blanks as may be furnished by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction for reports of school statistics of the several districts; also blanks for teachers' reports and for orders on the treasurer of the county school fund for teachers' salaries. He shall also distribute to the school committees school registers for their respective districts and necessary record books; he shall advise with the committee as to the best methods of gathering the school statistics contemplated by such blanks, and by all proper means shall seek to have statistics fully and properly reported.

1901, c. 4, s. 40.

4143. MUST MAKE REPORTS TO STATE SUPERINTENDENT. It shall be the duty of each county superintendent, on or before the first Monday in July of each year, to report to the State Superintendent of Public Instruction an abstract statement of the number, grade, race and sex of the teachers examined and approved by him during the year; also the number of public schools taught in the county during the year for each race, the number of children of school age in each school district, the number enrolled in each district, the average daily attendance in each district, by race and sex, and the number of all persons in the county between the ages of twelve and twenty-one who cannot read and write. He shall also report, by race and sex, the number of pupils enrolled in all the schools, their average attendance, the average length of terms of the schools and the average salary for the teachers of each race; the number of school districts for each race, and any new school districts laid out during the year shall be specified in his report. He shall also report the number of public-school houses and the value of the public-school property for each race, the number of teachers' institutes held, the number of teachers attending such institutes, together with such suggestions as may occur to him promotive of the school interest of the county. He shall record in his book an accurate copy of such report. If any county superintendent fail or refuse to perform any of the duties required of him by this chapter, he shall be subject to removal from his office by the county board of education upon the complaint of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

1901, c. 4, s. 41.

[Copies of all reports made should be recorded in the record book of the county board for future reference. It would be well to record, also, the treasurer's report.]

It

4144. TO REPORT AS TO DEAF AND DUMB AND BLIND CHILDREN. shall be the duty of the county superintendent to require of the school committees, in enumerating the number of school children, to make a statement in the report of the number of deaf and dumb and blind between the ages of six and twenty-one years, designating the race and sex, and the address of the parent or guardian of such children; and the county superintendents are hereby required to furnish such information to the principals of the deaf and dumb and blind institutions; and the Superintendent of Public Instruction, in preparing blanks for reports required to be made to him, shall include questions the answers to which will furnish the information required by this section.

1901, c. 4, s. 43.

SALARY OF COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT. The salary of the county superintendent of schools shall be fixed by the county board of education. It shall not be less than three dollars per day while engaged in the service of the public schools. The county board of education may fix an annual salary not to exceed four per cent of the disbursements for schools under his supervision. The county board of education of any county whose total school fund exceeds fifteen thousand dollars may employ a county superintendent, for all of his time, at such salary as may be fixed by said board.

Revisal of 1905, v. I, c. 66, s. 2782.

X. THE POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE SCHOOL
COMMITTEE.

Summary: THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE IS COMPOSED OF THREE PERSONS, APPOINTED BY THE COUNTY BOARD ON THE FIRST MONDAY IN JULY, FOR A TERM OF TWO YEARS. THESE MAY BE TOWNSHIP OR DISTRICT COMMITTEEMEN, AS THE COUNTY BOARD MAY DETERMINE. THE COMMITTEE MUST TAKE THE SCHOOL CENSUS, FOR WHICH THE COMPENSATION IS TWO CENTS FOR EACH NAME. EACH SCHOOL COMMITTEE MUST ELECT A CHAIRMAN AND A SECRETARY, AND KEEP AN ACCURATE RECORD OF ALL ITS PROCEEDINGS, AND CONTROL AND CARE FOR THE PUBLIC-SCHOOL PROPERTY IN THE PUBLIC INTEREST. THE COMMITTEE IS

ALSO CHARGED WITH ASCERTAINING THE NUMBER OF DEAF AND DUMB AND BLIND CHILDREN, AS WELL AS THE NUMBER OF ILLITERATE CHILDREN, BETWEEN THE AGES OF TWELVE AND TWENTY-ONE. THE SCHOOL COMMITTEE CANNOT EXPEND ANY MONEY APPORTIONED FOR INCIDENTAL EXPENSES WITHOUT THE CONSENT OF THE COUNTY BOARD;

AND THEY MUST KEEP AN ACCURATE RECORD OF THE EMPLOYMENT OF TEACHERS AND OF ANY SPECIAL FUNDS DISBURSED BY THEM. THEY ARE PROHIBITED FROM OVERDRAWING THE AMOUNT APPORTIONED FOR TEACHERS' SALARIES, AND FROM MAKING A CONTRACT BEYOND THEIR TERM OF OFFICE. CONTRACTS WITH PRIVATE SCHOOLS MAY BE MADE, BY WHICH THE PUBLIC SCHOOL MAY BE TAUGHT IN CONNECTION WITH SUCH SCHOOLS. NO MONEY FOR DISTRICT EXPENSES OF ANY KIND OR FOR THE SALARIES OF TEACHERS MAY BE PAID BY THE COUNTY TREASURER EXCEPT ON AN ORDER SIGNED BY A MAJORITY OF THE COMMITTEE.

