Pueblo chieftain., 1921-03-27
.C0ST OF EDUCATION
IN UNITED STATES
More For Luxuries in Single Year Than For
Education in Three Hundred
Years

1 Is twice as much as the salaries of
| teachers in elementary, and high
schools, nearly sio,o00.O00 more than
the total expenditures for elementary
and secondary education, and almost
the same as the total cost of element
airy and secondary education. public
and private, including capital invest
ments in new buildings and equipment,
and the cost of the heating and light
| ing of school rooms, and all other ex-
penses for upkeep.
! In 1920 we blew away in smoke of ci-
gars and cigarettes $500 900, 900 more
\ than the total cost of all education in
| 1918. The total cost for tobacco. in all
| total Of teachers salaries in 1918 and
almost exactly the same as the total
cost for elementary and secondary
education for the three years
1915. 1917. and 1918. II in
some moment of high enthusiasm and
patriotic devotion the people who use
tobacco had agreed among themselves
to smoke two cigarettes instead OF
three, two cigars instead of three, take
! two "chaws' instead of three and two
dips instead OF three, and had paid 10
the support OF the schools the money
\ thus saved for the year, the salaries OF
teachers in schools OF all grades, pub
/ lie and private, could have been in
creased by more than l20 per cent
For tobacco In its various forms We
paid more than sc have aid for high
er education since the founding OF
Harvard college in Massachusetts, and
William and Mary in Virginia.
Luxurious service. whatever that
may mean, for the single year cost
more than the total paid for all pub
lie education for the four years from
1915 to 1918. inclusive, and 45 per cent
more than higher education has ever
cost US.
So much for volunteer expenditures
for things ordinarily called luxuries
and not absolutely necessary.
1t Is equally interesting to compare
the expenditures for education with
penditures. Receipts of the Federal
government from customs and Internal
Revenues for 1880 were .730.97s.1l7.
This is more than six times the amount
expended for education in 1918, and
more than one-third the estimated
total expenditures for public educa-
ton and all higher education from the
beginning of our history until 1920 II
is fully ten times the total OF salaries
OF all teachers in all schools. public
and private.
II 20 tho income of the Federal gov
ernment be added the taxes collected
by states. counties and municipalities
for other purposes than education. the
total will be fully fifteen times as
much the total salaries OF teachers
ct AL pupic elementary ana secon-
dary schools, normal schools. colleges
universities and archaeological and pro-
fessional schools OF all kinds. To
double the salaries OF all these teach
ers would require the addition OF only
one dollar in fifteen to the total OF
Federal, state. county end municipal
taxes. For every fifteen dollars paid.
the average tax payer would pay six
teen dollars. and after his receipts are
put away, he would not know the dif-
ference. II nothing were paid teach
ers from public taxation the average
tax payer would still pay fourteen
dollars OF the fifteen he now pays.
and would not remember the difference
after the tax receipts are put away.
Tho comparison made above are for
the country as whole. For indI-
vidual states tho comparison arc some
times even more striking.
II the fifty years from 1870 to 1920
the State OF Connecticut paid for
public elementary and secondary edu-
cation slse.5oo,oo0. The amount paid
in 1918 was Sl0.ss9.6s3. In 1920 the peo-
pie Of Connecticut paid into the Fed
eral treasury in direct taxes the sum
of Slo6.st9.SSS; ten times as much as
they paid for public elementary and
secondary education in 1918. and near
ly 60 per cent as much as they paid
| for public elementary and secondary
education in the fifty years from 1870
to 1920.
| Pennsylvania direct Federal tax
bill in 1890 was 1857 COS .s72 and its bill
for elementary and high schools in
eight times as much as the school
bill. Pennsylvania's bill Off elemen-
tary and secondary education for the
fifty years from 1870 to 1920 was ST.
l91 900 600, only n little more than