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A Blow Aimed at the Common
Schools of Georgia.
Ratification of Two Proposed Constitutional Amend
ments a Scheme to Withdraw State’s Aid
to Public Hducation.
If the people of Georgia do not voto
against two of the proposed amend
ments to the Constitution, which are
to be voted on at the election on Oc
tober sth, it will he because they do
not understand the far-reaching pur
poses and effects of these proposed
amendments.
In 1877, the people of Georgia
cdopted the present Constitution ot
the State, in recent years, hardly a
Legislature has adjourned without
submitting for ratification by the peo
ple one or more amendments to this
Constitution. The thinking man hesi
tates before changing this organic taw
in any particular. A large majority
of the voters of l lie State, engaged as
they are in various pursuits, are neces
sarily uninformed as to the purposes
and effects of these amendments.
As a County School Commissioner,
deeply interested in the education of
our children, I appeal to the people
to vote against the amendments pro
posing to limit the State tax rate to 5
mills, and the amendment providing
for local taxation for school purposes.
In my judgment these amendments *n
volve the most radical and dangerous
legislation proposed in the history of
the State. More than one hundred of
the smaller and poorer counties of
Georgia receive more money from the
school fund of the State than they pay
into the Treasury for all purposes.
This benefits ttie poor children in the
rural districts, and works no injustice
to pie wealthy commercial centers, De
cause the tax imposed to raise the
Stale school fund is levied ad valorem.
The contention that the rien counties
lire bearing the school burdens of
poorer counties is without foundation.
The facts are that the wealth of the
State is being taxed to educate tne
children of the Slate, and county lines
have, and should have, noticing to do
with the question. Georgia is irrevo
cably committed to the principle of
State education.
It is not unnatural that the larger
counties of the State should be dissat
isfied with this condition of affairs.
Originating as far hack as 1890, there
has boon an organized a >d constantly
growing effort to engraft upon the sys
tem of public education i,c Georgia the
principle and practice of local taxa
tion.
The proposed amendment which the
people will be called to vote upon
is the entering wedge of that effort.
If this amendment should be adopted,
undoubtedly large numbers of school
districts would he organized in Geor
gia, and large sums raised by local
taxation. When this condition arises,
he enemies to the present public school
system would leave in their hands the
one weapon with whicn to successfully
tight State appropriations to public [
schools. They would point to the fact j
that the people hv their votes had j
committed themselves to the principle
of local taxation, and thereby tacitly
approved the withdrawal of the State’s
aid. wThcy would point to the fact
•that whereas large sums are now nec
essary to he appropriated by the State
for the maintenance of public educa
tion. such amounts would then be un
necessary and extravagant, because
of the large sums raised by local tax
ation. As a necessary and certain re
sult the State’s appropriation to pub
lie schools would, within a few years,
he cut in half. With the State’s ap
propriation reduced, the counties that 1
hn\o hut little wealth, as compared I
with the number of their children. '
would have to levy a heavy local tax !
or do without schools, ’lhe resu’t
would he that the wealth would leave
the country and be carried to the con- 1
<<Ts where its share of school taxes 1
would not be so burdensome. The op?r- >
at ion of such a system would devas
tate the rural districts and centralize
(he wealth of the State. Besides, tt
would destroy the unity and efficiency i
of our present school system. A gala !
the sole benefit of the law providing I
for the uniformity of text books—that I
of grading the schools— would he lost
ns counties which vote a local tax are
not bound to use the books adopted by
the State.
Our friends who are advocating the
adoption of this amendment Insist
that the object of it Is merely to allow
the counties which desire It to levy
a local tax as an auxiliary to the State
appropriation, thereby giving more
money, longer terms and better teach
ers."Tins Is an innocent and attrac
tive-looking proposition, but woe to
the simple-minded voter who is taken
in by it. it means no suen thing. It
means to revolutionize the public edu
cational system of Georgia. It means
the ultimate abandonment of State
education and the substitution of eq
uation by local taxation.
The system of local taxation may be
all right for Ohio and Massachusetts,
all parts of which are thickly popu
lated and wealthy, but it would be
radically wrong and unjust in Georgia,
the greater portion of which is sparse
ly populated and poor. It would be
quite as just to say that every county
in the State had to fax itself to pay
pensions to its old Confederate sol
diers, as to say that each county in
the State should tax itself to support
its schools. Will the people of Geor
gia by the ratification of this amend
ment commit theipselves to this prin
ciple? 1 believe not.
