The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1880-02-26
"Let Us Have Peace"

Mr.. EDITOR l love plain English
and if it must be interlarded, like
nice, cleau-cut bits of French. Latin.
Greek, or what you will, aPtly used and
correctly spelled. But when learned
men use technical or foreign words
Theoretically spelled and scattered along
their pages like squelched berries and
flies through very poor fruit cake, it
often taxes the patience Of readers and
puzzles the judgment of critics.
I was lead into this reflection by the
nbrasc. clashes of teachers" used by
YOUR learned correspondent. J 4 NJ,
Of Russell Place. whose gravity, fear.
was irritated rather than amused by my
innocent afforts to tickle him with a
Joke. When | first observed the phras-
referred to, I thought it a misprint, and
fastened to your printer to get the true
text: but there it was on the nicely
pepned manuscript, plainly written
fashes in three several places. Then it
occurred to ME that the "averag' school
teacher" of decade ago did probably
.get'some lashes in the previous decade;
and | was about to apostrophlse the
18th amendment, when it flashed upon
my mind that our learned friend had
used French law term. and phonetl-
cised it-not misspelled it |! But as l
am plain man, writing for plain peo-
pie, | will venture to "usphone" 1t
into the plain law French "lache," and
to render that into the plain English
word, IaxAy, neglect or omission. So
that the clashes of teachers" un-phoued
and translated for the benefit Of your
unlearned readers, means simply the
laxity, neglect or omission of to"chers
10 use the proper means at the proper
time to get their money.
J. r. Ms. second paragraph, which
contains the whole force Of his argu-
mept, I gill quote entire, pau"ing
at intervals to cesrrct his errors OF state
mo, 1T and inferences:
cbon Ter xxx, section l, of the revised
. onap' South Carolina, makes every
SohoO, S'uIG d;,,r;c' in the State, organized in
tnO''anno sunUU 40 tbsr. ,of body polite and cor
norate and NAV 81, e and be sued and be
p pponahIo Of Of con,roI,in, and being contracted
with, This statute does MT limit The pow
cr Of the trustees in con. 'ac -.
extent of the funds in their S~;s ,
but the act of 1878 does so limit NV. w.
tracing power; and section 40 of 5. <tt ~ ~
makes all contracts in excess of the fl '''S
apportioned to their district. void.
This statute does, by irresistible i'm
plieation, limit the authority Of trustees
to contract to the funds at their disposal.
1t provides that the county School Com
missioner shall be promptly in
formed by the Superintendent, Of Edu-
cation what amount is apportioned to
his county, and that he shall promptly
inform the boards of trustees Of the
several school districts what appor'ion-
ment is assigned TO their respective
districts, and that he shall have power
to shorten the school term, if need be.
so as to accommodate it to the funds at
his disposal. 1t, moreover, provides
means by which the schools may be
continued in q school district after tn"
funds assigned to it are exhausted; that
is to say, on the application Of certain
number of citizens Of school district
the trustees shall call meeting Of the
citizens of the school district, which
meeting, if the citizens choose. may vot"
a tax upon their school district not t"
exceed three dollars for each child in
the district between the ages OF six aud
sixteen years. In the face of all this,
does the mere authority to contract
and be contracted with" imply power
to 20 beyond what they had the means
nav with 1t is repugnant to the Who'll
spirit of our legislation since 1868. A"
amendment of the Constitution, ratlhed
before that date, deprives even the Leg
islature of the power to put the State II
debt without first submitting the propo
sition to the people at a general election
aud obtaining their approval. Ant
this great power, so jpalously guarded
as to be wilheld even from the Leglsla
turs we arc modcstly asked TO believ
was vested in Jim Edwards and Bill
Carter, or a school district board merel
because it is not expressly Withheld fror
them. Can absurdity ever 90 further
But J. II. NJ. proceeds
t;ection So makes it the duty of the trus
tees to employ teachers; section Al make
il the duty of the Clerk of the Board
Trustees, On the filing Of the teache,
mon,bly report, and its approval by sa