Every one of the northern states has its common schools. Before the war, Kentucky, Missouri, and Louisiana hail each sonic kind of school-system; at various points throuelr. out the south, particular towns had established schools, always after the m«le1 set in the northern states. The new state of Western Virpnia has passed a sAthool law since the conclusion of the war. In the northern states, besides the endowments above described— both of which are possessed by most of the states—every state possesses a school-fund arising loon various sources—sale of lands, taxation, penalties, and forfeitures—which is usually vested either in the state legislature or in a board of educatiou. In one or two of the states, the income of this fund is considerable, but in general it is small. It is usually, hut not in all the states, applied solely to the support of public schools, or of the normal schools which help to provide them with teachers. Apart from the influence exercised by means of this fund, the state usually promotes public instruction only by its legislation, by which it requires or enables local bodies to make certain provision for the education children within their jurisdiction. Everywhere, the law leaves much, and usually the practice leaves everything, to the local bodies; and these come short of, or exceed the legal requirements according to the local interest in education and ability to pay for it. It is through the interest of the municipalities in education that very emple provision is made in the towns; it is through the force of example, and in deference to educational experience, that a certain uniformity of system prevails. There is a close approach to uniformity both in the law and in the practice of the several states; and a description of the system of one state will be approximately true of that of other states. The Massachusetts system is fittest to he selected for description, as being the oldest, the most celebrated, that which on our side of the Atlantic is most identified with the et mi nion schools, and perhaps on the whole the most successful. Some of the principal aria tions from it will be noted.
In 1642-20 years after the landing of the Massachusetts colonists passed it law requiring every citizen, under a penalty of 20s., to teach his children at.d apprentices, or have them taught, to read perfectly the English language. Five years later, they passed another law, requiring, under penalty, every township containing 50 householders to support :Me:t•ller to teach their children to read and write; requiring every township containing 100 householders to maintain a grammar school capable cif fitting youths for the university. The present law is different, if not less liberally con ceived. The change was made by numerous steps, and was probably forced ou by the circumstances of the community. The law, as it now stands in the revised statutes of the state, provides that in every township the inhabitants shall maintain for at least six months in the year a sufficient number of schools for all the children of the township. The teachers are to be of competent ability and of good morals, and they are to teach orthography, reading, writing, English grammar, geography, arithmetic, the history of the United States, mid good behavior. Other subjects—algebra, vocal music, drawing, physiology, and hygiene—are to be taught or not at the discretion of the local committee. Every township may, and every township containing 500 householders must, also main tain fur ten months in the year a school which shall give instruction in general bookkeeping, surveying, geometry, natural philosophy, chemistry, botany, the civil polity of 31aseichusetts and of the United States, and the Latin language. And in every town ship containing 4.000 inhabitants, the teacher must be competent to instruct in the Go ek and French languages. in astronomy, geology, rhetoric, logic, intellectual nod moral sciences, and political economy. Moreover, any township may establish schools for children over 15 years of age, determining the instruction to he given. and appropriate money for their support. The compulsory part of the law is supported by penalties. but
it is said that there would be difficulty in enforcing them; at any rate, they are nit en forced. It is &so provided that every child between 8 and 14 must be sent to school for at least 12 weeks in a year: the penalty for breach of this provision is $20, but the idea of enforcing it seems never to have been entertained; its existence even is not generally known. The law does not permit school fees, or, as they are called in America, rate bills. There seems to he no fund arising from waste lands in Massachusetts; and the township raises the necessary funds by a tax upon property—the personal property of the inhabitants and the capitalized value of their real property situated within the town ship. The amount of the rate is by the law left wholly undetermined: it is determined by the householders at their annual meeting. The state endeavors to influence the town ships to make a liberal provision by means of the school find, ot und. a share of which given to every township which has made its returns to the board of education, and has spent not less than at the rate of $1- per head for all the children of the township. The school fund contribution is very small—less than 25 cents for every child; but it is said to have an excellent influence upon the rural townships. No doubt, the publication of the returns made to the board of education tends to spur on the backward districts.
The management and control of all the public schools of a township are placed in the hands of a schoo•eommittee, consisting of any number divisible by three; the members of this committee hold office for three years, and one-third of them are elected annually at the annual meeting of the township. The committee have the supervision of the schools; and it is among their duties to see that no book calculated to favor the tenets of r tees-. eet:..e.e: any particular sect of Christians shall be used in the schools, and to require the daily reading of some portion of the Bible in the common English version. Any township by its public meeting, or is city by its city-council, may require the committee to appoint a paid superintendent of schools: when this is not done, the members of the committee receive a small allowance for the time during which they are engaged upon the school. affairs. But, moreover, any township may, at a meeting called fur the purpose, resolve to divide itself into districts for the support of its schools. If this be done, the town ship names for each district a " prudential committee," consisting either of one or Of three persons, resident within the district, which is charged with providing and keeping in repair the school-house, at the expense of the district, and, if the township so deter mines, with the duty of selecting and contracting with the teachers. The district deter mines the amount to lie raised by it for the building or repair or furnishing of its school: this is collected by the township collector, and handed over to the district-committee. The school-committee retains its functions of management, except so far as they have been made over to the districts; and hence, there is a double mnuagement of the schools, which is found to be attended with inconveniences. The division into districts, too, is said to have led to an unnecessary multiplication of schools in country places: people scheme to have the township so divided that there may be a school in their neighbor hood—there am, therefore, more schools than are needed, and more than can be main tained in efficiency. The school-committee—in cities, the school-superintendent examines the teacher before his appointment, and grants him a certificate, which remains in force for a certain time. There are three classes of cerfiticate—one valid for six months, another for twelve, a third for two years. The common schools of a township are open to all children resident therein between five and fifteen years of age: none are to be exchuled on account of race, color, or religions opinions; and it has been held that a child unlawfully excluded may recover damages therefor in an action of tort.