COMPILED BY KLOPP & BARTLETT CO., OMAHA. 6907 Sec. 208. Deputy. The superintendent of public instruction of the state of Nebraska shall have power to appoint a deputy superintendent of public instruction and the said deputy may do and perform, in the absence or inability of the superintendent of public instruction, all the acts and duties that may be authorized and required to be performed by the superintendent of public instruction; and the superintendent shall be responsible for all the official acts of his deputy. Cited 25 Neb.. 662. 6908 Sec. 209. Same-salary.-Said deputy shall receive a salary of eighteen hundred dollars per annum, to be paid by warrant of the auditor of public accounts on the treasurer, said warrant to be drawn monthly. 6909 Sec. 210. SECTION 6912. Appeal from appraisement. Condemnation of land for.-If the owner of any real estate on which a school board may desire to locate a schoolhouse, or which the school board needs for an extension of school grounds, refuses or neglects to grant the site on his or her premises, or if such owner cannot be found, the county superintendent shall appoint three disinterested persons, none of whom shall be residents of the district, whose duty it shall be, after taking an oath to faithfully discharge the duties imposed on them by this subdivision, to inspect such real estate and assess the damages which such owner shall sustain by the appropriation of his land for the use of the house and school, and make a report to the county superintendent, giving amount of land and damages, with exact location of land, who shall file and preserve the same in his office. Each person acting as such appraiser shall receive the sum of two dollars per day for his services. Provided, however, whenever it shall become necessary to appropriate private property for general school purposes in school districts in cities, and such appropriation shall be declared necessary by resolution of the board of education of a school district organized within the limits of a city which resolution shall be conclusive of the necessity for such appropriation, the county judge of the county in which the real estate may be situated, shall upon the application of the board of education of such school district located in a city, appoint three disinterested freeholders of the school district in which such real estate is situated, who, after being duly sworn to perform the duties of their appointment with fidelity and impartiality, and after reasonable notice to the owners and parties interested in the property, the time and manner of the notice to be determined by the order of the county judge, shall assess the damages to the owners of the property and parties interested therein respectively taken by such appropriation. Such assessment shall be reported in writing to the county judge of COMPILED BY KLOPP & BARTLETT CO., OMAHA. said county and if the same shall be confirmed by the board of education, the damages so assessed shall be paid to the owners of such property or deposited with the county judge of said county, subject to the order of such owner or owners, respectively, after which such property may at any time be taken for the use of the school district and the school district shall be entitled to the process of the court to place it into immediate possession of said property. If the assessment be not confirmed by the board of education, proceedings may be taken anew to assess the damages upon application of the board of education for the appointment of other and different appraisers, whereupon said county judge shall make an order of appointment of different appraisers and proceedings shall be had in like manner as herein provided for. 6910 Sec. 211. Site-use-reversion. The school board shall pay the cost of this appraisement, and after paying to the owner of the land the amount of damages assessed may enter upon and occupy the land as long as the district desires to use it for district purposes; but should the same cease to be used for school purposes it shall revert back to the owner of the fee simple of the land from which it was taken on the payment by him of the amount originally paid for the land without interest. Provided, however, property taken under the provisions of this article by school districts in cities shall vest a fee simple title in such school district. 6911 Sec. 212. Extent of site taken.-When the land is thus taken without the consent of the owner, it shall not be more in amount than one acre, and all orchards, gardens, public parks, shall not be liable to be thus taken, nor shall land be taken within twenty rods of any residence. Provided, however. the provisions of this section shall not apply to school districts in cities, 6912 Sec. 213. Appeal from appraisement.-The owner of land thus taken may appeal to the district court, and such appeal shall be taken within sixty days and in the same manner and by the same proceedings as in cases of condemnation by a railroad company for right of way, but the school board shall not be liable for costs of appeal unless the court grant greater damages than the committee of appraisement gave. Provided, however, in the exercise of the right of eminent domain by school districts in cities, the owner of the land thus taken shall have the right to appeal from the assessment of damages to the district court of the county in which such property is situate within thirty days after the assessment provided for in this article and in case of such appeal the decision and finding of the district court shall be transmitted by the clerk thereof duly certified to the secretary of the board of education of such school district to be filed and recorded in his office; but such appeal shall not delay the appropriation of the property sought to be taken and in no case shall the school district be liable for the cost on such appeal, unless the owner of such real estate