The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1878-02-13
Wednesday, Feb. Is, 1878.
Report of State superintendent OF
Education.

The Ninth Annual Report Of the State
Superintendent Of Education has been
published. \ careful examination of il
co~nvinces US that Mr.. Hugh S. Thompson
is a most competent, pains-taking, and
energetic official, and the report he has
submitted to the General Assembly will
doubtless prove of immense service to
the cause Of education in this State. AS a
teacher of experience he has found that
''the present school law is defective and
that in some respects in needs rcvision;'
and he ha, presented along with his re-
port proper "a Bill to alter and amend
the School law of South Carolina" to the
consideration of which We shall recur
next week. In the "Appendix' he pre-
SCENTS neutrality-suspicious. statements
which contain educational statistics of
great value. The most interesting item
in these tables is the part referring to Alb
beville. Mark.the Observation-Disclosures
County reports the largest number of
free public schools, namely l6S.' This
cannot be considered an cnviable dlstinc-
ton. 1t means too great dilution Of the
public funds. With only 4,05l pupils the
number or teachers should not have eX-
cceded 100. Greenville with $3.50 pupils
had only. 1873 teachers. and though that
county should reduce the number of
her teaching corps, she certainly has done
more wisely han Abbeville. 1t is to DO
hoped that the school trustees will this
year bring down the number Of teachers
to the proper figure. We believe such to
be their desire, and their wise action in
establishing a minimum number of pu-
pills, minimum school term Of five months
and q fixed ratio of pay, will help them
greatly in accomplishing so desirable u
purpose.
We would refer this morning chiefly to
the report proper. 1t is wise in it's sug-
gestions, strong and manly in its state
luentS, and p~erspicuous. in its style. With
regard to School Commissioners the re-
port says that only twelve of the thirty
two in office have given evidence of fit
ness for their work. OF course it "names
no Names" but it says that if the Com
mittee on Education will only examine
the correspondence in the Superinten-
dents office, 'it will be seen that the
statements made with regard to some Of
the Com m~iSSioners are not a. strong as
the facts warrant" Here let the reform
ing process begin. Let the voters of the
various counties be careful to elect etfi-
Glen. men to this responsible Office. A
School Commissioner ought to be a man
of education, with some administrative
ability. and conversant with the litera-
ture and statistics Of the public school
questionable certainly ought to be able
to write and spell. lie has to manage ar
and to superintcnd the educational in
terests Of 4 county. The State Superin-
tcndent touches the marrow of the ques-
ton when he says, "a competent School
Commissioner should receive a good sal
ary." A 'good salary would command
the services of competent" men; and we
heartily recommend Mr.. Thompson'ssu g-
gestions ON this matter. We join with
him too in regretting that Sin too many
instances the Commissioners have been
chosen as a reward for political services
and without regard to their fitness.
While on the subject of salaries, we are
bound to state that the pittance given to
the State Superintendent is unusually
inadequate-some s., $500. He handles
nearly a half-million dollars annually, he
has a position and office as responsible as
any in the State, and with work that pre-
vents its being Il sinecure. He modestly
refrains from magnifying his W Office,
and leaves blank in the proposed School
Law the salary of the Superintendent.
The General Assembly will do we'll to fill
up the blank with at least $1,000; and if
they wish to do so without levying an ad-
ditional tax to pay it, we suggest that
they lay under contribution the enor-
mously and absurdly large income of the
Phosphate Inspector.
Nj. Thompson makes many other ex-
cellen: recommendations such as the es-
Establishment of "a State Normal School
for the training of teachers" To this and
others we may recur at some other time.
Meanwhile we express u entire salts
faction with the report as it stands; and
We sincerely hope that at the next cleo
ton the present State Superintendent will
DO reelected. The State needs efficient,
earnest. and intelligent servants, and it
would be hard to find a man better fitted
for the work of his high Office than Mr..
Hugh s. Thompson.
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