Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1915-08-23
Shall baltimore Rule The statel

From the Belair Aegis.
From a practical standpoint there Is
no issue in the present campaign of
more importance 10 the counties than
what the future relation Of Baltimore
and the counties Of thc state should be
That each has been ir the past aue
should be IN the future. 81 great mu-
tual benefit needs no proof hence any
step calculated 10 disturb existing con
ditions, should be carefully considered
Il Is well known TO all that Mayor
Preston and Senator Lee are openly
end earnestly acv0ca ing an extern
sion OF the city's limits and a much
larger extension Of home rule for Bal
timore, including the return 10 Balt-
more OF all public school money and
al license paid by the city The effect
Of this would be Of such moment tothe
counties that II deserves more thar
passing notice. Baltimore in virtue Of
her vast wealth compared with the
state pays over two-thirds Of all the
state school tax. the amount II le~
school tax last year being S8S7.12O but
this fund is distributed by the Comp
troller ON the basis of the children at
tending school and rs there were al
most exactly twice as many school
children in the counties as there We're
in the city IL is not surprising that
Baltimore received back only S5f2.542
la other words the counties Teceiv-
ed s27457S more towards the support
of ,hcir schools than they paid into the
treasury. and the loss Of this amount
would very seriously cripple their eff
cheney Every county in tae State ex-
cept Baltimore county receives more
than il paws The same general prop
0sition holds good with reference to
licenses. ana If the citv's proposition
were TO prevail. our already heavy
State tax would be greatly increased.
No cry Of unfairness can be properly
raised because OF this. The State Is
the great source of productive wealth
which feeds the city as a commercial
center, and in division of profits de-
rived from business the city gets the
lions share A single illustration viii
suffice The farmer invests $4,000 i'm
a farm ana the personal property on
duces milk after large proportion of
his income has been spent on the pur
chase of concentrated feed and labor.
and receives rs cents net for his milk.
The city distributor, with $500 invest
ed in his horse and wagon, meets the
milk at the station and with one driv-
er distributes this milk in a few hours
for 30 cents just double that Of the
farmers price
a large increase in representation
al Annapolis which is an important
part of this scheme. would be disas-
trous TO tine counties States usually
provide. as in New York. that tie city's
ratio of members in the General AS
sembly shall not be greater than one
third of the whole representation. and
Baltimore has now nearly isamount,
il is frankly agreed that her represen
tatives do not compare favorably with
county members and it would be dis
asruus TO so increase their numbers
shat a combination with one or two
other delegations could and doubtless
would control legislation
main line of attack by the Lee advo-
Gates two years ago which returns as
a boomerang to them now. AT that
time the Mayors brother was the Con
servative candidate for the Senate
nomination, and the slogan Don't
turn the county over into the hands of
Baltimore" was used with such persis-
tent energy as to consummate his de.
feat. While the proposition was alb
surd then. because the Democratic
Mavor and Republican Governor were
not in harmony. it is now not only
practicable but the announced inten-
tion of Messrs. Lee and Preston. who
are working as one.
Every Marylander takes just pride
in her great Metropolis and has time
without number shown that he will
vote for her reasonable demands for
development; but as Messrs Lee mad
the Mayor are making this their lead
ing State issue, it is plain, as Mr.. Har-
rington wisely says, the law-making
body--the Legislature the proper
place to discuss and frame laws for
the city's reasonable needs and that he
promises in advance that he will sign
such bill on the subject as the Leg
islaturo may deem just and wise
viii any county become a party TO
the rape of saeh of the fair portions of
her sister county as the Mayor covetss
If so let her help to nominate Mr.. Lee
for the governorship, and such mem
bers to the Houes as the Mayor en-
dorses. On the other hand, does she
wish to still have some standing in the
House and there help to formulate
plan for city expansion which will be
fair TO both city, county and state?
Then let her help nominate an govern
or and delegates VINO are pledged to
do this.