Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1901-07-27

more rare and easier to settle. When
it is a personal or family quarrel, back
Of 1t away down the other side Of the
school, there Is no telling where the
trouble might go before 1t Is stopped.
1 have known school commissioners to
lose their offices on account OF these
little rows, and If one would take the
trouble to investigate closely, he would
be able to trace far more serious con-
sequences home to them.
Now as to what Is behind all this
trouble at the Miller school, l cannot
say exactly. From what / nave heard
there is a great deal more than has
ever come to the surface. There Is
more than is going to come to the sur
face. If you would put both sides to
airing their grievances, you would de-
velop reams OF testimony, charges and
counter charges, that are totally irrel-
evant to any phase Of the question now
at issue. That Is what makes such
things so aggravating. If they could
be settled with reference to the law
and the facts as they bear on the di-
rect questions raised, excluding extra
neous matter, they would seldom give
much trouble.
LAS a matter Of law, there Is only
one side of the issue involved In the
Miller school trouble-whether the
trustees or the patrons are RESPONSE
BILE for the employment OF teachers.
The law fixes that responsibility upon
the trustees, and does not contemplate
the consultation Of the patrons at all.
But while this is true, it is fact, nev-
ertheless, that custom has for long
time left the selection Of teachers Of
the public schools to the patrons. The
custom is not general. In the case Of
some schools, the patrons, as body,
never think Of suggestions to the trus-
tees on this subject, while In the case
of many other schools patrons have
been accustomed to get together, Sc
lect a teacher, open the school and
start it to work without the trustees
they are called upon to sign pay GER
tihcate. In some of these cases the
trustees would not even be bothered
about signing their names, If the su-
perintendent Of education and county
treasurer would recognize them other
wise.
"Of course this thing Of controlling
the selection of schools by means OF
patrons meetings has the sanction Of
good democracy; but still it has Its
drawbacks and some Of them are quite
serious. For instance, take school In
which a dozen or more families are
interested, and say the children OF
these families are far enough advanced
to call for the services Of first-grade
teacher, while all the balance are cap
able Of being taught by second grade
teacher. Now, you know first-Srade
teacher costs more than second
grade teacher, and where there Is only
limited amount Of money on hand, the
school will run longer with a second
grade teacher than with a first. Un-
der such circumstances as I have men,
toned, 1t looks as If the majority
should always be willing to employ a
first grade teacher who could teach
all the children, in preference to
cheaper second grade teacher who
could only teach a part Of them. But
this does not follow. There are people
who interpret the principle that the
ma jority should rule" to mean that
the majority should devour," and in
this county today there are quite a
number of advanced children who are
being denied their rights in the public
schools because patrons meetings
have seen fit to employ second grade
teachers.
This condition of affairs makes
trustee government very necessary,
and seems to urge a strong argument
against patrons meetings. But don't
understand me to mean that any such
conditions exist in the case of the Mil
ler school, for they do not. And don't
take up the idea either that 1t is In
any sense fight between the different
young ladies who have been connected
with the affair, for it is not. There is
more or less personal feeling In 1t all;
but it is confined principally to the men
folks, and the patrons, with few ex-
ceptions. have more Of partizan than
a judicial interest in the final out
come"