled out of the windows, and they never locked that justice-ofthe-peace out again. JANUARY 1, 1818 While local government was established in Clark County, January 1, 1818, within a week from its organization, there was no common school legislation until January 22, 1821, three years later, when an act to provide for the regulation and support of the common schools was passed, and in February, 1825, an act to provide for the support and better regulation of the common schools, and finally January 30, 1827, an act was passed establishing a fund for the support of the common schools, and until money was appropriated there was little progress. When Nathaniel Pinkered opened his school, Springfield was in Champaign County, but under state law the conditions must have been similar in different counties. At all events the Pinkered school was the beginning of a splendid educational system in Springfield and Clark County ; the people were not inclined to live in ignorance. The intellectual and moral conditions are similar in different frontier communities ; settlers are deprived of many privileges when they come into the wilderness. The church and the school are regarded as collateral in any community, and as it advances morally and intellectually, crime and pauperism decrease ; in the beginning the school term was usually thirteen weeks, the teacher agreeing to "keep school," and the parents obligating themselves to send their children and pay for it. Each school was a separate business enterprise, and one who mastered the three R's—readin', 'ritin and 'rithmetic, had a liberal education. There were no blackboard, maps or other school house fixtures because there were no school houses ; there are few and perhaps none lingering in Clark County today who tell of the dirt floors, greased paper windows and smoky rooms ; what if the school houses did not have modern advantages ? There were no unpleasant comparisons when their homes were like them. It is a far cry from the style of rural school building as described by Judge William A. Rockel : "A log was omitted SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 167 for the light; and in this space single window panes were used end to end, and the windows were so high that the little fellows could only see the sky ; below the windows were broad boards for desks, and the larger pupils sat there facing the light," contrary to the conditions existing under the Smith-Hughes law in Clark County at present. 1914 BEGINS A NEW ERA While not much is on record about those who "taught the young idea the use of fire arms," years ago, when he was a young man of nineteen, the Hon. Whitelaw Reid was a teacher in South Charleston; he wore his hair long and was of distinctive type. In an early day teaching was a stepping stone to the prof essions, and aged men in Springfield wielded the birch while acquiring further education. Under existing conditions, with teaching itself a profession, not so many qualify as ROCKWAY SCHOOL-RURAL teachers unless they continue in the vocation ; too many technicalities are required for young men to use it today as a means of attaining to some other line of activity. When the writing desks were against the walls and the children sat on puncheon benches, there were fewer swindles in the sale of school accessories than at present. "Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof," and as civilization advances educational methods advance with it ; the school is among the greatest agencies of advancement. It is only since 1914 that there has been public supervision of rural schools in Clark County, the changed Ohio Constitution in 1912 allowing the State Legislature to provide for it. Prof. J. M. Collins as county superintendent of schools, has supervision of all schools in Clark County outside of the City of Springfield ; he is the first and only superintendent since the enactment of the law establishing the office ; he received his appointment from the county board of education, which is composed of five members and under its last organization they are : E. H. Florence, Grant Neer, C. D. Shellabarger, Ezra King and Harry Mellinger. The 168 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY board holds monthly meetings and has the oversight of educational affairs ; it is the plan to keep education out of politics, and professional interest, experience and competency enter into the consideration when selecting a school superintendent. The three assistants to the county school superintendent are: Prof. 0. T. Hawke, who has fifty-one teachers ; Prof. F. S. Ryan, forty-one teachers ; and Prof. J. K. Hertzinger with thirty-five teachers ; the three districts are east, middle and west, and the South Charleston, Selma and New Carlisle schools all have local superintendents ; there are supervisors of music in each subdivision, and Professor Collins as county superintendent has supervision of all. Under existing conditions, at little or no expense to himself, a man may educate a family ; while there are free schools it is through taxation, and in establishing the free educational system, the government was carrying out the injunction of the father of his country, George Washington. who said : "Promote then as an object of primary importance institutions for the general diffusion of knowledge ; in proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened," and the public school is the hope of the future. ADVANTAGES OF AN EDUCATION None will gainsay the statement that a liberal education increases the opportunities for success ; it paves the way for usefulness and influence in the community. In the way of professional interest, public school teachers are required to have thirty-six weeks of Normal training beside a high school education ; the scholarship certificate is not issued until the teacher has the necessary professional training. When professional interest and moral conduct warrant it, teachers are exempt from recurrent examinations. Their certificates are renewed from time to time as per requirements. While a good