The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1895-10-11
AS To THE COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL

county will be called upon at the
coming election to vote for or against
a proposition to establish county
high school at Moran. The law un-
der which this election is called pro-
vides that in case the proposition car
ries it shall be the duty of the county
commissioners to Immediately ap-
point six persons, not more than two
of whom shall be residents of the
same township, who with the cOun-
ty superintendent, shall constitute a
board of trustees for said school, and
whose compensation shall be $500 a
day for the time actually employed.
The trustees are to proceed to erect
and equip the necessary building, the
cost of which is wholly within their
discretion except that the tax levy for
building purposes and for the main
| tenance of the school shall in no case
exceed six mills on the dollar in any
one year. The site for the building
shall be furnished free by the town
where the school is located. After
the school gets to running the tax
levy'fo its maintenance is limited to
three mills Oh the dollar. Three
courses of study are to be main aimed
a general course for those VnD cduIp,
continue school life after leaving said
high school, normal course for those
who are preparing to teach, and a
col legiate course which shall fit stud
ents for entrance to the freshman
class ofthe University. Tuition is to
be free to all residents of the county,
The special arguments in favor of
the prOpOsltiOn-aside from the argu-
ments " hiclr may be advanced for all
schOols-aIe that it supplies link
that is now missing in our free school
system connecting the districts schools
with the Normal College and the
State University, and that it offers
an opportunity for three years of adj
ditional study 10 young men who
would otherwise be deprived of it,.
Its dvOcates say that it is no answer
to this argument to urge that there
are already two high schools in the
county available for the use of those
| who want to continue their school
work. They say that the tuition
charged and the cost of living, in
town acts as practical bar to all
students outside of the district. They
say the experience of the three high
| schools already established in Kan
sas is that nearly all the pupils come
from the country districts which,
before the establishment of the county
school, had furnished only a spTink-
ling of students to the city schools.
The district schools of the county are
turning out from fifty to eighty grad
yates every year, and it is urged thai
nearly all of these would attend the
county high school, whereas but very
few now go TO lola or Humboldt.
The principal argument against the
choOl is that, on account of being
located so near to one side of the coun-
ty it will he chiefly local in its bene-
fits. 1t will be a fine thing, no doubt
for Marmaton and Usage and Els
more and for part of Elm. But how
about Carlyle and Geneva and lola
and Humboldt and Logan? The peO-
pie of lola and Humboldt particularly
cannot be severity criticised for look
ing upon the proposition with little
favor. For great many years they
have taxed themselves heavily to
maintain high schools of their own.
Even if school should be establish
ed at Moran the schools at lola and
Humboldt must still be maintained,
and probably not pupil from either
of these towns would ever attend the
county school. There would be add
ed taxation without any added bene-
fit. 1t is suggested here in lola that
this town would be very glad to pro-
vide quarters for county high school
and furnish heat and janitOr service
without any cost whatever 10 the
county if the county school could be
located here. We could very well
afford TO do this, because it would re-
lieve us from the cost of maintaining
a city high school. And the county
woulI he several thousand dollars
ahead. Another suggestion is that,
if the tuition is what stands in the |
way, the country districts could bet
ter afford to pay the.tuitiOn of any of
their pupils who wish to attend a
high school, either at lola or Hum
boldt, than to pay tax to maintain
an independent school.
These are some of the arguments
that are advanced for and against the |
proposition. We have endeavored to
state both sides fully and fairly.
So far as we are concerned person
ally, we shall vote for the PROPOSE
ton. We should greatly prefer, of
course, to vote for a proposition to
locate the school at lola; and it seems
to us that a school might be estab
lished and maintained here in the
manner above suggested, at less cost
to the tax payers and with greater
benefit to a greater number of people.
But the proposition is not, "Shall the
high school be located at lola or Mo-
ron ~ Ii il l.Shnn thara he q hinh |