The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1921-02-04
THE SMITH-TOwNER BILL

One of our thoughtful citizens has
written to Congressman Clark, re-
garding the Smith-Towner bill. His
sentiments agree with ours and we
are quite sure they also agree with
those of Mr.. Clark. so in publishing
the letter we do so more to post our
citizens on the evils of the bill than to
bring any pressure on our congress
man. The letter is as follows:
81 wish to call your attention to the
Smith Towner bill on education that
is now before Congress, probably for
final action and to ask that you will
kindly consider the following objec-
tions to this bill becoming law:
at will be an encroachment. on
states rights, stumbling block to the
citizen as participant in self-govern-
ment. Enacted into law it would be
another step towards Capitalization of
government and fundamentally so, as
it starts with the education, of the
youth of our country who are to be
its future citizens. Paternalism has
taken away from the citizen bit by
bit the necessity of thinking for HIM
self and citizen who ceases to think
for himself is of no use in republic
as designed by our constitution AL
ready have we gone too far in taking
away from the states the things that
a state should do for itself and in turn
the state has encroached on the county
and town. This has produced pass
ing up of responsibility to the dis
paragment of local self-government
In this we are getting away from self
help which more than any other one
thing built up this republic.
"There is no way in which this law
can safeguard the state from federal
interference if the temptation of fl
financial aid is present, for the duty of
the federal officer should and will be
to see that the money is properly ex-
lpended. This being the case he nat
urally becomes the dictator of our
methods of education and if we ac-
lquiesce we will inevitably lose interest
in the education of our children and
leave it to someone else to do, someone
else too far away to be within reach
of our criticism. 1t would be one
more step towards depriving the par
ent of the proper control of his chill
dren and in my humble opinion the
basic trouble with civilization today
is the lack of authority in the home.
1t is platitude to state that the well
regulated family is the foundation of
a successful government and yet we
find that the tendency is always from
home authority and towards govern
nent authority.
Further we do not know to whom
will come the control of these funds
and some day the South may find in
power one who will insist that the
negro shall sit in the same school with
the white and will be backed by a
Congress ignorant of and out of SYM
lpathy with the conditions that the
South has to contend against and
with.
81 have not touched on the cost to
the already heavily taxed citizen, of
the increased number of office holders
but prefer to place before you what !
believe to be its basic defect, the I'M
determining of the self help of the citi-
zen.
"Please give this matter your most
earnest consideration and / believe
you will agre wieth large number of
your fellow citizens who, seeing where
such measure will lead us to, desire
to have it defeated"