many traditions din̊. about the one- room school—the "little red school house," and it has been the theme of song and story, it is soon to become a thing of the past in Clark County. There are already many abandoned school houses, the consolidated school serving the purpose today. There has been little opposition to the consolidated or centralized school in Clark County. The first centralized school in Ohio was in Ashtabula County in 1892, and the system has found favor in many localities. When the new school code came into action in 1914, many county superintendents immediately began centralization projects. The Clark County citizens recognized the advantages to be derived under the Smith-Hughes law—manual training and domestic science teachers being partly paid by the state a possibility, and the only way the question was ever before the voters was for appropriations ; they understood the issue and supported the measure. Centralization brings high school advantages within the reach of all. It is remembered that Governor J. M. Cox called the Ohio Assembly into extraordinary session, in order to enact the new school code in Ohio; it has been said : "Governor Cox was keenly conscious of the great importance of the movement to organize rural life, and he realized that a high school system commensurate in efficiency with the importance of rural life and its industries was necessary and fundamental to the progress of such a movement, and that the country boys and girls were SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 169 not getting a square deal because the so-called system then in use was inadequate to their needs and interests and failed to reveal to them the possibilities of rural life and rural activities." The governor vigilantly guarded the new law against. reactionary influences and measures, and its wisdom has since been vindicated in the minds of Ohio educators. In writing of centralization, a leading educator says : "It has proved beyond the anticipation of its most ardent advocates its worth in meeting the rural conditions. When fully and properly administered, it is a corrective agency for the readjustment of the affairs of rural life; fortunate are the children whose heritage it is to have the opportunities made possible by its provisions, and only the coming years can reveal the full measure of its benefits." The first effort toward consolidation in Clark County was made at Selina, where four. wagons are in use, although in the county fifty-one trucks are utilized in transporting children to centralized schools. CROSS ROADS RURAL SCHOOL South Charleston is now the centralized school of Madison Township. the school corporation having been abolished and the school is operated by the township; the county board of education created a new district by combining the town and township. New Carlisle still operates its separate school, although there are some transfers from the townships near it. It draws from North Bethel and Pike, although Bethel has another centralized school at Olive Branch or Forgy ; the town is Forgy and the school is Olive Branch. The forty-four schools in Clark County outside of Springfield accommodate approximately 4,000 pupils, the monthly statement for December, 1921, showing an enrollment of 4,271 with an average attendance of 3,968, which is 95.12 per cent perf ectregarded by the superintendent as a good showing; in the whole month only 174 were late. Those coming in trucks are never late, and thus centralization eliminates tardiness ; in the month of December 3,853 were neither absent nor tardy. State Superintendent Vernon S. Reigel reports that Clark is the only Ohio county that never- voted on the question of centralization, although its people voted on bond issues which involved consolidation. 170 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY In a sense all high schools are centralized automatically, and Decem ber 31, 1921, there were only five one-room schools with the prospect that Fairview in German Township will be the last. It is not situated to combine well with another school, there being a number of two and three-room schools which will be continued indefinitely. Aside from Selma, practically all the centralization has developed under the leadership of Superintendent Collins. Eighth grade graduates receive diplomas and they are encouraged to enter high school and finally go to college. Wittenberg College is the objective point of many Clark County graduates. COUNTY HEALTH SUPERVISION Miss Agnes Kyle, who visits the rural schools and advises with teachers and pupils relative to sanitary and health conditions, is not a teacher ; she is employed by the Clark County Health Board and conservation of health is the object. She emphasizes the need of cleanliness and suggests to parents the proper diet when under-nourished children are discovered. There are many of them and in homes of plenty, but their food is not selected with regard to their particular needs. The health supervisor is not paid from the school fund, although she does much to increase regular attendance. Slates and slate rags and sponges are eliminated ; the coat sleeves that were once used to clean the slates—just allow the imagination full play—and think how much better it is for the child to use pencils and tablets, with waste paper baskets for the accumulation when it has served its purpose. Aye, some of the old-time teachers would become bewildered in the school rooms of today. They would say "Backward, turn backward," but they certainly served their day and generation acceptably. There is a rural welfare doctor as well as a rural advisory nurse, and in case of epidemic it becomes his duty to explain that children are safe in school because those exposed to disease are in quarantine. Both Clark County and the City of Springfield had much difficulty with epidemics in 1921, many being quarantined with scarlet f ever and with smallpox. It is said there are 11,000,000 children in the United States attending rural schools, and in Ohio sanitary and health