Reports of School Committees. THIS is the season for the Annual Report of the School Committees of towns, and these are documents to which special attention should be given. Nothing can so much interest the citizens of a town as that which relates to its Public Schools. We therefore bespeak a careful attention to all these documents. We shall give abstracts of many of them, which may be worth something, but which, of course, will be in comparison with the Reports themselves, nearly worthless. Let everybody in every town in our State, get the Report of the School Committee and read it very carefully. THE REPORT OF THE TOWN OF BRISTOL, is a straight-forward paper, by Dr. Shepard, full of good common sense suggestions, and shows that the schools of Bristol-a fact which we knew before-are thorougly appreciated by its citizens. There are 18 teachers; 682 scholars; average attendance 576. Whole cost of schools including repairs, &c., $6,440.42. THE REPORT OF THE TOWN OF WARREN, shows that their schools have cost $3,088.72. There are 10 teachers; 426 scholars; average attendance, 323. Warren is one of the towns that spares no expense needed to make good scholars. REPORT OF THE TOWN OF CRANSTON was made by the Superintendent, F. Miner, Esq., and is a document worth more than a cursory perusal. It shows that there are 18 teachers and the cost of the schools is $4,851.58. The number of scholars not reported-very unfortunately. REPORT OF THE TOWN OF SCITUATE is made up by Wm. S. Kent, Esq., and ought to be read by every citizen in the town. It shows that there are 19 teachers; 830 scholars; average attend-ance, 599; and the cost $3,057.88. We have a large number of Reports from towns out of the State which we intend to notice in our next. A Word about Centerville. THE school-house at Centerville is, in external appearance, one of the neatest in the State, and a real ornament to the village in which it is placed; but the school-house lot is so very neat and small, that there is no possibility of the scholars mistaking it for their natural play-ground, the street. There are, doubtless, many advantages in this, for how else can we account for the fact that the taste which should lead to the erection of such a building, should allow it to be placed where it always will be impossible to sur. round it with any adequate yard or grounds. Such was our mental query, when a few days ago we saw it for the first time, and we have not yet been able to answer it. Let us praise the neatness of the building then, and forgetting its location, look in upon the school. Here we found some eighty scholars in two rooms, under the direction of Mr. D. R. Adams, assisted by a lady whose name we do not remember. A glance was sufficient to show that the teacher has made his mark in the school. It was in excellent discipline, and the scholars were prompt, active, and industrious. Their teacher, while every whit a school-master, understands the value of cheerfulness and animation, and know how to secure them. During our brief stay, we heard a fine recitation in arithmetic, in which principles as well as processes were developed, and were favored with most excellent singing. Were we to criticise, we might express a doubt as to the expediency of so much concert recitations; still we think it was so managed as to secure a thorough knowledge on the part of each individual. Prominent in our list of good schools, must stand that at Center ville. School Exhibition. 1 ON the 13th of May, at 2 P. M., we attended the Annual Exhibition of the High School in the city of Providence, and a very pleasant time it was too. There were music, declamations, the reading of compositions, and a very pleasant discussion by the young ladies and gentlemen, or rather by members of the "girls and boys' department." We do not like to say how well we were pleased for that would be a difficult.task. But we must say that the compositions were all well written, and most accurately and distinctly read. The declamations were of no ordinary merit, and the elocution was correct, chaste, and very distinct and appropriate. We know not anywhere a better school than the High School, and its scholars certainly proved that the teachers are more than ordinary men. The decorations of the rooms, done by the scholars themselves, were very ornamental, and the mottoes all admirable. On the whole, the Exhibition was above praise. And we want to beg the young ladies and gentlemen of the High School, and through them the good people of the State generally, not to pronounce law as if written