The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1876-06-28
The school Law.

treasury under pretence Of carrying on
the public schools. But it at the same
time adopted such legislation as will nos
only extend the school term each year,
but will guarantee no reduction Of the
fund by which the schools are maintain
ed, as a brief statement of the facts will
prove.
Art. VIII. Sec. 6, of the Constitution
proves:
SEC. 6. There shall be established a
Common School Fund, which shall con
sist of the proceeds of the lands now be-
longing to the State, heretofore granted
by the United States, and of the lands
known as ''swamp land" except the
swamp lands living and situated on Pearl
river, in the counties Of Hancock, Ma
rion, Lawrence, Simpson and Copiah,
| and of all lands now or hereafter vested
in the State by escheat or purchase, or
! forfeiture for taxes, and the clear pro-
| ceeds of all fines collected in the several
| counties for any breach of the penal
! laws, and all moneys received for license
| granted under the general laws of the
|
or keeping of dram shops; all moneys
paid as an equivalent for persons exempt
| from military duty, and the funds
arising from the consolidation of Con-
gressional township funds, and the lands
| belonging thereto, together with all the
moneys donated to the State for school
purposes, which funds shall be securely
| invested in United States Bonds, and
remain a perpetual fund, which may be
! increased but not diminished, the inter
/ est Of which shall be inviolably appropri-
ated for the support Of free schools.
An amendment TO this clause, after
having been adopted by the people at
| the election, was inserted in the Con
stitution by the Reform Legislature re-
leasing the fund which has accumulated
since 1870, under the foregoing clause,
and providing that the principal, as well
| as the interest should be used. This fund
conjoined to the poll tax was deemed
sufficient to make up for the reduction
occasioned by the repeal of the special
two mill tax levied under Radical rule.
But to guard against deficit for school
purposes in consequence Of such repeal,
the act Of the Reform Legislature cen
tains this provision:
The levy of two mills for school pur-
poses is hereby repealed, and if the whole
amount distributed under the provisions
of this act be less than the whole amount
derived from a tax Of two mills for the
last fiscal year, then the State Treasurer
IS hereby authorized and required to trans
fer from the general fto1d to the school fund
sufficient amount to make up such def
cheney, achich shall be distributed as atore-
said.
The reader will therefore see how ut
terly false is the pretence that the school
system has been impaired. On the con-
trary, a sum sufficient to keep it up is
absolutely guaranteed, and provision is
made that the school term shall be five
months in the year instead of four, as
under Radical rule.
The fund released under the amend
ment of 1875 to section 6, if the require
ments of the Constitution had been
faithfully complied with by the Republi-
can administration, would have been a
great deal larger, (there is no method of
ascertaining how much, y probably double
in amount what it is now. This sec
ton of the Constitution was virtually
ignored for several years as to the liquor
licenses, and we believe during the whole
time as to penal fines and land redemp-
tons, sales, etc. The proceeds arising dur
ing these years from these sources were
virtually squandered, by the administra-
ton then in power, in this that the funds
were either directly collected in warrants
or turned into the treasury by collectors
in such fund, and being State warrants
redeemed, were cancelled as were those
taken up in taxes for the general fund,
thus applying the school funds to the
general purposes of the State govern
ment. This reduced the apparent ex-
penses of the State and made warrants
higher by robbing Peter to pay Paul
The warrants so collected should not
have been cancelled rs warrants collected
on tax for general purposes, but should
have been by law required to have been
redeemed by warrants issued in favor
of the treasurer for school purposes, which
could have been converted into United
States bonds or they should have been
redeemed by State bonds, which could
have been exchanged for United States
bonds Obey bearing greater INTEREST,",
after which the redeemed warrants could
have been disposed of in the usual way.
Instead, however, they went in with the
general fund warrants to pay general ex-
penses at the cost of the school fund, ex-
cept in the years when the liquor licenses
were collected in currency, or when
stray United States dollar, realized from
fines or land redemptions, had passed
through the hands of clerks, collectors.
sheritfs, and auditor, and was acknowl-
edged BY the treasurer to be in his hands.
This cash was bonded and is the released
fund which will be utilized and APP
piled directly to the support of the
schools.
InPortant 80 SheriA=.
Under the terms of the lease recently
entered into between the Inspectors of the