>
The news in this publi
cation is released for the
press on receipt.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA
\
NEWS LETTER
Published Weekly by the i
University of North Caro
lina for the University Ex
tension Division.
AUGUST 26, 1925
CHAPEL HILL, N C.
THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS
VOL. XI, NO. 41
Editorial Boardt E. C. Branson. S. H. Hobbs, Jr.. L. E. Wilson. E. W. Knieht, D. D. Carroll, J. B. Bullitt. H. W. (
Entered as second-class matter November 14. 1914. at the Postoffice at Chapel Hill. N. C.. under the act of August 24. 1912
JX. WHERE THE TAXPAYER’S MONEY GOES
A. Otitiine
10.
Schools:
Administration.
Teachers’ salaries.
Payment on buUaings.
Transportation.
Fuel and janitor service.
Supplies.
Roads;
Construction of new roads.
Maintenance.
Interest and payment on indebt
edness.
Construction.of bridges.
New equipment.
Courts;
Prisoners:
Are they in idleness?
Can they be made self-support
ing?
Is there a convict camp? Does
it pay?
Health Work:
Its results can not be calculated
in dollar.s.
Study effect o,n schools, on crime,
on poverty.
Welfare Work:
Results intangible.
^Administration of poor relief.
Child labor.
County home. Compare inmate
cost with that in other coun
ties.
Elections:
Is there unnecessary expense?
Printing and supplies:
Compare printing charges with
those in other counties.
Compare prices charged the
county with prices charged in
dividuals.
Are supplies wasted?
Salaries:
Is each officer busy?
Is he fitted for the work he is
attempting to do?
Miscellaneous:
Examine mis'cellaneous expendi
tures.
Is anything concealed therein?
E. Explanation
State taxes in North Carolina amount
to about 14 million dollars a year, coun
ty and school taxes to 34 million dol
lars, city and town taxes to something
over 20 million dollars. The personal
income taxes paid to the federal gov
ernment amcfunt to five-and-a-half mil
lion dollar.s. I The people of the state
are therefor^ paying around 74 million
dollars a year in direct taxes, or an
average of $138 per family. If we add
to this the indirect taxes paid the fed
eral governmeat in customs and excise
duties and the income taxes paid, by
corporations the total would be much
greater.
Of course, this tax burden is not
evenly distributed. Less than one per
cent of the people of the state pay a
federal income tax, and the percent
age which pays a state income tax k
about the same. In other words, only
one family in twenty pays either a
state or federal income tax, and this
family is usually an urban family. The
rank and iuo of the people, especially
those who live in the country, contrib
ute nothing toward the support of the
state government except what they
pay in automobile and gasoline taxes,
all of which goes info the highway
fund. It is impossible to determine
how much an individual pays in federal
taxes, but if he uses tobacco he pays
considerably more than he otherwise
would.
The bulk of the^ taxes paid by the
average taxpayer are locally levied and
locally expended. If the taxes are
burdensome it cannot be charged to
national or state extravagance. .Tiie
P2ople are voting taxes on themselves
for strictly local purposes and they see
the money expended before their eyes.
That is-an encouraging fact, for re
sponsibility and control thus rest with
the local community. If taxes are to
be materially lowered in North Caro-
fina, it is in these local units, closest
borne to the taxpayer, that the lower
ing must be done, and it must be done
by or through the direct influence of
the taxpayer.
High taxes are not necessarily an
evil. Taxes applied to the construc
tion of good highways or the erection
of modern school buildings enhance the
value of real estate and are therefore
in the nature of an investment. Taxes
spent for police protection, education,
public health, and poor relief make life
pleasanter and safer for the whole com
munity and probably reduce one’s pri
vate expenses by atleast the amount of
his tax. Most of the causes clamoring
for support through taxation are legiti
mate and worthy, but, even so, there
is a limit to the taxpaying capacity of
a community and it cannot safely be
exceeded.
