Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1872-01-22

CaDlCS dUUeACu W IuC IdlC IcpUTI vi tuc
iutendent Of Public Instruction, the following
items showing the comparative cost and efhcl-
ency Of the public schools in twelve of the prin-
cpa cities and towns of the Commonwealth.
No returns from Portsmouth or Winchester
appear, and with the smaller towns are, prob
ably, counted districts more or less extensive,
lying around them, and included in the same
school district: -
Teachers salaries are Of course higher here
than ia the smaller towns, but they are lower
than in either Of the other cities of the first
class, except that in Richmond where male
teachers are employed to very limited extent
and are paid somewhat less, the females being
paid more. The average pay per month Is IL
follows: Alexandria $50: female 1885,
Observation-Disclosures $3CG9 female $33j.24:
Danyillc-inale S4O.G7; female S3:33.3j33; Fred
ericksbllrg-m male S40G7; female So. Sc; llar-
risoubmg-lnale S%U.9 female $':'G. IS; Lees
burp-nllc $40: female $322i: lexington
nlaIc So. 80: female $50. 81; I.yIcI'outg--
| 900. Il: female $1,000; AGriuik-nna:c };iJn;
f:llaic *ij. 10: Petersburg ~-lnaic i2!2l: ir'
male $751;; i'ichm"nd -!!a:c so; female
$47 %; Staunt0n-nnic S.5&i tr!:aia Sd. a..
In the number 81 ir,ipij. enrolled AI,:%aEdriI
stands high in proportion 10 her pol'utat4"n,
being below Rchmrnd Petersburg ard \o;;o.':
| only, and in enrolment III proportion to per
SONS Of school age we are below l.cc$pHfg.
| Lynchburg, Petersburg and Staunton only Il,
to white, and lhnvil!e, Iiarrisonbnrg and
| Lynchburg as to colOrcd children. The hSures
are: Alexandria, white %. cOored y; Char
{; lottcsrille, white 81 colOred %; Danvlc, white
o., coiorcd 81: Fredericksburg, white %, col
ored % IIarisonburg, white %, colored At;
| I.eesburg, white -, colored II; Lexington,
| -, , | col
orcd IL; Norfolk, white %; Petersburg, white
As, colorcd 42; Richmond white IL, colorcd
20; Staunton, white %, colored "a.
| In the per ccntagc Of pupils enrolled in
average attendance, we stand low, being below
| all except Danvillc, Leesburg, Norfolk, and
! Petersburg in the attendance OF white. and all
! except Lexington and Petersburg in that OF
colorcd children. This is in consequence OF a
bad habit which some Of our people have OF
keeping their children away from school Tor
the most frivolous causes. 10 remedy the evil,
the City School Board has recently altered the
regulations, so as to require all who are absent,
| except for sickness, to get note from the gu
| perintendent before returning.
The per centages are: Alexandria, white G5,
colored -; Charlottesville white -, colored
Ct; Danvie. white So, colored 81; Fredercks'
burg. white e., colorcd -: Harrisonburg, white
g., colored -; Lcesburg, white 81, colored 81;
! Lexington, white -, coorcd ~; Lynchburg,
white 81, coored 81; Norfolk, white Ca Peters
burg, white A. coored 45; Richmond, white
80, colored IS: Stauuton, white 20, coored 3D.
The average number and average attendance
! to each teacher is: Alexandria A, Charlottes-
vile "a, Dauvile "a, Fredericksbu burg -. Har-
risonburg 81, LeeSburg -, Lexington g.
Lynchburg 20, Norfolk 50, Petersburg A,
L - - ).,t,r SI,i,rtr ,In
assigns more pupils to i teacher than we, yet
our schools are so well graded that each teach
err has. in general. but two different classes III
each study, and finds no difficulty III teaching
fifty pupils with ease
DanvilIc l..esburg, and Petersburg, only.
educate ut less cost than Alexandria, as will APP
pear from The following statement Of the month
| " cost Of educating each pupil enrolled: Alex
andria 10 cts, Charlottesville - cts, Danvllie
IS cts, fredericksburg Sl.22, Harrisonburg
- cts, IIeesburg G4 cts, Lexington : .o3,
Lynchburg Sl.;3j, Norfolk Sill, Petersburg
Is cts, Richmond $l.m, Stauntou 80 cts
The Superintendent $ work can be compared
with that of Richmond only the other cities
not having reported Our Superintendent was
empIoyed as such IL entire days; theirs (who
receives salary OF 81 900 300 days; ours ex'
pended 1878 (morc than his entire salary in
incidental expenses; theirs has his incidental
| EXPENSES paid; ours examined &c teachers;
theirs lSO ours wrote GOO official letters; theirs
900: ours visited IL schools l2o times. or
each school 10 times; theirs q schools 400
times, or each school So times Our trustees
held - meetings; theirs %: ours visited 10
schools 40 times, or fraction over times
EACH theirs IS schools 200 times, or less than
Is times each.
Petersburg had to furnish GOO INDECENT pu-
pills with books; Lynchburg furnished 80; IN
Alexandria all the pupils provided their own
books
In the number of pupils enrolled in private
schools. Alexandra is reported $50 white and
| 1893 colored. Norfolk 5Oj white, Richmond
!. 243 white and $50 colored, Petersburg 800
white and 200 colored. The cost OF education
in private schools is thus stated: Alexandria.
primary IS cts. classical s. &c month; Nor
folk. primary $3.50, classical 1915: Peters
burg, primary 50, classical So. Richmond
is not reported, but gentleman who Is ac-
quainted with the charges there states them to
be from 81 to 50 Il month: 50 Alexandria is
cheaper by one bali than any other city IL the
Commonwealth in This particular. though her
schools arr clcrIied ~ noc.
DRoWi%G OYSTERS Iri!!1rnta has been
having heavy rain, and foods The san Fran
cisco Post says - Ii'thcr4 is any crratcra IL
existence that need not care whether ii rain"C
or not one would think It was the oyster: bat
1t seems that this is not 50, and there l. great
alarm among our oystcrncn lest the continued
rains should totally destroy the fine beds OF
transpIanted oysters which have been. with, so
much trouble yet with so much success, plan
ted at different points around the bay. 1t
seems that the heavy rains affect the oyster in
juriously in two ways-irst, by unduIy fresh
enng the water, and, second, by bringing
down from the shore large quantities Of mud
with which the bivalves are covered up and
smothered The oyster.bcds at Saucelita are
now in greatest danger but if the storm con.
tinues much longer it will probably destroy all
the beds around the bay--a loss that cannot be
repaired. - Possibly this accounts for the
non existence of Datural oyster-beds in that
bay.
A CANCER Doctor FLooRED.-"Dr.' P.