The New York herald., 1851-08-19
The School Question In Brooklyn.
DECISION OF THE SUPREME COURT.
ORANGE COUNTY SPECIAL. TER

ana QlSlnteTeSteQ account OF the matter.
The School Question In Brooklyn.
DECISION OF THE SUPREME COURT.
ORANGE COUNTY SPECIAL TERM,
NEwBURo, August 1851.
The People &c rel. the Brooklyn Orphan Asylum
against the Board Of Educdtion.-The people &c rel
the Roman Cathohc OyYtan Asysm against the
Peremptory mandamus issue.-A. H: Dana and S.
B. Brophy for the asylums-J. M. Van Cott and
John A. Lott for the Board of Education.
toD Of The ,bs @ first Sec
the common schools Of the city of Brooklyn declares
that the Common Council of the city shall by virtue
ofther office, be Commissioners of Common Schools
in and for the city, with all the rights power, and
authority, and subject to all the duties and obga-
tons OF Commissioners Of Common Schools in the
several towns Of the State, except as was thereafter
inthe said act provided Amongst the duties of COM
missoners in the towns, that Of receiving into
their own hands the moneys raised and ap propria-
ted to the use Of comon schools, and to apportion
the same amongst the several school districts Of the
| town. The act of the 18th of April 1913, 'amen-
datory Of the several acts relating TO common
schools" abolished the Office of Commissioner of
| Common Schools in the several towns, and substi-
tuted in its place the Office of Town Superintendent
OF Common Schools, with substantially the same
powers and duties. The provisions of this last act
do not affect the city Of Brooklyn, but the act Of
the 18th January, lSiS, provided for the appoint
ment, by the Board Of Education of the city of
Brooklyn, Of Superintendent of Common Schools,
to exercise such powers and perform such duties in
said city as the Board of Education may direct;
and it further declared that be should be vested
with the powers and perform all the duties of Su-
perintendent ofCOmmon Schools, as provided in the
act OF the l7th April, 1913, before referred to-
The defendant insists that inasmuch as the Town
Surerintendents receive into their own hands and
apportion the public moneys appropriated to the
purposes of ofeducation, that the Superintendent of
the city of Brooklyn is clothed with similar author
ity and that, therefore, these actions are not pro-
perly brought against the Board of Education.
l have already determined that the city Of
Brooklyn is to be regarded as single school dis
trct, and the third section Of the act which
creates the Board of Educa tion, declares
that 1t shall have the entire management, control,
and direction Of all the district schools Of the city,
and shall possess the same powers, and be subject
to the same restrictions and regulations as are pre-
scribed to the trustees Of district schools except
such regula tions as the Common Council may make
Tor It's government not inconsistent with the school
laws oi the State Those duties, therefore, which
Town Super required to perform in the
towns OF the State, in receiving into their own
hands, from the Collector and County Treasurer the
moneys appropriated for the purposes of educ ation
and apportioning the same amongst given number
OF school districts. are not required to be performed
in the city Of Brooklyn. 1t tcomposes single dis
trict, and there is no apportonment to be made
but by another provision Of law, to which | shall
REFER the money IS paid into the city treasury and
passed to the credit and placed under the control Of
the board Of Education, to be by it appropriated
and dsbursed to the uses Of the common schools Of
the city, in the same manner as the trustees Of any
other district would appropriate and apply the
public school sch, money The provision to which
March 3D. 1913, repealed and enacted by the act Of
April ., lsis, and it declares that certain moneys
assessed and collected for the uses of the common
schools from the taxable property of the city, SHALL
together with that receive from the State be paid
to the Cty1reasurer of the city, and by him placed
to the credit of the Board Of Education, to be paid
cut and accounted for by them, in accordance
with the provsions and ordinances Of the Com
mon Council, TO be adopted for their government.
The Common Council prohibited from appro.
Priatipg or dsing any part OF these moneys for any
purpose other than the support OF common schools,
ana ITS power OF supervision and control over the
Board Of Education, in respect 70 these moneys,
tends further than 10 pre- scribe the form in which
the money shall be drawn from, and accounted for,
to The treasury OF the city. The relators seek TO
obtain portion Of the moneys thus placed to the
credit and under the control of, the Board Of
Education; and am Of opinion that the actions
are properly brough. agsias; that body. The de-
fendan insists that the relators are entitled to
n distribution # the common scho moneys OBJ
taned from the state of those levied under the
uhorty Of the Board of Supe ryisors of the county
Of hings, pursuant to the 10Th section of the act
concerning the distribution of the common school
fund.- Rev. stat. 16i. That the language Of
the first lection of the act Of the 7h March, lSt'
rrder which they claim, Limits them TO a share CT
the moneys assessed and levied By the Common
Courc upon the tax able property Of the city, under
authority OF the sixth section of the action of
March -, 1873, as amended by the act OF April q,
lciN 40 not concur IN this interpretation OF the
act under which the reators claim Il is altogether
too narrow and illibefal, and would ial TO give
eject TO the manifest intent of the Legislature,
which obviously was 90 admit the inmates Of the
orphan asylums 20 participate in the benefits Ofthe
common schools of the State. The language Of
the first section Of the statute is this-" rhe or
phan asy lun societies o the city u Brooklyn shall
participate IN the distribution of the school money
raised IN said city :; and the argument is that the
rights OF the asylum societies are limited and
resuained by force Of the words Z" raised in said
city in the first place IL is TO be observed that
the moneys assessed and levied under authority Of
the Common Council, are taxes imposed upon, and
collected from, the taxable property Of the city,
ard art, therefore, "rsised in said city" within
the strict letter Of the act. In the second place. 1t
s to be remarkcdthat the public oney devoted By
law to the purposes of education in the city, CON.
stitute single fund, and is placed by the City
parate single and entire fun 80 the
creah oil the Board Of Education, TO be Distributed,
pad out, and accounted for entire fund, with
ut regard to the from whence 1t 10 derived
nc words, moneys raised in said city may as well
refer to revenues raised by soutribution from the
common funds of the state, as to involuntary con-
tibutions from the private property Of the citizens
u Is in the distribution Of the school moneys that
the orphan asylum Societies entitled to share,
abd when they are collected and placed IN the city
treasury, to the credit Of the defendant they are
then "iaised in said city," and constitute the fund
for distribution and in which the reatoIsare entitled
to share, within the meaning Of the LIST section OF
the act of March T. 1slS whether they are derived
from the common school fund Of the State, pro-
coed from taxes levied upon the taxable property
in the city, by the Board Of Supervisors Of the
county, or the Common Council OF the oity The
act under which the roa tors claim, was passed the
9Th March, 1siS, and il took elIcot Immediately
upon it's passage. The moneys which had been
levied and collected du.ing the preceding year,
were then IN the city treasury, and, although they
had been appertioned among the several schools Of
the ciy, they were not paid out. The defendant
was bound to take notice Of the law which assured
the reiatQrs portion Of these moneys, and to pro-