Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1917-08-12
EXPECT SENATE To
CUT DOWN SCHOOL
.AP PR0PR NATIONS

ATLANTA, Ga, August ll.-Ihe gen
eral appropriation bill was finally
passed by the house of representatives
late yesterday afternoon and went to
the senate today for its first reading.
This year the appropriation commit
tee of the house drew the bill to pro-
vide only for 1918 and 1919, as has
been the custom in the past of making
the bill provide for two years in ad
vance.
When consideration of the bill in
committee of the whole, after three
days of arduous work, had been com
pleted yesterday afternoon, an amend
ment was introduced to make the bill
provide for two years, 1918 and 1919,
by simply repeating the appropriations
for the second year.
After a sharp fight the amendment
was defeated and the bill goes to the
senate with provision for one year on
ly. 1t is expected that the senate will
cut down the 100000 appropriation
for the common schools, which was
put into the bill by a vote of the
house late Thursday afternoon at the
close of a long and hard-fought con-
test.
The common school appropriation
for 1917 is $2,700,000 The appropria
ton committee of the house recon-
mended an appropriation of 100000.
An amendment was introduced to raise
the appropriation to $4,000,000 and car
ried by a small margin II is generally
recognized and admitted that the state
will never be able to meet this appro~
priation, but the common school forces
of the house put it through in spite OF
the we'll known condition of the treas
ury. he result in all probability viii
be this: The counties will go ahead
and extend their school terms and en-
ploy teachers, and after the pupils
have been taught and the teachers have
done their work there will be deficit in
the treasury and they will not be paid
the money they have earned.
Should the state continue the pres
ent system of borrowing money on
school teachers warrants drawn by
the governor on the state treasury, the
states floating debt will continue to
Increase and within a few years there
will probably be deficit in the treas
ury of several million dollars. The
states income is increasing, but not
nearly with such rapidity as pensions
and other appropriations are increas
ing. Half a century after the civil
war, the state finds its Confederate
pensions mounting year by year in
stead of diminishing
Realizing that there will not be suf-
acient money in the treasury to meet
the appropriations contained in the
bill. several members of the house in
troduced amendments yesterday after
noon providing that in such an event
the governor should pro-rate the bal
ance in the treasury among the various
appropriations, using the available
funds as far as they would go. This
amendment was voted down.
AT the afternoon session yesterday an
amendment was adopted replacing the
appropriation of $4,000 for the mill
tary department, which had been
stricken out by the appropriation COM
mittee, and the following other items
were disposed of:
For the maintenance of the capitol
and the governors mansion, 100000;
to cover a deficit in maintenance of
the same for 1917, $4,000; for the
general printing fund, $4,000; to
cover a deficit in the same for 1917,
$4,000; for rewards offered by the
governor, $4,000; for the roster com
mission, $4,000
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