ment of the public schools, shall divide the county into districts, decide all controversies about the boundaries of districts, location of schoolhouses, etc., and shall see that the law is enforced. It is a corporate body, having authority to purchase and hold real and personal estate, to build schoolhouses, sell school property, fix time for opening and closing public schools, and make all just and needful rules and regulations governing the conduct of teachers and pupils as to attendance on the schools and for the discipline and general government of the schools. Appeals can be taken from county board to State board. County board has power to pass on the moral character of teachers and to dismiss teachers of bad moral character, and to issue subpoenas to compel attendance of witnesses.

The county board shall biennially elect a county superintendent, and appoint township or district committeemen, to serve two years. Three committeemen may be appointed for each township, or three committeemen for each school in the township. Township committeemen may be allowed $1 per day for not more than four days per annum. County boards fill vacancies in committees. County boards on first Monday in January and July of each year meet to apportion school fund to various townships per capita. Before apportioning school fund the board shall reserve as a contingent fund an amount necessary to pay the salary of the county superintendent and the expenses of the board; also shall set aside as much as one-sixth, if necessary, of the total school fund to be used in securing a four-months school term in every school in the county. They may, also, before apportioning the money, reserve as a fund for building and repairing schoolhouses and for equipment in counties with a total school fund of $5,000 or less, not more than 20 per cent thereof; in counties with a total school fund of over $5,000 and not more than $10,000, not more than 16 per cent thereof; in counties with a total school fund of over $10,000 and not more than $25,000, not more than 10 per cent thereof; in counties with a total school fund of over $25,000, not more than 7 per cent thereof. Not more than one-half of the expense of building the schoolhouses can be paid out of the general fund, the other half being paid out of the funds apportioned to the districts.

County boards may apportion not to exceed $200 for county institutes; at stated meetings held in January, April, July, and October, audit and approve treasurer's accounts, and fix maximum salary of first-grade teachers; divide the townships into convenient school districts, consulting the convenience and necessities of each race in setting the boundaries of the school district for each race, and shall establish no new school in any township within less than 3 miles of any other school, nor shall they create any school district with less than 65 children of school age, the school age being from 6 to 21 years. School districts may be formed out of portions of contiguous townships or counties by consent of county boards. County boards may receive gifts, or purchase or condemn land for schoolhouse sites; may form special tax districts, and upon petition of onefourth of the freeholders, indorsed by the board, the county commissioners are required to call special elections to levy local tax for schools. This special tax

can not exceed 30 cents on $100 worth of property and 90 cents on the poll. County superintendent.-The county superintendent of schools shall be elected by the county board of education biennially on the first Monday of July. He shall be at the time of his election a practical teacher, or shall have had at least two years' experience in teaching school, and shall also be a man of liberal education and shall otherwise be qualified to discharge the duties of his office. He must be of good moral character and shall hold his office for two years from date of his election. He may be removed from office for cause by the board. He shall hold two examinations a year for applicants of good moral character for teachers' certificates, have charge of the teachers' institute, hold township teachers' meetings, and with the concurrence of the school committee of the district he may suspend any teacher unfit for his place or who is rendering inadequate service for the pay received. He is subordinate to the State superintendent and the county board. He shall distribute the blank forms received from the State superintendent, and advise with district committees as to the best method of obtaining statistics. He countersigns orders on the treasurer of the county board for payment of teachers' salaries, provided the teacher has made the reports required, and shall himself report to the State superintendent annually, giving an abstract of the number, grade, race, and sex of teachers examined or approved by him, number of schools taught in the county for each race, enrollment and average attendance by sex, average length of terms of the school, average salary of teachers by race, and, in addition, the county superintendent shall report annually to the State superintendent the number of school children in the

county by race and sex, public scholhouses and the value of school property for each race, number of institutes held, teachers attending them, and such sugges tions as he may deem proper.

The compensation of the county superintendent shall be $3 per diem, or the county board may pay an annual compensation not to exceed 4 per cent of the disbursements for the schools under his supervision; or the county board of any county whose total school fund exceeds $15,000 may employ a superintendent for all of his time at such salary as may be fixed by said board.

