Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1885-06-13
SOME SCHOOL FUNDS.

EDITOR 1NTELLIGENCER:-A the time for
making the enumeration of school children
is at hand, it would seem from the reyela-
tions of statistics the duty of some one to
call attention to the fact that il pays to have
this we'll and carefully done BY competent
men.
If we all wait for our neighbors to speak
nothing will be said until it is again too late.
1t is somebody's duty, particularly as from
the best information at hand, Lafayette coun-
ty has not this year nor any year since 1880.
drawn her just quota of state school funds by
about 20 per cent.
It Is impossible to get the exact number of
school children except by enumeration, but
we can appro ximate the number basing the
approximation on the U. s. census.
Lafayette county with her large miring
population along the river, her large German
population in the eastern part, and her more
than average negro population, all OF whom
are prolific, would doubtless yield a larger
school population than my calculation war;
| rants, but want first, to get on the safe side
and then treat several counties on the same
basis and call attention to the differences.
LII 4OCVs Lh1dy cllC SOuutS udu population
Of 25,710. Supposing of these two-ffths are
of school age, we should have q school popu.
lstion of 1924. In the apportiOnment o.
| the state school fund the rate per capita was
74.32590 cents, but which for brevity l have
| figured at 744 cents per capita. The actua
loss Is of course heavier than this, but thi
will serve to impress the matter At the ratt
/ Inf sto Tnfn 70 nfu
entitled to 81, ,635 81, she received Sc, ,7S9 80
Let me deal with Pike county on the SAM
basis. Population 2G,715; two-tifths of thi
gives 10,6S6 children of school age; at "A
cents per capita should draw S7,934.35 re
ceived ST. ,449 %. On the basis of entire pop
ulation, Pike county should draw $685. .4S
more than Lafayette, she did draw 1858 $
more, leaving 1881. .465 against Lafayette, o
more than half enough to pay for the enum
eratlon Of the children by competent men.
Bates county-population % ,3s1, two fifth
TO- ,152 at TAT cents per capita should hav
drawnS7 ,637 &c, and did drawSS .04O Sc. Bate
cOunty's apportiOnment should have beel
less than that of Lafayette county by s9S OF
while IN reality it exceeds our apportiOnmer
by III ,25l 66. at this rate Lafayette county
short of her just dues by $1,349 81. or abou
16i per cent. of her state fund.
Greene county has q population of $500
two-fifths gives II $50 at 744 per capita woul
allow her $S,542 60. She received $9, ,490 81
On the same basis she was entitled to S906
more than Lafayette, but received S2.60l 3
more, making another bad showing of 81
694 81 against the management Of the enun
GRAFTON lists in Lafayette county.
1t is evident from the above that two ftf
Is too low an estimate for the proportion {
school to entire population, but to increase
! is just to make the showing worse for Lafa,
cite county in proportion.
will make local application to our ow
district and leave other districts to look Ol
for themselves. Lexington is capable of loo
| ing out for herself, and for the county rs
! whole, but can hardly be expected to adju
[ municipal or individual affairs outside of b,
, corporate limits.
In 1880 Lexington had 1896 inhabitants a
cording to the U. S. census. Two-ff
: these gives 1888 school children in the ci
proper. Based ON the school roll we shou
8 add to this per cent for pupils in the scho
4 district but not in the city limits makil
1,647. We should to-day have at least 6
children Of school age provided the popul
, tion Of the city has not increased in the lea
1 since 1880. From the secretarv's books fiji
I in 1884 the list showed 1897, or 80 less th
L we should have had four years ago, yet '
know the town is improving and new peop
,, are coming in among US. What would an
crease of SO names give US! On the state fu
. it would give US 80 times 14.3.590 cents or
. little more than s37 l2 ON the county a
IL township fund 80 times 60.l21 cents, ,Or a lit
= more than $50 06. The two together make
e comparatively small sum but it is the amou
we have paid annually for some ones fall
), to perform q duty or else the towrf is decre
ing in population which we hardly believe
e This is not said with view to criminati
y any body, nor yet as derogatory to /
county.
d l have simply taken figures that any III
in or out of our county has access to and e
amined them. 1t shows the management
the school funds of the county as compar
e with other counties to be bad. That there
"a carelessness and neglect, and the attention
= the people should be called to 1t that they n
IL demand and secure the remedy.
They pay their school tax and should h,
the benefit of every dollar of it. and shol
8 and will hold that man guilty whose negl
lc or carelessness or lack of ability depri
p them of from ten to twenty per cent OF
l. money to which they, as Taxpayers and
irons Of the public schools are entitled.
to Teachers, get after your people, and h
I'd them stir up their boards to proper con
~ Grafton Of this matter and let US see tina
n the next apportionment Lafayette coun
funds do not 90 to keep up Bates, P
. Green or any other county's schools.
lie T. Z. ACHEl