The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1914-07-31
COX REVIEWS HIS
OFFICIAL WORK

have ever been in their opposition to
me and the measure.
Why should they not be? It mas
cut off a source Of revenue for them.
! Money which manufacturers now pay
for protection goes to injured work.
men and their dependents and not to
these insufdese companies. Besides,
I the state rate is so much lower than
the rate charged by the commercial
| companies in other states there seems
| to be fear among the companies at
this time that the Ohio measure will
extend across the borders and be
/ adopted in other states. Not only has
! it been demonstrated that the OHIO
rate was sufficiently large to cover all
emergencies, but the rate is gradually
/ being reduced. This is in part due to
the greater care now exercised by EN-
ployers in the protection Of their
working people.
Workmen Amply Protected.
| The industrial commission is now
settling 300 or 400 claims a day, and
while that is pretty hard on the at
torneys who would have brought suit
in many of these instances, it means
that the workmen Of the state are
now protected as they never were be-
| fore.
1 believe that either the school law
or the Warnes tax measure will prove
of the most far reaching benefit. The
opposition we encountered when we
proposed to reform the school code
came primarily from a number of per
sons then in the service who were
afraid they could not stand the test,
but the opposition was famed into
fame by persons who were not inter
ested in the schools but who really
wanted to choke off the workmen's
compensation law.
was not willing to risk my own
judgment in proposing school reforms
A complete survey of the state was
made requiring nearly years time
but costing the state very little money
because of the scientific men we were
able to borrow from other sources. 1t
was upon this report of the school
survey commission that the persent
school code was based. Just think Of
it! Prior to the adoption of our pres
ent law there were only two states in
the Union that did not have county
supervision. One of these was Arkan-
sas and the other Ohio So far as l
know Arkansas is now the only state
that does not have county supervision.
/ need not continue upon the Sub
ject of better school conditions. The
fact that the normal schools Of the
state are now overcrowded with teach
ers who are learning to teach in order
to meet the requirements of the pres
ent law is the best evidence | can
point to as tending to show that we
are going to have better schools IN
this state.
When l proposed getting all the tax .
able property of the state upon the |
tax duplicate l knew that it would .
bring bricks through that window
No man has ever had property put on
the tax duplicae without such results.
That is exactly why the assessors
elected under the old system failed to
get all of the property on the dupli-
cate-they were afraid Of the brick
bat.
Willing to Risk Criticism.
l knew then, and I know now, that
there was not the necessity for ap-
pointing rural assessors that there
was for appointing city assessors, be-
cause in the country the most of the
property is visible. If a law could
have been devised providing for the
election Of assessors in the country
districts and favoring their appoint
ment in the cities | might have advO-
Gated it, but | was willing to risk the
which had been heaped upon
me for having assessors appointed in
the country, in order that they might
be appointed In the cities.
Did you ever notice that it often
happens that the people who are Sc
verest in their criticism of a measure
in the beginning become its warmest
in the end? Well, that is
exactly what is happening and is go
ing to continue to happen in regard
to the Warnes law. 1t was devised
that the rich city dweller should pay
his just proportion of the taxes, there
by relieving his poorer neighbor and
the small property holder In the coun-
try of paying undue proportions.
But it so happened that the first
people to complain were the citizens
Of the rural communities. 1t was not
their fault, however. They
we're led TO believe that was trying
10 create gigantic monopoly of some
kind for my own use and that their
would be taxed excessively.
They profit by this law, because it cor
rects the inequality from which they
lg1arad.