The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-09-19
A WHITE ELEPHANT
EDITOR TROUP'S OPINION OF MiN-
 UAL TRAINING SCHOOL.

proprlhuohs Noteu TOT Scnools anu ocii'"A
 Purposes.
 About 200 men and twelve or fifteen women were present last evening at the adjourned annual meeting of the New
 Haven city school district in Warner hall A few minutes after o'clock the moderator, Allen Maxcy Hitler, and the clerk Benjamin R, English, advanced
 to the platform and few moments
 later the meeting was called to order
 by the former After the minutes of the previous meeting had been read and approved, the call for last nights meet
 ing was read and the business of the
 evening proceeded.
 The first business taken up was that
 of laying a tax on the grand list of
 1895. A resolution was offered to the
 effect that tax of four and one-half
 mills on the dollar on the poll and rata
 ble estates was offered and after an
 explanation of the state of the finances
 of the district by Attorney James T.
 Moran of the board of education, the
 resolution was unanimously adopted,
 MT. Moran stated that in his opinion
 the tax next year would be larger than
 at present, owing to the fact that new
 schools had to be opened and conse- quently the expenses of the district ma terially increased. The tax rate adopt ed last evening was the same as that of last year.
 After this had been adopted, it was voted to fix the bonds of the collector and treasurer at $40,000 each and to re- quest from the town of New Haven
 an appropriation of $13000 for the pur-
 chase of free books and supplies for the town. Both these votes were passed without any opposition.
 A resolution introduced giving the members of the board of education
 authority to borrow from time to time
 such sums on the credit of the district as may be needed for current expenses,
 was opposed by Attorney Charles H,
 Fowler, who argued that there should
 be a limit fixed to the amount of the money to be borrowed. He explained that he did not question the honesty of the members of the board, but he
 did not think it good policy to give a
 man your pocketbook and the money in | it without placing some limitation on the amount to be expended.
 | In reply MT. Moran stated that it would be impossible for the members of the board to get away with the funds, as all money borrowed Is borrow ed in the name of the treasurer, But" l he added facetiously, T don't know l how that will be this year, though, as
 the treasurer has recently been elected member of the board for the next three years" Qaughter). The original resolution was then adopted unanimous | ly.
 | The recommendation of the board of education that a lot be purchased in 1 the vicinity of the old town farm for school purposes and that an appropria- 1 tion of $5,000 be made for this purpose
 was called up. Councilman Chilling worth offered an amendment increasing
 the amount of the appropriation, but i the amendment was voted down and the original recommendation oyer whelmingly adopted. Councilman Chil- l lingworth's argument was in favor of appropriating large sum- so that a 1 larger lot could be purchased and not
 necessitate so much climbing of stairs I in schoolhouses.
 The meeting also unanimously and without any discussion voted to adopt l the recommendation of the board of education that sum not exceeding
 S1, 800 be appropriated for the remodeling
 of one of the old schoolhouses. When the resolution appropriating
 $5, 900 extra for the equipment of the
 Boardman Manual Training school came up, Alexander Troup, editor of the Union asked what was the relative
 cost per pupil of the high school and
 Manual Training school. In reply MT. | Moran stated that the cost of running | the high school last year was $35,000 | for 700 pupils or $50 per capita, while at l the Boardman Manual Training school the expense was $17,000 for an average attendance of 167 pupils or about $103 1 per capita. He also said, however, that 1 the cost in the latter school would not
 have been any higher for 200 pupils. | After this explanation MT. Troup ar 1 gued that the Training school was ] simply a white elephant on the hands of the district and that the expense of
 running it had but just commenced, He said that he did not oppose the appropriation, but simply desired to 1 call the attention of the district to the facts as they existed. Why" said he, its an old saying that they who dance must pay the fiddler and I am afraid we will find that we will have to pay the fiddler a pretty heavy bill" i Septimus c. Fleetwood and F. P. Ar vine argued in favor of the Manual school, claiming that it was mani l festly unfair and unjust to compare tho work of a school which had been in operation but a year with but one class l in it with that of a school like the high 1 school. which had been in operation for years with four classes. Attorney c. H. Fowler also argued in like vein. The recommendation of the board of educa- ton that the sum of $5,O00 be appropriat- ed for this purpose was then adopted but two negative votes being recorded against it.
 l William E. Morgan, a member of the | board of education, was authorized to coll q uOrtiOn of the Fair straat School