Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1929-05-24
NATIONAL NEWS OF INTEREST
TO EVERYBODY WHO READS
Written for this Paper by
FRANK p. LITSCHERIT

= The question may well be asked !:
What is causing or has caused the
tremendous increase in the property
tax which now burdens the real eS-
tate owner in the town and in the
. country? Certainly a great share
of it is due to modern improve
ments. We do not live as we did a
generation or so ago. The man in
the country has better roads for
/, instance than were enjoyed by the
man in the city a dozen or so
years ago. The horse as a method
of transportation has well nigh
vanished, and the high powered au-
, tomobile has taken its place. The
man in the co"ntry now travels
more swiftly ID smoothly in his
machine than the city man did in
his electric transportation a few
years ago. We have improved in
other ways. The country schools
of today are better than the city
schools of a generation ago, and
every small community now has its
hospital for the taking care of the
sick and the injured.
LII 01Ollg Tic OLdAhdA0 VI AANAho
has improved in the city and in the
country, but there has been more
relative improvement in the coun-
try than in the city. All of this
costs money, and doubtless most of
it is worth the cost. But if modern
living is worth more than a few
years ago, it also costs more. And
this cost must be made up in in
creased taxes. To prevent unneces-
sary expenditure the public must |
always be on it's guard, for the
average citizen must finally pay the
cost either in increased taxes or in
higher rent and increased cost of
living. Reasonable and necessary |
improvements should of course go |
forward. But all proposals for new '
OUTLAWS of money should be care
fully scanned by the man who is
interested because he must pay the
bill.
For instance: the writer's atten-
ton was called recently to an item
in a middle western newspaper
which set out that arrangements
were being made for the improve
ment of a certain country school in
a typical rural township in that
state. A few years ago this school
building was pointed out as model
rural school. It contained and still
contains modern equipment, labora-
tories, class rooms, Fairgrounds
and nearly everything that was sup
posed at that time to make up a
modern school house. But now it is
proposed by the local officials to
spend nearly a hundred thousand
dollars to improve the school house
further. The building is still solid
and modern, but it is set out IN the :
news dispatch mentioned above that
4 new gymnasium is needed, the in
terence being that the school pos !
sesses no adequate place for physi- :
,al training.
Now it happens that physical
raining in this particular instance
means training the basketball team u
or this school. There are two or .
hree other consolidated schools
within a radius of a few miles, in
.luding a small city high school, and
basketball rivalries are intense. 2
The proposal really therefore is to a
pend the money of the taxpayers, o
most of whom are farmers, for g
raining quarters for the schools v
asketball team, which Of course q
omprises only a handful of the
hildren attending the school. 9
Basketball is undoubtedly a clean l!
american sport and one which S,
ught to be encouraged, but this G.
Instance is cited as an example of 81
n occasion on which at least due 81
ought to be given to
he taxpayers before the improve 81
lent is made. And there are hun a
reds of other examples Of a sim D'
ar nature throughout the country. bl
[igh taxes are not only burdensome a
, the individual, but they hurt bust W
ess. No new enterprises will go tt
Ito a community burdened with &C
Ugh taxes. 1t behooves us, there e.
IRE, to do what we can to see that OF
lie tax burden is made as light as Ell
consistent with good government la
nd sane and comfortable living. oil