School committeemen.-The county board of each county shall biennially appoint in each of the townships of the county three intelligent men of good business qualification, who are known to be in favor of public education, who shall serve for two years from the date of their appointment as school committeemen of their respective townships. Any township committee may appoint one man in each school district in the township to look after the schoolhouse and property and advise with the committee. The county board in each county may, if they deem best, instead of electing township committeemen elect for each school of the several townships three school committeemen of intelligence and good business qualification, who shall serve for two years, or till their successors are elected and qualified. All the power and duties conferred on township committeemen shall vest in the district committee when so appointed.

All school committees, whether township or district, shall meet after their qualification, elect from their number a chairman and secretary, and shall keep a record of their proceedings in a book to be kept for that purpose. The school committee shall be intrusted with the care and custody of all schoolhouses and all other public school property in the township or district, with full power to control the same as they may deem best for the interest of the public schools and the cause of education. The school committee of each township shall furnish annually to the county superintendent a census report of the school children 6 to 21 years of age in their townships or districts by name, age, sex, and race. The school committee shall be allowed a sum not exceeding 2 cents per name for all names reported betwen the ages of 6 and 21. They shall also report by race and sex the number of all persons between the ages of 12 and 21 who can not read and write, and the number of public schoolhouses and the value of all public school property for each race separately, and furnish to the teacher at the opening of the school a complete copy of the census furnished to the county superintendent, which shall be recorded by the teacher in a register containing the name and age of each pupil of school age in that district. Committees have authority to employ and dismiss teachers. No teacher can be employed except at an advertised meeting held for that purpose. Committees fix salaries of teachers, but can not pay more than the maximum salaries fixed by the county board for each school. The secretary of the committee shall furnish the county superintendent a copy of the contract with the teacher, and no voucher for the salary of a teacher of any school shall be signed by any county superintendent unless a copy of such teacher's contract has been filed with him. Committees shall not employ a teacher who does not hold a certificate in date from the county superintendent, nor for a longer term than the amount of money that accrues to the credit of the district for that fiscal year.

2. TEACHERS.

Appointment, qualifications, and duties-Institutes.

Appointment, qualifications, and duties.-No person shall be employed by a district or township committee to teach who does not produce a certificate from the county superintendent. No certificate can be issued to a person under 18 years of age. Teachers of second grade shall receive not more than $25 per month. Teachers of the first grade may receive such compensation as shall be agreed upon, provided the amount does not exceed the maximum salary allowed by the county board. Teachers of third grade shal; receive not more than $20 per month, and no holder of a third-grade certificate shall be employed except as an assistant teacher. Twenty school days of not less than six hours nor more than seven hours each day shall be a month. The school term shall be continuous. County superintendents shall examine all applicants of good moral character for teachers' certificates on the second Thursday of July and October of every year, and for the examination of teachers at any other time he shall re

ED 1904 M-28

quire a fee of $1, which is turned over by the county superintendent to the treasurer of the school fund. A general average of 90 per cent and over shall entitle an applicant to a first-grade certificate, which is valid for two years; a general average of 80 per cent or more shall entitle the applicant to a second-grade certificate, which is valid for one year, and a general average of 70 per cent shall entitle an applicant to a third-grade certificate. The certificates shall be valid only in the county in which they are issued. (Diplomas from colleges are not recognized, and all teachers that teach in the public schools must have certificates from the county superintendent.)

Teachers must keep a record of the attendance of pupils, and at the end of the term report to the county superintendent the length of term of school, the race for which it is taught, the number, sex, and average daily attendance of pupils, and the number of the district, the number of children on census blank not attending school, and the number of children under 17 years of age not attending any school. Teachers shall file with their registers at the end of the school term an accurate record of the promotion, advancement, and classification of every child attending the school just closed.

Institutes. The county board may annually appropriate not more than $200 for the purpose of conducting one or more teachers' institutes, or two or more counties may hold a joint institute.

3. SCHOOLS.

Attendance-Character of instruction-Text-books-Buildings.

Attendance.-White and colored pupils are to be taught separately. Also separate schools are provided for Croatan Indians. Every school to which aid is given from the public fund shall be a public school, to which all children living in the district between the ages of 6 and 21 years shall be admitted free of charge for tuition, and shall be taught four months at least. In any district where there may be a private school regularly conducted for at least six months in the year, unless such private school is a sectarian or denominational school, the school committee may contract with the teacher of such private school to give instruction to all pupils living in the district between 6 and 21 years of age without charge, and pay said teacher out of the school fund apportioned to the district. Every teacher of the public school branches in said private school shall obtain a first-grade certificate before beginning his or her work, and shall make such reports as are required of all other public school teachers. The county superintendents and committees have the same authority over these schools as over any other public school.

