The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1873-07-19 00:00:00

E STMBI3ftiDGE OBBFRVER.

meeting, went on to inform him of what had taken
place, and proceeded to say that he had a perfect
right to blame the conduct of the four gentlemen
opposite. About this time the Rev. T. Williams
entered the room, upon which
Mr. Prescott said he must ask the gentleman
who had just come to withdraw, as that meeting
was a private one. There had been no resolution
passed throwing those meetings open to the general
public, and he must ask Mr. Williams to with-
draw.
; Mr. Williams said he should abide by the de-
cision of Mr. Holloway.
Mr. Holloway lean find nothing in the Edu-
cation Act which wifl prohibit Mr. Williams or any
other ratepayer from attending these meetings.
There were no bye-laws passed by this Board ex-
cluding ratepayers from your deliberations.
Mr. Prescott: Until we have a chairman ap-
pointed I maintain that this is essentially a private
meeting. It is true the representatives of the press
are present, but that is a privilege; and while I
am not desirous of calling upon them to withdraw,
I must call upon Mr. Williams to leave the room.
(Mr. Williams had by this time taken a chair at
the back of Mr. Prescott, which he retained till
the election of chairman and vice-chairman was

over.)
Mr. Prescott proceeded. He had a charge to
make against the four gentlemen opposite him,
which he believed would disqualify them from re.
taming their seats at that Board. He charged
them with being guilty of bribery.
Mr. Holloway You must confine yourself to
the proposition, or I shall call upon you to sit
down.
Mr. Prescott: lam acting strictly under the
advice of counsel, and I shall go on. I charge
them with intimidation and undue influence.
Mr. Holloway again reminded Mr. Preseottthat
lie should confine himself to the amendment.
Mr. Prescott, however, went on to remark that
it was most discreditable to those gentlemen
(Messrs. McEwen, Waller, Stringer, and Billing-
ham) to come to the room below on Wednesday night
for so the rumour went, and to have drawn cuts
as to who should be chairman. It was not treat-
ing Mr. Scott and Mr. Wall with the respect due
' to them, and he asked whether it was creditable,
honourable, and fair, or the best way to deal with
public matters, that there should be a hole-and-
corner meeting for such a purpose? He thought
it was most discreditable, mean, and contemptible.
Mr. Prescott went on to propose Mr. Scott as
chairman of the Board. He was not a gentleman
under the influence of any bank manager or min-
ister who had the screw upon him, neither had he
the " monkey " upon his chimneys. He had de-
voted more to education than perhaps all "the
four' put together.
Mr. Scott said if he might be allowed to inter-
rupt, he would say that he should decline to act
as chairman.
Mr. Prescott said in that ease he should not say
another word. He had not spoken to Mr. Scott
since the election. _ _

Mr. Wall said he had heard the same rumour
about a private meeting having been held by the
majority of the Board for the purpose of choosing
a chairman. His informant gave him the name
of a clergyman of the town as the person who
originated the report.
Mr. Prescott: And that clergyman is in this
room (referring to Mr. Williams).
Mr. Wall I don't say it was that gentleman;
your informant was not mine, Mr. Prescott.
Mr. Prescott : It does not matter; it is the
same person, and he is present.
Mr. Wall said he shouldlnot say whether he was
present or not; but he considered it would be only
courteous to the minority of the members of the
Board if the other members would inform them if
such a meeting had been held for the purpose
stated. Since the election had taken place he had
been informed that another gentleman was to have
been elected chairman; and it was simply as a mat-
ter of principle that he wished to ask that pies.
tion. _

Mr. Wall's query having elicited no reply,
Mr. Scott said he was placed in a somewhat
difficult position in the matter, for though not
opposed to Mr. McEvven, he still felt some objec-
tion to the question of chairmanship being settled
out of doors. lie had resolved in his own mind
to propose his friend Mr. Walker as chairman of
the Board, and now he could see no reason why
he should not carry out that intention. He there-
fore moved that Mr. J. Walker be elected chair-
man.
Mr. Wall seconded the amendment.
Mr. Walker said he must decline to accept the
post, on the grounds that he was frequently
called away from the town, and the probability
was that it would cause some inconvenience to the
members of the Board.
Mr. Scott then withdrew his amendment, and
_ .

