SCHOOL PROGRESS AND THE ACADEMY. 383 



All this time there was one committee of three or five 

 appointed each year to attend to the conducting of 

 schools. 



In 1779, of the committee of three, one was stated 

 definitely to represent the Center, one for Beechwood, 

 and the third for Jerusalem.- Three years later, 1782, 

 there were four appointed, the additional one being for 

 the "Mill Street " people, that is, for the neighborhood of 

 Lincoln's Mill, South Main Street. But the Center school 

 business seemed so much more important that three were 

 appointed to represent it in 1784, thus enlarging the com- 

 mittee to six. 



By this time the need of new schoolhouses was felt, 

 but the motion to build three or one was voted down in 

 1785. Beechwood had been already denied a new school- 

 house. A "Grammer" school was ordered kept at the 

 Center about three weeks longer, and it was also voted at 

 that time to divide the town into three divisions for con- 

 venience in schooling. The new scheme of division made 

 the Center to include Jerusalem and King Street in one, 

 Beechwood Street was the second, and South Main Street 

 from the meadow was the third. 



Each division was to draw money according as it paid 

 taxes. 



This was a clumsy device, and in 1788 King Street and 

 Jerusalem each had to draw its own share from the town. 

 That year fifty pounds were appropriated, and the follow- 

 ing five were chosen to provide "School marsters " : — 



Thomas Pratt for the Center. Abel Beal for Jerusalem. 



Joseph Whitcomb for Beechwood. Galen James for King Street. 

 Jerome Lincoln for Mill Street. 



But two years afterwards, in 1790, a vote was passed in 

 regard to the apportionment of school money that regis- 

 tered a huge leap in the principle of school support. 

 Hitherto each division was empowered to draw money in 



