Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-03-08

ganized as single scnooi district. LII ito
second section it provides that after due
n0tice the citizens shall assemble vat some
suitable place to be named in said notices
then and there to vote by ballot for or
against the adoption of this act" And sec
tiOn four provides "That in case majority
shall have been cast for said law the electors
of said district shall assemble at The place
last aforesaid" "and shall their choose by
ballot six directors of the public schools Of
said district"
The "actt provide for the reorganization,
supervision and maintenance of common
schools" passed March IA, 1853, Is. & G.
Stat. page 1859, in section 80, after provid-
Ing what cities or incorporated villages
shall be created seperate school districts
continues "and the qualified voters of said
city or village with the territory annexed
shall at the same time and In the same man
ner that local directors Of the sub-districts
of the township are elected BY the provis-
ions of this act, proceed to elect three per-
sons, who shall constitute board of educa-
tion."
Under one or the other of these three acts
the schools of every city and incorporated
town, excepting those heretofore mention
ed, having an enumeration of pupils over
one thousand, are organized. These statis-
tics are taken from the report of the Com
missioner of Common Schools for the year
1851. Thus with the breath Of recorded fact,
do blow away this pretence for an arbi-
| trary act upon which so much stress has
been laid and which has been reiterated so
often by gentlemen OH the other side.-
What next? The present Board of Educa-
ton has been arbitrary end intolerant you
| say. What proof have we? The hOnOra-
BILE gentleman from Gallia (Mr. Bradbury,
who introduced this bill, states as he says,
on reliable authority, but without giving
his authority, that a young lady teacher
was discharged for allowing pupil to read
patriotic composition, and that some boys
were dismissed for wearing Union badges.
On the other hand, a gentleman whom we
all know, an honered member of this AS
sembly, at once the Representative of the
people of Columbus and q member of their
School Board, has in his place here given an
unqualified denial to both Of these state
ments. Are we to accept and act ON charges
coming frOm-we know not whom-in the
face of this denial, without inquiry or in
vestigation?
Again, it is admitted that the proposed
change will still have working majority
of Democrats in the Board. For what is
the bill, then, introduced? For the pur-
pose-and so the gentleman from Scioto
| (Mr. Glover openly and boldly proclaims-
of getting some members of the so-called
Union party into the Board. Is not this,
then, purely a political movement? Has it
any foundation in reason, in justice, in an
honest regard for the interests of the schools?
Does not this expose the utter hollowness
and insincerity of all the other pretenses
which have been set up? How supremely
disgusting is this exhibition!
Has it come to this that an individual
with his heart full of partisan and personal
spite against the Board of Education of this
city-chafing under the pangs of disap-
pointment-angry, perhaps, because the
public can't see him as he sees himself-an
insignificant ward politician, In all likeli-
hood, and honored-as no prophet ever was
honored--cnly i'm his own home-can CREEP
into the Ohio House of Representatives
pour hic onvenomod and lying tale into the
ear of one of its members, thrust into hii
hand an already prepared bill, and with
neither reason, lao, nor the wish of any
portion Of the people-so far as we know
: to sustain it, succeed in effecting its pas.
: sage, simply because he is an Ab0litionist
and the adoption of this measure will secure
place In the Board of Education for him
self and some of his friendsl
commend to your constellation, gentle
men, thesentiments expressed in the follow.
, ing extracts from the report for the yeal
1858 Of School Commissioner Smyth. Dis
cussing the propriety of establishing tn,
, Office Of County Superintendent, he says:
The Office should be kept as far as possible aloo
from party politics This is true Of All school Offices
Of partizan influence. Much of the success whici
school system has achieved is attributable TO tn
fact that nearly all school officers chosen withou
any regard to their party connections.
! And again:
The State School Commissioner is elected trenni
ally at the State election, the same as other Stat
officers. This esteem an objectionable feature 9
our school law. Tie office should, if possible. be di
vorced from party politics.
These are the words of truth and sober
D ness from one of experience-spoken IL
days of profound peace. How doubly valu
{ able is his lesson In times like these, wheI
political passions run so high as to drowI
all sense of honor, decency and justice.
ITO what base uses have we come at last"
3 IL the representative body Of this grea
l State is to become the instrument to CRAFTY
9 personal and party malignity, or to fore
local partisans into places of trust NOR,
coveted by them than their services ar
. coveted by the people. 81. g,s :.
! The present school system of Columbus
has been in operation for long series o
! years, during which time it has for the mos
{ part been under the control of men who's
political sentiments were anti-Democratic
: There was snever any complaint Of this
Q What mattered II? And If for the next tel
: years Democrats should fill their places, o
what consequence is it? There are men o
: ability, and culture, and integrity, and Low
8 ers Of the cause of popular education il
5 both parties. Let them be sought for, AMI
9 If you can devise ways and means by leg
r islation to secure their choice, God speet
9 you. But do not degrade our high office b!
t the passage of enactments designed merel!
to secure the selection of men whose opin
e ions or interests have allied them with tn
r dominant political party. The cause of ed
: ucation is too sacred, and too unirersal h
D be handled in this way. Do not, / pra!
4 you, thus 'give up to party what wa
t meant for mankind"
E from the National Intelligenoer Of March ad.l
: Amendments to the Constitution.
d A correspondent of the Boston Trans
e cript, In urging upon Congress the necessit.
of proposing to the States an amendmen