San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1885-07-02
FOREwARNED, FORRARMEDi
The Free School Question Up Again.
Don't Forget to Come Out and Vote.

Referring to tho call by Mayor Giesen fol-
another election to determine whether GU,
city shall take charge of our Public Schools
and whether they shall be under control OF
a Board Of Trustees to be elected by the
people, or Of the city Council, We have o
few words to say.
There are no doubt not few of oui
readers who do not clearly understand why
another vote should be required on this
question. They know that vote on the
question of turning over the Free Schools
to the town was taken in April last and de.
cided in the affirmative by majority of 81
votes out of 265, and will naturally want ia
know why it is now to be repeated. This
information. in justice to the friends of sep.
arate free schools, we now propose to give,
from which il will be apparent that they are
not to blame for the muddle which has since
been gratuitously raised on the subject, nor
for any further trouble which may result.
The petition presented to Mayor Cock in
April was made out in strict accordance with
the law of 1879, and asked him, in the Ian.
guage of said law, to order an election to
determine whether our town "shall acquire
the exclusive control of all the public free
schools and public institutions of learning
within the corporate limits of said city, and
whether the same shall be under the control
of Board of Trustees or of the Council Of
said city"
1t will be observed that there are two
clauses in the above, both of which were
included in the petition, in the exact Ian.
guage of the law. yet Mayor Cock absolute.
~ and persmptorily refused to include the
last clause in ordering the election, 80 that
vote as to whether the schools should be
under the control of Board of Trustees OF
of the town Council, could not be taken.
The act of 1879 provided that ANY town in
the State could take action under it. There
was later act passed in 1888, applying ex-
clusively to towns Incorporated as cities,
which authorized the Council to appoint
school trustees and Mayor Cock informs us
be was guided by this latter act, and regard
ed it as superAuous to submit that point to
a vote. But as we were not then incorpo-
rated as city, and so were not under that
act at all, we cannot see any legal basis for
his course. All that he had to do was to Or
der vote on both clauses of the petition,
and in accordance with the law governing
the case, viz: the act of 1879 1t is true,
however, as we believe, he was supported
in his view by Judge Fisher, the present city
attorney. OF their motives we shall not as
sumo to Judge: we are merely stating what
we understand to be their acts in regard to
this matter.
To proceed with our story. Some months
later, by action of the city Council, our
town was incorporated as city, and Judge
Fisher was appointed city attorney. Now
the people having voted that the corpora
ton take charge of our public schools, and
having adopted city charter, Mayor Cocks
law of 1883 came into force, and it would
have seemed conferred the clear power on
the Council to appoint school trustees. But
the city attorney now held that the entire
action with respect to starting independent
free schools was illegal. The question was
referred to the Superintendent of Public In
struction, B. NJ Baker, who rendered the
following decision:
/. The act approved April IA, 1885, APP
plies only to such towns or cities us were
Incorporated as towns or cities of 1000 or
more inhabitants.
2. The act approved April 3, 1879, ap-
plies to all cities and towns in the State.
3. The failure to submit the question
whether the schools should be under the
control of board of trustees, or under the
control of the council or board of aldermen,
rendered the election illegal.
The first clause of the above it will be
seen nullifies Mayor Cocks idea that the act
of 1913 ives operative at the time he was
asked to order vote. The second clause
shows that the act of 1879 was in force, as
we have stated. The third clause shows
that the failure to submit the question
whether the schools should be under the
control of board of trustees or the Coun-
Gil is the ground taken by the Superintend-
ent for declaring the election illegal, and
this failure as we have shown, was simply
and solely because of tile refusal Of Mayor
Cock to order or allou it to be submitted.
We do not know upon what statement OF
facts the question was submitted to the su-
perintendent, or whether he was even in
formed that our town was now organized as
a city. Suffice it to say, that it has been
thought best to re-submt the matter to the
people just as it would have been done be-
fore, had not Mayor Cock forbidden it as re-
spects the last clause. 1t may avoid further
clubbing, and besides the election of trus-
tees, which will probably be the result, is
we think to be preferred.
We hear it said by some of the friends of
the old order of things that there will be
no further opposition to organizing indie
pendent free schools at the coming election.
Now this may be the case. II may be that
all the hindrances and hostility the move
ment has encountered may mean nothing
in particular. And then again THEY MAY
MEAN GOOD DEAL. 1t may be that 1t Is be- |
ing calculated that the interest has SO far
abated, that at busy time like the present, |
the friends of the movement may let 1t go
by default, or be made to succumb to
quiet, united opposition. We warn them to
take no risks in a matter of so much I'M
portance. Shall they who made all this
confusion, and the trouble of another cleo
ton necessary, be allowed to profit by their
=. ...-,....2 W. tlink that auch will not i