Hattiesburg daily progress. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 18??-1909, 1903-07-25
VARDAMAN'S PLAN.

By" on which he expects to ride into
tina Office of governor. He has never
suggested how this may be done.
He cannot be prevailed upon to make
suggestion. Nevertheless. Mr..
Vardanran's plan is feasible accord
ing to one of his newspapers. The
ISOLATION is attributed to Col. Fl. NJ.
Stree. of Meridian but we cannot be.
lieve his is Col. Streets sointiop,
unless it be that he is entirely op-
posed TO free public schools.
What a plan is suggested! 1t is
stated that the plan is violative of
neither state nor federal constitution !;
bnt in rhe next breath it appears
that the state constitution requires
that schools be maintained not lers
than four months in the year. 1t is
proposed first to amend this provision,
so that the public will have to main
tain the schools two months only.
Each school is to be separate dis
trict and the patrons of each dis
tIict re TO be taxed to maintain the
school they patronize. Under this
plan the negro gets half what he re-
ceived before; and the patron gets
two months free school, and il he gets
any further term, pays for it ont of
his own pocket.
Nov, free public schools in Missis-
sippi are intended most especially for
the common people-those who pro-
duce the wealth of the country, bnt
enjoy little thereof. AS q rule the
weather. classes do not send their
children to, and are not patrons OF,
the pablo schools; but they pay taxes
to maintain them. This pan would
free them entirely from taxation, ex.
cept as to the two months term. II
the patron of the rural district il to
be taxed to maintain bis school, be-
yond two months, will he do it, car
he do it? Away with such plan!
The free public school is bulwarl
to the state and to our people. Let
every man contribute to it, according
to the taxable property he possesses,
whether he be he poor patron, depend
ent entirely upon the public school,
or the rich man who can send hil
children to college. The man who
enterferes with our public school sys
tenn, TO shorten the term or make any
radical changes, is dangerous. Lei
us rather look for longer terms.
To be true it is distasteful to con.
tribute to the education of the negro
but the present system can be so op
Grated that he will receive but little
more than he pays. A twenty-fi five
dollar teacher sometimes handles on,
hundred children.
All things considered, the wises
body of men who ever assembled il
the state of Mississippi, laid tn,
foundation for our present free schoo
system. We should be slow to &C
cept changes, and allow them afte
the most careful consideration. I
is natural for the white man to en-
terrain some sentiments on this sub
ject; but we must not let sentimen
supercede judment. We want tn
wisest and best solution all thing
considered.
One thing we know and have t
submit to: the fourteenth. and fiji
teenth amendments to the constitu
tion of the United States are still i
force. We cannot lsgislate agains
the negro as sncb. To make legis
lation applicable to him, it must ais,
apply to the white man; and whel
you make such legislation, it general
" falls hardest on those the leas
able to stand it. Just as in thi
feasible solution of the vardaman po
sition, the poor patron Of the poo
community has to suffer the conse
quences. The poor man has his tw,
months term and that is the end of i
unless he pays his own tuition and 1
superintendent and committee t.
handle it for him: the rich man il
not q patron and cannot be taxed.
Every man in the state who favors
free public schools should racicte,