The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-12-11

Il
These books, it was charged and believed,
were not even sold at the same prices
| throughout the state. and further, that the
| publishers thereof were in combination
with publishers of other rival series of
textbooks, by which competition was
prevented and exorbitant prices main
tanned and exacted 1t is GER
tain that this mischief would be amply
remedied by any enactment which would
secure proper reduction of the prices of
the books then in general use, or bring
within reach of the people other books of
equal excellence, at satisfactory prices.
Now, to accomplish this, the act, among
other things, requires the state board OF
education, by extensive advertisement. TO
invite sealed bids from publishers for fur
nishing textbooks for use in the public
schools for a period of five years, such
bids to he accompanied by specimen SAM
| piles of the books offered and the prices
demanded for each. Then the board is
required to examine the specimens. No
bid can be accepted for any book unless
the specimen accompanying it is adjudged
to be OF equal merit with the corresponding
book OF the series named as being then in
general use. OF bids thus eligible, the
lowest is to be accepted, the merit of the
book considered, provided it does not eX-
q q
by the act itself bid being accepted,
then contract is to be made with the bid
der binding him to furnish the book or
books, to be sold to patrons of public
schools, for use therein, at the prices
| named in the bid. The state is not to be-
come the purchaser OF any book. but by
its school officers it is to sell the books to
the people for use in the public schools.
The school trustees are to sell for cash, and
the proceeds are to be returned quarterly
to the contractor. Notice OF the quantity
needed for use in the several school cor
pOrations is to be given by the trustees
thereof by requisitlOn through the county
superintendent, and the contractor is re-
quired to deliver the required books to the
latter officer, from whom the trustees are
required TO obtain them for sale. Thus the
contractor is to be relieved of the expense
OF distribution to purchasers, and making
sales and collections, a devise certainly
well adapted, as was intended to secure
the lowest possible prices. So far it is not
expressly required that these books shall
be exclusively used in the schools, nor can
that requirement be fairly implied. 1t is
one thing to secure good books az low
prices, and quite different thing to COM
pei their exclusive use in the schools. 1t
is probable, however, that the considera-
ton OF low prices would, in the end, by its
own force secure the universal adoption of
these books throughout the state in the
absence OF any statute or authority COM
pelling it. But it can hardly be doubted
that it was within the power of the legis-
lature to adopt these books to the exclu-
sion of all others. At any rate, think of
no sufficient reason for denying that
power. Ii this power, as to a county, could
be conferred upon the county board OF
education, know not why the legislature
can not itself exercise the same power as
to the public schools of the whole state, or
confer it upon the state boardoI education.
There are, however, other portions of the
act not yet reviewed which are supposed
to affect the question in hand, and these
must be examined.
''The first section of the act invests the
state board of education with authority in
this language: For the purpose OF making
a selection or procuring the compilation,
for use in the common schools of the state
of a series of textbooks in the following
branches of study 1t then names the
studies and fixes the standard of merit of
the books, as already stated. This section
does not, in terms, make the power OF
selection dependent upon the acceptance
or tender of any bid for the furnishing or
compilation of books. Considered apart
from the other provisions of the act, if this
language, by its own force, makes it obliga-
tory upon the local school officers TO put in
use in the schools the books selected
for use in the schools" bv the state board,
and to exclude other books, then it does,
without doubt, repeal, by implication, the
former laws which gave control of the
matter to local school officers. The words,
make selection of text books for use in
the public schools of the state, are not
quite as exact an impression OF the idea as
the English language is capableof furnish
ing. Books which shall be used in the
public schools, would be more definite.
Or books suitable for use would have
forbidden the conclusion that it was in
tended to compel the use of the books to
be so selected. A merchant also selects
goods for use by his customers, but this
does not necessarily imply that his custo-
mers will or shall purchase or use them.
but this section may not be construed
apart from its context. Nobody so con-
tends, nor would it be claimed that, un-
conditionally, it gives to the state board
authority to prescribe the books " Inch
shall be used, if no contract for their sup
ply had been made. The whole act must
be considered in constituting any part of it
which needs construction, in order that
inconsistencies therein may be avoided,
and all its parts be made to harmonize
with each other. 1t seems to me that the
last prOviso to sec. has an important
bearing upon this question. This is its
language: Nothing in this act shall oper-
ate TO prevent the state board of educa-
tion, boards of school trustees or boards of
school commissioners from devising means
for the sale, exchange or other
disposition of such books as may be owned
by the pupils of the schools under their
charge at the time OF the adoption of books
under the provisions of this act
"This is in terms canon of construc-
ton for the whole act. The local boards
are not to be, by anything in the act, pre-
vented from making terms for exchanging
old books in use, when new ones shall be
adopted, for the new ones. But If such
officers or boards have, by force of the act,
lost their former power to adopt books,
and the new ones have been adopted by
reason of the fact that the state board
has contracted so as to secure them, then
the local authorities are not free to make
terms for exchange OF books-they
must take the new books, nolens
volens and, ii they would ex-
change at all, it must be upon
such terms as the contractors choose
to prescribe. But if the power to
adopt the new books still belongs to the
local officers, then they are at lib
erty to negotiate for the exchange upon
g.,