, 1870-04-19

| public tou5n2Ie fidelity to principle and OF
its e1nccre loro for the causo it adyocstes,
"a Nathan said to David, t'TLou art the man, :"
1ud rebulo tho sins and cr1ors Of its OVID party
friends,
A Card.
srRlSar1x1D, Ill, April I, 157l
In the Constitutional Convention, February
u, 1870, ~ Appears from the Convention
Register Of March ], 1870, tho report of the
Committee On Executive Department being
under adEisement, the following words wora
uttered:
pisc lnstsacton1 . At ubssty 70 = into he book
business perhaps not publicly, but In partnership
with every nan In Connecticut, In the publication
snpestntendents il % eaea % county he sets he books
and requires the people to change their hooks
fo5 Or 81 months has 5 tie esse n
a fof to nea boofs taso .e
schools whenever they desire to do So and 1t az
Isl While 1t has not heretofore been regarded AZ
profitable Office. that Of Superintendent OF Public
Instruction, yet understand a man may 70 Into
eues cum @ Que Of tie wealthy M msn &c ii he i sie 0
The Truth ls.
]. have never received, directly or indirect
Il, one cent, more OF legs, nor anything OF the
e34AG.oA OuS CE4t, 4uoEE VI lcts, ITum Any
author, publisher, printer, or agent of any
seloolbook, OF series Of achoolbooks; nor
frum any rerson OF persons in Any manner
connected with or interested in the making,
publishing, or selling OF any schoolbook or
books. for or on account Of the giving OF with
CT approval Of auy suck sehoolbooks, OF any
other book or books. nor for aiding. abet-
ting, assisting, proposing, or corniriug
at the INTRODUCTION or exclusion
Of - .ny eehoclbook Or books
schools, OF other institutions Of learning, in
this State, or any other Statc, Nor hsys
ever Ind npy connection Of any sort or desscrip-
ion, public oI private, secret or open. direct
q Indirect, With any author or authors. pub
agent Or agents, Of any schoolbook Of books.
nor with any County Superintendent Of
Schools. School Trustee, School Directors, OF
Other school officer or officers, OF with any
teachef Or teachess, or any other person OF
persons IN this State or elsewhere, concerning
or in relation to any schoolbook O, books,
with view toprofi!. OF With hny other yisy, OF
object Or purpose whatever.
= While am free to express my impartial
and unbiased opinion of tho merits Of any
80 far a. time and opportunity Of examination,
will allow. and it is strictly right and proper to
do 20, yet haTt never advised or rccoutncnd-
ed sny county, township, city, school district,
Of school in this State, in any manner or form,
directly or indirectly, to change any school
fetred with any zchool officer, teacher, OF
other person OF persons, in any county. town
chip city, school district, or school in
this or any. other State. concerning
the introduction or, exclusion Of shy
any school in the State nor have I been in
terested in, party to, Or even knowing to or
cognlzant Of any proposed INTRODUCTION. e1c1u-
sion Or change Of any school book or text book
or looks, IN any school or schools in this State
hare no legal, official, or discretionary au-
thor1ty Or power whatever in the n.tter Of
text books in the public schools, and have
never claimed. assumed OF exercised, or desir-
cd or attempted to c1aim, assume or exercise
any official or other authority in relation to Tho
Introduction, use or change Of school books or
text books. II il n.tter belonging wholly
and exclusively to tho local Boards OF Educa-
tion and Of School Directors.
T. The statements that have been made and
circulated may warrant word conccsuiug nv
private AFFAIR." :" did not "enter the o:hce
wealthy men of tho State" What now h.ye
III not more than would have resulted from the
investment, at the usual rates, OF tho sum /
possessed when first entered the Office. 1
have received from the State, for my nine Years
Of service aa Superintendent, Tic sum of
81 ,C5o, and no more, being IN average OF
In The same number Of tho Register occurs
III sMn. Moonr It is ouly necessary to re-
perlntendent Of Public Instruction has a right to
direct and confru. 1t Ia all advised an,i con
trolled through hls ONCE The sum Of money sub
E,s16fs9 In 1863 WAS t3o. In Isl; it was
t5.Uss1o. In 1:ts 1t was s.9 nnI In ise1 II
aonns an, ,S to nc Immense sm 2, ;uar
iel lie has aided n increasing their salaries fof
County surrrnteni!ents from 1867 to ls:9 al1ns,st
these Comfy Supertnten,tents wa nos Ia tsS9
i rose Ia the cnarulnus sum of sl.e54. one
bali OF which is I'll they ought TO be allowed 10
Isl "Wc have sio1s ,1s5 that Is not Used for any
rurote that ibeJ dA.t rrpvft, q that they DO r.
