OCR Text |
Show The Saturday Evening Post strikes a most vulnerable spot in our national nation-al economy when it makes the astound as-tound declaration that this country loses over eight hundred millions of dollars yearly through the illiteracy of its people. At first glance ,this would seem to be an exaggerated estimate, es-timate, but when one conies to carefully care-fully consider the limitations of an illiterate the statement does not seem so overdrawn.- The illiterate rnan or woman is at a discount in every avenue of industry. He or she is incapable in-capable of filling any but the most menial of positions, and even the work of these lines is not nearly so well executed, as a general thing, by illiterates as by those of moderate learning. Probably the most disastrous dis-astrous effect of illiteracy is found on the farms of the country. An illiterate illiter-ate farmer, as a eeneral nronosition. is a back number. Progress is foreign for-eign to his nature. Unable to read and keep pace with world thought and world improvement, he clings to antiquated methods in his work, with the result that frequently a great per cent of his effort is wasted. Of course this is not always the case, but too often it is. The Post's estimate es-timate of eight hundred millions, rightly applied, would go a long way toward ridding the country of this source of shame and mortification. |