The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1876-04-27
EDUCATIONAL DEPARTMENT.
Edited by J. W. JOHNSON, Co. Supt.
THE COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT.

shall not attempt in this short article
to give the argument in favor of the
county superintendency, but [ desire to
show how the present county supervisor
could be made more efficient.
There are very few teachers and parents
of reasonable culture, who do not admit
that our supervisory system has done
much for the public schools. Iowa did
wise thing when the plan was adopted and
her legislators have shown their interests
in her welfare by continuing the same.
Let the legislature remove few of the
restrictions placed upon the office and the
schools would advance more rapidly and
we would be more likely to secure good
men for the place. 1t is certainly not
necessary that man should be an active
politician in order to make good super
intendent. AS fact our best school
men are those teachers and officers who
have no time to take partizen interest in
politics. Yet our present method of sell
Letting the officer compels him to go be-
fore the people as politician and plead
his merits from that stand point.
The history of the past has almost in
variably proven that a political party
would sacrifice its candidates for superin-
tendcnt in order to elect any other officer
now is it not asking more than what is
right that a man should suffer his name
to 60 before the people for their suffrages
when he must know the common result.
The strength and efficiency of the city
supervision lies in the selection of per-
son pre-eminently fitted to control and
advance the schools and if the candidate
| for city superintendent wOald be COM
PEELED to go before the people for election,
how very seldom would the choice be best.
Indeed the prospect of securing the right
man would be diminished. The same
argument is to be admitted when we re-
gard the duties and responsibilities of the
county ofice-therefor it should be
strengthened by the same customs and
in short time decided Improvement
would be noticeable.
Another very great hindrance to this
Office is the meager salary 1t requires
just as good man to fill it properly as it
does sheriff, auditor or recorder, his la
bors are just as onerous but his pay is
not commensurate 1t is certain that his
duty is the guarding of an interest that
should be nearer and dearer to us than
the duties of either of the officers named.
yet the public seems to doubt the justice
OF paying him as much What the super
visory work needs is the best men-those
who understand how to keep the youth
full mind pure and by this means remove
it from the danger of the age; but the
only way to get them is to make the office
desirable to such men. What we must
have in a free government is to have the
youth educated to acting, thinking and
feeling, to the recognition of their duty in
living temperate, virtuous life; and the
necessity of building State prisons and
aims houses will be done away.
Give the county Superintendency a
stable foundation, make it efficient by re-
moving it from the dominion of politics,
pay salary commensurate with the char
acter of the services and progress will be
made in rendering our schools what all
true educators hope to make them.
S. III. I'll.