The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-03-04
DOXEY'S CASE.
TWO REPORTS ARE MADE ON THE
MATTER.
Majority Report censures Yet Ex-
onerates Him, but the Minority
Report is Very Severe.
tspecial 10 The Herala.l

Special to The Herald.)
OGDEN, Utah, March Slate this
afternoon the board of education held
meeting to conclude the matter of
the charges against Samuel Doxey.
principal of the Grant avenue school.
Two reports were submitted, one a
majority report by Dee, Hart, Burton
and Mckee, which, though it censures
Mr.. Doxey in some respects, still ex-
onorates him from the more serious
charges of immortality.
The other was a minority report by
President Emerson and is very severe
upon the accused principal. Both re-
ports are quite lengthy and show that
The Herald at the time of the execu-
tive session published substantially
the gist of the charges. The most seri-
Gus charge was in specification 1 as
follows:
'That the said Samuel Doxey has
been guilty of indiscreet and ungentle
manly conduct towards and with GER
tain female pupils under his care in
this, to wit: that the said Samuel
Doxey has at various times embraced
the said female pupils and has behaved
towards them in an undignified manner
and in a manner not required of him
and contrary to the morals of the
school and the rules and regulations of
the board of education.
Specification No. charged that he
had been guilty of rude and ungentle-
manly conduct toward teachers and
the remaining specification charged
that he was guilty of uncleanliness and
disorder about the building, and that
he had wilfully disregarded orders
from the superintendent.
The majority report is that "the tes-
timony obtainable does not fully sub
stantfate the charges contained in No.
1, but that his acts were in the nature
of fatherly care and protection and
were committed ITO show the affection
he felt for said pupils"
AS to the other charges, this report
finds them not fully sustained, though
it admits that there was a little fric-
ton between him and some of his
teachers; still his actions were not in
tended to hurt their feelings. The
charge of disobeying the orders and
instructions of the superintendent is
found to be substantiated by the evil
dence, but is mitigated by the belief
that he did those acts with the best
of intentions and because his judg-
ment so dictated.
The majority recommends that he be
retained. but admonishes him, that
while the acts and conduct complained
of as herein set forth are and will be
considered past and gone, all nregu-
larities must cease or the said Samuel
Doxey will be subject to immediate
dismissal
President Emerson's minority report
is lengthy but plain. He states that
"the board admits that there are
grounds to believe Mr.. Doxey guilty
to a certain extent" and gives as his
view that considering the responsible
ties Of the position Mr.. Doxey is either
guilty as charged or not guilty at all
Mr.. Emerson calls attention to the
fact that he, together with the super
intendent, were first delegated to in
vestigate the matter and says the wit
nesses examined by them made state
ments unbiased and uninf1uenced
and teetotally at variance with
the statements they made when
the matter was finally investi-
gated by the board. About
the most vigorous charge in the minor
fty report is 81 am fully convinced that
Mr.. Doxey is and was guilty of i'm
moral conduct toward the female pu-
pills under his charge, and that the fact
is clearly proven, and that he, there
fore, is unfit to preside as teacher or
principal over female pupils"
The president believed his conduct,
at best, evinces a looseness of charac-
ter or a disregard of that high moral
ity absolutely necessary"
Mr.. Emerson considers the other
charge substantiated and thinks the
principal guilty of boorishness, untidi- /
ness, disorder and of frequent disre-
gard of the superintendent orders.
He attributes this disregard to a de-
sire on MI. Doxey's part to be thought !
greater than the superintendent or the I
board. This report also alludes to the
time when the fire scare was at Grant |
school when Mr.. Doxey, by burning
powder on the basement floor to af-
ford realistic fire drill, came so near
a disastrous panic and states
that the principal showed his utter
1nfitness for the position at that time. /
In his closing paragraph President
Emerson is eaustically temporizing and
the principal be dismissed.
While Mr. Doxey is retained as prin-
1ipal, still the line between his friends
and enemies is more sharply drawn
than ever. He is young man who
has risen by his own efforts, is unmar
ried and has strong friends and strong
opponents.