The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1907-01-23
Gov. Hageraian's Mes
sage to the Legislature


has in it about sixty districts, yet the
superintendent's salary is only $500.
Thus the superintendent receives 81
per district, to reach which he must
travel long distances at considerable
expense. Much the same comparison
may be made with Mckinley county,
which has but four schools outside
the corporation of Gallup; yet the
superintendent receives the same sal
airy as that of Rio Arriba county.
The present system of examining
and c~ertifcatiag of teachers is neita-
er entirely satisfactory nor efficient
The Boards of examiners are rarely
sufficiently familiar with d edu-
cational conditions and methods to
judicially pass upon the qualifications
of teachers. AS there are twenty-five
such boards there can hardly fail to
be twenty-five standards for mark
ing the answers to the same questions
Statistics show that these examina-
tons have cost during the past year
a little over $4,000. Conditions in New
Mexico differ so widely hat it is i'm
possible to frame legislation with suf-
ficielt elasticity to properly meet all
those different conditions. In some of
the states, this whole matter of exam
ming teachers is given into the hands
Of either the State Board of Education
- D1o-1 aF Evonninnrc ornofnd &C.
pecially for this purpose.
1 recommend that the powers AID
duties of the Territorial Board of Ed
ucation and the Superintendent of
Public Instruction be enlarged, and
this matter be entrusted to them. By
doing so it may be more satisfactorily
done, and at least 60 per cent of the
expense will be saved.
1t is a well recognized principle that
a free democratic people must be ed
ucated. 1t is well for us, humiliating
though it may he, to know just where
New Mexico stands in intelligence.
According to the reports OF The United
States Commissioner of Education for
1900, New Mexico stood attn in a col
m OF SO for illiteracy. The per cent
OF the initerate population above ten
years of age in New Mexico was 1922
whilse the average of the whole Unit
ed States was about 10 per cen of the
entire population. 1t is gratifying to
state, however, that between 1890 and
1900 the per centage of illiteracy de-
creased from 44.5 to 1922 TAerehaa
creased from forty-four and 5 to 1922
per cent and mas doubtless decreased
since 1900. In a commonwealth every
citizen Is directly interested in the
education of every other. To have un
iversal education the rich must 1eip
the poor, the strong the weak. In
some states a state-tax is collected in
proportion to the assessed valuation,
and distributed in proportion to the
school enumeration. In Indiana, for in
stance a tax of lie on the 800 is as
susscl and distributed IL this manner.
A letter just received from The State
Superintendent of Public Instruction
gives the following co1cre-e examples
of taxes paid in and received in re-
turn. These statistics are taken from
his late January apportionment:
Henry County paid in Treasury S11,-
690.SO and received in return 9,712.56.
Marion County. paid into Treasury.
SOS, 1862 and received in return $79,-
s1O.95.
Montgomery County Da'n into Treas
ury $14,123.64 and received in return,
$11,793.21.
Warren County paid into Treasury
$6,25O.69 and received in return 81,
2s2.S6.
Clay County paid into Treasury, 81
702.42 and received in return, $15,405.-
SO.
Crawford County paid into Treas
ury $1,565.3s and received N return,
s ,O01.71.
Dubois County paid into Treasury, |
$3,Ss5.O6 and received IN return So
972.51.
Perry County paid into Treasury So, |
1s0.72 and received in return, So |
1881.
These are examples only. Thus
the strong helps the weak, the rich
the poor and the whole people be-
come educated. Before tners can be
an approximate uniformity of
education in New Mexico, something
of the same principle must be resort
ed to.
Experience shows that the best sys
tenn OF raising money for educatonal