The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1902-01-07

citizens who lived over 2 miles from the
school should sign a petition requesting
the same, for the purpose OF providing
conveyance for such children as live over
two miles from school. The township
! was to pay two-thirds Of the expense and
the different communities the remaining
| one-third. For instance, one community
containing fifteen children employed a
good horse and a spring wagon for $50.
The school paid $40 Of this; the coTn1nun-
| ity $40. This OF course was for the entire
season. These figures are not unreason-
able, for it is customary in forming dis
tricts to rent a team for one season for
$25 to cultivate a crop. Fifteen such
! conveyances could conve all the children
in a district who lived over two miles
! from school. For the present it depends
entirely upon the community whether
this conveyance is provided; any
ship also has the privilege Of voting a
sufficient tax to pay all expenses of
transportation.
The next question was that of furnish
ing suitable and well equipped buildings.
AS the matter stood it would take nearly
1900 to improve and equip the old
buildings. The board desired to have
very modern and we'll equipped buildings,
and the entire cost was estimated at
"a, GOO for the county, or $1,000 for the
I township. This would give a we'll ar
ranged fve-room school building for the
white race, and a three-room building
for the colored race, each supplied with
the double patent desks, black boards,
maps and charts. This is the maximum
cost after using the timber in the old
buildings. How was this money to be
raised? Let the county issue bonds ex-
- o. - 1on1 r1ar n oo,tr+ n1,c nr
a railroad is to be built.
The next question asked was, who will
constitute the managing board for this
new school system? The law was SO
amended as to allow the commissioners
of Clarendon county to elect a school
board consisting Of ten members, one
from each township. The board was
elected. but they knew absolutely moth
ing about organizing a graded school.
They needed a superintendent. The re-
SpOnsibility of the office had been so
much discussed that no man in Clarendon
county thought of applying. Even the
! recent graduates who were going to
study law were modest enough to with
hold their applications. The commits
sioners were careful; the people were
wondering. a. mistake might set the
county back ten years. After much con-
sultation a young man who understood
graded work, who had made a thorough
study of the work was elected. He came
from a distant State-an act entirely I'M
known heretcfore-to elect a county SUI
perintendent from another county and
even from another State. At first the
board thought it was compelled to elect
a member from Clarendon county, So
strong had the custom been.
l. U-oc mot c,,nh n 1iffo111S yoottOr
to superintend. He had only ten schools,
and he could spend a day every two weeks
in each. The next most important step
was to select the teachers for the differ
ent schools. This work fell largely upon
the superintendent. Now, no one ques-
toned the advisabi1ity o fsecuring the
best teachers, ard they looked to the su-
perintendent to decide. Before the posi-
ton was bestowed upon some needy young
lady Or gentleman exactly as a commun
ity would receive a pension and award ii
to the most worthy or needy widow of an
ex-Confederate. 1t seemed natural now
to question ones ability to teach. After
an extraordinary task of studying and
grading teachers, the superintendent a d
vised with the board and the teachers
were selected. The superintendent wa
responsible for the success of the SchoO
and he was on the look out for efhclent
teachers. whether they came from Clar-
endon or Cherokee. The superintendent
with his ten principals carried on a con
tinual educational campaign, and at tht
end of the first year a special tax O
twenty cents was voted, which was suf
ficient 10 increase the length of term Il
eight months, which would have beef
impossible under the old system.
The next step though after e~lectinC TIL
teachers was to arrange a course o
|, study for the public schools. It require
the whole year to complete the course