Say, then, reader, has some portion of the spirit of the Pilgrim Fathers descended to the present generation, or not?—a population of 150,000 devoting 260,000l. to education.
Wherever parents are unable to provide books, &c., the children are supplied with the use of them gratis. All corporal punishment is strongly discouraged, but not prohibited; and all inflictions thereof are recorded for the information of the Visiting Board. Having omitted to make personal inquiries on the spot, I obtained, through the kindness of Mr. Ticknor, answers to the following questions on the point of religious instruction:—
1. "Are the pupils at your normal schools obliged to receive religious instruction from some minister, and to attend some place of worship; or may they, if they prefer, receive no such instruction, and attend no church?"
"The State has put the normal schools under the charge of the Board of Education, with no special law or instructions. The Board of Education endeavours to act on exactly the same principles as those which the law has laid down with respect to the common schools. The Board requires that the pupils of the normal schools attend some place of worship, the pupil making his own choice. These schools are opened every morning with reading the Scriptures, singing, and prayer. The moral conduct of the pupils is carefully watched over, and instruction is given in respect to the best methods of training the young in religion and morals. The religious teaching is ethical, not doctrinal."
2. "Are the children at your common schools obliged to receive some religious instruction, or if their parents express a wish they should not receive any at school, is the wish complied with?"
"The law requires all teachers to instruct their pupils 'in the principles of piety,' and forbids any sectarian books to be introduced into the public schools. The school committees of each town prescribe the class-books to be used, and commonly make the Bible one of those books. The teacher is expected to follow the law in respect to teaching the principles of piety, without any instruction from the school committee, and is almost always allowed to do this in his own way, unless he is guilty of some impropriety, in which case the school committee interferes. He usually has devotional exercises at the opening of the school, and reads the Scriptures, or causes them to be read, as an act of worship, whether they are prescribed by the committee or not. Many teachers take that occasion to remark upon topics of morality, and thereby aim to prevent misconduct. Indeed, the Bible is much relied on as a means of discipline rather for preventing wrong-doing, than for correcting it.
"No minister, as such, gives religious instruction in any of our public schools. Ministers are commonly on the school committees, and when visiting the schools, as committees, exhort the children to good behaviour, and to a religious life.
"No cases are known of parents wishing their children to be excused from such religious instruction, except with the Catholics, who desire that their children be excused from the devotional exercises, especially from reading the Protestant version of the Bible. Even this is very rare where the teacher himself reads the Scriptures in connexion with other devotional exercises. It occurs most frequently where the children are required to use the Bible themselves, either in devotional exercises or in a reading lesson. But those wishes are not often regarded, because the committee has a legal right to prescribe the Bible as a school-book, and to require all the pupils to comply with all the regulations of the school. In some few instances, committees have thought it expedient to allow the Douay version to be used by Catholic children; but it amounts to nothing, as it is an abstract point started by the priests, for which parents care but little; besides, it is objected that the Douay version with its glosses is 'a sectarian book,' whereas the common English version without note or comment is not."
Scholars desirous of entering the higher schools are generally required to pass through the lower, and bring therefrom certificates of capacity and conduct. In the statute of the State, with reference to education, all professors, tutors, instructors, &c., are enjoined to impress upon the minds of those committed to their charge "the principles of piety, justice, a sacred regard to truth, and love of their country." Among the various subjects in connexion with education, in which instruction is given in these schools, it may be as well to mention one, which, I believe, is all but totally neglected in England. By legislative enactment, section 2, "All school-teachers shall hereafter be examined in their knowledge of the elementary principles of physiology and hygiène, and their ability to give instructions in the same."
The School Committee consists of two members from each of the twelve wards of the city, chosen annually, and assisted by the Mayor and President of the Common Council. The average expense of each scholar at the primary schools is 25s. per annum, at the higher schools three guineas. Under the foregoing system, 12,000 children are instructed annually at the primary schools, and 10,000 at the higher schools, which aggregate of 22,000 will give an attendance of nearly 70 per cent. upon all children between the ages of five and fifteen, to whom the avenues of knowledge, from the lisping letters of infancy to the highest branches of philosophy, are freely opened.