The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1897-01-15
Money for Free Books.

The section in the report of Comptrolle-
Robert p. Graham dealing with the sub
ject of free school books is attracting much
attention among those who followed the
debates in the last General Assembly over
the bills which finally became the law. 1t
is pointed out that not only have results
been reached which were predicted last
fall, but, moreover that Mr.. Graham has
touched upon nearly all of them in his re-
port.
The law appropriated S1500o0 for the
purchase by the Baltimore city or county
school commissioners of such text books at
should be required, and to furnish them
free of cost to the pupils, beginning with
those in the first grade. Nothing was said
in the act about the method of raising the
money. A proposition to amend it by i'm
posing tax of two cents and eight tenths
on the hundred was opposed and defeat
ed, on the ground, as expressed by Senator
J. Wallis Smith, who fathered one of the
bills, that such proposition would defeat
the measure, inasmuch as the people would
not consent to increased taxation. Comp
troler Graham appeared before the House
Ways and Means Committee on the sub
iect. and was inclined to the belief that by
proper economy the fund would be avail
able without necessitating an increase of
the state tax.
The legislative financiers were in some
straits over the problem because of the
narrow margin in the state treasury, but
in the state tax act for the regulation of
the levy special section of the preamble
recited the necessity to levy a special tax
for free books, and one of two cents upon
the hundred dollars was imposed.
In his report, Mr.. Graham shows that
the total amount of the two-cents levy
was sos, 092 "a, and the receipts, nclud-
ing the tax on Incorporated institutions
and from Baltimore city stock, amounted
to $63, 629..S. This left a deficiency of
SS6.310.22 as a net payment from the treas
ury proper, which must necessarily be in
creased from year to year as the statute
now stands. When it is remembered that
Il large percentage from every levy must
be allowed by attachments from insolyen-
cies, erroneous assessments, etc, it will
readily be seen that the tax as now levied
for this purpose will never be sufficient to
equal the appropriation
Not only have the receipts from the tax
been insufficient to meet the appropria-
ton, but the fund itself has not been equal
to the demands upon it by the schools. 1t
has been unequal to supplying books for
all the grades at once, but this, it is eX-
planned, was not expected to happen, rs
the supply will be of cumulative charac-
ter, new grades being given the books as
each appropriation comes due, until all are
supplied, when the deficiencies of former
years will be made up from balances after
repairs of losses have been made.
When the fund was distributed, Mr.
Graham was subjected to great deal of
unjust criticism for his method. The con-
tention was raised that the funds should
be distributed on the basis of the actual
upon SCHOOLS, instead Oh upon
a basis of the persons of school age, as
other school funds are distributed. This
point was raised during the debate but to
no purpose, and Mr.. Graham very properly
calls attention to his position as follows:
"The above sum OF $l5O,OOO was appor-
toned by me, in strict conformity with
the laws applicable to the same: Section
3 of chapter 135 of 1896 recites: That the
whole of said sum shall be apportioned by
the Comptroller i'll the month of July of
each and every year, as the state school
tax is now apportioned.' This was done
to the fraction of a mill The state school
tax has been apportloncd by this depart
ment but one way for the past twenty
four years, or since the passage of the Act
of 1872, chapter 317, in the correctness of
which there can he no legal doubt l
obcycd the law and appOrtioned the above
sum as the state school tax is now appor-
toned Ifthere be any inequalities in the
law, the legislature alone is responsible,
and alone has power to correct them"