million ycar that nobody accounts fo1 at iii In
To The above l remark:
l. Not dollar OF my Of the various suu5
any manner. or to any extent. directly or iudi-
rectly, enbicct to the direction, management.
or control Of tho State Superintendent. He
has absolutely nothing whatever to do with |
that money, or any Of it, nor any knowledge,
oven, OF the manner in which, or the purposes
facts are reported TO him by the proper school |
officers, inst other statistics arr fe;orte,l.
to be embodied in the State report. II Is not
until the transactions Ut the year arc com
reted. md tho financial record Of each district.
townsLip and county is Usoe up, that the
State Superintendent knows. or can know,
ANYTHING whatever about the amount of Local
taxes levied, the number and cost OF school
houses built, the amount Faid teachers aud
school officers, or in relation to any other mat
ter or thing connected with tic financial man
agcment, condition, and expenditures OF tho
schools. The relation Of the State Superin-
tendent to all the financial statistics reported
to him is precisely the same as his relation to |
other statistics, such as tho enumeration OF |
children, the number Of districts. Of schools, Of
pupils, etc. Ills whole authority. light
and duty in respect to all tho statistics !
pertaining TO tho school system Of tho |
State ia to collect them IL reliably a. possible,
and then to. arrange. classify, and publish |
tion Of tho Legislature and tire people Of the \
state, He cannot altee or change any statis~
tics reported to him, and ie in no manner or \
sense responsible for any items OF taxation or !
expenditure reported to him, any znore than |
he is for the number Of school children, or OF /
have never dictated. managed or controlled,
or attempted OF desired to direct or control ur |
influence tho expenditure Of dollar Of tho \
sehool fund. aud, AZ already sail. have never
known anything about any sucl expenditures
until they were made and reported to me "a |
statistical information.
=. The average compensation Of County Stl-
Pe1lntendents for 1869 WAS not II ,9li, Int !
WA, as my original report. on flo among tho |
papers Of the convention, will show.
=. The State Statistical report ia made M \
wholly from lie reports Of County Supcrin-
tendents, and A1wavs includes everv item con-
tsined il said reports. Tho reports Of County
Supcrintendents are wholly made M from
those Of tho Township Treasurers, never omit
ting m item contained in the latter. Hence. ii
there arc any school officers who dare not aad |
DO not make full and t1ue reports, ther must
he the Township Trcasurcfs, who receive,
keep and pay out III school moneys Of every
description, These treasurcrB are appointed
BY the Trustees, Who aro annually elected by |
she people. Twice = year their booka and &C.
counts are examined and ose1lsauled BY the |
Trustees, who may summaEly remove them at
any time They are ali under heavy bonds, /
aouhr eecured, from The liability Of which,
our Supreme Court have declared that neither
negligence, nor unavoidable accident, nor
felony con,mitta1 by another. nor anything
whateyer but tho act Of God, or the public |
enemy. can excuse or release them. They /
comet pay out dollar. except upon le6a1 |
order Of the Directors, and every such order, |
to Be legal, muat state the particular object OF |
purpose for WHICH the money ia required. Their |
reports are based upon these vouchers and 1
other ofseia1 recoz11s and documents. All this /
renders it highly improbable, TO say tho least,
that theee 1feasurera should attempt, or be |
able: to Leave rnaocounted for some half 4
N aIion Of dollars annually. I believe tho |
simple truth to be that the whole excess of re- |
eeipta over expenditures, in any given year, is |
in the safe custody Of these two thousand |
I5casulers, ntanaing partly TO the credit Of tho |
eleven Thousand disticts, and partly As undis- 4
tIbuted towuahip funde, av1itiuR the action !
o. the Trustees, protected By official bonds to /
the Aggregate atnonnt Of over thirteen millions |
81 dollars, and that every dollar Of these funds