Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1920-01-11
much OF tho municipal indebtedness lei
Included in the public debt.
Nc chnrHca OF Graft.

much OF tho municipal indebtedness is
No CharEes OF Graft.
In tho faSc OF statement like
This. says the Governor. there is no
room for charges OF graft o. waste or
. ,Sa, AZ. &C. and he points on. mat
day having Jour times the public debt.
and not half so much TO show for the
money.
Educational conditions today when
comparcd with twenty years ago are
charucterized rs gratifying although.
wien compared wiki what is 10 be
desired. as stiil depressing. There has
been created in Porto kico Il modern.
democratic school system Offering Tree
AS result O; this system OF inS.ruc-
ii.n The percentage OF adult illileracy
has been reduced from Ge.9 in 1899 to
less than ~ per cent lii 1919.
In 1899 there were 2I,S73 children
attending schools as compared with
l6t,.94 children in lYl9-zQ. The NUM-
TO 2,?S4. There were no public school
Buildings twenty years ago. Now there
twenty years ago was s2SS,09S, and
ior, l3lS-l9 tho school appropriation
Vas S2,i67,7o3.
Better Education Afforded.
above all the variety and character
Of the education, the spirit and quality
been broadened. mouernized and
iDsra5sd sbg ii s ass0rdanfG with
century" asserts Governor Wager.
IN is.9 tnere were l6O miles of com
naSA .l3 miles of roads.
J4ws and procedure of tho courts
nave been 80 completely changed. the
Sc vernon asserts, as TO leave lew of
aht old Spanish practices unaltcred.
III" courts are now administering
practically an American system OF jus
The public health service has been
iuiit up and health conditions tire
mendously Improved" y modern sys-
gem OK taxation has been developed
Wages are declared TO have, been in
creased and the condition OF labor
much improved.
Tho large floating municipal debt.
which in 1901 amounted to s5O1,l2S
Gas completely disappeared" says the
.Governor. and now ali the municipal
ties close their financial operations
each year with cash surpluses on hand,
whiie during the earlier period only
Gcnerai Life Improved.
The general life OF the people elbows
even greater evidence of progress
during these twenty eventfui Years.
eompletely revolutionized and IMMENSE
~ Increased. social and domestic life
, I'M lh e1o,a ana the mora! standards
OF alcoholic beverages, which in the
.aI I period were openly practiced
prohibited by statutes enacted by the
representatives of the people,
The immense increase in Industrial
business can in cart be Indicated by
the increase in foreign business which
has risen from SlT.502,103 in 1901 10
Siil,S96,t00 In 1919.
show Political Progress.
AS TO political progress il we nut
aside the brief period OF autonomistic
Eovernment. which never got into
thorough operation, so that we will
acver know how II might have
worked, there was under Spanish re-
s!inc no democratic government, and
no local sclf-govcrnment. Now after
twenty years the government OF the
island is both entirely democratic, and
IN the main locally controlled and re-
Sronsiblc to the people. And this is
true not only OF the political tnstit,I.
ions such as the Legislature and the
inunicipn! councils and other officials
eiected by the people. but practically
INC entire personnel who do the WORK
or the government are native sons and
daughters OF the Island. Out OF 5,053
positions In the government service
oEly EOS are held by those who ore
not natives of tho country, and Of
these 2oS there arc las teaching posi-
t!ons filled mostly by teachers OF En- r.
,ish and technical subjects. In ISIS
there were 769 non-natives in the GOV
rrnmcnt service.
Just as fast as the Porto Rica y