lawer, nor draw, as drawer. We love Rhode MR. WILLARD'S FAMILY SCHOOL for boys at Warwick Neck, is one of the best institutions of the kind with which we are acquainted. It is located in a rural district near the bay, noted for Island and her peculiarities so well now, that if we should hear these same words pronounced so prettily by such pretty mouths as on this occasion, very often, we should certainly go in for the long drawn out law'r'r. We have always main-its pure air and healthfulness, and beauty of sittained that this pronunciation was incorrect, but one more such a time would convert us. Girls and boys of Rhode Island, don't do any such thing as convert us to such a heresy. We are bad enough now in all conscience, and we would not, if we could help it, have eten another sin of the tongue to answer for. "Law is law," as the pleader says, and we hope it will never grow to be any longer, and become lawer or lawyer. THE FIRST ANNUAL BEPORT OF THE GIRLS' REFORM SCHOOL OF MASSACHUSETTS, was noted as received in our last. As this is the first institution of the kind exclusively for girls in this country, it is proper for us to say a word more in regard to it. Its plan is somewhat different from many other reformatory institutions. It is arranged, not on the plan of a very large boardinghouse, with domitories, but on the plan of families, small and orderly, all under the charge of one man. The Chaplin, who is the Superintendent, is the Rev. B. K. Peirce, an old acquaintance and friend of ours, and a gentleman who knows how to deal with children. He has given in his first report, not only much information, but a great deal of valuable philosophy. He makes many important suggestions and develops the true method of all reform in the characters of the vicious, and the method of educating the ignorant and the degraded. We should be happy to give extracts from it, and mean to do so at some future time. We wish our old friend may gain fresher laurels in this field than those he has already so well won elsewhere. ETYMOLOGY OF WORDS.-Our friend, G. M. C. is responsible for the following, which our readers should hear him tell: "An aged minister of one of the denominations was asked to make a Fourth of July speech, and being in his dotage, consented. He never was burdened with learning, and of course was bound, under the circumstances, to show his acquaintance with the deep things. He began his speech by saying that he must speak, contrary to his custom, on POLITICS.' 'Now,' said he, 'all my hearers know the meaning of Politics. It is composed of two words, Polly and Ticks. POLLY means the people, and TICKS, the power. So you see, my dear hearers, how very expressive and appropriate the word is for this occasion."" uation. Its pupils are limited to six or eight in number, an arrangement which renders it easy to give to each such personal supervision, and care both in the school and the family, as his wants and circumstances may require. Mr. Willard himself is a teacher of enlarged and liberal views, and by his experience and sound judgment, is admirably adapted to the work he has undertaken. We most heartily commend his school to those who wish to place their sons where they may receive sound instruction, and find a home in a pleasant and well-regulated family. WE will furnish the Rhode Island Schoolmaster and either the Massachusetts Teacher, printed in Boston, or the Ladies' Christian Annual, published in Philadelphia, for $1.50 per year. The Teacher has been often spoken of, and quoted from, in our columns. The Annual is a dollar magazine, having a gem steel plate and thirtytwo pages monthly. We will also furnish the Schoolmaster and Mr. Bagnards's American Journal of Education for $3.00. Here is a chance to get more good reading for less money than in any other way. TO OUR FRIENDS.-By reference to our columns it will be observed that while we intend to keep onr magazine true to its name, we shall, at the same time, endeavor to please the family circle as well as the school-room. We have employed an agent to canvass for subscriptions, and we hope to see a large addition of names to our list, to prove that those interested in education and choice reading wish the Schoolmaster long life and prosperity. THE RURAL NEW YORKER, a quarto weekly, devoted to Agriculture, Horticulture, Mechanic News, is one of the best of our exchanges. It Arts, Science, Literature, Education, and the numbers among its contributors, Prof. C. Dewey. Lieut. M. F. Maury, Dr. Asa Fitch, and other distinguished writers. It is conducted