The Daily bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Hawaii]) 1882-1895, 1890-08-29

very strong argument On the othcr
hand, the plan proposed is claimed
TO be all but impracticablc inosmuch
as il will involve difficulties and per-
picking complications that will more
than counterbalancc any possible
advantages that may accrue from it.
The school taxes are paid TO the
School Agents of whom there arc
twcnty-one throughout the King
dom. The agents pay, under the
direction of the Board of Educa-
ton, the salaries Of teachers and the |
current expenses of the schools i'll
their respective districts rs far as
their money goes. These receipts
and expenditures are set forth in
quarterly returns, made on printed
forms, by the Agents of the Board.
When the school tax of any given
district is insufficient for the main
tcnance of the schools in that dis
trict, the Legislative appropriation is
drawn upon TO make up the def
cheney. Every school agent is under
sufficient bonds to protect the treas
ury against any possible misappro-
priation of the funds in his posses
sion. Besides this, the Inspector
General is authorized by law to
examine at any time the books and
accounts of school agent Under
these circumstances the chances of
o school agent getting away with
school funds arc very slender indeed.
A great many petty disbursements
arc necessarily made by the school
agents. A school wants u new
broom, u drinking cup, u chair, u
pane of glass, q new spring for II
window sash or some other twenty
five cent article. 1t is supplied
somehow or other, but. paid for by
the school agent out of the school
, funds in his possession.
Now, the question arises: if all
school moneys are to pass through
the finance office, whether is il going
to simplify or complicatc matters to
have such accounts as those named
; sent to Honolulu, to be audited,
+ vouched and paid? One thing is
| sure as result of the proposed
S change, viz. F: that an extra book
! keeper will be required by the Board
of Education. Again, il is alto
gcther unlikely that responsible per-
sons having any business of their
own to attend TO are going TO sub
nit to the annoyance of calls and
petty bills for current expenses of
, schools without being in funds to
pay them forthwith, and il may be
set down as pretty certain that no
+ school agent will pay school OK
! pcnscs out of his own pocket and
5 bidc his time, until he is refunded
after unwinding u few yards of red
c tape, at The end of the quarter. Or
if school agents, under the new
!, plan, arc to be dispensed with, the
thousand and one local matters
which at present arc promptly and
well disposed of by them, must be
settled by correspondence between
the two hundred and fifty teachers
throughout the country and The
Education office, y state of Affairs
that will also involve the necessity
for an additional clerk.
The total amount for which Lb'
. twcnty-one school agents Of TIL,
. Kingdom were responsible during TIN
20 past two years was S2OG,GlO, or al
i, average of $25,S30 every tire
months, and as the school tax is 70
the schools only in the distric
where it is collected, the plan pro
posed by the committee amount
simply TO this, that the average sun
of $25, $50 per quarter must be sen
in to the Finance Office from TIN
several districts and then sent bac
again to the places whence it came
=. That is the practical operation 9
~ the theory of having all school rcve
nucs pass through the treasury, tC
gethcr with great many "conse
quential damages" in the form {
= correspondence, accountings, con
plications and humbugging galore