the motion was put to the meeting and carried.
Mr. MeEwen thanked the Board for placing him
in that position, but said tie should nAve telt au
the more pleased if he had been elected by the
unanimous voice of the Board, instead of his
friend on the left (Mr. Prescott) indulging in ex-
pressions which were unworthy of him. Having
been elected, he would conduct the business of
the Board to the best of hie ability, and he called
upon them, collectively and individually, to as-
sist him in the performance of the duties devolv-
ing upon him. He concluded by moving that Mr.
Walker be elected vice-chairman to the Board.
Mr. }Effingham seconded the motion, and spoke
of the many qualifications of Captain Walker for
the office. All who sat under him as Chairman of
the Commissioners knew that he had acted with
the strictest impartiality.
Mr. Prescott said he could not endorse the re-
marks of Mr. Billinghana relative to the impartial
manner in which Captain Walker conducted pub-
lic matters. Upon the question of the election of
the School Board alone he wanted to know if
Captain Walker had acted impartially.
The Chairman I must protest against this.
Mr. Prescott: You may protest, but I shall

. -
speak.
The Chairman: If you have any amendment
to move, do so; if not, sit down, and do not make
personal remarks.
Mr. Prescott : They are not personal remarks.
You did not protest against Mr. Billingnam say-
ing that Captain Walker acted stn imptudality,
and why object to me saying that he does not act
impartially? I heard you (the Chairman) say
yourself that you were disgusted at the manner in
which those meetings were called together when
the candidates were selected by the two religious
parties. •
The Chairman : I beg to say that I never said
anything of the kind.
Mr. Prescott : lam prepared to prove that you
said those words. In continuing his remarks, he
said if Mr. Walker was unable to accept the post
of chairman in consequence ef business calling
him away, he was sure the same argument would
apply to him not accepting the office of vice-chair-
man. He considered him totally unqualified for
the post.'
The Chairman : I must protest against the
time of the Board being occupied in this manner.
Mr. Prescott, if you have an amendment to move,
do so at once.

Mr. Prescott: I move that Mr. Scott be elected
vice-president to this Board.
Mr. Scott declined to accept the office.
Mr. Prescott I very much regret it, then.
The motion was then put and carried.
Captain Walker acknowledged the compliment,
and said he shdtild do his best to act as impar-
tially as possible in the discharge of the duties
devolving npon,him; and when Mr. MeEwen was
unable to attend, he would make a point of being
there.
The Chairman said he had a sight to say that
the last time he ever saw Mr. Prescott to speak
to him was when he was at Mr. Taylor's office.
Mr. Prescott entered the room without any an-
nouncement whatever, in a way that he certainly
should have thought no gentleman would have
adopted. Mr. Prescott asked him if he would
accept the office of chairman to the Board; he re-
plied that he had not considered about it, on which
Mr. Prescott askedhim if he would be good enough
to consider it. He never gave him an answer at
all about accepting the office.
Mr. Prescott: You said you had no time to do
, the work.
The Chairman: Certainly not.
Mr. Prescott; I can prove it, Mr. MeEwen.
Mr. MeEwen said the next business would be the
appointment of a clerk; and they must first come to
some agreement as to what salary they would give
him.
Mr. Prescott said he should propose that a sum of
only .e2O a year be given to the Clerk to that Board.
lie would give his reasons for confining the amount
to that sum. Mr. Taylor, the Clerk to the COMMi4-
siouers, had received until lately, only £3O a year,
; and he thought they would all admit that his duties
I took up more time than those of a clerk to that Board
would; as the latter would have to attend their
meetings once a month, when his time would prob.
I ably be occupied for about three hours.
' Mr. MeEwen asked if any one seconded Mr. Pros.
cotta proposition; but received no reply.
Mr. Scott asked if it was necessary to give so much
, as .£2O.

_
Mr. Prescott said that the salary of the clerk at
Brierley Hill was £5O a year.
The Chairman again asked if any one seconded
Mr. Prescott's proposition; but received no answer.
Mr. Walker suid he thought they ought to discuss
this matter in a friendly spirit. With regard to what
had been said with reference to the duties of the
clerk for that Board, they would depend very much
upon what the Board decided to do in the future as
respected the Compulsory Clauses of the Act, and
as to providing school accommodation. lio iris told

that the the ora at Isre... , Hill were so
heavy and onerous, and that the oorrespondence con-
nected with the office was so extensive that it swal-
lowed up the whole of hi a salary to defray the ex-
penses, and at the end of the year he was positively
out of pocket.
Mr. Preseott said he thought the population of
Kingswinford was six times more than that of Stour-
bridge, when he was told by one of the members of
the Board that it was 34,000.
Mr. Prescott then went on to say that, looking at
the difference in the population, he considered £2O
quite aufficient salary for the clerk to the Stourbridge
School Board.
Mr. Scott asked the Board what was their opinion
as to the frequency of the meetings.
Mr. McEwen said he thought once a month would
be often enough to meet.
Mr. Scott was of opinion that they ought to meet
oftener than that for the first year, or, until such
time as they had got the affairs of the Board in
thorough working order.
Mr. MeEwen suggested that Mr. Holloway be the
clerk, until such time as they could appoint a clerk.
This was generally agreed upon.
Mr. Walker was of opinion that they ought to get
all the information they could, before they finally
decided what they should do in the matter of appoint-
ing a clerk.
Mr. Prescott said surely they wanted no more ex-
perience in the matter. They had sufficient at the
Awed of Commissioners. Mr. Taylor had had only
£3O a year, until his salary had been increased.
Some general conversation ensued, when in answer
to a suggestion that they should advertise for a clerk,
the Chairman said he believed that if they did so,
the post was such an undesirable one, that they
would have no applications for it.
Mr. Stringer here interposed, and said that if the
Chairman would move a resolution he would second

