Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-08
BY HARRY o. HINE.
Secretary Of the Board Of Education of the
District Of Columbia.

District Of Columbia.
When a stable book, "a Compilation
of School Laws" comes from the Gov
eminent Printing once press, the
Board of Education will be able to dis
patch certain phases of its official busi-
ness with greater satisfaction and
readiness.
The board members will have at
hand collection of the laws under
which the public school system of the
District OF Columbia is required to be
| operated which will be sufficiently COM
prehensive in scope, annexation and
index, accompanied by legal construc-
( ton Of the statutes, to enable the board
to settle quickly moot questions as they
arise.
! AS the presiding officer of each
! branch of Congress has at his elbow
/ an eminent parliamentarian to explain
| precedents, similarly but with more am
plitude the forthcoming collection of
data Is fitted to serve the board, school
officers and the employees generally.
First Volume Under One Cover.
| The volume, moreover, will be the
! first publication to combine under one
| cover the laws that relate to the public
| schools. In the past sundry problems
under consideration by the bard would
4 y,
law on the subject?" The information
would be forthcoming, but had to be
sought and found in various published
| fundamental laws, In appropriation
acts, in decisions of the controller, in
| opinions of the corporation counsel CT
In decisions Of various courts. To meet
! this situation, about three years ago,
under the presidency of E. C. Graham,
! committee was named and authorized
| tn To- ha1
| ed and available. Such committee con-
! sisted Of DR.. Charles F. Carusi, DR.. F.
w. Ballou and the secretary of the
board, Harry o. Hine. The major part
| OF this extensive work was assumed by
the secretary, most Of 1t outside Of day.
| light hours, and accomplished in addi-
ton to his regular Secretarial and ad-
ministrative duties.
! The work will consist of some $50
laws grouped in IS chapters. It will
| include also summary of about q hum
dred decisions of the controller Of the
| Treasury and his successor, the con-
| troller general of the United States,
| and summary Of opinions of the cor
| poration counsel or of an offlc.al of CO.
ordinate rank. The salient features Of
important cases in various courts that
apply to schools will likewise have a
place.
origin of the public school system in
| 1904, at time when Washington as a
city was still in its swaddlins clothes,
! and extends to the enactments of 1929,
| stretch of q century and a quarter.
| Much of the earlier legislation, while
| no longer in force, is nevertheless val
liable for the historical background of
the evolution of the school system
through its past sources of revenue,
method of taxation, separate boards of
trustees, the development of the system
has shown by salaries, the expansion Of
the ofncial and teaching staff, and the
like.
Traces School Revenues.
Revenues for school purposes we're
originally matter Of gifts from pub
such was the outstanding patron of
education, Thomas Jefferson, whose
contribution was 5000 while he was
President of the United States and at
the same time first president Of the
newly created board school trustees An
act Of Congress at this period author
lied paid agents to serve as collectors
to solicit money. The early statutes
show that in 1904 some 81 500 was taken
for schools from taxation. Revenues by
taxation were derived from a unique
mixture of sources. Taxes on slaves,
dogs, hotels and wine shops, billiard ia
bles, carriages of the well-to-do, thea
tiers, peripatetic hawkerS, all were util-
lied to augment the slender school
funds. There was a tax on "ordinaries,"
a term then in use to designate a table
d'hote eating house. The revenues from
licensed institutions not so savory in
character also were included, a prac-
tice which present-day ethics would I'M
heSitatinely condemn.
Early Methods Unsatisfactory.
This early method of taxation ap-
parently was uncertain, for 1t was dis
placed by system of lotteries Be-
ginning with 1912 and extending to
1928. IA different resolutions authoriz-
ing lotteries for the benefit of the pub
lie schools were passed by Congress and
were signed by Presidents Madison,
Monroe and John Quincy Adams. In
each resolution $4,000 was named. In
1913 the lottery authorized along with
the customary $4,000 for schools a sec
ond $4,000 for penitentiary. This
money was intended not for free"
schools in the modern sense, but for
INDECENT children, with its implied
stigma on those seeking free education.
In an act of October "a, 1920, the trus-
tees were forbidden to receive pay"
pupils, because the schools were to con-