Newspapers / The University of North … / May 24, 1922, edition 1 / Page 1
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The news in this publi cation is released for the press on receipt. the university of north CAROLINA NEWS LETTER Published Weekly by the University of North Caro lina for its University Ex tension Division. M4Y 24, 1922 CHAPEL HILL, N. C. VOL, VIU, NO. 27 Bditorial Board t fc,- 0. Branson, B. H, Hobbs, Jr., L. R. Wib°on. E. W. Kntght, D. D. Carroll, J, B. Bullitt, H. W. Odum. Entoreii as second-class matter November 11,11114, at the Postoffice at Chapel Hill, N. C., under the act of August HI, 1918. A BOOK FOR YOU Here is Romance! It is realism shot through with the golden stuff of dreams. It shows you how the hard facts of life can be made to march toward the con summation of a great ideal. It goes into the back-breaking routine of coun try life and the fallacious glitter of city streets. -It tells how brotherly love glorifies material prosperity. It ex plains how men have made their mil lions, and how others may escape from poverty. It pictures a wonder State throwing off the garments of a home- spun civilization and putting on the soft raiment of machine-made wealth. It shows how the swift transformation can be a blessing to all, a handicap to none. It sounds a trumpet blast of warning to those who build up towns on the shifting sands of an impover ished countryside. With the testimony of figures and the eloquence of facts, it tells how men and women may simul taneously grow in power and happiness, in wealth and wisdom. It is a book for you. It is a book for every North Carolinian who hopes to advance his own interests and to serve his fellows. Without it, you are played upon by influences which you do not understand. With it, you can use for your own good the state-wide develop ments and possibilities which it des cribes and prophesies. Its title is North Carolina: Industrial and Urban. It is the new year-book of the North Carolina Club at the State University. Its nineteen chapters are the fruits of the work of professors, scientists, research students, and practical busi ness men who have studied, investiga ted and worked on the theory that “an acre in Tarheelia is worth a whole prov ince in Utopia’' and that every acre in North Carolina can be, and must be, made worth far more tomorrow than it is today. Here are some of the sub-titles under which you will read sections of this gripping story of North Carolina’s mag ic present and her enchanted future: Industrial Progress in North Carolina, Wealth and Livelihood in Carolina, Ur ban Carolina, The Cityward Drift, The Small Town, Small-Town Development in North Carolina, Carolina Chambers of Commerce, Community Life and Or ganization, Social Effort in Factory Cen ters, Municipal Utilities. Write to Chapel Hill for this book. It goes to North Carolinians free of charge. Reading it, you will see how easily North Carolina may, in her up ward climb, avoid the mistakes which in other states have meant tragedy to some sections of their populations. You will catch a new vision of North Caro- ina’s greatness today, feel a new thankfulness for the glittering oppor tunities with which she surrounds you. There is inspiration in those pages. They teach you how to go up and for ward on the rushing tide of North Caro lina’s wealth and power.—Asheville Citizen. STATE-AID IN ENGLAND If home or farm ownership is essen tial to a responsible citizenship, and if the masses of people aspiring to home or farm ownership are unable to acquire it under existing circumstances, is it the duty of the government to open a way for them out of tenancy into owner ship? At the last meeting of the North Carolina Club at the University Miss Katherine Woodrow, of South Carolina, explained how the Home Office had found it expedient to lend state-aid to farmers in England, Ireland, and Scot land. England's main tenancy troubles be gan in the eighteenth century, when the factory system became established and manufacture in the homes was no longer profitable. The factory system moved farmers in three directions. Some of the small farmers were ab sorbed by the large industries of the towns, others fixed their attention more firmly upon agriculture and became prosperous, while others were in time reduced to the rank of agricultural la borers. There was also another influ ence. Many who had made fortunes in manufacture or commerce desired to own country homes and these newly rich city people purchased farms not for profit but for the pleasure of being accounted gentlemen and writing Esq. after their names. This led to the buy ing out of many land-owning farmers in the vicinity of the large centers of wealth. Thus, in various ways, the reorganization of