purposes $ 44,683.51; or $ 12.76 to
each scholar in the city. The es-
timated value of school houses and
lots is $ 220,000. There are 1760
male, and 1800 female children
enrolled as scholars attending the
public schools, and there are 500
children between the ages of four
and fourteen years who do not at-
tend any school. New-Hamp-
shire laws, obliging parents or
guardians of children, at certain
ages, to send them to school a
part of the year are very specific.
It is evident that there is some-
thing wrong somewhere to allow
one-eighth of the children to be
brought up in ignorance, which if
allowed to continue will be sure to
breed vice and misery in any com-
munity. No city in New-Eng-
land makes better provisions for
schools and appropriates more
money for school purposes in pro-
portion to its wealth and popula-
tion than Manchester, but if the
children are not made to attend,
it is money and labor lost. In
1844, the total amount of mon-
ey appropriated for school pur-
poses was $3,100, The princi-
pal school houses are, High School,
on Beech Street; Training School,
Merrimack Street; Franklin
Street Grammar School; Lincoln
Street Grammar School; Spring
Street Grammar School; Piscata-
quoag Grammar School; and Am-
oskeag Grammar School.

Joseph G. Edgerly is Superinten-
dent of public instruction, William
W. Colburn principal of the High
School, and Daniel A. Clifford,
Benjamin F. Dame, William E.
Buck, Allen A. Bennett, and
Charles F. Morrill, principals of
the Grammar schools.

Library. The Manchester Ath-
eneum was established in 1844,
mainly through the exertions of
Hon. Samuel D. Bell, Hon. Daniel
Clark, Hon. Herman Foster, Hon.
Moody Currier, and other promi-
nent citizens, with the design of
founding a library, reading-room,
and museum. The first purchase
of books was made in March 1840,
of six hundred and eighty-three
volumes to which additions were
soon made.

January 28, 1846, the Amoskeag
Manufacturing Company gener-
ously gave $ 1,000 for the purchase
of books; March 24, of the same
year, the Stark Mills gave $ 500,
for the same purpose. In 1850,
Manchester Print Works gave
$ 500, for the same object. There
were many donations made by
members of the Association, and
the library continually increased
for nearly ten years.

In 1854 the Manchester City Li-
brary was incorporated, and
through Hon. Frederick Smyth the
Mayor of the city, arrangements
were made with the Atheneum
Association together with the con-
sent of the principal donors, to
transfer their library to form the
basis of a free city library. Sep-
tember 6, 1854, the transfer was
made, and the Manchester City Li-
brary was established, with 2,956
volumes. There was a provision
in the contract that no less than
$ 1,000 should be appropriated an-
nually for the increase of the li-
brary, besides paying incidental
expenses Arc. February 5, 1856,
Patten’s building in which the Li-
brary was located, was destroyed
oy fire, and all, save 596 volumes,
were burned. The number of vol-
umes in the library at the time of
its destruction, was not less than