The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1914-08-09
WEEKLY LUNCH
THE G. P CLUB
. WELL ATTENDED
SPEAKERS ADDRESS MEMBERS
ON PENSACOLA'S NEEDS AND
THE BUSINESS PROSPECTS.

con at the San Carlos hotel was pre-
! sided over by President Dobson of
| the Chamber Of Commerce yesterday.
Addresses We're made by three mem
| bers.
Prof. 3. B. Lane, principal of the
Pensacola High School, spoke on the
necessity OF raising more money for
school purposes and quoted statistics
| to demonstrate that this city was
greatly behind other cities in its school
| revenue.
This club represents the united eff
| fort of the citys progressive business
| men to do for Pensacola these neces-
| sary things" said Prof. Lane. First
to crystalize and keep alive every bit
| of the Greater Pensacola Spirit that
| exists In the city, and to see that 1t
spreads and grows until Greater Pen
sacola' becomes the WatChwOrd of all
the people in the city. Second, to
make this spirit so strong that it viii
go out and accomplish all things that
are necessary to insure the growth
and prosperity that this city by reason
of its natural adVanta ges as Il gulf
port and its possibilities as a manu-
fcturing center has the right TO ex-
pect. And, third to see that all these
not only come, but come quickly.
I'm carrying out this policy this club
has turned it's attention to the larger
phases of nearly every matter that
thinking men have considered con-
tribute 0ward the making of a grow
ing and prosperous city. You have
threshed out plans for realizing on
many of the commercial and indus
trial possibilities that exist here: and
today you have asked me to speak q.
word on Better Schools. To do this is
matter of no small responsibility,
for this body Of men have largely in
their hands the snoulding of public
sentiment, But the fact that this mat
ter is considered at all shows that
business men realize the best possible
schools have, in some way. d great
deal to do toward making Il city grow
and toward insUring it's prosperity.
That this is true is shown the part
that really good general education has
done toward giving the east not only
a better paid body Of general work
erS, but easier commercial supremacy
because of greater intelligence and eff
ticienCy.
pensacola. has good schools today
very good schools when We consider
how little the city Of Pensacola has
pUrposely done for her schools. We
all know that the great body of her
business men. attending to their own
personal business problems, never
think of the school question except
systematically. You turn the whole
matter over to three men 10 manage
to the members of the County Board
of Public InstruCtion-and then tie
their hands by giving them insufficient
revenue, so that year and year they
have had to so deeper and deeper in
debt. And there has been no way to
decrease this Indebtedness except to
stop the schools. These men have
done well-in IA ct. eycellently for what
they have had to do with. In some
ways they might have done \ little
more, but personally they are no more
to blame for not having done more
than any other three business men in
the county, for they have. ! believe, !
done their best. Most of 1t rests With |
the people generally-sChooIs are never |
any better than the people really want |
them to be.
We talk about various methods to !
improve the schools, but there is real |
~ only one way ever to make u dcfin- |
lite step forward. and that is to give !
Pensacola schools more money PeO-
pie in this city have never yet realized |
that Pensacola spends for school pur- |
poses scarcely more than half what |
cities of her same size and smaller |
find they have to spend to provide !
schools that are first class as to build !
ings and equipment and in the char |
acter Of school work done. You gen !
tlemen know that in Pensacola today |
there is only one modern city school !
building, the high school. and that that |
can house the high school students !
more than one more wear Do YOU |
money with which to purchase neCes- |
sarV equipment? We are getting along |
as we'll as possible without it. but the |
board ought to have the funds to ex- |
pend for additional equipment for |
nearly every school in the city The
teachers of the city are paid far be- |
low the avera ge salary of teachers no |
better than our own teachers but |
working in cities close around us The |
boys and the girls need greater pro |
vision for more practical education |
than the funds at hand will provide. |
Manual training is needed in the |
schools and needed to give the city
efficient workmen, and without it a |
large number of those now in the |
schools will not be qualified to earn |
the money this city's young men and |
women ought to earn. This city needs |
money that a stronger school system
may give more teachers that are need |
ed better opportunity to educate the !
children more thoroughly and more eff
fCiently for business life and for home
life and for making this city all it
ought to be.
Nov, there is just one way to get |
more money, and that is, to do what |
every town and city of any size at |
all in Florida, with the exception of
Jacksonville and Pensacola, has al
ready done-and Jacksonville has al
ready taken steps to do it-that is,
organize a special tax school district,
and levy the three mills that the law
allows. That step is absolutely neces-
sary before further and permanent i'm
provement can be made. The better |
buildings that are needed can never
come until a district has been estab-
lished, for without the district the
bonds needed for buildings can never
be issued. 1t will take votes to estab-
lish the district. 1t will take a. DO
litical campaign.
THE plans for that campaign are
being laid. Committees from every
school nave been selected to circulate
petitions among the voters. The pc
titions are almost ready-the boun-
daries of the district have, I think.
been worked out-all that remains is
for the petition to be drawn up and
put out And when the movement is
fairly launched the business men of
this city must get behind it and see
that it goes through.
They must get behind it because
I