The Morristown gazette. [volume] (Morristown, Tenn.) 1867-1920, 1874-09-23
Public Free schools.

Politicians love to talk whether the
measures they advocate would be attend
ed with beneficial results or not. Each
one mounts upon what he considers q
popular horse and goes wild over the
qualities of the animal even though it
were vicious and not worth the wind ex-
pended, just as long as it offers any
chance of success to its rider in the race
for office. Booted and spurred in Grain
ger and Hamblen bakers dozen of hun
CRY applicants for legislation honors
rush upon the race track willing to ride
down the school system last enacted pro-
yided, however, such a course Is likely
to insure their election. " We are not,
says one, rich enough to sport the luxu-
ry of salaried state and county suprein-
tendentsI No we are too poor. to sup
port a system which is and as experience
proves must be Tigidly supervised. We
are too poor to support the only system
that offers to the poor children of the
county the best means of acquiring an
elementary English education, or to put
it in truthful terms, we are too poor to
keep up a system that would certainly
educate the masses so that politicians
would be compelled to do other argu-
ment than a gambling one when they
want office. Yes, we are too poor to
support the present system under which
the educational status of Tennessee has
made wonderful advance, but we are
not too poor to levy q school tax under
the unsupervised system, and have it
collected and yet have no schools. Such
is the history Of the unsupervised
schools in Tennessee. ...r.......+.-.
1t shortens the schools at least one
month, because the school fund must
pay the superintendent salary. In this
county that objection win not lie. No
one but the Teachers and district clerks
receive anY thing from the school fund
! The salary of the County Superintendent
| is allowed out OF the County Treasury.
Our County Court holds, and think
correctly, that II could not pay the Su-
per1nreRdent out OF. the school fund and
| that the Law does not contemplate pay
| ing any officers out of the fund but the
State Superintendent, and district clerks.
| The schools with us arc not shortened, in
fact they are not affected in any way as
| regards the length of the term by the
County Superintendent's salary. But
then suppose they were, how long
would the salary run then. zone month
at least - says he who is feeling for the
public purse, but that is certainly mis-
take No school here would be pro-
1onged to greater length than one week
if the salary be distributed So then
the great good sought to be accomplish
ed would be this: The State Treasurer,
State Superintendent, ex-efficio, and the
County Clerk, County Superintendent,
ex-ofi1cio neither of which could, by any
means, have the timeto attend TO the du-
ties of Supervisor, yet they must be paid
for what they could find the time to do.
Such a system may work wonders in the
future, but in the past, lol the skeleton
of baroness appears. AS IN the past, we
would have system, we would raise a
school tax and pay It into the State
Treasury, and maybe have school, and
maybe not. 'Hest the great good that
such d measure would accomplish, would
be the expense of keeping life in a sys-
TEN that has'proved itself barren when
ever and wherever it has been tried.
Aye, the great good resulting from such
+ a policy, would be Tennessee in rags and
a beggar hugging her knees in frozen si-
| lcnce, while her pignY statesmen, sIyly
winking at her unguarded Treasury
would perform the circIing dance about
her. MALGDoE.-
i RUTEDeE Tenn. Sept 49, 1874 "a