VOL. 18, NO. 6
16
The Commoner
w
KV
School Taxes
Abolished
Whon pooplo flrat hoar about tho
homo-farm Hchool Byatom, thoy aro
Inclined to think it would be very
oxpoiiBlvo. I shall nliow you that
that is a mistaken idea. Indcoil, I
will show that It can bo made solf
BUBtaining. Tno federal govornmont has in its
pOBtal savings fund over $100,000,-
000 which it loans at 2 por cent
on "J3onds Bocurcd by fcho taxing
powor," School bonds aro thus bo
curod and aro boing accoptod as col
lateral socurity for loans from this
fund. But only from banks and
banking institutions.
California has about ?10f000,000
outstanding school bonds drawing on
an avorago nearly fiMs por com.
Think what a saving It would bo to
tho taxpayors if wo could got money
at 2 Ms por cont.
Bolloving that solf-prcflorvatlon of
govornmont demanded full protection
and a squaro deal or tho chlldron,
1 had a bill nronarcd and introduced
In congress to so amond tho present
law that whonovor a school district
Issued Its bonds, proporly protected,
tho district could tako bucIi bonds
diroct to tho fodoral govornmont and
oocuro tho monoy thereon on tho
sarao terms that trust companies can
now socuro It on tho samo security.
Somo persons aro fearful that
bankers would fight such a law. I
havo Interviewed many bankers and
I havo yot to find ono who is against
tho measure A man would bo a cold
bloodod human vamplro indeed who
wpuld fatton his already overflowing
pockotbook at tho oxponso of tho
holplcss chlldron.
I bog you to follow mo -very close
ly as I intond to go n bit boyond your
daily lino of thinking In my endeavor
to aid tho- public school, tho tax
payer and tho ohild.
Many school districts in Calfornla,
to secure cheap money, 5 por cont,
havo Issued their bonds for forty
yoars. Lot us consider tho facts in
rolation to oxisting conditions in
such school district and my plans for
2 por cont monoy.
Tho district has Issued its bonds,
$100,000, at flvo por cont, running
forty ycara. If it scoured tho monoy
from tho govornmont at 2 per
cont, collected tho 5 por cent,, paid
tho govornmont its 2Mj por cont,
loans tho savod intorost to the farm
ers at a low rate of interest, say 5
por cont. (Farmers would bo very
pleasod to securo 6 por cont, long
tlmo loans, especially whon thoy
woro paying tho interest to them
selves.) "Whon tho district bonds foil duo,
tho savod interest would equal tho
face of tho bonds. That saving of
itself would bo somo bonofit to the
taxpayors.
But lot us go a bit doopor into tho
Tosults, lot is note the wonder work
ings of compound interest. "Whon
tho bonds fall dtlo tho savod interest
would bo $100,000, and tho accrued
interest on tho saved Intorost would
bo ? 20 0,0 00. Thus tho district would
bo $300,000 to tho good without cost
ing any ono a cont.
Tho district could then pay off its
bonds, $100,000, loavo tho remain
ing $200,000 stay at intorost, and
tho result would bo tho district
would havo a well equipped farm
paid for and an annual income of
$10,000 for ovor and over, thus
abolishing all school taxes which aro
a trifle ovor half our stato taxes.
Now mind you, all this vast beno
flt, to each of tho 225,000 rural
school districts wouia nave cost no
on a penny, nor havo wo entered
upon an, untried road, for all that I
horo suggest is boing carried on,
savo for private interest instead of
for tho benefit of taxpayors and
children., All wo havo to do is to
got an amondmont to tho present
postal savings law, giving schools
tho right to deal direct with tho
govornmont without tho intervention
of any middleman, and then apply
tho boBt known business and finan
cial methods to our school manage
ment. I havo been asked if this plan
would not require an army of clerks
to keep records, and an army of in
vestigators to look into tho validity
of all bond issues? To both ques
tions I reply, no.
Each stato owes tho children
thoroof intellectual as well as finan
cial support. Each stato has its
legal advisor and its school admin
istrative officer. Through these the
stato could learn at no expense tho
validity of school bonds issued there
in. With this knowledge tho stato
could underwrite its school bonds,
and tho fodoral government could
tako these bonds, without further
investigation and without danger of
loss. If you would give this bonofit
to your chlldron and lessen taxes,
get busy. JOHN P. MURRAY.
, Borkoley, Cal.
SOME WAR BORN PHILOSOPHY
In tho fierce heat of war, the
Fronch soldiers have developed a
war-time philosophy. Hero it is re
duced to epigrammatic form:
"You have two alternatives. Either
you aro mobilized or you aro not. If
not, you havo nothing to worry
about.
