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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 Bank Building— Douglas, Dry Goods, Clothii^BHHß Shoes. AND GENERAL FURNIHH| Family And Plantation Everything For Pantry And Dining Table. —Hi MMWMMinmrirnnrßin 1 " 1 1 nrrnßTrrnminmi f ■ i rwi i writ in mm ■— n\ Watt-Harley-Holmes Co., f RANGES And STOVES. A beautiful Range for only $30.00. ,If you wish to buy come and ex amine this range. A six eye range Head quarters for Ranges, Stoves, Tinware and Crockery. 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 have a big fishing spree at Moore’s millpond next month. See notice. Wanted. Partv worth S3OOO or SSOOO to take an interest and good position in best paying business in Georgia. Investigation solicited. Markey Trading Co. MORGAN & DAVIS, BraiMiGS; - - Georgia. We are better prepared than ever to fill orders with prompt ness and dispatch. Our stock is immense and our facilities up-to date. Send us your orders and we will please you. We make the jug and shipping trade our specialty. & bbvis, Wholesale and Retail Liquor Dealers. BRUNSWICK, - - GEORGIA. —- Jjr mil . t ( 'gp^B l YOU’LL .• KiM B^H^I V /rcu/^^^H V :o vm) rtV^H Chills. Ague , Dengue , ail the Malarial riesh Is tlelr and $ 1.00 at your Drug Store