The Montgomery tribune. (Montgomery City, Mo.) 1892-1910, 1900-10-26

the zeal and readiness with which
Allen ! Ishes 10 the front, even be-
fore he is elected, TO try to make
an excuse for what is incxcusable,
is proof enough to me that, after
he is elected, he is going to try and
break his WI record as a she'll
hidcr. But that will be hard TO do.
For II the gang holds the state
after the clear exposures Of its rot
tenness which have been made this
year, it will suck the eggs so fast
that even Allen win get dizzy try
ing to keep up with it in hiding the
shells.
THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
"Dockery thanks God he be-
longs to n party that is not infali-
bic. That means, | suppose, that he
approves all of this hnanciering
which has snapped an interest fund
for an interest tax. But Dockery
doesn't manage his W affairs
that way. Dockery is a good ffnan-
cier, and has got rich through
banking and going to Congress.
He knows that he would not man
age his own funds as the school
fund of Missouri has been manage
ed. And Maj. Salmon, / am think
ing, would not long remain the
president of a national bank il he
managed its finances as he man.
aged this school fund for the state.
And think if the management of
the school fand, in other respects
than that of the conversion and
wiping out of the securities, was
looked into, the results would not
be satisfactory. The bonds, or the
certificates, make but a third of all
the revenue collected by the state
goes into that fund, which now
amounts, o. ought TO amount, to
more than 49, 900, 900. Idon't know
where the money sticks but it
seems TO be a clear case that it
sticks somewhere, for the olicial
reports indicate that the public
school work In Missouri is not me-
grcssing satisfactorily. 1 VIII take
the two years OF 1895 and 1926, and
/ will quote from the Missouri Blue
Book, issued by Secretary of State
Lcsueur. which ought TO be good
authority. According to this au-
thority, although the total amount
OF money distributed by the state
to the schools in 1896 was $4,000
greater than in 1895, the value of
school property in 1896 was over
S900,0 600 less than in 1895. This is a
curious condition OF affairs, and
Lesueur, who is secretary OF the
State Board of Education, knows
what he is talking about. There is
a screw loose somewhere in the
management Of the school fund
after it is collected by taxation of
the people of Missouri alone, in
stead OF by taxation OF all the peo-
pie in the United States. In addi-
ton to the direct taxes, appropria-
lions are often made by the Legis-
in favor of the State Uni
versity and the fournoTmal schools.
And yet, with the enormous
amount of money put into the sup
port OF the schools every year,
every penny OF which comes out of
our people in taxes, the school
property OF the state shows a de-
condition.
"The sale of our government
bonds and the substitution of an
interest tax was such an indefensi-
BILE proceeding, from any intelli-
gent business point OF view, that
We are forced to conclude that it
was done forthe purpose OF getting
the cash for use in other ways than
in developing a public school sys-
TEN. That the school system is not
developing in proportion with the
taxes spent on it seems to be PROV
ed by the hgures.'
lit is time TO see the books