Palisadian. [volume] (Cliffside Park, N.J.) 1906-current, 1915-01-16
IMPORTANT LECTURE
BY COUNTY SUPERLN-
TENDENT OF SCHOOLS.
B. C. Wooster Talks Before
GrantluOOd Audience on Money
Side of the Public School
SYstem.

Superintendent of Schools for Ber-
gen County, B. c. Wooster, of Hack
ensack spoke before a fair audience
of Grantwooders on Tuesday evening
last in Trinity Church Guild Hall. The
superintendent presentatin of an
ordinarily "dry" subject was both able
and interest compelling. In spite of
the disagreeable weather, the goodly
response of the people was most
gratifying.
The sum and substance Of the eX-
position of the New Jersey educational
systems method and procedure of
finance was to the effect that a plot
of ground, becoming occupied by a
group of human beings, portion of
it is dedicated, as we'll as portion
of the peoples time and effort, to the
pursuit of education. The wealth
thereby created is represented by the
items which the superintendent indi-
Gated on large wall charts, of land
and educators, superintendent, super
visors, principals, department of pub
lie instruction, and so on. AS a con-
sequence of this created wealth, there
accrued receipts" which were indi-
CdCCu d ScpCI dCC ldI SC oIlCCC VII
the wall, such as: accruals from school
lands and buildings Isl, 138,033.86);
accruals from accumulation of both
the educators and the educational
plant Current eXpenses), $5,867 ,035.-
ST (school year 1912-1913). An ad-
ditional item of wealth whose accruals
could be diverted partly to the Re-
ceipts list were the railroads ($3,620,-
415.2T. Another was the condemna-
ton of underwater lands, and the
taxes on lands occupied bl docks, rail
road terminals and hotels Estate
Schol FUND.- year 1915, $250,000.O0
(The principal of this fund has in
creased to $5,700,000.). The creation
of bonds with interest added $1,441,-
372.74 to the receipts; and their sale
in the open market was $4,886, 625.70.
The creation of the wealth represented
by ad apartment of manual training
increased the receipts by the amount
yearly Of 1924, 327.77. The receiv-
ing, eight decades previously, 1885,
of gift of half million dollars from
the Federal Government, added an
other yearly accrual of $28,598.50.
The countys contribution to this great
receipts total was $7,242.8O Q912-13);
the state, itself, from it's own funds,
$315, 300.48; the state, itself (from the
moneys collected from every tax
payer within it's borders) $5,858, 522.-
~ Estate School Tax. "Other
Sources" (rentals, tuition, sale of old
furniture) $646,276.14; balance, $4,-
493,118.50. The addition of all these
items would give the same total as
was shown at the bottom of the Sup
erintendent's four foot sheet, the top
of which carried the headline: Gre
ceipts, All Sources, 1912-13" At
the bottom was written the total of
$28, 786, 94O05.
The individual local taxpayers
direct interest in and concern with
this great sum is seen in the appar-
emily modest crate of Tax" column,
which he finds on his 1914 tax bill,
at the beginning of which are the
three items estate Shcool. $.2700,
County =. .$.470O, District School. -.
$9771; for every $500. worth of assess
able property, it's owner will pay
$1.717;1, or two-thirds of the entire
rate of $2.53, the other II items on
the list amounting in all to little
over 80 cents.
The Superintendent next took up
the disburseing of the grand total
just named. Referring to one of the
wall charts, he read: Especial State
Appropriations, 1928. Total $685.
639.75." The items to which this sum
was applied were: expenses State
Board of Education, $2,330.6O; ex-
penses State Board of Examiners,
$1O,3OO.01; state aid manual training,
$176,437.O9; schol libraries, $4,939.58;
teachers libraries, 5000; teachers in
stitutes, $4,000; summer schools for
teachers, $4,000; practice teaching,
state normal school, $1O,991.37; ex-
penses teachers retiremnt fund, &c.
251.05; expenses state school fund,
$3,190.05; rduction of state school tax,
100000. Beginning with November
LIST, the Superintendent said the school
Libraries would be under the control
of the Library Commission. The me-
thod of distributing these amounts
enumerated was by duplicating, on
the part of the state, the amounts
raised by school districts, that is,
amounts ranging from $3.50. to $4,000.
The Superintendent next took up
the question: f the distribution of the
railroad tax item, amounting as has
been shown on the Receipts chart
for 1928 to $3,620,41527. Mr..
Wooster said that this was raised by
taxing the main stem properties of
the railroad, and had only been in
force fora bout ten years. The grand
total of railroad tax was over $5,O00,-
900; but from this sum between on
hlf and one per cent. of the total
railroad valuation was deducted, and
the balance turned over to the State
Controller for apportionment to the
various counties.
Referring to the chart at the head
of which was the title, estate Rail-
road Tax, 1913" (the 1914 re-
port was not yet in his hands,, the
Superintendent read the items to