Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1892-08-11

nor the Legislature can change
the constitution. All changes have
to be voted on by the people first,
and then the Legislature or a
convention ratifes.
But let me tell you here that
that in this Southland of ours
where we have two races, a greater
poll tax than 81 is not an unknown
thing. In North Carolina they
pay $1.5O; Georgia So; Alabama
So; in Tennessee it is fixed by the
County Court, and runs from 81
to So; and in Mississippi 50. In
Mississippi the proportions of
whites and blacks are about the
same as they are in South Carolina,
and all of these other States have a
large colored population, and I
doubt if they have any more
trouble to collect a. $2 poll tax
than we have to collect our 81.
I tell you the efficiency of the
schools cannot be increased with
out more money. We ran last year
three and ahalf months for $2.02
per pupil for the whole three and
a half months, or at cost of
fftyeight cents per month per
pupil, I do not believe the money
can be made to go further without
impairing the efficiency Of. the
schools.
have brought to bear in the
administration of my department
all that I have learned from ex-
perience, observation and reading.
Four years teacher in the COM
mon county schools, and elected
from county school to the Office
of School Commissioner of my
county by the popular vote of my
people, which Office l held for six
years, think I know something Of
the needs of the public schools,
and how to manage my depart
ment.
I will not permit myself to go
into the details of the manage
ment of my department since it
has not been specially attacked,
but I would not be doing justice to
it if I did not call your attention
to the changes secured in the prices
of school books.
All the publishers of books on
the price list, now in use in our
public schools, have had a reduc-
ton of 20 per cent. from the for
mer prices.
You get the advantage of this
reduction. NIesrs. CHM & Co.,
one of the largest andmost reliable
publishers of school books, lay it
down as a rule, and most of the
other responsible publishers, ]
am informed, concur IN the
correctness of rule, that each pupil
in school will average one dolla,
per annum for the text books
Taking this as a correct rule, there
were spent i'll South Carolina last
year for school books $209,64e
one dollar for each pupil in school
Supposing this to be true, it il
but a matter of calculation to see
that in the purchase of school
books last year there were saved to
the people of the State $41, ,011,80.
Remember that every time you
pay SOc. for a book now, under
the former prices you would have
been required to pay 81. To one
man the saving of twenty cents Oh
each child he sends to school each
year may not seem at first tc
amount to much, but when it ls
felt by the parents of 209,55e
children in the State, it amounts
to thousands of dollars.
lam. not inclined to think that
Messrs. Ginn & Co.'s rule holds
good in our State. I do not think
the children in the public schools
averaged one dollar each last yeal
for books. = we divide it by two
and say it amounted to fifty cents
for each pupil, still we have 8
saving from this source of $20,955.
80. It seems'to me that the saving
of $20,955.90. by one department
of the government, besides taking
full care of every other interest o.
the department., is a pretty fai
years work.
Yet you are told by exGoveno
Sheppard that what you need il
business men at the head of your
affairs. How is he to make thi
charge good? His mere
declarations cannot outweigh facts
You are thinking people, ant
you want facts; and when you ge
them you will come to your owl
conclusion.
THE PENITENTIARY.
pass now to another department
of the government, the State
Penitentiary. Let US look into tn