The herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1893-1900, 1896-01-25
THE SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT

The examination extends from January
!, 1892, to July l, 1895. The present
superintendent system of accounting and
preserving vouchers is good The long
standing discrepancies between this and
the auditors office, chiefly due to the pay
ment of forged warrant in 1882. have, at
our suggestion, been closed. If the books
of the two offices be hereafter compared at
least semi-annually any serious discrepan-
cies will be prevented.
The expense of the office, including that
of the board of education, was:
superintendent's. ................s2 l, 700. 63
County board of educa ton ..... 1912. 50
Total ................... .......... S2@, 7O3.13
The travelling expenses included in the
above, from the l st of January to the LIST
of July, 1895, were $527,95. The names
of the payees were not. but should be,
specified. This amount. being largely for
livery hire and subsistence in visiting
schools, seems excessive, being as much as
IS per day for teams.
May not the supervisors. by contract,
secure transportation at less cost?
Orders from nine school districts have
been only partially paid, such partial pay
nents were endorsed on the order, the
payee keeping the order and leaving the
superintendent without vouchers. To save
complications and hardships, the district
can draw two orders. one for such part as
is Immediately payable. the other for the
deferred balance.
In 1929 thirty schools were not visited.
The law compels the supervisors to deduct
$40 for each school not visited, but no re-
fund was made, the overpay to the county
superintendent was $500. A visiting book,
showing names of schools visited. days of
visits, distance travelled and amount of
charges should be kept in the superintend-
ent's office. The county board of educa-
ton consists of five members, including
the superintendent as secretary; the pay is
IS to each and 20 cents mileage. The SUI
perintendent, besides his salary, receives
IS per day as secretary. This is two pay
ments, or SIS for. one days work. The
statute should be amended to confine him
to his salary.
The annual cost of the board was
$2269.3O.
ILLEGAL CHARGES
From 1891 to 1895 different members
Of the board for fractions of days, amount
ing to thirty-fve full days, or Sl73, re-
$500.
Nineteen evenings work, averaging less
than half day each, are charged as full
days. and added as such to the day session.
The examiner thus received $40 per day,
exclusive of mileage. In addition to this
IN 1850 dilu Ioot FOO-.OO were Ddlu IOr
extra work at home in preparing examina-
ton papers.
A former district attorney hrs decided
that members of the board should be paid
IS per day of eight hours of honest work
and in that proportion.
In view of the fact that California has
four normal schools, which are graduating
about two hundred teachers annually, for
q population that has an almost impercep-
tible increase, taking the state ID a whole,
car we not do as we'll with one, as with
two, yearly examinations?
RETRENCHMENT NECESSARY
Considering the enormous taxes, which
seem annually to be increasing. retrench-
ment in all departments CT public service
10 imperative. Nor should the department
Of education be made an exception where
retrenchment will not impair its efficiency.