shall be adjudged entitled upon the appeal to a greater amount of damage than was awarded by the freeholders. The remedy by appeal herein allowed, shall be deemed and held to be exclusive. Upon appeal being taken by any person from any award or assessment of damages, the school district shall have the right, by giving five days' notice to the person or persons appealing, to have such appeal placed upon the trial docket or calendar of the court to which such appeal may be taken, at the head of the list of cases for trial, and such appeal shall have priority and precedence in the order of trial thereof over civil actions, COMPILED BY KLOPP & BARTLETT CO., OMAHA. and the court shall so arrange the call of cases for trial as to give such appeal such priority and precedence. The proceedings on appeal to the district court and for review by the supreme court of the proceedings on appeal shall be similar to the proceedings in like cases under the laws of the state which shall apply thereto so far as applicable. 6913 Sec. 214. Site on state land.-When it is desired to locate a schoolhouse site on school land belonging to the state, the state land commissioner is hereby authorized to sell to the district not less than one nor more than four acres, and give a deed to the district in fee simple in the name of the state as in other cases. 6914 Sec. 215. Books-purchase-contract.-District school boards and boards of trustees of high school districts, and boards of education in cities of the first and second class, and in cities of the metropolitan class, are hereby empowered and it is made their duty to purchase all textbooks necessary for the schools of such district. and they are further authorized to enter into contract as hereinafter provided with the publishers of such books for a term of years, not to exceed five (5); Provided, the contract prices of such books shall not exceed the lowest price then granted to any dealer, state, county, township, school district, or other individual or corporation in the United States to be determined as hereinafter provided; and provided further, such contract shall guarantee to such districts any further reduction that may be granted elsewhere during the life of such contract. The text book law does not require the district boards to enter into contract for a term of years with the publishers. It is left entirely to the boards' discretion, but no such contract can be legally made for a term of years under the provisions of this act until the proper bond is filed by the publishers. Article 17 of the School Laws is mandatory, and it is not within the authority of the annual district meeting to vote not to furnish text-books; and under this law any patron of the district, by the proper legal proceedings, could compel the district board to furnish his children, pupils in the school, the necessary text books, notwithstanding any action or failure to act on the part of the meeting district. Some patron of the district should apply to the district court on behalf of the district for a writ of mandamus to compel the board to furnish to the children of the district the necessary text-books. See the case of Ambrose Affholder et al. vs. State of Nebraska, ex rel. Peter McMullen, 51 Neb., 91. In this case, in the district court of Burt county, Peter McMullen made application for a peremptory writ of mandamus to compel Ambrose Affholder and others constituting the school board of district No. 58 of said county to purchase and furnish to the children of school age of said district the necessary text-books in accordance with the free text-book law. An alternative writ was issued, and for a return thereto the school board interposed the defense that said act was unconstitutional. The writ was issued as prayed, and the school board appealed the case to the supreme court. The supreme court sustained the district court. A writ of mandamus will not issue where it is not within the power of the respondent lawfully to comply, or where it would otherwise be unavailing. 46 Neb., 857. COMPILED BY KLOPP & BARTLETT CO., OMAHA. 6915 Sec. 216. Publisher-bond-statement.-Before any publisher of school books shall be permitted to enter into contract with any school district under the provisions of this act, he shall file with the state superintendent of public instruction, to be approved by him, a good and sufficient bond in the sum of two thousand to twenty thousand dollars for the faithful performance of the conditions of such contracts, and the observance of the requirements of this act; and such publisher shall also file with the state superintendent of public instruction a sworn statement of the lowest prices for which his series of text-books are sold anywhere in the United States; and a failure to file such bond and sworn statement of prices shall be a good and valid defense on the part of the district against payment for any books that may be sold by such publisher prior to the date of filing such bond and sworn statement of prices; and all such contracts to which such publisher is a party made subsequent to the passage of this act and prior to filing such bond and sworn statement of prices shall be null and void. 6916 Sec. 217. Payment for books. For the purpose of paying for school books, the school district officers may draw an order on the county or township treasurer for the amount of school books ordered. By decision of the attorney general the provisions of this section authorizing the district board to "draw an order on the county or township treasurer," in payment of bills for books being inconsistent with another statute is inoperative. Such order must be drawn on the district treasurer. See 19 Neb., 564. 