The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1881-05-19
OUR PUBEIC SCHOOLS.

tllhes 1or eleven months in the year.
This gave opportunity for those who
could not attend regularly, to attend
at any time or times during the year
when circumstances mado it conven-
lent; and was especially favorable to
boys and Young mcn who had to as.
sist IN making and gathering the crops,
as they could attend for y time at three
distinct periods in the year. Also
these schools, embracing the spring,
! summer and fall months, gave 10 little
! children aud girls, who could not SO
well attend during the winter, the
most favorable school months. This
also gave employment to our teachers
, during the year and enabled them to
live by teaching alone. Thus each was
enabled and encouraged to qualify
himself for and devote his time to
teaching az a profession. But now
our schools continue from two to five
months, scarcely averaging four
months during the last ten years, and
are taught during the most unfayor-
able season Of the year. The teacher,
often not knowing how long he is 10
teach until little before the time OK
pircs, is instructed to discontinue the
school at q certain time, and finding
that his pitiiul salary Of twenty-five
dollars per mouth Gin our county, has
been well nigh exhausted in serving
the public, lie is forced to seek some
other calling to support himself and
family during the remainder Of the
scholastic year. But what about the
"pay SCHOOL,? While wo have many
liberal-minded and thoughtful citizens
who really desire to give their chill
drcn proper education, yet when the
pay school is mentioned they find
themselves standing almost alone,
the majority of our citizens relvinu
upon the puciic school alone, and say
ing that the educational tax is all they
can pay for The education of their chill
dren, amt yet with many Of our citi-
zens the educational tax would scarce
ly amount to ten cents per month for
their children. Thus Tie pay school,
either falls to the ground or two or
three noble men have to bear the
whole burden. The truth is, though
not 80 designed, the school fund. as
now applied, has in its practical effect
killed the "pay SCHOOL, But let Us
! look Il moEcut at this educational tax.
The tax on 81 900 Of property is two
dollars estimating at two millsD
Suppose this is my tax and have two
chiiIren t" send to school. and send
q |
cents per month for each. If ! send
four then it is iivc cents per month.
Suppose ] send three children to a
public school for four months. then
pay lGj cents per mOnth. And to one
VINO pays taxes on $4,000 Of property,
1t is 334 cents per month. Can any one
outside Of the asylum supposc this is
all ought to d0 for the education Of
my children, when am worth Il
thousand or Two thousand dollars:
lhuS the present plan len,i5 to tamil-
larlze and satisfy our people with
schools, which, III their duration, are
totally Inadequate to meet the needs of
our people, or to give our children the
education necessary even for the COM
mon duties OF lite. But the evil does
not stop here. IL tends - produce an
indillrrencc and neglect in regard to
the education Of our children. Many
care but llttic who teaches our schools
or what the qualification Of the teach
er IS, SO long MS they pay nothing for
lt,'ou' when they pay the teacher they
are more concerned in regard to this.
AS general principle we generally
ralnc lllngs III proportion to " hat
they cost us But this Indifference Of
q In,, -,
~ attendance in our public schools.
hen the parents pay the teachers
they send with much more regularity
than When they do not. II il very
easy FOR parents frequently to find
something for their children to do at
home " hen they do not pay for the
time. And as teachers well know
there is no estimating the discourage
ment and disadvantage to the children
on account Of this irrcgllarity. 1t
tends to prevent teaching from being
a distinct profession, and as a consc-
qucnce Increases the number Of Young
and Inefficient teachers, while it dimin-
| lshes the number Of more efficient
ones. 1t pays tho same salary to all
teachers OF the same grade without
any regard to their experience, skill
! w hooptuttOil itl ll|Ctf WORK. ms Is
achcck upon advancement and tends
to lower the standard Of education.
for OF teachers ofthc same grade (cer-
tiicatc) some. both among our male
and female teachers, are worth more
than twice as much in the school-room
than others. 1t tends to diminish the
salary Of our teachers, both from dc.
sire TO run the schools as long as DOS
slble and also on account Of the con-
slant multiplication of new schools
with applications, with which our
trustees are worried, more or less
every year. Now the lower the salar,
the greater will be the number of an.
plicants and the more inefficient thev
will be. The school trustees of our
county had Il convention some wears
ago, and fixed tho salary of all first
grade certificates at $25 per mon,l,
just half of that Of some other coun-
ties, and, shall say il, Just half of
what far less efficient teachers received
III this county under Radical rule.
The trustees no doubt fixed the salary
at $50 in order to run the schools as
long as possible. They doubtless con-