NON-ELECTION OF TRUSTEE AND ELECTION OF CLERK.

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Q. If the electors of a district failed to hold an election for Trustee and the Superintendent did not appoint before the first Saturday in July, could the outgoing Trustee attend the election for Clerk of the Board and vote for such Clerk ?

A. Sec. 879 of the Political Code, reads: "Every officer must continue to discharge the duties of his office, although his term has expired, until his successor has qualified.

REGULATING MEMBERSHIP OF NORMAL SCHOOLS.

Q. Is there any district regulation governing the attendance at the State Normal Schools? Can a pupil otherwise qualified, but who lives in the northern part of the State, attend the San Jose or Los Angeles school?

A. There is no law districting the State with reference to attendance at the Normal Schools.

LADY TRUSTEE OF FOREIGN BIRTH.

Q. Is a lady of foreign birth eligible to the office of Trustee if her husband is a naturalized citizen?

A. In my opinion she is so eligible. The naturalization of the husband carries with it the naturalization of the wife.

N. B.-If, from any cause whatever, it has not been possible for County Superintendents to insert a full and correct list of the District Clerks for 1890-91 in their annual reports, will they kindly send in such a list as soon as all districts make their reports.

COURSE OF STUDY.

N. B. The Course of Study lately recommended by the State

Board of Education, is to have the branches of music and drawing added to it, when enough more copies will be printed to distribute to all who desire them.

VACCINATION LAW.

N. B. The law providing for the general vaccination of school children may be found on page 62 of the last edition of the School law.

Census returns from forty counties have been received to date (July 23d).

It is hoped that Dr. Winship of Boston will again visit our State this fall.

No Fall Institutes have been definitely appointed.

TIME REQUIRED FOR STATE DIPLOMAS.

N. B. The State Board of Education issues Educational and Life diplomas, under Subs. 10 and 11, of Sec. 1521, to applicants who have taught respectively thirty-five months or over, extending over a period of five calendar years and seventy months or over, extending over ten calendar years.

GRADES OF STATE DIPLOMAS.

N. B.-Holders of G. S. C. certificates, granted under Sec. 1775, will receive only the ordinary, or Grammar Grade, Life or Educational diploma, unless specially recommended for the higher grade.

RATE OF MODOC BOARD OF EDUCATION.

N. B.-The Modoc County Board of Education have passed a rule deciding not to grant Grammar Grade certificates to holders of like certificates form other counties.

CITY SUPERINTENDENTS OF SCHOOLS.

TRINITY COUNTY.

The little county of Trinity, hemmed in by mountains which have thus far shut it off from railroad communication with anywhere, is nevertheless holding its own in educational matters, as we see by an extended report of the work of the graduating class of the Weaverville Grammar School. The subjects of the essays were handled more than ordinarily well and show that mind has been cultivated as well as memory.

The class ode, by Miss Winnie Blakemore, is a good one and is as follows:

ODE.

BY WINNIE BLAKEMORE.

·I.

The days of youth are fleeting, our school life now is o'er;
We'll meet upon the plane of life as classmates never more.
We have journeyed long together, but now the moments bring
The sad, sad time of parting with unrelenting wing.

Our school-day life was bright and fair, and many happy hours

Are stamped by Mem'ries lingering touch on these sad hearts of ours.

II.

In the future bright before us, in the battle-field of life,
Where restless sons of earth toil with ceaseless care and strife,
Let us be earnest workers, with purpose firm and true,
With Virtue for our watchword, Honor steadily in view.
Let us never be discouraged, but strive with might and main
To reach the highest eminence that mortals can attain.

III.

'Tis hard, perchance, to say farewell; where'er our lot be cast,
Our future labors will be cheered by mem'ries of the past.
And when, in after years, we dream of scenes of love and truth,
Our fondest dreams will be of thee, dear school-room of our youth.
The parting moment's nigh-we drop a tear, we sigh-
Beloved schoolmates, teacher dear, to all a fond good-by.

