MEMORANDUM Of Books, &c. printed at the Nursapoor Press, for the use of the District Schools connected with the Subdivision of Rajahmundry.

ABSTRACT STATEMENT of Books, &c., sent to the Government and Village Schools, from April to October 1855.

How commenced.

Progress of the first month.

Appendix (F.)

From S. Nadamoony Moodeliar, Native Inspector, to G. N. Taylor, Esq., Sub-Collector of

Sir,

Rajahmundry.

I HAVE the honour to submit a half-yearly report on the state and progress of the schools established in the subdivision, commencing from April 1855.

2. The operation of our experiment was commenced with the Tanuku school then in existence, having already been established under the control of the Nursapoor Central School Society. It was, on the 5th of April 1855, made over to the Government management, under the designation of "The Tanuku Samut School," and then contained 41 lads, varying in age from 8 to 15 years, and paying no school fee, as was the case for a time with all the schools under their charge.

3. In the same month, the two tahsil schools of Attily and Veeravasserem, and the village school of Mogultoor were opened with 61, 14 and 26. respectively, which, together with 41 of the Tanuku school, made up a total of 142, which number, however, I had not the pleasure of stating in my numerical return for that month, as several withdrew on being

required

required to pay a fee of two to four annas per boy. The respective attendance of three* of Tanuku, Attily, the above schools was therefore reduced to 13, 59 and 8. În the tahsil school of Veera- Mogultoor. vasserem alone, the number was increased to 32, which place being a tahsil station, the Government employés are more alive to the benefits of education. The reduction was materially occasioned in the Tanuku and Mogultoor schools; the people of the latter station in particular were, I was obliged to think, too covetous to pay anything for the education of their children. The progressive state of the four schools in the first month was therefore confined to 112, which leaves, on an average, an attendance of 28 boys per school.

4. In the next month (May), I was chiefly employed in visiting such of the villages in Progress in the the Woondy talook as had already subscribed for schools in their places, with a view to second month. ascertain the general feelings of the people; to fix upon places as centre of certain contiguous villages; to form an idea of the number that are disposed to benefit by the establishment of systematic institutions; and thus to arrive at a conclusion as to the amount of success that might fairly attend our efforts in different quarters. The attempt was indeed a satisfactory one, and the success in some places was so great as to deserve a particular mention. At Óondoor and Cocanada villages in the same talook of Oondy, the ryots were found so very anxious for learning, that they offered of their own accord to bear an additional cess of 10 rupees per annum, together with the 50 rupees they have already subscribed, when they were informed that 60 rupees is the smallest amount required for the support of a tolerably well-trained schoolmaster. An instance, which I am disposed to look upon as a positive indication that our system of instruction is already beginning to be appreciated, or rather that a taste for the acquirement of knowledge begins to be inspired into them by the establishment of the tahsil schools of Attily and Veeravasserem, which are not far off from those places. Other particulars connected with these and other villages in this talook, as also with those of Tanuku and Mogultoor, are entered in my diary, in which each day's proceedings are briefly noted.

5. Several schools began to be established from June, as will be seen in the accompanying numerical returns, one of which is intended to show the progressive state of the schools in each month, and the other gives a more detailed statement of the children of all classes now attending the several institutions. A brief sketch, however, is herein subjoined, both of the Government and village schools, from which, a knowledge of the province of each of the tahsil and samut masters may also be gathered, our arrangement for the management of schools requiring the superintendence of these masters over a certain number of village institutions around their station.

(For Statement, vide Appendix (D.), page 52.)

Progress in the third and the succeeding months.

6. The entire number of schools here noticed, will be found to amount to 62, a large Village schools portion of which are the village ones, which are 45 in number. The village institutions are considered. to be considered as belonging to the three talooks of Mogultoor, Oondy and Tanuku, to which our experiment is confined. The first of these takes in 27 of this description, the second 13, and the third 14. Again, of the aggregate attendance of 1,422 boys, 980 belong to the village institutions, which, when divided into its component parts, arranges itself thus:498 to the Mogultoor talook, 249 to the Oondy, and 233 to the Tanuku talook; and the number of schools in each of these being 27, 13 and 14 respectively, the average strength of each is 18, 19, and 17. The ages of these vary, in general, from 5 to 16 years, and their attendance at school cannot well be stated, as the schools under consideration were not established all at one time. A certain number was set on foot in June; another set was opened in July; one only in August; and numbers again in September and October, as the indigenous schoolmasters under training in the Nursapoor normal class, established for the purpose, became qualified for their duty. The following rough statement is therefore added here, to give an idea of the probable length of attendance of a certain number at least, and also to show clearly the increase in the number of schools, and their increasing strength that kept pace with it.

The increase in the state of these schools will be observed to be more than proportional and rapid as we get towards the end.

Government schools.

7. As for the tahsil and samut schools, they are eight in number, and the total attendance in them all is 442, and the average strength of each is, therefore, 55. Of these eight schools, four only may be said to be of seven months' standing, and the other four, of four months only, as will appear from the foregoing Abstract, No. 1. Another statement is given below, to give an idea of the progressive state of these institutions, as also of the number continuing at school from different times.

Difficulty met with and over

come.

Adding the first four lines of column 5, we may state that, out of 442 boys, 309 have entered the school during the first month of their establishment.

