A history of public education in Rhode Island, from 1636 to 1876 ... Comp. by authority of the Board of education, and ed. by Thomas B. Stockwell ...

36 RHODE ISLAND.
such manner as they think proper. The committee to make up quarterly accounts of expenses, and'receipts for the house, tuition, books, and stationery;
are authorized to draw on the treasury for the balance, and to make a report of
the same to the annual meeting, or any other meeting of trustees; to keep a
record of the pupils admitted, time of admission and dismission, books and stationery furnished. They are also authorized to call a meeting of the trustees."
It appears from a later report that it was really with Elizabeth
Finch" that the contract was made, and that' on the 16th October,
1814, school commenced, consisting of twenty-five small boys, who, on
examination by the school committee from time to time, and more particularly at the expiration of the second quarter, were found to have
made much greater progress in their learning than was anticipated, and
that Mrs. Finch, with the assistance of her husband, had done ample
justice to the pupils." It would appear from this that it was really an
old-fashioned " (lame's school," the husband of the " dame " rendering
incidental assistance. On April 10th, 1815, the school was increased to
forty, nominally; but the actual number in 1820 was only about twenty;*
and it was finally abandoned in 1832. The house which it had occupied
was ordered to be sold, and the proceeds were deposited in the savings
bank, where they remained until 1863, when they were appropriated,
with other funds, in the hands of the Long Wharf trustees, to building
what is now the Willow street public school-house.
As a companion picture to the school-boy reminiscences of Mr. Channing, it may be well to quote a reminiscence of the worthy Captain
Finch, as given by Hlon. W. C. Cozzens, in his public address on the
dedication of the Willow street building:
" I well remember this school from 1820 to its close, and shall never forget
the novel and most peculiar method adopted to give notice of school-time. The
teacher, having been an old sea captain, was more accustomed to use his lungs
than hand-bells, and as there was no bell belonging to the school, the teacher
with great punctuality would go first to the west window on Washington street
(second story), and call out at the top of his voice-and that voice was
not weak or delicate-three times,' Boys! Boys! Boys!' Then he would
appear at another window on the east side of the house, and repeat the
same call,'Boys! Boys! Boys!' This being on the side of the cove,
with buildings on all four sides, forming a hollow square at least a thousand feet across, over the water, it would at times produce a most prodigious
noise, heard as far almost as a steam whistle in these days. I have often heard
it, in my boyhood days, while sailing about the cove in a boat, echo in every
direction, east, north, south and west. Sometimes the second and third call
* Barnarcl's Journal of R. I. Inst., III, 145.