Saint Mary's beacon., 1901-09-12
Saint Mary $ Beacon.
lore Platform PIanks.

The builders OF the Repu Dileah
State platform must have been an
able to get good timber with which
TO erect that structure, or else they
must have been such inexperienced
apprentices that they did not know
q sound plank from . defective one.
The platform was constructed of
most wretehed material. Nothing
worse eonld have been selected. We
cannot suggest any reason for this
other than one Of two alternatives,
namely: That sound, seasoned
planks we're not possessed By the
Republicans, or else, the individuals
entrusted with the building of the
platform we're mere apprentices,
unskilled in the business they IN
dertook 10 do. Either of these
sHggestions would account for the
poor structure they buiit, but We
are inclined to adopt the first alter
native as the correct one. Even o
blind pig will occasionally lind an
acorn il there are any acorns about,
and so q novice in the art of plat
form building would probably
stumble over and thus discover and
then use q good plank, il his politi-
cal party owned any good planks.
As all the planks in the Republican
State platform are defective, it 10 Q
fair inference that no sound ones
we're owned by the party, otherwise
by sccident at least, q reasonable
good one might have been picked
MP and inserted somewhere. We
will examine a few more of these
warped and crooked planks. Here
they are
"Republicans first gare in counties
and cities minority representation
tn The administration Of OWr schools. "
II this statement has reference
to the present. school system then
it means that prior to the year
eighteen hundred and ninety-six
when q Republican Governor was
inaugurated, there was no minority
representation in the administra-
tion OF our schools. This is equiva-
lent to saying that prior to 1896
every School Commissioner in the
State was q Democrat. Under the
present school system when estab-
lished in eighteen hundred and
sixty eight the School Com m ission-
ers in the counties we're elected by
the people. Subsequently the CON-
missioners were appointed by the
judges of the courts. Since 1892
they have oil been appointed by the
Governor, except for q time in
Garrett County. It certainly re-
quires great boldness to assert that
from 1868 until 1S96-twenty eight
years-all the School Commission
ers were Democrats, when it is q
notorious fact that at least in this
county the Republicans had as early
az 1881 and continuously thereafter
one or two representatives in the
Board of School Commissioners
They we're given representation in
the board when the judges made
the appointments. and when the
mode of making the appointment
was changed in 1892 they were also
given by Governor Brown q repre-
sentative. The same thing may be
true of other counties but we are
not sufficiently informed at present
TO make a positive assertion. A
snfficient refutation of the state
ment made in the platform is furn-
ished by the practice that prevailed
in Frederick County. It is not,
therefore, true that the Republicans
FIRST geve in the counties and cities
minority representation in the ad.
ministratIon of our schools.
BIT q school system was estab-
lished in 1865 by Republicans Who
then had complete control Of every
department of the State govern
ment. Did the Republican party
then give us minority representation
in the administration of our schools?
Will the platform builders kindly
furnish the name of q single Dem
ocratic School Commissioner uuder
the system adopted in 1865? The
Republicans then had che chance
to give minority representation but
they failed to give it. II lit is right
MOV to have minority representa-
tion it was right then. II wrong
not to have it Row it was wrong
then. and this Republican party was
guilty OF that wrong. Let rs hear
no more about Republicans first