The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1869-02-24

got $1,000 or Sl1O0. The salary of the
superintendent had been cut down to
siooo. and he thought the sys'
tenn less costly now than for
merly. Complaint had been made Of
the cost and inefficiency of the
Superintendent. He was amenable to
the Board of Education, and that body
could apply all needed remedies. y Some
complaint had also been made Of his
non attendance when sick. The speak
er thought it was sufficient esiamity
to be i'll, without losing his little salary
through his illness. As to his physical
disqualifcations, the Board knew of his
deafness before they elected him. Tint
was his misfortune, not his fault. Take
out the Catholic vote of the city and
three-fourths of the remainder would
favor retaining the City Superintend-
eut. Public money was never more
satisfactorily spent than for keeping up
that Office.
Rev. j NJ. MCMECHEN proposed to
discuss the naked question of eontinu-
ing the city Superintendent. While he
would not misrepresent the petitioners.
he did not think their names would ex-
ceed two hundred. The remonstrance
was signed by five hundred, including
clergymen, professional men, manufac-
turers and respectable men of the city.
He was an old friend of education, and
had experience as a teacher. He be-
lieved the Superintendency was neces-
sary. 1t had been adopted by nearly
every city in the Union. Uni
versal experience proved its i'm
portance. The want of a Superin-
tendent was the chief defect of the old
system. The Superintendent was i'm
portant as an organ of communication
between the schools and the State Su-
perintendent. The Superintendent was
required to secure uniformity in disci-
pline and instruction, particularly as to
textbooks, maps, &c. This Office was
also necessary to promote harmony be-
tween the schools and especially be-
tween the Principals; to support the
Principals in discipline and the correc-
tion of abuses; to correspond with book
with improvements in education;
sellers and publishers so as to keep pace
to defend the schools against the
assaults of enemies, open or disguised;
to examine teachers, issue certificates
and organize the schools, supervise
Teachers Association and to act as an
organ for the Principals. As to the USE
less expense connected with the office,
he would say that to economic here
wsuld be to begin at the wrong end.
1t would be Saving at the spile and
losing at the bung-hole." In regard to
taxation, Mr.. MCMECHEN said if we had
a good thing we must pay for it. He
then read further explanation of the
duties of Superintendent. Mr.. ROBIN
son desired to know by whom it had
been written. Mr.. MCMECHEN respond
ed that it had been written by Mr.. WILL
LIAMs, the Superintendent.
Mr.. BOYD said he had circulated a
against the abolition of
the Superintendency, and had found
but few persons who were unwilling
TO sign it. Thirteen out of eighteen
members of the Board had voted for
Mr.. WILLIAMS. Most of them had sign
ed the remenstrance. He had made a
calculation and found that the cost of
the Superintendent was
about fourteen cents on every one
thousand dollars worth of property.
If Mr.. CLOuAN owned ten thousand
dollars, his tax for Superintendent
would be one dollar and forty cents.
He had had some experience, and be-
lieved the present law to be much more
efficient than the old one.
After Mr.. BOYD concluded, the COM
mittee took the subject under final
We understand a report
will be made in the Senate tod ay.