The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-12-21
TWO, WARM LETTERS
Mr., J. C, Lawrence Accuses
Mebane of Partisanship.
In Asking That the New Yield to the Old Schsol
Boards Under the Supreme Court De-
cision. Mr. Mechanics Reply.

| tue IOlIoWllg lelter III reply TO He
| quest that the new school board of Hert-
ford county turn over the records and
surrender the office back to the old board
which had so demanded:
Hin. G. II. Mebane, Raleigh, Y. c.:
Dear Sir: / have your letter of the
10Th inst, stating that request had been
made by the old County Board of IEdu-
cation for recognition, and that hence
forth you would regard it as the legal
Board of School Directors for this coun-
/ ty.
| note further that You ask me to
tun over to them all public school prop
erty in my possession. Evidently you
have forgotten some facts or else never
knew them.
On the second Monday in last April,
| the Board of School Directors appointed
by the General Assembly of 1899, met
| in the court house and organized. Two
| Of the members of the County Board of
/ Education land the same two who now
| ask for recognition) met with us, turned
| over to us all of the public school prop
erty in their possession, stood by and
! saw us effect organization. set up no
! claim to their office, entered no protest
| to our usurping their Office, and in fact
! witnessed all that we did without a sin
| gle protest. Since that time during Il
/ period of eight months they have not
attempted to perform or discharge a SIM
| gle duty pertaining to their office, but
on the other hand have recognized us 4
| the legal Board of School Directors in
at least two instances. One of these
was their request for us to pass am order
4 oil f1ofg III md o.
| age for attending the April meeting,
which we did. The third member of the
! County Board of Education, who is a
negro, did not attend our April meeting
but has not made any protest to our
! depriving him of office or demand for It's
restitution. / am told that he will claim
/ his office if his colleagues win in their
contest but win await final results first
| And vet in the face of these facts or
| ignorance of them, Mr.. Mebane. You
render your partisan Judgment declaring
the old County Board of Education a.
the illegal Board of School Directors"
for Hartford county.
In the face of these facts or in ignor
ance of them, you request us to step
down and turn over the reins of school
government to our predecessors. we
shall do no snch thing Claimants have
abandoned ff1eir office. and we will not
surrender to them until ousted by a
Judgment of the Supreme court or until
ou. terms shall expire by limitation.
In your official letter recently publish
cd Won say. 1.-THE time must come when
the work of public education will be re-
garded so sacred and of such grave i'm
portance that a successful political party
viii not dare to tamper with its prog
ress." ~
The time must also come, Mr. Mebane
when partisan officials must retire from
Office and he relegated to the politica
backgrounds.
The will of the people has long enough
been thwarted. and so long as this prac
tice is INDUCED in, there can be no mater
ial progress.
The greatest curse of North Caroline
to-day, is the use of public office for par
tisan ends.
Yours truly,
l.. j. LAWRENCE
To this Superintendent Mebane yes
terday sent the following reply;
To L. j. Lawrence Esq, Murfreesboro
n. c.:
Dear Sir: In reply to your letter o.
tho 18th win say that | wish to refe
you to the following facts, to-wit.: Tina
soon after the adjournment of the Leg
isature last March | sent an official let
ter to the County Boards Of Education
from which / quote the following para
graphs: Il shall not attempt to decid
as to the legality of this act of the Leg
islature, but want to inform you that j
is my earnest desire that you waave
oa1 1na
you have in this matter for the sake o.
the cause of public education"
1.-THE work of public education in Nortl
Carolina is bigger than any set of politi
clans or any political party. So / beg
You for the sake of the great work to be
done, not to throw any obstacles in thf
way that may in any way hinder tbs
success of the law as enacted by the re-
cent Legislature.
II advise you 70 meet with the County
Board of Directors ON second Monda.
in April, make full and complete repor
Of your work since July 1st, 1893, ant
turn over all official records, books, &c
to the County Board of Directors in or
der that said board of directors may
have as little trouble as possible to MAKE
out the annual report for the fiscal schoo
year ending June 30th 1899"
I'm response to this letter the County
Boards of 80 counties of the State with
drew without any contest so far as
1 know.
| / have used all the energies ] possess
to carry into full force and effect tn
will of the people MS expressed by tn
Legislature inn the General School Law
of 1899.
AS a matter of administration in orde'
to avoid confusion in operating tn
schools I have declared that all CERT
ficates issued in accordance with the gen
eral school law, where there have beer
two county superintendent acting u
! certain counties, are good for one yeal
| from the date of their issue. That al
contracts with teachers must not be IN
terferred with. That the township trlls
tees and their official acts are not at
fected and in every respect tried to car
nv into effect the law as enacted by the
Legislature until action was taken IN TN
Superior and the Supreme courts of thlS
State.
The recent decisions Of the Supremt
IL g. {j,. A {t4lsu lliN