The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1888-07-12
THE MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE.
i Statement of it's Cost and Yearly Expen-
ditures-Is it Il Success
TChickasaw, Miss, Messenger.

man residing in South Carolina and ad
dressed to an old friend who lives in
this city, with the request that we an
Swcr the interrogatories therein pro-
pounded:
Dear Colonel There is much be-
ing said at this time in this State in re-
gard to an AgriculturalCoileg The Mis-
sissippi Agricultural College is frequent
ly referred to. Please give mewhat infor-
nation you can with reference to the
Mississippi Agricultural College. How
much did the college buildings
cost: How much does the State an
nually appropriate to support the col
legeo Are all students admitted free Of
tuition? Is the College success? **
In the report OF the Trustees and
President of the College, made to the
Legislature for the years 1857, we find
an inventory Of the college property
appraised November 18th and 10th
1887. Said inventory contains the fol-
lowing items:
College buildings $l01, $50 90
land 47,7l2 50
Farm buildings lO,l95 90
, Making a total of S15S,S57 50
We presume the cost of the building
is about as estimated above, but the
valuation Of the lands is considerably
above its cost. Our opinion is, (and we
have some personal knowledge on the
subject,) the State invested about
$4,000 in lands and buildings, to say
uothing of the creamery, machinery,
stock and farming implements which
nave been purchased for the college
farm, and which cost the State many
thousands Of dollars.
The appropriations made by the State
has varied from S96,32S 75-amount
allowed 1SS2-to S22,5SS, the amount
appropriated for 1888, but it is claimed
by the President that the institution
cannot be run successfully on less than
So, 800 per annum and this is about the
average sum which has been drawn out
of the State Treasury annually since the
college has been in operation-eight
years.
Heretofore all Mississippi students in
attendance have been admitted free of
tuition, but it being discovered that a
few favored localities were the principal
beneficiaries of the system, the Legisla-
ture at its last session passed an ap-
portionment act defining the number
Of free students each county should
be entitled to and providing that
all students in excess Of the prescribed
! number from the countyshould pay
| tuition.
The attendance Of the College, when
the report above referred to was made,
numbered 247. OF this number twelve
counties furnished 1877; eleven IS;
eleven - mine 9; and twenty count
had no representation at all. The
twelve counties furnishing more than
half the students, are properly classed
among the wealthy counties, and the
young gentlemen rs rule the sons of
the wealthier citizens of those coun-
ties; many Of whom were tradesmen
and professional men, and in no sense
farmers. If the young men thus ed
ucated would become farmers, no OBJ
jections to their attendance at the COL
lege could be urged, but such is not the
case.
rs the College a success o''
Well, that depends entirely upon
what constitutes success. If the eX-
pcnditure of more than S400, 600 of hard
earned tax money, collected from the
masses of the people-about Sl75, 900 of
which has been paid as salaries to Off
GERS, faculty and employees, not one Of
whom ever proved himself success
full farmer-to graduate about fifty or
sixty young men, whose parents were,
in the most instances, able to send them
to Iale or Harvard, is a success, then
our "Tombstone Industry" is Won
derful success.
Ifin fifty scientific farmer graduates,
technically trained under the supervi-
sion of a President who buys corn to
run his magnificent prairie plantation,
almost every year, not a dozen were
ever guilty of degrading (?) themselves
by engaging in practical agriculture
after they left the college, then, as a
training school to learn boys chow not
to do it," the 4. & NJ. is remarkable
success.
If an investment made by the State,
of ST., 739, 80 as shown by the report for
the years 1861 and the receipts from
the sale of stock, beef, cattle, butter
and farm products amounted to only
$9,S74,35 for two years, while the eN-
penditures, including students labor
and salary of Professor of Agriculture,
reached the neat little sum of$23, 253 50,
could be considered a paying invest
ment then indeed is the system of sin
tensive farming" practiced ut our A. &
NJ G.. phenomenal success.
The truth is, the Mississippi Indus
trial schools are gigantic frauds aud
humbugs, drawing their support from
funds that ought to be appropriated in
aid Of the free public schools; compet-
ing with private educational institu-
tions Of high grade all over the State !;
burdensome to the taXpaying masses,
not one of a thousand of whom have
the means to incur the expense in
cident to attending them, and benefi-
cial mainly to the gentlemen who re-