USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester > Town annual reports of the several departments for the fiscal year ending December 31, 1848/49-1855 > Part 6
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Salem, Valuation, Tax, Per centage per $1000,
Cambridge, Valuation,
Tax,
Per centage per $1000,
New Bedford, Valuation,
Per centage per $1000,
Roxbury, Valuation, Tax, Per centage per $1000, Charlestown, Valuation,
Tax, Per centage per $1000, Lowell, Valuation, Tax,
Per centage per $1000,
Worcester Valuation,
Tax,
Per centage per $1000,
$174,180,200,00
$1,174,715,80 $6,50
$10,106,250 $68,000
$6,40
$10,653,772
$70,821,88 $6,30 $17,267,500
$5,42 $13,476,600 $89,572,92 $6,20
$8,821,100 $84,671,40 $9,00
$18,033,652,00
$158,419,94 $8,20
$10,756,282,00 $78,807,70 $6,75
In a number of the towns in this county, if all the tax- es which are assessed for schools, highways, &c., were in- cluded in one tax, in the manner in which it is done here, the per centage upon $1000 would be greater than it is in the City of Worcester.
I confess frankly, that if the City government of Wor- cester does its duty, I do not see any prospect that the an- nual expenses of the City will be lessened materially. I adhere to the opinion expressed in my address to the late City government, that our debt should not be increased.
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One or more new school houses will need to be built an- nually for a number of years. Paving will need to be ex- tended from Lincoln square to Washington square, and when this shall have been completed, it will probably be- come necessary to pave other streets. The highways of the City will require to be made better in each successive year. The increasing demands for the education of the young will require an increase rather than a diminution of the school appropriations, and the objects of our care generally will not be likely to become less expensive than they are at present.
I have referred thus briefly to what has been done dur- ing the past year. Our meeting to day has more to do with the future than with the past. To our hands the interests of our City have been confided for the year which we this day commence, and the present seems to be the proper time to make a few general suggestions upon the subject. And here allow me to say that the obligation imposed upon us requires us, 1, To know our duty ; 2, To do our duty ; and 3, To do it in a civil and gentlemanly manner towards all with whom we are brought in contact, in the various and multiform features of municipal business. We are placed here not for ourselves but for others. Our doom is to work, be the task ever so thankless. We are to act not with a view to a mere ephemeral popularity, but with strict and fearless reference to what is right. The simple fact that a man has been placed in office by his fellow citizens, requires of him his best efforts and his best energies to do what the public good shall seem to demand, whatever may be the consequences to himself personally; and he who acts upon any other principle than this, has a false idea of what he owes to himself and to his fellow men.
There are certain subjects to which I propose to call
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your immediate attention. The public good and the public sentiment seem to demand, that the Paving of Main street should be continued, that gas fixtures should be erected, and gas taken to a considerably greater extent than at pres- ent. I suggest whether a new school house is not required upon Thomas street, with one or two new ones in outer school districts, and also the preliminary steps for a new school house in the south west section of what is known as the Centre District. If there is any subject upon which we can afford to exercise a reasonable liberality, it is the education of the young. I also suggest that measures should be taken to erect railing upon sundry portions of our roads, which in case of accident would be considered dangerous. Our schools and highways are causes of great expense to the city, but they are brought home so directly to the knowledge and feelings of the people, that they see the benefit of a liberal provision for their support and im- provement. It may be well to inquire whether something may not be done to give to the outer School and Highway Districts a more direct and responsible charge of their af- fairs, and thus help to do away with a growing impression among the inhabitants of those districts, that their interests are not sufficiently cared for.
A report of a committee during the past year recommen- ded the purchase of a new lot for a City Burial Ground. It is a matter which commends itself to us with peculiar force. In nothing, perhaps, is the taste of a community more clear- ly visible, than in the care which it bestows upon the rest- ing places of the dead. What, though there be but dust and ashes of all which once was full of life and action ? still that dust is sanctified to the hearts of surviving friends, and the tribute of respect or of affection can well be paid by erecting such mementoes of the departed, as shall make
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the place where their ashes repose, the spot of all the world most sacredly cherished, and around which memory shall most fondly linger. I present this subject for your special consideration.
