The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1896-01-21

i CnbrbSr laws, on en0 10Th OF F0bruRr1
Y 1895, O charter was issued from til
. Secretary of State to the Atlas Fir
4 Insurance Company. The incorpors
4 tors are all citizens Of Indiana, Wis
, consin and Illizois. Their principa
, place OF business was set forth to b
, Columbia, South Carolina. Since til
Issuing of the charter nothing ha
, been heard from the company excep
: some inquiries from some people @
! another State as to their standing
, This company evidently organizet
under our charter laws on account o
j the facility and economy with which
they could obtain charter, and pos
sibly with the Intention of neve
opening an office in Columbia or doing
business in our State. There may b.
other companies doing the same thing
and 1t certainly Is possible under ex
listing laws for any unreliable company
to obtain q charter from this State anC
impose upon the citizens of another
State. 1t will bs readily seen how this
privilege may be abused by wildcat
companies and charter speculators, Il
the necessary restrictions are moi
the tenderest point with such schem.
ers, and IL an enterprise is worth
having the small foe charged will be
no hindrance. The statute now oil
force against trusts, combinations,
contracts, and agreements against the
public welfare Is strong enough for all
purposes.
The provisions of this Article of the
constitution should be Incorporated in
your general Act for the convenience
OF the officers who execute 1t. This
Article will require immediate atten-
tion, otherwise the progress Of the
State may be impeded.
| FINANCE AND TAXATION.
1t is your duty TO provide general
system Of tho assessment Of property
for taxation, and this assessment shall
be taken by all municipalities and
subdivisions Of the State as their basis
for taxation. You are authorized to
impose graduated tax upon incomes
and a license on occupations and busi-
moss. 1t is further made your duty to
pass laws making embezzlement of
public funds felony, punishable by
fine and Imprisonment proportioned to
the amount of the deficiency or en-
bezzlements, and for the forfeiture of
the Office OF the porson found guilty Of
such an offense. Ths Legislation under
this Article, with the exception Of the
punishment for embezzlement, may be
continued until your next session,
except such as will hereafter be called
to your attention.
EDUCATION.
The people are to be congratulated
upon the liberal manner in which the
constitution has provided for the COM
mon schools of the State. 1t is incum-
bent upon you to provide the machin-
cry for carrying out the provisions OF
the constitution, and to this end you
are given absolute power in the cleo
nIs q TNnn inf mt md nt,fr Dfx III
school officers. The school commits
sioner is no longer constitutional
officer, and you may abolish the Office
or continue it rs you see lit. Great
dissatisfaction exists as to the compe-
tency and ability OF the school COM
missioners In some of the counties, and
1t would be we'll for you to prescribe
the qualifications of this officer, 80
that in his election or appointment
some regard may be had as to the
character, fitness and ability to per-
this is not done, in my judgment the
office should be abolished and the
entire management OF the schools be
placed in the hands OF the county
boards OF examiners aud the local
trustees. In some cases men have
been elected to this Office who could
not read and write, and certainly were
unable to write q sentence correctly,
and whose moral character was not
we'll calculated to elevate tho tone OF
the teachers or pupils under their
supervision.
The common schools of the State are
required to be- separate and distinct
for white 'and colored children, and
pupils OF either race are prohibited
from attending the schools 80 set apart
for the Other race.
The county authorities are required
to levy q tax of three mills on the dol
lar upon all taxable property In their
respective counties, which tax shall
be collected at the same time and by
the same officers as other taxes. 1t is
made the duty Of the school trustees
to expend and disburse this tax as the
General Assembly may provide.
would suggest that you leave this to
the board OF trustees aS in their wis
dom may seem best for tho interests OF
their several districts. Locai-self
government in this particular Is
greatly to be desired, and better re-
suits Will be obtained than by any effort
OF your body to prescribe rulca and
regulations to meet the conflicting
conditions that necessarily exist in the
various school districts. The people
who pay tho tax can better judge as
how to apply 1t to their own interest
than the General Assembly, with all
due respect to your body. The man
ner of selecting trustees need not be
uniform, and cannot be throughout the
State II intelligence Is to govern In
such selections. The representatives
from the several counties are the
judges OF how to select these officers,
and their conclusions will no doubt be
accepted by your body.
A supplementary tax is provided for
whenever the amount raised from the
three mills levy falls to provide per
capita Of three dollars upon tho num-
ber OF pupils enrolled. With this,
however, you have not to deal, as it Is
made the duty of the Comptroller Cen
eral to levy the supplementary tax II
needed. 1t Ia with,n your province to
prescribe the numser Of months dur
! Ing which the free schools shall re-
1 main open, and In case the taxes here
tofore mentioned are insufficient TO
maintain them you are required to
levy such additional tax upon the prop
erty OF the State as may be sufficient
for such purpose.
To provide term of less than six
months would be failure upon your
part to satisfy the great demand oi
our people for better common schools
Unless our youths are better prepared
In these foundation schools the thirst
for higher education will be slaked
and our system of colleges will become
| ton heavv and fall of ita own WEIGHT