The sea coast echo. [volume] (Bay Saint Louis, Miss.) 1892-current, 1907-11-09
LETTERS FROM THE PEOPLE.
County Superintendent Of Education Stoekstill
DweIIs on Official Matters.

DweIIs ON Official Matters.
To the Editor of The Sea Coast Echo.
1t is, indeed, very gratifying to me to
know that the Board of Supervisors has
at last adopted my views regarding the
improvement of the county school
houses. At the September meeting Of
the Board the school levy was raised
from one-half to two mills for the pur-
pose ESQ stated at the time) of creating
a surplus to spend on the school houses
next fall. This is precisely what have
advocated for two years.
1t is interesting, however, to note
that the Board has changed front and
entirely reversed its policy on this ques-
tion since last fall. At the close of
each of the past two scholastic years
there remains considerable balance in
the treasury to the credit of the school
fund, and I endeavored each time to
have same spent on the school houses,
and each time the proposition was
turned down by the Board of Supervi-
sors, the president going to the extreme
at one time of attempting to use the
veto power: something he does not pos
sess under the law. Apparently, many
people did not understand how this sur
plus accumulated, and yet it is a very
simple matter. A large per cent of the
schools are taught during the summer
months. They can not be opened under
the law earlier than the first Monday in
April and must close with the scholastic
year, on the Both day of September.
In some instances, we failed to secure
teachers until more than two months of
this period had passed; in others, the
teachers quit before the time expired,
and others could not be found to take
their places, thus materially reducing
the average length of term, and leaving
a considerable unexpended balance at
the end of the scholastic year.
After refusing to spend this balance
on the school houses, and, in order to
force its expenditure and prevent the
accumulation of similar one the fol-
lowing year, the Board reduced the
school levy from one mill to one-half
mill; but the Boards mathematician,
who, by the way, is supposed meyer to
make any mistakes, made miscalcula-
ton, and the amount realized from one
half mill levy was not sufficient to main
tain the schools six months, and was,
forced to cut the term to five
and half months.
In this connection, it is interesting to
note that the salary of the county super
is fixed on percentage basis,
not less than five per cent of the school
fund. Now, what is the natural conclu-
sion to be drawn from the above facts ?
1t was stated during the recent politi-
cal campaign that closed the schools
with $4,000 in the treasury. This state
ment, like many others made at the
time, was wholly untrue. After the
loss of enough time by various teachers
to reduce the average length of term
from one hundred and ten days Give and
a half months) to one hundred five and
a half days, the amount in the treasury
at the end of the scholastic year, after
deducting all outstanding school war
rants, was S137.51. Hence, it is very
evident that if all the schools had run
full five and half months there would
have been deficit, for which the county
is liable on his bond as
well as criminally.
A very natural question is, why did
the Board reverse itself on this question
SO soon? Was it for the good of the
schools, or to redeem political promises ? |
Inever like to be known as "kicker",
but there is another matter that would |
perhaps be interesting to many people
in this county, The county has been
paying for over year, by order of the
Board of Supervisors, fifteen dollars
per month for court house ianitor,
who absolutely refuses to even enter the
county superintendent's office. Once
before this same party was employed
for thirteen months at salary of
twenty five dollars per month, and dur
ing that period he swept the superin-
tendent's Office four or five times and
finally refused altogether to sweep it,
have usually managed to find time
to keep the Office as clean as the con-
dition of our court house will permit.
and, of course, can do very well without
a janitor; but it is the principle in
volved that object to. shall watch
with much interest to see whether or
not this policy is continued after Janu-
ary the first.
Respectfully,
w. w. STOCKSTILL,