The Herald Of The Twin Cities, Roanoke Rapids, Rosemary

CHILDREN FIRST

In the face of danger or disaster on a sinking ship we would strike down anyone who attempted to save himself at the expense of a child. Children come first not only on sinking ships, but in our hearts, our homes, our schools, and our churches. They are first. The race can save itself-can lift itself higher-only as children are lifted up. In this unique period of depression with its extreme want on one side and extreme fortunes on the other, many schools are carried down to disaster-their doors closed--their funds cut off. Boards of education and other public officials are often hard pressed financially but they cannot afford to give up the idea of children first. To do justice by the child it is necessary to do justice by the child's teacher. Teachers have never had full justice. Their salaries have always been low when compared with their training and their heavy responsibilities. They have never been able to maintain the standard of living which the character of their work calls for. We have never given to our American rural communities the leadership of a stable, well-trained teaching profession. To reduce teachers' salaries now would be to weaken our first and last line of defense and to cripple the very institution-the common school--to which we must look for the training in skill and in character to enable us to rise above present conditions.