The Semi-weekly leader. (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1905-1941, 1908-10-28
County Agricultural High School Prop.
OsitiOn.

The Leader, the question Of levy
ling three-quarters of a mill tax
| THAT is, seventy-five cents on each
ISL, 900 worth of taxable property
for the establishment of county
agricultural high school. will be
submitted to the voters of Lincoln
county at the general election next
Tuesday for ratification or rejec-
tion.
The Board of Supervisors made
this levy at the September meeting,
and 20 per cent Of the qualified
voters having filed petition with
in 20 days afterward against the
levy, the Board at their October
meeting ordered the question sub
mitted to vote Of all the quail
fled electors of the county on Nov.
3rd, as the new law for establish
ing such schools prescribes. At
next Tuesdays election, if a ma
jority of the votes are cast in favor
of the three-quarter mill tax, the
levy will stand and the school be
established; if a majority cast
their votes against the tax, the levy
becomes null and void and this
school proposition will be dead
for long time to come, at least.
Lest there be some good, we'll
meaning citizens of the county who
might vote against the tax as the
result of error or false report, The
Leader will restate here,a few facts
that we think should be thought
fully and honestly considered, be-
fore any such voter makes up his
mind to cast his ballot against this
enterprise that means so much for
our farmer boys and girls and the
future welfare of Lincoln county
in general.
l. The three-quarters of mill
levy (75 cents on the 81 ,OO0) is COM
paratively insignificant and
trifiing; and even this small tax
will fall on each Individual tax
payer pro rata, according to the
amount of taxable property he
owns; SO that the wealthiest tax
payers in the county will actually
pay the largest amount of the total
sum collected under the levy.
2. If this school be established, it
means one more well equipped high
school in Lincoln county than the
county now has school that will
give special instruction in agricul-
ture and kindred branches as we'll
as in the regular high school
branches, and which will furnish
free tuition, as the common schools
do, to all county students who at
tend.
8. The public-spirited citizens
of Brookhaven and vicinity can't
build, equip and maintain such
Ischool all at their own charges,
but being generous, intelligent and
progressive, they have obligated
themselves to donate 81, 700 in cash
and sixty acres Of good land for a
site, independent and apart from
any help given the school by the
county, to get such school estab-
lished within three miles of this
city, believing, as they do, that
such an institution will prove of
incalculable value to the farming
interests of all Lincoln county and
incidentally to all our people. ir-
respective of calling.
4. If the levy is voted down, the
county not only fails to get one
more good high school, with free
tuition, which it greatly needs. but
the educational interests Of the
county will at the same time for
felt the cash donation of So, 700
and so acres of land which the peo-
pie of Brookhaven are offering
tS.free gratis z and it will also lose
the 81, 900 annually which the State
will give when the school is estab-
Iished. Let it be remembered, too,
that besides the liberal donation
made by the people Of Brookhaven
for the school, that Brookhaven's 5
total taxable property valuation is
81, ,7O9 1870, and that the three-quar-
ter mill tax levy for the school will
be collected on this as well as on
other property Of the county. Will
any farmer Of Lincoln county, who
has any regard for the education
of his children and who is pos
sessed of sound sense and reason,
throw away an opportunity like
this, rather than pay rs cents on
his thousand dollar farm for the
benefit Of the school?
The Leader believes not.
S. The site selected for the school