The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1898-12-22
The School Petitions.
Editor

The members OF the legislature will GER
tainly act in their representative capacity
in the school questions now before them
They desire to know the will of the people,
and If they see that will expressed in black
and white, all may be sure they will act
up to it, for they are representatives, not
dctators. Many of them are more friendly
to the schools of the people. the schools
that all but 10000 of the 100000 children Of
the state must attend If they go to school
at ALL
The Age-Herald appeals to the papers
friendly to the common schools of the state
to aid in disseminating this petitions:
To the General Assembly of Alabama:
Gentlemen-In view of the pressing need
of better school facilities for the 100000
children of Alabama, and realizing the ne
cessity of immediate legislation to place
our school system on a par with those or
our neighboring states, we, your petitioners,
pray:
/. That you shall provide such increase
In the school revenues of the state will
enable the rural schools to continue In ses-
sion for at least six months of each year.
q That you shall provide some adequate
method of determining the competency Of
teachers who are placed in charge of the
common schools of the state.
3. That you shall protect the teachers and
children of the state from the incompet-
ency of supervising officers. Whether the
county superintendent be elected or APP
pointed, it is of vital Importance that the
office shall be restricted to those qualified
to instruct and lead the teachers under
their supervision.
The three vital defects in our state school
system as at present administered are to
be found In d maintenance, (2) incompet-
ent teaching and (s) in competent supervi-
sion. That laws shall be enacted during the
present session of the general assembly to
remedy these defects, Is tho burden OF this
pphyer and petition.
Respectfully.
If every friendly newspaper will reprint
this petition, every township, even every
neighborhood, can readily start a petition
by simply cutting out copy of the petit
ton and FASTING it at the head of a FOOLS
zap page of paper. When such a paper is
fully signed, 1t should be sent to a repre-
sentative or senator of the signers, who
will lay it before the legislature. Active
work of this nature will, by the time the
legislature is reassembled make known the
wishes of the people of the state. Let us
hope that petitions will be circulated in
every city, as well as in every township
for the cities are deeply interested in the
general intelligence of the state. All must
be anxious to lift the state out of its back
ward educational condition. 1t can only
be done through a betterment of the pub
lie schools, and that betterment should be
taken in hand most earnestly and compre-
hensively by the present legislature. 1t
has scope enough for action, and any at
tempt to postpone action on the ground
that a constitutional convention is to be
held, is simply a sad postponement of ad-
vantages to 100000 children many of wohm
win be too old to go to school when money
under convention action may become avail
able. There is no reason for delay--no suf-
ficient excuse for it.