industry in England at the close of the eighteenth century tended to reduce the number of farm ers who owned the land they cultivated and to increase the number of peasant farmers. Other social and economic conditions augmented this situation de cade after decade, until by the close of the third quarter of the nineteenth cen-, tury land-ownership by' the few and land-orphanage for the many had be come the rule in England. Such conditions produced a situation that called for the re-establishment of peasant proprietors on a safe business basis as a self-defensive public necessi ty in the British Isles. The first law designed to relieve the situation was the Small-Holdings Act of 1892, which authorized the various county councils to acquire land, improve it, and sell it to the small farmers and day labor ers on favorable terms. This and sub sequent legislation enabled over 130,000 individuals in a period of six years to acquire homes of their own. State-aid has also been advantageously estab lished in Ireland and Scotland. Miss Woodrow’s paper on this subject represents a chapter of the Club’s study of the tenancy problem and will appear in full in the 1921-22 edition of the North Carolina Club Year-Book.— J. G. Gullick. UNIVERSITY NEWS LETTER Probably some of our readers wonder why we so often—probably about once a week — quote from the University News Letter. It is hardly necessary to explain it to those who receive copies of the News Letter and know the great stock of valuable information about our state to be found in it each week. There is no publication that comes any where near to the News Letter in tell ing about the vital needs of the state. It is edited by experienced men, and among its contributors are men and women who spend much time in study ing conditions and compiling data about the state’s progress and deficiehcies. We consider it of inestimable value in find ing out just what the state is doing in every line of endeavor, whether reli gious, social, or political. One week we find out about our religious growth; another we learn what is being done for education; then we are told about our manufacturing enterprises; our agricultural advancement and faults are laid bare; various departments of county, city, and state government are paraded before us, showing their good features and defects; schools, banks, churches, roads, live stock, crops, fac tories, finance, and many other subjects are treated in an exhaustive manner, leaving little for the searcher after true conditions in this state to look for. The News Letter should be read by every man and woman in North Carolina. We say that without hesitation. If means could be found to place a copy of it in every home in the state for a period of one year, we believe it would do more to stimulate the people to renewed ef fort at bettering their condition than any other agency. It is admitted that all great movements looking toward improving economic, social, and religious conditions must go through a campaign of educating the people before success can be attained. There is no better means of educating the people of North Carolina to their needs, their possibili ties,and their short-comings than the News Letter. It presents conditions in a plain manner, understandable by all, and backs up its statements by, facts. Some means should be devised for giving the publication a state-wide circulation, but until that means is found, we propose to aid all we can in spreading the information that the News Letter contains about the state, hoping in that way to do our bit toward putting North Carolina nearer the head of the union of states in all matters for the peace, comfort, and prosperity of her people.—Durham Herald. TAX WEALTH IN CAROLINA How rich is North Carolina? It is im possible to say what the grand total of actual or true wealth is in this or any other state. Actual wealth and wealth Released week beginning May 22 KNOW NORTH CAROLINA Vocational Education in North Carolina Through the activities of the State Board of Vocational Education, op portunity is offered in all parts of North Carolina not only to the youth but also to adult men and women for training in home economics, agri culture, and" trades and industries. In addition, the physically handi capped men and women are offered an opportunity for training in the voca tion for which they are best suited and are assisted in securing employ ment through which they are made productive and independent members of society. The number of high schools in North Carolina iri which agricultural instruction is offered through this board, increased from 21 in 1918 to 66 at present; the number of classes from 36 to 125; and the number of pupils from 323 to 1756. In addition to this, and equally