XXX. WISCONSIN. Capital, Madison. - Area, 53,924 square miles. - Population, 1855, 552,451. PREVIOUS to 1836, Wisconsin, for civil purposes, formed a part of the Territory of Michigan. In that year, it was erected by Congress into a separate Territory, and in 1848 was admitted into the Union as an independent State. The Constitution then adopted provides for the triennial election, by the people, of a Superintendent of Public Education, and for the establishment of a Common School Fund. The fund is made to consist of "all the lands already granted by Congress for educational purposes, including 300,000 acres originally granted for internal improvements, and devoted, by permission of Congress, to this object (making, in all, 1,908,000 acres), — the proceeds of all lands which may be hereafter granted by Congress, all moneys and clear proceeds of all property which may accrue to the State by forfeiture or escheat, all moneys that may be paid as an equivalent for exemption from military duty, the clear proceeds of all fines collected in the several counties for any breaches of the penal laws, five per cent of the net proceeds of all sales of United States lands lying in the State, and all moneys arising from any grant to the State, where the purposes of such grant are not specified." This School Fund has been estimated at $2,780,912. Its value in 1855 was $1,670,258.77. The income is "distributed to the several towns which shall have raised by taxation, for the support of schools, a sum not less than one half of their several shares of the apportionment." The School Law went into operation in May, 1849. Under it, the towns are subdivided by the Town Superintendents into convenient school districts, each of which is a separate corporation, with power to raise money for school purposes, including teachers' wages. The officers of the district are a director, a treasurer, and a clerk. The clerk has authority to employ "qualified teachers" for the schools; and must make an annual report, embodying the requisite statistics, in September, to the Town Superintendent. The district officers, combined, have the general care and management of the school-house and other property, and are empowered to prescribe, with the State Superintendent, the text-books, and to furnish all needed schoolbooks to indigent children at the expense of the district. Each town is required to choose a Superintendent, who has the general care of all the schools in the town, receives the money for their maintenance from the proper sources, and apportions it to the districts which have made suitable reports, according to the number of persons between the ages of four and twenty years. He must report annually, in October, to the County Supervisors, embodying in his report the statistics furnished by the district clerk, as required by the statute. It is also his duty to examine all teachers proposing to teach in the town, and to furnish each one, who may be found qualified, with a proper certificate, which is valid for one year from its date, unless previously annulled by him, or by his successor in office. Each Board of County Supervisors is required to apportion the money received from the State fund to the several towns, and to receive from the Town Superintendents the annual returns, which the Clerk of the Board is obliged to transmit to the State Superintendent. The machinery for securing suitable reports is much more complicated, without being more successful, than the plans adopted in some of the New England States. There is no Normal School in operation. An Act was passed in 1848 to provide for a University, to be organized into four departments :— - 1. Science, Literature, and the Arts; 2. Law; 3. Medicine; 4. Theory and Practice of Elementary Instruction. Only the first has yet been opened; and the fourth will be opened next, and as soon as the funds will allow. This department prospectively contemplates the free instruction of male teachers. No provision has yet been made for a class of female students for like preparation for the teachers' work. Teachers' Institutes have been held with marked success and great utility. Am. Ed. Year-Book, 1857. From the Annual Report (1857) of the State Superintendent we obtain the following statistics: : The whole number of children in the State between the ages of four and twenty, entitled to share in the common fund, is 241,647, being an increase of 27,761 over the number reported for the previous year. The number of pupils who have attended the public schools is 153,613. The number of school districts and parts of districts reported is 4,378, and the number of school-houses in the State, 2,945. The average amount of monthly wages to male teachers was $24.60, and to female teachers $15.16. The amount apportioned to schools in March, 1857, was sixty-six cents to each pupil. The apparent amount to be apportioned this year is about $230,000, which would be ninety-five cents to each pupil; but in view of the probable delay in payments to the funds, that average cannot be fairly expected. The productive fund of the department now amounts to over three millions of dollars. Superintendent of Public Instruction. SOCIETIES AND ASSOCIATIONS. STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. The Report of the Executive Committee of the State Historical Society, January 1st, 1858, shows a library of over four thousand volumes, and over four thousand unbound documents and pamphlets, together with a large number of unbound newspaper files, carefully preserved. The Society has a valuable collection of about forty oil paintings, the most of which are portraits of Wisconsin pioneers and prominent public men, and some are of persons of national celebrity, those of Dr. Kane and Dr. Percival being among the additions of the past year. It has, besides, some curious additions to its cabinet, rare old maps, and several hundred manuscripts. Under the patronage of the State, the Society has issued during the past year its best annual volume. Since the organization of the Society, in January, 1854, it has met with unusual success, - the increase of the Library alone having averaged over one thousand volumes annually. Officers (chosen January 1, 1858): - President, Gen. William R. Smith of Mineral Point. Vice-Presidents, Hon. James Duane Doty of Menasha, I. A. Lapham of Milwaukee, Gen. A. G. Ellis of Stevens's Point, Hon. M. L. Martin