Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1886-03-11
THE EDUCATIONAL BILL.


the case of our own Senators, Hampton ia
voring the bill and Butler opposingi it. The
following is a summary of the bill as 1T
passed the Senate:
For eight years after the passage of this
bill there shall be annually appropriated
from the treasury the following sums in aid
of common school education in the States
and Territories, and the District OF Column
bia and Alaska: First year 81 100000, sec
ond year $lO,OOO,0 600 third, year 5000, 600,
fourth year Sl3,0OO0OO, fifth year $ll ,0OO,-
600, sixth year s9,OOO,OO0, seventh year
S., ,0OO, 900, eighth year S. 900, making
S77 900, 900, besides which there is a special
AUTHORIZATION of S2,000,O00 to aid in the
erection of school houses in sparsely set
tied districts, making the total fund 9,OoO,-
600.
The money is given to the several States
and territories lin that proportion which
the whole number Of persons in each who,
being of the age of 10 years and over, cam
not write, bears to the whole number OF
such persons in the United States" accord
ing to the census of 1880, until the census
figures of 1890 shall be obtained, and then
according to the latter figure. In States
having separate Schools for white and COL
ored children the money shall be paid out
in support of such white and colored schools
respectively in proportion that white and
.colored children between 10 and q years
old in such State bear to each other by the
census. No State is to receive the benetit
of the act until its Governor shall file with
the Secretary of the Interior a statement
giving full statistics of the school system,
attendance of white and colOred children,
amount of money expended, &C., the num-
ber of schools in operation, number and
compensation of teachers, &c. No State or
Territory shall receive in any year from this
fund more money than it has paid out the
previous year from its own revenues for
common schools.
If any State or Territory declines to take
it's share of the national fund, such share is
the benefit of the fund. Ifany State or Ter
ritory misapplies the fund or fails to COM
ply with the conditions, it loses all sub
sequent apportionments. Samples of all
schoolbooks in use in the common schools
of the States and Territories shall be filed
with the Secretary of the Interior.
Any State or Territory accepting the pro-
visions of the Act at the first session OF its
Legislature after the passage of the Act
shall receive it's pro-rata share Of all pre-
vious annual appropriations. Congress re-
serves the right to alter or repeal the Act.
The bill now goes to the House of Rep
resentatives for concurrence. 1t will prob
ably pass the House, though in that body it
has number of opponents and its imme-
diate passage is not looked upon as for
gone conclusion. The Washington cores
pondent of the Ne,Os aod Courier gives the
following as the positions of the South Car
oina Representatives on the question:
Representative Aiken, chairman of the
education committee, was opposed to the
bill last year, and although he has been too
unwell to appear in Congress this session,
am informed by some of his friends that
his opinion is unchanged on this subject.
Representative Dibble said: "In the
South, only about one man in four is able
to pay taxes for educational purposes, so
that one taxpayer really pays for the educa-
ton of his own children and the children
of three others. This is rough estimate,
but think it is sufficiently accurate for IL
lustration. Hence the burden issevere, and
since the general Government has brought
about this state of affairs by Federal legis-
latiOn, in amendments to the Constitution
and by Reconstruction Acts, it IS simple
Justice for the United States to furnish some
help to the South in this particular. This
to aid common schools on the basis of illit-
eracy, the money to be expended by the
States in their respective school systems,
thus doubling our educational advantages,
without increasing our taxes, or introduce
ing Federal interference with our school
systems. lam, therefore, in favor OF reason
able aid by the General Government to the
South by an educational bill of this nature"
Representative Henphill says that, al
though he has not yet investigated the sub
ject carefully enough to express decided
convictions, he is inclined to favor the
Blair bill, providing it can be passed in
such shape as not to infringe upon the rights
of the State to control its own educational
system, and provided also that the South
ern States, whom it is supposed to benefit
principally, do not have to pay larger pro-
portion of the sum appropriated than they
receive from the appOrtiOnment under the
bill.
Representative Dargan says he believes
the bill to be unconstitutional. If it should
becomea law the inevitable tendency would
be to give the Federal Government control
of the common school system of the State,
which would be misfortune to all parts of
the country, but an unspeakable disaster to
the South. l doubt the wisdom of any
scheme which tends to make people rely
either in whole or in part on the help of the
Government, instead of teaching them the
most important of all lessons, that their
welfare depends on their own efforts and
self-denial. The demoralizing effect of Fed
eral aid is greater than that of State aid,
because the persons who receive the money
do not pay the tax; or, at any rate, only a
small portion of it, and that is paid indi-
rectly and unconsciously, and is as demor-
alizing as a pure gift would be. Expert
ence in Connecticut is against Federal aid
as an nstrumentality for the promotion of
education. 1t hindered the cause instead
Of advancing it.
Representative Tillman says he is against
the bill because he believes it unconstitu-
tional, and because he does not believe the
Republicans ever intended that the money
appropriated by the bill shall go South.
Mr.. Blair may have introduced the bill in
good faith originally but his party friends
have taken control of it, and they will use
it for their own purposes to any extent they
care to go and then load it down with OBJ
jectionable features so that the Southern
men cannot vote for it. He characterizes
the measure as Trojan horse and advises
the Democratic party to keep away from it.
Representative Perry says he has not yet
given the question enough consideration to
warrant him in expressing an opinion on
the subject, and is therefore open to cOnvic-
ton. From a casual reading of the discus
sion going on in the Senate he is inclined to
favor the bill for the reason that it will dis
tribute a large amount Of money in the
South and greatly benefit the school system
in that section. If the proper precautions
are taken to govern the expenditure of this
money the Southern people will gladly well
come the assistance from the Government.
He says there are also several serious ques-
tions which arise in opposition to the bill,
and for that reason he will look carefully