The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1922-11-02


ing, went about and greeted their
superintendent and slipped out. OF
course the main body of teachers
were there at all the sessions, but
the commissioner of education and
the state superintendent in their adj
dresses showed no sympathy for the
taxpayers. Between the lines their
sentiment seemed to be "get the
money" and support and sympathy
slanted toward the greater up-build-
ing of the school system and maxi
ing the treasury strong for pay day.
VIII Have 1t
Again
That influence goes sitting down
thru the whole organization in dis
regard of the fact that the average
taxpayer is deliquent or has bor-
rowed money at 10 per cent to keep
from being on the delinquent list,
and cannot pay the borrowed money
nor meet the coming tax bill. The
commissioner in his address said in
effect that only a comparatively few
school districts were threatened
with bankruptcy, and therefore the
tax question was not serious. When
the tax payer himself is bankrupt,
the district soon follows, and we be-
lieve that people who have the inter-
ests of education at heart should
devote more attention to getting
these fiat tires" 0utA Of executive
positions and getting different
sentiment to sitting down thru the
organization-the determination to-
work and render a greater service
than is paid for, and not merely
filling" the positions and getting by
with 1t.
People Are at
Fault
The people are at fault in having
the duplication Of these two high Of
fees at the head of the school sys-
tenn. And they are ct fault because
they do not authorize their law
makers to apply the remedy. In
two campaigns there have been sub
mitted to the voters. the question Of
a constitutional amendment to abol-
ish the position of state superinten-
dent, leaving commissioner of edu-
cation in operation. In both cases
the people voted it down, and have
kept on paying the useless duplica-
ton of salary and expenses, and it
Is the expense account Of such an
official that mounts high-the
salary is only few thousand year.
County Superintendent
Did Wrong
The last legislature took hold Of
the matter and determined to abol-
ish the office of commissioner of
education, a thing they could do
without a constitutional amend
ment, but at the critical time in con-
sideration Of the measure, the leg
islators were flooded with letters
and kilograms from people all over
the state, including county sup
erintendents, urging that no such
action be taken. These frantic ap-
peals sounded so much alike 1t
looked as If they might all have been
framed by the same person and sent
out for the other individuals to re-
write and send back, and 1t was ad-
mitted that this was probably true,
yet they had weight enough to block
the bill. 1t Is said that the COM
missioner of education was very
active in the matter, and that he ex-
ercised tremendous pressure on the
Subject-what for? To hold his
job? Or was it to keep the people
of Idaho from hurting themselves by
saving some expense! A man of his
ability should be able to get job
in some state university, where he
is needed. If Idaho prefers to make
a mistake in favor Of economy until
they get enough residents in the
state to make one city as measured
in the older states, 1t ought to be
permitted to do so. Men from other
states who are not taxpayers, but
only temporary residents Of the
state should not be allowed to run
the schools and the legislature both.
G. G. Moore, the present candidate
for governor took that attitude on
the question when it was raging in
the legislature, but he went down
in defeat before the avalanche Of
letters and kilograms inspired by
some unseen hand.
The whole thing is reproach
upon those who have been engineer
ing the public school system.