duties of

clerk at Brierley

it.
Mr. McEwen then moved a resolution to the ellect
that the Board should resolve itself into a committee
for the purpose of discussing the whole question, both
as to the appointment of a clerk, and as to the am-
ount of salary to be given him.
This was seconded by Mr. Stringer, and carried.
Mr. Scutt asked if it was usual for motions to
emanate from the chair ?
Mr. Prescott sa d it was not usual in the House of
Commons; he did uoe know how it was at the Stour.
bridge School Board.
Mr, McEwen said he simply did it to expedite the
business of the meeting, and to save time. He did
not want to be there all day.
After some further conversation,
_ .

Mr. Scott said he could not quite agree with them
as to meeting only once a month. lie was decidedly
of opinion that until they had provided the extra
school accommodatiozi. required, they should meet
oftener than that.
Mr. Prescott Bain that Mr. Scott was taking it for
granted that extra school accommodation would be
required, whereas he believed it would not. It was
stated in the report upon which this assumption was
based, that accommodation was required for 311
children; but as there were only 47 houses in the
district indicated there could not possibly be that
number.

In answer to a question,
Mr. Scott said his idea was that the meetings of
the Board should be fortnightly for the present.
Some desultory conversation ensued as to the ap-
pointment of the clerk, and
Mr. Scott thought it would be best not to appoint
one at present, ann, before doing so, that an adver-
tisement should be inserted in the local papers for
candidates for the office. lie thought that in the
meantime the clerk should try to get all the informa-
tion he could frem other towns as to the duties de-
volving upon clerks of School Boards, and the am-
ounts of salaries paid to them.
It was suggested that Mr. Holloway be appointed
clerk for the first twelve months, hut in answer to
questions as to whether he would accept the position
of clerk for that period, that gentleman replied that
his duties would not allow him to do so, even for
three months. He, however, consented to act for the
present.
Mr. Stringer suggested that 14 days be allowed to
make enquiries, and he (at the request of the chair-
man) put his suggestion into the form of a resolu-
tion.

The Chairman said be thought that resolution
would meet the case.
Mr. Holloway, having read the resolution,
Mr. Scott thought that as the Board would meet
again as a Board before a clerk was appointed, it wee
unnecessary to pass the resolution just read.
The Chairman said that as there had been so much
said at that Board about hole-and-corner meetings,
he was determined that no one should have the
opportunity of making such remarks with reference
to the business transacted there, whilst he was chair-
man; and for that reason he supported the resolu-
tion.

Mr. Wall asked if no other business could be
given to the committee; but it was generally con-
ceded that it was advisable the conuuittee should
illoulf +.3 <la, Lusie.m. f-1 ttlao
resolution.

Eventually, it was decided to hold the committee
meeting in the Union Chambers (the use of which,
for the occasion, has been given to the Board by Mr.
Scott), on the 31st July. The next meeting of the
Board will be held in the Commissioners Room in
the Corn Exchange, on the 15th of August.
The Clerk then presented the official return of the
expenses inclined during the election.
On the motion of Mr. Prescott, seconded by Mr.
Wall, it was resolved that the return for the election
be entered on the minutes,

The bill of the election sxpenses, amounting to
£6l 4s 3.1, was then ordered to be received.

A letter' was read from the Rev. A. Roger,, after
hearing which, the Chairman said he did not consider
it contained any question which they could discuss.
Mr. Scott gave it as his opinion that the writer
simply wished to pave the way for suggestions which
he might make to the Board at some future time;
and the matter dropped.
There was no other business.

L

CHARON OF CUTTING AN') WOUNDING.—At the Stone-
bridge Police Court, yesterday, before Major Fletcher,
Joint Robins Woo charged with unlawfully cutting and
wounding his wife Ana Robins, on the 14th ult. Com-
plainant said that she had lived with the defendant for
14 years and never had any wind, before, and she did
not wish to pre,s the case. If the deferriaut wag sent
to prison she would have no home for herself and
children. Under tire-re circumstances the Bench cautioned
the defendant and allowed the case to be withdrawn.