form one district, with all the powers and privileges, and subject to all the liabilities, which now are, or hereafter may be, allowed or prescribed in regard to school districts. S. R. c. 23, § 49.

2. No district shall be so united, unless the inhabitants of each shall, at legal meetings called for the purpose, agree thereto ; nor unless the respective towns shall, at legal town meetings called for the purpose, assent to the same; and when any such vote shall be passed by any school district, the clerk thereof shall forthwith send a certified copy of said vote to the clerk of his town. Ib. § 50.

3. Whenever the voters in such united district shall, at any legal meeting called for the purpose, deem it expedient to separate, and again form two or more districts, they may do so, first obtaining the consent of the respective towns. Ib. § 51.

4. The first meeting of such united district shall be called in such manner as may be agreed upon by the respective districts, at the time of forming the union; and the united district may, from time to time thereafter, perscribe the mode of calling and warning the meetings, in like manner as other school districts may do. 1b. § 52.

5. Such district at the first meeting, and annually thereafter, shall choose a prudential committee, who shall receive and expend the money, raised and appropriated in each town, for said united district, and shall possess all the powers and discharge all the duties, allowed or prescribed to the prudential committees of other districts. Ib. § 53.

6. The inhabitants of every such united district shall, at the time of voting to raise such moneys, determine the amount to be paid by the inhabitants in each town, which shall be in proportion to their respective polls and estates; and the clerk of the district shall certify such vote to the assessors of each of the said towns. Ib. § 54.

7. All moneys, duly voted to be raised by any such united district, shall be assessed, by the assessors of the respective towns, upon the polls and estates of the inhabitants of the district, and collected in the same manner, that taxes are assessed and collected in other school districts. Ib. § 55.

8. The respective school committees of the towns, from which such united district is formed, shall discharge the duties of school committees for the district is alternate years, commencing with the most ancient towns. Ib. § 56.

9. Children living remote from any public school in the town in which they reside, may be allowed to attend the public schools in any adjoining town, under such regulations, and on such terms as the school committee of said adjoining towns may prescribe; and the school committees are authorized to pay out the appropriations of money raised for the support of schools, in aid of such children. Stat. 1855, c. 78.

VIII. SCHOOL RETURNS AND DISTRIBUTION OF SCHOOL FUND.

1. School Committee to make port. 2.

re

To make returns to the secretary of state.

3. Form of blanks, &c., to be prescribed by Board of Education.

4. Secretary to send blanks, registers, abstracts and reports, as soon as may be to clerk of towns, &c.

5. Duty of town clerk, &c., as to distributing, of school committee, of district clerks and prudential committee.

6. School Committee can not maintain trespass for the taking of registers from them.

7. School Committee to ascertain and return certificate under oath of the sum raised for the support of schools, &c.

9. Where school committees become reduced in number remaining members empowered to make returns.

10. Failure to make school reports or returns to be notified by secretary of Commonwealth to school committee or town clerk.

11. Informal reports or returns to be returned to committee for correction.

12. Reports and returns to be received in May, deducting ten per cent from allowance to town.

13. Income of committee may be withheld in case of forfeiture of income of school fund through their neglect.

14. Secretary and treasurer to apportion income of school funds among towns, that return certificate according, &c.

8. School Committees to return the 15. School fund to accumulate until amount of money received from the it amounts to $1,500,000. school fund.

1. The school committees shall annually make a de

tailed report of the condition of the several public schools in their respective cities and towns, which report shall contain such statements and suggestions in relation to such schools as the said committees shall deem necessary or proper to promote the interests thereof; and a certified copy of such report shall be transmitted by said committees to the office of the secretary of the Commonwealth, on or before the last day of April. Said report shall also be deposited in the office of the clerk of the city or town, and shall either be read in open town meeting, in the month of February, March or April, or, at the discretion of the school committee, shall be printed for the use of the inhabitants. Stat. 1838, c. 105, § 1. Stat. 1846, c. 233, § 4..

2. The school committees of the several towns and of the city of Boston shall, on or before the first day of November, in each year, make official returns, to the secretary of the Commonwealth, of all the public schools in such towns and city, respectively, whether such schools are kept for school districts, or for the common benefit of、 all the inhabitants. R. S. c. 23, § 62.

3. The form of the blanks, and the inquiries to be answered shall be prescribed by the Board of Education; and the school committees shall fill the blanks and answer the inquiries contained in such form. R. S. c. 23, § 64. Stat. 1838, c. 105, § 5. Stat. 1841 c. 17, § 4.

4. It shall be the duty of the secretary of the Board of Education to send the blank forms of inquiry, the school registers, the abstract of school returns, and the annual report of the board of education, and that of its secretary, to the clerks of the several towns and cities of the Commonwealth, as soon as may be after they are ready for distribution. Stat. 1850, c. 41.

5. It shall be the duty of the clerk of each of the several cities or towns to deliver the blank forms of inquiry,

and the registers, when the same shall be received by him, to the school committee; it shall also be his duty to deliver one copy of the said abstract and reports to the secretary of the school committee of the city or town, to be by him carefully kept for the use of the said committee, and handed over to his successor in office; and also two additional copies of said reports, for the use of said committee;—and further, it shall be the duty of the clerks of the several cities or towns to deliver one copy of the said reports to the clerk of each of the school districts in the respective cities or towns, to be by him deposited in the district school library, if there be one; and if not, to be by him carefully kept for the use of the prudential committee, the teachers, and the inhabitants of the district, during his continuance in office, and then to be handed over to his successor; and, in case the city or town shall not be districted, the said reports shall be delivered to the school committee, and so placed by them that they shall be accessible to the several teachers, and to the citizens; and they shall be deemed to be the property of the town or city, and not of any officer, teacher or citizen thereof. Stat. 1849, c. 65, § 2.

6. The school committee of a town have no such property in the school registers required by law to be kept as will enable them to maintain trespass for the taking of the same out of their possession. 3 Cush. 549.

7. The school committee of each city and town shall in each year, as soon as may be after the first day of May, ascertain and make a certificate thereof, under oath, of the sum raised by the city or town for the support of schools, including only the wages and board of teachers, fuel for the schools, and care of the fires and school room during said year, and shall transmit the same to the secretary of the Commonwealth, on or before the last day of the following April; which certificate shall be in the following

form to wit: We the school committee of

tify, that said town raised the sum of

support of common schools for the said year, including only the wages and board of teachers, fuel for the schools and care of the fires and school rooms.

made oath that the above certificate by them subscribed is true. Before me, Justice of the Peace. Stat. 1841, c. 17, § 1. Stat. 1846, c. 23, § 2. Stat. 1855, c. 15, § 23.

8. In addition to the returns required of school committees, by the twenty-third chapter of the Revised Statutes, such committees shall hereafter be required to state the sum or sums of money received from the school fund by their several towns and cities respectively; and also to specify the purposes to which such sums may have been appropriated. Stat. 1850, c. 179.

9. Whenever, in consequence of vacancies occurring in the school committee of any city or town in this Commonwealth, after the date of the warrant for the annual town meeting for the election of their successors, or the inability, arising after the said date, of any of the members of said committee to act, such committee shall be reduced to a minority of its original number, the remaining members of said committee shall be competent to make the returns required to be made and transmitted to the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth; and such returns shall be accompanied by a certificate of the person or persons so making them, setting forth the existence of such vacancies or disabilities, and the time when the same arose. Stat. 1849, c. 144.