Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-11-12

Orr.

We have been shoy -1~-.s- -
Gently issued from the Department of
Education by State School Commissioner
Gustavus J. Orr, which contains infor-
nation and suggestions relative to the
common schools of Georgia, which will
prove very interesting to all friends of
public education. After dwelling at
some length upon the legislation recently
enacted for the benefit of the schools,
the Commissioner mentions the only
school measures Of much importance
which were passed at the last session of
the Legislature, as follows: The bill
which gives the fees for inspect
ing fertilizers and the hire of
the convicts TO the support of the
schools, and the bill providing for the
more efficient collection of the liquor
tax. The first of these he estimates will
add about SIC, 900 to the school fund,
while this year the amount received
from the liquor tax was 5000, which
amount, it is believed, will be doubled
ia the future, and this increased amount
added to the $40, 900 above mentioned,
will give total addition to the fund of
1921, 900. The total school fund from
these sources, the receipts from the poll
tax, and the funds apportioned at the
Office Of the Department of Education
will give an available fund for the com
ing year of about $473, 137 50.
The Commissioner then goes on to
make certain suggestions regarding the
proper conduct of the public schools,
which are well worth consideration. He
is of the opinion that if boards Of educa-
ton will locate schools judiciously, not
needlessly multiplying them; and If
County Commissioners will see to it that
only those pupils participate in the bene-
fits of the fund who are pursuing
the legal branches, in most of the coun-
ties of the State, the fund Of next year
can be made to make the schools abso-
lutely free for three months, and in
quite number of the counties, with
judicious management, they can be kept
up as free schools for four months. He
hopes the county officers will try to make
the fund do all that it can be made to do
next year.
He next slludes to the fact, based up
on reliable information obtained by him,
that our three months schools are very
badly broken in upon, from year to
year, by the gathering of the crops.
This is an evil which cannot be very sat-
isfactOrily abated, since the crops must
be gathered at one time at one place, and
at another time in another. The various
local boards are the best Judges of the
most proper way to remedy this evil,
and to their discretion it is left to so fix
the school term in their several localities,
that the best interests of the schools
may be promoted thereby.
The Commissioner closes his circular
by congratulating the friends of popular
education on what has been done, and
by urging that more be yet done in the
future, and to accomplish what he de
sires he is anxious that the matter of
education should be made live issue in
our future political campaigns. He
thinks that three months schooling dur
ing the year is not sufficient, and that
six months is as little as ought to be
given. To bring this about he says:
''In electing members to the next
General Assembly, let the school issue
be made everywhere. Let the friends of
education require Of those who would
represent them a pledge that they will
exert themselves, in case of their cleo
ton, to raise money enough to keep free
schools in operation at least six months
of the year. Do not permit them to turn
the people aside to side issues. Some
aspirants will claim to be great school
men, and will propose to accomplish
great things by some Insignificant change
in the school machinery. Able men,
huOMu al OhEL lul5 AOI WudL
they have accomplished for popular edu-
cation, after a patient examination of
the school code of every State in the
Union, have declared that, with the ex-
ceptiOn perhaps of two States, Georgia
has the very best system of school laws.
All that we need is more money; and,
from my knowledge of the people, and
from the strong school sentiment devel
oped in the present Legislature. l be-
lieve that, in order to succeed, we have
only to make the issue. Let us strike
then for a SIX months school,"
This is a very fair synopsis of the
views and suggestions put forward by
the State School Commissioners in his
late circular. We have no doubt they
will commend themselves favorably, not
only to those directly engaged in the
work of public education, but to that
of the people of the State at large.
M "