Delaware journal., 1827-12-25
For Tie Dciucuys Joa,3lul.
10 any MEMBER Of the DMLAwARs LEGISLATURE
VINO ieeisa proper interest in COMMON SCHOOLS.
LETTER IL.
Dear Sir,
LETTER II.

In my FORMER commnnicaIon, IN opinion was ey-
pressed, that out oi l4OO0 white children IN tins
state, not more than 5000 are enjoying the full ben
mt oi neutrality-suspicious. According to my cal
cuation, the instruction OF at least 5000 white cl
dren, and 5000 colorcd children Is at present almost
entirely neglected and is likely TO remain in the
same neglected state, unless our Legislature a,opt
ing the wise policy OF SISTER states, shall Interfere
and aid those yho are disposed to educate their
| offspring. For the fact is, without such aid, moth
! Ing like general nni0R IN the support of common
schools will ever be attained. In every neighboI-
hood, there are some families who long 10 see a
school esabls he'd but thro' the paueiiy of thei!
number, and the Indifference of their nei hbors no
School House is erected, no district organized, and
no Teacher employed
Now what this State do to promote IA general
UNION OF her citizens IN the maintenance of common
schools The answer is PLAN; let her adopt The
System q other states and appropriate the she
has accumulated for this very purpose. shall be
told at once, by numbers OF = wise and honorable
men," that the fund is yet too small 10 operate upon
the whole community, and that must wait some
. or 20 years, until the State can act upon large
and liberal scale. Now, dear Sir, | cannot but
think, that these contempuous notions of our pre-
sent Fund arise from iorgetiuiness OF our very
Hm,ted tcrriory and from nattention TO the pollen
Of other States. Without affecting superior wisdom
on tins or any other subject. undertake Ia prope
that, il there be other difficulty but the want OF
money in the way, that have fund sufficient, II
properiy applied, ertend the benefits Of education ID
every tamy an the State; and ali ask is, the trouble
TO accompany Inc in few calculations so pertecty
plain that any man can ma Ike them for himself.
| DelaWarlans wlll not require me to prove that
they can do as much tor themselves, with the same
means, and make Sc hcol Fund go as far in the ex
tension of IFS benefits, as the inhabitants ofany other
State.--N ew-I ork itself not excepted. That State
Is doing wonders in this business, and what are
her mighty means less Man one half of those
sphich 7oe possess Many, know, will be incredu-
ous, and be slow TO admit that all we need is moi
money but little public spirit in our Legislator,
and leading men. In February 1896, according te
the Report oIthe Comptroller, New-Y ork possesset
ii fund Of Sl3l9 1856 ,46, which to IA population (il
1890 OF l6l6 ,0O0 souls, is about 80 cents for eaci
lnhabitant. The fund of Delaware, by the Audi
tors Report Of 1897, is Sl23, 768, ,28, which to
population of 10000 IS l.7O cents or double
the amount, to every nhabitant. If you consider
only the 7ehte population (and there seems as yet
no disposition in the Legislature 10 look at any 9th
or coor,) then the fund is 2.23 cents nearly tre
bic the an@un for every citizen. And yet the iunl
is too small New ork can do every thing, and we
can do nothing!
70 show that there is no deception in this state
ment, calculate another way. The income OF th,
Delaware School Fund for the present year. til,
writer has high authority for supposng, will no
; fall far short Of 500 dolls. We will assume it a
y Z 900, and calculate accordingly. The income O
the Newly orl fund is 10000 dolls. with whic
y she secures the education OF 900 children
: {v. Gov. Clinton's Message, Feb'y. 1879 Dela
) ware, AZ the same rate, with 1000 dollars. is abl
! to educate than 81 ,OU0 children---and vet
Is too poor to educate IA 900! New ork, with on
fund would see to the instruction OF $1,000 childrer
> and 7ye Can do nothing must let the fund g az
o cumulatc %
e Make another calculation New-York divide
> this 100000 among 5000 Districts Gee Gov Chl
ton Message, above,) which is 10 dolls. TO
District. The supposed income of the Delawar
fund would give the same sum to 700 School Di
trcts (which would be average Of 90 distric
,e (ant iracton) to each of the "a Hundreds in tn
" State This would be twice many nece
IA sary Chrisana Hundred might need 90 scho
g Districts but what would Brandy Nev-Ca
e tie, Pencadcr, or Dover Hundred do with so man
schools Yet our fund, at the NewYork rat
y would support an average Of 90 to every Hundred
q n the present state of things, $50 School Dstrc
a. would be enough for the whole State, and TO eac
'e of these, the Fund of 1000 dollars would appr
pirate S29 90, nearly treble the sum given in Ne,
u ork. And yet the fund is not large enough tt!
" sum is too small to act upon a large scale! Ho
. 4: LARGE scale these honorable gentlemen conter
. plate, know not but this know, we can act sn
IN scale t7cice large the State Of NeoYork, al
- this, think, would satisfy the ambition of most
~ ~ our citizens, however it might mortfy the pride
nr few who would like to act upon grander seal
- After all, am afraid the fund will be left to :" a
. cumnlate''
I'll But perhaps some will say. &c things are so ver
ne different in NewYork that she is not proper sta
/. dard of comparison Take then the State
- | muCh : Accord
r. to the Report of the Secretary of State in 1895
ID the income of their School Fund was S4,932 ,6t
with which she supported 24l9 School Distrlct
10. Lnearly ten times our reluisite number,l and 81