The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1895-04-08
SCHOOL CENTENNIAL.
Now York Public School systom
100 Years Ago.
MEMORIAL 10 Be HELD TUESDAY.
isomnrkabio Growth OF tho Iden llorn
!" 1905 st0approprlation 500.
O0O-Mnny Millions AFRO Now Tx.
pended Annually On tho Schools OF
tho stato-l'irst FREQ Schools In
America.

"" iohh, Npll t-Ouul Hunufcu
years ago next Tuesday Governor
George Clinton Affixed his signature to
an act appropriNtiug 500, 900 for tho
support OF tho common schools Of tho
state OF Now York. Tho centenary Of
this event, which Is considered as tho
inauguration OF tho magnificent public
school system OF which Now York is go
Justly proud. is to DO celebrated by tho
school children OF tho state with appro.
PIRATE exercises on Tuesday, and in &C.
cordancc with tho sugge stion OF tho
suporintondont of public instruction
tho occasion will DO. utilized In the
schools rs q means OF %impre,siug tho
pupils with patriotic lessons as well as
with an a~ppreciaiivo sense Of tho value
OF education, aud OF tho systematic as.
sistance given tho schools by tho state.
Although tho act OF 1895 was an i'm.
portant landmark in tho history OF Now
Gork's educational system, aud as such
ominontly worthy OF commemoration,
It wR rs a matter Of fact ncithor tho
first nor tho last permanent moyo In tho
direction Of state aid 10 schools by the
legislature oil New York. For the fol-
lowing brief outline OF tho history Of
state education u roa1crs our indebted
to II. Z. Reyes. chief clerk OF tho Brook
lyn board OF education.
As early as 1879 the legislature passed
Il law directing tho surveyor-general to
sot apart certain public lands to be ap-
portionet among the different counties,
which were to be sold or leased "ior tho
benefit OF tho gospel and the public
schools OF tho state" Most OF this land
was long ago disposed Of and the money
therefrom disbursod, but even TO the
present day some OF the lots aro still
yielding revenue Tor tho support OF
schools in certain counties ami munici.
palities in tho state.
Tho act OF 1895 provided for the appro.
priationof 100000 yearly for FIVE years,
but for some reason no appropriations
were made attor the third year, and the
act therefore became imperative For
some years thereafter no systematic aid
was extended to the public schools oil
the stale, but in 1906 al act was passed
setting apart 10000 acres OF land for
school support.
No portion OF the income was to be
distributed until the gross revenue
amounted to $4,000, a result which did
not occur until 1915. Then $4,000 was
distributed 20 the schools OF the state,
and tho money derived from the sales
OF these lands still lorna the nucleus Of
tue present common school fund. The
present state organization OF the school
system dates from 1872. though i. has
been several times remodeled.
Our iorelaihers OF a'century ago, who
found Sl00.000 rather an over-liberal
appropriation for school purposes,
would have been astonished at the di.
mensions 10 which the present school
system mas grown. There arc now in
the state nearly 100000 pupils en-
rolled in the public schools; thors are
32,476 teachers, whose aggregate salaries
amount to Dore than SIC. 900, 900, and
the amount OF money spent by the state
annually upon its tree school system
will this year pass the twenty.million
mark. To such q gian. growth has the
System which was 30 tentatively fos'
tered by early legislation attained.
An interesting historical fact which
has been unearthed by the Brooklyn
board OF education ii connection with
the approaching centennial is the dis
covery that tho first FREQ public school
supported entirely BY taxation which
was ever established in this country
was located in Brooklyn.
1t was in 1851, when the Dutch still
possessed the colony OF New Amster.
| dam, when hot-headed Potter Stuyvesant
was governor Of the colony and whom
Brooklyn was spelt Brooklyn, that this
little educational institution was start.
cd. 1t was established in connection
with the Dutch church and stood near
| tho corner OF Red Hook Lane and Full.
ton street. Just around the corner from
tho present headquarters OF tho board
oil education, and was frat opened on the
9Th OF July.
The first schoolmaster was Carl De-
bevoiae, a French Hugucnot emigrant,
whose duties, as outlined by tho mu-
nicipal ordinance, seem 10 have been
multifarious. Ho was required to act
as teacher OF the school, court messeu'
ger and server OF processes, to conduct
certain services in the Dutch church, to
lead the choir on Sundays, to ring the
bell for public worship, dig the graves
for the settlements dead, and perform
"other occasional duties" For these
duties no was to DO reimbursed by the
proceeds OF the school tax lcvy OF l5C
gui!ders n year, a sun which would
amount to about $50 in our present
currency, to which Governor %Stuyveaant
handsomely added fifty guildcrs from
tho colony'sireasury. In tho next year
1862, another school was established In
tho parish OF Boswyk, now known as
Bushwick.
Theae nro said TO hnvo boon tho frat