The Monett times., 1922-12-22
'eWHAT ARE YOU GETTING
FOR YOUR TAXES?"
By Burt johnson

cuSSlOH LHe laSI Two years ny UOIJl Iilc
Democrats and Republicans, about
what the people are getting for their
taxes. The Democrats point to the
great increase of taxes during the Re-
publican administration, while the Re
publicans emphatically deny that
there has been no increase in the
amount of money expended in Mis-
souri, for the state government. How
ever, it is evident to everybody that
there has been quite decided in
crease in taxes during the last two
years, and many people do not know
just where it has gone. On the other
hand the reports of the expenditures
of the States money during the last
two years show that the expenditures
for state administration have been
reduced. Where then does our money
go?
We are not concerned in defending
the Republicans nor supporting the
Democrats in their argument on taxes
1t seems inconsistent to say that the
taxes are increasing and the expendi-
lures are decreasing. Nevertheless it
is true that both parties are right.
The people of Missouri are making
very decided improvements in the
state and it is only through the ex-
penditure of money that this can be
done. Every voter and tax payer will
remember that two years ago, Mis-
souri, voted an enormous amount of
money for the improvement of roads.
On top of the $6O,0O0,OOO voted for
roads, there was also voted $15,000,-
900 to pay the soldiers bonus and two
cents)on every hundred dollars for the
pension of the deserving blind. These
three things no doubt are good meas
ures and we are to be congratulated
that the people of Missouri were will
ing to vote the taxes to do this.
But there is still another result
which will be far more beneficial and
the consequences of which will do
more good, and will be far more wide
ly spread than will the preceding
three. l mean by that particularly
the additional amount of money spent
for the public education. Never be-
fore has Missouri spent as much
money on public education as she did
the last year. If we are to decrease
our taxes, and if we consider these
other three measures to be meritorious
we must not consider for moment
that it would be advisable to do it at
the expense of schools. According to
the government reports, every day
spent in High school it worth $9.O2 to
the student, and every day in college
is worth little over $500, according
to very conservative estimates.
Last year the penple of the United
States spent a little over one billion
dollars for public education, over siH
hundred million for cigarettes alone
and over one billion for tobacco In
other forms. The American women
spent over seven hundred million last
year for face powders, rouge, ano
cosmetics of various kinds. Alto,
gether the luxuries spent by the
American people totals more thar
twenty-five billion dollars or practic-
ally enough to wipe our Americas
entire war debt.
! This, in a very brief way is a com
parison of the cost of our education
as compared with the luXuries, anC
yet we very frequently hear people
speak of the enormous amount Of
money required to run our schools
If our men can afford to use twice al
much tobacco as is required to run the
American schools, and our women car
afford to use three-fourths as mucl
money in decorating their faces as W.
do in developing the minds of every
body, we certainly can afford to spen6
the amount of money we are now, anC
even three times as much before we
would spend more than is used annu'
ally for these two unnecessary things
1t will be a good many years at oul
present rate of increase in the amount
spent for education before we will
need to feel that we are spending toe
much in that way. According to the
government reports on the value of ar
education, the High school is Monett
alone is an asset to the community
worth practically $2,500 per day in
developing the minds of It's students
with their indirect effect on the COM
munity.
Misses Ruth and Ethel Wilhelm
went to Springfield Saturday to spend
the day.