The daily gazette., 1876-01-07
SECOND EDITION,
The School approximation.

The Opinion Of the City Solicitor in
Making Appropriations for the Sup
port Of the Public Schools.
At the meeting of the City Council
last evening, City Solicitor Cummins,
in response to a resolution previously
offered by Mr.. Febiger and adopted
by Council, presented his opinion on
the above subject. A summary is
herewith presented:
The opinion first defines the charter
powers of the Board of Education, in
regard to the establishment and main-
tainance of public schools, and quotes
particularly from Section 8, of the
charter, as follows:
"The Board shall annually publish
In two newspapers full report of
their accounts, and shall
also deputc one of their members to
attend with and lay their accounts and
vouchers before the City Council, at
the next regular meeting following
such publication.
The Solicitor thea says: Council
has no other supervision over the
Board thau over the accounts aud
vouchers of their expenditures; and
the said Board has the power to regu.
late as they shall deem judicious and
cxpedient for establishing and maln-
tanning said schools.
He next refers to the city and school
assessments, which shall be made by
Council separate and distinct from
each other, and then says: The Coun-
Gil shall also determine the amount
necessary to be raised by taxation for
the use of the city; and shall at the
same time determine, according to a
computation to be laid before them 6y the
Board Of Educdts0n, the sum necessary
to be raised for the use of public
schools in said city by taxation, during
the year of said assessments, and shall
appOrtiOn such amount among the
several persons and estates assessed
upon the school assessment, according
to a certain rate pro rata upon every
hundred dollars of said assessment;
and the amount 30 apportioned shall
be collected as other city taxes are
collected.
According to a well-known rule of
statutes, and as enacted by the Legis-
lature.
"All words and phrases, except the
technical words and phrases, shall be
construed according to the common
and approved usage of our language" "
The common meaning of according
to o"is'in accordance with ,"xgIeeably,'
or ''conformably to-" So that the de
Lucrative power and discretion ot
Council in limiting the school tax
which would be given 1t by the use o.
the word "determine'' alone, is re
stricted to or qualified by the phrase
according to-" That is to determine
or fix said tax conformably to the con
putation or estimate of the Board o
Education. Said Board IS the judg,
of the snm necessary to be raised BY
: taxation, for the use of the publi
schools. The Council and the Cit,
Collectors are the instruments. as i
were, for the apportionment and col
so collected are fol- the use of the SAT-
: Board, for executing the provision
/ granted them Ivy charter, and to be aI
piled tosucb appropriation by Council
for the use of the public schools of tn
city,as said Board may deem judiciou
y and expedient.
am OF the oHinion that the duty q
the City Council is to appropriate fo
the use of the public schools of tn
+ city, the sum or amount asked for b
i the Board of Education, according l.
7 a computation 10 be laid before theI
by said Board, and to determine tn
!. same as the sum necessary to be raise
:. for the use of the public schools in tn
city by taxation, aud make apportior
ment thereof as hLrein before mentioT
!, ed. And that Council has not dii
}, cretionary power to appropriate fo
4 the public schools less sum than tht
!. askec for and computed to be necessary
by said Board. Respectfully,
/. WALTER CUMM,Ns, City Solicitol
., Wilmington, Jan. 6. 1876.
!; The Opinion was accepted and or
u dered to be recorded on the minutes
THICK DIsLocATED.-About 10 o'cloc