San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1889-07-25
Educational Circular.
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION,
Austin, Texas, July 18th, 1889.


To County Judges. County superln tendeuts. AM
| Public School Trustees aud Teachers:
The average school term during the schol
astic year of 1889 has been the longes
yet attained in Texas, although the STATE
apportionment for the year was the loves
since 1928.
This signal improvement is due to the
growth of self-help 10 large areas of the
state, leading the people to vote local taxes
In school districts, and to supplement, by
close collection of the funds due from
'overs" and "unders" and by private sub.
scription, the state and county funds,
where the levy of local taxes has not been
possible, AZ in school communities But,
by an act of the Twenty-frst Legislature,
provision was made for forming taxing
districts" in community counties, SO that
now local taxation for the support of the
schools is practicable in any county in the
state.
You should advise and urge the levy of
local school taxes wherever it is practical
BILE, for the following reasons:
/. L0cal taxation is cheaper than aoriUate
subscription. AS rule, it costs nine
tenths of the patrons of the schools only
one-half as much to run the schools by local
taxation as by subscription, with this addi-
tional advantage, that provision is made in
this way for the children of those who are
not able to pay tuition in subscription
schools.
2, Local tapation Is Su,er than prigate
subscription. While teachers frequently
suffer embarrassing delays in the payment
of school vouchers, yet these vouchers are
always paid, while the payment of private
tuition is subject to much longer delays
and not unfrequently to final loss.
3. THE State School Fund is not noD,
nor tcM IL euer be, sufficient D,thOut local
aid to maintain, tia schools as long as they
should be maintained, The common state
ment, that the income from the Permanent
school Fund will at some future time be
sufficient to maintain the schools without
taxation, is au illusion. 1t will never do
more than keep pacs with the increase in
scholastic population. The State Fund
should never be regarded as the sole, or
even the principal, support of the schools.
For, while this state distributes larger
amount per capita than any other state ex-
cept California, the per capita derived from
local school taxes is less than one-eighth of
the average local tax in the United States.
Whatever weakness may exist in our school
system is due not to the fact that the State
School Fund is not large enough, but to the
fact that local effort is not strong enough.
Local td:ration strengthens local inter-
est IN the Sclt00Ls. The people of locality
who pay taxes directly for the support of
the schools of the locality feel keener
interest in the schools to whose support they
they thus contribute directly than in schools
which they feel are supported altogether by
some great. remote institution called the
state. Local taxation gets the children
into the schools better than any compulsory
education law.
D. The trustees of districts levying local
taxes have the legal right to extend the
scholastic age both below eight and above
sixteen years OF age.
G. 4 local school tdr is not 6urdensonie,
even when the maximum-20 cents on the
500. OBS levied. The state and district
school tax, when the maximum is voted, is
80. cents, while many of our cities and
towns vote so cents in addition TO the state
school tax. In the state of Arkansas, the
state school tax is 20 cents, and four-fifths
of the school districts of that state have
voted on themselves, in addition to the
state school tax, the maximum allowed
Nutlu ul ldN--1u Cthba Ou tuc SANO.bV Wi
uation. The average school tax in the
United States Is 10 cents on the 500. 90.
Texas is fortunate in having large perma-
nent school fund, the income of which
yields about 81 90 per capita; but it wall
be unfortunate for children who need
NOW. IL the possession Of this
prepared for them by the fathers
Of Texas. shall deter those who have sue
coeded these illusirious men from putting
forth the additional effort which is impera- /
lively needed TO make this advantage a real
blessing. This income more than counter /
balances the Disadvantages under which we /
labor in some parts Of the state Of large |
non pAying population, and renders it easier
10 establish and maintain a first-class sys- |
tenn % public schools in Texas than in any 4
other Western or Southern state.
:. The cities. towns. villages. and school /
districts % this state which levy local taxes
ncinde ncEriy all the really good pubiIe
.cho0is IN tae state These schools are not /
,aly the best schools IN the state uoE. bat
hey are the bet TeHss has ever hAd. and
hey compare fAvorzbly with the bet
'chools elsewhere.
L cooelusi0a. 4 gives ne p,sSsare 70 say
hkf lo.al tzNafi1u y gaming cr01nd 10
1kay pa--s q TIE state. tins giving u
.usstionstis sviis,es thai an importsnt al
ace - hssug r5sds 10 uablie e51c4fiOa-
NC-y respectfully.
Os-aK r. CORN
S-Eis S1Fs-loiso5sz;.