The juxtaposition of the two notices in a work of wide circulation is not particularly gratifying to our State pride, and the essential truth of the comparison does not soften the effect.

It is true that in almost every town, certainly in every village of considerable size, in the State of Massachusetts, are to be found schools of every grade necessary for the education of any and every child to any commonly desirable extent. In these schools algebra, geometry, practical surveying and book keeping, Latin, Greek, French, drawing, botany, geology, chemistry, vocal music, physiology, the principles of government, and political economy, are or may be taught. In the quality of instruction, and in variety and extent of attainment the standard of the public schools of a higher grade in that State, comes fully up to, and often exceeds, the standard of the best academies in Vermont. But these schools of higher grade, although thus academic in their character, and in fact giving a more valuabla education than is derived from the colleges in some sections of the United States, are in name and in fact simply public schools; existing by virtue of the general school law of the State. And thus literally and actually being neither more nor less than public schools, they are taken as exemplars of the State school system, and thus stamp and give character to that system. Strangers as well as citizens, judge of the efficacy of the general school system, not by the character and condition of the public schools of a lower grade, that are similar in all respects to the ordinary common schools of other States; but from their opinion upon the known excellence of the schools of a higher grade, and then give to the schools generally a meed of praise that should be confined to the higher grade of schools alone. And, judged by these higher schools, no State in the Union can stand for a moment in comparison with Massachusetts; scattered like luminous spots here and there all over her somewhat bleak and forbidding surface, they have wrapped their mother State in a starry mantle of unapproached and glorious light.

Vermont fails in the comparison by reason of her lack of schools of a higher grade. Her common schools will compare favorably with similar schools similarly situated in any other State whatever, and in natural aptitude and capacity for learning, her children bring no shame to her; but of graded schools of higher character she has almost none. As an inevitable result, her common schools, compelled by circumstances to give, in any event, much time to elementary instruction, are perforce compelled in the absence of any gradation, to confine themselves almost entirely to rudimentary education, while instruction in all the higher branches of study is absorbed by and yielded to the select schools and academies. In Vermont, then, the general character of the system is derived from and given by, the numerous schools of an inferior grade and not from the few graded and higher schools that are occasionally found; and so her schools are said in general to be "extremely elementary." There are in a few of

the larger towns graded and Union schools that are in all respects of excellent character and will be found, on examination, second to none in New England. Why are not more of them to be found?

This is, at the present time, the most important question that can be propounded in regard to the schools of our State. Why are there not more Graded and Union schools?

A careful examination of our State school system will not reveal any organic deficiency that can furnish a sufficient answer to the question; the reason, if any, will be found in the almost entire failure to make proper use of the means furnished by the State school law, for the organization and support of schools of a higher than common grade.

All these higher schools as established here and in other States, may be comprehended in the two general classes of Union schools and graded schools. In order to a fuller discussion of these two main classes of higher schools, the comparison between the Vermont and Massachusetts systems will be continued, for other reasons somewhat, but mainly because the legal provisions in regard to Union schools are so similar as to be nearly identical in the two States.

Union districts are formed by the junction of two or more common school districts, who retain without any change all their former characteristic powers, and are subject to all their former duties and obligations; but thus associate themselves for the special purpose of sustaining a school or schoos of a higher grade. The various districts vote to unite in a Union district, at their respective district meetings, and at the same time agree by said vote upon the time of the first meeting of the Union district. The Union district then, pursuant to said vote of the associate districts, assembles in Union district meeting and completes its legal organization by the election of the necessary officers; and immediately thereupon, and by virtue thereof, the legal existence of the Union district begins, and it is clothed with all necessary and usual corporate powers, for the accomplishment of its peculiar work, which is simply and only to sustain schools of a higher grade for the benefit of the children of the districts thus associating. In Massachusetts the Prudential Committees, in Vermont the Chairmen of the Prudential Committees, of the various associate districts, become, ex-officio, the Prudential Committee of the Union district, having the usual powers of Prudential Committees. All other officers are elected by the Union district. The associated districts are required to sustain each its own school as before the formation of the Union, and these schools remain as before, each under the direction of its own Prudential Committee, while the Union school or schools are under the control and direction of the Prudential Committee of the Union district. The legal provisions in the two States, to a certain extent are so similar as really and practically to be identical; and the only diffe

rence is, that the law of Vermont goes beyond that of Massachusetts in being more minute and full, and in making provision for the future annexation to the Union district of additional districts, and for the withdrawal therefrom of districts that become dissatisfied. These provisions for the formation of Union districts and the support of Union schools, were incorporated into the Vermont school system more than twenty years ago, and were undoubtedly copied from the law of Massachusetts. Some additions have been recently made to our own law regarding Union schools, and whatever differences exist, are in favor of the Vermont system, But in the lapse of twenty years, less than six Union districts have been formed in this State.

Under the provisions of the law Union schools have existed for many years in St. Johnsbury, Burlington, and Rutland, and have succeeded very well. The Rutland Union school has been peculiarly fortunate, having been always under the management of public spirited and intelligent men, and having had, as I believe, but two different Principals, both able and devoted men ; and it may be called a model school, for all the best characteristics of a good public school not second to any in our own State, and exceeded by few in the whole country. Rutland has shown what may be accomplished under the Union school law.

