Evening journal., 1893-05-06
SUPT. GRAY'S DEFENCE.
He is Not Grabbing for Spoils
From the State.
BUT ASKED ONLY REASONABLE PAY

And the General Assembly Granted His
Request After Careful Consideration.
says He Must work, Travel All over
sussex, Pay Transient Expenses for
himself and Horse and support Home
on 81 900 Year.
To. the Editor of the Evening Journal.
DEAR SR:-I notice in your columns
of Thursday, In letter from your Dover
correspondent an article concerning
myself, which ask you to correct.
The salary Of the Office Of the superin
tendent of schools for Sussex county Is
81 O0O There are in the county 2O2
white schools and thirtytwo colored
schools. The territory is large; the
railroad facilities are very poor for visit
ing schools Nov, will You contemplate
for moment the work and the salary
One of the m ost important departments
of state government salaried sum
which would about cover the expenses
of the Office If the duties are performed
If YOU think the labors such as can be
performed from an office, then you may
consider the salary fair compensation
You must. however, remember that the
duties keep a superintendent travelling
with horse and carriage, and his hotel
and travelling expenses are to be paid
out Of the 81 600 dollars; add to this his
expense in keeping home for himself
and horse. and other living expenses
and you viii realize the inadequacy OF
the salary And, while the salary is the
same IN the other counties, and quite too
small, you must know that the work Is
very much less expensive there, as in New
Castle they have 100 white schools
and twenty two colored (outside
Wilmington, which has a separate super
intendent), and in Kent 1874 white
schools and thirty colored.
In Kent and New Castle the railroad
runs frequent trains through the heart
of the counties and work can be done
much more rapidly and cheaply in point
of time and money. Further any one who
has driven over the roads of the state
will say that il would be as acceptable 60
travel two miles in Kent OF New Castle
as one in Sussex.
Now upon these conditions / asked the
Legislature to make an increase of the
salary stating that the two years / had
filled the Office had brought me in debt,
that ought 20 have more pay or | would
be compelled TO do less work / was in.
formed that a small increase might be
made, put the disposition was TO increase
nobodys salary. 1 spoke TO certain
member of the Senate. He asked the
number of schools and then suggested
that l get up resolution allowing tn,
superintendent for Sussex county 81 foi
each school visited.
This resolution was prepared and
passed. II was in effect: That tn,
superintendent should, at the end OF
each quarter, make under oath, to the
state treasurer a report setting forth the
number of schools visited during th,
preceding quarter; that the superinten
dent should receive from state treasures
81 for each school.room reported, pro
vided that no school should be re
ported more than once during Tn
same school year and that th'
total allowance should not exceed 500
per annum. Under Whereas the rea
sons for the resolution were given
The resolution was presented and dis
cussed with every member of tn,
Senate separately and nearly ever
member of the House. before it wa
introduced; so that Il was sprung on
no one aud nobody was deceived.
Now IN relation to "a bill of $500
The Legislature of two years ago
passed a law providing for free tex
books FOR the schools Of the state
This law being new feature to tn
people the work of introducing 1t an
providing for its successful operatio
greatly Increased the labors of Oh
superintendents, new blank 70 rms an
records were to be prepared. TIL