574 



MICHIGAN. 



MICHIGAN. The Legislature convened in 

 regular triennial session on January 5th, and 

 adjourned, nne die, June llth, the session be- 

 ing the longest ever held in the State. Num- 

 ber of general acts passed, 290 ; local acts, 432 ; 

 joint resolutions, 34; concurrent resolutions, 9. 

 The joint resolutions included one submitting 

 the question of a general revision of the Consti- 

 tution of the State to the electors, to be voted 

 upon at the general election to be held No- 

 vember 7, 1882, pursuant to section 2 of Ar- 

 ticle XX of the Constitution ; also four amend- 

 ments of the Constitution, as follows : 



1. Amending section 12, Article VI, so as 

 to empower the Supreme Court to appoint its 

 own clerk. 



2. Amending section 6, Article VI, to au- 

 thorize the Legislature to provide for the elec- 

 tion of additional circuit judges in the judicial 

 circuit in which the city of Detroit may be 

 situated, and authorizing the board of super- 

 visors of the county of Wayne to vote an in- 

 crease of salaries to the judges of such circuit, 

 to be paid from the Treasury of Wayne County. 



8. Amending section 1, Article IX, so as to 

 increase the salaries of circuit judges from 

 $1,500 a year to $2,500. 



4. Amending section 10, Article X, to au- 

 thorize the Legislature to provide, by general 

 law, for a board of county auditors in each 

 county, with " exclusive power to prescribe 

 and fix the compensation for all services ren- 

 dered for, and to adjust all claims against, their 

 respective counties," subject to the restriction 

 " that no such board shall be established in 

 any county, unless the board of supervisors of 

 such county shall so direct by a majority vote 

 of all the members-elect." 



The first two amendments were voted upon 

 and adopted at the election held April 4, 1881 ; 

 the other two amendments will be voted upon 

 November 7, 1882. 



Liberal appropriations were made in aid of 

 the several educational and other State insti- 

 tutions, including $400,000 for an additional 

 asylum for the insane (since located at Traverse 

 City in Traverse County) ; $100,000 for a new 

 library-building at the university ; $33,775 for 

 a laboratory, library, and other buildings, at 

 the Agricultural College; $25,000 for a new 

 building, for a training and practice school, at 

 the State Normal School ; $10,000 for a lecture 

 hall at the Reform School for Boys ; $38,000 

 for new buildings at the State Prison ; $52,900 

 for new buildings, permanent improvements, 

 land, etc., at the Michigan Asylum for the In- 

 sane, Kalamazoo ; $75,000 for two new wings 

 at the Eastern Asylum for the Insane, Pontiac, 

 and $15,000 for working capital for the same 

 asylum ; $87,500 for two cottages, chapel, and 

 school-building, gas-house, furniture, and perma- 

 nent improvements at the State Reform School 

 for girls ; and $10,000 for the purchase of a 

 building at Lansing for the use of the State 

 School for the Blind. 



The laws relating to public instruction and 



primary schools were revised and consolidated, 

 and numerous fragmentary, crude, and con- 

 flicting laws repealed. The principal change 

 from prior statutes relates to the examination 

 of teachers. In 1875 the Legislature abolished 

 the office of county superintendent of schools 

 (the incumbent of which otfice had a few years 

 previous succeeded to a portion of the duties 

 of the township school inspectors), and gave 

 the examination and licensing of teachers to a 

 township superintendent of schools, to be 

 elected at the regular township election. This 

 change having proved unsatisfactory, fruitful 

 only of a large crop of incompetent (and even 

 illiterate) school-examiners, the act under 

 notice abolished that office, and created a 

 county board of examiners, consisting of three 

 members. The chairmen of the several town- 

 ship boards of school inspectors officials hav- 

 ing in charge the formation of school districts 

 and some administrative duties were to meet 

 on the first Tuesday in August, 1881, at the 

 office of the county clerk in each county, and 

 elect three school-examiners, one each for one, 

 two, and three years, and annually thereafter 

 one for the term of three years. The board is 

 to hold at least two public examinations in each 

 year, is to examine all applicants, and grant 

 certificates to teachers in such form as the 

 Superintendent of Public Instruction shall pro- 

 vide, " but no certificate shall be granted to 

 any person who shall not pass a satisfactory 

 examination in orthography, reading, writing, 

 grammar, geography, arithmetic, and the theory 

 and art of teaching, and, after the year 1881, 

 history of the United States and civil govern- 

 ment." Three grades of certificates are to be 

 issued : the first grade to those who have taught 

 at least one year with ability and success, to be 

 good for three years and valid throughout the 

 county ; the second grade to teachers who have 

 taught six months, good in the county for two 

 years ; the third grade a one-year license, but 

 covering the same territory. Certificates may 

 be suspended or revoked for cause. The secre- 

 tary of the board is the chief officer of the 

 board. Other provisions of the law are de- 

 signed to secure a better grade of schools, as 

 well as teachers, with more systematic and 

 uniform supervision. 



The highway laws were revised and consoli- 

 dated, also the drainage laws. A new provis- 

 ion in the highway act substitutes a money- 

 tax, to be expended by the commissioner, in 

 lieu of the old system of work done by the 

 property-holder. The change is to be made by 

 a vote by ballot, at an annual or special town- 

 ship meeting, on the written demand of twelve 

 or more freeholders. The amount of money- 

 tax is limited to one half of one per cent on 

 the assessed valuation. Another provision per- 

 mits twenty-five per cent of any person's high- 

 way tax to be paid by setting shade-trees along 

 the highway, and the commissioner is required 

 to see that a given number of shade-trees are 

 planted in each year. Provision is also made 



