Middletown transcript., 1901-10-19
STATE SCHOOL rum
Treasurer II. B. Burris Replies to Unjust
Criticisms Of His Office.

attempt on the part OF the State Treasurer
to force special session Of the General
Assembly SO that it might elect two
Republican United State senators. When
seen in reference to the matter, Treasurer
Burris said that his position was fully
explained in the following letter, which
he had sent to the Isder in reply to the
editorial it had printed
MIDDLErowN, DEL, Oct. II, 1901. .
To THE EDITOR OF THE DOVER INDEX,
SIR: In your issue of October Il, 1901,
YOU print, editorially, a column and a
half in reference to the distribution OF
the Public School Fund, which with due
Difference to you) would call for no notice
at my hands, but for the misinformatlon
which it contains.
And right here, l beg leave to remind
you that you have made no inquiry OF
me in order to know what the facts really
are. Therefore, for the end of right in
formation to the public, and incidentally
to yourself. write this letter.
In the first place, | have not refused,
nor at any time indicated that | contem-
plated refusing to distribute the school
fund. But have called the attention OF
several leading citizens to the fact, that
in order. for all the school districts IN
Sussex County to participate in the dis
tribution of said fund, the State Treasurer
must pay the money contrary to the
positive requirements of the law, but
that I hoped l could find a sufficient
excuse for doing it in safety to myself as
public official.
The State Treasurer is a ministerial
Office only, and has no judicial functions
whatever, except as member OF the
Board of Pardons.
Here is the law as it remains to-day,
limiting the scope of his power and de-
fining his duty in the matter OF dlstrlbut-
ing the school fund:
FThat in the month of September next,
and annually thereafter, it shall be the
duty of the trustees OF the school fund, in
making the apportionment for the schools
of the counties of Kent and Sussex in the
manner now by law provided, and for the
county of New Castle, in the manner by
this act provided, to ascertain from the
settlements of the State Auditor with the
several districts OF this State, made in the
months of July and August preceding, as
provided by Section 3 of this act, the
amount or amounts of money each district
may have in hand that has been received
from the State and raised by taxation as
required by law, and is unexpended at
the end of the school year next proceed
ing" Chapter 602, Section 3, Volume
10, Laws of Delaware.
The law above cited makes it incum-
bent upon the State Treasurer to ascertain
for himself the facts therein recited.
The next enactment in this behalf is as
follows:
1.-THE State Treasurer shall, by virtue
of, and during the continuance of his
Office, be the trustee of the school fund,
and shall annually in the month of Sep
tember apportion said fund among the
several counties of this State, and distrib-
ute each county's share of said apportion-
ment among the school districts of the
county.
"Such apportionment and such distri-
button to be made in the manner and
according to the same rules as prescribed
and provided for the apportionment of
the school fund by the laws of this State
which we're in force and operation at the
time of the passage Of this act" Chapter
81, Section 81, Volume q, Laws of
Delaware.
The provisions of the last recited act
hold the State Treasurer to all the duties
in the distribution of the school fund put
upon him by the law as it then stood.
The next and last enactment in this be-
half is as follows:
'tSection l. That in order that the
trustees of the school fund shall have the
information necessary to distribute the
public school fund of the State, it shall
be the duty of the auditor of accounts to
examine and settle the accounts of every
single, united, consolidated and incorpor-
ated school district in the State, between
the first day of July and the tenth day
of August in each year, and to report the
result Of such settlement to the trustee
of the school fund on or before the twen-
tieth day of August, giving the amounts
in the hands of such districts
of the moneys received from
the State and inquired to be raised by
taxation in order to entitle such districts
to their shares of the said moneys from
the State, the number of teachers en-
ployed in each school, and the ndmber
of days taught by each teacher during
the school year."
"Section 2. In order to entitle any
school district to receive share Of said
money SO apportioned, such district shall
have raised, by taxation or subscription
for school purposes during the previous
school year, if q white school school dis
trict, at least one hundred dollars for
each teacher employed, and if a colored
school district, at least fifty dollars for
each teacher employed" Chapter 112,
Volume %, Laws of Delaware.
Under the requirements of the law
above recited the auditor has made his
reports to the State Treasurer, which
said reports show that out of one hun
dred and ninety-two school districts of
Sussex county, over one hundred and
thirty fall short of the amount required
to be raised by law in order that they
may participate In the distribution of the
school fund.
Your contention in your article that
The powers and duties of the State Treas
arer in this behalf are limited by the
statutes, is undoubtedly correct, and at
one stroke wipes out the whole OF the
balance of your column and half on
that subject.
But it is also true that prior to the 10th
Df March, 1901, on which day the law
went into effect, requiring the several
white school districts throughout the
State to raise by taxation or otherwise, at
east one hundred dollars for each teacher
employed, and the several eolored school
districts Of the State to raise fifty dollars
for each teacher employed, the law re-
1uired the white districts of Sussex
County to raise only sixty dollars for
each teacher employed and the colored
districts to raise but thirty dollars for
each teacher employed. SO that when
the amended law went into effect, nearly
Or quite two-thirds of the school year had
expired, and Sussex County, along with
the other counties had levied her school
tax the previous June, under the law
then existing, and in my judgement had
no chance to meet the requirements of
the act of March 10Th, 1901. 1t is also
nv judgement that 1t was purely an mad
yestance on the part of the Legislators,
and that they could not have intended in
this way to bar Sussex County from par
in the distribution Of the school
fund.
II is and has been nv inclination to