Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-10-22
The Dispute About the Site Of tht
Sch0OlhOuse ON tho East Side.

Sch00lh0use ON tho East Side.
EDIToRs HERALD-The East Siders are
divided into two parties, one in favor of
and the other opposed to the site chosen
by the Council for new school. Each
party claims to be majority of the
heads of families who will be patrons OF
the new school. The'school law leaves the
location of the schoolhouse wholly with
the people in all districts in the State
outside of the cities. In the cities, with
their denser population, and the diff
Guilty often of getting Q chosen site for
reasons peculiar to cities and that do not
exist in the country districts, the selec-
tion is left with the school authorities,
whose duty it is to consult the wishes OF
the people, the same as in the country
districts, so far as is practicable. This
the city authorities acknowledge and say
they wish to do. Both parties presented
their petitions; that in favor Of the site
selected being most numerously signed,
but made up mainly, as the other side
claimed and offered to prove, of people
who have no voice in the matter, as they
do not live in the district and would not
be patrons Of the school on the new site.
Those opposed to the chosen site claim
that their petition has the signatures OF
more than three-fourths of the heads of
families patrons of the school, and states
good and substantial reasons why that
site should not be selected. As it was
disputed which side had q majority,
those opposed to the site selected asked
the Council to take measures to deter
mine to its own satisfaction which
side had majority and let the wishes of
the minority prevail. This offer the
Council declined. The protesters against
the present site offered, that unless on
taking the count it was found that the
protesters constituted over three.fourths
of the people in the district, they would
yield their opposition to the present site,
unsuitable as they knew it to be. But
the Council declined and insisted on
themselves selecting this site for school
for the people of the district. Satisfied
that the site chosen is unfit, inconvenient
and uuwholesome, in which they are
supported by the City Superintendent Of
Schools, an expert in such matters, the
President of the Council, the President
of the School Board and the member of
the School Board from their ward, they
have appealed to a court of equity
to save them from the exercise of arbitrary
power against the interest of themselves
and their children. The legal question
whether the Council or the School Board
has the right to select the sites for the
new schoolhouses is q doubtful one.
These protesters claim that it rests with
the School Board, and hope the court
will 90 decide; but, by whomsoever made
the selection should be in accordance
with the will of the people interested,
and that will should, in case Of division
and dispute like this, be ascertained be-
yond question.
Any considerable delay in building
this or any of the new school houses
would be q public misfortune. There
need be no such delay. Within forty.
eight hours the Council can ascer-
tain by house to house presentation
ssainst the selected site, wi whether her or not not
q majority of the people interested want
It or not. If they do, let that be the end
of the dispute. But if they do not, let q
site be selected that meets the views of
the Superintendent and majority of the
School Board, and the protesters against
the present site will acquiesce.
So. too, the broader controversy
whether to the Board Of Education or to
the Council belongs the location and
construction of the new schoolhousee
need cause no delay. Let each body act
in the matter as if it alone had this
power, until the legal question is deter
mined. They can easily make their &C.
tion the same, and thus, whether the
decision of the court shall be ultimately in
favor of the board or the. Council
action for the new schoolhouses will
have been taken by the body having the
authority, and the work of providing the
new schoolhouses can 60 on without
waiting for the decision Of the Court and
without delay. II this ia accepted, the