The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1903-10-14

AS stated in last weeks News res
olution by the county board OF educa-
zion was presented to the board OF
county commissioners at their recent
meeting requesting that BODY TO re-
scIud its former action looking to the
working of short term felony conVlcCS
on the public roads.
School Commissioner ii. A. WllKlh-
son, as the representative of the board
of education, presented the resolution
Co the county commissioners, and
made a statement in support of the
action of the school board
The commissioners discussed the
resolution, but took no action, leaving
the matter open for consideration at
culture meeting. The News learns,
however, that the commissioners will
bly, work only half of the IL con-
Victs which Terrell county is entitled
TO, ia which event, in view of the in.
creased price the state will receive for
Its convicts, the school fund will be
affected but little.
Good roads ana good schools are
closely allied, and their interest is a
common one, but what will be the final
outcome of this matter is of course not
known and will DE awaited with inter-
est,
The board of commissioners and the !
board of education are both composed
Of safe and conservative men, and in
determining this question they may be
depended upon to do what is best for
the people and county.
Ia q statement to The News, School
Commissioner Wilkinson goes into de-
tails and shows what the county now
receives from the hire of convicts and
what it would probably receive under
abe new order of things. He says:
THE expenditure of the board of
education of Terrell county for the
year 1902 was 81, 1854. The appor-
tioament for the year 1903 for this
county is ST., 377. SO and for the town of
Dawson 81 ,523, or total of Sl2, 900 .33.
"The expenditure of the board of
education for the present year will
equal or exceed the amount apportiOn. >,
I'd TO the county for the year, while
ehe present contracts of the board run
for four months of the next year and
are made upon the presumption that
the receipts for the next wear will be
as large as they are for the present
year. This presumption, however, is
erroneous in all probability, for by
reference to the school census of the
state for the wears 1898 and 1903 it will
oe seen that during the last five years
ehe normal increase of school popula-
Gton of the state for that time has been
about twenty per cent while for Ter.
hell county the increase has been less
EhS.U six per cent. The school fund
NOW and five years ago is, in amount
about the same. So while the rest OF
the state has increased its school popu.
aaticn twenty per cent Terrell has in
creased only six per cent. In the same
proportion the appOrtiOnment for this
county, which will be based upon the
census OF 1903, will be decreased.
FfNow the gross receipts to the state
from the hire of the seventeen con-
VicGS credited to IerreI county Is $50
each, or a total of 81 ,6l5. From this de-
duct the expense of them 10 the state,
which is about $50 each per annum, or !
u total of $3.50, and you get the net sum
of 1865, which is about the emount re-
oetved and credited to the school fund
of this county from the hire OF convicts
for the present year and included in
che Sf2, 900.33 mentioned above.
IF the county works these seven
teeu convicts upon the public ROADS,
aud the school apportionmenU remains
1ho same, which is not likely, the
amount for the next year would be the
a6Qve sum of Sl2, 900 80 less the S765
convict hire, or a total of $l2 l35. 33.
Df this amount eleven and four ffths
sJer cent goes to the town of Dawson,
About ST. ,43l, which leaves the county !
tie sum of $l0,704 with which to pay
the running expenses of the board,
which were last year Sll, 1875 From
these figures it will be readily seen
that if the convicts are used upon the ,
roads in Terrell county the school
Gern must be shortened, the teachers