in endeavoring to collect it. The form for the school-statistics provided in the code of education is perhaps too complicated to be easily filled up. It might be possible to obtain more satisfactory responses from the different fus and kens, if the information called for were of a simpler kind. At least the repeated efforts of the officers and the general diffusion of information concerning education will make the task of collecting these statistics more easy in succeeding years.

My only remaining suggestion has reference to the subject of textbooks, as used in the foreign-language-schools of the empire. The selection of books has in most cases been made at the suggestion of the foreign teachers employed. Some of these selections have been excellent and some have been unfortunate.

Each new teacher has thought it necessary to insist upon the use of his favorite text-book and to discard the one his predecessor had used. In the same school may sometimes be found the same branch of study taught by different teachers from different text-books. It amounts to a serious inconvenience in these cases, where a pupil is to be transferred from one class to another or where a whole class is to be advanced from one teacher to another. It certainly would be an important step in this matter if the department of education should issue a carefully-selected list of books which should be permitted to be used in the schools under its charge. These lists should be made after consultation with the experienced and trustworthy professors in the several departments of study. From these lists of approved text-books the directors of the schools should be required to make their selections for their classes and should be required to pursue, whenever possible, uniform systems throughout all the classes of their schools. These books should not be unnecessarily changed, nor, on the contrary, ought they to be so fixed as not to permit the introduction of a new book on any subject whenever it is plainly an improvement over the former ones.

In addition to this, the time when each book will be wanted should be known some time in advance, so that means may be taken to procure the necessary supply, and thus the class not be compelled to put up with an unsuitable text-book merely because no other can be had.

These considerations make plain what has become an urgent necessity in such extensive and advanced institutions as the Japanese university at Tokei.

Heretofore it has been thought sufficient to keep the statement of the organization and courses of study of these institutions upon the Japanese records of the department and of the school. But great advantages would arise from the publication of such a statement in the principal foreign language in which the education was conducted.

Such a statement should give the different divisions of the school, the departments of instruction, with their professors and teachers, the courses of study, the conditions of admission and graduation for each, the text-books and books of reference to be used, and the terms of study

and vacation, together with the rest-days and holidays. A knowledge of these facts would assist both teacher and pupil. Knowing in advance how much time was to be allotted to each subject and what subject was to be taken up next in order, they could more intelligently employ the given time to the accomplishment of the required result. The directors, too, knowing in advance the books which will be required for the succeeding terms, can make suitable arrangements for procuring the necessary supply. Such a statement, if issued also in Japanese, would make known to the public the educational privileges which the institution affords, and would bring to its doors the youths who are in search of learning.

All of which is respectfully submitted.

DAVID MURRAY, Superintendent of Schools and Colleges.

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, December 31, 1873.

151-152

APPENDIX A.

The foregoing article by Mr. Griffis and the official report made by Dr. Murray to the Japanese educational department give the latest statistics accessible to this Bureau of the present condition of education in Japan.

The following summary of the school-law of Japan is extracted from the Report of the United States Commissioner of Education for 1872. This proposed law was substantially adopted, and, in accordance with its provisions, schools have been established throughout the empire as rapidly as circumstances would permit.

[From the Report of the Commissioner of Education for 1872.]

JAPAN.

[Absolute monarchy, (empire ;) area, about 156,604 square miles; population, about 35,000,000.]

Minister of Public Instruction, OKI.

Through the kindness of Mr. Mori, Japanese minister at Washington, we are enabled to give an outline of the new Japanese school-law, which, though perhaps not yet actually carried out, will, no doubt, soon be in force.

AIM OF THE NEW SCHOOL-LAW.

There have been schools in Japan for many years, but, from their imperfection or misdirection, they benefited the upper classes only. Farmers, mechanics, traders, and women were left in ignorance. Even among the upper classes education was very imperfect, and more devoted to art, literature, and useless discussions than to anything practical. The new school-law aims at leaving none in ignorance in any class, male or female.

HIGHEST EDUCATIONAL AUTHORITY.

The management of educational affairs throughout the whole country shall be in the hands of one central authority, the department of education.

EDUCATIONAL DIVISIONS OF THE COUNTRY.

It is proposed to divide the empire into eight grand divisions, called collegiate divisions. Each division has a central office, located in some large city, with an officer in charge. The eight grand divisions are made up of 72 provinces and 3 cities. Each grand division or collegiate district is divided into 32 academical districts, each to contain a middle or high school, and each academical district is subdivided into 210 school-districts, each to contain one school. There being 256 academical districts, the whole number of school-districts is 53,760. The exact localities of the school-districts are to be determined according to the population and convenience of access.

SCHOOL-ADMINISTRATION.

There shall be appointed in every academical district by the local authorities from 10 to 13 directors, (superintendents,) each to superintend and control from 20 to 30 schools. The

salary of these superintendents shall be paid out of the fund derived from local taxes. If this is impossible, it shall be paid out of the treasury of the central government for the present.

Every child, male and female, of all classes, is to be sent to school from the age of 6 years, and must attend school long enough, at least, to finish the course in the elementary schools.

The rules and by-laws of all schools, public and private, must be submitted to the educational department every year, as also a report of the number of scholars and their progress. Every collegiate division shall have one bureau, with a director and a sufficient force of clerical assistants, who shall watch the progress of the scholars and observe the practical working of the system. In consultation with the local authorities, the director may so modify or amend the rules as to suit the particular locality, but such amendments must be limited to unimportant matters and be reported to the department of education.

The director of each collegiate division shall transmit all the reports from the schoolsuperintendents to the department of education, where these reports will be printed for the public use.

DIFFERENT KINDS OF SCHOOLS.

There are to be three classes of schools, viz: great learning, (superior:) middle learning, (secondary;) and small learning, (elementary.)

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS.

The different grades of elementary schools are common schools, schools for girls, villageschools, charity-schools, private schools, infant-schools, evening-schools, and schools for imbeciles, &c.

Infant-schools are for children under 6 years of age, both male and female.

Private schools must have a license.

· Charity-schools are for the children of indigent parents.

Village-schools are to be established where the population is sparse, and in these schools the rules may be somewhat modified to suit the condition of the people.

Evening-schools may be provided for those who cannot afford to attend school during the

day.

The schools for girls, besides the regular studies, will embrace in their course some of the domestic arts especially appropriate for females.

The common (public) schools shall have two grades, the lower and upper.

In the lower grade the following branches shall be taught: Spelling, writing, conversation, vocabularies, reading, morality, letter-writing, grammar, arithmetic as far as division, instruction by lectures upon health, outline of geography, outline of natural philosophy, gymnastic exercises, singing, (the last-mentioned not for the present.)

In the upper grade the following subjects will be taught: Outline of history, geometry, trigonometry, outline of botany, chemistry, physiology. According to the wants of particular localities the following four subjects may be added: One or two foreign languages, book-keeping, drawing, and constitution of government, (political economy.) The lower grade is for children between 6 and 9 years and the upper for those between 10 and 13.

SECONDARY SCHOOLS, (MIDDLE LEARNING.)

In the secondary schools, (academies,) scholars are admitted who have received the education prescribed for public schools; and these shall be divided into two grades, upper and lower.

Lower-grade academies will teach the following subjects: Japanese language, arithmetic, writing, geography, history, foreign languages, natural philosophy, drawing, ancient Japanese words, geometry, algebra, book-keeping, natural history, chemistry, moral science, physiology, constitution of government, statistics of the country, music, (the last not for the present.)