There is, however, an organic defect in the Union school system, that unless cured in practice by very favorable surrounding circumstances, will always sooner or later make itself very seriously felt. The defect consists in the legal requirement that the common schools in each of the associate districts shall continue to be sustained as before, and remain under the exclusive control and direction of the Prudential Committees of the districts; while the Union or high school is controled by the Prudential Committee of the Union district, for thus the lower or primary schools are controled by one power and the high school by another. Now nothing is more demonstrable in the management of schools than that where groups of schools stand in the relation to each other of primary, secondary, intermediate and high schools, it is absolutely indispensable to the success of the whole group, as of each individual of the group, that one and the same power should control and manage each school composing the group. The graduation of schools with reference to each other, is the one great practical end to be sought in the formation of a State school system; no system can be perfect, or nearly so, without it. But such grading of lower and higher schools is impossible, where the responsibility for, and control of, each different class of schools, or each different school, is lodged in different persons. This is the defect in the Union school system, and 1 consider it to be so serious a defect, as to render the wider adoption of Union schools in this State undesirable. This main defect of the Union school is less likely to cause injury in Massachusetts than here; for in that State the towns having chosen a general school committee, as provided by

law, to whom the supervision of the schools is intrusted, may, under the law there, by vote, elect either to direct the general town committee to select and engage teachers for all the schools in town, or to allow the control and employment of the teachers to remain in the hands of the Prudential Committees of the various districts. And as a matter of fact, wherever Union schools are adopted, the control of all the schools is given to the general town committee, and they, thus controlling primary as well as higher schools, have the power to grade them fully with reference to each other.

But this particular method of sustaining schools of a higher grade might not be acceptable to many minds; and it is, in fact, liable to the objection often made against all schools of a higher grade, that however adapted to the wants and circumstances of densely populated towns or cities, it would not be suitable in thinly populated neighborhoods.

Hence, and very wisely, by the school laws of both the States referred to, provision is made for the support of graded schools by other methods.

Under the laws of Massachusetts, certain specified branches, "algebra, vocal music, drawing, physiology and hygiene" may be taught in all the public schools whenever the school committee deem it desirable. There all towns containing five hundred families are required to sustain a high school, for the benefit of all the children in the town, in which, history, book-keeping, surveying, geometry, natural phi losophy, chemistry, botany, the civil polity of the State and of the United States, and Latin shall be taught. And still further, towns containing four thousand inhabitants, shall sustain high schools, in which instruction shall be given in the additional branches of Greek, French, astronomy, geology, rhetoric, logic, intellectual and moral science, and political economy. Here certainly is ample provision for the support of schools of any desirable grade, and well have the people of that State improved the opportunity thus given in the general law. And Vermont, too, has in her system of laws, provision for the support of higher schools, to which by far too little attention has been given by her citizens. That portion of our school law rerelating to graded schools is simple and shorter than any descriptive summary would be, and I insert it here:

HIGH, OR CENTRAL, OR GRADED SCHOOLS.

"When the children of any school district shall have become so numerous as, in the opinion of the Prudential Committee, to require more than one teacher, the clerk of such district shall, on application of such committee, call a meeting of such district, for the purpose of ascertaining the views of the district thereon.

If, at such meeting, a majority of the legal voters shall vote to have two or more schools in the district at the same time, such district may vote to erect as many school houses in the district as shall

be found necessary, and shall, by vote or in such other manner as the legal voters present may determine, fix on the location of such school house or houses.

Any such district so composed of several schools, may by a vote of a majority of such district, at any meeting legally warned for that purpose, direct the teacher of the higher or central school of the district, to teach any of the sciences or higher branches of a thorough education, which may not, by existing laws, have been authorized.

The prudential committee of such district, or a committee appointed for that purpose, shall have power to examine as to the age and qualifications of the children, and designate the school they shall each attend.

Children not residing in such district shall not be permitted to attend the higher school of such disct, except with the consent of the prudential committee, who may prescribe the terms upon which they may be admitted."

Such is the Vermont provision for higher or graded schools. It is short, and simple enough manifestly, free certainly from complexity, and not open to the accusation so frequently uttered in our State in reference to the school law of "too much machinery." It has nothing of the compulsion of the system of Massachusetts, and may on that account be less certainly eficient, although the very absence of compulsion may better adapt it to the somewhat peculiarly self-reliant and independent spirit of our people, many of whom accuse the existing school law of a tendency to infringe upon individual rights. But whatever may be the opinion formed of the comparative excellence or inferiority of the provision of our law for higher schools, a short examination of it in connection with the other existing school laws -and this connection must be kept in view in order to any fair appreciation of its efficiency and adaptation-will show its abundant capacity to work great improvement in our schools when fully and fairly put in operation.

The best possible test of such a series of legal provisions, except that of putting it into practical and actual operation, is to ascertain precisely what may and what may not be actually accomplished under it; but before making such inquiry it is well to premise, 1st, that the general law of the State requires each town to sustain all schools necessary to give to all its children instruction in "ortho"graphy, reading, writing, English grammar, geography, arithmetic, "history and constitution of United States, and good behavior ;" and 2nd, that supreme and exclusive control of the division of the territory of each town into districts is given to the people thereof assembled in town meeting. Premising thus far, and still further presupposing, for the sake of testing the capacity of the legal provisions referred to, that the citizens of a town of average size in our State really desire to have the best practicable public schools, let us see what power they have under the laws of the State.