| Show THE NEEDS OF TIlE PUBLIC SCHOOLS There appears to be every reason why the residents of the city should be gratified with the operation of the new school law Under our former system the school houses of the city few ola and small as they were amply accommodated the children who sought instruction in the public schools With free schools however there has been a decided change Xow even with the accommodations of rented buildings build-ings the schools are overcrowded as appears ap-pears by the report of the superintendent to the board of education and there are at least twentyfive per cent more children in the schools than there are proper accommodations for There are also no aoubt many children in attendance upon denominational schools who will return re-turn to the public schools as soon as the latter lat-ter can afford a better grade of instruction We understand that the board is now wrestling with a problem which must be determined by them during the present month We refer to the levy of taxes for school purposes The board has power to levy a tax of 2 mills at present assessed valuation this will bring about 100000 which added to the citys pro rata of the territorial school fund will give the board about 150000 for the conduct of the schools for the year beginning with the collection of the taxes in the autumn of 1S91 For the current year the boards only sources of income are from the territorial tax and from such special taxes levied in the old districts as maybe paid without protest just how much these will aggregate it is impossible at present to say possibly however how-ever a sufficient sum to pay the running expenses of the schools but leaving no margin for building Of course the estimated esti-mated income from the assessment may bo increased or diminished by changes in the assessed valuations on the next years rolls Tho estimated expenses of the schools at the present rate are about 5110000 per scar to which during the present year at least must be added various debts of the old districts the duty of paying which has allen upon the board of education The question which we understand is troubling the finance committee of the board is the vote to levy whether they shall recommend an assessment up to the full limit of their power two mills or whether they shall scale it down onehalf or a full mill There is a sentiment that the people have been pretty well taxed and that the board cannot afford to antagonizeS antagonize-S public feeling by levying a full tax unless it is an absolute necessity There is also a strong feeling in the board that the public appreciates the fact that the increased de mand for accommodations and instruction has begotten largely increased expenses and that the necessity of providing for the future a creditable system of public schools ample to the requirements of a rapidly rap-idly growing city will entail an additional ad-ditional outlay and that therefore there will be no disposition to be niggardly or hypercritical bver the action of the board Some may and do question i the wisdom of increasing the taxes to supply i sup-ply places for political creditors to provide a system of needless public works and to assist generally in the extravagancies of an I extravagant administration of municipal affairs butfew people will questicn the wisdom of a public schOol tax sufficient to the needs of the city That the school accommodations ac-commodations of the city are inadequate is an obviousfact that a comparatively large expenditure Qf money will be necessary for a few years to put our schools where they ought to be is equally obvious We may therefore expect and should not resist any reasonable tax or bonded debt that we maybe may-be called upon to pay or vote for this excellent excel-lent purpose The board of education by the way gives evidences of being a conscientious and industrious body highly interested in their work and impressed with its importance im-portance We are glad to note the almost total absence of partizanship in its deliberations deliber-ations and labors We did think however that the refusal of the majority to confirm the qualified and wholly unobjectionable candidate of the minority lor examiner evinced a taste for the spoils if you can term it such that has been exceptional in its career when it is remembered that perhaps threequarters of the scholars in the public schools are the children of Peoples party parents the Liberal members of the board should not be too zealous to claim every appointment which their power enables them to grasp In the instance referred to they had named two out of three members of the examining board and should been satisfied Wd shall hear something of the intention of the board at its next meeting |
