Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1880-09-03
oar civ school Insercsts.


sThirty-fve one thousand dollar
bonds, issued by the old city govern
ment under Mayors Leftwich and
johnson, to raise a fund to erect the
present school houses, are about to
cause trouble in a legal way unless
provision is made to pay some six
years past due interest upon them,
and to keep it paid up in the future.
The amount Of bonds originally is
sued was 100000, but all have been
cancelled except the thirty-fve
alluded to. The holders, through
their attorneys, have notified the
school board hat they consider the
past due coupons as a lien on the
schoOl-house property. The bonds
bear 6 per cent interest, and about
$500 is now overdue. A committee
of the school board have the matter
under consideration, and will doubt
less recommend that our state legisla.
ture levy a tax to pay off and retire
the past due interest, as well as the
bonds themselves.
The taxes collected by Tax Col
lector Fleece for school purposes are
a matter of contention between the
school visitors and the collector. A
committee Of the school board, con-
of President w. G. Fowlkes,
MesSrs. Jordan, Livermore and Boyle,
are to take the matter under consider
At the school board called
meeting last night, Mr.. Fowlkes read
a letter from Trustee Fleece, wherein
the latter says he is about to distrib-
ute school tax collections for 1879,
and he wishes the basis of distribution
determined. The legislative
act of March ID, 1879, he says, pro.
vides for the payment to the city
schools of all school taxes levied with
in the Taxing District, but does not
provide for a reciprocal payment Of
taxes outside ofthe Taxing District to
the county schools. The act strictly
followed, in his opinion, would involve
a great injustice to the county schools,
and would doubtless traverse the in
%tentiOn of the legislature.
President Fowlkes, of the school
board, in his reply says {:
The board has no means of arriving
at the intention of the legislature, ex-
cept from the reading of section II.
This section is too clear for specula-
ton as to its intention. Its language
is not unequivOcal, and it manitestly
means that all revenuesfor school pur-
poses collected in the Taxing District
shall be applied to the schools in the
District. You will remember that
shortly after its passage | officially
called your attention to this section,
and asked its enforcement by you and
was informed that you would carry
out its terms. Now, as to how the
taxes collected outside Of the District
are to be apportioned, it was not for
me to say. | can give no authoritative
exposition on this subject, and you
must act at your peril upon the best
information and Judgment at your
command. | can see nothing TO indi-
cate that the Memphis city schools are
not still entitled to their pro rata of
taxes outside of the District. Ii is
true that it may work an Injustice to
the county schools, but this is a cen.
s~ideration to be addressed to the leg
islature in securing a remedy in the
future, and cuts no figure in that in
depreciation of the law as it stands at
the present time"
The called meeting of the school
board held last night had the above
subjects under consideration, but de-
ferred final action until the commit
tees report. Nothing else was traaa
acted at the meeting.