HOUSES.

4145. QUALIFICATIONS AND ELECTION OF; CARE TAKEN OF SCHOOLThe county board of education of each county shall, on the first Monday in July, one thousand nine hundred and five, and biennially thereafter, appoint in each of the townships of the county three, intelligent men of good business qualifications, 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 in their respective townships and until their successors are elected and qualified. If a vacancy shall occur at any time, by death, resignation or otherwise, it shall be the duty of the county board of education to fill such vacancy. Such board shall have the power to pay out of the reserve school fund to each member of the township committee thus appointed one dollar per day for not more than four days per annum. Such township committee must take the census in their township by districts, and shall be paid for taking the same at the rate of two cents per name, and may be paid each one dollar per day for not exceeding four days each year for such additional services as may be rendered by the committee in the discharge of their legal duties. Every township committee shall 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 of education in each county may, if it deem best, biennially, on the first Monday in July, instead of electing township committeemen, elect for each school of the several townships three school committeemen of intelligence and good business qualifications who are known to be in favor of public education, who shall serve for two years from date of their appointment as committeemen and until their successors are elected and qualified. If a vacancy should occur at any time, by death, resignation or otherwise, it shall be the duty of the county board of education to fill such vacancy; and in case such school committeemen shall be elected as above, all the powers and duties

conferred under this chapter on the township committeemen shall vest in such committeemen of the several schools of the township, · who shall serve without compensation.

1901, c. 4, s. 17; 1903, c. 435, s. 6; 1905, c. 533, ss. 17, 18; 1909, c. 769.

[The committee system should be uniform; there should be township committeemen only in a county, or only district committeemen. Those counties which have adopted the township system find it much the more satisfactory. This is the experience of other States. The general adoption of the township system in this State would therefore be greatly desirable.]

4146. TO ELECT CHAIRMAN AND SECRETARY; APPEALS FROM. The school committee, as soon as practicable after their election and qualification, not to exceed twenty days, shall meet and 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 name and address of the chairman and secretary shall be reported to the county superintendent of public instruction and recorded by him.

1901, c. 4, s. 18.

[A record book for committeemen will be supplied by the county superintendent.]

4147. POWERS AND DUTIES AS TO SCHOOL PROPERTY. The school committee shall be entrusted with the care and custody of all schoolhouses, schoolhouse sites, grounds, books, apparatus or other public-school property in the township, with full power to control the same, as they may deem best for the interest of the public schools and the cause of education.

1901, c. 4, s. 19.

4148. CENSUS TO BE TAKEN; REPORTS; DEAF AND DUMB, BLIND AND ILLITERATE TO BE REPORTED. The school committee is required to furnish biennially to the county superintendent a census report of all the pupils of school age in their township or district, by name, age, sex and race; also the names of their parents or guardians. The blanks upon which such reports are to be made shall be furnished to the various school committees by the county superintendent on the first Monday in June of the year in which the census is required, which report shall be duly sworn to by each one of the committee and returned to the county superintendent on or before the first Monday in July of the year in which the census is re

quired, and any committee failing to comply with the provisions of this section without just cause shall be subject to removal. The school committee shall be allowed a sum not exceeding two cents per name for all names reported between the ages of six and twenty-one. The committee shall also report to the county superintendent, who shall in turn report to the county board of education, the number of public-school houses 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. They shall also report, by race and sex, the number of all persons between the ages of twelve and twenty-one who cannot read and write, and the number of deaf and dumb and blind between the ages of six and twenty-one years, designating the race and sex, and the address of the parents or guardians of such children.

1901, c. 4, ss. 20, 43; 1901, c. 3, s. 1; 1903, c. 435, s. 7; 1911, c. 135.

4149. TO KEEP A RECORD OF RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURES; PURCHASE SUPPLIES. The school committee for each township or district shall keep a book in which shall be recorded an itemized statement of all moneys apportioned to, received and expended by them for each school, and a copy of all contracts made by them with teachers. The committee shall have authority to purchase the supplies necessary for conducting the schools and for repairs, to an amount not to exceed in the aggregate the sum of twenty-five dollars in any one year for each school; but nothing in this section shall be so construed as to give school committees the right to make expenditures without the order of the county board.

1901, c. 4, ss. 21, 35; 1905, c. 533, s. 19.

[The county superintendent should furnish the committeemen a record book to keep their accounts.]

4150. MUST NOT OVERDRAW. No committee shall give an order unless the money to pay it is actually to the credit of the district, and no part of the school fund for one year shall be used to pay school claims for any previous year.

1901, c. 4, s. 34; 1903, c. 435, s. 16.

4151. PRIVATE SCHOOLS, COMMITTEE MAY CONTRACT WITH; EFFECT. In any school district where there may be a private school regu