The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1910-12-29

outlawed and branded as untrust'
worthy.
There IS not a word in the consr!-
tuition that prohibits the legislature
from enacting laws requiring the
State Board Of Education to lend the
principal Of this fund to school boards
and special school districts CT the
state and no one but an enemy OF the
public schools will oppose such an
act. and It should be done, OR the
state should guarantee s per cent on
the principal Of the state school fund.
The law Of Ohio requires that state
to pay per cent on all the state
funds and apportions it annually
among the counties for the common
schools. It also levies state millage
Of ! Ito for the common schools and
allows a county levy OF II mills, which
may be increased to II mills by vote
Of the people. No patriot can be con-
tent that his own state should rank
behind the very best in providing for
school maintenance. The state OF
Florida in refusing the security of
school boards weakens the credit OF
| the latter with banks and other money
lenders. Alachua county loses enough
| from the present interest methods to
| increase the salary Of every country
school teacher she has SO per month
for one month.
Two Other Sources.
There remain two other sources OF
constitutional income. viz: the capita
| ton tax and the one mill state tax.
| The latter is a levy made on all tax
| able property in the state. 1t is ap-
portioned among the several counties
of. the state in proportion to the aver.
age attendance upon schools in the
said counties respectively, or exactly
las the interest from the state fund is
apportioned. This method Is based
upon the average attendance without
regard to p minimum school term An
average based upon a four months
term gets as much as an average
based upon an eight months term If
these elements were considered IN the
averages the counties ASSESSING the
maximum county millage and giving
d long term to their schools would
have a more equitable share of this
fund.
The unequal valuation Of property IS
q problem that should be remedIed.
A state equalization board would
remedy to great degree the evil,
and should be productive Of a consid
cradle increase in the school income,
especially so from the one mill state
tax.
The financial problem from the view:
point Of the county superintendent
must necessarily involve a discussion
Of the legal status and the personal
attitude Of that officer. The first is
defined in general terms by the or
ganic law and in more specific terms
Thy statute. That the power and the
authority vested in him by law; strict
ly construed, makes him merely su-
rervtsins inspector OF schools and a
clerk Of the board Of public instruc-
ton IS true; but the law OF public
opinion, law which, at one time tran
scended the National constitution and
threw our nation into the greatest CON
vulsion known in the annals Of his
tory, charges him with responsibility IS
which he cannot and should not at
tn1ept to avoid by the fine weighing Of
the legal limitations placed upon his
leffice.
l. know the thin Ice am crossing,
but the foreknowledge of the weak
ness gives me a more acute sense Of
the weight should put on the steps
take. Therefore what have t. say
in this particular ! hope will be &C
|cepted in the same cautious and r4-u-
oent sPlrh IN "4iCh II IS gwen
| Strict Letter of Law
The county superintendent who
measures his duties by the strict let.
ter of the law is not an efficient and
may add an honest servant of the
/ people. This seems paradoxical but l
propose to show that it IS simple
statement of truth, In fact shall go
further and still claim the virtue Of
conservatism by charging that the
superintendent who follows the text
rather than the spirit Of the law is a
greater menace to educational prog
ress than the out-and-out enemy OF the
: schools. The law does not charge the
superintendent with the responsibility
of raising revenue, fixing the school
term, improving buildings, equipins
EE.a,a*i.,,,ad RaoA