The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-03-31
THE PEOPLE AND THE SCHOOL $

extent.
The PEOPLE AND THE SCHOOLS
In a recent issue the Keosauuu
/ Republican published an editoria
article commencing the Iowa senat,
> LOT voting down, by q to IA, an at
tempt to further emasculate the com
, mon school system by abolishing the
district school treasurer. one of the
important offices Of The district sehoo
organization. y This article. which
was reproduced in The Gate City
drew the fire OF the Des Moines Reg
lster and Leader, which sought to
make two points in reply. One was
that because the country district
treasurer is an officer appointed by the
school beard, the adjustment of the
/ office would not affect the peoples
control OF the schools. In its issue for
+ the current week the Republican
makes rejoinder that the Register and
Leader might just as consistently have
asserted that the office of secretary of
the school board could be eliminated
and not in the least affect the people 8
control of the schools; that is. it is
all right to have school directors but
these directors shall not be permitted
TO have an organization, with the Gus
tomary power TO select its own secre.
tary and treasurer The Republican
goes on TO say:
The Register seems to have for
gotten, or else it never knew. that
when the old subscription school con
dltion in Iowa ended with the adop-
ton OF the free school system by the
legislature of 1858, when said sys-
TEN became part and parcel of the
revised constitution, that in that
adoption the school directors were al
lowed TO organize by having a secre-
rary and treasurer. The Register
knows that to eliminate from the
country school board the right to Sc.
lect its own treasurer or secretary, is
the making of an entering wedge to
destroy the power of the local school
beard and centralize it so as TO be
more easily controlled BY few, with
the headquarters of controlling power
in the state house at Des Moines. At
least that has been the trend during
the past six or seven years, which we
shail SHOW in an article later on
Inc second point the Register and |
Leader raised against the utility of
the school district treasurer was TO
the effect that every citizen knows
that the Office of school treasurer has
been merely piece of political spoils, f
made attractive by the control of the
school funds that goes with it and
the customary diversion of interest
thereon from the peoples pockets to
the treasuTer's pockets
The Republicans reply to this is
that such an assertion might be ex-
pected from notwithstanding social
ISL but that it il entirely out of
harmony with an editorial utterance
that is naturally expected in a great
paper which pretends to represent the
sentiment and reach the reason OF
civilized people. Actual conditions az
they exist in Van buren, county. and
presumably in other counties in the
state, are thus set forth by the Re-
publican
Such a statement apbears much
more absurd as to the asserted sell
fish motives of the school treasurers.
when il is taken in consideration
that perhaps the compensation thew
receive does not average over SIS
each per wear In Van Buren, county
The compensation runs from IS TO
S35 per year, with very few over
s25 a year And this reform ia Mead
Tor the sake of economy Abolish
he district treasurer and cut him out ;
1t his 80 to S25 year for serving his
district, take the Office away from the
control of the country directors and
urn il over TO the county treasurer
With the provision that he is to have
an additional deputy at a salary of
$500 to Sl,500 all in the interest OF
economy, and GUST the district school G
treasurer who only wants the little /
)ffice, as asserted by the Register. 10
iiyert interest of the money thereon
rom the peopie's pockets TO his own
pocket, Moreover, we believe the
Wenty-four senators who voted
against Gripping the district school
system by cutting out the local
reasurers, are Just as conscientious
Gentlemen and just as DESTROYS of do.
ng the best possible 10 make efficient
ne common schools, as is the editor
u the Register and Leader
But above all we would have the
people keep in mind this: In order
o preserve an interest in and con.
niue efficient the common schools
ne direct control OF them must reat
oeaiiy with the school patrons
,esidents of the districts. The com.
mon people will take an interest IN
what the law intrusts to their care lo
renee we are opposed to the central. X
zallon OF the control of our puhlic E
'choois IN few persons. We reneat NJ
uoWn with anything that leads IN, q,
Yards school monarchyi'. :.