Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-10-29


he contrary l have often said that l
would not accept that our Catholic
schools should be supported by the
public municipal funds and your as
sertion is only another case of con-
fusing ideas and facts. at which you
are an expert.
There are in the State Of Maine two
sources of school funds. one from the
municipal treasury and one from the
state treasury. The Constitution Of
the State of Maine requires that the
several towns make suitable proNl-
sion at their own expense for the sup
port and maintenance OF public
, schools"
Hence every city and town is obliged
70 support it's own schools of elcmcn-
tary grade at it's own expense. and the
sooner the State returns to local re-
eponsibilty in this matter, the better
it will be for all concerned. Hence
also the present distribution of State
funds for elementary education is open
to serious doubt in regard to it's con-
stitutionality if anybody cared to test
it, I said often and / say now that
the present method of gathering the
Stetc educational funds and distribut-
ing the same. is an ubiquitous proceed
ing, even though it were constitutional.
The city of Portland gets from the
State treasury per capita sum Tor
every child of so-c2llcd school age,
viz: from 5-2l. Now let us suppose
that there are 21.000 children in that
class in Portland. There have never
been 1900 children in the public
schools of Portland. The city gets its
per capita sum for every child, viz:
for the 5000 pupils in the Catholic
schools aad also for the G009 children
between 1921. who arc not in any
school ard 1t spends this money upon
the public schools. This money is
gotten from valuation, 4 mills on all
the property in Maine and from taxes
on Savings Banks and Trust Com
ronics and driblcts from other sources,
all in the hands of one, man to distri-
butte according 20 laws Of the State
and regulations made by him.
By what right, or reason, or COM
mon sense does Portland, or Bidde-
ford. or Springvale, or any other
town or city or viIlage.-and they
are all in the same game-get
money for doing nothing and e2peci-
ally get money for every one of our
Catholic children, whom they do not
educate?
I have studied the game for the
last twelve years and watched its
development under the farmer, po-
litic2l machinery of the present
state commissioner of education,
and I declare it to be very near what
is called a flimflam game.
When the last change in the law
was made in 1919. whereby Mr..
Thomas succeeded in robbing the
cities of Portland, Biddeford, Lewis
ton and others to feed the rural
communities, one keen observer in
Augusta said to me: Bishop, this
bill ought to be entitled a bill to
legalize highway robbery of the peo-
pie of Maine and then to legalize
the robbery of the cities by the
country schools"
Perhaps the people of Maine do
not know or do not recall that Presi-
dent Emeritus Charles Eliot of Har-
ward Colisge said in Boston in open
meeting, that Mr.. Thomas was an
advocate of MARKHAM Socialism"
that is the most radical philosophy,
that has finally ruined Germany.
l always maintained and now
maintain that in justice, equity and
decent respect for a square deal, the
authorities had,no right to count in
the $4,000 to 10000 children in the
Catholic Schools in making up the
fund and then count them out when
distributing the fund.
Mr.. Brewster knows we'll this
whole story. He was present and
member of two legislatures. when
these bills were being fought by
Portland and he got his training and
information from Mr.. Edward Muir
ply and he, Mr. Brewster. with the
other Portland representatives So
licited the aid of Bishop Walsh to
help Portland win out, but he seems
to be incapable of stating anything
fairly and squarely. He knows full
well that all my statements in re-
gard to these financial conditions of
the schools in Portland and in the
State of Maine, were simply an ac-
curate collection of facts and figures
to show how much money the Cath
Ole Schools in Portland and in the
whole State of Maine were saving to
the towns and to the State treas
ury. Hence they simply gave in
formation to the people and tax
payers of Maine in order that they
might draw their own conclusions
of a system, which is absolutely in
defensible from any poins of view
of justice and honesty.
The real features in Mr.. Brew
last four statements, viz: that Eish-
OPP Walsh predicted that the system
OF the Netherlands would be adopt
ed; that this system would be dis
astrous to our unity and fundament-
al American principles; that to pre-
clude any such possibility the State
OF Maine must amend the Constitu
ton to prohibit the popular assem-
bly,. called the legislature, from APP
proprlating any funds to religious
schools and institutions. as now au
thorized by the original Constitu
ton; and finally that his. Mr.. Brew
sters, bill for such an amendment
lacked only few votes for it's pass.
age at the last legislature.
All Jour of these statements are
simply false. but 1 do not know in
what category to put them. lies,
damn lies or statistics" to quote ono
OF our modern legislators, who is
not in Maine.
Bishop Walsh did describe the
system in vogue in the Netherlands
or rather in Holland. as one of the
countries, that had solvctl the same
question by adopting and financing
all the schools of the country as
State Public Schools. whether they
were religious schools or not, on one
condition. viz, that they keep their
standards of teaching and results
up to the requirements of the law.
as determined by State Legislation
and State supervisors. Bishop Walsh
stated at the same time that Eng
land Ireland, Scotland. Germany.
Italy. and the Provinces of Quebec
and Nova Scotia in Canada had all
developed school system substan
TALLY Oh the same basis of justice
and equity, with much variation in
detail.
May I ask Mr.. Brewster whether