The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1899-11-17
Trials of the Bureau of
Education.
Minister Mott-SmIth's View Of the
Trying SltuarIon-The Teach
ers Patient.

Yesterday afternoon a representative
OF the Advertiser found Minister Mott
Smith up TO the ears" in papers re-
Iating 20 educational matters, bu:
withal in a good nUmOr. In explaining
the difficulties which at present beset
the Board of Education Minister Mott
Smith said:
we are nearing tie end OF the bien
/ NAL period and l wish to see that every
cent appropriated by the Legislature
was intended. Our educational system
| here has grown 10 a very great extent
| through annexation and the influx Of
people here so that the necessities OF
ton to the estimates upon which the
appropriations were made. IL is now
problem of using what limited bal
ances we have for the most urgent Of
schoolhouse on Kauai, two on Maui
and three on Hawaii, besides two
/ teachers cottages on the latter Isl
and. and the Beretania school in He
nolulu in the process of construction,
and numerous repairs, amounting TO
about $4,000, upon schools all over the
Islands going on. The appropriations
for stationery and incidentals and for
the book fund are about exhausted. The
necessity for these articles in our
schools leaves no choice but to over
run the appropriation.
The greatest problem, however, be
| fore us is the meeting of the salaries
and pay rolls after the 31st of Deem
| her next. Under the Appropriation for
the present biennial period the Depart
/ ment was allowed pro rata of $lS,75O
per month. At the beginning of the
period the total pay roll per month was
| less than this amount. Hence a sur
plus was accumulated each month until
| the amount of the salaries and pay rolls
| equalled the amount of the pro rata
/ From that time it became necessary to
| limit any increase of pay rolls to alb
solute necessities; since, on the 3lst
day of December. whatever surplus
there was on hand lapsed and became
a Government realization, and the pay
rolls confined by law to the pro rata
$780, 900; our monthly pay rolls to about
This surplus now amounts to about
$4,000. No difficulty, therefore, will
be experienced as long as the regular
monthly pro rata aDG this surplus are
available to meet our over balanced
lpay rolls. But as stated above this sur
plus lapses on the S1st of next Deem
Der and we are left with a pay roll OF
over $4,000 per month, with pro
rata of only SlS,750 to meet it.
THE problem is how TO cut down
our pay rolls to the pro rata at time
when, instead of curIailing our teach
ing force, the extended growth of the
Department demands an enlargement
OF il.
Many of the schools are now over
crowded with pupils. More room and
more teachers are required. We have
the money for neither.
The teaching force have taken this
condition in a highly commendable
manner. In April last the Department
passed resolution with a view of linn
iting any further increase of pay rolls;
that for no cause thereafter should any
salary be raised III the Department,
and that the schedule regulating til.
rise in salary, which every teacher FOL
long service was encouraged to expect
should be SUSPENDED and should have
no effect in the following September
when cases under it were ordinarily
taken up for consideration"