The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1880-02-26

represent debt lawiully contracteu aGuihs
the county, then What does it represent?
! The answer is: simple enough; II
the school board had not exhausted the
: amouat,tf the superintendent to their
school district, their order thus
drawn and endorsed was b good and
valid, dtaft or check on the county
treasury, and the money should have
awaited its presentation there. But. if
9 tRayhad overdraSh their al pportiob'ueht,
Rthep their order. whether endorsed or
not, was spurious draft drawn by a
party ohayingono au,hontyfrso to draw.
and without funds to pay it, and like
Fall SUCH spurious paper Should ilage
,F:been taken Immediately with protest
back for adjustment tq the party who
drew it, and if'that party failed to
adjust it, then, an appeal should hare
Been made to the Court for redress;
and there is not doubt but that such
an. appeal would have broug ht: ssdraeaa ra
against ;. the nalfeasa66 whether that;
malfeassnt were 1.-THE 5sehool sadistrict'
board, as in the case here supposed, or
ithe School Commissioner, or the County
Treasurer. But if the party receiving
this order or draft, put it into. his pocket
and there lst'il sleep for years without
notice or protest of its non-pavment,
then by every rule of law or equity
governing such transactions, and by
very principle ef common sense, and
simple natural justice, be did by such
lache, or culpable neglect, lose and for
felt, as he ought to have lost and fortified,
every right which he might at first have
held under it. This is the case of past
due school claims.
j R. M. complacently proceeds:
1t evidently represents debt. There
can be 20 doubt of its having been legally
contracted. The county, receiving the
benefit of the teachers services, is the
debtor The School Con missioner is the
agent of the county, who is selected by the
voters of the county, and his endorsement
legally obtained upon these school claims
legally issued by the Board of trustees, is
certainly evidence of Indebtedness of the
county. If. then, The debt was legally con-
tracted, the question of lashes must be de-
termined by the statute of limitation.
How far the school district board
could legally contract with teachers. or
issue orders on the County Treasury,
and how far the School Commissioner
could legally endorse its order, think
l have already proven to have depended
on whether the school district board had
exhausted their apportioned fund or
not. Neither could the one legally draw
nor the other legally endorse, one cent
beyond that limit. If am correct in
this, then all this ingenious deduction
of J R. h. is sheer nonsense. He labors
under strange balluciuatiou with re.
spect to the responsibility of the people
for the conduct of their officers, and
seems to think that if they elect an
officer they are responsible for all that
he may d., even if he were to steal
horse, This is not so. The State ia
only responsible for the conduct of its
agents or officers in so far az il has in
vested them with legal authority. When
they exceed their legal authority, they
are Individually liable for their conduct,
but the State is not. Does not j. Il,
" know this ? If he does not, he
should not assume to instruct the most
ignorant of his countrymen in matters
pertaining 10 law and public economy;
if he does know this, he should write
with more candor than is exhibited in
This last and preceding quotations. This
dilemma is of his oyn raising. | have
merely drawn it out into clear light for
him. and he can take it by either horn.
1t is unnecessary that [ should so
through the rest CT his article, as this
paragraph contains the gist Of the vh"le.
SN.I leave our learned friend to his
medita,ions on the Revised Statutes
acknowledging his supremacy there:
gut when he rises ont of this special
aon, ain of his to interpret the senti-
msnts which should exist between
..Taxn.ve," and "Citizrn" and the hish
toned seurlen,: ven whose public conduct
has ben, and ,''ilI BE- the subject & OF
their animadversion, exelaim With the
indignant sculptor of 3D. I'VE su'0r
ultra crepiddm."
MIR. Editor, I see no use in p:otraGno-
ing furthur this controversy with y. H.
NJ. IF The people of Kershaw county,
for whom write, are not convinced OIL
the iniquity and euormity of this school
claim grab upon their property and re-,
.ourcas, should write in vain until
duoms day to convince them. l, there
fure. beg you to make my respectful and
final adieas to your learned and iDge-
uious correspondent. | fear to await
his coming, lest he may bring one OF
those sharpened axes Of his, and want
TO chop me with it as he sometimes
chops the "Revised Statutes"
CITIZEN.