The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-07-29
FRIDAY, JULY 90, 1904.
TWO EXPENSIVE PROPOSITIONS

We should highly applaud the action
of the assembly if it were to postpone
Indefinitely consideration of the bond
issue for high school purposes which it
has laid over for one week. The
Globe is totally opposed to this ad-
dition to our already heavy indebted
ness. Ike annual interest charge is
the smallest consideration, although
that is not light item. Where we are
emitting corners to save few thou
sand dollars in our expenditure, the
addition of interest on a 100000 debt
is to be considered. But the worst of
it is the enormous additional outlay
which this venture will soon require.
The people are told that it is "only
100000 that is to be expended in the
building of two new high schools. The
fact is, as everyone in the least IA
miliar with school work understands,
that each of these high schools be-
comes Immediately center of con-
stantly expanding expenditure. Of all
the experiments in which a community
can indulge, no one practice is more
extravagant and costly than the null
tiplication of high schools 1t is evil
dent at Il glance that these different
institutions of the different parts of
the city are all highly sensitive ana
highly jealous of one another If the
high school of one ward has more
limited curriculum, a smaller number
of teachers, lower salaries and less ex-
tensive apparatus and paraphernalia
than another. it will go after the board
of education and the council until It
gets the inequality corrected. If any
one of them all cannot show a SUPER
fetal equality with the Central hig:a
school itself in courses of study and
instructors, it naturally feels the same.
Year after year more teachers, more
salaries and more facilities must be
provided for each center of high school
education. The cost of the Central
nigh school is, in the long run. multi
piled as many times as there are
branch nigh schools established. Thus
the little 100000 seed which we plant
Will grow into tree that will draw
millions upon millions of dollars worth
of sap from the taXpaying soil Is It
worth while for our people to face this
prospect for the sake of catering. to
the higher educa ton, and to avoid the
plain and homely duties of raising the
requirement for admission to the high
school to point v here they will mean
something, and VI ill reduce the high
school accommodations So that all may
take advantage of them?
Another proposition, before the
charter commission this time, is 20
provide free text books. Again the
financial side comes uppermost. No
advocate of this measure has stonnad
to figure out the cost of it or to CON
slider its influence upon the tax rate
1t is buttressed only by sentimental
considerations. Text books, we arr
told. are part of education the Same
as buildings and desks. Just as req
sonabiy we can add that no child can
receive perfect public school educa !.
ton unless it is well fed. and canno.
appear in the school room unless il is
decentiy clothed. Therefore, bv all
means let the city provide raiment and
meals at the public expense for the
children attending the public schools
There is no arbitrary rule to be an
piled to such matters 1t is all a ones
ton of financial ability and financial
expediency. At the present time it Is
not expedient to put upon the back of
the taxpayer the enormous annual cost
OF free text books, and there is no ar
gument in favor of 1t outside of purely