The Coral Gables Times

THE Coral Gables TIMES

Established Jan. 15, 1926 Published Weekly at 364 Sevilla Ave., Coral Gables, Fla. Second Class Postage Paid at Miami, Fla. ROLFE NEILL | .Editor & Publisher JOHN T. WATTERS | .President Robert M. Slane | Advertising Manager John Mullin | Circulation Manager Maurice Labelle, Raymond Lang | .Reporters Mrs. Irene Stoeber | Classified Manager Miss Helen Reynolds | .Society Editor Mrs. Eleanor Newsholme | Office Manager Subscription: $3.00 year by mail anywhere

Please, Mr. Metro, Don't Help Us

One of Metro Commission's latest propositions—to place all of the area's firemen under its own training program—rates four alarms. The alarms should be for opposition. The Times agrees with the Coral Gables City Commission in saying, in effect, Hands Off Our Fire Department. Metro's idea is basically sound. It wants to raise the level of firefighting everywhere. However, in this proposal, as in occasional other Metro plans, is an element of arbitrariness which is unreasonable. It makes no sense for a fire fighting force as well trained as the Gables', one as well equipped and one with as good a record to be gathered under Metro's skirts. If we can believe what we hear—and we want to in this case—Metro may be in a mood to grant exceptions. We hope so. It would be ill conceived to force Gables firefighters into a county school. The truth is that in this instance the Gables might well train Metro.

Thank You, Harry Rath

Now this man Harry Rath talks our kind of school talk. He's principal at Coral Gables High School and when interviewed last week about why his institution's students are mopping up so many statewide honors he had these things to say, among others: "When this school opened, I decided we were going to stress academics and I let the teachers know it. I told them they were not to be baby sitters and sit in the back of the class. They were going to give their students a sound education . . . The attitude of everyone here is to succeed, to be superior, to strive hard." That kind of philosophy blows like a good salt breeze through the fog of modern education with its no-homework, progressive-promotion approach. As noted here a week or two ago, Gables High students are raking in the dividends. This was particularly noticeable the other evening when four of the 12 Silver Knight Awards landed in Our Town, double any other school's record. H. N. Rath stands for what makes an educated son and daughter. All these honors are but pleasant proof of it.

Information Is Not Education

By PHILLIPS RUSSELL Correspondent That young people of college age often exhibit a racking ignorance of contemporary affairs is nothing new, but Dr. Joseph E. Garal of the Staten Island Community College has found that some of the 437 students in five New York City colleges are in a high state of confusion about current events. Students believed that Nehru is the prime minister of Israel, 34 students regarded Faubus as a rock-'n'-roll singer, confusing him with Fabian, five students stated that John F. Dulles is our secretary of state. It appears that a similar confusion may be found among investigating educators, especially as regards the true function of education. The mission of a school is to foster and sharpen the intelligence and to cultivate the mind. But information is not to be confused with education. One may have an encyclopedic grasp of miscellaneous facts without having a working intelligence or a cultivated mind. Genuine education spurs the student to learn about far more matters than can be taken up in a classroom, and a sharpened intelligence does not stop with a fund of facts but works out the connection between cause and effect. Some of the characters who appeared on the late lamented TV prize quizzes showed a remarkable knowledge of facts such as can be gleaned from a good reference book, and one could certainly call them informed but not necessarily educated. Let it be repeated: Information is not to be confused with education. One may obtain a good fund of information by reading the newspapers or stocking a few books of reference such as a dictionary, an almanac and an encyclopedia. Almost any bit of knowledge is likely at some stage of one's career to be useful, but a good education requires far more than an ability to remember the capital of Alaska or the name of the secretary of national defense. It may be edifying to discover a person who recalls who was vice president of the United States under President Coolidge, or what is the distance to the planet Venus but it will probably save time and energy for more urgent things if one looks up these facts in any good encyclopedia or book of reference. To have at hand a stock of comprehensive books of reference should be as much a part of house furnishings as a sofa or cooking range. The schools are just now taking a good whipping, and no doubt like all human institutions they need improvement, but let us not lay on their backs the job of acquainting their students with the name of every job holder or elected official. Every individual must learn to do certain things for himself.

'Thanks, but to no thanks.'

Remember The Times

25 YEARS AGO Mrs. Alvie Lindborg, secretary of the Chamber of Commerce, conceived the idea of sponsoring a Royal Poinciana Festival . . . Ernest Graham, owner of Graham Dairy, announced he was going to put up a hard battle for the state senate seat . . . Mrs. Eleanor Schuck was elected president of the Ponce de Leon High School PTA . . . . . . 10 YEARS AGO Jack Widdersheim was elected president of the Lions Club of Coral Gables . . . Gables city employe, Miss Loretta Sheehey and Capt. Floyd P. Brasher, head of the police department traffic division, marked off 25 years of service to the city. "And to think," Miss Sheeley commented, "I just came down here to spend a year" . . . Mayor Hendrick led a delegation of Miami officials on a trip to Ciudad Trujillo, which inaugurated the flights of the CDA Dominican airline . . . City Commissioner Thomas C. Mayes proposed a city council test to determine whether or not the proposed traffic control and beautification project for the Miracle Mile can legitimately be charged against property owners on the thoroughfare . . . Bruce Brauston was the first student from this area to be awarded a scholarship to New York University . . . Mrs. Byron Sperow, elected president of the Coral Gables Music Club . . . C. M. "Bud" Dailey was elected secretary and treasurer of the Coral Gables Kiwanis Club.

