The Chesterfield advertiser. [volume] (Chesterfield C.H., S.C.) 1884-1978, 1922-03-09
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Next week the General Assembly
enters upon what is hoped to be the
final week of it's work. This will make
several weeks overtime without ex-
ira pay TO the members. The concen-
sus of opinion among the memb, is is
that the beginning made in the tax
reform is the outstanding accom- piish-
ment. Inheritance, gasoline and in
creased corporation taxes are now the
law of the Lard, An income tax and
motion picture tax appear certain of
being ratified and approved. The hope
is that all of these taxes will tighten
the burden on visible property which
is now so heavily taxed.
The approaching week will deter
mine whether the constitutional
change giving the General Assembly
power to classify property and fix a
different millage on different classes
of property will be submitted to the
people. The fate Of the hydro-electr:c
and luxury tax bills will also be de-
terminod.
Time for the payment of taxes has
been again extended by large majori-
tiles in the House and Senate even ov-
rer tho Governors veto.
BY way of reduction the House has
cut the appropriation bill around u
million dollars. Nearly every depart
ment came in for slash. It is prob
able that the Senate will increase the
appropriation somewhat, although
some of the mombers maintain that
in their opinion the Senate will make
even further reductions. 1t seems to
be- certain, however, that some of
the items requested by the State De-
partmnt of Education may not be as
great as last year for the reason that
last year there was appropriated
money for some deficits of the pre-
vious year in addition to current
needs.
According to the estimates made on
the House program, if carried
through in toto, the State levy would
be reduced from twelve to five mills
Our county levy will be reduced prob
ably two mills or somewhere around
fifteen per cent,
1t is my pleasure to state that the
most destructive blow ever aimed at
education, especially in Chesterfield
county, was successfully met in the
House of Representatives and victory
was with us. The particular bill was
one to repeal ali act entitled to guar
antee a seven months term to needy
rural schools This is State aid to ru-
raj schools, and into the State fund
Chesterfield county pays about Ave
thousand dollars in this county and
the state in turn spends about forty
thousand dollars in this county to car
ry out the terms of the act. The fig
urcs are not secret for they were read
time and again on the floor of the
House, and it was shown where so
many counties were paying in thou
sands of dollars into the fund and get
ting in many instances, little or moth
ing back. The argument was that it
wasn't fair for all of these other
counties to be educating children in
other counties when they were now
loaded With taxes and needed the
money in their own schools. Our az
gument was that it would be back
ward step to abandon the proposition
of taxing wealth where you find it
and educating children where they
are. 1t seemed for while that the
opponents Of the measures might win
out, and l understood from Senator
Laney that they had a strong follow
ing in the Senate, SO we Representa-
tives from the poorer counties which
were benefitting from the fund were
feeling mighty nervous. A little per-
sonal experience of the writer about
this time was very encouraging. Was
talking with Representative from
Charleston county, and Charleston
county pays into this fund about for
ty thousand dollars and gets back no
aid under the act, and this Represen-
tative said to me: "Wannamaker, the
State has done great deal for Char
lesion, and as you tell me that the
passage of this bill will mean that
many of your schools will in 1928 90
back to two or three months term.
l am here to tell you that I'll let this
right forearm burn off before III
vote against you on this BILL" When
the vote came our side was victori-
Gus by about five to three ratio.
The House expects to hear an ad-
dress next week from Governor Cox
of Ohio, former Democratic Candi-
date for President. Governor Cox, in
conversation at the depot in Columbia
when passing through the city, told
of great progress in Ohio in road
building and especially progress in
increasing the number of rural high
school. They use trucks TO carry the