of Green Bay, Cyrus Woodman of Mineral Point, and Rev. Alfred Brunson of Prairie du Chien. Corresponding Secretary, Lyman C. Draper of Madison. Recording Secretary, Dr. John W. Hunt of Madison. Librarian, Daniel S. Durrie of Madison. Treasurer, Prof. O. M. Conover of Madison. XXXI. CALIFORNIA. Capital, Sacramento City. - Area, 160,000 square miles. — Population, 1856, 507,067. THE "Golden State," which has derived its title from the auriferous nature of its mountains, has another claim to the title from its enthusiastic interest in its schools, if the able legislation, the energetic care of its Superintendent, and the prospective value of the funds set apart for schools, are any guaranties for the future. The Constitution, which was ratified by the people in 1849, and under which California became an independent State of the Union, set apart the "proceeds of public lands granted by Congress (6,719,324 acres), estates of persons dying without heirs, and such per cent as Congress shall grant on the sales of lands lying in this State, into a permanent Common School Fund, the interest of which, and the rents of unsold lands, shall be inviolably appropriated to the support of common schools." The same Constitution required the election, once in three years, of a Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the establishment, by law, "of a system of common schools, to be taught at least three months in each year." Following out this requirement, in 1851 the Legislature established a State Board of Education, created the office of County Superintendents, and ordered each town to choose, annually, three persons as Commissioners of Public Schools, with a constable under their direction as a School Marshal. In addition to the income, yet very small, of the fund, a tax of five cents on each $100 of real and personal property was levied, for the maintenance of common schools. But California has not yet recovered from the anomalous character of the first rush of settlement. The people can scarcely be said to be ready for the operation of the system adopted; and the system itself, so says the Superintendent, is too massive and cumbrous, with too much unemployed machinery, and the intervention of too many needless officers, to be well adapted to the wants of the State, in its present undeveloped condition. The present school laws were adopted in 1855. They provide, 1. A Board of Education, consisting of the Governor, Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the Surveyor-General. 2. A State Superintendent, elected once in three years, to whom are assigned the usual duties of that office. 3. County Superintendents, elected biennially, one in each county. The County Superintendent is required, with other duties, to visit every school in his county once in each year, to supervise the examination of teachers, to apportion the school moneys according to the number of persons between 4 and 18 years, among such towns, cities, and school districts as shall have maintained a common school for three months during the previous year, and to present an annual report to the Superintendent of Public Instruction, exhibiting an abstract of all the annual reports required by law to be made to him. 4. School Trustees, three in each district, elected annually. This Board has the con trol of the school property of the district, is required to examine teachers, giving suitable certificates to such as are deemed qualified, such certificates being revocable at the will of the Trustees; to employ and pay the teachers; to visit, by one of their number, every school once in each month; and finally, to make an annual report in detail to the County Superintendent, giving all the accessible statistics of the schools in their charge. It should be observed that each city, town, or township in this State, until otherwise determined, will constitute one school district. 5. A Marshal for each district, whose duty it is to make the annual enumeration of the white persons between the ages of 4 and 18 years, stating the names of the children, and of their parents or guardians, and presenting the result in a written report, under oath, to the County Superintendents. By this act, each county is authorized to levy a tax not exceeding ten cents on $ 100, for the support of schools, and for providing libraries and apparatus. The balance of money deemed requisite for school purposes must be raised by rate-bills, indigent pupils being exempted from the payment such of bills. "No school shall receive any moneys, benefits, or immunities under the provisions of this act, unless such school shall be instructed by a teacher or teachers duly examined, approved, and employed by competent and legal authority." "No teacher shall be entitled to any compensation or salary for services rendered, unless such teacher shall have been duly employed by competent authority, nor unless such teacher shall have had, during the whole time of such service, a certificate of competency and approval, as required by this act, bearing date within one year next before the services aforesaid shall have been rendered; nor unless such teacher shall have made report in manner and in form as shall be prescribed by the Superintendent of Public Instruction." The prospective value of the School Fund has been estimated as high as $40,000,000. But a very inconsiderable portion of this vast amount has yet been realized, and consequently the schools are most inadequately supported, and that at a time, as the Superintendent remarks, most of all important, when the settled habits of the State are forming. The number of children in the State is small; but less than one fourth of these attend any school, public or private! The protests and persuasions of such reports as the State Superintendent (Hon. Paul K. Hubbs) has presented, can scarcely, however, fail of producing some effect in due time; especially with a people whose legislation has been so true and valuable. -Am. Ed. Year-Book, 1857. The Superintendent's Report gives the following statistics for 1856:The whole number of districts reported, 322; number of teachers, 417; whole number of children between the ages of four and fourteen, 29,628; average attendance, 8,321; the amount of State fund devoted to school purposes during the year, $87,749.50; county funds, $68,962.29; amount expended for libraries, $741.39. Superintendent of Public Instruction. |