"If you are. you havo two alterna
tives: Either you are in camp or at
tho front. If you aro in camp you
havo nothing to worry anout.
"If you aro at the front, you have
two alternatives:. Either you aro in
reservo or you aro on tho fighting
lino. If you are In reserve, you have
nothing to worry about
"If you aro on tho fighting lino,
you havo two alternatives: Either
you scrap or you don't. If you don't
you havo nothing to worry about.
"If you do, you havo two alter
natives: Either you got hurt or you
don't. If you don't, you havo noth
ing to worry about.
"If you do you havo two al
ternatives: Either you net sliehtlv
hurt or you get badly hurt. If slight
ly, you have nothing to worry about.
"If badly, you have two al
ternatives: Either you recover or you
don't. If you recover, you havo
nothing to worry about. If you
don't and havo followed my advice
clear through, you have dono with
worry forever."
It must bo admitted that this is
fatalistic iu its character. It is found
reduced to a single sentence current
in tho languago: "Don't worry about
what you can't help."
If wo could only compose our
minds always to tho ideas embodied
in tho quotation above, which has
oeen called tho "Litany of tho
Tronches," we would savo ourselves
from much needless anxiety.
Thore is an old saying: 'It is
worry, not work, that kills." And
worry has its foundation and cause
in tho mind. It is tho apprehension
of tho blow that hurts far more than
tho blow itsolf.
Men and nations aro not broken
down by what they suffer so much
as what thoy fear or expect to suffer
Another war-timo saying which
emphasizes the samo trench philos
ophy was stated by Major Belth in
a lecture. He spoke of tho fear of
shells experienced by tho now sol
diers at the front and quoted the vet
eran who said: "Don't worry you
never hoar tho ono that gota you."
StrengthenAmerica
DRINK-A Challenge to America
There never was a time when America so needed her
sober senses as today it is a time when selfishness must
be subordinated to the great task of winning the war.
"We are being told by those who have come from tho
Front that "we in this country haven't begun to feel tho
pinch of the war. Except for an occasional parade or
brass band, a flag raising, a Red Cross or Liberty Loan
appeal or something of the sort, it doesn't look -much like
war in the home town.
There are no ruined homes nor torpedoed skyscrapers
and churches. Our streets are just as the'y were before,
and we go out to our lunches as we always did; "
Most of us flatter ourselves that, if we have bought
a fifty dollar bond, we have made about all the sacrifice
that tho country has a right to ask of us.
But once in a while, when the boys march, down the
street with flags flashing in the sunlight1 aridr drums
throbbing, we get a tightening of the throat and there's
a moment when the picture blurs. " '.' r ' ?J.
And once in a while as wo read rn account .of how
the "Huns" outraged unprotected wr ien and children,
there wells up a feeling of anger and resentment which
makes us feel like putting our fists through something.
Meanwhile, some of the finest fellows in this country
aro freely giving themselves for service in the trenches
and on the sea and we honor them because-of their readi
ness to serve their -country.
Probably millions of our boys will go o the Front
before the war ends, to do their level best to stop'' the
tido of red ruin and outrageous killing.
But there's ono fact that stands out clear and sharp as we
tako a World-wide view of the war namely, that we've got to
reckon not only with "Kaiser Bill Hohenzollern" but with
"Kaiser John Barleycorn."
Every great general in this war every great strate
gist who has had the courage to face all' the -facts has
pointed out the danger of drink. ' ----.
Lloyd George put it this way: '; "' ' '
"Wo aro lighting Germany, Austria and drink, and as far
as I can soo, the greatest of the tliree deadly foes is drink."
Marshal Joffre said:
"Alcohol, by diminishing tho moral and material strength
or tho army, is a crime against national defense in tho face of
tho oncmy."
"Men with drink in them don't light they brawl." said
Vance Thompson. "It is not boldness men get out of drink.
What they get is tho fuduled logic of tho maniac."
The nations at war very soon discovered who their
real enemy was. It was not the Teuton and the Turk
it was Alcohol.
And so France, England-and Russia have grappled
with their arch enemy but he is putting up the -.biggest
light in his history, for he knows that if he loses but in
this war, he will be played out forever. ' i-
"We are fighting Germany, Austria and Drink,' '
declared Lloyd George - -
Today England's foes are America's foes. We.know
ftoTmrd? firSt tW' but What are we doinff ab0Ut
who Ian 5 5?J Snemy a . It lies with thosmen
not holS SI K 1 he Frnt in Europe' the women can
nvirn?rL as nurses or welfare workers Vo enlist now to
overthrow our common foe. "
Can we cojint on you? .
If you believe that tho traffic in Alcohol -
does more harm than good HELP STOP IT!
Strengthen America Campaign
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