The Intermediate School at Sheridan, Illinois
By N. W. Kauble
THE quiet little town of Sheridan is on the Fox River branch of the C. B. & Q. Railway, about sixty-five miles southwest of Chicago. Two and one-half miles from this village, in the heart of what was once a heavily timbered country, is located the Sheridan Industrial School. There is no more ideal place in all the country around for such a school. The school farm comprises forty-three acres of good land, fifteen of which has been cleared and put under cultivation by the teachers and students during the four years of the school's existence. A part of this clearing is rich bottom land. It has been difficult to farm on this land, however, because it must be drained before good crops can be produced. The past season was a very wet one, and as this land has been only partly drained, the yield was not the best. Preparations are being made to tile this portion of the farm this spring, so it can be put to the best possible use.19 A large part of the remaining land is still heavily timbered, although many cords of wood have been cut, both for use by the school and for the market. Several thousand fence posts also have been made from the wood. The buildings consist of the main building and three cottages, besides the barn and small buildings. The first to be completed was the poultry house, which served as a home for the teachers and students who were early on the ground, to aid in the clearing of ground and the erection of buildings. Since the completion of the main building, the barn, and the first cottage, all the carpenter work has been done by students and teachers. Two acres of the farm is set out to berries, the remainder being used for gardening. More of the cleared land will be made available for this purpose by the tiling to be done this spring. Along the southern boundary of this bottom land flows a picturesque stream. This creek furnishes not only an abundant supply of water for the stock in summer, but is always a source of pleasure to the students and teachers in their study of nature and her works. Notwithstanding the unusually wet season of last year, the farm gave the school an income of over two hundred dollars. This does not include the wood used for fuel, nor the products consumed last summer. The running expenses have been met, and debts that had accumulated in consequence of non-collectable accounts have been paid. The enrolment for 1903-04 is sixty-nine. These students represent not only all parts of Illinois, but many other States. The spiritual condition has improved gradually until, with one or two exceptions, every student in the home has given his heart to the Lord, and is seeking a preparation for work in the Master's vineyard. Surely a blessed work is being done in these schools. The change that has been wrought in students who have had the benefit of this school is certainly an unanswerable argument in favor of the Lord's plan for education.