New-York daily tribune., 1844-02-08
THE T r | B u n E .
common schools and School Libraries.


Snseiai Report Common School Libraries Prepared
N pursuance Of ihs direction Of the StGe Superinend
stof Common Schools Of the State Of NeaD York. Al
sany @ Csrroll & Cook Printers 10 the assembly: 1881
Few Of our readers are aware, probably, Of the
fnll extent and practical working of our admra
ble system of Common School Education. We
are informed by the Annual Report of the State Su
nenntendent, now before us, that there are 10,S76
School Districts in the State, in which upward of
$4,000 children are instructed by competent and
approved teachers for an average period Of eight
months during the year, and we are quite conf
dent that the whole number taught in Colleges,
Academies, and select schools of every denomin
alton does not exceed 00000 Of this latter
number, it is reasonable TO infer that at least
hafhave passed through regular course of no.
yitiate in the Common Schools. The inhabt-
ants Of each districts elect three Trustees, who
hold their Offices for three years-one going out
each year. Each town is provided with Town
Superintendent of Common Schools. annually
elected by the People at Town Meeting, whose
duty it is periodically to visit and inspect all the
Schools in his Town, to examine and license
teachers and to receive and disburse the public
money applicable to the payment Of teachers
wages and the purchase Of books for district
library. Each county has a County Superin-
tendent of Common Schools, biennially chosen
by the Board of Supervisors, who exercises a
general supervision over all the schools of the
county-visits and inspects each annuay-has
jurisdiction IN the first instance on appeal over
all controversies arising under the school act
grants permanent licenses to teachers-and re-
ports annually to the State Superintendent. the
results as well of his own observation and labors,
as Of those of the Town Superintendents, who are
required annually to report to him, and who de-
rive their information from reports annually made
to them by the Trustees of the several districts,
and from their personal examination of the affairs
of each. The grand result of this harmonious,
simple and admirable machinery, is annually
communicated to the Legislature by the State
Superintendent of Common Schools, who pre-
sides over, regulates and directs the whole. First,
then we have the Democratic patform-the in
habitants Of the several districts-next the Trus-
tees who administer the affairs of each, employ
teachers, provide and keep in repair the school
house, levy taxes, rate-bis, &c. upon the taxa
bic property of the district to meet the expense
not provided for from the public lunds-and then
IN regular gradatons, the Town, County and
otate superintendent. The sum Of 1925, 900 is
annually apportioned and paid from the Com
mon School Fund, to the several counties and
towns IN proportion to the population of each ;
an equal amount is required to be raised by taxa
lion upon inc inhabitants and the aggregate
amount, augmented ny voluntary taxation and
local funds to upwards OF ONE MILLION of n.,.
LARS is annually apportioncd all,vns the several
school districts in proportion to the number of
children IN each, of a proper age to attend the
Common Schools. or this sum $4,000 is
annually required to be expended in the purchase
of books suitable for a District Library; and the
residue in the payment of the wages Of duly ap-
proved teachers. There are already $4,000
volumes in these Libraries and the report of Mr..
RANDALL, the Superintendent of Cortland county,
before us is principally confined to an elucidation
of the general principles by which the officers
and inhabitants of the several districts should be
guided in the selection of works for these Lii
braries.
OF the latter document, it is but simple justice
to say that it is an able and a comprehensive ex-
position of the great subject to which 1t relates
worthy of the established reputation of the author
as scholar, a writer and an educationist-and
containing the most liberal and expanded views
of intellectual and moral culture in all its diver
slhed forms. The conclusions to which he ar
rvcs in reference to the class of Books proper for
District Libraries, under the various heads OF
Juvenile, Sectarian, Political Biographical and
Historical, Works of Fiction, Poetry, and Mis-
cellaneous Books, are endorsed and approved by
the State Superintendent, and may therefore be
regarded as authoritative Under the head OF
Juvenile Books" some very sensible and prac-
teal suggestions are thrown out relative to The
eSpedency of providing for every Library more
liberal infusion of works 'of class equal to
Parley's Magazine or the Rollo's Books The
subject of "Sectarian Books is handled with
power and discrimination which we have sell
dom seen equaled and after a thorough ex-
animation and discussion OF the various prlncl-
pies applicable to this class of works, the follow
Ing general rules are laid down, and may be re-
gasded, under the general endorsement OF the
State Superintendent as settled, viz:
l. No works ,orittea professedly to uphold
or attack any sect or creed in our Country, claim
ing to be religious one, shall be tolerated In the
School Libraries.
80. Standard Works on other topics shall no,
be excluded, because they incidentally and md
rec'ty betray the religious opinions Of then
authors
SO. Works apo,oedly on Other topics which
abound in direct and unreSerped attacks on on
detences Of the character Of any religious sect
OF those which hold UP 0nQ religious body Il