San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1880-01-17
The Delay In she Opening OF
the Free school.

do not doubt that they meant to do
their duty. The precedsuts they quote
are correctly stated, but then the pre-.
oedents are bad. and ought to DO 70.
verssd. Somehow, ever since We have
been here there has been q conflict,
real or supposed, between Coronal In.
stituts and the Free School interest,
and the latter has been made to play
quito subsidiary and subservient part
II will be recollected that the fund for
building . school house was. we believe
for some years, withheld from that
purpose, and that it finally required
quite q strenuous sort of'moral suasion'
to compel its application to the purpose
contemplated by law. This was sim
ply outrageous yet the same spirit has
cropped out Enthusiastically nearly
every year before and sino$
The present arrangement, by which
the Institute and the Free School
we're placed under the same manage
msnt, was no doubt prompted BY an
honest and earnest desire to harmon
ize past conflicts Us formerly sxempli.
fed. We believe this can be done,
but it cannot be. done by attempting
to carry out the old programme Of
flying the Free School as the tail to
the Institute kite. 1t can only be done
through the fixed purpose to tote
fair" with respect to the Free School.
interests.
By the present arrangement, if we
understand il, Coronal Institute has
the use Of the Free School house for
its Male department, and receives the
public school fund on condition Of
teaching the Free School, at the rates
and on the conditions provided by
law. There utire school fund of the
county amounts to s474e. There are
thirty-four organized school commu.
mites in the county. The money as.
signed to the white branch of San Mar.
cos community is s720-a!most five
times az much as thst,of any other in
the county, and indicating, Of course,
a proportionately greater number Of
free school pupils. 1.-THE number, Judge
Kone informs US is 165 who are register.
ed, with probably others who are not
registered who are entitled to attend
the free SCHOOL, Yet under this state
of facts, and while we believe all the
other schools in the county, and eueu
the negro branch here, have been in op.
Grafton for some months, the remark.
able spectacle has been presented Of
1855 or more children crowded out Of
their own house, and wandering aim
lessly at large during their period of
greatest leisure, and the most favorable
season for studyl We ask all fair
minded people what they think Of it ?
Ought the Free School to be made thus
to stand back, like bound boy at q
husking ?" Ought the free school
scholars to have their intellect
ual repast postponed to the second or
third table, and even till after the SER
wants? Seriously, we would like to
be informed upon what system of log.
ic or Christian ethics the trustees de.
cided it rightto put the negro school
in operation in October or November,
and deny the same privilege to our
nearly 200 white children till the lat.
Ter part of January? We would like
to suggest to them further, that
Coronal Institute has q full board of
trustees of its own, who look vigilant-
ly to its interests, as it is their duty
to do, and that we for one would re-
joice to see the trustees OF the free
school go and do likewise" with re.
spect to their especial charge. And in
this connection we would further re-.
spectfully call their attention to art.
1857 chap. 70 title Public Education
of the Revised Statutes, which reads
as follows:
Trustees shall not enter into any
contract or permit any contract to be
made, whereby the interest of the
State pupils may be subordinated to
the interest of private pupils,
We have no personal feeling and
very little private interest in this mat.
ter. We are entirely friendly to the
Institute and to its present manage
ment. We wish it success. and it is
because we do so that we desire to see
it placed on basis which will COM
mend it to'the favor of the public gen.
orally. The Free School unfortunate
ly is but temporary. The managers of
the Institute can we'll afford to deal
with it not only fairly. but generously.
They should place its pupils on plane
of perfect equality with all others Of