The herald., 1897-05-18
SCHOOL BOND ISSUE

The city council, at its meeting yes
terday, on the report of the committee
oil public buildings, decided to adopt
the plans and specifications prepared
by the board of education, and to call
an election on the issuance of bonds in
accordance Herewith. The committee
further reported in favor of having the
entire work done, as far as possible.
under the direct control and supervis-
ion of the board of education, the coun-
Gil only taking such action as is abso-
lutely necessary to make the bonds le-
gain case they are issued.
Just what influence was brought to
bear on the members of the council to
effect this change of heart is not known,
for no later than Saturday afternoon
at least two CT the members
who yesterday voted in favor
Of delegating all authority to
the board of education, changed
their minds and voted for the report.
AS has been pointed out by The Herald,
there is very serious question: as to
the wisdom of entrusting the expendi-
ture of this large amount of money to
the board of education, or at least six
of them, known as the solid six" for
it is a generally accepted fact that the
minority, composed of Messrs. Braly.
Conrey and Davis, will have virtually
no voice in the matter. Indeed these
gentlemen have always favored the
proposition that the council should at
tend to the financial end of the transac-
ton, raise the money and disburse the
same, the board of education, of course.
to prepare the necessary plans and tell
the council what is wanted. But the
majority of the board has always op-
posed this plan, insisting that they
should not only prepare the plans, but
purchase the sites, let the contracts,
and handle the finances independent of
the council, as they saw fit. Now it is
a fact that the members of the board of
education receive no compensation; that
is to say, they receive no salary, the
position being purely an honorary one,
supposed to be held by men interested
in educational work for the sake of the
work itself, and without any reflection
on any member of the board, it will
certainly strike the average citizen as
peculiar, to say the least, that a body
of unpaid men should be so anxious to
burden themselves with large amount
of additional labor. which will practi-
cally consume their entire time for sew
eral months, when there is nothing but
glory in it.
The board of education has enough
to do, considering that they work
for nothing, and it is not right to burden
these self-sacrificing men with addi-
tional cares and responsibilities, espe-
cially when it is commonly known that
but few of them are comparatively we'll
to-do, and none of them are retired cap
italists On the other hand, the coun-
cilmen are the paid servants of the peo-
pie, who take the office on the under
standing that they are to give their en-
tire time to their duties, if it is neces-
sary. They constitute the responsible
legislative branch of the city govern
ment, with the power to levy taxes,
call bond elections, and take such other
steps as are necessary to provide reve-
nues for the support of the government
They are directly responsible to the peo-
pie, and on them the responsibility
should rest. The experience Of the past
has not been such as to impress the peo-
pie with the ability of the board of ed
ucation as a financier, and the citizens
will consider well before they will en-
trust the disbursement of over three
hundred thousand dollars to the close
corporation in that body