New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-02-03


our municipal establishments, starting from small
beginnings, has attained 20 smsgnifcen; expansion,
involving the annual expenditure Of an 'mmeose
sum Of public money. This system includes t@o
Normal Schools for the further instruction and
qualification Of thO,e already acting as teacnsrs IN
the city schools; Free Academy for boys, in the
nature Of college, ard FAR exceeding the larger
por.ion Of American colleges in tie raUge and value
Of the Instruction afforded; daily school for the
instruction Of females designing to became teach
ers. regarded as tie nucleus of future Free
Academy for feu4ales; school for the instruction
Of coiored pupils Intending 10 become teachers;
for,y-sevea grammar schools for boys, forty SIX
grammar schools for girls, and one hun-
dred end two primary schools and departments,
in which Together have tended during the last
year 1873 eco pupils; Lire schools for colOred chill
dren, AID thirty evening schools open for period
of f,e months ID the year, with al attendance OF
Il coo; without mentioning ten corporate schools
with ; 600 pupils which share portion Of the
public money, though lot forming part OF the
municipal system. In carrying on these schools
upward Of ore Thousand two hundod teachers are
employed. The whole system cost last year over
million of dollsrs For the current year the esti-
mate exc, eds eleven hundred thousand dollars.
While thus, in financial point of view, our
schools have come TO occupy so important posi-
ton. there are other points from which theJ are
entitled still more to I'LL the public eye, and to
attract attention and scrutiny. These schools have
become almost the sole provision for the education
of the children Of the city the children OF the
poor only but Of the Diddlng class as "e, and even
Of the rich. Apart from the vast Importance az
crbel TO them, and not without reasor, as the
absolutely essential means, without the energetic
and Efficient operation Of which-and an operation
too, made to embrace many children ~ho are now
scarcely within its range-we can hardly nope 70
prepare the rising generation 70 carry on success
fully the experiment Of Democratic Government;
apart from this general consideration our public
schools have for the vast majority q New-York
parents a more personal, immediate aud pressing
Importance since it is almost exclusively "a these
schools that we must lock for that education essen
tal to enable cur Chi dren to enter respectfully upon
their dutes as citizens aud those functions OF bdsl-
ness whereby they must expect TO earn their daily
broad. Our schools, thus involving the welfare oil
our children, and their means OF future hveh'
hood, thus coming home at once to the ocsoms
and the business Of cur citizens, ought 20 be oo-
ects Of exceeding interest TO much greater ex-
tent than ever yet they have been; for II must De
confessed that The School System OF which We are
so proud and of which We boast so much aud
% lar art
CITY revenues has after al rather been acq1esced
in by the majority, rather been urged into exist
cree and growth by the enc ~ and interchangeable
efforts Of u few, than introduced out OF any very
sctiye feeling of its necessity on the part Of the
mass of the citizens. And as heretofore tue sys-
fem sprung into existence and has gone on deyel-
oping itself 10 its present expansion without any
yery active care concern thought or effort on their
part, SO the prevalent idea seems to be among the
BODY of our citizens that it Will 90 on indefinitely
developing itself and adapting itself to the public
wants without much, indeed hardly any, concern
or trouble of theirs. The greater number of our
citizens would seem TO regard the School Sys-
tenn IS an excellent piece Of mechanism, about the
detailed operations Of which, as they know very
little so they Dc but very little concern themselves,
fully trusting that the two hundred and htty
oficisl,, more or less, to whom the law commits
the working Of the system, will continue, without
the necessity of being particularly looked after, to
make it work; and not only that, but 10 go on IS
heretofore ii has, extending and improving itself
wherever il is still imperfect.
We are sorry to be obliged to arouse the public
from dream SO agreeable aid so uhng as this; bu.
the uncomfortable reality is, that during the last
four years such change has been going on in tue
sort Of persons having the operative cOntrU OF the
system-s change go radical, sweeping and com
pe.e, that the past history Of the schools affords NJ
basis whatever for judging as To ~hst, under this
rev management, shouli j, be suffered TO continue,
their future history may be.
To make the serious nature Of this change
| the more clear and obvious, il vii be he
cessary slightly 10 recaPi,ula,e the history Of our
schools. The first provision in this city for the
education Of children consisted in the establish
ment Of parOchial schools, in connection with the
various churches, for the SPECIAL benefit Of the
poorer parshioDers; and down to the ysar 1905
! nth ths e1eeution Of ptiyae schools the city bad