American Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1855-1860, 1856-01-17

in cases Of delinquency OF SUSPECTED malieas-
anee,
This Council might be authorized to inquire
into and personally inspect the c 'ndilon oil
the Treasury al reasonable periods, and 10 ex-
CT { ST ca discretionary poweTs IN relation to
The departments geuvrIl,y, as IL would be I'M
wise ami probabiy unsafe 10 rnu ust to o sing {
Executive o%iieer. The union of several Exec
nuve t~tiievrs Into boards Of This Mind is not
" ithput precedent IN this State. TIE Board
0f Fund Commissioners, comp ISed Of lie Au-
IiioI, Secretary Of State and Attorney General,
has not only {, Sted the %prAcucab hty. but the
advantages ui such arrang, meniS The people
OF thUs- States which have adopted Executive
Councils ia the construction OF their Govern.
mentS, regard them. | am told, as most un?or.
tant safeguards Ia tire administration u theft
Exc Gtive afialrs.
The ptin,mg ahd distribution Of public doc
umen's designed To lie LAID het re the Leg isla-
tuTe, is an object OF great interest to the peO
pie. The prd tce hitherto pursued Is neither
favorable 10 a proper dispatch Of the pubuc
business, mi a WIDE circulation Of tbs infnrma-
they contain. They have usually been
printed very late in The st sslnh aud their distTi
button C mined to a very lew persons, nj Slly
HE fra nds u The members.
| would respectfully suggest the passage OF
a law auti OIIzing the Governor to have printed.
by the fecognzed public printer. a specified
number al the reports made 10 hun by thr sew
erai departments OF the Slate Government in
time ~ have the same ready for distribution al
the meeting Of lie Gent raj Assembly. The
law should, like that Tuviding for the distri-
button OF the laws and journals, specify Ger
tain officers aud institutions to whom copies OI
these documents should be officially transmit
ted Us soon as delivered to the Legislature,
leaving a reasonable number TO be Distribute
by the memGe rs themselves among their con
siituents.
Such a law, instead Ofin ~reasing. would CIR
taInly diminish he expenses now incurred, a
tie matter would be printed but once, aud the
conlTactors have ample time to make the re
CURED arrangements. The information de
signed 10 he communicated would then Teacl
thr people much ~taTller, and enable them Il
make such suggestions 10 their representatives
as they might think proper.
The I'M ia.ofy measures Which have beef
adopted by Tie Secretary OF Stale 10 gather tn
statistics Of The a. Ticuliural wealth and i'm
prov, ments Of he Stale, render the report .
hat officer for the current year, one Of unusua
interest, aud demonstrates the wisdom OF tina
provision Of he Cons tuition which cDnlem
plates The establishment OF a Bureau of Stats
Tics IN connection with that office. There ar
few persons outside Of Ohio who fully reul
ize The extent aud greatness Of her natural re
sources.
With The view Of developing these resources
and of collactlng and preserving The informa
ton OF so much value TO the General Assembi
as well AS to the people, | respectfully recon
mend the establishment, Nv law, of . Bureau G
Statistics, as authorized and suggested by IN
provision referred to. II is neither In con form
Ivy with sound policy MOI with the dignity O
the State. 10 rely entirely upon the decinnin
reports Of The Federal Government fora knJw
edge al our own resources and progress.
The State Of ONO is Justly distinguished "a
a liberal aud enlightened system OF pubic in
s'rnc;i0n. Contemplated by the territorial leg
isintion Of Congress, it was undertaken by III
people Of the State ss soon as the eXigeucie
Of a frontier and the exposures OF war woul
allow, and has encountered less obStructio
and more encouragement from he public sen
tlment Than has usually been observed in tn
progress of similar systems else where. Gen
eraI education is recognized by the C6astitu
ton Of 1851 as duty Of Government no les
than a parental obligation, and The law c
March II, 1855, not only furnished ample pro
vision for schools Of every gr de, hut will b
memorable in our annals for establishing tn
principle that they are open 10 all-Free O
Common Schools in the iullesl s. nse OF In
term. Instead Of a mixed Stale and Count
tax Of a mill and a half Tor their support, tn
act in question di ecizd q State School tax, an
thai its proceeds be distributed from the Stat
Treasury in proportion 10 the enumeration c
youth Of school age wi hin the respective cuun
ties. Eve y township WIS constituted q dis
trici, and entrusted in a Board Of Ed lcatioI
consisting Of a representative from each sub
district - no are authorized to make or alte
| glIHl cnh 1igIFipig In gne toNaN mi tha Dan
s~lruction Ut school houses and the ex,et SION q
school terms and exercise whatever genera
supervision Of educational interests which ma.
be consistent with the duties rnjoined on IN
local directors in zach sub district. A fund O
one tenth Of a mill yearly was appropriate,
"fut tie purpose Of furnishing school librarie
and appn aus To oil The common schools OF III
State and the supervision Of the system WI
cOnided TO n State commissioned elected hy IN
people. In other respects The present schot
law is a digest Of previous legislation, and W
intended TO relieve The pubic mind from III
confusion and uncertainty caused by ~lrequen
and inconsistent amendment.
A sufficient perItd IN Enow elaTsrd for you [
determine whether The people are general
satisfied with the present law, or in what res
pect ii requires med %fcation. There has bee
SOME complaint of II manntr Of dBttihutin
the Stale School Fund. Those cottntieS wlic
include p pulons cities ate assessed with gref
ter amounts than the enumeration Of You'll IN
title them to receive, and in one instance IA
amount received is only about Que half lh
sum contributed TO the Stale fund. Still, it
easy 10 see that II we consider The chiM ns IN
object OF public regard as a ward Oi the Stat
for a certain degree Of instruction. TINT III
direct application Of the public bounty TO IN
youth OF the counties IN proportion 10 the or
nual enumeration, is neitl CT Illogical nor il
consistent. II presen & a fair object, howeve
for the consideration If The General AsSembl,
The organization of township Bonr s uG Et
%ucntion, which, to The extent of theit nowe
and duties, Ieducet the authority OF local d
%rectoTs' was n centralizing measure, and h,
undoubtedly produced a greater degree of In
formlty and efficiency; but il is crave qnestio
whether the division If jurisdiction betwee
hose bodies has not led to disagreement m
confusion, and whether the power nf taxatio
vested In Boards Of Ed cation has not been il
juhlciously exercised.
deem II highly mpor'ant that The school NJ
should accurately define the powers and duti,
pl these nllcets, respectively; although il
quite possible that former uncertainty IN tn
and other respects, has been removed by u
opinion and advice of the State commissions
The present system owes much to the habit
} al aud judicious rSposltIons Of that office.
Boards Of Education are required TO furni.
schools iGr seven months Of the yeaf, and the
are authorized 10 GlTect assessments FOR scho
purposes other Than 70; the payment of teacI
ers.' under which head the item of scho
house construction is included. They may a
40 direct ass, scmcnlS not exceeding two mil
on the dollar for The support Of central or his
schools, when lepnlly established, and for Il
purpose OF prolonging after the State fun
have been exhausted the te' ms Of the sever
sub dlstrctOT primary schools in he township
IIInIe lnHa mi q. nm a., La ann lnniInAin.-