Everybody's Business

By Rolfe Neill T. A. Kibby, Gulf Oil's newly-arrived boss, is called "Tak," after his initials. His experiences include many years in Venezuela . . . Sam Miller, manager of the Sears store at Miracle Mile entrance, has an empire of his own there. He's got between 600 and 700 employes, up to 1,000 at Christmas. Incidentally, Sam's celebrating an anniversary along with his firm's 75th anniversary. It's his 25th year with Sears; he broke in at Montgomery, Ala. . . . A man with amazing vitality to be in his 70's, Dennis B. Welsh of 2521 N. Greenway Dr. is refreshing to meet. He's still excited about everything around him, including the University of Miami he served so long as development executive. Baseball is plainly his first love, however. Dennis hiked his worsted trousers leg last week right on Miracle Mile to display proudly some cleat marks from youthful playing days. Elsewhere in the paper (page 7) you'll find a couple stories about The Times' moving. Not mentioned is the owner of our new building. He is Roscoe Brunstetter, a delightful fellow who's very nearly an aboriginal in the Gables. A lawyer and former ayor, Roscoe's got more than casual interest in the paying off of these Tax Participation Certificates. It was he who engineered the TPC's in the desperate '30s. That's a story we'll get into one of these days ere long.

OFF BEAT

By Maurice Labelle Some Realtors report an air of cautiousness on transactions because of the Cuban situation. Fear is expressed that Fidelunatic is way out enough to trigger off a vengeance raid. Those single-engined jets darting about the Gables skies lately are designed to minimize that possibility. —ML— After all the votes had been counted in the recent election, Joe Murphy came out all-time champion vote getter for commissioner. Former Mayor W. Keith Phillips is still champ in the mayoralty department. —ML— What ever became of the $800,000 that was to be made available when a large portion of the city's debt was paid off this year? The latest figure being banted around is $200,000. "We don't have a sum of money to plan with as some people thought we had," Mayor Bob Searle told the Citizens Committee last week. Which goes to prove that it's as difficult for the city to save money as it is for us. —ML— Art ain't got a chance. The City Commission wants to install a type of tile in public rest rooms that will make it difficult, if not impossible, for artists and poets to exhibit their talents. —ML— Coral Gables is casting stones at Miami's new "smokeless, odorless" incinerator. Ours is Simon pure, it is said. Are we talking about the same thing? —ML— Auditor Paul Gleman liked last week's column item about him. Says it's the nicest way he's ever been called an S.O.B. —ML— Two years can make a lot of difference in a person's policial thinking. Recently Mayor Robert L. Searle appeared on a TV program and said some nice things about Metro. Commissioner Joe Murphy appeared more recently and offered little praise. What happened? Searle two years ago was the most anti-Metro of the five city Commissioners. And Murphy backed Winston W. Wynne on all consolidation moves. —ML— Police Chief William Kimbrough tells how the new emergency phone system came in real handy the other day — calling in election results from the polls. —ML— Charles Berry, recent candidate for City Commission, is not a sore loser, but he's getting out of town. Berry is moving his auto parts business next to Jim Rathman's garage at 2195 NW 27th Ave. He'll still reside at 275 Giralda Ave., but Berry said the parking problem on Giralda got to be too much for him.

What YOU Think

Editor: Mr. Arthur Anklan's recent comments in The Herald about the Coconut Grove incinerator might have sounded funny to some people but to those of us who live in the Gables and have to put up with the stench and fall-out of scum and ashes it is no joking matter. The undersigned has been a resident of Coral Gables for the past 25 years but since the building and operation of the new Grove incinerator we Gables residents have had to suffer with this health menace and interference with our normal everyday mode of living. For instance, a neighbor has had to stop using his pool due to the film of scum that covered it daily. My son who is subject to asthma attacks, has been severely handicapped and we are now making up our minds about when and where to move to. I have made several visits to the incinerator plant to protest the belching stinking smoke clouds and representations have been made to Miami City Manager Reese but the disgusting odor gets worse, if anything. Smoky Pittsburgh, a name synonymous with grime and soot, has eliminated the problem by using up-to-date smoke control methods and equipment. In Coral Gables, extensively advertised as The City Beautiful, one would think it is high time the City Fathers took legal action to protect the investments in fine homes and family living that its citizens have made. SYDNEY G. KEEP 718 UNIVERSITY DR.