148 



Missouri Agricultural Report. 



attendance ranged from eight to thirteen. This calls for ex- 

 planation. A voluntary transportation route to feed the model 

 rural school of the State Normal School drew most heavily from 

 this district in its five miles' course. It stands to reason that 

 parents living on a route offering the benefits of transportation, 

 expert teaching, free textbooks and a comfortable building 

 would avail themselves of such opportunity and would not be 

 actively interested in the development of a local school. Thus 

 unintentionally was this district devitalized. 



Transportation, 1912. Wagon donated. Starting from the Allen Conner home, a terminal 

 point on tlie voluntary route. Mr. Conner donated use of team for six months. Fred 

 Conner, seventeen years old, driving. Two other patrons insisted on contributing 

 towards the expense of the route that year. 



There was lack of local co-operation, local initiative, and 

 worst of all, lack of local faith in the possibilities of bringing about 

 a permanent regime of progress. This was shown in the determi- 

 nation of a number to retain the advantages of the model rural 

 school at Kirksville, even though they had petitioned for the 

 retention of this teacher in that school. The model rural school 

 with another teacher was a more certain proposition than this 

 teacher with the old Porter school, frankly described by one 

 mother as "unfit for my little girl to attend in cold weather." 

 They had learned to appreciate the advantages of a suitable 



