OREGON NORMAL SCHOOLS 165
and California. The majority of these do not return to teach in Oregon.
"Pendleton has many advantages as a site for a normal school :
Excellent training school facilities ;
An abundant supply of pure water; a healthful location;
Excellent railroads affording access from any part of the state ;
Sufficient housing capacity to take care of the students ;
A good city library, a new natatorium, and a stadium." Weston offered the negative arguments. Mention was made that the state already had an adequate plant at Weston, and from the point of view of economy it was better to make use of it than to spend $125,000 for a new one. The senate was blamed for the failure to support Weston in 1909, and the statement made that Pendleton had one state institution the Eastern Oregon branch of the asylum for the insane. As a clincher, Weston said the establishment of a normal at Pendle- ton would mean a return to the old log-rolling practices of other days, thus using with good effect arguments which had been her own undoing. At all events, the Pendleton normal school proposition was voted down, the vote standing for the normal 96,820, and against 109,523.
Again in 1918 Ashland came back with a new plan. It was a referendum measure giving permanent support to the Ash- land school by a tax of 1/25 of a mill, and further appropriated $125,000 for buildings for a new school to be located in Eastern Oregon, the site to be selected by the board of regents, grounds being donated by the fortunate city. A 1/25 mill tax was included for the proposed new institution. Weston considered making a third attempt, but felt it was hopeless. Hermiston had ambitions to become a normal school town, and offered a site of twelve acres, which Hermiston citizens said was worth $1,000 an acre. Hood River also deliberated on asking for a normal, but wisely withdrew. Something of the attitude of