Another subject to which I would call your attention is that of Public Grounds. Increasing as our City is in pop- ulation, the time will soon come when the necessity for more extensive public grounds will press strongly upon us. With the exception of the Common, which is by no means a large one, we are nearly destitute of them. It is unfor- tunate that in years gone by, when land could have been procured at a low price, tracts of land were not purchased, which would have been a most prolific source of health, comfort and ornament to the city. No form of benevolence would more surely make the donor immortal, than a gift of a tract of land for public purposes. If we cannot procure land where it will be most convenient, I suggest whether it is not advisable to make provision for it, even though it may be done at a point which may now seem remote. We are a growing city. What is to be the extent of our pop- ulation, no one can foresee. We have come to our growth so many times, that the prophets have lost their reputation, and we stand where nature and art both combine to make us a great inland city. Year by year the hum of industry grows louder, and the footsteps of an increasing population are more distinctly heard. Business increases in extent and variety. We hold a ready communication with all parts of the country-and what is more than all this, and better than all this, we have nothing, and ask for nothing more honorable than labor, and we believe in the maxim that so long as labor is honorable, and the laborer gets his hire, so long we are authorized to expect an increase of our numbers. If, then, I am not mistaken in the views which
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I present, we shall have a much larger number of people to provide for in the next ten years than we now have, and I know of nothing which would insure so valuable an income upon the outlay, as an investment of a reasonable sum in grounds, to be made public as the occasion should demand.
At the proper time, measures should be taken for the construction of ample Common Sewers, and for a more effec- tual mode of Draining the City than exists at present. The change in the occupation of what was once called " the meadow,"-the construction of railroads,-the filling with earth for sundry purposes,-the encroachments upon what was a part of Blackstone Canal, and upon the current of Mill Brook, with the additional fact that a dam is main- tained below and near the thickly settled portion of the City, present a state of things which demand the anxious attention of those interested in the health and well being of our people. If the water could only run freely, no City is better located for being thoroughly and effectual- ly drained. As it is, with the water kept at such height as it is raised by the dam, with all the facts to which I have above referred, there exists here a state of things which deserves the careful consideration of all who have a desire to make this City what every City should be. A cellar partly filled with water has a strong tendency to produce disease in the household, and the materials which collect in and around the standing water in the low part of the City, must have an influence upon the atmosphere as unwhole- some as it is undesirable. A clergyman of this place, a few months since, meeting a little filthy-looking boy, asked him " Why do you go so dirty ?" The reply was "I can't help it, sir, I live so near the pond !" This blunt answer speaks volumes, and teaches us as clearly as the lesson can be taught, that in thickly populated places, where the tide
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does not ebb and flow, water should run freely, and that interference with natural laws for the purpose of trade and manufacture, promotes one interest to the detriment of another. I would not suggest for a moment that the per- sons who continue to raise the water by means of the dam, are to be censured. The relations between the people and the pond and mill dam, have been changed without the fault of the owners. It is a valuable property to them. They are not to be expected to part with it without compensa- tion, and I am happy to believe that if the time shall ever come when a just and satisfactory arrangement can be made in relation to it, no men will be more ready than the owners of said dam, to open the floodgates of the pond and let its waters, with all its congregation of mixed commod- ities, speed their way to fertilize the valley of the Black- stone, and leave our cellars dry.
Experience has demonstrated that certain amendments to the City Charter are needed. A Bill is now before the Legislature which seems to meet the present necessity. It provides, among other things, for filling certain vacancies, which there seems to be at present no power to fill-for making up jury lists and drawing jurors-for preventing any misunderstanding as to the time when a new Warden, Clerk and Inspectors of elections enter upon the perform- ance of their duties-for doing what the public good may demand in reference to Mill Brook-for requiring side- walks to be paved in certain cases, and for a change in the time of the commencement of the Municipal year. If I understand the provisions of the bill, they commend them- selves to the favorable consideration of the voters of this City. In case of its passage by the Legislature, it will be submitted to them for their adoption or rejection.
It contemplates a change in the commencement of the
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municipal year from the first Monday in April to the first Monday in January. This change will give an opportunity for the seasonable appointment and organization of all committees, and the government for the year will com- mence at the time when there seems if ever to be the necessity for it. It also makes the time of the commence- ment of our municipal year conform to that of each of the other cities of the Commonwealth. In every case where the first Monday in January was not fixed upon in the original charter, except in our own, a change has already been made to that time, and the result of the change has been satisfactory.
An Ordinance has been passed establishing the office of City Solicitor. The duties of this officer are very import- ant. He is not only to be the legal adviser of certain officers of the City-to represent the City in all suits in which she is a party, or in which her interests seem to be involved, but to see to it at all proper times and upon all proper occasions, that in her legal rights she receives no detriment. It therefore becomes important that if possi- ble, this office be filled by a man of learning, integrity, industry, and experience, and in whom the community shall be able to repose entire confidence.
The time is not far distant when provision will have to be made for a City Market, and this subject is therefore worthy of careful consideration.
