The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1890-03-21
FRIDAY, MARCH 81, 1890.
VIRGINIA SCHOOL REPORT

ne rinet.euth annual report OF the ou-
,erin,endent Of Public instruction VIII ~
found 10 contain many facts and oDser''-
,ions NJ unusual interest. The indlc"''o"'
o,,,~o,,ress in the cause Of public education
- mis- state. as disclosed by this report
arc ON the whole. much more s"'''i"0' w.
,han would have been thought proDaDlc
when the amount Of the approprl~uono -
mis- object was taken into con'ioerS'' '"'
these appropriations, however having Dce"
asI;,orai as the financial condition OF VIZ
GINA would justify. 49,.
The total expenditures on the puO'.'
schools for the current year looo-o' '''.
sfe2, sos %. exceeding the expenditures VI
Tho last school year by s62, 4j6.22. Inc rev
onue stiu due the schools on account VI
arroar. including the instalment Tor Jan
- tsoo Il 1901. 90. The usefulness
of the public school system has neces7"ili,
depended upon the amount Of money a'"'i-
abie for school purposes, and, whle the
LEGISLATION on the part Of the General AS
sembly has been uniformly friendly mucn
s,u remains 10 be done, by which valuable
improvements can be made in the system
additional schools jndiciously located =
the late superintendent remarks III INC
renort ..vould reach children not no" ln
school and thus increase the general aver
..o attendance: better teachers salaries
would command better QUALIFICATIONS ="
longer average school term would give OPP
nor,nnity for more thorough and satlsiac-
tory work. But without a larger school
o,nd n forward movement in any one ol
those directions il impracticaole, unless
there be a corresponding backward move
ment in one or both Of the Others
The school population Of Virginia Is esu-
mated 10 be 6lO,35i, the number oil pupns
in daily average attendance being l'o'ozo'
which shows that rot quite one IN three OF
the children Of school age attend the puDiic
schools The total enrolment Of pupils
rims mn as high as 336,94', leaving l4'425
os the measure of irregular attendance
This beinc the difference between the gene
raj enrolment and the daily average at
tendance.
There does not seem to be any practical
means TO compel a larger attendance upon
tho nublic schools. In spite Of the clause
in the constitution Of the State empowering
the General Assembly to pass compulsory
school laws..such laws have never been
and are not likely to be enacted.
Mr.. buchanan declares in his report
"that a system OF compulsory laws would
not be acceptable 20 our people, and for this
reason. as well as others, their enforcement
would be difficult. 1t would be held that
they are an unwarrantable interference with
nersonal richts-the rights Of parents IN re-
card IN their children. But the right OF the
state TO establish a system Of free schools
for the education Of the people and to levy
q tax on the people for the support Of such
a system. it may be very plausibly argued
carries with it the right asserted by the
constitution, namely, TO make such laws US
shall not permit parents and guardians TO
TO allow their children to grow up IN lgno-
rance and vagrancy.
before the state can, with any show Of
Justice or pfopiielN, assume w N""0' " ~
pnlsory school law it must guarantee two
things; first, that the schools be sufficient
in number. and so located as TO meet the
wants Of all concerned; secondly, that the
schools I've so organized and conducted as to
accomplish the true end OF education.
Unreasonable, too, would be the require
ment that parent send his children to
public school at all if he prefer to have them
taught at home or in private school,
or the teachers in the public Schools
5.472 are white and 1 ,9ji colored. 1t Is IN
teresting to note that one-half Of the white
teachers were educated in the public schools
of this state. and about four-hiths OF the
colored. A fact Of equal interest Is that at
least 4.ll0 Of the former propose to follow
teaching as permanent occupation and
all Of the latter, with the exception OF about
Two hundred. the explanation of this dispro-
uortion being that the salaries, which aver
age from $50 to $40 annually, are more
satisfactory to the colored than TO the white
teachers.
The number Of female teachers Is steadily
increasing as the following table will show