The Meridional. (Abbeville, La.) 1856-1906, 1888-06-02
The Other Side.


rendered az the haliOt-OOA on tHe
election q 4lle 18th day Of April,
1888, embraced several distinct feat
ures radiating from a common center,
Of these being those of the police
and Of the school board Of our
which, liz many instances, had
been charged with having made
manifest their imcompetency and
their weakness III the handling o.
the affairs Of Vermilion parish, ard
in the discharge Of the duties i'm
losed upon them. One OF the OF
iects in view was to supcrsede the
Of those two bodies, and
have net appointed, if possible, to
ill the vacancies thus occurring, who
suited tie population Of our parish.
accordingly, two petitions were
written, signed and mailed TO Baton
Rouge last Friday week, the same
having tie sanction Of the majority
Of the voting element Of u parish.
1t was not a secret that the last cam
paign was canvassed on the issue Of
a thorough change i'll the admins
tration Of our locality. 1t is not ig'
ncred that the police jury and the
school board Of our parish arenot by
any means the choice of the people.
We must bear in mind also that we
ere not under territorial rules.
Therefore, consistent with his
policy, ennuciated here and else
waerc, the governor is reasonably
supposed to be favorable to obr re-
quest in regard to appointment of
the aforesaid set Of officers, and we
are confident that nothing can deter
him from issuing commissions to the
set Ct men recommended in the said
petition. IT,. FOUR AEs.
Abbeville, La, May %, 1888.
True to our established policy Of
giving to those who differ in opinion
with US the right Of a hearing in
these columns, We publish the above
communication.
Now, let US examine the alleged
issue upon which the canvass was
made, the charges Of ircompetency
Of the school board, and the weak.
ness of the police jury.
To begin with, the gentlemen COM
posing these two bodies are but met
Of flesh and blood like the rest Of
mortals, and it would be strange in
deed if, during four years they had
not failed to please somebody. No
one nowadays expects or demands
universal satisfaction, nor do we sup.
pose that the governor will enquire
whether they have pleased every
body. He will inquire if they
obeyed the law and executed their
duties faithfully and fearlessly. They
have, we think.
The present school board have
built more and better school.houses
than all their predecessors during
the entire history of the parish.
They have employed only competent
teachers, and have seen to it that
they performed their duty; they have
run the schools ten months in the
year, which is longer by several
months than any other parish can
boast Of; they have purchased many
maps, globes, blackboards, and other
school apparatus which the schools
heretofore have lacked. They have
collected a large revenue from the
school lands. They have run the
schools, not, possibly, as outsiders
imagined they should be conducted,
but certainly according to the spirit
and the letter Of the law, and lastly,
but by no means leastly, they have
accumulated in the school treasury
$4,000 and upwards, as probably this
is why they are incompetent-to
squander it?
The police jury, whose official
scalps are so loudly clamored for