New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1865-01-20
TEE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

TEE BG * ID SF hDI -
The Board of Eduot ION commences the year
with a thorough reorganization. The NUMBER
f ia members s diminished from 4! 10 Y; the
basis Of election is changed from 90 wards 10
! school districts, and the bylaws have been SO
amended rs to throw almost oil the power Wh'ch
tie Ward Board Of School officers have hitherto
exercised, into the hands OF the Board OF Eauea-
ton. Itisnow less swayed by local prejudice
more wieldy and more efficient than before. lho
magnitude of the interests in lis Keeping Is 5nch
as TO demand Tie closest attention OF the TAX
paying as well as Of the philcprcgenitye pubic
The cost Of oar Schools for lo6i, a. stated b?
the President in bis inaugural address on Mon
day evening was 81 ,9oO,639 90, leaving he
Board with a debt of S203, 800 to be paid from
the amount set apart for 1865. Tic payment Of
this debt will reduce that fund to 81 ,G.i,Ji2 -,
nearly $3.50, 900 less than the cost Of the Schools
for last year. II ia evident that ei;a or the law by
which the School fund is limited must be
changed, or the present system must
break down for lack OF means. OF the $500
teachers employed, nearly 1900 are women,
most Of whom are receiving salaries so small
that it Is matter Of absolute necessity that they
should be increased. The enhanced cost Of fuel
aud books aggrayates tho difficulty. Moreover,
the schools are 50 crowded in the central and
upper portions Of tho city that more school
houses must be built, end this again is very
large item Of cost which comes out Of the
school Fund although it adds TO tho landed
property Of the corporation.
But the interests gilmore than 200 600 scholars
demand that every necessary expenditure for
schools shall be fully met, and the Legislature
Will be called upon to modify the law 50 as to
considerably increase the School Fund Of the
city. To this we have the greater claim, since
during the last twelve years, although tho city
had paid Si,il9 800 % school-tax to the State,
10 has received from the State under the appor-
tioument, but 50, 1888, 593 20, leaving no less
than 81, Os5, 7l3 "a which the city has paid out
right for the support Of schools in other counties.
It would be bat Il slight recognition Of this were
the LEGISLATURE TO establish a Normal School
here. as it has done in other portions OF the /
State.
While we hope that the new Board VIII sue
coed in obtaining tho means necessary to carry
on the .ystem, We trust tha: it will practice
closer economy than the old Board has done;
dat it will look with greater severity upon the
eirjgts Of contractors to secure large donations
u,i,'ar The guse Of relief that it VII no louse:
make con, acts of tens Of thousands Of dollars
without advertisement or competition; that !!
will cease to allS; publishers to acquire a prao-
teal monopoly in the supply Of class-books hy
employing Superintendent to edit them; aud
that it will decline to allow anybody, who pre-
sents a new scheme for heating or yentating,
TO ruin two or three school-houses in order to
test his patent.
This matter Of heating and ventilGting, by The
way, is one in which the business Of the Board
is habitually conducted with far moro waste
than wisdom. Five years ago the Committee
on Warming and Ventilation reported TO the
Board "A recommendation which, had 1t been
acted upon, would have saved TO the City tens
if not hundreds of thousands OF dollars. That
was simply this, that in con-
tracing for steam or water heating apparatus,
the known proportions Of boiler and radiating
surface required should be advertised for. For
lack of such requirement nearly all tho at
tempts at introducing anything better than
stoves or hot air furnaces have proved failures
and the efficiency Of the buildings in which they
have been made has been seriously impaired.
Tho result is that most Of the school-houses
are still heated by stoves, which occupy Space
that otherwise would suffice for many thou sands
of children, and half the remainder are EARNED
by hot-ar furnaces, liable at any time, Gs expo
rionce Las shown in several instances. TO set the