by D. D. F. Moore, Rochester, N. Y., and is furnished to subscribers for $2.00 a year. WE see that our friend Wm. H. Farrar, has removed from Lawrence, Mass., to Great Falls, N. H. He is an acquisition to his native State, ter than when he left it. and we believe he is quite as good, if not betSuccess to him. We wish we had a greater number of as good teachers in our State. SCHOOL EXERCISES. Dana P. Colburn, Editor. Answers to Problems. From the given conditions, the distance which the man travels each day must equal his distance at the end of the day from the city towards which he has been travelling, and hence must also equal the difference between the distance which he L. B., the proposer of the problem of the Trav-traveled the preceding day and the whole distance eller, in our last number, solves it as follows: By computation, the distances traveled during the first six days, are found to be, respectively, 20, 10, 15, 12 1-2, 13 3-4, 13 1-8 miles, or 1-2, 1-4, 3-8, 5-16, 11-32, 21-64, of the whole distance between the cities, which may be regarded as unity. This last series may take the form, 1-3+1-6, 1-3 -1-12, 1-3+1-24, 1-3-1-48, 1-3+1-96, 1-3-1-192, from which we easily obtain, between the cities. Calling the distance between the cities unity, the distance traveled in each successive day to the nth, may be represented by 2 n But the numerator of this fraction has the m form of the quotient of (2 ±1)÷(2+1) and hence multiplying both terms throughout by 2+1 gives, from which, by addition, we get equation (1) as given by L. B. Our remaining steps are the same If S the sum of the required series we shall as his.-Ed.] have, [Answers have also been proposed by C. B. C. and B. U. but we think they are incorrect.-Ed.] *It will be seen that 4, 8, 16, &c., are the successive powers of 2. To accommodate our space we have written them in this form. Problems. No. 2.-From Robinson's Algebra. 2. There are 3 numbers in harmonical proportion, the difference of whose difference is 2, and 3 times the product of the 1st and 3d is 216. What are the numbers? No. 3.-Contributed by B. U. I have a pyramidal vessel whose base is 24 inches square, and whose perpendicular height is 36 inches. As it stands upon its base I fill it with water to the depth of 6 inches. Required, the height to which the same quantity of water will fill it when it stands upon its apex. THE CYCLOPEDIA OF WIT AND HUMOR, No. 3, is at Kimball's ready for delivery. It is well selected and printed, and cannot fail to pay in good spirits and pleasant thoughts, for the money to buy it and the time to read it. OUR BOOK TABLE. FROM D. KIMBALL & Co., 17 Market Square Providence, which is a fine place to get all manner of periodical literature, and a great many excellent books, we have the following works: “WELLS' EVERY MAN HIS OWN LAWYER, AND UNITED STATES FORM BOOK. New York: John G. Wells, No. 11 Beekman street. It professes to, and we think does, give the correct and legal form of doing any, and as the book itself would say, all manner of business, from accepting a deed of gift down to making your last will and testament. By this book, you can learn how "grant, bargain, sell, release, quitclaim, alien, enfeoff, entail, convey, and confirm" "fully, freely and absolutely," "all and singular, hereditaments, appurtenances, rights, reversions, remainders, rents, issues, estate, title, interest, property, possessions, claims and demands," you may have in anything under the sun, excepting always, of course, your wife; but it will teach how to make a league, covenant, jointure, agreement, &c., &c., with her for the whole term of your natural life, and then teach you the form of breaking the whole of it accord ing to law. It is a useful book, we say it seriously and advisedly; and we ask our readers where they can better invest a dollar than in this book? number of scholars attending schools was 8504; the average number attending 4335. The are two High Schools, fourteen Grammar Schools, ten Primary, three Industrial Schools, one Normal School and five Evening Schools. The city of Newark has a good system and excellent schools, while under the very excellent Superintent, Dr. Congar, and their well trained teachers are rapidly improving. THE GRAMMAR OF ENGLISH GRAMMARS, by Goold Brown, New York: S. S. & W. Wood, 389 Broadway. This is the fullest treatise on the Grammar of the English language that has ever been printed. and in our opinion it is of great value. We confess to having been brought up on "Brown's Grammar," and we have not yet lost all our