The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1864-01-23
To the General Assembly Of Ma
rylanu,

| sioncrs Of Public Schools of Cecil County
! respectfully represents, That an experience
Of live years has fully demonstrated the total
! lnadequacy of existing provisions for the
! proper support and future efficiency of the
public school system Of Cecil co mtg.
| When your mcnoriasts came into exist
cnce a Board, under the :ct Of 1853,
! chapter BOB they found some eighty-scven
schools in operation. the greater art of
them wholly independent of any supervision
anu under the charge OF teachers in most
cases self selected, many Of whom looked to
the poor school fund of the county (thcn ad-
minlstered by the Orphans Court as tle
chief or most reliable part of their support.
| The demands upon that fund which it was
impossible the Judges of the Orphans Court.
III the midst OF their other duties, could in
vcstigate with that scrutiny the subject re-
CURED, had so largely increased and the
number otperspns claiming the benefit OF it
so numerous. that the principal Of that fund.
which in former Years had accumulated to
over twenty thousand dollars was at that
time reduced to eight thousand nine hundred
| and forty dollars. which amount came INTO
the hands of this Board.
| our memorallSts, i'll entering upon the
| duties of their commission in 1858. found so
great demand for suitable houses. Cthe lar
! ger and more important towns being without
| them that they determined to appropriate
| this principal sum s%,!+o to the erection of
| school houses, where they were most needed
and to the repairs Of Others so far forth rs it
| would supply the demand and with that
| view distributed it among the several dis
| tricts of the county upon an equitable basis.
But after expanding the whole of this fund
witt, such aid as could be obtained from vol
untary contributions i'll different localities,
| they still find the demand for other buildings
and further repairs constantly pressing upon
them. Ike consequence is, that the ordira-
~ resources of the Board have been and still
fethus heavily drawn upon, while they are in
| adequate to the support of the schools, even
for the period or term of three quarters or
| nine months of the year, Us the following
statement will show:
| The receipts Of the Board are almost OK.
clusNciy confined to the tux for school pur-
poses at the limited rate of twelve cents in
| the hundred dollars and the fund annually
| received from the STATE. Their other re-
sources are so incons cradle in amount and
SO entirely contingent and variable that any
estimate based upon them would be wholly
>alueess The entire amount derived from
them during the five years of our existence
. rs Board, does not exceed the sum Of four
hundred dollars
The amount derived from taxes, may be
estimated i'll round numbers at nine thOus-
and six hundred dollars, S?.GUO.D The
States donation NAV reach So. 400, three
thousand four hundred: making an apalc-
rate of < l.. goo, thirteen thousand dollars.
Judging from the raSt and with spccial ref
ercncc to the last two wears, we cannot csti-
mate the quarterly demand uron the trcasu-
~ for the salaries of teachers and school in
cidcu,als, after ,lr,luctinc all tuition fees re-
criycd. at less than ISi ,UGU) four thousand
dollars which for three quarters makes
l2Uu) twelve thousand dollars. The cost
of books and stationery we put at / 800,
eighteen hundred dollars a low estimate
thus making an aggregate expense of S13.-
500 thirteen Thousand eight hundred dollars
This it will be seen, leaves deficit Of
eight hundred dollars: while all the other
expenses of the Board viz: building and re-
pairing of houses, Secretary and Treasures
salary per iicin OF members Of the Board.
general incidcnnlS and special demands Of
every kiid. remain wholly unpro, led for.
The economical administration of the sys-
tom is shown in single item. Tie whole
expense for the ser, ices OF lhr Board during
the past year being but c';;:Il -. az less thau
50. to each member. which in view III the
lulic; imposed u,un them mast be regarded
as aaytllns l.ut r.muGcratiyu.
HE advancement. which many Of the pu-
pills have made in their studio, while ii Is Il
matter of pride and qualification 10 the Board.
briugs with it corresponding responsibility