Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1869-08-12
TCoHHUSICATKD.
Sunmerscat, july Oh, 1869.

sing notice from, me. And although L
msy not be able to answer to the satiSiac-
ton Of No. 4 and M. the qnes'l rs
prsrounded hv the former and repeated
BY the latter. trust. and almost feel a9Sur-
cd, that I will he able to satisfy the pnb-
lie. more especially the ta1-raylnc portion
Of it. rba, the Board Of School Counls~
siorer. Of St. Mary's county were not de-
serving Of the csnsurs hat has been so
hastily passed upon them By maJorlty
Of snaTl minority Of the fearhers, who
met in convention on the Ord instant.
To the first question propounded by
No. 4, to wit why our salaries have
been smaller than tie teachers efany 9TH
or couoty Of the State p | reply By ask
ing No. 4 in all courtesy
How docs he know "that cur salaries"
are or will te "smalIer than the teachers
Of any other county in the State" seeing
that the Board of School Commissioners
have not as yet defermirrd what the
count Of "olr salaries" sLall be for the
last scholastic year? The salaries OF
teachers" for tie scholastic year, end
ing June. 1868. averaged, | think, from
400 to $50 doll,r.; and I am not adVis-
ed (is No. A. y that such amount was
less than what wa. paid to the teachers Of
other counties. To question No. z.
why we do not know wha. compensa-
ton We are to receive for our services I'M
til weeks and sometimes months after II
ia due ?" answer. that the members Of
the Board Of School Commissioners being
merely human, and not endowed with fore
knowledge, are themselves ignorant of,
in fact do not know, what sums OF money
it will be in their power to give their teach
ers. as their action in the premises must
be determined by the amount that may
he comm to them from the State Comp
troller and available for that purpose.
The convention" and teachers and
3 disnpprove, no doubt, OF the rule of ac-
ton governing the Board in this matter.
They are devoted to the idea, that the
State School Fund. being primarily IN
tended to pay the salaries Of the teachers
of the several counties Of the State, is. af-
ter providing for school books, g., theirs
and theirs only. and that it is the duty of
the School Commissioners-fir to fix
their salaries at a sum ranging from $500
tie 5000, say $3.50. and, in case the State
School Fund should prove inadequate to
payment Of same, that the Board are
bound in law to require the County Com
missioners to foot the bill, by laying tax
on the assessable property of the county.
Let US pause awhile, and see in what po-
sition we would have placed ourselves.
and our friends and neighbors the Coun-
ty Commissioners, had We acted IN &C
cordance with the views and wishes of
these gentlemen. The teachers of this
county number thirty-nine, to pay whom
$3.50 each would require State School
Fund Of Sl7. $50 Deduct amount of State
School Fund, $9,314, actually received
for scholastic year. ending July, 1869,
and there would remain balance of eight
thousand two hundred and thirty-six dol
lars to be provided for by county taxation.
From this probable, not merely possible
position, with all its unpleasant surround
ings, we have saved ourselves, the Coun-
ty Commissioners, and the property hol-.
ders of the county, by simply adhering
to our o,c7, constructions of the "School
Law" ard not to that, of interested and IT.
parties-not members OF cur
Board. I can well imagine the shadows
that would come over the visage Of my
venerable friend John Parsons-how Col.
Harrison would writhe in his chair-and
Dillahay smooth lin perpl' kitty" lsgrand
and lordly beard on receiving our unlock
ed for but polite invitation to provide for
such deficiency.
No. further inquires-"Has any part
of the School Fund. apportioned to St.
Mary's county. been spent in building or
of school houses and by what
l answer. yes. there has-and that by
authority of the Board, acting under their
own construction Of the law, and not at all
By the views or wishes of No.
4, or the convention Of teachers. The
School Fund, though primarily, is not
Exclusively intended to be spent in pay
ment of salaries" and have yet to
learn that section .. chap. 4 providing
that the County Commissioners, shall
provide 10y general county taxation for
school houses" and Ito be paid out of the
school fund of the county, not limited to
providing for repairs otexisting schools and
not intended to authorize the erection of
new ones. in any new school house district
that may be formed for observe, this 2nd
section is headed repairs on its margin,
and does not contain the word erecting,
or harbor the idea .'of providing for the
erecting of school houses at all"
And allowing for arguments sake that it
docs look to the erecting of school houses
IN the several school districtS-it is a pow
n which the County Commissioners may
exercise or not. as it may seem good to
hem. We, the county School Commits
,ioncrs, have no say in the matter-nor
rave We any authority under said section
,. chapter 4. or under any other section
# the law to call on or compel compliance
with it. AS to his query whether this state
# things is to continue for smother year
have only to observe that is difficult to
ay what one day, not to say three hun
lred and sixty-6ve. may bring forth.
shall now take leave of No. 4, with |
he expression of my sincere regret that
lie is no longer an applicant for reappoiut-
nent to the office of teacher. So gallsnt t
soldier, apt scholar and accomplished
Gentleman, gives character and tone to
,ur corps of teachers and his retiring from
monp them, is = circumstance that SIN