Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1866-12-21

times as great.
Lehigh county, with tax of 2.I5
mills and teachers salary of $22. 80
has $40 months school, while Clea rfeld
county has 4.29 months, with salary of
$244S and tax Of 927 mills, or about
five times the rate Of taxation required in
Lehigh to obtain the same advantages.
Montgomery county pays her teachers
$25. 80 per month, and obtains I 81 months
school at tax of CO mills.
Jefferson county has Al months school
at $50 SO salary, with tax Of 90 mills
Here we find that Jefferson county, to enable
her to pay the same wages to teachers, and
to have the same length of school term
would be compelled to levy tax about
twentysix times as heavy as Montgomery.
The average rate OF taxation throughout
the State is 327 mills Yet leaving out
the disparity in length of school term, we
see the poor district Of Moore in Northamp-
ton county, enduring tax Of 20 mills, or
over six times the average of the State while
the rich district of Obey in Berks, pays but
three-fourths of mill or less than one fourth
the average Of the State.
These are but few, of the hundreds and
even thousands of instances of the gross
inequality and injustice borne by the people
under the present most unjust system of tax
alton. Surely no one will pretend that such
results as these were intended to be produ-
ced by the trainers of our school laws.
INEQUALITY OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Before making any comparison of the ap-
preparations we would reiterate the fact that
the various school districts are required to
keep open their schools for the full term of
four months, in order to obtain their portion
ofthe State appropriation. Itfollows there
fore that, where a tax has been laid sufficient
to keep open the school six or eight months,
the amount must be reduced to the proper
ton required for four months, in order to
show the actual inequality existing. Thus
Clearield county, raised by taxation $l9, $50.
Is and obtained T. % months school, at the
same rate the amount required to keep open
her schools four months and to secure her
share of the appropriation would have been
SIT, 790.35, this amount she was obliged to
raise to obtain an appropriation Of 81, 765. 10
or not quite one tenth of the amount of the
tax. The rate of taxation absolutely neces-
sary for this purpose was 5.Ol mills.
Delaware county raised by taxation $685.
4136S and had 9.I5 months school, at the
sssil4e ss,4iOunt required to keen omen
her schools four mounths ana obtain ner ap-
preparation would have been$I6, 792. Sc ena-
bling her to obtain an appropriation Of
$2,673.44, or nearly one-sixth of the amount
required to be raised by taxation, and only
requiring a rate of taxation Of 81 mills,
Here we see the rich and densely populated
county of Delaware is enabled to obtain
nearly twice as large an appropriation from
the State, in proportion to the amount re-
quired to be raised by taxation. as the poor
er and more sparselT settled county of
Clearfeld and this with less than one-eighth
the rate of taxation.
Fulton county raised by taxation 81 ,929.
55, and kept her schools open four months
and obtained an appropriation of$78S.5S or
less than one tenth of the amount required
to be raised by taxation This required
rate of taxation of T. "A mills
Montgomery county with tax of $62,
1873 46 had T. "a months school, at the same
rate, four months would have required $33,
SO enabling her to obtain an appropria-
ton of $6534. "a or nearly one fifth of the re-
quired tax, while her rate of taxation was
only 3 mills.
Here again we find the richer county of
Montgomery obtaining twice as large pro-
portionate appropriation as the poorer
county of Fulton Though Fulton to obtain
herpittance of an appropriation has endured
nearly sixteen times as high rate of taxa
ton.
Forest county raised by taxation $1,609
03 to secure four months and obtain an ap-
preparation of $8l.12 or about one twenti.
eth the amount of its tax. To obtain this
amount required rate of taxation of 7.75
mills.
Bucks county raised by taxation $62, 1885,
SO and had S2S months school. At the
same rate, four months would have required
$50, ,404. 9S while shereceived state appro-
priation of $5,S25 or almost one fifth of the
amount she raised by taxation To obtain
this amount only required tax rate of "a
mills Here we find the richer county OBJ
tanning four times as large a proportionate
appropriation as the poorer, though neeessa-
rily enduring less than one fourteenth as high
a rate of taxation. These are but a few in
stances out of many that may be fonGd by
to the report of 1864, but they are
sufficient to demonstrate the fact that the
present method of appropriating the public
fund, set aside for school purposes, is as
grossly unequal and unjust as the present
method of taxation, and that it IL like man
ner discriminates against the poorer and in
favor Of the richer counties
EVILS ARISING FROM UNEQUAL TAXATION. |
We have demonstrated in previous arti-
eles that gross inequality arises from the |
present method, both of taxation and
appropriation Our present object is to show
that this inequality and injustice constitute
but amallproportion of the evils arising from
his source. 1t is a fact well known to every
,erson who has given attention to the sub