The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-03-02


favoritism in appointments OF teachers,
unjust acts and Irregularities In man
agement of any nature whatsoever are
not only most conspicuous but cannot
be tolerated; otherwise the whole sys-
| tenn would soop topple and fall.
In The commercial world, the lack of
success is never advanced as an argu-
ment against Capitalization OF business
interests. On the contrary the chief
reason OF public prejudice against COM
| binations or trusts" is their over
whelming success sweeping aside and
svamping all smaller competitors In
the educational world, where there is
no competition to be crushed by it,
great success should be a most con-
vincing argument In favor OF. rather
control of schools
In the schools OF Salt Lake are Il, $50
pupils taught by 272 teachers. The pop
ulation of the city is 1881 Two hun
dred and fifty thousand dollars per an
mum is spent for schools.
In 1890. the twenty or thirty district
school boards Of Salt Lake were con-
solidated into one. Since then, so it is
stated by the Salt Lake Tribune of Jan.
LIST, 1903. the progress of ali the city
schools has been most remarkable. The
above is true. with exception Of course
as to the time when the consultations
were made. of many OF the cities and
large towns in America.
The failure of many of the country
schools can easily be explained by the
lack of system used in their manage
ment permitting in isolated places the
appointment OF favorites to teachers
positions irrespective of qualifications,
and the committing of other irregulari-
ties without rebuke; by the election on
the board of trustees of improper per-
sons or those untitled for the position;
by the Indifference, neglect or ignorance
of such trustees; by the lack of news
papers to criticize the acts of trustees
or even where there is a struggling
newspaper published, mercenary or po-
litical reasons would render it inadvis-
able for it's editor to attack influential
trustees; by the refusal of citizens
through false ideas of economy to pro-
vide sufficient means to properly con- |
duct school; by the trustees permit
ting, in accordance with the wishes of
the majority of citizens, the abridgment |
of school privileges to such an extent |
as to seriously injure the usefulness of
a school, etc.
The following is quoted from Nc
Cures Magazine for February:
I'm the vicinity of every mining town
Gin Pennsylvania Is a district school,
whose usual need of paint and general
appearance of dilapidation gives evil
NJ eli oh in fhaI
life of the community. According to the
State law the schools of each township
are under the exclusive control of a
local board elected by the voters of the
district. In a community where almost
the entire population are miners the
school board is necessarily composed of
miners; the schools must be managed
from the union miners standpoint. The
miner on the school board is no better
educated than the rest of his kind, and
while ne may be opposed theoretically
to child labor. he regards it's continu-
ance as a necessity. and it is therefore
mis- business TO see that the school in
40 way interferes with a parents pre-
of sending his child to thei
breaker or mill. The teacher must be II
n full sympathy and accord with the
lnion." Previously in the same article
t is stated that by means of affidavits
falsely sworn to it is customary for
children of nine or ten years of age to
cave school for work in the mines and
he school trustees aid rather than pre-
rent this evil
All the foregoing reasons or argu-
nents advanced in favor of the central
zed school board of a city have equal
orce when applied to our own Terri
Orial board of school commissioners. g
a iS vi 81 of a
ity of medium proportions in regard to 4
population. The number of public
chool children in the Territory is about
he same as that of Salt Lake City,
etween eleven and twelve thousand.
hough the amount of money used in
he support of Territorial schools is
omewhat less-Salt Lake expending
500, 600 bienniaIly and Hawaii about
$50 900. /
Hawaiian boards of education have I
ways been composed of ladies and
entlemen of the highest character and
effnement and in some cases among
ne boards members have been gentle c
len like Messrs. Atkinson and Alex c
nder who have devoted their lives to /,
EDUCATIONAL matters.
There is no pay attached to the posi- u
on of school commissioner and judg- S
lg from the past there is nothing polit- r
al in anys way connected Herewith.
he duties performed are those for the
ause Of education in its highest and c
est sense. b
To be sure the board on Oahu is some II
hat distant from the schools of the :
her islands; still it is an advantage :"
lther than otherwise to have an eX- p
erienced body of people unprecedented n
ecause of it's distance from the scene ~
trouble to judge dispassionately and
Istly all local differences and difficult
es of a serious nature, minor matters OF
eing under the control of resident N
hool agents. &c
That many-perhaps a majority of the
'hools-would suffer to greater or u
SIS degree from the proposed change fl
county boards seems a foregone CON I,