Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1893-10-07
FREE SCHOOLGIRLS.
SOMETHING ABOUT THE UNIQUE sYs-
TEN or BROOKLYN.

The Board of Education OF the City spends
Nearly 500. 900 Every Year In FITTING
Out Pupils Fer Their studiss-How the
RequisitIon. Are Made Up.
Tho thanks Of nearly 100, 600 public
school pupils Of Brooklyn and their par
rnts are due to the board of education
for at least one Of the features Of that
hody's administration free book
system. II is fact not commonly known
that the pupils of the public schools in
this city arc furnished with all the outfit
Of books. states and paper necessary
throughout their course at school free OF
charge. To do this entails an expense Of
about 800 600 every year and vast deal
Of work in procuring and distributing
the required supplies. Only one other
city in the state. that Of New York,
treats its school children as munihcent-
ly. The system has been in vogue in
Brooklyn for some years and is found to
be so satisfactory that no change Is ex-
pected or even considered at all.
The books used in this city's schools
are selected by the board Of edncations
committee ON studies. who report their
selections 10 the full board for confrma-
ton before the books are finally listed
There are now on tho catalogue Of text
books and works Of whatever sort for
which need is found TO exist in the
schools upward Of / 900 different kinds
Of books ranging from primers to alb
struse works on philosophy. The list
includes a variety of algebras, arithme-
tics. books ON astronomy, bookkeeping
chemistry. civil government, compost
ton and rhetoric. dictionaries In Eng
lish and several other languages. books
on elocution. etymology, geography, ge-
ometry. grammar, history, languages
literature. methods of teaching, phy-iol-
ogy, readers maps. charts. copy books,
drawing books. music books and charts
science and natural philosophy and sup
Elementary readers.
The modus operandi Of getting the
right books in the right quantities to the
several schools is this; The principal Of
a school makes up from reports furnished
by his subordinates a requisition which
is written out on blank form with the
titles of the books, grades for which they
are to be used. and the price of each book
and the total for the whole requisition.
Demands for maps, globes, charts. die.
tionaries. blackboards, janitors supplies
etc. must be approved by the chairmen
Of the local committees. The requisi
tions after passing the committee ON Ii
braries are sent 10 the secretary OF the
board Of education. George G.. Brown
who controls the distribution Of the sup
plies for the schools,
The acquisitions are tabulated once
week. and upon the basis Of the result
of the tabulation orders are made out
upon the publishers. Lack of room for
the storage of the supplies and scarcity
of money forbid any considerable guam
| tity OF books being carried in stock All
the books are delivered at the bookroom
i'll the office building Of the board Of ed
uCatIon, where they are counted, and
each one is stamped Property Board Of
| Education, City Of Brooklyn" and On.
tered on the receiving book. The clerks
make up the orders for the several
schools, and the packages are sent to
their destinations by express.
A separate account of books received
and returned Is kept ut the headquarters
of the board of education with each
school. The books are charged TO the
| principals, who in turn charge them to
the teachers, the latter keeping track Of
the disposition of the volumes among
the pupils. When the books become un.
fit for use, they are turned in and re-.
bound if expensive, and if cheap sold
for waste paper All books when they
cannot be used any longer. whether fit
for reminding or not. must be returned
to the board of education. II pupils
willfully destroy them, they are Obliged
to pay for others 10 replace the books de-
stroyed. In tho case of books lost by
pupils the teachers are vested with a ceI.
tain degree of discretionary power
touching what measures if any shall be
taken to make good the loss.
How long the average schoolbook lasts
is matter for speculation. The life Of
the average book differs with the locality
of the school and the character OF the
pupils. In some sections, for instance
the books are converted into playthings
for the baby at home, while in others
the greatest pride is manifested in pre-
serving the hooks clean and unimpaired
So, too, n geography Of a good kind
will last frequently several years, while
one season of work is generally the limit
of endurance Of primer. Whatever
may be the total number Of books used
up in a year, il Is certain that the EN-.
ployees of the board who handle them
haven't an oyerplus of leisure. From
the middle of January till March ! three
express wagons are kept constantly on
the move distributing the packages 10
the schools.
The number Of pupils on register Is
about %, 00o. SO that the per capita cost
for books i onlya little over al per year
In the primary grades. where large
portion of the total registry il found
many Of the youngsters require only
states and primers Higher up. however
in the grammar schools and high schools
the cost Of books for each pupil, if II
were not borne hy the board, would
range from 81 or a. 10 81 or o. per year.
- that the free book system Is universally
regarded as boon 10 the public school !
children. : Brooklyn Eagle,
Death Of Noted Negro Woman
Over the eastern branch Of the Poto- |
mac. III Anaeosta. better known as Union. |
49, L. -