The accompanying outline suggests
soipe of the major expenditures of
local government. It would be well to
ascertain and show graphically just
what portion of the taxpayer’s dollar
goes for each purpose: It may be
found tjiat some departments are yield
ing far more return in service for each
dollar expended than other depart
ments. It must be remembered, how-
•ever, that the results of education,
welfare work, health work and other
social activities are less tangible than
roads, bridges, and buildings and must
not be underestimated for that rea
son.
C. Questiofis
Does your county publish an annual
financial exhibit?
Is it really an “exhibit” or only a
conglomeration of figures?
Are tlie items so arranged and classi
fied that one exhibit can be compared
with another?
A few counties print the exhibit in
booklet form. Does yours?
What proportion of the total tax levy
goes to the schools? For roads and
bridges? For interest? To apply on
indebtedness? For all other purposes?
What services of county government
could be dispensed with with the least
injury?
If you were delegated to prepare a
budget for your county how would you
proceed?
How much does your county pay into
the state treasury? How much does
it receive from it?
Do fines and forfeitures defray court
costs?
Would it be profitable to have more
frequent sessions of criminal court?
D. Sources of Information
J. G. Armson, Where Taxes
Highest, The Country
June 27, 1926.
University News Letter, March 18,
1925.
The last two financial exhibits of
your county.
The Guilford County Exhibit, 1924.
The New Hanover County Exhibit,
1924.
KNOW NORTH CAROLINA
Educational Progress
In 1900 all public school property
are
Gentleman,
A PRAYER
God give us men who boast of the
money they spend for education. Give
us men who are unashamed to be proud
of vast amounts spent in the transmis
sion to the youth our culture, institu
tions, and things we hold dear to the
human smrit. Give us men who do not
quail berore the unthinking clamor of
greed couched in the man-pleasers’ ap
peal to the selfishness of the crowd.
Give us men whose courage does not.
fail and whose hearts do not flinch be
fore the assault of the self-seekers who
prey on the future generations. Give
us men who will not meet the eager
enthusiasm of our children with nig
gard penury. Give us men whose
answer to the cry of youth is not emp
ty-handedness. Give us men who.se
philosophy of education is something
else than economy. G.od give us men
who are unafraid to spend public money
for the children of the race. Give jas
men who dare to refuse to crueffy
childhood on the cross of poverty. Oh,
jGod, give us men who believe that the
highest function of the wealth of soci
ety is its dedication to the upbringing
of the children of men. God give ufe
men who believe in the race to be.—
Nebraska School Journal.
in North Carolina was valued at
$1,097,564. In 1924 public school
property was valued at nearly sixty
million dollars. In 1899-1900 we
spent all told on public education
$1,062^303. Ifi 1923-24 we spent
$29,747,075. Of the total, expendi
ture $57,4(i0 went for outlay pur
poses in 1899-1900, while in 1923-24
we spent for outlay purposes
$10,668,419.
Triventy-five years ago the average
schoolhouse in North Carolina was
worth $168.66. The average school-
house is now worth more than eight
thousand dollars. In 1900 there
were more than five thousand white
one-teacher schools in North Caro
lina. In 1924 there were 3,633.
In 1899 1900 the average length of
the school term was 70 8 days,
against 143.4 days in 1923-24.
Four hundred thousand children
w.ere enrolled in school in 1900,
against nearly eight hundred thous
and in 1924, Only half of those en
rolled were in average daily atten
dance in 1899-1900, against 72percent
for 1923-24.
In 1900 there were only, 30 public
high schools in the state with a
total enrollment estimated at 2,000.
In 1923-24 there were 738 public
high schools with an enrollment of
63,875 pupils. In this particular the
bulk of the growth has taken place
since 1919. As late as 1916 our
high schools graduated only 1,061
students, while in 1924 our high
schools graduated 6,900 students.
Our educational system has been
functioning long enough for the
high schools to begin to show real
results. The increasing number of
high-school graduates within very
recent years is the most amazing
fact in the educational progress of
the State. Our schools have finally
begun to bear large crops of fruit.
