The Cordele dispatch. (Cordele, Ga.) 19??-1971, 1917-07-04


of conditions as they really are.
The constituencies scramble that
brought this condition was a premedi-
tated affair. 1t ran through more
than a month, so our school boss said
last week when he claimed to have
been importuned that length of time
| by certain members of council before
he would consent to take up that lit
| tie 5000 job on the board. The school
board, mind you, had asked for some
body else, two really competent men
who spend no time at political wire
pulling. over night these two were
thrown away,--or to be more percise,
one of them was scratched for our
present boss and the other lost out to
good man, who likewise has nothing
to do with partisan politics. But he
came on by accident Pity the mem
Der of council who fought for him had
not kept on fighting till he got anoth-
er like him.
But the Dispatch is sure that no
number of good men in Cordele could
have kept our boss Off He had plans
laid far ahead. The work was done
when those who really want good
schools in Cordele were not even
aware that sometime soon two new
board members were going to be
named He was there with the job
all shut in and sitting on the lid when
COrdele woke up.
We have several times said that
there are numbers of men in Cordele
fully capable of handling the schools
better than they are now going to be
handled. Advancement is a word you
cannot find in the vocabulary of our
school boss. His word is "retrench-
ment, "-nonot that, but "conserva-
tism." That means that the system
he will give this town will consist of
corps of teachers that will first
swear allegiance to him. 1t means
that both superintendent and teach
ers must do goose step for salaries
they cannot live on. That means that
the city board must abide his wishes.
1t means nothing can be done that
does not first have his 20. K" 1t
means total elimination of teaching
efficiency.
We are now absolutely and COM
pletcly in the hands of man who has
farm to run on the outside. That's
4 full sized job. We are in the hands
of man who has a newspaper to run
That's another full sized job. Again
we are in the hands Of man who has
The country schools on his hands. He
runs them as a side line, but we do
not want the city schools run in this
manner and we must protest If he
does his duty in the country schools
alone, he will have his hands full. How
can he have time to earn that $500
he gets from the city school tax fund ?
To be plain about it, the Dispatch is
for taking hold of the situation now,
while there is time Let the people
If this community wipe out the whole
thing and start over. Our school boss
does not think of merit in teacher
He wants somebody to speak for him.
We cannot aoffrd to go through even
one year in that plight. 1t will prove
! tremendous sacrifice.
Our school board ought to be elect
d by the people. 1t ought to be
larger board. Then no one man, no
'wo men, no three men can control
Nine members can serve us we'll But
the Dispatch cannot get all this by
us lone effort. 1t will require assis-
lance. Others are already at work, but
those who have good schools at heart
ought to step out and say so and offer
assistance in lettering conditions That
and that alone will bring satisfactory
results. Let us be at it.