The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-11-15

children enrolled in the public schools during the year was 320.342, and the num- Der of eolored children enrolled was It. SIP Compared with last year there was an increase Of 9 per cent in the enroll ment of white children and of the same per cent in the enrolment of colored chil- dren.
 .Only 4 per cent of the white children were enrolled in tho public schools and only 4S per cent of the colored chil- dren,s states Superintendent Feagin.
 These percentages are somewhat in creased when the numbers enrolled in pri- vate and denominational schools arc in- cluded. However. one-fifth of our white children and one-1fth of our colored chil- dren were not in school for a day last year. The white children enrolled in the schools attended 61 per cent of the time, and negro children attended 6 per cent of the time.'
 Superintendent Feagin suggests that com pulsory education is the only method that can be employed to secure a larger school attendance Alabama needs a modified form of compulsory education which should be as rigid and as pro- gressive sas our ability to cope with the situation will make possible"
 State Board of Education "Over and above this county board of 1 education.' declares MT. Feagin, there should be state board of education ex- | ercising legitimate ssrhere of power that l will make it sustain the same healthy relation to the county board that it in turn should exercise over the individual school. II should be organized upon a | sufficiently broad basis to permit the ad- ministration of the states educa tonal af- | fairs in such a way as to most easily
 make for those results which the state 1 sets before herself as the chief business of education. This board should be com | posed of educators and men of profes- | sional and business ability. This board should also exercise in one body the pow
 CTS now resting in the board of trustees ] of the state normal schools, the board | of control of the district agricultural
 schools and the state high school com
 mission It is not difficult to see how a | properly framed law of this kind would | reduce the present cost of administration
 and at the same time confine these sev- eral institutions to what may legitima tely
 be regarded as their proper spheres
 Increased Revenues
 | Superintendent Feagin declares that the department needs increased revenues in 1 order to employ better teachers stat
 ing that the country teachers should be | as well paid the city teachers. He | gives figures to show that the salaries in | the rural schools have been decrea sed ir ] the last two years. while the salaries oi
 the city teachers have increased. Hence | he concludes that the best teachers oi | both races will gravitate toward ths {, cities.
 The average yearly salaries of white 1 teachers in the city schools in 1913 was | $S91 for male and SAY for female: ir l 1914. male, S1032; female. 1858.
 l The average for the rural schools show 1913, male, $S46; female, s29s; 1914 male I $35T. and female s293.
 Local Taxation Remedy
 1 Thesc conditions, according to MT ! Feagin can be remedied only by loca taxation, and below is given some o 1 his views that subject:
 1 Local Taxation-Thc several lines o | improvement suggested in this report | including better teachers. longer terms | better attendance, better buildings, bette equipment. better organization. better ad ! ministration. better supervision-all de l pend upon he willingness and authort, l of the taxpayers to finance the same w I have reached a point in Alabama wher | no decided improvement can be made ove existing conditions until much more none, Is to be had, and local taxation is tn only source from which we may hope t I adequately derive it.
 The fact is that the amount receives from the state tax and the state treasur. is sufficient to give several counties il which the percentage of negro childrel is excessive and under the plan of ap I portionment now operative in these coun
 ties enough funds to enable them to run