The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1907-12-12
Charles Potter in Address,
Says That Greater Care
Should Be Taken to Protect
The PubIic's Property.
TRUSTEES SHOULD BE
MORE ECONOMICAL.
Advocates Reward to Those
Persons Who Detect People
WiIIfuIIy Destroying Public
Property.

meeting of the trustees of the Va
rious townships of the county. was
held today in the office of County Su-
perintendent Charles Jordan. There
was an excellent paper read by Trus-
tee Potter of Wayne township on the
"Care of Township Property" anh
few discussions and informal talks. Mr..
Jordan informed the trustees of the
flattering statements made by State
Superintendent of Education Fasset A.
Cotton. on the district schools of this
county. Mr.. Potter's paper follows:
The care of township property, is !
very important subject, and one that
very few persons give any thought.
of roads, bridges, road machinery and
tools, and school property. AS the
roads are under the care of a super
visor of roads. the property belonging
thereto, is generally cared for better
than the school property, but still
there is great negligence on the part IF
some supervisors in regard to the care
of the road machinery. such as ploW5,
scoops and graders. 1t seems that the
object in view with a great many road
supervisors, and the persons using
road tools under their supervision IS
to dispose Of them as quickly as pos
sible when they are through with
them; they therefore haul them out
against the fence or in the fence cor
ner and there leave them until WantA
for some future work; when instead of
such disposition. they should be taken
some place and housed from the wealth
er until needed for the next job Of
work. it would prOlong their life and
the supervisor would know where to
find them the next time they were 20
be used
school property seems to be the ob-
ject of more vandalism than anything
else; it seems that what is everybody )
property is nobody's property. AL
though there ARE school directo S
whose duty it is to look after the
school property of their district. they
are, as a general thing. at some dis
tance from the school houses and van
| dals who delight in breaking into
| school houses and destroying the prop
erty, do their work and are gone be-
| fore the director is aware of their
presence in the vicinity.
"Teachers are sometimes remiss
in regard to the care of school proper
! ty. 1t should be the duty of the
teacher to report any damage or any
thing out of repair to- the proper officer
the school director or the trustee. who
should have the proper repairs made
at once.
| "A great many people seem to think
! that because the property belongs to
! the township that they are privileged
| to take such liberties with it as they
j please. 1t is not often a tax payer
stOops to commit any damage to school
property. anyone who does so never
stops to consider, if he is a tax payer.
that he is taxed to build and main such
school property. The damage IS
mostly from trafnps. boys and ire
sponsible persons from the larger
towns and cities. who go out in the
| country 10 nave dg DoQ Time, ana Jnln
that a good time consists in destroy
| ing township. or any other property
they find that is unoccupied, and no
one about to protect it.
| AS to what is the best method TO
protect township property from such
vandalism. am unable to say. but
l think it would be good idea for the
township advisory board to authorize
the township trustee 10 offer a reward
of five to ten dollars to any one giving
| information that would lead to the ar
! rest an conviction of any person will
fully destroying property belonging to
the township.
! Any one who seeks, and is elected
TO the office of township trustee
should make it his duty TO care for the
| property of the township the same as
| if ii was his own. as the people of the
township have entrusted the township
property in your care. you should 9lake
it your Jealous duty to care for it TO
| the best of your ability