important, are the 68 part-time classes for adults in which 2500 adult farm men and women are taking special training for their vocation. In the field of home economics in struction is being given at the pres ent time to 1940 pupils as compared with 100 pupils during the first year of the work. Evening classes are offered in home economics in 33 com munities. Nearly 2500 adults are receiving training in trade and industrial edu cation, 2000 of these being in even ing classes and the balance being in part-time classes. There are St pres ent 180 classes with 118 teachers, providing instruction for employed persons 16 years of age and over, these classes dealing with practically all the dominant phases of industrial life in North Carolina. All of these activities are conduc ted by the State Board for Vocation al Education, co-operating with coun ty and city officials. Through them adults and youths of the state are finding opportunity for developing their physical and mental resources and increasing their usefulness to society.~T. E. Browne, State Direc tor, Vocational Education. as it appears on the tax books are two very different things. Ten years ago the Census Bureau re ported the true wealth of North Caro lina to be one billion eight hundred mil lion dollars. Which was a billion dol lars more than we modestly admitted on the tax lists. In 1919 we confessed to the sheriffs that we were worth $1,099,000,000 in round numbers; in 1920 the total ran up to $3,158,000,000; in 1921 the total fell back to $2,575,000,000. Of this total 110 million dollars was listed by the negroes of the state. Which means that bn an average the state over the negroes pay one dollar of every twenty-five dollars of the gener al property tax for county purposes. Toward state expenses they pay nearly nothing, because their individual prop erties, incomes, inheritances, and busi nesses are small. No State Property-Tax Of course everybody knows or ought to know that the taxpayer in North Carolina does not now pay any property taxes whatsoever to support state de partments, institutions, and enterprises. Our taxes on general property go en tirely to support local town and county governments, and these local taxes are levied under state authority by locally elected town and county officers. What a sorry plight this simple fact lands us in appears when the tables of (1) per capita country wealth, (2) white pet capita taxable wealth, and (3) county tax rates are put side by side and the significances are spelled out one by one. However, our particular purpose is to sift out the fundamental facts and pass them on to the folks with a minimum of comment. Rich and Poor Counties The per capita white taxables of the state range from $235 in Dare to $3,423 in Scotland. The state average is $1,- 009—with Pamlico, Camden, Ashe, and Graham left out of account for lack of the necessary information in detail. See the table elsewhere in this issue. Sixty-seven counties are above the state average—ten are more than double and Scotland is more than treble the state average. Twenty-nine counties are below the state average. Five are worth less than $600 per white inhabitant—at least on the tax books. They are Avery, Cherokee, Wilkes, McDowell, and Dare, in the order named. The richest county in per capita white taxables is not a manufacturing but an agricultural county—not Forsyth or Mecklenburg or Durham, but Scotland. Among these twenty-nine poorest counties in tax wealth are four that rank high in farm wealth. They are Sampson, Alleghany, Yadkin, and Wa tauga. Sampson ranks 11th as a farm county, but only 73rd as a taxpaying county; Alleghany falls from 9th to 76th, Yadkin from 25th to 89th and Wa tauga from 33rd to 89th. Wayne is the richest farm county in the state, but When it comes to paying taxes it falls to the 14th place, and Johnston falls from the 10th to the 58th place. Scotland and Alleghany Scotland operates on the basis of high tax valuations and a low tax rate. It stands 6th in per capita farm wealth, 1st in per capita white taxables, and 99th in tax rate for general county purposes and necessary expense. Alleghany stands 9th in per capita farm wealth 76th in per capita white taxables, and 100th in county tax rate. On such a basis it is hard to see how Alleghany is ever going to rank high in public schools, public roads, and pub lic health progress. Dare and Alleghany Dare county has another notion. It is the poorest county in the state in per capita farm wealth and in white per capita taxables, but the county tax rate is 80 cents per hundred dollars of listed TAX WEALTH IN CAROLINA COUNTIES Per White Inhabitant in 1921 Based (1) on the total property listed for taxation in each county by the whites, according to the State Tax Commission and the County Registers of Deeds; (2) divided by the total white population of each county as reported in the 1920 cen sus. I The white per capita average for taxable property in the state was $1009; in Scotland, the richest county in the state in per capita white taxables, it was $3,423; in Dare, the poorest county in this particular, it was $235. County tax rates for general purposes and necessary expenses, in next week’s issue. Paul D. Herring, Sampson County Department of Rural Social Economics, University of North Carolina Rank County White Per Cap. , Rank County White Per Cap. Taxables Taxables , 1 Scotland $3,423 49 Gates $1,240 2 Durham 2,764 50 Cleveland.... 