affection for it. This great book of 1070 pages of octavo contains all that a man need to learn about the laws of construction and the methods of parsing and analyzing the English Language. We think that every teacher would find it profitable to buy and study it. THE INSTITUTES OF GRAMMAR AND THE FIRST LINES IN GRAMMAR are the same on smaller scale, and in many sections of our country they are used to great profit. We have indicated our opinion of the above book. If we could have them in our schools and should not make good THE IVth VOLUME OF THE LIFE OF WASHING-grammar scholars with them, we are sure the TON, by Irving, has been issued by G. P. Put- fault would not be in the books, THE CANADA EDUCATIONAL DIRECTOR AND CALENDAR FOR 1857-8; Edited by Thos. Hodgins, B. A., is a very useful book, got up by our Canada cousins. It contains a brief history of the school movement in both Upper and Lower Canada, with lists of officers and teachers, and with a more particular account of the Universities. It is a work of great value and evinces the greatest patience. We hope its example will be followed by other States. ANNUAL REPORT OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN FOR 1856; by Ira Mayhew, Superintendent. ABRIDGMENT OF THE DEBATES OF CONGRESS, by T. II. Benton, is a mighty undertaking, and the Appleton's have got up the 1st volume superbly. It contains eight hundred pages and a fine index. It is just the work for reference for men, who would be posted up either in the history or the mode of Congressional proceedings. It is to be This is only a part of the documents to be completed in fifteen volumes, and we hope Kim- printed in relation to the schools of this young Co., the agents for the sale of it will be State. There are 3255 organized school districts, in which were taught 187,123 children; the numvery liberally patronized. ber of teachers, 5078; 1610 males, 3478 females; Kimball & Co. are also agents for Blake's Bi-wages of teachers $304,773.29. The report proographical Dictionary which is now nearly ready. ball THE ANNUAL REPORT OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS OF NEWARK, N. J., for the year 1856, shows that the ceeds in a very straight-forward way to make a large number of excellent suggestions, which if carried into effect cannot fail to make the State attain a high degree of literary and moral excellence. BY ANNIE ELIZABETH. Он, why deem life a dream of sadness, Why call this earth a "vale of tears," For many are the beams of gladness, That gleam along the path of years. And rays of fair and golden sunlight, Are glancing o'er our pathway dim, E'en as the darkened brow of midnight Is crowned with many a sparkling gem. And when the shadowing clouds of sorrow Still let us hope a fairer morrow, And though by deepest gloom o'ershaded, In glorious hues of light unfaded, Its radiant hues of love, all brightly Shall cheer us on our onward way, And e'er will turn our footsteps lightly, From dangers that around us stray. Oh, how can thoughts of dark repining From the bright mansions of the blest? They're borne upon the light-winged zephyrs, WHATEVER definition of beauty we may adopt, the fact of its existence will not be questioned. It greets us on every hand, more abundantly disclosed, indeed, to the cultivated and observing eye, yet visible to the most superficial and heedless. Physical beauty -of which alone we now speak-abounds in every department of nature. In the animal kingdom, for instance, what graceful forms and proportions, what richness and delicacy of colors, what sweetness of sounds! It was not mere utility that fashioned the humming-bird which flits around our door-ways or the bobolink pouring out his liquid gurgling melody, as he flies over the meadow. "In the commonest human face," says an artist "there is more beauty than Raphael will take away with him. The eye is not only an admirable contrivance for conveying images of external objects to the mind, but in its form, colors, and varying expression, is in itself beautiful. Can anything surpass the tints of an insect's wing, whether viewed by the naked eye, or through the lenses of a microscope? If we descend into the region of animalcules, the minutest living objects, examined by the most powerful instruments, exhibit the greatest perfection and finish. Indeed, it seems as though the Creator had purposely drawn a veil between the common eye and some of the finest specimens of his handiwork, in order to surprise, and stimulate the investigations of science. In the mineral kingdom, there are not only |