Applications are frequently made to the city officers in aid of projects, which do not come within the range of those subjects for which the City Council appropriates money. In some cities, appropriations of a larger or small- er amount are made annually, for the purpose of sustaining a Public Library. This subject is one which at this time is exciting much interest among our people, and if it would
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not be considered an improper exercise of authority, I doubt not that such an appropriation would be exceedingly desirable to a large number of our citizens. But when we reflect that our limits extend over a large territory, and the benefits of such an appropriation would be confined prin- cipally to the Centre District, I cannot recommend that such appropriation be made by the City Council, but that the inhabitants of that portion of the city who would be mainly benefitted by such an institution, should contribute of their abundance to its liberal support. Probably no one. mode of expending money would operate more beneficially upon the mass of our population, or the results of which would be more satisfactory to those who should enlist them- selves in the project.
Gentlemen of the City Government, I have thus taken the liberty to present various subjects for your considera- tion, some of which would not have been presented at this time, had I expected ever to make to the Government of this city another similar communication. I have presented them because I am confident that sooner or later they must be acted upon, and that the sooner the public mind is awakened to their importance, the better will it be for us and for those who are to come after us. I cannot but feel, that upon those upon whom have been placed the burdens in the early stages of our existence as a City, will depend very much her future prosperity and reputation. Having this view, I am anxious that such a policy shall be adopt- ed, as will insure not only a just but a liberal administra- tion of her affairs. To this end responsibilities are to be met, and duties are to be done ;- to this end taxation is to be equalized-education is to be fostered-the hungry are to be fed-the naked are to be clothed, and the various duties of our several offices are to be performed " without
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fear, favor or affection." To this end we have taken upon us the oaths of office, and now enter upon the duties of the year. And may He whose inspiration hath given us understanding, give wisdom to our councils, sincerity to our words, and success to all worthy efforts.
HENRY CHAPIN.
REPORT
OF THE
SCHOOL COMMITTEE.
. IN compliance with the law of this Commonwealth, and the requisitions of our municipal Charter, the School Com- mittee of the City of Worcester hereby present to their fel- low-citizens their annual report.
The past year has been a season of progress and pros- perity in nearly all our schools. If no great advance has been made on the past-if no organic changes have occur- red during the year-if the public mind has not been aroused into activity by the discussion of important ques- tions concerning the welfare of our schools, we may consider it settled by the testimony of experience, that our Common School system, as a whole, has attained to a high state of excellence, and that the public opinion of this City is contented with our present arrangement. The wis- dom of our predecessors in this department, and the atten- tion bestowed on this great subject by our citizens generally, have produced a system of which it is sufficient to say, that the present School Committee, after a year's experience, desire no change. But while the excellence of the system
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is apparent from the success which has been obtained, yet the working of the system has not always produced that efficiency which its intrinsic merits would warrant us to expect. The principal fault in our schools is a habit of non-attendance, whether arising from truancy or from more justifiable causes. And we regret to notice that Worcester is only the 227th town in the Commonwealth, and the 50th in this county, in the numerical scale of average attendance. This evil not only injures those who withdraw themselves from their daily discipline, but retards the progress of those who are uniform in their attendance. Nor will this prac- tice receive any material change, while the children prefer the passing amusements of an idle hour to the acquisition of knowledge, the beneficial influence of which is wholly prospective ;- while mothers are weak enough to prefer their own peace and the clamorous desires of their children rather than their intellectual improvement ;- and while fathers take no deep interest in their daily progress. Our laws may be so amended as partially to meliorate this evil. But it can never be wholly eradicated, save by a conscious- ness of personal responsibility on the part of parents, and a corresponding sense of the value of time and youth in the minds of the scholars.
The powers of the School Committee have very recently been legally defined by our Supreme Court in the interesting case of Roberts vs. the City of Boston. The Board of that city had set apart certain schools for the exclusive use of colored children, who were not allowed to enter any other schools. And Chief Justice Shaw in his decision said that " it was a question of power,-of the legal authority of the Committee entrusted by the city with that department of public instruction : for if they had the legal authority, the expediency of exercising it in any particular way was exclu-
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sively with them. It depended upon the Committee to pre- scribe the qualifications and make all reasonable rules for organizing such schools, and regulating and conducting them. This power of general superintendence vested au- thority in the Committee, to arrange, classify, and distribute pupils in such manner as they should think best adapted to their general proficiency and welfare. £ In the absence of special legislation on this subject, the power was vested in the Committee to regulate such system of distribution and classification, and when this power was reasonably exer- cised, without being abused or perverted by colorable pre- tences, the decision of the Committee upon the subject should be deemed conclusive."
