The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1899-08-17
FROM THE CAPITAL CITY
Public School Fund Divided on q Basis Of
SAYS Per Capita.
SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND CHILDREN
Have Been Enrolled In the school
Ccnsus--Corrcction of Errors in
Flood Fund Account.

austin, Texas, August 16.-lThe State
board Of education, which has been in ses-
sion for two days, engaged In apportioning
the available school fund for the twelve
months ending September 1. 1900. gave out
the following statement this morning;
The State board Of education, at their
meeting today. after a careful examination,
find that upon conservative estimate
there will be of the available school fund
sS,oSO,ooo for distribution during the COM
Ing scholastic year. September l. 1890. to
August 81, 1900, and that the number
OF pupils will be 705,ls4 The board have
therefore resolved to apportion at this
time upon u basis OF si,25 per capita,
which Will leave an estimated margin of
sSS,1sO. Under the law passed by the
Twenty legislature, which goes into
effect August rs, for the appointment of
two special agents to look after the school
funds, the board confidently expects to
be able by the LIST OF January next to de-
clare another distribution of the available
fund that viii accrue during the present
year, and will do so II their expectation
should be realized. During the proceed
Sl6s. 006.46 from the Jester amendment and
$47.627 from the sale OF timber growing
upon the pine lands. both sums Aggregate
ing S2lb, 723.46. which will not be at the
command of the board during the coming
year. The funds arising from the sale of
timber CRYING upon school lands will here
after be placed to the credit OF the per-
manent fund and not to that of the avail
able fund, as heretofore, Again. the board
rp f1aptly In ha nhtA n tho
funds now idle in the treasury and be-
longing to the permanent fund, and
amounting to Sl,92S,0o0, under the law en-
acted by the Twenty sixth legislature and
which will 30 into effect on the 26th in
slant The board Is confident that with
an appurtonment upon the basis of $4.25
per capita the school warrants VIII BIO
maintained at par. that is to say, paid
during the scholastic year. The board Will
not. under any circumstances, knowingly.
create deficiency.
From the above It WIN be seen that the
scholastic census for the coming year
shows a decrease of 299l children of school
age as compared with that OF the year
ending on September /, 1899, and that the
amount of available school funds in sight
is smaller by Sl56, 652 so than IL was when
the apportionment for 1S9S99 was made.
The shrinkage is due TO the repeal of the
act giving effect to what is known asmthe
Jester amendment to the constitution I'M
der which 1 per cent of the permanent
fund was annually transferred to the avail
able fund. The placing of the proceeds OF
the sale of the timber on school lands in
the permanent instead of In the available
fund, as has heretofore been the practice.
has also operated to reduce the latter for
this OCCASION but the increase In receipts
from the sale and lease OF other school
lands has more than Offset this.
The accumulation of nearly S200O.000
of unlnvested permanent school fund In
the State treasury for lack of suitable Sc
curities in which to place 1t has seriously
affected the available fund, but ii is ex-
pected that this condition OF affairs VIII
have been changed for the better within
the next twelve months. AS matters stand,
however, there has been reduction of but
% cents in the per capita apportionment.
with every prospect OF n possible increase
before the year is out. Under the crcum-
stances this Is good showing, especially
as the available fund is being handled on
a strict cash basis and everything Is shap-
ing up so that 1t, will be materially swelled
in the near future.