By the provisions of the 1st section of title 2d, chap. 15th, part 1st of the Revised Statutes, it is the duty of the Superintendent of Common Schools to prepare and submit an annual report to the Legislature, containing,

1. A statement of the condition of the common schools of the State:

2. Estimates and accounts of the expenditures of the school mo

neys:

3. Plans for the improvement and management of the commor. school fund, and for the better organization of the common schools: and,

4. All such matters relating to his office, and to the common schools as he shall deem expedient to communicate.

In pursuance of the foregoing directions, the Secretary of State, in his capacity as Superintendent of Common Schools, has the honor to submit the following

REPORT:

1. The Condition of the Common Schools.

There are in the State, fifty-five organized counties, containing eight hundred and thirty-five towns and wards. The commissioners of common schools of the several towns are required to make an annual report of all the school districts in their respective towns to the clerk of the county, to which they belong; and it is the duty of the county clerk to send certified copies of all such reports

performed in every instance, and the necessary returns have been received from every town and ward in the State. Abstracts of the returns will be found arranged in the order of the counties, from which they come, in the table marked A, hereunto annexed. The same matter is exhibited in a condensed form, in the table marked B.

By the latter, it will appear that there were in the State on the last day of December, 1833, nine thousand eight hundred and sixty-five organized school districts, from nine thousand three hundred and ninety-two of which reports have been regularly made to the commissioners of common schools. In the counties of Richmond, Tompkins, Westchester and Yates, every school district has reported; in Cayuga, Cortland, Schenectady and Schoharie, all but one; in Franklin, Greene and Seneca, all but two; in Columbia, Kings and Ulster, all but three; and in Albany, Lewis, Madison, Orleans, Rockland and Wayne, all but four.

In the districts from which reports have been received, schools have been kept an average period of eight months.

The whole number of children over five and under sixteen years of age, residing on the last day of December, 1833, in the districts from which reports have been received, was five hundred and thirty-four thousand and two; and the whole number of children who had received instruction in the same districts during the year 1833, was five hundred and thirty-one thousand two hundred and forty. The exact average period of time during which the whole number of children taught have attended school cannot be ascertained.The reports show only how long the schools have been kept open, and how many children during that period have received more or less instruction.

During the year 1833, one hundred and seventy-five new districts have been formed. In 1831, there were six hundred and fifty-nine districts from which no reports were received by the commissioners of common schools; in 1832, five hundred and eighty-three; and in 1833, only four hundred and seventy-three. Of this number, about one-half are in thirteen counties, which are rapidly increasing in population, and in which one hundred and twenty new districts were created in 1833. Thus it would appear that the number of districts, which fail to make reports, is rapidly diminishing; and in a considerable proportion of them, it is

fair to infer that the omission is to be attributed to the irregularities and delays, which take place in new districts after their organization, and before there is time to put them into complete ope

ration.

The number of children who have received instruction in the districts heard from, is eighteen thousand two hundred and seventysix more than the number who received instruction during the preceding year; and the increase in the number of children between five and sixteen years of age residing in the same districts, is eleven thousand three hundred and eighty-four.

The following table will exhibit the proportion which the number of children taught in the common schools during the last ten years bears to the number enumerated. During the first five years only those who were over five and under fifteen years of age were enumerated, while during the last five years the enumerated class was augmented by embracing all who were over five and under sixteen years.

Excess of children taught over those be- Excess of children between 5 and 16 years tween 5 and 15 years of age. of age over those taught.

In this table, the cities of Albany and New-York are not included, as returns of the whole number of children between five and sixteen years of age in those cities, have not been made by them until within the last few years.

The variations in the proportion which the whole number of children enumerated bears to the number receiving instruction. from 1826 to 1833, may be ascribed, in some degree, to the efforts of the Superintendent to correct an error which prevailed in some cases in the manner of making out reports from districts lying partly in two or more towns. The nature of the error, and the process of adjustment, have been fully explained in the four last reports of the Superintendent. There is reason to believe that the greatest practicable accuracy is now attained in the reports from

have received instruction during the last two years, in proportion to the number between five and sixteen years of age can only be attributed to the improvement of the common school system, and to the increasing attention paid to the subject of education.

It should be borne in mind, in referring to the above table, that the aggregate variation in the proportion of children taught to the whole number enumerated may be accounted for, without making much allowance for the error above referred to, by the extension of the enumerated class from fifteen to sixteen years of age. The maximum of the excess of the number taught over the number between five and fifteen years of age, (which was in the year 1826,) and the maximum of the excess of the number between five and sixteen years of age over the number taught, (which was in 1833,) amount together to thirty-three thousand seven hundred and seventy: and this amount can not differ materially from the number of children added to the enumerated class by extending it so as to embrace all between five and sixteen years of age. The effect of this change was also explained in last year's report; and there is good reason to believe now, as was stated then, that the accuracy of the results exhibited in the reports of the Superintendent has not at any time been materially impaired by the erroneous manner in which the reports of some of the joint districts were made out.

It is to be observed that the foregoing table relates only to the common schools; and that, although children between five and sixteen years of age attending private schools are included in the enumeration made in the school districts within which they reside, yet they are not returned among the number receiving instruction. The number of students in the incorporated academies in 1833 was five thousand five hundred and six. The number of children receiving private instruction can not be ascertained; but there can not be the slightest doubt that if the whole number annually instructed in private and district schools and the academies could be obtained, it would be found to exceed the whole number between five and sixteen years of age. As a proof of the truth of this observation it may be remarked that in twenty-six counties the number of children taught exceeds the enumerated class. These counties are either rapidly increasing in population or very thinly settled; and it is precisely under such circumstances that the smallest number of private schools is found.

In the county of Genesee more than twenty thousand children have been instructed during the year; in Oneida more than nineteen thousand; in Onondaga more than eighteen thousand; in Jefferson and Otsego more than seventeen thousand; in Monroe more than sixteen thousand; and including these counties there are twenty, in which more than ten thousand have been instructed.

In the county of Oneida there are three hundred and fifty-seven school districts; in Genesee three hundred and thirty-four; in Otsego three hundred and nineteen; in eleven counties, including the foregoing, more than two hundred and fifty; and in twenty-three counties more than two hundred.

In each of four towns more than two thousand children have received instruction; in sixteen towns, including the foregoing, more than fifteen hundred; and in one hundred and fourteen towns more than one thousand.

In each of nine towns there are more than thirty organized school districts; in twenty-one towns, including the foregoing, more than twenty-five; and in seventy-six towns more than twenty.

The average number of organized districts to each town is twelve and a half; and the number of children receiving instruction, compared with the number of school districts from which they were reported, will give an average of fifty-six and a fraction to each district.

The annexed paper marked C, exhibits the condition of the common schools, under some of its most important aspects, from the year 1816, to the present time.

II. Estimates and Expenditures of the School Moneys.

By the reports of the commissioners of common schools, it appears that the sum of three hundred and fourteen thousand eight hundred and eight dollars and thirty-six cents was paid by them to the trustees of the several school districts, in April, 1834. The amount of public money expended by the said trustees in the year 1833, was three hundred and sixteen thousand one hundred and fifty-three dollars and ninety-three cents; of which sum, one hundred thousand dollars was received from the Common School