The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-02-28

Senator Barker's bill to amend the
present law relating to the apportion-
ment of the state school funds had an
unhappy time in the senate yesterday
morning and barely escaped a recon-
mendation for indefinite postponement.
AS 1t was, the senate tackled on one
amendment eliminating one Of the pro-
visions of the measure.
The present law provides that all
public schools desiring state aid shall
hold fve-month terms of school and
that all pupils included in the appor-
tionment enrolment must attend
school at least forty days.
Sixty Days Minimum.
Senator Barkers bill, when taken up
by the senate sitting as a committee
of the whole, called for an increase of
one month in the school term and fix
ed sixty days as the qualifying limit
FOR all pupils to be considered in COM
putting the distribution of state aid.
The senator from Isanti briefly ex-
planned the object of his measure and
moved it's favorable recommendation.
The motion aroused a number of the
senators, and in turn Senators Thorpe,
Wood, Riele Morgan, Everett and
Witherstine protested against extend
ing the length of school terms The
opposing senators argued that this
suggested change was unfair to the
taxpayers of the poorer districts Of
the state.
Lose the Aid.
1t was pointed out that in many Of
the country districts even the present
law compelled the taxpayers anxious
to give their children the best educa-
tion possible, to suffer hardship and
that increasing the time meant that a
number of the schools would simply
be forced to lose the state aid.
The arguments aroused Senator
Barker and he came to the rescue of
his bill by declaring that the majority
of taxpayers in many of the districts
have no children to send to school and
that the bill was introduced to make
these people go down into their pock-
cts to help the children get an edu-
cation.
Senator Morgan had argued that the
increase in the time meant a reduc-
ton in the number of pupils figuring
in the enrolment for the apportion-
ment and misunderstanding this state
ment Senator Barker aroused the
senator from Freeborn by asking if he
lin heavens name" really thought that
a six months school term was too
much for the children of Minnesota, or
If it could be considered wrong to de-
sire to see that they got at least three
months of schooling year.
Deprive Children of Education.
The debate had now reached the
heated stage, and Senator Morgan,
after declaring that he sought only
the best interests of the pupils and
teachers, again claimed that despite
the arguments of the gentleman from
Isanti, any increase in the length Of
the terms meant not a better chance
for the children, but the loss of state
aid, and therefore the loss of a chance
to have even forty days school.
Senator Thompson suggested a COM
promise, but Senator Barker did not
want his bill amended. Many of the
other senators did, however, and Sem
ator Thompson sent up the amend
term clause untouched.
Senator Johnson then moved that the
bill be recommended for indefinite
postponement, but Senator Barker in
sisted that there was little merit left
to the proposed measure, and the mo-
ton to indefinitely postpone was with
drawn. The bill, as amended by Sem
ator Thompson, was recommended for
passage.