Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1855-02-15
COMMUNICATION.
PRIMARY SCHOOLS.

PRIMARY SCHOOLS.
Mr.. EDITOR: As ] presume our Primary
Schools have gone into full operation, under
the supervisory control Of the Board Of
School Commissioners, there is an inquiry
,ha. presents itself, and make it merely for
information: What is the law that governs
them? The general impression is. no doubt,
that the law Of las. session repealed all 9th
|er legislation upon the subject, and is the
only law now in force. That, no doubt,
was the inten.ion Of its trainers; but by re-
ference TO article 3, sec. II of The Consti,u
ton, we find the following clause: "No
law or section Of law shall be revived, a.
mended or repealed by reference TO it's title
only" If then one law cannot supersede
another, in The language Of The Constitution,
by reference TO its "tlle only," can it &C.
complish i, by no reference at all i? The
law Of last session contains no repeating
clause; makes no reference 10 any other
enactment upon the same subjec. of prior
date; bears upon it's face no evidence that
it is designed as supersedeure of eny for
mer legislation. The question then is, does
il repeal all laws passed heretofore, or 1t
not, what portion of those laws? 1t would
be, doubtless, interesting, to the teachers
throughout the county, as we'll as others, to
know whs. construction the Board Of Com
missiouers have placed upon it; for in its
present aspect it would seem to ordinary
minds of very vague and unsettled charac-
ter And must confess-wi,h all due def
ference however to its originator, and he is
said to be one Of the Honorable Board Of
Commissioners, and Of course entitled 10
the more consideration on account, of the
position he occupies,-.hat 10 separate il
from vagueness and Inconsistency would be
to bio, the whole law from the statute books.
| may do injustice TO the Board OF Commits
sioners in this onjecture. If am right, Of
course ] canno. f1auer them; if wrong,
would be curious TO see that genius who
could invent an animal, the head of which
was four months older than its tail he
would mos, undoubtedly be entitled 10 the
mos. promnen. position in Barnum's mena-
gerie. I,s Cd section says the law shall go
into operation the first Tuesday Of Septem-
Der, 1854, and its l4,h section, or winding
up clause, says 'Be it enacted, that this act
shall take effect from and after the Is, Jam
uary. 1866" And Notwithstanding this
emphatic clause, the Board of Commission
ers met end appointed Trustees in 1854,
when the law did mot take effect until from
and after January LIST, 1855. Are the Trus-
tees appointed in 1854 in virtue of, and by
authority of, an sct that was to take effect
from and after the frs. of January, 1855, a
legally constituted board?
do not wish, Mr.. Editor, to be a .caviller,
bu, as q citizen Of old Charles, ga native to
the manor born" have RICH. in common
with every other citizen in the county, to
INQUIRE into the soundness Or Practicabili,y
guaranteed to every citizen in this free land,
whether he be the quiet, unobtrusive occu-
pant of "homely COT" enjoying his 'fru-
gal fare," or the possessor of a manor sur
rounded with all the paraphernala of wealth
together with its os,enlalious arrogance. ]
am friend of popular education. | would
like to see every child in the county educa-
ted, and that in proper manner, and for
tina. object am willing 10 pay my quota Of
taxes; but am opposed TO the present school
law for the reason that do not know whe-
Their it is law or not. Let us have law tina,
will stand up without bolstering, with plain
sensible provisions, and practical in its ope-
ration. And let i, be law too when i. ems-
mates from the halls Of legslaion-nol
leave i, to few individuals in the county
to say whether it shall 60 into operation or
not. Tha. was evidently the case with the
law above alluded to; for had the Board Of
Commissioners refused to have acted, (,here
was no provision made for such conln-
gency,) we should have had the strange
anomaIy Of law passed by the Legislature
of Maryland, for The education of the chill
dren of Charles county, rendered null and
void by the mere &C. Of five citizens of The
county, and those citizens by no means per-
sonaly interested in the operation Of the
law, for the reason that most of them or
probably all had no children to receive the
benefits of its provisions. Blu. ] am tres
passing, fear, Mr.. Editor, too much upon
your columns, much more SO than in.en-
ded when ] took up my pen.
DURHAM.