The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-11-12
REPORT MADE ON
 PUBLIC SCHOOLS Big Improvement Shown in
 Last Year TEACHERS BETTER PAID Value and Number of School Build ings Show Increase Does the Average Attendance--Thomas
 Rules Against Depot
TEACHERS BETTER PAID
BY BERRYMAN c. BETTY

I " 3 per cent over the year of 1909. and of per cent over the year of 1soS The en rollment in the negro schools of the state showed an increase of per cent over 1909 and an increase of F per cent over 1908 In 1910 it is shown the aggregate enroll. nlent in the white schools was 279. .9S2 against 27,91o. In the negro schools the total enrolment was 142sl3, against 1S3,- S16.
 These figures, as gathered from the communication to the governor, which In. troduces the annual report of the state educational department, constitute in all probability the salient feature of the doc ument which has just been submitted tc Gov. B. B. Conner by Superintendent of Education Harry c. Gunnels. Especial pride is taken in this growth in view of l the ceaseless campaign which has been waging during the past four years for an unfit of educational work throughout the l commonwealth, commensurate with the 1 educational growth In the south in gen. l eral.
 The school census upon which the an- | nual report is based includes all persons between the ages of and 21 years, and shows that the total number was 6S7,374,
  BOT, ,2S2 negroes. Beginning October l, 1910, however. the annual report for 1910 will be based upon the school census re- gently taken, when 1t was shown that the total number of persons Of school age was 712.o0O, an increase of 4 per cent for the two years.
 Under the old school census the propor- tion of whites in all of the schools in Alabama was 76 per cent and 4s per cent among the negroes. The general average attendance among both races Is shown to have increased, the figures being per cent for the whites and 1 per cent for the negroes. Announcement is made by the superintendent that the report this year prepares the way for an exhaustive com parative study next year.
 Referring only to the common schools, the report shows an increase in the num- Der of 1 per cent over last year and per cent over the preceding year. In 1910 there were 4424 white schools, against 4360 in 1909: among the negroes there were 1865 such schools in 1910, against 1880 in 1909
 During 1910 there were 6434 white teach CTS in the public schools and 2343 negro teachers. Of the white teachers 2272 were males and H62 females. Of the negro teachers there were 72s males and 1920 fe- males. In connection with the teachers, a paragraph in the report Is devoted to the benefits derived from training schools, such as school institutes which are regu- larly held in Alabama. Attention is called to the fact that more teachers are H. censed to teach in the state schools than are employed The work of the board Of examiners is declared & most meritorfous one, fully compensating the state in every way. It is shown that the teachers them selves in the payment of their fees, are producers of revenue.
 Salaries of the teachers in the past year are shown to have been somewhat ln- creased among both the whites and the negroes. An average increase of To per cent among the white male teachers IS shown, and an average of 10 per cent among the negro male teachers. The f1g- ures are as follows: White males. s7G. s6O ss. s57.03. in the years 1910, 1909 and 1908. White female teachers in the correspond ing period, s46, s45.65 and s43.S6. Negro males, $30; s27.1s and S.23: negro female teachers, s25, SPA and $2ss7 More ade- quate salaries are urged as necessity.
 School Houses
 Building of school houses throughout the past year has been most gratifying to the department, according to Superin- tendent Gunnels. Public school houses for the white children are valued at s5. 19S GOO, as compared with $4.217,0O0 in 1909. and s4,003000 in 1908. Public school houses used for negroes are valued at s432. .OO0 as compared with $375,O0O. The valuation is shown to have advanced ap- proximately 25 per cent Of the white school houses g21 are deeded to the state. 262 owned and controlled by the com munities and 25s owned and controlled by towns and cities. Buildings other than school houses are used as follows for school purposes: 49S for the whites and TAT for the negroes.
 A paragraph in the report calls atten- ton to the public school libraries In the state, placing the valuation for the whites at s113.3O0. and $4095 among the negroes.
 The report shows that the public school fund three months before Governor Conner entered office, was certified at $l.- I150, ,2s1, while now this fund is sl,913, 426. County High Schools
 Establishment of county high schools. according to the report, marks an era in educational progress in Alabama. The | county high schools showed an average attendance during the past nine months session of 1919 students, evenly divided among the males and the females. There are B high schools of this nature now In operation, against g such schools when the report of this year was issued. 1 On concluding his report Superinten- dent Gunnels calls attention to num- Der of improvements which he declares | should be made
 | 1. The appointment of a commission consisting of members of the house and senate, the incoming superintendent of education and a superintendent who had served before, the purpose of which com mission shall be to prepare code of the school laws of the state.
 !, 2 The one mill school tax, instead of being paid directly by the tax collector to the county superintendent. should be paid into the state treasuy and be dis bursed as state funds.
 8. Establishment of uniformity among the state normal schools. in so far as graded work is concerned.
 4. Submission of an amendment to the constitution permitting local districts to tax themselves for educational purposes
 5. Amendment of state statutes 50 as to guarantee to every county and dis- trict the best of qualified supervision. | 6. Passage of law for compulsory education.
 Of these six measures the superinten- tendent especially urges passage of 1, and 6.
 Thomas Favors Railroad
 In a decree in which he rules upor the constitutionality of the statute which empower the Alabama railroa, commission to require railroads to pro vide and maintain depot buildings Judge William H. Thomas of the cit, court of Montgomery holds that tn, laws are good. but that the question of reasonableness should enter into thu matter.
 The question was brought to the at tention of the court in the case of tn Southern railroad against the railroa, commission of Alabama in which ob iectfon ia found by the railroad t.