New-York tribune., 1921-01-25

liam H. Ettinger in his place. With
this lineup Of Mr.. Hylan's personal
selection, there appeared every op-
portunity for harmony. But there
wasn't.
Superintendent Ettinger was soon
forced to arpeal to the State Board
of Regents. He old the board that
truded' himself in matters of the
Board of Education and was unlawful
~ trying to control the policies of the
educational SYSTEM
Ettinger Appeals
"Mr. Ettinger Was freed to appeal
to the State Commissioner of Educa-
tion to maintain his legal command
over the purely executive administra-
ton of schools. Henry W. Taft was
Mr.. Ettinger's self-appointed attorney
in this dispute, a~d the case was won.
This was the first, but is only an ex-
ample: There have been more petty
squabhles, unrest and uncertainty in
school matters under Hylan and more
lack of progress than in tie history OF
any other city administration.
1T shows petty politics in the City
Hall, woeful lack of leadership and
inefficiency, and as result public edu-
cation is made to suffer. People in
the school system, by q mere process
of self lf-defense, have been forced to
play politics to get any action at ALL
"The school situat on in New York
City to-day is dep orable and be-
lieve the state Legislature should take
a firm hand in an effort to divorce
education from petty politics."
Mayor Hylan and Comptroller Craig
bitterly opposed what they called the
interference of the state educational
authorities and the Superintendent of
Schools in matters of school finance un-
til the budget for 1921 appeared Then,
confronted with the deficit of sgt 7,0O0,
700 in the appropriation required for
the maintenance Of the schools during
the present year, the attitude of the
Mayor and Comptroller changed toward
the state authorities. They were will
ing and are now preparing to shift the
responsibility to the Legislature and
call on the state to devise means to
supply the S27,O0O,O0O.
Comptrol'er Craig stated fatty at a
meeting of the budget committee of
the Board of Est mate that eds zion
was a state function. Mayor Hylan
agreed with him.
Governor Miller's attitude on the
tain terms in his address before the
Bar Association Friday. He declared
that the tendency to shift the educa-
tlonal burden to the state would SIM
ply mean that, if successful, New
York taxpayers would help maintain
the other schools of the state besides
their own, due to "the Capitalization
of wealth and property in this COM
munity."
Notorious Controversies
The state law provides that money
for New York schools shall be sup
piled out of the New York City budget.
The school question under the Hylan
regime has been a series of notorious
controversies. The Board of Educa-
| tlon and the Board of Estimate have
been at loggerheads constantly over
the control Of lcra school m~ttn~s
When Mayor Hylan took office he lie
ciared that no "outsiders" were going
to run tie schools. He declared that
an educational political oligarchy" had
been bu 1t UP "for self-perpetuation in
cfflce" in the Department Of Educate
He appointed his own Board of Educa-
, tlon OF five members. Ettinger WAS
made Superintendent of Schools by n e
Hylan board, and has held that office
| ever since, despite the fact that Super
irtendent Eft nger has been the main
object of attack by the Mayor and other
city officials in the school controversy
Super nterdent Ettinger has reigne
IS sthe czar" of the "political oligar-
chy" in the school system, acc riding "a
the Mayor and the Comptroller Thc
Mayor started an investigation of the
accounts of the Board of Education,
| through his faith ful Commissioner of
Accounts, David Hirshfeld This led
! to much wrangling. Mr.. Hirshfeld
went to curt to compel certain educa-
t'onal officials to appear before him and
produce their account books The
school officials blocked the plans of thu
Mayor and the Commissi oner of Ac-
counts and the investigation amounted
to nothing.
An attempt was made by the Mayors
Board of Education to deprive Super
lntendNnt Ettinrer Of many Of his pow
ers and transfer them to the prcsider!
of the board. DR.. Finley, then State
Commissioner of Education, decided
against tic new rules proposed by the
blocked again.
Mayor -Interfered
Superintendent Ettinger contended
that the Mayor was nterfe' ing in
purely educational affairs Of the Board
to do. The Board Of Education main
tanned that it was the supreme con-
trolling body and should have author
ity to restrict the superinterde in
any, or all, of his activites They ap-
pealed to the State Commissioner of
Education on that ground. Mr.. Et-
finger maintained that the board
should act in an advisory capacity in
dealing with educational subjects.
The inadequacy Of the teachers. sala-
ries and the fight of the municipal
authorities against "mandatory legis-
ation" to afford them living ware
threatened at one time the collapse of
the whole educational structure. Hun
dreds Of teachers left the employ of
the city because they could not live on
the pay. Between the opening of the
! schools in September, 1919, and the
first of last year there were 993 res
gnations of school teachers. Their
were S4S teaching positions in the
schools vacant at the time. and it was
impossible to fill them because of the
small salaries. 1t was estimated that
so 600 children were sent home each
week owing to the lack of teachers.
Before the Lockwood- -Donohuc bill
was passed by the Legislature last
year, giving the teachers a substan-
tia! increase, Mayor Hylan sent an
open letter to each Assemblyman and
Senator from New Yorh warning them
Of the burden the increases would
place upon the taxpayers.
When it came I, nay the increases
uaxUsnsa