6917 Sec. 218. Same. The county or township treasurer shall pay orders, drawn by school district officers, for the purchase of school books, out of any funds in his hands belonging to the district, except the money received from that derived from teachers' funds. Text-books may be paid for out of any funds on hand belonging to the general fund. to the incidental fund, or to a fund especially provided for this purpose. 6918 Sec. 219. Combinations and trusts.-Any contract entered into under the provisions of this article with any publisher who shall hereafter become a party to any combination or trust for the purpose of raising the price of school text-books shall, at the wish of the school board of the district using such books, become null and void. 6919 Sec. 220. Price lists.-The state superintendent of public instruction shall, within thirty (30) days after the filing of the herein before mentioned sworn statement of prices of text-books, have the same printed and forward a sufficient number of certified copies of the same to each of the county superintendents of the state to furnish all the school districts of such county with one copy of each; and the county superintendent shall, immediately after receiving said certified copies of prices of books, send or deliver one of such certified copies to the director or secretary of each school district or board of education in such county, to be filed as a part of the records of such district; and he shall also file one of said certified copies of prices in his office as a part of the records of his office. 6920 Sec. 221. Form of contract.-It shall be the duty of the state superintendent of public instruction to prepare and have printed a form of contract between district boards and publishers of school books, and to furnish the same, through the county superintendent, to the several district boards of the state; and no other form of contract shall be used by such district boards and publishers in carrying out the provisions of this article. COMPILED BY KLOPP & BARTLETT CO., OMAHA. 6921 Sec. 222. Violation of contract.-Upon the filing of a written complaint with the state superintendent of public instruction by the officers of any district board, charging any publisher with violating the conditions of such contract as hereinbefore mentioned, the attorney general is hereby instructed, and it shall be his duty, to investigate the same, and if he finds probable cause for action he shall immediately begin proceedings in the name of the state to enforce the liability on the bond hereinbefore mentioned. 6922 Sec. 223. Ownership and use of books. All books purchased by district boards, as hereinbefore mentioned, shall be held as the property of the district, and loaned to pupils of the school while pursuing a course of study therein free of charge; but the district boards shall hold such pupils responsible for any damage to, loss of, or failure to return such books at the time and to the person that may be designated by the board of such district. The law provides that text-books shall be loaned to pupils while pursuing a course of study in the schools. It is the duty of the board of education to place books at the disposal of pupils who need to study in the evenings. If, however, in the judgment of the teacher and the board, pupils of certain classes cannot study profitably outside of school hours, it is proper to place reasonable restrictions upon the use of books at home by such pupils or classes. It is not within the authority of the school board to loan text books, which are the property of the district, to be used in schools held outside the district. 6923 Sec. 224. School supplies-local dealer. The provisions of this article shall include all school supplies; Provided, nothing in this article shall be construed to prohibit any pupil or parent from purchasing from the board such books as may be necessary, at cost to the district; Provided further, the board may designate some local dealer to handle books for the district, with such an increase, above contract price, to pay cost of transportation and handling, as may be agreed upon between the board and the dealer. In passing upon the constitutionality of the free text-book law, in discussing the word "supplies" the following language is used by the judge rendering the decision: "We do not think the term 'text-book' should be given a technical meaning, but that it is comprehensive enough and does include globes, maps, charts, pens, ink, paper, etc., and all other apparatus and appliances which are proper to be used in the school in instructing the youth, and we conclude, therefore, that the act under consideration is not broader than its title, and that the term 'school supplies' found in the tenth section of this act is not foreign to the term 'textbooks' found in the title of the act, but is germane to and comprehended and included within the term 'text-books.' PUBLIC LIBRARY COMMISSION. This act creates a public library commission, defines its duties, and establishes traveling libraries. The governor is to appoint one person for a term of five years who, with the state librarian, the superintendent of public instruction, the chancellor and the librarian of the University of Nebraska, shall constitute the commission. STATE BOARD OF CHARITIES AND CORRECTIONS. This act establishes a state board of charities and corrections and defines its duties and powers. The governor of the state, the commissioner of public lands and buildings, and the state superintendent of public instruction constitute the board, The board shall appoint four persons as advisory secretaries to co-operate with and assist them, not more than two of whom shall belong to the same political party. It is the duty of the board to inquire into the whole system of public charities and the methods of and practices in the correctional institutions in the state and counties, and to ascertain the condition thereof from time to time by inspection or otherwise, especially of prisons, jails, infirmaries, public hospitals, asylums, reformatories and industrial schools, etc., etc. |