Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1874-12-18

realinr for Vermonters, who are jealous OF
the r,,d name Of their State. We copy
portion. i
since the Inauguration of the educational
dpnartncnt OF the Atlantic, the superIntena-
emf of public instruction OF thirty states
and four Territories have courteously seil
u their latest reports
Rcvinning with those Of New Englanu'
of winch We have all but that from Ne"
Hampshire, one Is surprised to IND WITHIN
this smallest group OF the Union, IN AREA
almost the two extremes Of our American
,,,rn,ron school system Massachusetts, lead
;nJ NOT only New England. but nearly all
tho country, in the privileges she freely
s0orG. 10 her children and Vermont coming
in this regard behind many OF her Southern
sisters such Is the apathy OF her citizens
on the subject. that, as one OF them remarks,
in the report before Us, her schools are JUST
where thew were twenty-five and nifty years
sgo The number OF school houses reported
a unfit for their purposes Is seven nun
drcl and SIX. which l. nearly one-thlrd oil
the whole. In her chief city, Burlington,
ont Of inrty-one teachers only tTO were
graduate If normal school, and only SIX
had certificates from teachers institute
The town examinations Tor ieacat'S GO h't
equal u difficulty those Tor the admission oil
gTammar-~eh0ol children !nt1 the leadIh-
high schools of other New England States
Tf.re is ma DIgh-schoai system in Vermont
The report represents the " cheap teacher,
as everyw!.re sought after with ayIiI;y.
Ord1u3T, wages" A. they are called,
rance from 81 20 to S 90 a week for wo-
mon. and rom 81 60 week and upward
,ruu,u. No wonder. then, that one com
uittce-nan reports 1t as almost lmpossle.e
Z. Dr.cgr, tc4cacrs for the district schools,
and SAYS .ua; young women only take
Charged them 20 accommodate their neigh
bur- The superintendent OF Name re
uruaehc- his Stale for paying les TO htr
teachers than any other State IN the Union,
Aut ,shea We turn to the last published re-
u.rt 90 the National Educational Burean
iI--2l. We find that Vermont had di-creetly
-crt uu Average at all. She seems to he
thr only New England State whose report
does nos bear witness TO increased interest
aua .ln,ra4i5 on the part OF her izcus
toward the public schools, and II Is u her
g. deep dI--rdce, not yet Wipcu vH' lAa'
some years ago >hc appropriated her GdueA-
uobal iuui TO pay her outstanding debts
Further 80 wc read
+. Name and Vermont. the town and
district systems for the regulation 81 the
schools nj, still c9ntendng for the supromt-
cY, through the oh'l9u' 41'an'igeI l oi n''
~ T6r 'a,, tLa5 the educational interests %.
Vermont were long in the keeping OF from
tEIS 10 "a. j '.l, vc a ,,',I lar the hack
warine-~ Of education in that state. by law
the Vermont Board OF Education pIe.crI e.1
,'s and tie secretary rive the lit Of
the last changes. They are not cheerful.
We wcgc.on first reading puzzled to divine
wh,lc this writer could have obtained the
al,-.-! statement that tie schools in Yer
mon, vrr, n, charge of &c from thirty T., one
hunls.! local officials for each dst4a.' On
ola,..in,.,er the Reu3rt 90 Secretary Rankin.
Of I>a9. we have since found the words
uiir,,r, intended To- bee quoted. A--uia-
the di,ai,antacc~ of the district system. Mr.
Rankin .,v, Under tb, present system.
rho ,lnc,r,.n.l interest. .r the ,..r, are iu
tl,c kscpiuo of from thirty To one hundred
o,F.;,1, r,r ,.-,,l.nti,I committee
di.t-j.. clerk. the town clerk. and the
.u,erinterdcnt. Tbi. +, bad enough. mall
eonscieprc INIT If Is NOT quite a hundred off
o,,1.......t ....I,..l district Ts.. -rat,,st...t
t..,,ir .,.,- et... the t.,,,- .nl district s,--
,.u.. .-. ..;ri .,,-or5;r.. c,, s.,,rsna.., is
.l..l.-i,. -. l.. o.. ..... ,rs. ,te
..',.......;......l.a,..... ,f clio FUN .,...a...
..r ...,.- -. I;.oos.;.., r. +. r-,..
p...l..l,-..;.. 60. 40 .-. ...-.- p, .,,.
.,m ,..s,- -,,, in 30. of l,, a!3 town. +
the state. and it is practically supreme.
The assertion that Vermont once aiIrl-
priated her educational fund to Jay Aa
debts. viii probably surprise many ol o4t
younger readers. 1t j. subject not often
alluded 70, in the STATE but the statement.
We are lained to confess, is substantially
true IN l>2j, the Legislature appropriated
for the lcaef, of common schools the ayail-
accrued and Go accrue from the Vermont
State IaHf. from q six per cent tax ou the
net profits Of the banks, and from licenses
to Ielller-, the funds to tc invested
and to accumulate till their annual ill
terest -aoali BE adequate to pay for
good common school, in each schop.
district in the state, for two months in each
year. Eight years later, the state borrowed
the fund and used it to build the second State
House and for other state expenses. In 1915.
twelve years after this, the'fund. (which then
amounted to S255,O0o, and which would
have been nearly million if it had been re
invested and rolled up as intended when il
was created, was abolished, the State thus
wiping out its Indebtedness to tie fund.
" Thus, rays historian Of the transaction,
q" lid the Legislature of lo45 violate the
faith If the fathers. and apply to general
purposes what former generation, imbucd
with nobler patriotism and greater sell
DENIAL, had by industry and irugalliy saved
IRON their poverty, that their po-teriiy might
have better advantages than they had en-
enjoyed
1t Is Ias' "' our history winch inte.-I-
gent an" I''sli''n1eu N'rhon'efs must To-
cali with deep modification but the dis
grace Oh "hlcn We YET trust Will he some day
10 some extent wiped Out by the STATE
giving to MS 'ni'e'Si'y' or Tor some educa-
'oiaI purpose q sum equ"I' al least 10 t'e
lrihcila' 'l the luna 1t mus a'sol''o1' l'iI'y
If rc ,...,-cl;,..- ,,..,o ,,.,;,;,. non.
NV
be would probably add to ms arrangement
ofNermanf the fact that the legislature of
-, t.,.1 ~,
io'f 'I'>i'i Inc STATE board oil Lduca-
ton, and relocated the schools to the OLD
.vs,e.., al. ,g,..,,-r.,;,. ,c,r- .,. lybotbor
=;
inc OH ''ia'' IN school BOOKS Is To he res'or-
Ell, remains 20 be seen; bat at present we
helisys tb,-e = ~, State ,,ocbi,o-,. c.- tho
'''' ''''' ''' ''''-'' '-'''''ii''0'1 ''i '''
selection oi school books or for the rrotec-