ends that the object-glass and eye-tube are readily interchangeable. On the axis, within the piers, are two circles forty inches in diameter. They are graduated on silver, the one to read by a vernier to single minutes, the other by six micrometer microscopes, to single seconds. Four of the microscopes are mounted at the corners, and two at intermediate points on the opposite sides, of a square alidade frame, which is carried by the axis, and held in position by adjusting screws connected with the pier. Attached also to the alidade is a spirit level. Suitable counterpoises prevent undue pressure of the pivots on the Y's. For finding the nadir point, and the level and collimation errors, a collimating eye-piece and vessel of mercury are used. There is also a striding level for the axis; an observing couch; and a reversing apparatus traversing the floor on rails between the piers.

This instrument, as originally constructed by Ertel & Sons, of Munich, had a thirty-inch circle at each extremity of the axis, outside of the piers. These were subsequently replaced by the present forty-inch circles on the axis inside of the piers, by Wm. J. Young, of Philadelphia, who made other minor alterations. In the first and second volumes of the Washington Observations, this circle, in its original form, is fully described, and illustrated by plates. It has been put in adjustment, but not yet sufficiently used to test its performance.

The circle-room has a meridional opening from side to side, twenty inches in width, with roof-shutters, which are opened or shut by a single motion of a lever. The side shutters are ordinary doors.

A Sidereal Clock, by Appleton, London, the gift of William Hillhouse, Esq., of New Haven, is attached to the west wall.

The observatory possesses also a Pistor & Martin's Patent Sextant. The private instruments referred to as used by students in Practical Astronomy are: a superior portable Telescope, by Clark & Sons, of 4 inches aperture and five feet focal length; a Transit Instrument with three-foot telescope, and twelveinch circle reading by two verniers to 10; a Sidereal Clock and an Eight-day Sidereal Chronometer. The telescope of the transit instrument has an objectglass, by Fitz, of 2 inches aperture, and a micrometer, so constructed as to be used with equal facility at all angles of position, without danger of disturbing the fixed system of threads. With this micrometer, and the spirit-level attached to the alidade of the circle, this instrument is practically a Zenith Telescope, and is used as such in observations for latitude by Talcott's method. The eyepiece constantly used is a diagonal one giving a power of 200, a power warranted by the excellence of the object-glass. The instrument is mounted on a heavy iron stand, cast in one piece, which is supported by a brick pier, four feet in height, with its foundation of masonry extending several feet below the surface of the ground.

The tower clock was made by Messrs. E. Howard & Co., of Boston. It has a wooden pendulum rod eight feet in length, with a zinc compensation-tube below the bob, specially ordered for this clock. The bob is of cast iron, and about twice as heavy as those usually furnished by the makers. The rate has thus far proved to be nearly uniform and quite satisfactory. The clock is set anew to zero, whenever its error amounts to half a minute. This has occurred but twice since August last. The hours are struck on a fine toned bell of 675 lbs. weight, suspended in a separate bell-tower on the main roof, some twentyfive feet from the clock.

New Building erected in 1873.

The new building has a front of seventy-six feet on Prospect street, and a depth of eighty-four feet, standing back from the street, sixteen feet.

The plan is rectangular, and it has substantially five stories,—a basement of eleven feet in height, first, second, and third stories, each fourteen feet high in the clear, and an attic, or fourth story, nine and a half feet high in the clear. The general plan of the interior arrangement of rooms is based on that of the first story, provision being made for a large lecture room in the rear part of this particular one, extending across the whole rear side of the building, and occupying nearly one-half of the story. This lecture room has a capacity for seating about four hundred and fifty persons. A hall sixteen feet wide from the front entrance communicates with this lecture room, and affords room for the main staircase to the upper stories. On each side of this hall there are two recitation rooms, one 12'.5" by 27'.5" and one 12'.11" by 26'.9", making four recitation rooms and a large lecture room on the first floor.

Under these four recitation rooms in the basement of the building there are two large rooms and one small room completely finished. These rooms are all suitable for recitation rooms, being well lighted, and having a height of 11 feet. The rear basement, under the general lecture room, is occupied by a coal room, heating furnaces and boilers, janitor's room, and water-closets. The floor of this part of the basement is lower than the front part by four feet, to permit the floor of the lecture room above to drop down that much from the front.

The second and third stories are divided alike,-two large rooms of equal size in each over the lecture room, and four rooms on each story in the front. The south side of the second story, consisting of three rooms, is devoted to Physics; the north, consisting of three rooms, to Civil Engineering. The small rooms in front are, for the present, appropriated to the Professors in those departments for study rooms, the middle rooms for apparatus and recitation rooms, and the rear and largest rooms for apparatus, lectures, and drawing-rooms.

The third floor is arranged in a similar way. The south side is devoted to Dynamic Engineering; the large rear room on the north side to Natural History, the middle room to Botany, and the front to the purposes of a private study.

The fourth story furnishes one large room (73′ by 28') for instruction in instrumental drawing, and eleven small rooms to be occupied as private rooms for instructors, and for store-rooms.

The interior finish of the building is plainly executed in yellow pine, coated with oil and shellac. The staircase and wainscoting of the halls are composed of pine, ash, and black walnut.

The building is heated and ventilated by boilers in the basement which furnish steam to chambers or 'radiators' under the rooms to be heated; a current of cold air passing through conduits to the radiators is heated in its passage upward to the rooms by the steam heated 'radiators.' To furnish places of exit for the heated air, separate air conduits from all the rooms, provided with ventilators, pass up through the walls to the roof.

The larger lecture room and all the recitation rooms, except two, have ventilators opening into large conduits in the center of the building, which are kept heated by the smoke flues of the boilers, which are of cast-iron, and pass up through the middle of these large conduits or ventilating shafts. The building is thus not only thoroughly warmed, but most efficiently ventilated.

