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The day book. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1911-1917, August 30, 1915, LAST EDITION, Image 3

Image and text provided by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Library, Urbana, IL

Persistent link: https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83045487/1915-08-30/ed-1/seq-3/

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schemes and do as they please with
the schools and money.
"Industrial interests want control
of the schools so they can make the
schools an adjunct of industrialism.
They want the schools to be a place
where pupils will cease to be taught
to be human beings with every reason
to expect an even chance in this
world, but may be taken in tender
years and taught to be simply cogs
for the smooth running of the indus
trial machine.
"The Teachers' Federation has al
ways stood in the way of those who
wished to subject the schools to in
dustrialism. They took the stand that
with organized labor's work defeated
the 'Cooley dual educational bill,
which the Commercial club tried to
make a part of the school system.
"Rothman is so opposed to me be
cause the federation stood in the way
of his gaining control over the teach
er' pension fund.
"In 1912 when the teachers found
they would have to have a bill passed
to make effective the pension fund
they had established, Mr. Rothman
as chairman of the finance commit?
tee of the school board proposed a bill
placing the pension fund in control
of the board of education, with the
chairman of the finance committee
ex-officio president of the fund, which
at that time was $1,000,000.
"The teachers' legislative commit
tee declined to pass on the Rothman
measure and told him to put the vote
direct to the teachers. Next morning
ballots went into the mails, accom
panied by a statement that the teach
ers' legislative committee and the
federation officers favored the Roth
man bill. That statement was a bald
he.
"To counter this underhand act,"
continued Miss Haley, "I got a copy
of the Merriam investigation into the
management of the police pension
fund when Rothmann was president
of the police pension board. This re
port stated that interest on the fund
had not been turned back into the
fund for seven years. This was be
lieved to be $12,000 to $15,000 a year.
"Circulars were printed of this in
formation to be sent to all teachers
about to vote on the Rothman bill.
Between the time the order was given
to the printer and the circulars were
mailed we received a request to ask
the finance committee for a raise in
salaries, with the understanding that
the raise would be granted. We made
this request for the raise, but we also
sent out the circulars and so we got
no raise.
"By exposing the Merriam report
regarding Rothman's conduct of the
police pension fund we spoiled Roth
man's scheme to get control of the
teachers' pension fund. It spoiled to,
I understand, Rothman's ambition to
become a judge, for the men who
backed him are said to have dropped
their support when the Merriam re
port was made public."
The perfidious position of the loop
dailies on the school question was ex
plained by John Fitzpatrick, presi
dent of the Chicago Federation of
Labor: "The Tribune cannot take a
stand, for it sat in at a midnight
steal of the school board. Vic Law
son's Daily News can't take a stand,
for the News building stands on
school land that he gets for a song
of rental and Vic is only paying $17
yearly taxes on his million-dollar
mansion, while the cottage owner
averages $40 a year."
"If there was any purpose in es
tablishing the republic of America it
was to obliterate conditions which
autocratic members of the school
board now want to set up," said John
C. Kennedy.
"The Teachers' Federation is pre
venting the open looting of the
school treasury and is preserving the
school system as a free heritage for
our children. That is why Big Busi
ness wants to break it up," said John
H. Walker, president of State Federa
tion of Labor.
"Big Business wants to run tho
pupils into blind alleys. The Amen
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