conditions—thanks to the magnificent program launched a number of years ago—are far above the average. IN RETROSPECT Along in the early '70s—the reconstruction period following the Civil war—the country schoolhouses were the community centers. There were f ew neighborhood churches and it frequently f ell to the lot of the rural pedagogue to clean a school house on Monday morning that had served as a Sunday center. If a pupil was backward in his studies it became the teacher's duty to learn his difficulty; there was no visiting nurse to offer suggestions. When there were subscription schools—scholars and half-scholars—that was a system of grading, and while advance has been noted there was some good in the old-fashioned pedagogical methods. When Clark County teachers boarded around there was little said about the scale of wages. The high cost of living did not disturb them. It was the simple life. While some cling SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 171 to sentiment with regard to the institutions of the past, others accept the utility side, and a recent versifier exclaimed : "The little red schoolhouse stands Just like it always had done— But I can't grow reminiscent— I never went to one," and while some of the adherents assert that children of the past knew more at twelve than they know now when they graduate, they do not take into the account the fact that many studies are being pursued that were unknown to the children of a generation ago. If the "pupils in our common schools were much better spellers" it is because more emphasis was placed on spelling than on any other accomplishment except "figgers." The teachers of the past were better writers, much of the handwriting of half a century ago being as plain as script of today. There were good spellers and good writers developed in the one-room school houses. There used to be writing school and the teacher was an adept in ornamental penmanship—could make a zebra or spread eagle, but where is the man or woman today who attempts even a slight flourish in his signature? In the old church records and in some of the family Bibles are excellent specimens of penmanship. The fellow still exists who can "read readin' readin', but who cannot read riten readin'." The backwoods school teachers were welcomed into the homes of Clark County but who would board the school teacher today? The centralization plan also takes care of the living necessities of the school teacher. THE UNRULY SCHOOLBOY What has become of the unruly schoolboy who used to terrorize the school teacher ? When brawn rather than brain was the qualification of the teacher ; when muscular development rather than mental achievement secured recognition, the boys remained in the rural schools longer than today, when they are graduated bef ore they are old enough to intimidate the twentieth century female teacher. While still in the adolescent period, the boy of that type is now pursuing higher studies in other schools and change of environment" has changed the "nature of the brute." Disagreeable personality does not assert itself when the boy finds himself in different environment. A boy who is a terror at home is subdued by change of scenery. In the centralized school he may be shifted from one teacher to another and he loses confidence in himself. In the days of better chirography and orthography, the children in rural schools memorized much of the New Testament, and on Friday afternoons and in Sunday school they recited it. There were "whispering schools" and unless they studied aloud—their lips moved—the teacher was uncertain about their application. Watch the man on the car whose lips move while he reads the newspaper ; he went to whispering school. He is unable to grasp the thought unless his lips move in unison with his mentality. Time was when passing the water was the reward for careful study. Now there are sanitary drinking fountains and individual cup service, perhaps not enforced in all rural 172 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY communities. When the water bucket was filled at a neighboring farm house there were boys who wanted to bring the water in order to escape the humdrum of study. While spelling schools are reckoned with the habits and customs of the long ago, one of the rural schools at Rockway held a spelling school within the year. They used to go many miles to a spelling school, when district would be pitted against district, and it was wonderful how they would back their champion spellers. They lighted the way to spelling schools with torches and later with lanterns. While Webster's Elementary Speller is an heirloom today, it was once a vital part of the school community. The McGuffy readers had their day, and there never was any uniformity in mathematics until Ray's Practical Arithmetic became the standard. Many adults in Clark County learned what they know of the science of mathematics from Ray's Part III Arithmetic. It was thumbmarked as far as common fractions. It had the multiplication tables in it until they were worn by the pupils in an effort to master them. There were always young people with the commendable ambition to secure a liberal education. Among the older men and women are a few college graduates. ILLITERACY; ITS REMEDY While it is a vaunted educational system, when the World war developed the amount of illiteracy in the country, educators began studying the system. Something was radically wrong when twenty per cent of the young men entering the army were unable to read and write, and the 1920 census reports confirmed the war-time discovery, a Columbus headline reading : "Although in Clark County and in all of the counties adjoining, illiteracy has decreased during the last decade, the state educational survey shows that the campaign against ignorance is not progressing very well. In the decade ending December 31, 1920, illiteracy among the native-born whites in Clark County was reduced from .8 to .7, giving it one of the lowest percentages of illiteracy among the larger communities in Ohio." The census