The proposed amendment limiting
the rate of State taxation to 5 mills
Is a twin evil to the one discussed
above. The professed object is to
prevent extravagant appropriations. *t
is also argued that it will induce tor
eign capita] to come to Georgia. What
ever may be its purpose, the real ef
fect is to make it impossible, sooner
or later, for the Legislature to bri.'.g
our public school system to perfection
by appropriating a sufficient amount
of money for this purpose.
More than 10 per cent of the total
amount now raised by taxation m
j Georgia is appropriated to public
schools. The tax rate for the present
year is 4.50 mills. The total taxable
property in Georgia for the present
year is $530,000,000. Ir. 1892 it was
$444,000,000; in 1595, three years later,
ii was $110,000,000, showing a decrease
from 1892 to 1895 of $30,000,000, and
an increase from 1895 to 1901 of
$120,000,000.
Assuming that the present expendi
tures of tlie State of Georgia are fair
ly economical, everybody knows that
the tax rate must depend in amount
upon the total of taxable property <n
the tax digest. This total is constant
ly changing, as demonstrated by the
above figures. It is reasonable to sup
pose that we will, in future, as in the
past, go through years of commercial
depression, when there will lie a large
falling* off of the tax digest. When
such periods come, if this amendment
is ratified, the Legislature will have
no power to tax at a greater rate than
5 mills, or .20 of a mill more than the
present tax rati 1 . Therefore, they will
be confronted with .ho absolute ne
cessity of cutting down appropriations
correspondingly. Docs anybody ne
lieve that when* the time comes to cut
these appropriationsthosalaries of the
State officials, and the comparatively
small amounts now appropriated to
maintain public institutions, will ne
cut? If not, such cuts must come
through the public school appropria
tion, or from the amount appropriated
to pay pensions to Confederate sol
diers.
If this amendment is adop‘ed. witnin
less than five years the appropriation
to public schools will have to ho cut
in order to meet other necessary ie
mands made upon the State.
1 am a friend to the public school
system in Georgia. I do not want to
see the tax rate limited. 1 believe
that the question of tax rate can oo
safely left to the jud~ment of future
General Assemblies. 1 believe that to
limit it will undoubtedly impair the
efficiency and prevent the growth of
our public school system.
\ ote down the amendment, and
leave the GcneraJ Assembly in a posi
tion to appropriate as liberally to pub
lic education as the needs of the
schools and conditions of the people
will warrant.
Our friends who really desire to see
Our public sehool system perfected
should join hands with us h: refusing
to engraft the principle of local tax
ation on cur Constitution. Let them
Join us In vhting down the proposition
to tie the hands of the General As
sembly in the matter of appropria
tions to public schools, and then let
us all unite in an effort to build up
the school system by larger appropri
ations from the State.
(The foregoing article 1? an edito
rial from The Alpharetta Free Pre«s.
by George D. Rucker. Editor ar.d Coun
ty School Commissioner of Milton
County.l
Douglas Supplims
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Shoes.
AND GENERAL FURNIHH|
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Everything For Pantry And Dining Table.
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A beautiful Range for only $30.00.
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Head quarters for Ranges, Stoves,
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Yours to Serve,
J.ID. FORBES, Manager.
DOUGLAS, ------ GEORGIA.
XfoFN Douglas Lodge,
No-’ l ’
- 0 k. of p.
Meet every first and
third Wednesday nights.
mglas LODGE
NO. 386.
rSy' F. & A. M.
Meets every third Friday evening
6 o'clock. Visiting brethren cordially
nvited to meet with us.
W. C. LANKFORD, W. M.
W. C. BRYAN, Secretary.
v aH&s,, Douglas’Lodge
No. 203
I* O* O* F.
Meet every Monday night , :30 o’clock
First Monday night. Ist Degree
2nd Monday night, 2nd Degree
3rd Monday night, 3rd Degree
4th Monday night Ini. Degree
Visiting brethren cordially invited to
meet with uas.
LEVY O'STEEN, N G.
L L. KIRKLAND, Sic.
QUITMAN HOLTON,
Physician cV Surgeon
Broxton, Georgia,
Wanted
-5000 lbs Bees wax. ,
300 Cow bides,
All kinds of flit'.
Will pay highest cash prices.
Davis-Rudolph Co.
— 1
Mr. F. JM. Guest, of Pearson,!
was in town Wednesday. He will
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millpond next month. See notice.
Wanted.
Partv worth S3OOO or SSOOO to
take an interest and good position
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Investigation solicited.
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MORGAN & DAVIS,
BraiMiGS; - - Georgia.
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& bbvis,
Wholesale and Retail Liquor Dealers.
BRUNSWICK, - - GEORGIA.
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