The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-09-03

r
These six men are largely respol
mingham tomorrow. Reading from
Sitting; w. b. Humphrfes, e. E. Spi
county, to levy and collect a special tax
for school purposes in that county or
school district. In other words the peo-
pie themselves will take occasion to
write into their own constitution pro-
vision-not mandatory law, but simply
an enabling amendment That amend
ment will provide that at any time mere
lafter-that is after this amendment shall
| become a part of the organic law-when
any county or school district may deem
it wise and proper, it shall have power
to levy and collect special county or
district tax not exceeding 80 cents on
each 500 worth of taxable property in
such county or school district. as the
case may be; provided, that the rate OF
| such tax, the time it is to continue and
| the purpose for which it Is levied shall
| have been first submitted to the vote of
| the qualified electors of the county or
district and voted for by a majority Of
| those citizens voting at such election.
| 1t may turn out after this amendment
is safely annexed to the constitution of
| Alabama that some few counties or dis
trtcts shall not avail themselves of it's
| enabling power to levy special local tax
! for educational purposes but if there be
any virtue in the signs of the times, or
| in the counsel of such apostles of edu-
cation in Alabama as John R. Hornady,
Clarence Poe, William F. Feagin, DR..
~. H. Phillips and c. A Brown, even
those counties shall. on the seventh day
Of the coming November register at the
polls their will that such an enabling
amendment be written into and become
| a part of the basic law of this common
wealth.
| In an address which cannot but become
a classic in the educational literature OF
the south, Hon. Clarence Poe, lately said,
Alabama in the last few years has had
ar educational awakening which is the
most promising thing in all the life of
this state today 1 doubt whether any
southern legislature in the last 30 years
! has done so much for education as did
the Alabama legislature of 1915. And 1
don't believe that in any other way can
l so well spend my time as in encourag-
| ing this foundation, building for the Ala
bama of tomorrow. for the majestic and
powerful commonwealth it is possible to
build here"
present AVAILABLE REVENUE
Alabama's school revenue as now de-
rived, is 3-mill levy provided for by
| the constitution of 1901 direct state APP
preparation, the county levy of IN mills
for Jefferson, mills for Baldwin and
Montgomery, 2 mills for Escambia and /
mill for each Of all the other counties
of the state the interest accruing from
| the sixteenth section fund and the poll
| tax Out of these the total per capita
amount for Alabama is a little less than
$l.6S. The amount for each child of
school age of Alabama shown by the sew.
| eral late censuses is $2.79
| 1t is Illuminating to compare these fig
ures with the corresponding amounts in
other states. Minnesota's resources for
public education registers 500 per capita.
against Alabama's $1.6S; Iowa has 1898.
as against Alabama's $16S; North Dako-
, ia has $3.50, against .Alabama's $1sS; ne
braslxa has $71s against Alabamas $1.ss.
DR.. c. A. Browns syllogstic logic
touching this question, that More
money means better schools; better
schools means more efficient citizens,
moro efficient citizens mean more
money" was never more logical as ap-
piled to Alabama than it is now Most
of the other states of the union have rea.
soned by this rule. Alabama will vote by
it on the sevent day of next November.
| Alabama derives 30 per cent of her
school revenue from local taxation; Min
nesota gets 63 per cent Of her school rev.
enue from local taxation, as against Ala
bama's 80 per cent; Iowa gets IS per cent,
against Alabama's 80 per cent; North Da-
kota gets &C, against Alabama's 30; Ne
braska gets So against Alabama's 30; TEN
inessee gets so, against Alabama's 30;
Louisiana gets 70. against Alabama's 80
The percentage Of revenue from local
taxation in Massachusetts, Is exactly s0(
per cent greater than that of Alabama
Further comparison would only go tt
show that practically every other state
in the union has long ago learned well
the lesson that school taxation should
provide a sufficient local tax to encour-
age local pride, and a sufficient state tax
to equalize educational advantages
throughout the state. Alabama will re
cite on this lesson November T. and her
citizens will enter her a grade Of 100 on
the record
DR.. p. P. Claxton, United States Com
missioner OF Education, has called atten-
ton to the Russell Sage foundation re-
port, based upon a comparative study OF
the public school systems of the IS states
of the union furnished by the last federal
census, which was made in 1910 This re-
port ranks Alabama thirty-ifth IN the
total amount of public school revenue'
thrty-ninth in the average salary paid
to teachers; forty-fifth in the amount ex-
pended for the schools per 800 of wealth
forty sixth in the annual expenditure pei
child of school age; 1Orty-S1xth In the
percentage of illiterates of the population
Of 10 years of age and over; forty
in the average number of days of school.
ing per child and forty-eighth in genera
educational efficiency According TO thi'
same official report, while the averag,
American state spends SIS per school fol
each child of school age. Alabama spend.
a. Only three other states in the unlor
! spend so little in proportion to the wealth
of the people, and only in one state il
| America does the average child of sch9o
| age attend school so small number o.
' days.
The immortal Charles B. Aycock. re
membered throughout America as the ed
vocational governor of North Carolina an
doubly revered in Alabama, for 1t was II
Alabamas behalf that his last earthi,
9 message was being delivered In tn
: cause of education. in the midst of whicl
he was stricken upon the platform Of tn
! Jefferson theatre here in the spring 0
1912-used to say that when he conten
plated North Cardinals condition edu
, cationally he always thanked God 70
South Carolina. for II 1t were not 70
South Carolina the old North State
would be at the bottom of the list In al
: the American sisterhood of states. Ala
} bama has cause to be thankful for onl
: one or two states In the union which to