Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1905-02-08
HELD INTERESTING MEETING.
TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION
IRREGULAR SESSION.
The Address of President George
I. Melvin of a Very Inter
esting And Instruc-
tive Mature.

An enthusiastic meeting of the Tax.
PAYERS Association of Anne Arundel
county, at which some very interest
ing remarks were made was held IN
the Court House yesterday afternoon,
The attendance was particularly en-.
eouraging considering the condition
OF the roads and the weather.
MIR. George I. Melvin, the president
of the association, presided. and Mr..
Charles l.. Tate, acted as secretary
in the absence of Mr.-WiHiam X.
Boswell, who was detained ON busi.
ness. The officers of the recently or
ganiZed local of the association for
the Fifth district were reported as
William A. Shipley. president; II. T..
ShIpley, secretary; Rezin Hopkins.
treasurer.
Ii was reported by Judge Henry
Tydings that a local was established
in the Third district, OF which Henry
Bassford was elected president II. H.
Cook, first vice president, j. H
Meek, second vice. president. II. q.
I4insted. secretary, and A. Il. Stinch.
comb, treasurer. 1t was further re-
ported that another local was to be es.
tablished with headquarters at Arnold
Station. All of the reports showed
that the work of organizing the dis.
trlct locals was progressing favorably
and that great interest is being taken
in the association.
A motion was adopted directing the
president to appoint a committee 10
confer with the various newspapers
looking to the publ cation of the pro.
ceedings of the association and such
notices as the association might want
published. The chair appointed
Messrs. Henry A. Tydings, Wilbur B.
Finkbine and II. 5. Mancha. The
meeting of the association was set for
10. 80 O'Clock, a. m. on Tuesday. Feb.
raury 2l, the place of meeting Co he
designated later. OF particular inter.
est was the address of President
George I. Melvin with. reference TO
the work and aims of the association.
In part, it was as follows:
1T is important at the outset that
the subject and purpose of the Tax.
payers Association should be clearly
stated and well understood. This is
necessary because of the systematic
effort being made by politicians. styl.
ing themselves leaders, to misrepre-
sent our organization. We are the pro
ducers. We earn what we have. We
supply the money with which TO pay
the public expenses. The politicians
money and to spend it in their own
way. They tell us we are organizing
to make trouble. The fact is we are
organizing to assert our rights. They
tell us we are after the offices. Sup
pose we are? Who can better be
trusted with the offices than the tax.
payers. or the men selected by the
taxpayers?
'These political bosses have wrong
ideas of what their rights are and
what our rights are They belong "a
class who claim the exclusive right
to parcel out the offices, and to divide
the public patronage among them.
selves. They claim the sole right tC
levy and collect the money required
TO pay the bills. According to their
creed the duties of the taxpayers are
simple enough; they have only to pay
the taxes. This other class, the tax
consumers, come forward and attend
to the rest. Our taxpayers associa
| tion is organized to change these con
| ditions, and we don't want to be mis-
understood. We shall staud by the
proposition, that as our money pays
the bills we have right to a voice in
determining who shall spend it anc
| how it shall be spent
By applying to the County Schoo
Commissioners we may, without ex
pense, obtain copies of the public
school laws up to date. These pam
phlets are brief and should be read By
every intelligent citizen. We should
| thoroughly inform ourselves on thil
subject. and should watch with anx
ious sOlicitude the operations of the
school system. 1t is our right al
well as our duty to do this. But thi
duty devolves primarily upon the dis
trict trustees, who are charged will
the immediate supervision of all educa
tional matters affecting their respec
tive school districts. They are requir
ed, under the law, to exercise genera
supervision over their respective
schools, to visit them frequently, .anC
| to cause them to be kept open tel
months in the year, if possible. The
district trustees should meet as regu
larly, if not as frequently, as the
county board. Their duties are equally
| important. The County School Com
missioners should not pay bills con
| tracted for school unless they have
the approval of the district trustee