UNITED STATES (EDUCATION). 



743 



only military but naval affairs. The secretary at 

 war superintends every branch of military affairs, 

 and has under his immediate direction a requisition 

 bureau, a bounty land office, a pension bureau, a 

 bureau of Indian affairs, an engineer office, an 

 ordnance office, an office for the commissionary 

 general of subsistence, a paymaster-general's office, 

 and a surgeon-general's office. This department 

 has the superintendence of the erection of fortifica- 

 tions, of making topographical surveys, of surveying 

 and leasing the national lead mines, and of the in- 

 tercourse with the Indian tribes. The military 

 peace establishment of the United States was fixed, 

 by act of congress of March 2, 1821, at 6000 men. 

 The army, as organized according to this law, is 

 under the command of one major-general, and two 

 brigadier-generals. It consists of four regiments of 

 artillery (2240 men), and seven regiments of in- 

 fantry (3829 men). This might be increased to 

 12,000 men without a proportionate increase of the 

 expenses in the war department, the number of 

 privates being reduced as low as possible, while 

 the officers are kept up on a scale adapted for thrice 

 the effective numerical force ; by which arrange- 

 ment the general expenses are diminished in time 

 of peace, and a sufficient number of officers are in 

 readiness on the breaking out of war. This cir- 

 cumstance, and that of the high price of labour in 

 the United States, render the expenses of the 

 military peace establishment much greater in pro- 

 portion than those of the European powers. It 

 appeared, from the report of the secretary of war 

 (December, 1831), that the United States then 

 had, in serviceable condition, 465,000 muskets. 

 The annual demand to supply the necessary loss in 

 the army and the militia, and to furnish the issues 

 to the respective states, is 18,300 ; the number 

 manufactured in the public armouries is about 

 25,000, which, with 11,000 made at private works, 

 gives a total annual production of 36,000. In 1815, 

 there were but 20,000 in the arsenals. There are 

 at present 623 cannon for field service, and at the 

 arsenals and in the old fortifications 1165, of anti- 

 quated patterns, and, with the exception of about 

 400 pieces, unserviceable. 1214 cannon of the im- 

 proved pattern have been procured for new fortifi- 

 cations, in addition to which, 2587 are required ; 

 and for works now constructing, 4045 pieces will 

 be necessary. The United States have no public 

 armouries for the fabrication of cannon. The 

 number of militia is 1,262,315 ; but the organiza- 

 tion is very defective. The military academy at 

 West Point, supported by the federal government, 

 consists of the corps of engineers, professors and 

 teachers, and 250 cadets, who are trained to the 

 duties of privates, of non-commissioned officers, and 

 of officers. To the bureau of Indian affairs, all 

 matters touching the Indian relations are referred. 

 This bureau is subordinate to the department of 

 war. 



4. The navy department was created by act of 

 congress of April, 30, 1798. The secretary issues 

 all orders to the navy of the United States, and 

 superintends the concerns of the navy establishment 

 in general. The board of navy commissioners, 

 consisting of three officers of the navy, in rank not 

 below that of a post-captain, was established in 

 1815. The board is attached to the office of the 

 secretary of the navy, and, under his superinten- 

 dence, discharges all the ministerial duties of that 

 office relative to the procurement of naval stores 

 and materials, and the construction, armament, 



equipment and employment of vessels of war, as 

 well as other matters connected with the naval 

 establishment of the United States. There are 

 navy-yards at Portsmouth (N. H.), Charlestown 

 (Mass.), Long Island (N. Y.), Philadelphia, Wash- 

 ington, Gosport (Va.), and Pensacola. The naval 

 force consists of twelve ships of the line, seventeen 

 frigates, sixteen sloops of war, and seven smaller 

 vessels. (See Navy. ) Two dry docks have been 

 completed at Charlestown and Gosport, at an ex- 

 pense of 500,000 dollars each, and timber has been 

 procured for five ships of the line, five frigates, and 

 five sloops of war. 



5. The postmaster-general has the appointment 

 of the postmasters throughout the United States, 

 the making of contracts for carrying the mails, and 

 the direction of every thing relating to the post- 

 office department. The revenue arising from the 

 post-office has been principally expended upon the 

 extension and improvement of the establishment, 

 by which means the regular conveyance of letters, 

 newspapers, pamphlets, &c., has been extended to 

 the inhabitants of every part of the Union, even to 

 the remotest territorial settlements. 



1 179(1, 75 



1800, 903 



18)0, 2300 



18-20, 4500 



1830, 8450 



Extent of post-road in 



niles, 1,875 

 20,817 

 36,406 

 "2,492 

 115,176 



In July, 1831, the number of offices was 8686. 

 The amount of postage accruing in 1829 was 

 1,707,418 dollars; in 1830, 1,850,583 dollars; in 

 1831, 1,997,811 dollars; the expenses of the de- 

 partment during the latter year, 1,935,559 dollars, 

 of which 635,028 was in compensation to post- 

 masters, and 1,252,226 for transportation of the 

 mail. See Post. 



5. Education. The general education of all 

 classes has no where been so much attended to as 

 in the United States, where it is well understood 

 that free institutions can be rendered secure only 

 by the diffusion of intelligence among the citizens. 

 A remarkable proportion of the first colonists of 

 New England were educated men. The tone which 

 they imparted has never been lost ; and the prin- 

 ciple which they established, that the education of 

 the community should be carried on at the common 

 expense, has never been abandoned in the states 

 they planted, but has been successively adopted by 

 other states, until, at last, though its practical 

 operation has been extended only to eight or nine, 

 its soundness and importance are acknowledged by 

 all. From this principle has grown up whatever i.s 

 peculiar in American education: and in order to 

 understand how this is carried on, and how it 

 differs from education in other countries, it is 

 necessary to trace its operations through the three 

 stages of instruction provided for or protected by 

 law in the different states common schools, or 

 free schools, supported at the public expense ; in- 

 corporated academies; and incorporated colleges. 

 1. Common Schools, or Free Schools. It is obvious 

 that the character of the mass of the people will be 

 formed in these schools, because the great majority 

 cannot, from their circumstances, afford to seek 

 higher or better education than can be obtained in 

 them. These schools, therefore, demand the first 

 attention in a free state, and, happily for New 

 England, received this attention so early, that they 

 have always constituted the foundation of what is 

 most peculiar and valuable in the character of its 

 inhabitants. (See Schools.) One of the advan- 

 tages of the system is, that the whole population is 



