The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1910-03-25
CALLS A. & NJ.
''OCToPUS"
Hon. Frank BUrEitt GiUeS
HSUreS to Prove His
assertions.


Below appears an article from the
pen of Hon. Frank Burkett, and pub
lished in the Union Advocate, in which
the Okalona statesman gives some fig
ures that do not make good showing
for the A. & M. college. He calls the
college an Octopus.
In former communication | made a
comparison between the education of
$50 boys in the Michigan Agricultural
College and $50 boys in the Mississippi
A. & NJ. College, wherein it is shown
that our expenses nearly if not quite
double those of the state of Michigan.
There is a reason for this difference
in expenditure, which | am not fully
prepared to solve, and the program be-
comes more difficult when | reflect that
the taxable value of property in Michi-
gan is more than four times as great as
the taxable value of property in Mis-
sissippi. In other words Michigan
could pay twice as much as we do and
INV oO uCdNy OQldSIl Sll IilC pCO-
pie. But the Michigan people do busi-
ness on business principles, and their
representatives in the Legislature re-
quire a dollars worth of work or ma
terial for eveIy dollar of the peoples
money they appropriate. 10 paying
out by them in salaries, tt4veling ex-
penses, miscellaneous, "a convenient
void bnt furnishing little information)
S36, ,345 in order to pull ST., 900. 46 out of
our farmers for fertilizer, cotton seed
meal and feeding stuff taxes, as was
done in this state last year. Why even
in Florida, a sister southern state, with
liberal southern ideas (nndeveloped,
however, in the art of organizing an
army of professors and assistant to ab-
sorb large part of the income from
these taXes) collected last year $43,-
078.3 as fertilizer and feeding stuff
taxes, at a cost of S7;803.62. Four
men, the state chemist, two assistants
and an inspector did the work, and after
paying themselves salary and expenses
turned into the state mot college)
treasury s35, 5,246.71.
"In Mississippi, we had state chem
ist and thirteen assistants, and three
inspectors on the pay roll, and these
gentlemen draw out of their total col
lections ($74, 4,O9O 46) the neat little sum
of S36, 345 and turn in the remainder
(37 ,645. 49, not into the state treasury
but their college depository to help out
the other boys who don't get as much
salary as they want.
'In order that the average taxpayer
may have an idea what it requires to
feed the octopus, which | dare say has
not graduated one hundred scientific
farmers in thirty years, who are today
engaged in practical agriculture, I pre-
sent the following:
REHABILITATION.
''The senate the other day voted the
A. & M. College out of the state treas
ury for 1910 and 1911, s278, ,91O.47.
An appropriation passed both houses
early in the session to complete new
chapel, $4,000.
Then as a side line after agreeing
last session to have the revenue from
the fertilizer tax turned into the state
treasury, where every dollar levied up
on the public should be placed, they
are now holding on to this feudalism,
out of which they will realize for the
present biennial period at least $152, 900.
To this add the appropriations to the
three experiment stations and the mon
ey received from the sale of station
products, which is turned over to the
college as shown by the college report
for 1908 and 1909, $8l, ,937.91.
Then add the farm, dairy, horticult-
ural and other products from the vari-
Gus college departments, at Starkville,
which were sold and turned into the
college treasury during the past two
years, $S2, 1922.
The matriculation, hospital, library
and other fees paid by the students
amounting in the past two years to
$22, 2,811.15.
The appropriation for farmers insti- !
tutes for 1910 and 1911 already passed,
$3.50
Now cap all this with the cash con-
tribution of Uncle Sam for the college
and the Starkville experiment station
for 1910 and 1911, S113, 900, and we
have grand total of $78l, Alp. 33. A
per capita allowance of little more
than one thousand dollars for the bien-
MEL period for every boy actually on
the college campus today. And remem-
ber taxpayers the board, clothing, ETC.,
of these boys must be paid for by the |
parents or guardians in addition to
what the state and federal government
contributes as shown above and this
will swell the total to something like |
$500, 900.
Verify it costs to feed an octopus"