Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1876-01-27
lCoxMuxrcArrp.
Sr. CLEMENTS Bar. ]
Jan. %, 1876. [

II = 10
bled n the uuprosoked and malicious
|. attack Of your correspondent N upon
tie School Board. Examiner and mem.
hers Of the Teachers Association. and
feeling tina. IN, position as teacher and
~ dranghter Of the resolutions of which
he finds 30 manv objections dems.d
that ] should reply 10 his commuuica.
tion, ] ask permissioa in your eoluusus
to handle the gentleman a. softly ar
circumstances will permit.
y He wishes to arkncwledge that the
School Beard are intelligent, honorable
gentlemen, aud that the Examiner in .
/ lives active man. but ssks II their views
are correct. How is il possible tha.
gentlemen Of such intelligence should
entertain any incorrect viewsf Our
words. Messrs. Editors, will sometimes
carry with them much greater signifca-
ton than we would naturally expect,
and the cause is obvious. Are their
views not correct The gentleman
must answer thix 9ue> ton in theafirm.
ative, supported Iy facts incontroverti.
ble, before bis insinuations can be re.
garded with favor.
/ do believe, since NJ has forced NJ.
TO think, that the School Board, the
purity and wisdom of whose views do
not cavii, are now on the fun raging
sea. and take this occasion to say, that
l believe they will put into execution
these over glorious views as soon rs the
current will serve.
Yourcorrespondent e. mplains that the
School Board, whom, I believe, under
the pressure Of inexomble necessity,
availed themselves Of = wise provision
of the School law to diminish the mum.
her of schools. committed an outrage on
one-,hird of the children OF the county.
Why were those schools, nine or ten in
number, closed? Simply for the want
of an average daily attendance Of ten
pupils.
The superficial area of st. Mary's is
set down in our Maryland statistics at
about 800 square miles. Allowing Is
square miles or ST miles square to each
school district. and making due allow
ance also for the inconvenience occas.
toned by the branches Of the patuxent
on one side and the Potomac on the
other, would give about twenty. five
schools in the county, and this is about
rs many ~ can we'll be maintained in
our territory Under this arrangement
the longest walk for any pupil would
he httle more than two miles, and the
average salary of the teachers about five
hundred dollars per annu,n.
Does he I M not see the errors in the
former School Boards in thus increas-
ing the number Of schools? Does he
not see that every circumstance, which
increases the number of schools, lessons
the salaries of teachers and deterioratas
their efficiency also ? Did not the
School Board, in closing those schools,
carry out their oath If Officer Does NJ
bk,me them for faithfully performing
their duties? The consideration Of these
facts and questions by any rational mind
will show that this outburst of sympa-
thy ON the part Of M was for the poor
busted teachers, of whom, bysthe.by, he
may have been one, and not for the ont.
ragged pupils, for have observed that
these very devoted symrathizers are
! chiefly the ones who persistently with
hold their children from schools, even
II several are convenient
| Again, Al prononnees the statement,
that ut the time Of Mr.. Tippett's ap-
Poihtment there was not a teacher Of
the first grade in the county" TO be pos
itively incorrect. / will admit that
there were some holding certificates of
the first grade, which might have been
given as compliment BY the Examiner,
since at that time there was no differ
enee in the pay of,ea.hers holding eth
er grade certificate. 1t is strange, but
nevertheless true. that since the school
officers have fixed the percentage to be
obtained 10y candidates and the amount
OF salary 70 which teachers holding
either grade certificate are entitled first
grade $50 per term; second SIS, per-
n,its $3.50 that not one of these teach
ers has as yet presented themselves for
tirst grade certificates. He says, that
Mr.. Tippett may consider that none of
the Examiners before him could give
certificate" Did Mr.. T. say so Does
NJ really think so? Again be saws.
"that eitherof Mr. rs predecessors "ars'
certainly his equals" Does any one
bat Mr- NJ himself question that, and
Is be-a- competent Judge? In regard
to what Teacher No. 2 says, which is in
substance, That the schools have won
derfully improved iuthc last two years."
l do not think any sane man will deny,
but this l leave TO the people, who
should be the judges and whose decis-
ION do not fear, and of course this i'm
provement in the schools is an evidence
Of the greater efficiency of the teachers.
Your correspondent finds many de-
fects in the School law and errors in its
proper administration, and says unless
repealed will greatly damage the future
prospects of the party IN the State
Fer my part, I an no admirer of that
party zeal which turns the interest and
prosperity Of the children of the State
20 cony-catching, in order TO surpors
the self.intersted views Of petty poll
ticians. ! have always been Taught that
enlig htenmeut, whose first source is ed
ucation, tends 20 greater happiness aud