St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1894-07-07
s115. nc 81 s166, ,Oss 50 SAG, ,sss 2


Run the eye of an unbiased,
impartial critic through these
figures, and if you are not driven,
irresistibly, to the conclusion, that
we are busy prosecuting crime at
the expense of education-then
two and two don't make four.
Take our great banner parish, St.
Landry, and what stares us in the
face?. Is it not the fact that, of
the revenues for which we are tax
ed $23,750.00 60 for criminal expen-
ses, and the paltry sum Of 100000
for education ?
Nearly tCetue times as much ex-
pended in the effort to suppress
crime as to educate. Educate !!
Yes, we are educating; but it is
like the frog jumping out of the
we'll. Of course the public schools
had more than 100000, but that
amount was all the police jury
could appropriate. The sum total
of the criminal expenses for the
thirty seven parishes is the enor-
nous figure of $205,S66.54, as
against $ll5,716.54 for education. 1t
would seem that in proportion as
the criminal expenses increase in
the same ratio does the appro-
priation for education decrease.
Some say prohibition does not
prohibit, therefore it is impractical
bic. Do our laws against murder,
theft, arson and even the Sunday
law, totally suppress the commits
sion of the acts which they forbid
or prohibit? Therefore if prohibi-
tion is to be abandoned because it
does not totally suppress, had we
not better abolish all of the above
mentioned laws, and not place any
restriction upon man, as he is a
free agent any how? Give him a
carte blanche. That is where this
argument, carried out, would lead
us to. Shall we do that ? No,
don't do that; that would be too
rough on the poor lawyers. If you
tear down all these old spider sce5s
1aws that don't prohibit) the
lawyers won't catch any more flies.
Some say, if you will make it a
State issue, we are with you-but
just for the parish it will not do.
Take another look at the statistics
furnished above. And how do you
think it is working in Rapides
parish ? There is a practicable de-
monstration of the fact, that not
withstanding the town of Alexan-
dria is 1ret and the parish of Ra-
pides is dyy-yet the criminal ex-
pense Of the parish is only 100000,
and the school fund is $l3,000.00.
Nearly half as much again for ed
ucation as for Criminal expenses.
We, of St. Landry, reverse the
thing, and not only that, but the
big end is bigger and the little end
is "Jittler".
The population of st. Landry is
about 10000, and we are taxed at
the rate Of 59.se per capital for
criminal expenses and only 5c for
education. But of the 10000 we
presume it would be fair estimate
to say that three fourths are wom-
en- and children. That would leave
10000 voters, who are taxed $2.374
to raise the criminal expenses, and
20e for education. Any candid
man is bound to admit, that it fol-
lows, as logical conclusion from
the existing state of affairs that,
we must either diminish the
amount of crime, and thereby de-
crease the criminal expense-and
as whiskey is at the bottom of
three-fourths of the crime, prohibit
tion will decrease 1t (the criminal
expense) to that extent-or else
our taxes will have to be increased
so as to allow our friends, the
Whisl1ey men, to indulge in their
traffic. Who is willing for that to
be done ? And yet, we are