Morning journal and courier., 1889-09-16
THE SCHOOL ELECTION.

An Exciting School Election for To-
 Day-The Free Text Book Question
 Pretty We'll Discussed-more Circu-
 lars.
 To-dsy's school election will be the most exciting held in this city in many years. The free text book question has excited more talk about town than any other school question
 has in a long time. School elections are
 usually tame enough, but a change is appar-
 ent at least for this campaign. Among the
 circulars sent out and generally distributed
 about the city yesterday was the following:
 REFORM IN SCHOOL MANAGEMENT.
 To the voters of the New Haven city school district:
 The citizens having at last determined to put a stop to the system whereby members
 of the board of education Cor some one i'm mediately interested in having the system continuedD have perpetuated themselves in office, have nominated in two public meet
 ings three men, who if elected can be relied upon by the taxpayers, as well as the patrons of the schools, to administer, the affairs of the district economically and we'll. For years the affairs of the district have been running in an old rut. The debt has been constantly on the increase. In 1888 it was, according to the report of the board of education, $146, ,000.00, while to-day it is
 bonds recently issued. Deducting the amount of money on hand from the bills payable, an increase of debt of about $66,- 900. co is shown for the past year. Another issue has entered into the present contest: that of furnishing text books free to all scholars in the public schools. Where ever tried the system has proved an unquali- fad 0nca {pfpod1oad fk haa
 been departed from. The principle is ad- vocated in the report of the superintendent of the district for 1888, in which he recom- mends that it be applied to the evening schools, saying that the plan If adopted would increase "the efficiency of the schools by one-half" while "after the first cost there would be but little expense" Some of the l reasons to be urged in favor of the system are:
 First-It would increase the efficiency of the schools, as stated by the superintendent, by having all the books ready on tho opening day of the term.
 Seoond-It would greatly lessen the cost by having the books bought in an open, eompet- tive market at price known to all. Third-Jt would place all children upon a common footing.
 Fourth--It would permit children of poor parents to remain for a longer period at school.
 Fifth-It is the logical outcome of our boasted free school system. Sixth-Sixteen hundred children are to-day being furnished with free books. It will not necessarily increase taxation. The average cost for the past five years in
 Boston in supplying free books, stationery
 and drawing materials was sixty-three cents | pupil per year. Taking the twelve thou
 sand (12,0 ,000) children in our schools this would involve an average expenditure of about seventy-fve hundred (7,50O dollars a year for the same period. To-day the dis trict expends about half this sum for the
 same purposes. An additional expenditure | of less than four thousand (4 4,00O dollars will
 supply free text books to all. Does any in- telligent citizen doubt that more than this sum can be saved by an economical, inde- pendent bosrdi
 The ticket called the "'Free Book Ticket''
 Is composed of men of independent and eco- nomical spirit; men, moreover, in whose hands the affairs of the district can be safely trusted. These men are not revolutionists. They contemplate no radical changes in our common school system. They stand for re- l form against present methods in school man. | agement. They will, if elected, represent no individual or class, but the whole people. The time has come for a change! Vote for Samuel R. Avis, Max Adler and James A. HoWarth