Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1858-01-23

cy, h is infinitely better that it should be is
ksuea sAd secured and redeemed At he,ne
under our own laws, than thar it should b.
issued'under laws of which we are ignorant
and controlled by men with whom we hav
no community of interest.
/ The constitution authorizes the Genera
/ Assembly to establish, with the subsequen
approval of the people:
l. A State Bank with branches, to b,
founded on an actual specie basis, and tn,
branches to be mutually liabie for each 9th
er's issues.
2. A general free banking law with thu
restriction and limitations imposed by Art
| 8, Sec. of the Constitution.
In acting up IN this subject, it will doubt
less be ever borne in mind by the General
Assembly, that banks are to be established
to secure the public aoelfire, and not to pro.
mote the purposes of stock holders and cap
italists and that it is far better that banks
should realize small profits, than that the
public should be liable to injury by their
suspension or failure.
The system of common school organiz..
ton contemplated by the new constitution,
will, no doubt, result to the advantage OF
the State, if fully and properly carried into
execution. Under this ssysteln, the members
of the board of education are to be elected
in the several judicial districts in the State.
1t is presumed that they will be selectel on
account of their peculiar fitness for the pc
culiar positions they are to occupy. They
will bring to the board their experience rs
educationists, and they will he able to rep
resent the true condition and wants of eve
ry part of the State. They will stimulate
the Zeal of the people in their several dis
tricts in behalf Of education they will in
struct the subordinate school officers in the
discharge of their duties, and thus secure
the uniform execution of the school laws
throughout the commonwealth.
1t would be very desirable thai the mem
bers Of the board of education should have
u general supervision of the acts of the
county school fund commissioners, with au.
thority to require additional or new official
bonds when deemed necessary, and with
power OF substitution in cases Of malfea-
sance or incompetency on the part of the in
cumbents. The fact is notorious, that ma
ny of the school fund commissioners lack
the clerical ability to properly discharge the
duties of their office. The affairs of some
of these offices are in almost inextricable
confusion, aud reform must be effected in
their management, or considerable loss will
be sustained by the State.
In compliance with the provisions of an
act entitled ian act concerning school mon
ies," approved January 2Sth, 1857, | ap-
pointed agents to examine s'the books, youch-
ers, securities and other documents" Of sew
eral Of the county school tund commission
ers, selecting for the most part, those offices
to be examined where it had been reported
that the business had been loosely done, or
where the offices had charge of the proceeds
of part of the '.fve hundred thousand acre
grant," as well as the sixteenth section
grant" The reports show that in majori-
ty of cases the books are tolerably we'll kept,
and that there is no immediate danger of
loss, though there is a suspended debt
in nearly every county. In some couD-
ties, however, the fund commissioners have
accepted as security for money lent, mort
cages on land not within the county. and in
some instances upon ideal tracts of land. -
In many instances mortgages are improper
ly drawn and acknowledged, and in some
cases they stand as the second or third en-
cumbrances. Some of the commissioners
accepted the records and papers belonging
to their Office from their predecessors, with.
out inquiring into their character or corr
rectness, and such is the confusion Of the
records, and 50 limited is the knowledge of
these officers Of accounts and titles, that it
is impossible tor them to render an intelli-
gible report of the condition of the school
lands and monies under their control. The
agents were iu some counties compelled to
make complete abstracts of title to all the
lands in the county that had originally been
school lands, in order to ascertain what
tracts had been sold and what remained un
sold. II the members of the board of edu-
cation are required by law to make annually
a thorough personal examination Of each
school fund commissioners transactions, a
uniform system Of doing business will, in a
little time, be established, and the school
fund will be preserved.
into the pretended loans of school monies
made by the late Superintendent of Public
Instruction, James D. Eads, with power to
thereof. The agent, j. NJ. Beck, Esqr., of
Fort Madison, has been indefatigable in his
efforts in this behalf, snd has succeeded in
securing large amounts edoubtful indebt-
edness. The exact condition of these transac-
tons of the late Superintendent, will be
learned from the report of the agent, which
l herewith transmit for your consideration.
1t will be observed that the deficit will prob
ably amount to forty-six thousand four hun
dred and three eighty e-hundredth dol
lars, for the payment of which recourse
must be had to the official bonds of Mr..
Eads.
again call your attention to the revision
of the school laws of the State, as prepared
and submitted to the last General Assembly
by Messrs. Horace Mann and Amos DEAN
1t can safely be sud, that the general pro-
visions of that report met the approval of
the friends Of education in the State. In
deed, the report was acceptable to large
majority Of the members of the last General
Assembly; but failed to be enacted into
law for reasons not connected with the
merits rf the report itself. TheNObstacles
then in the way of its adoption have since
been removed by the adoption of the new
constitution, and l know no reason why it
should not now be considered and enacted
into law.
cannot forbear repeating the opinion ex-
pressed to the General Assembly three years
ago, '.,hat the public scllools should be sup
ported by taxation of property, and that
| the present rate system, or per capita tax
upon scholars. should be abolished" have
seen no reason b., change my opinion on this
subject, but, ON the contrary, have been
every day more and more strengthened in
the conviction that it is the only wise and
polite method of educating the people
The per capita sy4 n is based upon the
idea that education ga personal benefit for
which those who receive it should pay,
whilst the true theory Of popular education
is that it is a public benefit for which tho
public should pay.
The capitol building at Iowa City has
been surrendered to the trustees Of the State
University. The building is ont Of repair,
and requires considerable change in its in
| tarnol ura,popfs of1aot II tO thu our.