Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-09-14
More Adequate Expenses
Urged for Superintendents

Supt. +. II. Barnes OF the Richland
county schools has beep investigating
the mileage problem which conirohts
the county superintendent almost
daily, with some surprising results.
II Is commonly supposed that the SUI
perintendent's travelling expenses are
provided for In some equitable way,
either by repayment, as is done by
wholesale houses to their commerciai
travelling men, or by allowing a GER
tain rate per mile for distance actually
and necessarily travelled in discharge
of d.:.y. The latter method Is IN tact
adopted but hardly equitably. Inc
rate paid Is 10 cents per mile.
On the face of II this seems abun.
dant but the superintendent for
wears have testified that they cannot
get out whole at that rate unless they
maneuyer a very great deal or have
some unusual advantage such as a
hardly be figured in a business trans.
action. However. when enort q
heretofore been made in the leglsla-
tore 10 secure an enactment "hlch
would meet the situation fairly, def
mite evidence has probably been TOO
meager TO convince many that Il
change actually has been needed. IN
fact some legislatures have shown a
disposition to lower the rate to b
cents per mile. E
Nevertheless some investigation
leads one to conclude that the present
rate is the cause for at least one pop.
ular Objectionable custom of all coah-
ty superintendents, namely that OF
skipping" from place to place IN,
stead of making a systematic tour OF
inspections Of the school conditions III
the various districts. No superlntend-
ent can ~profitably inspect a school
before 9 O'Clock in the morning nor
after 4 in the afternoon. Thus ne mas
pretty short hours for field work. Al
least one hour is required for anything
like an actual checking up of n scnooi
property and a discriminating ap-
praisal of the professional work Deihs
done BY the teacher. Hence one trav-
cling out by team from a nearby town
can make only about twenty-five miles
a day. which at 10 cents per mile
would return $3.50 to him. But livery
"ates are just about Il cents per mile,
or 81 or more for a days use IRE
spective of miles covered, INT 1t is
common knowledge that the average
liveryman is not getting rich at thai
rate by any means. The common au-
tomobile rate is Ia cents per mile for
one passenger. Auto owners gener-
ally find that, in the course OF hVe
years or SO. there is practically little
in it for them at that rate. If in the
place from which the drive originated
is not the superintendent home
town, there will be hotel charges.
One driving who stops for noon in
the country has to provide for team
feed. and his dinner and nobody
wants to sponge from the farmers.
Hence the superintendent finds that
he needs all of 10 cents per mile. or
I IL cents more than his possible
railroad fare per mile to make up
for living expenses when away from
home. To expect this is not un"ea-
sonable, any more than it would be
with the commercial travelling men.
The house always stands such en-
penses one way or the other.
Thus the average superintendent
falls behind just about the difference
between tn 10 cents which he gets
and the Is cents which he pays the
liveryman and auto drivers.
If one owns his own rig, the en-
pense is in the end about the same.
for he has no free pasture. hay. etc.
as farmers figure them. but must III.
timately pay cash for everything. the
same as liverymen do. The rapid
deterioration of automobile values is
notorious. Moreover. they are not
serviceable in many counties when
most needed, which is in the late
fall. winter and early spring.
Superintendent Barnes has collected
data so far from counties where the
superintendents have kept track of
their travelling expenses. Others Dc
not seem to know tennitely what
their losses are, but all who study