Jasper County Democrat, Volume 20, Number 13, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 May 1917 — TEACHERS PAY FOR PLACES [ARTICLE]

TEACHERS PAY FOR PLACES

Harrison County Trustee Had Price on Each School. For the past few years' there has “been several applications for schools in this county from teachers residing in Harrison county. Some time ago County Superintendent Lamson asked one of these applicants why he did not teach in his home county, and was told that he could not afford to. He then revealed a system of extortion practiced by certain township trustees in that t part of the state, where the official placed a price on each school, varying from SSO to $l5O, according to its desirability. The teacher must “come across” with the sitpulated sum or get no job. Mr. Lamson wrote these facts to the county superintendent of Ha_h rison county and possibly, as a result, an investigation was started by the state board of accounts. Lee F. Sherman, trustee of Heth township, Harrison county, since the first of last January, was shown to have thus extorted $756.26 from ten different teachers, which sum he has refunded to the state board of accounts. The investigation promises to become gefieral and may include many counties in the state, ill some of which the laws made to protect the taxpayers are set aside as jokes.