ATTENDANCE. 88. Time of attendance; excusal from such attendance.-Every parent, guardian, or other person having charge of any child between the ages of 6 and 14 years, shall send such child to a public or private school not less than twenty weeks, at least ten weeks of which, commencing with the first four weeks of the school year, shall be consecutive, occasional daily absence for reasonable excuse excepted, unless the child is excused from such attendance by the president of the board of education in municipal districts or city districts of the second class, and the superintendent of instruction in city districts of the first class, upon a satisfactory showing, either that the bodily or mental condition of the child does not permit of its attending school or that the child is being instructed at home or in a private school by a person qualified, in the opinion of the clerk of the board of education, in the subjects of writing, spelling, reading, geography, and arithmetic. 89. Employment of children under 14 years of age.-No child under the age of 14 years shall be employed by any person, company, or corporation during the school term, and while the public schools are in session, unless the parent, guardian, or person in charge of such child shall have fully complied with the requirements of the preceding paragraph. Every person, company, or corporation shall require proof of such compliance before employing any such minor, and shall make and keep a written record of the proof given, and shall, upon the request of the truant officer hereinafter provided for, permit him to examine such record. Any person, company, or corporation employing any child contrary to the provisions of this paragraph shall be fined not less than $25 nor more than $50. 90. Truant officers.—To aid in the enforcement of the last two paragraphs truant officers shall be appointed and employed as follows: In city districts the board of education shall appoint, employ, and fix the salary of one or more truant officers; in municipal districts the board of education shall appoint one truant officer. The compensation of the truant officer, except in city districts, shall be $2 per day for each day actually employed in carrying out the orders of the clerk of the board of education. Powers and duties.-The truant officer shall be vested with police powers, and shall have authority to enter workshops, factories, stores, and all other places where children may be employed, and do whatever may be necessary in the way of investigation or otherwise to enforce the last two paragraphs. The clerk of the board of education, upon the representation of the truant officer, shall institute proceedings against any officer, parent, guardian, person, or corporation violatiug any of the provisions of the last two paragraphs. The truant officer shall keep a record of his transactions for the inspection and information of the board of education and he shall make such reports to the clerk of the board of education as are required by him. 91. Reports of principals and teachers.-It shall be the duty of all principals and teachers of schools, public and private, to report to the clerk of the board of education of the district in which the schools are situated the names, ages, and residence of all pupils in attendance at their schools, together with such other facts as said clerk may require, in order to facilitate the carrying out of the last three paragraphs, and such report shall be made the last week of each month. It shall be the further duty of such principals and teachers to report to the clerk of the board of education all cases of truancy in their respective schools as soon after the offenses have been committed as practicable. 92. Proceedings in case of truancy.-On the request of the clerk of the board of education the truant officer shall examine into any case of truancy within his district, and warn the truant and his parents, guardian, or other person in charge, in writing, of the final consequences of truancy if persisted in. When any child between the ages of 8 and 14 years is not attending school without lawful excuse or in violation of the preceding paragraph, the truant officer shall notify that parent, guardian, or other person in charge of said child of the fact, and require such parent, guardian, or other person in charge to cause the child to attend some recognized school within five days of the day of notice; and it shall be the duty of the parent, guardian, or other person in charge of the child so to cause its attendance at some recognized school. Penalties imposed on parents, guardians, etc.-Upon failure to do so, the truant officer shall report the case to the clerk of the board of education, who shall make complaint against the parent, guardian, or other person in charge of the child in any court of competent jurisdiction in the district in which the offense occurs, for such failure, and upon conviction the parent, guardian, or other person in charge shall be fined not less than $5 nor more than $25, in the discretion of the court, the offense to be punishable as a falta; or the court may, in its discretion, require the person so convicted to give a bond in the penal sum of $100, with sureties to the approval of the court, conditioned that he or she will cause the child under his or her charge to attend some recognized school within five days thereafter, and to remain at such school during the term prescribed by law; and upon failure or refusal of any such parent, guardian, or other person to pay said fine or furnish said bond, according to the order of the court, then said parent, guardian, or other person shall be imprisoned in the proper jail not less than five days nor more than ten days. 93. When child is exempt.-When any truant officer is satisfied that any child compelled to attend school by the provisions preceding is unable to attend school because absolutely required to work at home or elsewhere in order to support itself or help support or care for others legally entitled to its support, who are unable to support or care for themselves, the truant officer shall report the case to the board of education, who may exempt such child from the provisions preceding. 