Character of instruction.-The branches taught in the public schools shall be orthography, defining, reading, writing, drawing, arithmetic, geography, grammar, language lessons, history of North Carolina, history of the United States, physiology, hygiene, nature and effect of alcoholic drinks, elements of civil government, elements of agriculture, and such other branches as the State board may direct.

Text-books.-The State board of education, acting as a State text-book commission, adopts books to be used in the public schools, and they shall not be changed for five years. A subcommission of from five to ten teachers or superintendents, appointed by the governor, reports to commission as to merits and demerits of all books submitted for adoption. Books are distributed through agencies or dealers or else delivered carriage prepaid at contract price.

To

Buildings.-The county board has complete control of all schoolhouses and other school property and may sell schoolhouses after due advertisement. interrupt or disturb any school is a misdemeanor, punishable by fine of not more than $50 or imprisonment not more than thirty days. Any one setting fire to a schoolhouse shall be sent to the penitentiary or the county jail and may be fined at the discretion of the court.

4. FINANCES.

Funds (permanent or special)—Taxation.

Funds. The county board shall, on the first Monday in January and July of each year, apportion the school fund of the county to the various townships in said county per capita. (See also Organization-County board.)

The proceeds of all lands granted by the United States not otherwise appro

priated, all sums or securities now belonging to any State fund for education, the net proceeds from the sale of swamp lands belonging to the State, and all grants, gifts, and devises shall be paid into the State treasury, and, together with so much of the ordinary revenue of the State as may be set apart for the purpose, shall be faithfully appropriated for establishing and maintaining a system of free public schools.

All moneys, securities, and other property belonging to a county school fund, the net proceeds from sales of estrays, the clear profits of all penalties and forfeitures, all fines collected in the several counties for any breach of the penal or military laws, all auctioneers' licenses and half of all the net proceeds of any tax on licenses to retailers of liquors, wines, cordials, etc., shall belong to and remain in the several counties and shall be faithfully appropriated for establishing and maintaining free public schools in the several counties.

Taxation. In addition to the State and county capitation taxes (both together never to exceed $2 on the poll) there shall be levied and collected every year for the maintenance of the public schools, 18 cents on every $100 of property and credits in the State. The total poll tax for all purposes must equal the total property tax on $300 valuation of property and 75 per cent of all poll tax goes to the public school fund. If the tax (capitation) levied by the State is insufficient to maintain one or more schools in each school district for a period of four months, then the board of county commissioners shall levy a special tax to supply the deficiency (except when the limit of 663 cents on the valuation and of $2 on polls has been reached for State, county, and district purposes).

NORTH DAKOTA.

1. ORGANIZATION OF THE SYSTEM.

State superintendent―Board of university and school lands—County superintendent-District board-City board of education.

State superintendent.-There shall be chosen by the qualified electors of the State, at the times and places of choosing members of the legislative assembly, a superintendent of public instruction, who shall have attained the age of 25 years, and shall have the qualifications of a State elector, and be the holder of a State certificate (any State) of the highest grade, or be a graduate of some reputable university, college, or normal school. He shall hold his office at the seat of government for the term of two years from the first Monday in January following his election and until his successor is elected and qualified. Before entering upon his duties he shall give a bond in the penal sum of $5,000, with not fewer than two sureties. He shall preserve all the matter accumulated by virtue of his office and turn it over to his successor; shall have the general supervision of the schools, and shall be a member of the board of university and school lands and of the normal-school boards of the State. He shall furnish the necessary blanks and registers and lists of publications approved by him as suitable for district libraries, prepare questions to be used in examinations for teachers' certificates, prescribe rules for conducting such examinations, mark or cause to be marked all answer papers, and issue certificates; prescribe a course of study for the State normal schools and the course of study, training, and practice of the professional department of schools designated and supported wholly or in part by the State; prescribe rules for the holding of teachers' institutes and assist thereat; print the school laws at least once in two years; meet the county superintendents of each judicial district or of two or more districts combined; make a biennial report to the governor, showing:

(1) The number of school districts, schools, teachers employed, and pupils taught therein, and the attendance of pupils and studies pursued by them; (2) the financial condition of the schools, their receipts and expenditures, value of schoolhouses and property, cost of tuition and wages of teachers; (3) the condition, educational and financial, of the normal and higher institutions connected with the school system of the State, and, as far as it can be ascertained, of the private schools, academies, and colleges of the State; (4) such general matters, information, and recommendations relating to the educational interests of the State as he may deem important.

