The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1885-01-24

with the Importance of public education. There
can be no hindrance to the continued success of
the schools under their administration, unless it
arise from the financial embarrassment which
they found existing when they came into Office.
This was caused in part by new buildings erected
in former years absolutely required and demand
ed by the patrons and the continuous growth of
the system without any proportionate increase in
the county levy. Since 1879, $4,000 has been
uniformly levied for the schools each year with the
exception of the present, when it was raised to
100000. For the same time the average yearly
increase in pupils enrolled has been 300, adding
about $1,000 annually to the ordinary expenses,
not including building, repairs or furniture, for
which provision has been made, although the
taxable basis has been advanced in round num-
bers from S57,000,O00 to $6l, 100000 and the
population of the county is rapidly growing.
For the past two years the entire expenses Of
the Spring term have been met by borrow wing the
necessary amount from the bank and paying the'
notes as they became due from the levy of the
next year. The County Commissioners fiscal
year ends on the thirtieth day of May and the
School Boards the thirtieth of September, one
month after the schools have commenced opera
tions for new year. This conflict of dates
makes it difficult to determine the real financial
condition of the schools at any given time, but
near as we can approximate the present indebted
ness is something over $4,000. The policy of
temporarily bridging over by borrowing may
answer for short time, but this debt. like the
school boys lump of snow, will continue to enlarge
the farther it is pushed and may at last become
unmanageable. The time for trial balance has
arrived, and unless the people signify willing
ness to make good this deficit in the next tax
levy, the schools may be sadly crippled for years
to come. If the deficiency is not made good by
taxation, it can be supplied in only one of two
other ways, by closing the schools or by reducing
teachers salaries, either of which would in our
opinion seriously interfere with the efficiency Of
the school system. Should it come to choice of
evils it would do the least injury to close the
schools for the Summer term. Fewer pupils are
then enrolled and the majority of those attending
school are the younger children, who can best
afford to lose the time from their books. All in
terested would suffer alike and this plan would
at least have the advantage of being honest By
awakening public criticism it would be the surest
safe guard against the recurrence of any similar
disaster. On the other hand, to reduce salaries
to get out of the difficulty would be worse than
reputation. The teachers are in no way respon
sible for the creation of this Indebtedness. 1t
was incurred at the urgent solicitation of the
taxpayer for building and equipping new houses
to accommodate his children, and every district
in the county bears witness, that he has received
full equivalent for the money thus expended.
The teachers contracted to do certain work at a
stipulated price, and with few exceptions, this
work has been done conscentiously and salts
factorily. There would be much injustice in
curtailing their salaries to make up this deficiency
as there would be to demand proportion of the
salaries of all other county officials for the same
purpose.
Nor is this the irst time the School Board has
been involved in pecuniary difficulties. In the
Spring term of 1875 similar condition of affairs
existed, and the Board from building was
carrying an indebtedness of goo. An order
was adopted notifying the teachers that unless
this amount was included in the levy to BIO made
on or before the first day of May, the schools
would be closed for the remainder of the Summer
term. The County Commissioners declining to
render any assistance beyond the usual levy, the
question was submitted to the people and public
interest was intense. Committees of representa-
tive men from the most wealthy and populous
school districts in the county appeared in person
before that Board, and besides petition was
presented with 1900 signatures of taxpayers,
asking for q sufficient levy not only to pay the
existing debt, but for the proper maintenance OF
the schools well. In spite of the fault finding
of few chronic grum5lers, through the press
and elsewhere, the will of the people was respec-
ted. The levy was raised from fourteen to eigh-
teen cents, the debt cancelled and the prosperity
of the schools secured. AS all the members OF
the present Board of County Commissioners are
known to be friendly to the cause of public educa-
ton, and one of them is proud to be numbered
among the petitioners of 1875, it is to be hoped
that when his colleagues fully understand the
exigency of the present case, they will not be
slow to come to the rescue of the schools and the
relief of the present School Board.
The following table gives the total cost of the
schools and the cost of each pupil based on the
average enrolment from the time the present
system went into operation down to 1884. Items
directly controlled by the Board at all times, such
as building repairs and furniture, are deducted
from the total cost to get the actual minimum
running expenses for any one year, and thi:
amount divided by the average number of pupil;
enrolled will give the cost per pupil: