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Show I I ' THE CITIZEN 4 an organized body and do adopt appropriate constitution and by-law- s, governing ourselves. Now, if condition were as some people try to tells us, there would be no need for this new league. TAX BURDEN from the country to'the town. City men have more than a pa interest in the education of the country boy or girl, even if from an economic standpoint, since the recruit their help jn from the cityward flow of population. They are not likely the department,, to object to the principle that education shoulj as good in the country as in the city and that its cost should be 51 distributed. Taxes levied legally for purposes of more than local scope tend to increase the unfair tax burden of agriculture. This is true of school taxes. Education is necessary to the proper development of society as a whole, and many states lay down requirements fixing minimum school terms and minimum salaries for teachers. Courses of study and training standard are prescribed. Yet the cost of maintainstandards is left mainly to local school dising these state-mad- e tricts. In a similar manner taxes are raised locally for roads used, perhaps more for general traffic than for local traffic. This is a difficulty which will increase rather than decrease unless something is done about it, according to the United States deDepartment of Arigculture. Tax studies just completed by the partment show that in many states a heavy burden of taxation on farmers has been added by what amount to local taxation for state purposes. Theoretically, the area taxed for any particular purpose should be the same as the area benefited by the public expenditure for which the tax is raised. In practice the line between local and general benefits can hardly ever be drawn with precision. When the division is much out of line the burden of taxes for general or state purposes is unfairly distributed. functions Numerous violation of the principle that state-wid- e taxes are pointed out. Trouble should be supported by state-wid- e purpose is arises from the fact that when a tax for a state-wid- e levied in different districts at different rates, the tax may be fair disenough within each district, but distinctly unfair as between tricts. Thus, in the case of school taxes, the cast of education per while the pupil is much greater in rural than in urban communities, wealth and income per capita are less. Most taxes on farm property are levied by local taxing units. So large a proportion of total tax revenues should probably not be raised locally, says the department. In 1919 county and other local taxes in 14 counties in an equal number of states were levied mainly cents out of every for the support of schools and roads. Sixty-si- x dollar paid in taxes by the farmers in Indiana in 1923 went for the support of roads and schools. Schools are also mainly supported by local taxes in Nebraska. This is typical of the distribution of taxes in many states. Another aspect of the question as it affects school taxes is perfacilihaps of more importance than the financial one. Rural school ties, although they cost more for each pupil, are seldom as good as urban school facilities. Sometimes the same standards are prescribed for rural school as fur city school. But rural communities are almost never able to realize these standards. This is not only because the unit cost is necessarily higher for providing education for a few pupils than for providing it for a large number, but because the taxable resources of the country are less than those of the city. As a result farm boys and girls are at a disadvantage in their considpreparation for life. For a larger unit expenditure, they get the city, with whom erably less schooling than the young people of in the normal course many of them will come into competition for emfrom the country to ployment. There is a steady drift of population the city, which is likely to continue. The country, at a disproportionate cost, is educating its young people for city jobs, without even when they go to the city to havng the satisfaction of knowing that is look for work they will have an equal show, so far as education competitors. concerned, with their city-bre- d Education is admittedly a social function, the benefits of which arc not restricted to the area or even to the state or the country in which it is given. It is therefore obviously unfair to burden farm school taxes than other property or rural occupations with higher sources of tax revenue have to bear. T- his would be the case if there were an equal interchange of population between the city and the movement of population is country. It is the more unfair since the - Similar conditions exist in taxation for road building i tenance. Of all tax revenues for highways in 1920 in Indiana, cent was raised by counties or lesser taxing units. In Nebraskj 1921, 80.4 per cent of the taxes on rural real estate for roads i levied by counties or lesser taxing districts. Local taxation the department, is properly relied on for local community L Much of the mileage provided by counties and townships, howJ is for general rather than for local use. While some mileage tained out of state taxes is chiefly of local value, there is maintaj out of local taxes a far greater mileage for state-wid- e purposes. State highway system have in part supplanted or absorbed of the highways originally planned by local governments. Cfo in this direction, however, has not yet gone far enough to given relief from the heavy burden of local taxes. There is much si, arity in the type of roads now being biult by states and by coumi 92 J indicating that state standards of construction are influencing expenditure. It is obvious, says the department, that the states not sharing their due proportion of the cost. As a result farm estate is heavily taxed to support highways used or required by tire states. A large part of local farm taxes should be supplanted by taxes, with the revenues distributed in such a way as to benefit states, says the department. Local taxation for the support of b roads and schools is faulty because it rests on a division of state i more or less arbitrary districts which are unfitted for purposes finance. In many sections the separate taxing units are not sepa districts at all. They are merely parts of larger communities sea ed around small towns and cities. Logical separation is poss: only in minor matters. In economic and social problems, respo: bilities are interdependents. Attempts to maintain separate fina fc st en; relationships in such circumstances, says the department, fly face of the natural organization of society. One disadvantage of basing taxation for general objects on districts is that this method permits much taxable wealth to esc taxation. Local taxing units acting separately are not as well as the state to reach taxable wealth or to maintain a fair syste taxation. NEWSPAPERS. Ii The Christian Science Monitor takes a fall out i present newspaper control and says : An anonymous gentleman, prude described in a introductory note as an editorial writer ana known western newspaper, contributes to the current Harp: new Magazine an illuminating discussion of present-- d y methods in the United States. His complaint is tha every act thought is made subordinate to the slogan Sell the papers for circulation is sought at every sacrifice of good taste. f zeal public service, of journalistic ideals, even of comm i profe1' circu decency. In order to get in the quickest way the which is the basis of most advertising profit, Americ; dailies r and small) are withdrawing from the market all tlie u- - nl thin?5" have to sell except one thing papers. The indictment is not overdrawn. It is supported ount b) ' by convincing citation of facts familiar to newspap "rcr, nation over. The rise to authority in newspaper offu of j a tional seller of newspapers, often ignorant and indifb :nt t what will sell on the streets, who, in certain newspa r offi1 tates to the editor the make-u- p of the first page and c is to be alloted to especially sensation news, is duly .ironic1 wrJ. A classic story is told of one of this gentry in Chit--submitted to a bartender next door the first copies of ch c remade the first page in accordance with the worth; s su$ n IM,' 1 . th re I! Bit nvj Hi: DCc Is |