USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Hamilton > Town of Hamilton Annual Report 1898 > Part 3
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
teacher shall be the judge, provided, that scholars in Grade I may be dismissed thirty minutes before the close of school, to which Grade JI may be added by permission of the committee.
The design of this rule is to furnish the teacher with a brief reason for the absence, tardiness or dismissal of every pupil, and is technically called an excuse.
Under the old form of excuse, which did not give any reason, teachers were often unavoidably excusing pupils for unjustifiable absence from school.
By the new rule the committee may be able to learn if any pupils are being deprived of the education which the state law says they are entitled to, and by which law it is the imperative duty of the school committee to see that they have.
All excuses are kept on file for the exclusive use of the committee. The introduction and impartial enforcement of this rule has produced most excellent results in all our schools.
So important has the matter in relation to school attend- ance become that the State Board of Education has asked the present legislature to enact the following law :
(AN ACT IN RELATION TO SCHOOL ATTENDANCE AND TRUANCY.)
"SEC. 30. Any person having under his control a child between seven and fourteen years of age who fails to cause such child to attend school as required by Section II of this Act, for five day sessions or ten half-day sessions within a period of six months while under such control, the physical or mental condition of such child not being such as to render his attendance at school harmful or im- practicable, upon complaint by a school attendance officer, and conviction thereof, shall forfeit and pay a fine of not more than twenty dollars.
Any person who knowingly induces or attempts to induce any child to absent himself unlawfully from school, or knowingly employs or harbors, while school is in session, any child absent unlawfully
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
from school, shall forfeit and pay a fine of not more than fifty dol- ars."
The committee in their annual report last year very earnestly recommended the immediate construction of a four-room schoolhouse in the South district.
The town, at the annual meeting in March, very wisely and generously voted to build such a house.
It was voted to raise and appropriate the sum of $10,000 for the house and $1,500 for the purchase of land.
A building committee was chosen who entered at once upon the required work. The school committee was glad to know that the great pressure for room which had existed for two years in the South school was about to be relieved.
They had hoped, that this would be accomplished by the time of the opening of the next school year in the fall. But in this it was doomed to disappointment. As it was not apparent at this time when the new building would be com- pleted the committee inade such arrangements as they thought would be conducive to the progress of the school under the adverse conditions which they were in. The scholars of the fifth grade were transferred from the primary to the gram- mar department and an assistant teacher was placed in the latter.
The seats thus made vacant in the primary room were at once filled by the admission of new scholars.
Some young children desiring admission were obliged to wait for the opening of the new house.
The fall term of school closed without any change of location and the winter term was entered upon. Early in December, however, the school committee was officialy noti- fied that the new building would be ready to be dedicated soon after Christmas. A conference was held with the building committee and arrangements were perfected for the dedication exercises to be held Jan. 3, 1898. As it was
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
arranged for the school committee to furnish the rooms, plans were at once effected for the transfer of all the desks and other furniture from the old to the new house during the Christmas vacation. Having to furnish three rooms, some new desks had to be purchased. These were obtained from the Chandler Adjustable Chair and Desk Co., Boston, and are of the most approved pattern.
When the day which was set for the dedication arrived everything was in order, and the house was open to the public all day for inspection.
The Dedication Committee had decided that it would be more convenient to hold the exercises in Hamilton Hall, of which the following is the program.
Dedication of the New School House at South Hamilton, Monday, January 3, 1899, at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, in Hamilton Hall.
MR. GEORGE H. GIBNEY, Chairman of the Building Committee, President.
PROGRAMME.
Opening Hymn, "Scatter Sunshine." By the School Children Under the direction of Rev. Jesse G. Nichols, Mrs. Isaac C. Nichols, Pianist.
Financial Statement.
By Mr. A. P. Gardner Secretary of the Building Committee.
Transfer of the Building to the Town.
By Mr. George H. Gibney
Acceptance. By Mr. George K. Knowlton
Chairman of the School Committee.
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT,
Dedicatory Prayer. Rev. A. D. Gorham
Singing, "Give thy Heart's Best Treasure." By the Children Address.
By Mr. John W. Perkins
Superintendent of Schools, Salem.
Address.
By Mr. Adelbert L. Safford Superintendent of Schools, Beverly.
Other speakers will take part in the exercises.
Closing Hymn, "America."
Benediction.
Rev. Jesse G. Nichols
On the morning of January 4, after the Christmas vaca- tion, with pardonable pride, both teachers and pupils en- tered their new scholastic home. Three rooms were opened, as follows: Grammar grade, 30 scholars; Intermediate grade, 28 scholars; Primary grade, 36 scholars. Several pupils have since come in, making 102 scholars in the three rooms at the present time.
The building contains four good-sized and well-lighted rooms, three of which are now in use. In the basement are two rooms containing first-class sanitary arrangements. Here, also, are two boilers, one of thirty horse-power and one of ten horse-power for summer use, for heating, ventilating and furnishing a supply of water.
The town has reason to thank the building committee and all others who were concerned in the construction of this fine house, for the faithful manner in which their several parts of the work have been done. Surely the building was erected none too soon, for the school census of 1897 shows an increase in the town of 31 children of school age over that of the previous year.
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
Mr. Fred C. Shaller, an engineer of more than twelve years' experience, has been placed in charge of the building as janitor.
The committee was called for the first time to furnish. arrange and classify three graded schools in one building. We now have seven schools in all, and possibly another may be added in the near future. To get the best results for the money expended the schools need to be looked after and cared for as thoroughly as any other business, and it far ex- ceeds in importance any commercial transaction, for it deals with the very foundation of the character and success of the mature life.
