NO. VII. NOTICE OF APPEAL. To the Overseers of the Poor of the town of Kingston, in the county of Ulster. This is to give notice to you and every of you, that we the overseers of the poor of the town of Marlborough, in the county of Ulster, do intend at the next general sessions of the peace, to be holden in and for the said county of Ulster, to commence and prosecute an appeal against an or`der of A. B. and C. D. Esquires, two justices of the peace of the said county, for and concerning the removal of J.'T., M. his wife, and T and A. their children, to our said town of Marlborough. Witness our hands this day of M. N. in the year, &c. Overseers of the Poor of, &c. NO. VIII. BOND TO INDEMNIFY THE TOWN AGAINST THE CHARGE OF A BASTARD CHILD. Know all men by these presents, that we A. L. of Kingston in the county of Ulster, merchant, and A. G. of Hurley, in the county aforesaid, yeoman, are held and firmly bound unto K. D. and C. D. overseers of the poor of the said town of Kingston, in trust for the freeholders and inhabitants of the said town of Kingston, in five hundred dollars of lawful money of the state of New-York, to be paid to the said K. O. and C. D. or their certain attorney, their executors, administrators or assigns: to which payment well and truly to be made, we bind ourselves and each of us, jointly and severally, and our and each and every of our heirs, executors, and administrators, firmly by these presents. Sealed with our seals, and dated the day of in the year, &c. The Condition of this obligation is such, that whereas A. M. of the said town of Kingston, single woman, hath in and by her voluntary examination, taken in writing and upon oath, before A. B. one of the justices of the peace in and for the said county of Ulster, declared that she is with child, and that the said child is likely to be born a bastard, and to be chargeable to the said town of Kingston, and that the above bounden A L. is the father of the said child. (If after the birth, then say that whereas A. M. of the said town of Kingston, single woman, is her examination taken in writing upon oath, before A. B. one of the justices of the peace in and for the said county, hath declared that on the day of now last past, at Kingston, in the county aforesaid, she the said A. M. was delivered of a [male] bastard child, and that the said bastard child is likely to become chargeable to the said town of Kingston, & hath charged the above bound A L. with having gotten her with child of the said bastard child.) If therefore the said A. L. and A. G or either of them, their or either of their heirs, executors or administrators, do and shall from time to time, and at all times bereafter, fully and clearly save harmless and indemnify, as well the above named overseers of the poor of the said town of Kingston and their successors for the time being, as also all and singular the other freeholders and inhabitants of the said town of Kingston, which now are, or hereafter shall be for the time being, of and from all manner of costs, taxes, rates, assessments, and charges whatsoever. for or by reason of the birth education, or maintenance of the said child, and of and from all actions, suits, troubles and other charges and demands whatsoever, touching or concerning the same, then this present obligation to be void, otherwise of force. Sealed and delivered, ? in the presence of S N. O. A. L. [L. S. NO. IX. İNDENTURE OF APPRENTICESHIP BY OVERSEERS OF THE POOR. This Indenture, made the day of in the year Witnesseth, That K. O. and C. D overseers of the poor of the town of Kingston, in the county of Ulster and state of NewYork, in pursuance of the statute in such case made and provided, by and with the consent of A. M. and A. G. two justices of the peace of the said county, have bound out, and by these presents do bind out N. O. a poor child of the said town and likely to become chargeable to the same, being of the age twelve years, as an apprentice to A. D. of the said town, hatter, him to serve until the said apprentice shall attain to the age twenty-one years. During all which time, the said apprentice his said master faithfully shall serve, his secrets keep and bis of of lawful commands obey; he shall do no damage to his master nor see it done by others without giving him notice thereof: he shall not waste his master's goods, or lend them unlawfully away: he shall not contract matrimony in the said term: at cards, dice or any unlawful game he shall not play: nor absent himself night or day from his master's service during the said term, without his leave, but in all things behave himself as a faithful apprentice ought to do, during the time aforesaid. And the said A. D doth hereby for himself, his executors and administrators, covenant and agree to and with the said overseers and their successors, that he will teach and instruct the said apprentice in the art and trade of a hatter, according to the best of his ability; and during the time aforesaid provide and allow the said apprentice sufficient meat, drink, apparel, lodging, washing, and all necessary accommodations for an apprentice. That he will cause him to be instructed to read and write, and at the expiration of the said term give the said apprentice one new bible. That the said apprentice shall not during the term aforesaid, be chargeable to the said town; and at the end of the said term will deliver to the said apprentice double apparel of ordinary dress, one suit of which to be new. In witness whereof, the parties to these presents have hereunto set their hands and seals the day and year first above written, We the undersigned, Justices of the Peace of the county of Ulster, do hereby consent to the binding out as in the above indenture is expressed. In witness whereof we have hereunto subseribed our names this day of A. M. A G. CHAP. IX. COMMISSIONERS OF SCHOOLS. COMMON SCHOOL ACTS. THERE are perhaps no acts of our legislature so imperfectly understood among our citizens at large, as the common school acts; owing probably to the various emendatory statutes which bave, from time to time, been enacted respecting them and the infancy or immaturity of the institutions which have been predicated on them. For amidst the diversity of pursuits and occupations, in which the individuals that constitute the community are essentially engaged, a competent knowledge of laws of that character, can only be derived from experience, which as it hath, in relation to the objects before us, furnished but few practical lessons evincive of their value, they have hitherto not been popular, nor are the public yet fully sensible of their utility and importance. We cannot, however, forbear to remark, that one feature of an existing law on this subject, has been considered peculiarly exceptionable: that freeholders not having any children to be educated, are yet by this law compelled to contribute pecuniary aid, towards the education of such of their neighbours' children who by a compliance with the said act, have made such freeholders liable to its provisions. In a local point of view, this objection may, in some instances, merit regard; but it remains to be inquired, whether in a scheme of national education, proper for the youth of our republic, the broad principles ought not to be recognised, that every citizen is interested in the common stock of learning and intellectual endowments of our inhabitants in general, and the rising generation in particufar? And if it be found that the system of common school education, adopted by this state, will tend to improve and ameliorate the public mind and morals, it must, surely, conduce to the ge It is proper that we should stop here, to remind the reader that the said commissioners and inspectors are the only town of ficers (other than those whose offices and duties we have before examined) that are required to execute the provisions of the said common school act-that it is connected with the design of the County and Town Officer, that we should consider the offices and duties of the said commissioners and inspectors, under specific titles, and that as an adequate understanding of this topic is only to be obtained from a cotemporaneous view of the duties of the subordinate officers contemplated by this act, and desig nated by the names of trustees, district clerk, and district collector, we shall, as we progress in our present inquiries, give a digest of each of them in this chapter, reserving our treatment of the office and duty of the said inspectors of common schools, for a distinct consideration. We resume our subject, and first of the COMMISSIONER'S OATH. Within fifteen days after the commissioner is chosen or appointed, he shall take and subscribe an oath before some justice of the peace, in the following form, "I do solemnly and sincerely promise and swear, (or affirm,) that I will in all things, to the best of my knowledge and ability, well and truly execute |