The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1919-08-13
MIR. BRINSON REPLIES
TO PETER STANLEY

school matters in his district. surely
hope he feels better and will soon be
convalescent after vomiting up all
that biliousness that was in his sys-
tenn about his school.
In'telling of the heartrending strug-
gle that they have made to build up
their little school he fails to tell that
he was elected by his neighbors d
member of the board of trustees at
the last election of trustees and be-
cause he could not manipulate matters
his own way in the selection of a
teacher he got pettish and resigned,
thus shifting all these responsibilities
to others.
If all of your readers knew Peter
Stanley it would be entirely unneces-
sary to reply to his wild rawlings.
The trouble with his school is not
withwith the county regulations but
with the local jealousies and i'll feel
ings of the community.
He prates much about the regula-
ton that we will not pay third grade
certificate as much as we pay a sec
ond grade nor a second grade as much
as we pay a first nor a first as much
as we pay a state. This needs no argu-
ment as the absolute fairness and
good public policy is apparent upon
the face. The purpose of limiting
the salaries on certain certificates is
to hold out some inducement for those
who wish to teach to go ahead and
advance their education and advance
their certificates and get in condition
to earp a larger salary. 1t is cor
rect regulation and fair to those
teachers who are not satisfied to set
tie down as soon as they are able to
secure just any kind of a certificate
and go no farther and make no pro-
| gress.
In the particular instance that he
mentions his trustees did come to the
office of the superintendent and do
their best to get him to assume the
authority to lay a county regulation
aside and pay their teacher more than
the maximum salary allowed for
teachers holding second grade GER
tifcates The school could have paid
more had their teacher that they had
selected held first grade certificate
The fact is that the superintendent
contracted with the teacher to teach
their school for the sixty dollar max.
imum and they have mo right of com
plant.
Their situation was simply being
treated the same as every other school
in the county-even these "higf
schools that make him froth at the
mouth to even think of.
| School people all over he United
States realize the good public policy
Of every county maintaining at least
one strong, vigorous senior high
school, This is not primarily for the
benefit of the community in which il
may be located, but for the benefit OF
all of the advanced pupils who want
a real high school education.
This mouthing and hypocritica
stuff about the small school being dis
eliminated against in order to builC
up the schools of the larger places i:
pure mush and unworthy serious at
tention. 1t belongs to a species Of
: political humbuggery used to work OF
the country people in trying to array
them against the towns and does no
! appeal to any except the very ignor
ant.
Also, this rot about the county au
} thorities being tools or catspaws il
the hands of the state superintendent
i has not one iota of foundation in fact
The fact is that the present count.
superintendent came into the offic,
] with some ideals of building a coun
. ty system of schools that would elm
: mate individual favoritism and pu
: every school upon its own merits AM
not upon the strength of the pull tina
1 some influential man in the commu
nifty might have upon some boar,
member or upon the superintendent
! He knew and does know that it i
utterly impracticable to try to bull,
high schools everywhere.
He knows that when a teacher ha