The committee has tried to conduct the schools in the best interest of the education of the children, enforcing all rules and regulations impartially, whether to be observed by teachers, pupils or parents. Any other course than this must be more or less ruinous to the welfare of the schools. While there is yet much to be done for the education of our chil- dren, the committee are pleased to know that the schools at the present time are in excellent condition, and they earnestly request the hearty co-operation of parents and citizens in placing our schools among the best in the country towns of the state.
The introduction of vocal music, under the supervision of a special teacher at stated times, would be of much value in our schools.
Respectfully submitted,
GEO. K. KNOWLTON, ALBERT L. WHIPPLE, 1 School Committee.
JESSE G. NICHOLS,
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
ROLL OF HONOR.
The committee presented each of the following pupils a book for perfect attendance for the year ending June 18. 1897.
South Primary school, Elsie M. Peterson.
West school, Jonathan Lamson.
East school, Gertrude K. Weston, Sadie A. Dodge. Helen H. Dodge, Annie P. Carey, Ernest S. Berry, Frank P. Day.
South Grammar school, Mabel L. Peterson, Charita W. Vennard.
South Primary school, Elsie M. Peterson.
TRUANT OFFICERS' REPORT.
To the School Committee of Hamilton:
Gentlemen :- I have not been called upon for service as truant officer, and therefore have no cases to report.
LEWIS H. BRADSTREET. Hamilton, Feb. 18, 1898.
To the School Committee of Hamilton:
Gentlemen :- I have not attended to any case of tru- ancy the past year.
CHARLES E. WHIPPLE.
Hamilton, Feb. 18, 1898.
To the School Committee of Hamilton:
Gentlemen :- I have no cases of truancy to report.
STEPHEN A. GWINN.
Hamilton, Feb. 18, 1898.
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SCHOOL COMMITTEE'S REPORT.
CALENDAR FOR THE SCHOOL YEAR 1897-8.
Fall term, (12 weeks), Opens August 30, 1897. Closes November 19, 1897.
Winter term, ( 14 weeks ), Opens November 29, 1897. Closes
March 11, 1898.
Spring term, (12 weeks), Opens March 28, 1898. Closes June 17, 1898.
SCHOOL CENSUS.
May 1, 1897, Number of children between the ages of 5 and 15, 240
May 1, 1896, Number of children between the ages of 5 and 15, 209
Increase in one year,
31
REPORT OF THE TRUSTEES OF THE PUBLIC LIBRARY.
To the Inhabitants of the Town of Hamilton :
In the last annual report the trustees called attention to the crowded condition of the shelves in the room occupied by the Library, and to the fact that larger quarters must be pro- vided for if the Library were to continue to hold its place as a means of education to the people of the town.
On February twenty-second of this year the town dedi- cated a new town building, in which quarters for the Library were set apart. These quarters consist of two rooms, one of which is fitted for a stack room and the other for a delivery and reading room. In the stack room will be kept the Libra- ry proper, while in the reading room provision has been made for dictionaries, encyclopedias and books of reference, so that they may readily be consulted at any and all times. Hav- ing obtained more commodious quarters, the trustees desire to make the Library of more use and increase its influence in the town. In order to do this the trustees desire to purchase modern encyclopedias and books of reference, and to sub- scribe for some of the current magazines of acknowledged merit, and place these in the reading room. The trustees, with this end in view, have saved a part of the former appro- priations, but the amount so saved will not be sufficient to accomplish all they desire to do immediately. In preparing to move the books into the new stack room it was found necessary to send a large number of books to be rebound, which will entail a considerable expense upon the Library. Taking all these matters into consideration, together with the
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HAMILTON PUBLIC LIBRARY.
fact that the new quarters will increase the expense of running the Library somewhat, the trustees desire to recommend that as liberal an appropriation as possible .shall be made for the Library at the annual town meeting to be held in March next.
The trustees desire to express to Mr. Marshal K. Ab- bott, Mrs. A. P. Gardner and Mrs. E. F. Knowlton their grateful acknowledgment for the gifts of a number of valua- ble books. It is with regret that the trustees announce that Miss Annie E. Woodbury, who has so faithfully filled the position of librarian from the first inception of the Library to the present time, has sent in her resignation, to take effect the first day of March. The board wishes to publicly express its high appreciation of her services, which have conduced so largely to the usefulness and popularity of the Library; and it also desires to express its gratitude to Mrs. John L. Wood- bury for the great assistance she has always rendered in the Library, whereby the Library has been of great use to so many of the inhabitants of the town. The trustees announce that Mrs. Grace C. Stone has been appointed librarian.
Attached to this report is a summary of the expenditures for the current year:
THE LIBRARIAN REPORTS AS FOLLOWS :
Number of books in the Library March 1, 1898 2,116
Number of books issued during the year . 3,205
Number of books added during the year . 55
Cards issued during the year 69
Cards issued since Library opened 659
Amount collected for fines $2 42
Appropriation, March, 1897, $300 00
A. E. Woodbury, rent and salary . $100 00
I. A. Dunnels, transportation 13 00
Congregational S. S. and Pub. Soc. books 17 57
Amount carried forward, $130 57
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HAMILTON PUBLIC LIBRARY.
Amount brought forward,
$130 57
A. N. Webb & Co., cards II 50
Little, Brown & Co., books
IO 37
E. L. Perley, binding books 7 20
C. H. Odell, insurance 8 75
DeWolfe, Fiske & Co., books 4 52
J. G. Nichols, incidental expenses
I 07
Express I 05
W. H. Merrill, rubber stamp
50
$44 96
Unexpended 1897-1898
$124 47
$300 00
A. N. Webb. Catalogue 1895 . 49 00
FRANK V. WRIGHT, Trustecs AUGUSTUS P. GARDNER, of the
JESSE G. NICHOLS, Public Library.
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