VIII. INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES
neys-general and 69 percent of the
justices of the supreme court. As it
figures it, the college man’s chance for
eminence is 870 to 1 against the non
college man. Even more surprising is
its showing that 277 times as many col
lege men bad amassed wealth as had
non-college men. This proportion is
expected to grow sharply ip the next
fifty years, for the colleges are now
turning their attention^argely to prep
aration for success in business
careers.—Kansas Teacher.
In the article of last week the pro
duction of power from fuel was con
sidered, first in a general way and then
more particularly in connection with the
use of steam engines and turbines.
Internal combustion engines will now
be considered.
In the internal combustion engine
the fuel, gas or some form of oil, must
be vaporized and mixed with the proper
amount of air to insure an explosive
mixture, which is admitted into the
cylinder and ignited. The combustion
of the fuel results in productfig a gas
under hHgh pressure, which does work
directly against the piston, an action
similar to that of steam in the recip
rocating steam engine. Thus the fuel
is burned directly in the cylmder of the
engine, instead of in a separate ap
paratus, as in .the case of boiler and
steam engine. Compared with the
steam plant, the internal combustion
engine eliminates several steps in the
process of transforming heat energy
into work. That is the reason it has a
higher efficiency, which means that it
converts a greater proportion of heat
energy in' the fuel into work. *
Internal combustion engines may be
classified into three types, Otto cycle,
Diesel cycle, an^mixed cycle engines.
In engines operating on the Otto
cycle the fuel and air are thor
oughly mixed before'they are admitted
to the cylinder, wiiere the mixture is
compressed to a moderate pressure, and
burns explosively upon ignition. This
type is the ordinary |#is engine used in
automobile's and airplanes. Small
stationary engines, also, are usually
of this type. Such engines use easily
vaporized liquid fuels, the most com-
moi^ being gasoline and kerosene.
Artificial and natural gas are also used
in stationary engines.
Otto cycle engines are - low in first
costand easy to operate; they are
relatively simple "and of small weight j
per horsepower. However, they are
not as efficient as the other two types
and the cheap fuel oils cannot be used.
The high cost of the fuel they use pre
cludes their adoption in plants of any
appreciable size, unless it be where
natural gas is available.
Diesel cytjle engines use the heavier
liquid fuels, wbichy are difficult to
vaporize and relatively cheap. They
are built in medium and very large
sizes, from 20 to 4,000 horsepower. In
these engines air only is compressed to
a very high pressure, about 500 pounds
per square inch. The fuel is then in
jected into the cjdinder, where it burns
upon contact with the air, the tem
perature of which is su^cient to cause .
ignition because of its high compression.
This burning continues during the
stroke as long as fuel is injected.
The principal advantages of Diesel
engines are high efficiency and capa
bility of utilizing the poorest grades of
liquid fuels. They are not as simple in
construction or operation as the Otto
engine and their fir^cost is high.
Engines operating on the mixed cy
cle include semi-Diesel and oil engines.
They are built in sizes from 10 to 100
horsepower. They burn fuel oils, rang
ing from kerosene to crude oil. In this
type of engine air alone is compressed
to a moderate pressure, 100 to 360
pounds per square inch, and the fuel
injected into the cylinder as in the
Diesel engine. To assi|t in vaporizing
and igniting the fuel, a bulb or plate
in the combustion space retains suffi
cient heat for the purpose.
Compared with Diesel engines, semi-
Diesel and oil engines are simpler and
lighter, their first cost is less, and
operating expenses are lower. Com
pared with Otto cycle engines, they can
utilize cheaper fuel oils and are more
efficient.
Next week steam and internal com--
bustion engines will be compared.—
E. G. Hoefer.
The cost of instruction per white
child enrolled in the 24 largest cities wais
$40.91, against an average of $20.07
per rural white child enrolled.
The urban white schools were oper
ating an average of 176.9 days. The
length of term in the rural white
schools averaged 136 days.
The average rural white schoolhouse
in North Carolina is worth $6,726,
! agahist the city average of $78,704.