8. From an observance of the numbers in the column 4 of this statement, it may strike one that there has been one continued increase in the state of these schools. But I should remark that there was a decrease also in some of them, but which, being more than compensated by the increase in others, gave rise to the favourable results above noted.

9. At the commencement of our operations, there was so great a diminution in attendance, that there appeared to be no chance of succeeding. Of the schools of Attily, Tanuku, Mogultoor and Veeravasserem then at work, I would notice the first three in their respective order. The Attily tahsil school was opened by me in person, where I remained 15 days at its very commencement. It was begun, with 61 boys, on the 9th of April, and on the 15th, the school fee of two to four annas per boy was demanded, agreeably to the school rules. What was the result? A reduction of more than half the entire number, the attendance on the 18th being only 28, who belonged to the agricultural portion of the community, who, having subscribed for schools, their children are entitled to free entrance. In the Tanuku samut school, for 41 boys, there were only 14 by the end of the month; and in the Mogultoor village school for 22, there remained only eight. The chief reason appeared to have been this: the people, in general, were under a wrong persuasion that the Government establish schools, and leave them free to all classes of the community, without making a distinction between the non-agriculturists and the rural population that contribute for schools. To eradicate such an opinion, the parents of the lads were clearly informed how far the Government have assisted us in pecuniary matters to carry out the present attempt; that the assistance they directly derive from them is the service of the Government teachers on 30, 20 and 15 rupees salary, besides a Government inspection at the expense of 100 rupees per mensem; that, in addition to this, their children have the use of several books gratis, and that they should not therefore expect that the school fee, which is comparatively very insignificant, would be done away with. This explanation silenced, in a great measure, the popular report on this point, and several re-entered the schools, most willingly paying the required school fee. The following statement will show clearly the amount of success met with in this respect.

10. There was another impediment, of a much greater moment than the former, met with Another difficulty from among the agricultural community, whose interest and welfare has been the prime of a more immover in this undertaking. Although this class of people has had the advantage of being portant nature. subscribers to schools, which entitles their children to free entrance into all institutions, yet such was their apathy for other pursuits, that they preferred carrying their children to the fields, or employing them in tending their cattle. With great singularity, I often observed children of very young age left in charge of certain cows and oxen, which they chiefly required to keep away from trespassing upon fields; such a practice was a strong barrier to the advancement of our efforts, which, though anticipated previous to the commencement of our experiment, a provision was made in the rules framed for the management of schools, regarding the hours of their attendance; yet, so strong was the hold their occupation had upon them, that most of the rvots of the lower grade were utterly disinclined to dispense with the little service of their children in any degree whatever. It was, therefore, found necessary to assemble as large a number as possible of this class of the community, and to explain to them the benefits they may derive, so as to conduce to the advancement and improvement of their own darling pursuit. Their attention was particularly drawn to one important advantage, that of knowing what is right and wrong, and ceasing to be the dupes of the curnums, who not unfrequently have recourse to fraudulent means to impose upon these illiterate people, to whom they act as a guide. The attempt was attended with satisfactory results. The number of boys rapidly increased, free entrance into schools was sought by what are called the under tenants, also as being relations to the Jeroyti ryots, who, being subscribers for schools, were alone charged nothing for the education of their children. Our main object being also to educate this very section of the population, the desired privilege was allowed, and the attendance has since been very satisfactory. The following is a statement verifying the truth of my assertion.

STATEMENT, No. 5, showing the Increase in the Attendance of the Children of Ryots.

11. Having dwelt long in an attempt to exhibit in a clear light the increasing state of the schools, I now beg to proceed to state briefly the advancement made in the different branches of study pursued in both the Government and village institutions. I shall begin by enumerating the different masters entertained in the Government employ, together with their assistants; annexing, at the same time, a routine of studies pursued by the several classes.

(For List of Masters, see Appendix (E.), page 55; and for Routine of Studies, see Appendix (D.), page 54.)

Government

12. Of the Government Institutions, the two tahsil schools of Veeravassarem and Attily, General remarks may be said to be on a par, with this difference, that the lads of the highest class of the on the progress former are more intelligent than those in the latter. The reason is evident; they are schools. Brahmins, and chiefly the children of the Government employés in the Talook Cutcherry there, and consequently have had the advantage of moving in a more intelligent circle of society. The progress of the Attily school nearly keeping pace with that of the Veeravassarem will, I doubt not, be viewed as entirely owing to the indefatigable efforts of the master. Of the samut schools, the one at Palcole may be ranked first; Tanuku next, and the Assuntah, Peechpollem and Mogullu schools may be said to hold the third rank, these having advanced to a less degree, but with tolerably satisfactory results; and my remarks on the state and progress of all institutions as found at the time of my different visits, will be seen in the diary. It must. be observed here, however, with regard to the Penugondah school, that the progress is rather retrograding in comparison with the Tanuku and Palcole schools, with which it was established by the Nursapoor Central Committee. The reason evidently appears to be the frequent change of masters. Seven different individuals appear to have been employed in the space of a year, and three since its transfer to the Government management, which is not more than five months. English instruction is also given in almost

It may be remarked, that this increase is very disproportionate to the increase of the schools. It is owing to the very few ryots in the Palcole and Peechpollem schools, where the majority are subscribers and paying pupils.

of