The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-08-26
DISAGREEMENT ON
SCHOOL CONTROL
North Birmingham Officials
Have Failed to Agree,
APPEAL TO COUNTY BOARD
Matter May Be Tested In the Courts.
County Board Holds Meeting.
Circulars Issued to
Trustees.
APPEAL TO COUNTY BOARD


over the contest between the mayor and
aldermen of North Birmingham and the
district school boaro relative to the con-
troll of the public schools of the munich
pality aforesaid. The matter may finally
pass into the courts TO be decided
The county board of education met yes
terday morning at $50 o'clock in the office
of Superintendent of Schools l. w. Nc
Adory. Mayor Jones and members of the
North Birmingham city council appeared
before the board of education and in
structed the members not 10 pay over any
county school funds to the district school
fund, until the case hao been settled In
the courts finally.
In speaking of the matter yesterday aft
ernoon Professor McAdory. who Is the
chairman OF the county board. said;
Mayor Jones appeared before us this
morning and said that he would take the
matter up in the courts. The North Bir-
mingham board of mayor and aldermen
contend that they have control of the
public schools there under the re-dlstrict-
ing laws On the other hand the district
school board, which is composed of Hugh
Freil, George b. Tarrant and J. H. Berry.
make the contention that they have al
ways been in ntrol and under the law
still have the right to hold on.
The Territory Added.
THE re-districting board added more
territory to the North Birmingham school
district recently. and took some territory
from 1t to make up two other districts,
mingham a school district in itself
THE mayor and aldermen of North Bir-
mingham have never asked the county
superintendent to recognize that body as
being in control, but. on the other hand
the trustees of the district have always
transacted all the business and have been
so recognized. The board recently had
the census taken, and heretofore all
school funds for the district have been
paid OYER to the treasurer Of the district
board.
THE mayor appeared before us this
morning and notified me not to pay over
to the treasurer of the district board
any more school funds until the question
is settled in the courts. AS no school
funds win be available until November
l, and as the county schools cannot open
until October l, l think the entire mat
ter will have been settled and that the
schools will not be disturbed.
Three Schools.
There are three public schools at
North Birmingham, two white and one
colored school. In all there are about
/, 600 school children there
The county board Will meet Septem-
Der 26 for the purpose of changing the
lines of the North Birmingham school
district Some territory will be taken
from the Bartona, the Jonesville, Graves
and sayreton districts and added to the
North Birmingham district. This will
have nothing to do with the contention
out there, however.
State School Law.
1.-THE mayor and aldermen are maxi
ing their contention on the following sec
ton of the state school laws:
section 2O-That each Incorporated city
or town In the state is hereby created
separate school district. In all munich
palities where there is a board of eduea-
said separate school district and shall
have and exercise all the powers and
authority conferred by law upon town
ship trustees. In municipalities where
there Is no such board of education the
power and duties of trustees shall de-
volve upon and be performed by the
mayor and board of aldermen, and all
o.. I.,a .,aI. ,Iigfs. Is
shall be paid directly by the state super
intendent of education to the board OF
education of such separate school dis
tricts or to the mayor and board Of
aldermen, where there is no such board
of education; and provided that nothing
In this act contained shall be construed as
In conflict with section IL of this act.
This was approved on September 80,
1908, by the legislature.
"A committee appeared before the
board this morning from Warner mines"
continued Professor McAdory with the
statement that a majority OF the three
members of the school board In that
district were union miners and that they
had made the statement that the schools
out there would not open until after
the strike is settled, inasmuch as they did
not care for the non-union miners get the
advantage of the free schools. The mat
ter will be Investigated"
The county board decided to hold
monthly meetings regularly hereafter on
the second Saturday in each month. 1t
was decided to send out the following
letter to each Of the district boards in
Jefferson county:
Letter to District Boards.
Gentlemen: We desire first to express
our appreciation of the honor you have
conferred upon us, and the trust mani
fected by placing us. members of such an
important commission Furthermore we 4
are not unmindful of the great and re-
sponsible duties to which you have cali
ed u.s.
"In our relation to each other we trust
we may have shoulder to Shout
cooperation 80 that the best educational