94. Penalties.-Any officer or other person mentioned in the foregoing four paragraphs neglecting to perform any duty imposed upon him by these paragraphs shall be fined not less than $5 nor more than $20 for each offense. Any officer or agent of any corporation violating any of the aforementioned paragraphs, who participates or acquiesces in or is cognizant of such violation, shall be fined not less than $5 nor more than $20. Any person who violates any of the aforesaid paragraphs for which a penalty is not elsewhere provided shall be fined not more than $50. Jurisdiction. The correctional judge, or if the district has not a correctional judge then the municipal judge, shall have jurisdiction to try the offenses described in the aforesaid paragraphs, and his judgment shall be final. 95. Where law does not operate. This enforced attendance shall not be operative in any school district where there are not sufficient accommodations in the public schools to seat children compelled to attend the public schools under the provisions of the five preceding paragraphs. 96. Duty of commissioner of public schools.-It shall be the duty of the commissioner of public schools from time to time, whenever deemed advisable, to formulate and forward to boards of education throughout the island regulations and suggestions for the instruction and guidance of all persons, officers, superintendents, príncipals, teachers, and persons charged with the enforcement of the preceding six paragraphs or any of their provisions. TEACHERS' INSTITUTE. 97. Organization by board of superintendents.-It shall be the duty of the board of superintendents to organize in each province at least one teachers' institute, and more than one, if in the opinion of the board of superintendents one will not accommodate all the teachers of the province. 98. Number and salaries of instructors and lecturers.-The board of superintendents shall determine upon the number and salaries of instructors and lecturers of any institute and the length of each session of the institute, provided that no summer session shall continue less than four school weeks. Attendance of teachers necessary to collect vacation salaries.-Each teacher shall attend at least one complete session of the institute in order to obtain his salary during the vacation period. 99. Institute fund.-As a condition of attending the institute each teacher receiving less than $50 per month shall deposit once annually, with an individual to be designated by the board of superintendents, the amount of $3, and each teacher receiving more than $50 per month shall deposit $6, which shall help to form the institute fund. This fund shall be used to cover the necessary expenses of the institute and shall be expended and accounted for as directed in orders from time to time. If the expenses of the institute exceed in amount the institute fund, the unpaid balance shall be paid from the island revenues. If the institute fund for any year exceeds the expenses of the institute for that year, such excess shall go to form a sinking fund for the support of the institute. 100. Organization of institutes.-The board of superintendents shall at their regular meeting in October, 1900, decide upon a plan for the organization of the teachers' institutes of the island for the school year of 1900-1901 and submit the same to the secretary of public instruction and the military governor for approval as soon thereafter as possible. BOARDS OF EXAMINERS. 101. Plans for examination of teachers.—The board of superintendents shall at their regular meeting in October, 1900, decide upon a plan for the examination of the teachers of the island as to their qualification to teach, and shall present the same in writing to the military governor through the secretary of public instruction as soon thereafter as possible for his approval. 102. Certificate a requisite to employment of teacher.—After the approval and publication of the plan mentioned in the preceding paragraph, no person shall be employed as teacher in a common school who has not obtained from a board of examiners having competent jurisdiction a certificate of good moral character, and that he or she is qualified to teach such branches of study as the board of superintendents may decide upon and possesses adequate knowledge of the theory and practice of teaching. 103. All salaries and fines mentioned in this order shall be payable in United States currency or its equivalent. 104. This decree shall take effect from the date of its publication in the Gazette of Habana, and all provisions of law or orders in force when this decree takes effect which are inconsistent with any provision of this decree shall be held to be superseded by the latter. J. B. HICKEY, Assistant Adjutant-General. [Form 1.-For all school districts.] ENUMERATION RETURN TO THE CLERK OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION. Enumeration of unmarried youth between the ages of 6 and 18 years, and also between 6 and 8, 8 and 14, 14 and 16, and 16 and 18 years, in subdistrict No. district 1 of province of Cuba, taken under oath, and returned to the clerk of said board by the enumerator, during the two weeks ending on the fourth Saturday of March, 190-. I, solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will enumerate the unmarried school youth of subdistrict No. district of , province of -, Cuba, accurately and truly to the best of my skill and ability. -, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that the foregoing enumeration has been taken and returned accurately and truly to the best of my knowledge and belief, and that such list contains the names of all the youth so enumerated and no others. Subscribed in my presence and sworn to before me this day of Clerk of Board of Education. See paragraphs 81 to 87. 1 Insert "municipal" when a municipal district; "city" when city district of the first or second class. |