The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-04-29
TACKLE THE QUESTION OF
THE FUTURE.
FIRST MEETING LAST NIGHT
REDUCTIONS IN SALARIES AND,
PERHAPS, TEACHERS BELIEVED
TO BE NECESSARY.
MAYOR DORAN's OPINION OF 1T.
He Regards the High Schools q Lux
ury and the Teachers Training
School as Unnecessary.

Inspector McNair, Of the school board
as chairman of the committee on
schools, issued a call for a special
meeting which was held last evening.
All the members of the board are men,
! bers of the committee on schools, but
the meeting last evening was attended
by but five; those present being Presi-
dent Zimmerman. Vice President Zim-
norman, and Inspectors McNair, Yoerg
and May Mr.. McNair stated that the
meeting had been called for the pur-
pose of discussing the problem of how
the schools could be run for the year
commencing Sept. l, in the most eco
nOmical way and at the same time keep
within the amount which would be
available. AS the salary list Of teachers,
j now in force, took over three fOurths
! Of the total amount allowed for the
schools and although the committee
had done nothing but informally dis
cuss the question, it was apparent that
there would have to be a reduction in
both the number of teachers and also
in salaries in order to keep the schools
now open going during the next year
The reduction in salaries would as
| matter Of course, Mr.. McNair said, ap-
ply to those of the teachers who were
receiving the larger compensation. AS
! to the manner in which the force of
| teachers would be reduced the COM
mittee had arrived at no conclusion.
| In fact this was the first meeting of the
committee and beyond an informal dis
| cussion nothing had been done. The
! board was obliged, under the law, to
make up and submit to the council
before June l, a budget and it was to
prepare for this the members of the
board decided to commence early and
thoroughly discuss affairs.
Frequent meetings, Mr.. McNair said,
| would be held between now and June /.
and when the budget was submitted to
| the council it would present the best
and most economical plan of conduct
ing the schools which could possibly be
arrived at in the wisdom of the board
Inspector Zimmerman was Of the
opinion that there should be sittings
provided for all children who desired
to attend schools, particularly in the
lower grades. The idea advanced by
the inspector from the Second ward
was that if there was to be any reduC-
ton made it should be in the higher
grades, and that every child under the
age Of fourteen should have a chance
to attend school, even if more school
buildings had to be erected. He called
attention to the fact that only about
| per cent Of the pupils who entered the
public schools reached the high school
and this, to his mind showed that more
| attention should be paid to the accom-
| mediation and tuition Of pupils in the
lower grades, even if the high schools
! had to be curtailed
The members of the board who were
J present at the meeting last night all
| agreed that the number of graded
| schools should and would not be re-
/ duced. Inspector McNair said he had
, not been advised as to what action
| would be taken by the council as to
| the recommendation of the board that
| the money appropriated to build new
school houses in the Second, Tenth and
Eleventh wards and for new sites in
the Firth and Seventh wards be used
! Tor school maintenance. He was GER
| tain, however, if the members of the
| council fully understood the situation
! they would agree with the board that
| the money would be of much more ben
eft in the general school fund than "A
! erecting new buildings and buying new
| sites.
Mayor Doran. in discussing the oues-
ton Of school finances yesterday. stat
ed that in his opinion it was all rot to
take $4,000 and purchase at this time
sites for new buildings. The money
was needed at the present time to pro-
vide accommodations for pupils, and
there was little doubt but that in
year or so building lots would be as
cheap as they are now. He was also
of the opinion that some money. he
was not prepared to say how much
could be saved by doing away with the
teachers, training school To his mind
II a pupil who had spent ten or twelve
years in the schools of ST Paul and
graduated was not fitted to teach
without an extra years finish in the
training school, then the system was at
fault and should be changed. There
was, he thought, a deal of sentiment
displayed about the schools and while
sentiment was all right in a Wav it had
now reached a time when it was a
! question Of money to run the schools
and give the children between the ages
/ of seven and fourteen a chance to OBJ
| tain an education. He, for one, did
not believe in maintaining what might
! be called colleges at the public EXPENSE
| for that he said, was what the high
school practically amounted to- Far
better 1t would be- he thought to take
| the amount spent in keeping up the
high school and erect additional build
ings which would accommodate those
in the lower grades and give each pu-
Pill in these grades a chance to attend
school and go to work for living 1t
had reached stage, the mayor ex-
| planned, when the taxpayers had all
they could do to scrape money enough
to pay their taxes, and it was his opin-
ion that their burdens should not be
! increased any more than was abso-
lutely necessary. He suggested that.
under the condition of finances exist
| ing at present that it would not be a
very great hardship to reduce the sal
aries Of a number Of teachers in the
public schools. Business firms were
retrenching in the matter of salaries,
and, after all, the schools should be
run the same as other business so far
as the payment of salaries was con-
| Cerned. If a business firm found it