Trinity, too, is answering to the general call for the inculcation of patriotism by means of our Country's Flag, for the citizens of Douglas City raised a twelve-foot flag over their school-house on the 4th of July. Recitations, music and addresses made the ceremonies impressive and interesting.

OREGON.

The Oregon teachers held their State Association at Salem, on the first week in July. Many subjects were ably discussed, among which were Patriotism and Music in the Public Schools, Compulsory Education, Mistakes in School Management, Causes of Failure in Teaching and The Need of School Libraries.

A resolution was adopted, recommending a rule defining as unprofessional, the conduct of teachers who refuse to attend the County Institutes, or to render such assistance in educational work as is in their power; and that each neglect be punished by a forfeiture of one grade (in certificates.)

A committee was also appointed to formulate resolutions praying the State Board to lower the grade of diplomas held by teachers who do not manifest an interest in public school work.

The teachers of Oregon are evidently progressive and thoroughly imbued with professional spirit.

State Supt. McElroy attended the N. E. A. at St. Paul and extended an invitation to the Association to meet in Portland in 1893.

IRA G. HOITT A CANDIDATE FOR RENOMINATION.

Ira G. Hoitt, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, is a candidate for renomination. Mr. Hoitt has been a hard worker and an efficient officer. During the last school year he traveled 17,274 miles in the discharge of his official duties, and besides attending the meetings of the various Boards of Education, he visited thirteen Orphan Asylums, attended thirty County Teachers' Institutes, visited 240 classes and delivered 255 educational lectures and addresses. This is a good showing, which has made for Mr. Hoitt many friends.

The New England Journal of Education, May 29th, 1890, presents his portrait and says of him : "Mr. Hoitt has placed himself in the fore front of the effective educational forces of the day. There have been few men who have planned more sensible reforms in educational administration than he, and few have accomplished that which they have planned so uniformly and completely. He has great capacity for hard work, riding farther, talking and writing more and visiting more schools than would be possible for most men. He has business elements with which few are gifted. He knows what is being done in every department of education in every other State; wherein his own State is stong and weak; and is always planning for the strengthening of the weak places. He is specially fortunate in having as his deputy, Mrs. Hoitt, a woman of rare talent and tact for office work and direction."

Editorial Department.

IN OUR notice of the Siskiyou County Institute in the July JOURNAL an error occurred in reference to the conductor. It should have been given as Prof. Anderson of Hopkins Academy, Oakland. His work at the Institute was highly appreciated and he should have the credit for it.

THE REAL artist performs his work in obedience to innate principles and so is not necessarily conscious of those rules and conditions which, as the result of experience, have been laid down for his direction. The principles of light and shade, of relative values, of rhythm, of poetic form, of harmony, are all familiar to the artist when first observed on the printed page. So the real teacher does not need to learn the fundamental principles of his profession, for they are born with him and mature with his growth; if they are things learned their application becomes largely a matter of obedience to memory; hence he is constantly doing the right thing at the wrong time, and so is a bungling artisan instead of a true artist.

ABILITY to interest his pupils is one of the most important requisites of a teacher. In fact, we do not think we put it too strongly when we state that a teacher who cannot arouse enthusiasm in his classes has missed his vocation. Pupils who are driven to their lessons get very little good from school. They may absorb a few facts from hearing them stated by others, but this is not education; most likely had they spent the time in some congenial pursuit their minds would have been occupied in a way that would have developed thought.

We think we are correct when we state that children are fond of knowledge. The world about them is full of interest and they are never so pleased as when some of its wonders are revealed. The difficulty is to get at the particular child's thoughts, and thus be able to lead it, in a natural way, without unduly antagonizing its preconceived ideas, into those directions which are desirable. Fondness for knowledge and fondness for books and study must not be confounded. The fact is, teachers are so bound to books that they forget that there are other avenues to knowledge and other methods for obtaining a good education than those furnished by them.

It is true