The Opelousas courier. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1852-1910, 1901-06-08
Suit Against the School Board.


the following account of an inter
esting suit filed in our District
Court last week.
''Scott 0. Andrus and Rufus
A. Pickett filed an injunction suit in
the district court here on May 81
against the parish board of school
directors, through White & Thorn
ton, attorneys, of Alexandria, the
prayer of the petitioners being as
follows:
"'That u writ of injunction issue
enjoining, restraining and inhibit-
ing defendants from further operat-
ing or continuing the Opelousas
and Washington high schools or
appropriating any of the school
funds therefor until due reparation
has been made to the varions other
school districts of the parish, and
particularly that in which petition
ers reside; and that they be also
enjoined, restrained and inhibited
from making any further appro-
priations out of the current funds
of any year to the payment of debts
of any preceding year, and partic-
ularly out of the funds of the cur
rent year, 1901, to the payment of
the st. Landry State Bank. They
pray, further, that defendants be
ordered to distribute the school
funds for the remainder of the year
and in future years ratably to the
various districts in the parish, and
i'll such way as to make due COM
pensation to the districts, and par
ticularly that of the petitioners, for
the discrimination shown in favor
of the Opelousas and Washington
High Schools during the portion of
the year already past. They fur
ther pray that defendants be or
dered, adjudged and decreed to
cease any payments under the null
and void contract with the st.
Landry State Bank, referred to in
the body of this petition; to take
such proceedings as may be legal
and necessary to recover all the
sums wrongfully paid out of the
current funds of this year for debts
of preceding years, and particu-
larly the amounts paid to the st.
Landry State Bank and the treas
urer above referred to-
"Judge Lewis ordered that the
defendants show cause, on June Is,
why the writ of injunction prayed
for should not issue, and that pend
I ing the trial of the rule nisi "a tenn
porary restraining order issue, pro-
hlbiting the doing Of any of the
acts complained Of and fixed
the bond for the restraining order
in the sum Of $500, conditioned ac-
cording to law, for such damages
as defendants may suffer therby.'
"The School board bonded the in
junction, so that the schools will he
continued without interruption for
the remaining three weeks of the
term. From members of the board
your correspondent learns that the
high schools here and at Washing
ton have been run with funds be-
longing to all the school districts of
the parish, but this was justified on
the ground that these were open to
children of all the wards aud large
" attended by pupils residing out
Of wards in which the schools arc
located. In other words, they are
parish schools, not for the pupils of
these wards alone. The teachers
employed in the high schools, in the
primary departments, are not being
paid by the public funds. When
the funds became exhausted, all
primary schools were closed, those
in town included. and the teachers
have since been paid by private
subscriptions and appropriations
made by the respective town au-
thorities. Your correspondent also
learns that the board is indebted to
the St. Landry State Bank in tho
sum Of $4,000 for money borrowed
to run the high schools during the
present year, but owes it nothing
for previous years. This course
was made necessary, thought the
board, by reason of the failure of
the police jury to make the usual
appropriations for the support of
the schools or to pay the full
amount appropriated, and rather
than discontinue these schools for
four months of the present term, the
money was secured from the bank.
1t is also claimed that the ward in
which plaintiffs reside woald lose
if the school funds were apportioned
as they declare should be done. LII
word, the school board claims
justification for every act COM
planned of, and the sentiment of the
public i'll general appears to be with
them.o
We understand that the amount
due the Bank-about S5000-was
used to pay the country teachers as
we'll as the High School teachers,
and that while the police Jury did
make al appropriation of $4,000 for
the schools this year, against $4,000
last year, it has paid the Board
only about one-half the amount ap-
propriated, and is not likely to pay
the balance until some time this
fall.
At q meeting of the Board held