The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1918-10-22

from &C" in which he bemoans the
/ fate of the poor taxpayer. VIII
some of your admirers take the trou-
bic to find out from you who &C" is
and then ask &C. how many school
children he has eyer had, how many
he has now and how many he expects
to have?
| Then you have one from Cracker"
and, by the way, can you not get
Cracker" to write some more? A
few articles like that will help US
along and be appreciated. Will some
one who is interested not take the
trouble to find out from you who
Cracker" is, and although / have no
means at all of knowing still / should
not be surprised if it developed that
Cracker" lived in an elegant home in
Ocala and is large property holder
here-but has no children in school.
| Then comes "Old Fax and Figures"
just like he was running for the leg
| islature for the steenth time and
| thought he had found the hobby that
would surely carry him under the wire
and land him in the green pastures,
and, come to think of it | think he has
no. one to attend school.
These are just little side lights
along the way and do not really have
any bearing on the main subject I'M
der discussion as to whether the pro-
posed ten-mill amendment is a good
thing or not. They may help some
folks to understand why some folks
oppose it.
In closing your last article you toss
me the following bouquet: "Your
language is not only plain, Mr.. Brin-
son; it's homely" If you call mine
homely what on earth do you call your
own profane and slangy illusions
with which you adorn your pages !?
Good night, pleasant dreams.
j. H. Brinson.
In replying to the foregoing, am
using the first person singular; part
ly because the little W and on my
| typewriter are worse worn than the
capital / partly because Mr.. Brinson,
unable to put up good argument,
has dragged some of my personal af-
fairs into the controversy.
| am afraid Mr.. Crimson wasn't
feeling well when he typed his little
screed. He has departed from the
philosophical calm demanded by his
office and shows evidences of being on
the ragged edge. | think he had been
taking some of them influenza pre-
ventives, in which case he is for
giveable.
He is also inaccurate. for he speaks
of my three-column article. Mr.. Brin-
SON wrote forty per cent of that ar
ticle himself. Mr.. Brinson is great
on forty per cent. That's how much
he wants your taxes increased.
! | have no desire to "tear to pieces
the educational fabric" nor have /
tried to do so. l should like to see
some changes made in it, and do not
see why as citizen and journalist
shouldn't be allowed to express my
| opinion. There has been no complaint
of my criticisms except from Mr..
Crimson and an element among "the
educational autocracy" that thinks
nobody outside their own little circle
has any right to an opinion on school
affairs.
Neither have I referred in "insult-
ing and disparaging terms" to the
teachers. have criticised what con-
sidered the faults in their system, ]
! have said that they had no right to
/ special privileges and that they were
no worse off than people in other call
/ mos Isn't all this trlle 2
Perhaps some of Mr.. Brinson's
soreness is explained in the paragraph
where he says that for anyone to
criticise the work of the people con-
nected with school work was to brand
them either with being ignorant OF
enemies of public education.
| have not thought so-in fact,
have always thought and always said
that our county school board and
county teachers were doing good
work, and / have not blamed them
for the faults of the state system
and l do not see why Mr.. Brinsor
takes such load upon his own shout
ders. Perhaps it was the SPIT pre-.
ventive that was working on him just
then.
have given my reason for oppos.
ing the ten-mill amendment-becau
it was unnecessary, unjust and un.
patriotic taxation. / have no "gen.
eral policy of-opposition, antagonist
and general enmity toward the sys
tenn in vogue of public education" anG
/ hope Mr.. Brinson will not repeat
his assertion to that effect, for il
isn't true.
do not know who Mr.. Brinson ha:
consulted about the amendment. Some
fifty or more citizens of different
parts of the county. all patrons o.
the public school, have informed me
that they approved of the Star:
stand ON the question. In this as il
other things, always consult people
who are interested.
| don't know whether the It'll,
| "apostle of ignorance" fits me or not
would rather wear it than the on,
! due Mr.. Brinson, which is "the apostl,
of unnecessary taxation" My friends
shall Judge and if they think l de