The fourteen schools in our outer districts have been kept during their usual summer and winter terms. In con- sequence of the scarcity of scholars, and the distance of the houses from each other and from the school, the system cannot have that perfection which the Centre District pos- sesses. But the arrangement is as good and efficient as is possible under the circumstances ; while the benefits of the High school give to the children of our farmers an oppor- tunity of education such as cannot be obtained in smaller towns. Some of the schools have passed successfully through the period allotted them by the Board, and have reflected credit upon both teachers and scholars. The school kept in the 4th district by Mr. George E. Pratt during the winter term, and by Miss Avaline Williams during the summer-that in the 5th district kept in win- ter by Mr. Calvin E. Pratt, and in summer by Miss Mary H. Williams, and that in the 11th district, kept by Mr. Oliver B. Greene and Miss Sarah J. Chamberlin, are es- pecially to be commended. In other districts, the schools have passed doubtfully and wearily through the term as-
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signed them, and while some have been wholly broken up and closed, others have recommenced under different aus- pices. In the 2d, 3d, 7th, 8th, 10th, 12th and 14th districts, serious difficulties have occurred, in some cases diminishing the number of scholars, and in others wholly closing the school, and in all weakening the efficiency of the system. These difficulties have partially arisen from the weakness or the literary inability of the teacher; and partially from the unwillingness and unreasonableness of the district to be satisfied with any instructor that might be sent them. When the latter has evidently appeared, as it did in two instances, the Board upheld their agent, the teacher, and left to the parents in each individual case, the responsibility of sending or withdrawing their children. And the firm- ness of the Board in these instances is believed to have strengthened the hands of all our teachers, by inducing the conviction that where there exists honesty of intention and capability of execution, the teacher who does his duty will not be left unsupported to the clamors or complaints of disaffected pupils. But a strong cause for the doubtful success of our outer schools underlies our whole district system, in the slight connection existing between the outer districts and the teachers placed at the head of these schools.
The changes which time and the law of human progress have made in our school system, have produced many ad- vantages, but are not wholly without their corresponding evils. Under the old system, each outer district selected and recommended its own teacher, and was alone respon- sible for their choice. And as the prudential committee of each district, who selected the successful applicant, would commonly be the most influential person in the vicinity, and would naturally take some interest in his success, the
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teacher would usually have some friends who would be interested in his support. And as these would generally give the tone of public opinion to their several districts, and would naturally exercise a weight of authority not easily overthrown, complaint would not often be heard, nor disaffection produced by doubtful surmises concerning a teacher's ability and capacity. But by the present arrange- ment, the instructor is chosen by the Central Committee of the city, and is sent out into his district, without a single friend or acquaintance, and the slightest fault is easily and rapidly magnified in its travels from the children to their parents. The instructor comes from a higher authority than themselves, and is expected to possess all the supposed acquirements of those who select him.
By the Revised Statutes, the School Committee have the sole power of examining teachers, and of ascertaining their qualifications. But by the laws of 1838, the prudential committee of the separate districts are allowed to select and contract with their teachers, if the town will give them leave, though their selection is subject to the examination and certification of the School Committee. The Board would therefore recommend to their successors, that power be given for the future by a general rule, to each pruden- tial committee, to select the teacher for his district, and . such teacher shall be examined by the School Committee, in common with all other applicants, and shall have the preference, if his examination and credentials prove him to be perfectly equal to the required duty. But all powers of examination, final selection and contract shall remain with the Central Committee. This plan would require greater firmness on the part of the examining committee to reject those candidates which the separate districts might offer, who should prove unequal to their required duty.
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But such an arrangement, it is believed, would produce unanimity of feeling and interest between the separate districts of the city and the central government. It would give confidence to the teacher by the knowledge that he had at least one influential friend to whom to apply for assistance or guidance. The district would be satisfied by the knowledge that he had been selected by themselves, and had passed an examination which proved the suffi- ciency of his qualifications. And above all, it would tend to restrain those frequent complaints of the master from the inhabitants of the various districts, which have some- times wholly broken up the schools, and always weakened the moral power of the master over his young charge.
The Young Men's Winter School under the charge of Mr. Addison A. Hunt, has numbered this year fifty-two, with an average attendance of about forty-seven. This class of our scholars are not driven to study by parental authority or the demands of public opinion. But they come from their own consciousness of powers unemployed, and capacities which are not satisfied, and they deserve all the commendation which we can faithfully bestow. This
school during the past year has surpassed its previous standing, and has afforded to the Board ample evidence of the advantages of the system, the application of the schol- ars, and the excellence of the teacher.
When we consider the inequality of the various grades of scholars, and their want of preparation, their hitherto unused power of mental exercise, and the shortness of the period of instruction, we are ready to award the school that praise which it has not seemed to deserve in past years.
The experiment of Free Evening Schools for those of a . riper age, has been for the first time tried during the past year. Three schools were opened on the first of December,
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of which one at Fenwick Hall was for both sexes,one for females in the brick school house on the Common, and one for males in the Thomas st. school house. The first was taught by Mr. Addison A. Hunt, and the second by Mr. John C. Newton, and were attended for three months by nearly eighty scholars. The studies ranged from the let- ters of the alphabet to algebra, though reading, writing, arithmetic and grammar were the principal pursuits.
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