The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-02-05
Statement of the Conditions
Existing n-St. Paul and
the Causes That Led
Up To Them.


eral subject of public school finances
and legislation. with particular appli-
cation to the ST. Paul, has been care
fully prepared for The GIo e:
Our nation has justly been designated
'school-going' people. Out of our
estimated population of seventy-on
| millions. sixteen millions were in pri-
| mary or superior schools last year. In
our own city of st. Paul the total en-
| rollment in the public schools Exclusive
of parochial schools, amounts to about
fifteen per centum of our entire popu-
latiOn estimated at 165 thousands. This
extensive free public school system has
been the growth of little more than
half century of our national history.
Within that period, so rapid has been
the development and improvement in
educational opportunities, methods and
facilities. that the constantly increas-
Ing fiscal burden of the public schools
has become one of the most important
problems of the public economy That
this increased demand for greater
school revenues is not purely a local
phenomenon in St. Paul or throughout
the country. but is a universal condi-
ton of our times. Is strikingly evil
denced by the recent observations upon
this subject by Cohn in his work on
the science of finance Speaking of
the growing fiscal demands of the pub
lie schools, he SAYS:
This result is to a considerable extent due
to enhanced demands in the way of ths
number of school houses the wages of teach
ers, etc. During the fifteen years, 1S71-1eS6.
the cost OF maintenance Of the public schools
Of Prussia has risen from IS, 900 marks
to 00o. The supplementary funds
contributed by the state for the same years
increased from hardly 5000 900 to IA DOC, 900
marks.
AFFECTED BY LOCAL CONDITIONS
The public school problem in ST. Paul
Is an anomalous one. Concretely stat
ed, it is to provide for the education
of about twenty -four thousand pupils
scattered over an area of fifty-fve
square miles. Ours is a city of mag
ni1cent distances. No other city of the
United States, has SO many square
miles Of territory IN proportion to the
number of it's inhabitants. This fact
naturally increases the cost of mains
tanning an adequate school system.
a snugly. built town, with a fairly con-
centrated population, needs fewer
schools and teachers than would an
equal number of people scattered over
double or treble the space
COST OF=THE SCHOOLS.
At the present time the city has in
vested In public school buildings and
grounds the sum of s2,2S6,675, accord
ing to the last annual report of the
city comptroller. This vast educational
system comprises the maintenance of
forty-six different school buildings,
and requires quite an army of 529
trained teachers. Under present con-
ditions of the, most stringent economy
the muniflcent sum of about $425, 900 is
annually expended sfor the education
of our children. and this sum is ad-
mittedly Inadequate. The city has,
since the year 1882. issued bonds for
school purposes amounting in the ag-
gregate to $4,000. Upon this sum it is
annually paying in interest the sum Of
s3SS, 500. This item of interest is not
included in the sum of $4,000, thus
annually expended for the maintenance
of the public schools. but It is betrayed
out of special fund annually pro-
vided for in the budget. 1t is not paid
out of the sources of school revenue
prescribed by law. The following table
compiled from recent data, would seem
to indicate that ST. Paul is expendine
about $4,000 less than the average an
nual expenditures of the seven enum-
Grated cities Notwithstanding its pecu-
liar local conditions:
(1OnII D ATIyIT COcr on