Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1956-01-03
Record Registration
Reported in Virginia
Turnout Heavy
On Final Day
In Nearby Area

vote In record numbers with the
passing of the registration dead.
line for Mondays referendum
on tuition grants for private
The deadline in counties and
cities of less than $4,000 popu-
lation passed yesterday. The
deadline for larger cities passed
a week earlier.
Heavy registrations were tab
ulated in nearby Arlington and
Fairfax Counties and also were
in other population
centers around Richmond. Roa-
noke and Norfolk.
III the month of December
alone, Arlington signed UP 1852
voters and Fairfax, 1880. In
Arlington. where there is only
one central registrars Office, 356
were recorded yesterday, despite
the fact that 1t was a holiday.
Fairfax Figures Unavailable
In Fairfax. the figures were
not available until the various
precinct registrars handed in
their returns to the central reg
iStrar'S Office
Mondays special referendum
will be on the question of au-
thorizing a constitutional con-
vention. This would be to amend
Section 141 to permit State
funds to be used for educating
children in private schools, one
Iof the prime recommendations
lof the GRAY Commission pro-
gram for avoiding compulsory
attendance at integrated public
schools.
Mrs. Gladys Isdell. Fairfax
registrar. said that 295 new
voters had signed up since the
November 8 election. This plus
the December total brings the
number to l0.646 new voters for
the year 1855.
The previous high for any one
year was 1854 when 1851 new
voters signed UP. she said.
Arlington Figures Incomplete
Arlington had not tabulated
the totals for the year. There
were, however. nearly 38 500 reg
Iistered prior to the general cleo
ton and 1876 registered for the
balance of November since the
election. These figures, plus the
$50 tabuIated in December and
the number who registered yes
iterday probably will push the
| figure above 10000.
Meanwhile. State Attorney
General j. Lindsay Almond, jr.
was expected to rule today on
the deadline for applying for
absentee ballots by those who
expect to be out of the State on
Monday. In Richmond there
was some confusion about
whether the deadline was yes
terday or will be Friday.
Alexandria State Senator
Armistead Boothe warned last
night that the tuition grant
feature of the Gray plan would
result~in 20 to SO per cent in
crease in State income taxes.
Mr.. Boothe appeared on a
television panel discussion of
the Gray program. sponsored by
the Save Our Schools Commit
tee.
IF section 141 of the consti-
tuition is amended, the lid Ia
off, declared Mr.. Boothe.
Plan Seen Unconstitutional
Tuition grants will go to any
parent who wants his children
to attend private school,
There would be no ceiling on
the grant. with constant pres
sure on the Legislature to raise
them"
Mr.. Boothe. an outspoken foe
iof the tuition grant plan.
claimed it would be unconstitu-
Itional.
| Arlington Delegate Kathryn
Stone also called the tuition
grant plan Clearly circumven-
Ition" of the Supreme Court
decree. She urged that the
State try the pupil assignment
plan first.
William H. Moss. jr., new Re-
publican member of the Fairfax
Board of County Supervisors,
said residents of Virginia were
approaching the referendum
with a lack of knowledge of what
they had to vote on.
Delegate Omer Hirst of Fair
Ifax-Falls Church protested that
the Gray plan would not compel
all localities in the State to
continue public schools. He
said it would result in the
compensation of white children
who choose to withdraw from
public schools but would not pre-
vent indignation as its support
ers have claimed.
Episcopal Comment
Bishop William H. Marmion
of the Episcopal Diocese of
Southwestern Virginia, in a pas
toral letter." is critical of the
Gray Commission approach"
but refrains from advising Epis-
copalians how to vote in the
referendum.
He urges Episcopalians to read
and think about what able minds
have said" about the Gray Com
mission program and the SUI
preme Courts decision in the
school segregation cases "in the
light of the democratic and
Christian principles that under
line them" and to draw their own
conclusions.
Bishop Marmions pastoral