Public Free Schools!

An 1882 broadside produced by the Readjuster Party (the party that worked to refinance—or "readjust"—the antebellum public debt) compares the number of public schools, students, and teachers under Readjuster rule versus the numbers when the Funders (the party that opposed any reduction of the state debt) were in control of the government.  According to this broadside, the numbers across the board plummeted during the Funders' regime, while there was a steady increase in schools for both white and African American students under Readjuster rule. "Let every Mother read," the broadside suggests, "and by the facts which these figures below establish, determine for herself who are the friends to the Children."