The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1907-01-18
,oFFlc!AL PAPER OF CITY
AND COUNTY. ;
ERAGs. sa.oo PER .AazNva6
sF.&A. Waftawell. 4G. G. Thusnpson.
wARDwHII. 3 rHo1GPsoH.
SsUPT. SHERAkTS ON
SCHOOL QUESTIONS.

: on the,school question last week. Supt.
Sherarts presented the teachers side OF
the question Uery"ably -aua we do not,
nor did not, deny that in our article
but we tried toyive the situation as lit
appears to the average voter.
First we may answer Gthe criticism
that we were somewhat >satiricaL Per-
haps, but we INTENDED it.in good -natu-
ed,way. Nelhave the greatest respect
and regard for the teacher. There is mo
more useful;and respected and poorer
paid class of citizens-as a. class. We
had the hOnor and pleasure of belonging
Ito that class, for more than seven years,
have had a couple of years of Normal
School training, and were one of 1the
j first county :.superintendents of this
county. We have never lost interest lin
the work.
We, think on carefully reading tnver
Supt. Sherarts' letter that our editorial
admitted nearly every proposition he
has advanced. We did not deny that
things might' be better if the teachers
had the running of all educational mat
ters, including the election of superin-
tendents. But our point was that If
such power.was given them, that neces-
sarily that power must be taken from
the people-and experience in this state
has shown that the. people prefer to re
serve that power, to them selves.
The, gist of Supt. Sherart's article. is
perhaps.mostly, contained in the follow
ing paragraph
"The. facts are all against the present
system0f choosing the county superin-
tendent in,this state. 1t has proved .un-
satisfactory wherever tried. It makes
the tenure, of Office uncertain, it reqnires
the superintendent to neglect his work
to conduct two campaigns every two
years, the. administration of his office to
political pressure at all times, it releases
the superintendent at time of year
when it is almost impossible to secure
an educational position and because of
the expense and annoyance connected
with election campaigns, it deters many
well equipped educators from ente1ipg
athe,work.
In spite.of the fact that the present
system is unsatisfactory wherever it is
in operation and that the proposed sys-
tenn is marked success where it is in
use you stigmatize the resolutions as the
theoetical Wagaries of an impractical
band Of 4itinerants. (We believe that
the most absurd law ever recommended
lby the educators of this. state is sta
tue Of Solomon compared with the law
requiring all public printing to be done
in this state passed through the news
paper influence.''
The interpolated criticism as to al
lodged newspaper law falls fat because
it Wasnot passed through news
paper Influence. Only four or five firms
were benefited or Interested in the pas
sage Of that law
The above are undoubtedly the CON
clnstions from the county snperinten-
dents standpoint. He naturally objects
tosgoing into the dirty pool Of politics
and spending his money and time to get
reelected: But as.we said last. week,
why is not this just as true Of any other
Officer Somehow, it appears that school
work, school Office, and edueati6pal
matters, generally are consid ibya ,the
superintendents as on . higher pisns
B than caring for the count CASH III
after the estates Of the Wild and sor-- s.id..
phans. the administ ton 81 Justice sitl rs
the courts, keeping the records of titles