indicates that both foreign born and colored people show an increased percentage of illiteracy, while native-born whites show a decline, and still there is a field for educators. The census shows 1,009 persons ten years of age and older who are unable to write, most of them in Springfield, and 509 of them being negroes.. Between the ages .of sixteen and twenty only .3 of one per cent are illiterate. A recent writer says : "Our future leaders who come from agricultural districts will have had access to the centralized school buildings which have become community centers; affording the student body practically every opportunity which the city schools offer to boys and girls. The centralized school law was at once the most practical and progressive measure ever written into the Ohio statutes. One may shed a tear as the little red school house passes into history. It served its generation well but it did not keep up with- the spirit of the times." Commissioner of Education Tigert announces that the cities average $40.59 for the education of each child,' while the rural child is educated at an average annual expense of $23.91, the country child having 142 days in school, while the city child averages 182 days, and he points out this difference as a factor in the movement away from the farms. SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY - 173 The foregoing is a state condition that does not seem to hold good in Clark County, where the majority of the farmers are owners of the land, and it points to centralization as a solution of the difficulty. Good roads and centralized schools are two big factors in modern rural education. Centralization means co-operation, while the one-room school house means divided effort, and Clark is almost fully consolidated and the question solved itself ; it has not been forced in any community. A new building is ready for dedication in Mad River, and the schools at Pitchin, Oak Grove and Moorefield are being recognized as first class and everything is prosperous in the rural schools of Clark County. Superintendent Collins keeps in touch with drivers of the wagons and trucks, looking to the safety of children in transit, and .the speed of the truck does not require children to leave home so early. On Armistice Day, 1921, the Reid School was dedicated, the occasion attracting many former students and visitors. Superintendent Collins reviewed the history of the public school system, showing its relation to the Ordinance of 1787, providing for educational advantages. Wallace Bird and Miss Laura Maxwell reviewed the community history, and a piano was given the school by Amos Whitely, who was a guest ; he had been a schoolboy there. The Reid School was a community center visited by prominent men, President William McKinley one time delivering a political address there. There is sentiment about every rural school, and in prose verse some one writes : "Haw dear to our hearts are the things of our childhood, when fond recollection presents them to view ! The old district schoolhouse, the pail and the dipper, the same cud of gum which in turn we would chew ! No fear of a microbe would ever beset us,, no state board of health interfered then at all. We bathed dirty faces in one common basin and turned to the towel that hung. on the wall. The old roller towel, the stiff roller towel, the germ-laden towel that hung on the wall." There is a joint county-city normal school which is growing in popularity. It is a training school for teachers, the state contributing $1,500 toward the salary of the first teacher and $1,000 toward the second teacher, thus relieving the county-city schools of a considerable share of the burden of maintaining a training school for teachers. Miss Maggie Hinkle as director has had twenty-five students fitting themselves for teaching, and applications have :been received from many others. If printing "is the art preservative, then teaching is the profession preservative," and it 'is said : "The future of our country, the Americanization of our newcomers, and the proper direction of our civilization are largely in the hands of the public school teachers." In one of the booklets is mention .of Samuel Harvey as a surveyor and school teacher, who was also author of an arithmetic. His activities were in the vicinity of South Charleston. Rev. John Hunt, in the closing days of 1921, a resident of the I. 0. 0. F. Home in Springfield, was credited with being the oldest living college graduate from any American college. In 1842 he graduated from Brown University. Clark County has had recognition in the fifty-second annual session of the Central Ohio Teachers' Association, of which Superintendent Collins is president, and 0. T. Hawke of the county schools and E. W. Tiffany of the Springfield schools hold committee appointments. Clark County schools were well represented at the meeting held in Dayton. Dr. T. Bruce Birch of 'Wittenberg College, was one of the speakers before 174 - SPRINGFIELD AND CLARK COUNTY the association. W. H. Wilson of Springfield was chairman of the industrial arts section. With the co-operation between the public school and the farm bureau, liberal education is being given in the study of agriculture. There are evening classes in some of the centralized schools to which farmers are invited, and soil fertility is a subject under consideration. There is demand for a practical education, and educators are alert for best methods. The primary duty of the public school is to prepare the pupil for self-support, with a knowledge of the origin and use of good Eng- lish, the essential facts in history, the fundamentals of mathematics, some familiarity with natural science, the evolution of popular government, civic duties and responsibilities, and in an address given in Springfield, Judge Frank W. Geiger declared himself in favor of readjusting the present school system so that children be graded by mentality and not by age, saying that 70,000,000 people in the United States are below the average fifteen-year-old child in mentality.