Two thousand five hundred copies of his report shall be printed and distrib

uted. In addition to his salary he shall receive not more than $1,000 in any year for traveling expenses.

Board of university and school lands.—(See Finances-Funds.)

County superintendent.-There shall be elected in each county a county superintendent of schools, to serve for two years, who shall give bond with surety to the amount of $500. No one is eligible to the office unless he or she holds a certificate of the highest county grade or its equivalent.

The county superintendent shall have the general superintendence of the public schools in his county, except those in cities, which are organized under special law. He shall visit every public school under his supervision within the county at least once each official year, and oftener if necessary to increase its usefulness; carefully observe the character and methods of instruction and the condition of the school, advise the teacher, and note in writing his proficiency; carry into effect all instructions of the State superintendent given within his authority; distribute to the proper officers and to teachers all blanks furnished him by the State superintendent and needed by such officers and teachers. He may arrange for meeting with school officers at designated times and places, due notice of which has been given, for the purpose of inspecting the district records and instructing in the manner of keeping the same and of preparing the reports of district officers. He shall visit the officers of the several school districts as often as may be necessary to secure the correct keeping of the records; prepare for and furnish to each assessor a correct sectional map showing the boundaries of school districts; decide cases of controversy, with appeal to State superintendent, and make an annual report upon such matters as the State superintendent may require. He may appoint a deputy, and is entitled to an office and postage.

The salary of the county superintendent shall be as follows: In each county having 1 school and not over 5, $150; 6 schools and not over 10, $300; 11 schools and not over 15, $400; 16 schools and not over 20, $500; 21 schools and not over 25, $600; 26 schools and not over 30, $700; 31 schools and not over 35, $800; 36 schools and not over 40, $900; 41 schools and not over 50, $1,000, and for each additional school $10 additional: Provided, That in computing the salary of the county superintendent no school or separate department in graded schools shall be included unless the same shall have been taught at least four months during the preceding year; but the compensation shall not exceed $1,500 in any county where the number of schools does not exceed 130, and in counties where the number of schools does exceed 130 the county superintendent shall be paid $5 for each additional school, but in no case more than $2,000 per annum. In addition thereto he shall receive 10 cents a mile for the distance actually and necessarily traveled by him in the discharge of his duties; he shall, at the end of every three months, make and furnish to the county commissioners an itemized statement of the distance so traveled, which shall be audited and ordered paid by the board of county commissioners out of the county general fund monthly, upon the warrant of the county. In every county which shall be organized for school purposes after the passage of this act the county superintendent shall be paid a salary at the rate of $100 a year until the first Monday in January next following his election, after which his salary shall be fixed as provided for in this paragraph.

District board. Each civil township in every county not organized for school purposes under the district system is constituted a distinct school corporation, and when hereafter any civil township shall be organized it shall be a distinct school corporation, except as otherwise provided. There shall be elected at large in each school district three school directors and a school treasurer, the directors to serve for three years, one retiring annually, and the treasurer for two years. The three directors shall constitute the district school board, and shall have general charge and management of the schools and the care, custody, and control of school property. They shall establish or discontinue schools; employ teachers; may introduce branches in the schools other than those prescribed by law, subject to the approval of the county superintendent; may levy tax, not exceeding 30 mills on the dollar in any year, and may permit the use of the schoolhouse for purposes other than instruction when not occupied for school purposes: shall determine the length of time schools shall be kept beyond the six months required by law, and may establish high schools, if the voters sanction it. The board of school trustees shall cause the clerk to take the school census annually, including all unmarried persons 6 to 20 years of age. All reports and records of school officers and proceedings of school meetings shall be kept in the English language.