CALIFORNIA. THE "Golden State," which has derived its title from the auriferous nature of its mountains, will get another claim to the title from its enthusiastic interest in its schools, if the able legislation, the energetic care of its Superintendent, and the prospective value of the funds set apart for schools, are any guarantees for the future.. The Constitution, which was ratified by the people in 1849, and under which California became an independent State of the Union, set apart the "proceeds of public lands granted by Congress (6,719,324 acres), estates of persons dying without heirs, and such per cent as Congress shall grant on the sales of lands lying in this State, into a permanent Common School Fund, the interest of which, and the rents of unsold lands, shall be inviolably appropriated to the support of common schools." The same Constitution required the election, once in three years, of a Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the establishment, by law, "of a system of common schools, to be taught at least three months in each year." Following out this requirement, in 1851, the legislature established a State Board of Education, created the office of County Superintendents, and ordered each town to choose, annually, three persons as Commissioners of Public Schools, with a constable under their direction as a School Marshal. In addition to the income, yet very small, of the fund, a tax of five cents on each hundred dollars of real and personal property was levied, for the maintenance of common schools. But California has not yet recovered from the anomalous character of the first rush of settlement. The people can scarcely be said to be ready for the operation of the system adopted; and the system itself, so says the Superintendent, is too massive and cumbrous, with too much unemployed machinery, and the intervention of too many needless officers, to be well adapted to the wants of the State, in its present undeveloped condition. The present school laws were adopted in 1855. They provide, 1. A Board of Education, consisting of the Governor, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the Surveyor General. 2. A State Superintendent, elected once in three years, to whom are assigned the usual duties of that office. 3. County Superintendents, elected biennially, one in each county. The County Superintendent is required, with other duties, to visit every school in his county once' in each year, to supervise the examination of teachers, to apportion the school moneys according to the number of persons between 4 and 18 years, among such towns, cities, and school districts as shall have maintained a common school for three months during the previous year, and to present an annual report to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, exhibiting an abstract of all the annual reports required by law to be made to him. 4. School Trustees, three in each district, elected annually. This Board has the control of the school property of the district, is required to examine teachers, giving suitable certificates to such as are deemed qualified, such certificates being revocable at the will of the Trustees, to employ and pay the teachers, to visit, by one of their number, every school once in each month, and, finally, to make an annual report in detail to the County Superintendent, giving all the accessible statistics of the schools in their charge. It should be observed that each city, town, or township in this State, until otherwise determined, will constitute one school district. 5. A Marshal for each district, whose duty it is to make the annual enumeration of the white persons between the ages of four and eighteen years, stating the names of the children, and of their parents or guardians, and presenting the result in a written report, under oath, to the County Superintendent. By this act, each county is authorized to levy a tax not exceeding ten cents on one hundred dollars, for the support of schools, and for providing libraries and apparatus. The balance of money deemed requisite for school purposes must be raised by rate-bills, indigent pupils being exempted from the payment of such bills. "No common school - shall receive any moneys, benefits, or immunities under the provisions of this act, unless such school shall be instructed by a teacher or teachers duly examined, approved, and employed by competent and legal authority." "No teacher shall be entitled to any compensation or salary for services rendered, unless such teacher shall have been duly employed by competent authority, nor unless such teacher shall have had, during the whole time of such service, a certificate of competency and approval, as required by this act, bearing date within one year next before the services aforesaid shall have been rendered; nor unless such teacher shall have made report, in manner and in form as shall be prescribed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction." The prospective value of the School Fund has been estimated as high as $40,000,000. But a very inconsiderable portion of this vast amount has yet been realized; and, consequently, the schools are most inadequately supported; and that, at a time, as the Superintendent remarks, most of all important, when the settled habits of the State are forming. The number of children in the State is small; but, less than one-fourth of these attend any school, public or private! The protests and persuasions of such reports, as the State Superintendent [Hon. PAUL K. HUBBS] has presented, can scarcely, however, fail of producing some effect in due time; especially with a people whose legislation has been so true and valuable. From the Report just alluded to, 1856, the following summary of statistics has been derived. - Whole number of persons reported, between the ages of 4 and 18 years, 26,170. Average attendance at school, 6,422. Number of schools, 217; of teachers, 311. Average length of 239 schools reported, nearly 5 months. Aggregate amount expended for school purposes, excepting for libraries, $288,015.41. Amount for libraries and apparatus, 968.47. [The cost of school-houses is included in the aggregate amount, which averages, as it is, more than $11 for each person reported between the ages of 4 and 18 years.] By the United States' Census, 1850, California, then a new State, scarcely organized, contained 5,235 adults, unable to read and write,- 2,318 native, and 2,917 foreign; or 1 to every 17 persons in the State. Only 1 of every 93.2 persons attended school during the preceding year; a fact of no significance, because the early immigration was almost exclusively of adults, without their families. In 1849, there was only one very common school, and that one was in San Francisco, with 25 pupils. In 1855, there were 311 schools, with an average attendance of 6,422 pupils. And this change is a result chiefly due to the presence of many persons of school age now, who were not in the State in 1850. CITY OF WASHINGTON. THIS city, the capital of the United States, and nowhere included under the statements already given, requires a brief notice. A system of public education has been gradually developing and maturing since 1808, when the first school was opened. Originally, the plan only embraced the education of indigent children at public expense. Subsequently, the plan was enlarged to admit other pupils upon payment of a quarterly tuition-fee of fifty cents each. The appropriations of Congress still continued to be limited in amount, and unsuited to the exigency. Meanwhile, the pupils increased in numbers, and more pressing demands were brought to the notice of the Trustees. In 1842, the plan was proposed, founded upon the failure. of past expedients to educate only one-fourth of the indigent children, to open the schools to all, to be enjoyed like the air, or the use of the highway. But not much was accomplished until 1848, when a new City Charter, containing a provision for a school-tax, was granted by Congress. Since then, "the schools of Washington have been conducted essentially on the same principles as those in the larger towns of Massachusetts. They are open freely to all white children, in the order of application [the school accommodations not serving for all applicants], over the age of six years." They are under the charge of a Board of Trustees, chosen by the City Council; and supported partly by the income of a small fund, but principally by an annual tax. PUBLIC EDUCATION IN CANADA. IN Upper Canada, the management of the school-system is distributed as follows: 1. The Council of Public Instruction (of which the Chief Superintendent is a member, ex officio), appointed by the Crown. The Council recommends the textbooks, makes all necessary regulations for the organization and control of the common schools, for the examination of teachers, and the establishment of libraries. 2. The Chief Superintendent has the direct supervision of the Model and Normal Schools, and discharges the other duties usually appertaining to such an office. 3. The County Councils, appointed by the Provincial Council. 4. County Boards of Instruction, composed of the Local Superintendents, to examine and license teachers. 5. Local Superintendents, appointed by the County Councils, to visit each school twice a year, and lecture once in each year in each school-section on education. The Local Superintendent may be appointed by the Council either for one or more townships, or for a whole county. 6. School Trustees (three) in each section. The schools are called Common Schools, for elementary school instruction, and Grammar Schools, for the higher English branches, and the Latin and Greek languages; a nomenclature once in use in New England, and especially in Boston. The two Model Schools contain 420 pupils; and it is said of them, that "the desks and chairs, which have been in constant use for four years by children from 5 to 16 years of age, are without blots or marks!" a fact which almost answers for success in other directions. The |