History of the public school system of California.

44 SCHOOL LEGISLATION
7. Requiring history of the United States, and physiology
and hygiene, to be studied in all the schools above the grade
of primary.
This bill passed the Assembly without opposition, but in the
Senate a determined fight was made to defeat it. The following is the Senate vote on this bill, which was one of the greatest advances ever made in school legislation in the State:
AYES-Benton, Burnell, Crane, Cunningham, Foulke, Hall,
Haswell, Kutz, Maddox, McMurtry, Moyle, Porter, Roberts,
Shepard, Tuttle, and Wright-18.
NOEs-Buckley, Dodge, Evans, Freeman, Gaskill, Hamilton,
Hawes, Montgomery, Pearce, Redington, Rush, and Shafter
-12.
30. FIRST BIENNIAL REPORT, I864-65.
The change of the sessions of the Legislature from annual to
biennial required biennial school reports instead of annual.
The First Biennial Report was the most elaborate of Mr.
Swett's reports. It opened as follows:
At the opening of this report, I take pleasure in stating that the
criticisms of 1863 no longer apply to our school system, and that the
hope expressed in 1864 has been more than realized.
Notwithstanding the school year closed before the bountiful
harvests of the autumn were gathered, and while the State was still
suffering from its previous financial prostration, the statistical returns exhibit an educational progress of which all Californians may
well be proud.
While the increase of taxable property in the State from 1863
to 1864 was only three and seven-tenths per cent., the increase of
school money raised by taxation alone, of 1865 over 1864, on the
assessment-roll of 1864, was ninety-one and seven-tenths per cent.
The average length of schools has been increased, since 1863,
nearly one month. While the number of teachers has increased
only fifteen per cent. during the last year, the amount paid for
teachers' salaries has increased sixty per cent.
The amount of school revenue from all sources has been increased, since 1863, $2.58 per census child.
The amount expended for schoolhouses shows an increase over
1863 of $164,000.
While the number of children between 4 and 18 years of age
has increased 26 per cent. since 1863, the average number belonging to public schools has increased in the same time 46 per cent.
During the last year the increase of census children was 9~ per
cent., and of public school attendance 16 per cent.
The number of free schools has been increased seventy-eight in
two years, and more than half the public school children are now