The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1914-10-31
A FRANK STATEMENT.

|
Fraacisville by the Town Counciil to
determine whether the tax payers are
willing that two mills of the present
revenues Of the town be donated to the
julius Freyhan High School.
In this connection l wish to state
frankly to the good people of st. Fran
cisville that unless this donation is
made to the Julius Freyhan High
School it will be impossible for the
School Board, in it's present financial
condition, to run the high school for
the full nine months of the present
school year. This may sound like an
old story. Doubtless you have heard
like statement from the superintend-
ent for the past many years. Yet it
must be remembered that the town
council has donated yearly the sum of
| five hundred dollars, in order to pre-
vent the closing of the high school.
Furthermore, the School Board has
never before found itself in such an
embarrassing financial situation as it
is in this year. Never before, | am
told, has the Board been compelled to
begin new. school year, with deficit
Of something like one thousand dollars.
The revenues for the year will not be
sufficient to wipe out this deficit. The
chances are that it will be somewhat
Increased 1t is contrary to the policy
of the Board to run the school system
of the parish in debt. The only chance
for retrenchment, therefore, is to
shorten the school term. The Board is
notiwilling to shorten the terms in the
Country without shortening the term
| in the town school. There are nine
Board members from the country and
only one from the town. You can
easily imagine how a proposition to-
shorten the country school term while
not shortening the town school will
strike the Board Furthermore, the
Board does not regard the town school
as belonging to the town. 1t is the
parish high school. The Board would
be inclined to treat all of it's parish
schools alike
While the julius Freyhan High
School is the parish high school, it is
|easy to see that the town benefits
largely by having the parish high
school located in it's midst. 1t costs
approximately $4,000 month to run
the high school, or 100000 year. A
large portion of this money will be
spent in the town of st. Francisville.
Furthermore, the town people are ben
Gifted by having splendid high school
right at their door,
The Julius Freyhan High School is
an institution of which not only the
people of st. Franciisville, but all of
West Feliciana Parish are Justly proud.
We must run nine months or we can
not be an accredited high school. If
the term is shortened, our graduates
will not be recognized when they wish
to enter college. If the term is short
ened, we will lose appropriations from
the state amounting to about $4,000
tyear Very likely we would not be al
lowed to compete in the state high
school rally In short, so disastrous
would such thing be that am frank
to believe that the high school would
be practically ruined This is a thing
the people of ST. Francisville should
not let occur.
AS understand it, you are not asked
to levy an additional tax upon your
selves. You are merely asked to ex-
press your willingness that the town
council appropriate two mills of it's
present revenues to the high school.
In other words, the town council is
asking the people of st. Francisville
whether they are willing that the town
council continue to do what it has
been doing in the past in making an
annual appropriation out of it's revenues
to the julius Freyhan High School.
Am | mistaken in believing that the
good people of st. Francisville will
vote in favor of this measure to man?
Let us make it unanimous.
One other point. The Police Jury
has predicated its willingness to ap-
Dropriate additional money in support
CT the school system upon the willing
ness of the people of ST. Francisville
to bear their share of the burden. The
two mills is fairly the share of the
town. Vote down the measure, and
we have no basis upon which to ask
additional money from the Police Jury.
Unless the Police Jury donates money
in excess of the three mills required
| by law, there is no possible chance to
run the schools of the parish nine