1,219 3 Craven 2,761 51 Orange 1,199 4 Forsyth 2,711 52 Caswell 1,187 5 New Hanover.... 2,384 53 Bladen 1,143 6 Wilson 2,283 54 Tyrrell 1,140 7 Mecklenburg 2,258 56 Harnett 1,112 8 Pitt 2,195 56 Lee 1,109 9 Guilford 2,162 57 Cnrrit.nr'k. 1 087 10 Edgecombe 2,030 58 Johnston 1,084 11 Hoke 1,973 59 Catawba 1,082 12 Richmond 1,966 60 Davie 1,062 13 Halifax 1,962 61 Onslow 1,061 14 Wayne .. 1,948 62 Henderson ... 1,056 15 Lenoir 1,921 63 Rutherford . 1,054 16 Pasquotank 1,882 64 Franklin 1,048 17 Cumberland 1,836 65 Swain ....' 1,027 18 Chow^ 1,816 66 Carteret 1,Q16 19 Wake 1,721 67 Davidson 1,009 20 Warren 1,693 68 Lincoln 989 21 Buncombe , 1,689 69 Caldwell 982 22 •V ance 1,684 70 Columbus 981 23 Robeson 1,651 71 Transylvania . 979 24 Gaston 1,642 72 Brunswick.... 958 25 Greene 1,603 73 Mitchell 936 26 Moore 1,592 73 Sampson 936 27 Martin 1,574 75 Polk 929 28 Washington .... 1,564 76 Alleghany .... 925 29 Anson 1,663 77 Union 918 80 Granville 1,526 78 Haywood 882 31 Beaufort 1,517 79 Chatham 871 32 Hyde 1,612 80 Macon 849 33 Cabarrus 1,499 81 J ackson 832 33 Hertford 1,499 81 Surry 832 35 Northampton .... 1,454 83 Madison 782 36 Person 1,414 84 Burke 718 37 Rowan 1,395 85 Randolph 709 38 Iredell 1,394 86 Yancey 693 39 Duplin 1,392 87 Stokes 692 40 Mpntgomery 1,385 87 Alexander .... 692 41 Pender 1,354 89 Yadkin 627 42 Jones 1,340 89 Watauga .... 627 43 Bertie 1,321 91 Clay 605 44 Perquimans 1,285 92 Avery 595 45 Alamance 1,270 93 Cherokee 570 46 Nash ........ 1,269 94 Wilkes 503 47 Stanly 1,255 95 McDowell.... 431 48 Rockingham 1,249 96 Dare 286 The counties omitted for lack of de tailed reports from county officers are property, against 41 cents in Alleghany. On top of this are the special district school tax rates. Every white school district but one in Dare is a special school tax district. In Alleghany only four of the 39 white school districts levy special school taxes, or so it was in 1920. The policy of Dare is the best possible thing for the children, no mat ter what it costs. • Next week the counties will be ranked from high to low according to county tax rates for general purposes and ne cessary expenses.' The three tables (1) per capita country wealth, (2) per capita white taxables, and (3) county tax rates, when put side by side for comparison, show three outstanding facts in our civilization (1) areas of wealtn and willingness to spend it for the com mon good—on highways, schools, public health and public welfare—in short, progressive hopeful areas, (2) areas of wealth and unwillingness, wealth and so cial povercy—areas of poorly supported churches and schools, poor roads and stagnant public spirit, and (3) areas of little wealth and great willingness, pov- i erty of purse but exceeding richness of soul. . Meantime, there are 60remote country counties in North Carolina. Nineteen of them are steadily losing country pop ulation. And the same thing is true of 308 townships in 90 counties or nearly a third of all the townships in the' state. Schools, roads, health, store-keeping, and banking are all in peril in these areas of social apathy. Tight-fisted citizenship solves no prob lem of the public good anywhere. Truthfulness in listing properties, generosity in public enterprises, and efficiency in expending tax moneys are fundamental matters. Not how mucii taxes we pay but how much the community gets back in clear public benefit is the essential thing. County government is now costing a- round 30 million dollars a year or nearly twice as much as state government ever cost. Like Abe Lincoln’s rat hole, it is worth looking into. Equity, honesty, and efficiency in pub lic finance would quickly put North Carolina at the top of the column of American commonwealths. ^ We’ve got the goods, but we do not know it, and still less do other states know it. Pamlico, Ashe, Camden, and Graham.
The University of North Carolina News Letter (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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May 24, 1922, edition 1
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