Iowa capitol reporter. [volume] (Iowa City, Iowa) 1841-1855, 1852-05-26
Circular.
SsICsnh"
OFrtCE OF Sur. OF PUI

To the School Fund Commissioners:
adopt this method of saying to
you and other correspondents that |
D 1rpose leaving home in a few days
with the view of making tour
through the State and expect to be
absent until about the first OF Octo-
tober. next. In the meantime com
munic atoms addressed to this office
can neither be examined nor ans
wered. 1t is suggessed therefore TO
those who wish to write to the Super
intendent on business, that it Will be
useless for them to do so unless they
are advised Of his address at the
time of writing, and direct their let
tiers so as to intercept him Mt some
of the various points he may visit.
The new. edition the school law
has been received d a few copies
have been TRANSMITTED to each organ
lied county. A full supply will be
forwarded to the Euld Commission
ers without delay Those for the
southwestern counfF will be sent to
Fairfield, to the cspeIpf William c.
Jones Esq: FuAa & hnissionsI i
Jefferson ScouhH Commissioners
must adopt som method Of procur-
ing them from bat point, as have
no means of senling them directly to
them. 1t issdesigled that each school
district. shall have a copy, as it will
necessarily supercede the old edi-
ton.
haveprepared new blank form
for quarterly reports, and send it
herewith. 1t is hopedthat more care
WILDE taken in making this report.
Be fully satisfied that every item is
accurately and specifically set forth
under its appropriate head before
you forward it. 1t should embrace
the financial business of one quarter,
to wit: from april lst to June 3Oth,
from July 1t to September 30th,
from October LIST to December 3lst,
and from January LIST to March 3lst.
If no business has been transacted
during the quarter, write the words
Nothing to report" across the col
umns of the sheet and enclose it to
this office. Do not fail to report be-
cause you hive but little business
Let the report be made lift embrace
but single iem. In case you have
more business than will fill one sheet,
use two or thee and distinguish them
by numbers DO not paste the sheets
togcther, nor write on the left hand
margin, as i renders it inconvenient
to file them. Some Commissioners
run a fraction Of one quarter into an
other. This should not be DONE
Let the report for the present quarter
commence with April 1852. | have
been thus minute for the reason that
Fund Commissioners will be held
strictly accountable for the substance
of these reports.
The above suggestions are also
applicable to the annual report, foI
! which. now form is now in course
OF preparation. | am assured by the
workmen that it will be the neatest
JOB ever executed in the State. 1t
will be distributed in the course of
the summer, and if it is not promptly
returned to this office next fall in due
to,m, | shall be sadly disappointed.
Number the sheets ifyou use more
than one, mithout attaching Mcm.-
The allowance for salary and contin-
gent expenses should accompany it.
See form number XIII page 81 of
school law. Blanks for the annual
reports of district Secretaries will be
with it. Have them
promptly observation-disclosures to the Sec
rotary of each organized district.
| must again call your attention to
the execution of certificates ocfnM poy-
ncmt. We are constantly annoyed
with applications for the correction
of patents, in consequence of the in
of certificates. 1t is pre-
that every Fund Commits sioner
knows what land he sells and to
whom he sells it, and these facts
should in all cases be clearly set
forth in the certificate. See note I'M
der form VII, page AZ of school law.
When the certificate is for anyother
lands than the 10th section, note the
fact by writing the words Gin lieu of
section SIXTEEN" or 100000 acre
grant" in the margin. Please for
ward all papers of this kind without
endorsing names or numbers on the
back.
Inquiries have been made from
certain counties relative to the com
pensation of township trustees for
the allotment and valuation of the
10th section. The law makes no
provision for their compensation, nor
does it contemplate an actual survey,
but simply a personal inspection of
the ground a division of the section
into 100, so, 40, 20, 10, or 5 acre
tracts by imaginary lines, in con-
iorlnity with the rules that govern in
the United States surveys, leaving
purchasers to determine their own
limits, as they do when purchasing
the smaller subdivisions of public
lands. Where an actual survey is
necessary, the Fund Commissioners
are authorized to have it made ire
spective of the trustees. In such
cases they should employ a compe-
tent surveyor to do the work at the
lowest cash rates. As a general
thing trustees ask no compensation
for such service, but perform it in ac-
cordance with the spirit and intent
of the law, while in a few counties
the most extravagant bills are pre-
sented-S4O for example for alloting
one section.