The Meridional. (Abbeville, La.) 1856-1906, 1884-10-04
School Teacher Us. School Board.

School teaching has its ups and
not dissimilar to other avo-
cations in life. The number OF pu'
pills, rise and fall, with the seasons,
to certain exigenc'es. The
of a we'll organized BoaFd
Trade, because Of the dullness Of
the season, would not augur much
for the foresight Of its members.
To withhold a constitutional crI
other guaranteed right or privil-|
eye, under the pretezt, that only a
limited number Of individuals,
choose to avail themselves Of said
rights or privileges, must appear
an assumption Of authority. School
teaching has its responsibilities, and
its qualifications, that neither end
nor abate, with the amount OF pat
ronage accorded the principal, and
those qualifications are inseparable
and indispensable. Rudiments. are
the q ound work of any established
system, and imperfections found
there, extend themselves to further
rami6cations :; aud the teacher best
understands those rudiments, who is
fuller acquainted with it's other de,
tails. Ability to do, what is essen
TALLY required, should be the i'm
plicit rule ; and ought to b" aguar-
antee, for the fullest compensation.
These in my opinion, are axioms.
needing no further demonstration.
Economy" is somewhat cosmo-
politan ; or rather ambiguous, has a
vague significance, when connected
with an object to be attained, he
should beware Of the adage, and be-
come not "pcnny wise and pound
foolish" Just in that degree. as we
are losers by over-production ; just
lin that ratio, do we expect TO be
benefited by Q deficiency in the sup
ply. The patron who sends to an
ove-crowded school, would be un-
reasonable, if he expected that his
child would get the same degree Of
attention, or be as free from rijicu'
lous Interruptions. as when he sent
him to a less crowded one ; where
more time was at the disposal of the
master, and where discipline. was
easier and better maintained. 1t isno1
with any presumption on my part
or through any desire to take the
lead, in any pet idea of reform ; MOI
is it from an undue appreciation o
the responsibility, or good intentions
of the members who compose thi'
our honorable Board. On the con
trary, I certainly deem the selection
Ia good one ; am fully convinced o
? their good Intentions. But aftc
{ conversation, held with some o
these very members, l find that tn
Views respectively entertained, ar
D somewhat at variance ; aud beg
Lying their pardon, for any sueges
d ton, that may appear amiss; l pc
this writing. 1t is notorious, tina
country schools are seldom, if eve
e as we'll attended, as town school:
e Children of merchants and mechal
les, have more leisure time in whic
s. to attend school,, than children i
the cnuntry, for obvious reasons
j, they have scarcely anything else
ado, and right here, [ would add,
is much easier to class them, OWN
to their more regular attendant
~ thus making amends for increase
numbers. But do the people
town, pay more school taxes, an
~ are those parents in the countr
swho fail to send their children
" school, exempt from such taxes
8. Will you take the money contrib
IL ted by one section, and give it
N another !! Is not the apportio
ment, based on the number Of chill
rem Of eligible age /; and not on Il
amount Of patronage! Will "
z. withhold the advantages for whi'