SCHOOLS AS THEY WERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE.

BY J. W. SIMONDS.

[Annual Report of Superintendent of Public Instruction-1876.]

STATE LEGISLATION.

THE first settlement in New Hampshire was made in 1623, upon the Piscataqua river, and comprised, the territory now occupied by Dover, Portsmouth, Rye, Greenland, North Hampton, Somersworth, Durham, Lee, and Madbury. Exeter and Hampton were settled in 1638. These settlements constituted so many different sovereignties, until they submitted to the government of Massachusetts in 1641. From that year till 1680, New Hampshire continued under a common jurisdiction with Massachusetts, and had an equitable representation in the common legislature in Boston. During this period the Massachusetts school law (acts of 1642-47) was enacted.

Those two acts, with immaterial modifications, constituted the school law of Massachusetts till after the American revolution. When New Hampshire resumed its independent character as a province, the act of 1647 was copied upon our statute books, and constituted the statute law, with slight changes, for one hundred years. It is not probable that the law of 1647 was generally enforced. The grades of schools established by this act were at first supported in part by tuition. The execution of the law was in the hands of the selectmen of the towns. The amount of money raised for the support of the schools was discretionary with towns.

An act in 1693, required the selectmen in their respective towns to raise money by assessments on the inhabitants for building and repairing school-houses, and for providing for a schoolmaster for each town in the province, under the penalty of £10 in case of failure.

In 1719, an act, almost an exact copy of the law of 1647, was passed, the only modification being the increasing of the penalty from five shillings to twenty pounds. It contained a clause authorizing towns, thinking themselves unable to comply with its terms, to seek relief from the court of general sessions.

In 1721, the derelict selectmen, who are in the preamble of the act affirmed 'to often neglect their duty,' are made liable upon their personal estates for the penalty affixed upon the towns.

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At the close of the revolution our primary schools were still in their primitive rudeness, feebly and fitfully supported, while the grammar schools, for training boys for 'ye University,' existed scarcely elsewhere save in the phraseology of the statute. Such was their condition in 1789, that the legislature was awakened to the subject, and in an act of that year repealed all former acts on the subject, because, in the language of their preamble, they had been found not to answer the important end for which they were made.' An effort was made for their improvement by establishing the amount of money for schooling. This had hitherto been exclusively at the discretion and changeable whims of the town and selectmen, but it was now definitely fixed by statute at four pounds for every one pound of the proportion of public taxes to the individual town. This act also provided for the examination of teachers, requiring them to furnish certificates, from competent authorities, of character and qualification; established English Grammar Schools' for teaching 'reading, writing, and arithmetic,' and in shire and half-shire towns, grammar schools for teaching Latin and Greek, in addition to the branches required in the English grammar school, English grammar not being required in either grade.

An excellent law was passed in 1817 for the 'Support and regulation of primary schools.' The assessment for schools was increased to ninety dollars for every dollar of apportionment of public taxes, for the sole purpose of supporting English schools within the towns for teaching reading, writing, grammar, arithmetic, geography, and other necessary branches of education,' and the purchase of wood or fuel.' The law of 1805, empowering towns to divide into school districts, was repealed.

The state school system was set forth in the law of 1827 in a very intelligent manner. The superintending school committees of the several towns were required to examine and license teachers, visit and inspect schools, to select school books, and report in writing upon the condition of the schools at the annual town meeting. This committee were also empowered, in necessary cases, to withdraw certificates, and dismiss teachers and scholars. They were allowed pay for services rendered. Teachers were required to furnish satisfactory evidences of good moral character, and could only receive pay upon showing the treasurer the committee's license. District or prudential committees were to be chosen at first at the annual town meeting; later, at the district meetings. This committee constituted the legal agency to hire the teacher, provide board for teachers, and fuel, repair the school-house, and have the

care of it. Books could be furnished needy children at public expense. The inhabitants of the district were authorized to raise money by tax to build and repair school-houses.

In 1821, an act passed the legislature requiring all banking corporations to use paper stamped under the direction of the governor, and paid for by the banks at the rate of fifty dollars on the thousand of circulation, or pay an annual tax, on the second Wednesday in June, to the state treasurer, of one-half of one per cent. on their capital stock. This tax was to constitute a Literary Fund. In 1828, this fund, amounting to $64,000, was distributed to the towns, according to the apportionment of the public taxes, to be used for the support of common schools, and other purposes of education. The disbursement of this fund was made annually upon this basis until 1847, when, by an act of that year, it was distributed according to the number of children, four years of age and upward, attending a public school not less than two weeks, as shown by the annual returns of the school committee to the secretary of state. This fund at first amounted to $10,000 annually. Now it amounts to about $27,000 in the aggregate, or forty-three cents for each scholar.

In 1833, provisions were made authorizing the superintending committee to furnish needy children with necessary school books at the expense of the town.

In 1834, a resolution passed the legislature recommending the several towns to cherish primary schools and support them, as the surest means for perpetuating free institutions, and securing the stability and happiness of this great republic. High schools, academies, and seminaries were recognized as powerful allies in promoting the cause of common education. In 1839, the clause empowering towns to divide into school districts was amended, and the sub-division was peremptorily ordered. In 1840-41, the rate of school money was increased to one hundred dollars on each dollar of the state apportionment. Another act was passed this year allowing the grading of schools when the scholars number fifty or more. In 1843, an act was passed which required the selectmen, under the penalty of one hundred dollars, upon the application of ten legal voters, to make the division of the town into school districts.

By an act of 1846, the office of Commissioner of Common Schools was established. He was required to spend at least twenty weeks in the different counties of the state for the purpose of promoting the cause of general education. He was required to make to the legislature an annual report upon the common schools of the