I The investment in school property \
^ averages $201.91 per white child in the'
I urban schools, against $63.92 per white
j child in rural schools, or three to one
! in favor of the urban child. It is
interesting to note that more money is
invested in school property per colored
urban child than is invested per white
rural chi]d~$68.78 against'$63"92.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRESS, 1900 to 1924
The folllowing table, based on State School Facts, 'Volume 1, Number 22,
shows the educatioual progress made by North Carolina between 1900 and 1924.
Items
bigger’EDUCATION PAYS
The United States Bureau of Edu
cation brings out some statistics to
bolster up the self-respect' of that
much derided thing; the college
diploma. It points out that although
less than 1 percent all Americans are
college graduates, this 1 percent has
furnished 66 percent of the presidents,
36 percent of the members of congress,
47 percent of the speakers of the
house, 54 percent of the vice presi
dents, 62 percent of the secretaries of
state, 50 percent of the secretaries .of
the treasury, 67 percent of , the attor-
RURAL VS. URBAN SCHOOLS
Volume one, number 22, of State
School Facts gives an interesting and
valuable summary of education'al prog
ress ■ in North Carolina since 1900,
along with a summary of school facts
for the year 1923-24. Urban and rural
schools have made remarkable prog
ress, but they are far apart in attain
ment. North Carolina Is predominantly
rural. A large majority of the future
citizens' of the state are being trained
in rural schools. But the school facili
ties for such children are far behind
those enjoyed by children who attend
urban schools. Witness the following
facts.
In the rural schools there were 2,229
white teachers, or nearly 18 percent of
them all, who have never finished high
school. In the city schools there were
just.52 white teachers whose training
v/as below high-sehool graduation, or
1.31 percent of the white teachers in
urban schools.
The average rural white teacher in
the state had four years at high school
and three-fourths of a year at college.
The average urban white teacher had
four years at high school and nearly
three years at college.v
In the elementary rural schools 71.4
percent of the enrolled children were in
average daily attendance, while in
the city elementary schools 79.9 percent
of the enrolled children were in average
daily attendance,
Total school expenditures
Expenditure current expense
Expenditure capital outlay
Value of school property •
Average value per schoolhouse
Number of log houses
Number of white one-teacher schools
Number of teachers
a. White
b. Cplored
Average monthly salary paid each teacher.
a. White
b. Colored
Average term in days
a. White schools
b. Colored schools..
Average number days in school :...
a. White pupils
b. Colored pupils
Total school population
a. White
b. Colored
Total school enrollment
Total average daily attendance
Percent of population enrolled
Percent of enrbllment in average attend..
Number of public high schools ^
Enrollment in public high schools
Number Sta^-aided rural libraries
Educational appropriations:
a. Public schools, maintenance,
(Improvements
-b. Normal schools'; Maintenance .
1899-1900
1 Improvements.
e. Higher institutions-, Maintenance. .
The average annual salary paid white
'teachers in the 24 largest city schools
was $1,300.86, while the average salary
paid rural white teachers was $668.18,
or only about one-half as much.
Percent illiteracy 10 years and over.
a. White
b. Colored
$1,062,303.71
1,004,903.09
67,400.62.
1,097,564.00.
168.66
1,190
5,047
8,320
5,763
2,667
23.46
24.79
20.48
70.8
73.3
65.3
1923-1924
■i
657,949
439,431
218,618
400,452
206,918
60.9
61.7
’30
’2,000
16,000.00
42,600.00
65,000.00
28.6
19.6
47.6
$29,747,075.84
19,078,666.87 ,
10,668,418.97
59,758,006.00
8,222.03
^53
1,633
21,403 ■■
16,283
6,120
99.93
110.06
64.83
143.4
146.2
134.6
103.3
109.3
89.1
921,315
628,132
293,183
793,046
671,359
86.1
72.0
73S-
63,875
6,070
1,678,760.00
-2,219,000.00
393,000.00
4,796,000.00
1,425,000.00
•■'iJ.l
■'8.2
'24.6
’Estimated. -Two years. Only four are white.
•■'1920.
Based on Census Report.