The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1907-05-04
Correspondence Baltimore County Union.
THE LEVY FOR SCHOOL PURPOSES.
BALTIMORE COUNTY, May LIST, 1907,

BALTIMORE COUNTY, May 1st, 1907.
MessTs Editors The extraordinary demands
of the School Board and the further announce
ment of their entire independence of control by
the County Commissioners is at least suggestive
of the pertinent question, viz: "What meat do
these our Caesars feed upon that they have grown
so great ?'' The people elect their County Com
missloners to make an economical levy for all ex-
penses of the county government and hold them
strictly responsible for the proper distribution
of the funds collected, so that no one system
shall receive an extra appropriation at the ex-
pense of another.
For many years the School Board was limited
in its expenses for all school purposes to IA cents
on the 500, and it has proved a sad day for the
taxpayers when that limit was repealed.
As the taxable basis is supposed to increase in
q similar ratio with the increase of population.
this limit should still be sufficient to run the
public schools, had not the Hon. School Board
seen fit to depart from the principles established
by the founders of the free school system (Which
was to give to each pupil plain business educa-
tom, and entered upon an ertrdUdg0nce never
contemplated by the founders and which the re-
suits do not justify.
The School Board is composed of as high
minded and honorable gentlemen as can be found
anywhere, but they have allowed their zeal and
ambition to lead them to an extremity that will
end in disaster unless some check is brought to
bear upon their actions, and there is no better
check than three honest s0ise, prudent and firm
County Commissioners. All of which is respect
fully submitted by ANOTHER TAXPAYER.
HERE IS something of interest if properly
considered The great chimney which was
connected with the machinery hall of the
Baverian Jubilee Exposition in 1906, 100 feet
high, was recently condemned by the munich
pal government of Nurnberg and orders were
given for its removal. The firm Of architects
under whose direction it had been built, re-
ceived the contract for removal, and for some
time they were undecided as to whether it
would be better to blow up the iron shaft or
pull it down. The latter plan was decided
upon and was carried out, according to a
Leipzig paper in the following way: ION the
side toward which it was agreed that the Chin
ney should fall ditch of considerable depth
was dug under the foundation and then braces
of wood were substituted for the earth. Light
wood was packed in the ditch and the whole
saturated with petroleum. The two main sup
ports removed, the oil soaked wood was set on
fire, and in fifteen minutes the chimney
broken in three huge pieces by the fall, rested
where the engineers had made bed for it."
'REsoLvED, That it is unconstitutional to
license liquor saloons in the State of Mary
land" was the subject of spirited debate
few nights ago in the lecture room of the
Friends Meeting House, Park Place and
Laurens street, Baltimore, There were eight
Judges and they were equally divided on the
question, so that no decision was reached. The
debate was under the auspices of the temper
ance department of the Philanthropic Com
mittee of Friends and its purpose was to start
q sentiment in Baltimore in favor of following
The lead of the temperance people Of Indiana,
who are endeavoring to prove that the licens-
ing of saloons is unconstitutional.
In DIsPos1NG of number of liquor license
protests at Hagerstown on Monday last Judge
Keedy ruled that in Hagerstown signers of
applications must be residents of and owners
Of property in the district where the saloon is
to be conducted that every signer must have
personal knowledge of the saloon man who ap-
plies for the license; that the burden of proof
is with the saloonkeeper to show that his
twelve signers are respectable freehoders
That when citizen signs more than two petit
tons for license, the limit fixed by law, the
name is valid only on two, the time of the
fling of the application to determine.
AT THE annual meeting of the Baltimore
Reform League, held in Baltimore on Monday
night, the following officers we're elected for the
ensuing year: President John E. Semmes;
Charles J. Bonaparte, Summer
field Baldwin, James M. Amber and J. H.
Hollander; secretary, Charles Morris Howard;
treasurer, Ernest J. Knabe executive COM
mittee, William Reynolds, Richard D. Fisher,
Henry w. Williams, John Hinkley, Eli Frank,
Leigh Bonsal, Bernard G. Steiner and William
q. Buckler.