school, etc. To facilitate the work of making the annual report, clerks should see that the register is properly kept and the footings made at the close of the term. Section 460 provides a remedy, a resort to which may be had in case the teacher refuses to perform his duty.

The state superintendent has devised a "final report" card in double postal card form, which the teacher in charge of the school during the last term must fill out. This card gives in duplicate all the items relating directly to the school, demanded in the annual report of the district clerk. One part of this card is sent by the teacher to the county superintendent immediately after the close of the school for the year, and the other part is sent to or placed in the hands of the district clerk. The clerk should not fail to demand that this card shall be completely filled out by the teacher closing the school year. He will then be able to make a full school report to the town clerk without any difficulty. The clerk's annual report must contain an exact summary of the financial report which section 444 requires the treasurer to make at the annual meeting. This report includes all items of receipts and all items of expenditures made during the year ending on the thirtieth day of June preceding. The proper test of its correctness consists in comparing the sum of the items of receipts with the sum of the items or expenditures. Their difference should equal the amount of money on hand on the date mentioned above. Unless this is true, the statement is wrong, and should be corrected before transferring it to the report blank.

Reports should be in the hands of town clerks as early as the fifteenth of July. Any failure to make the report within the time specified, results in great inconvenience to the officers through whose hands it must pass, and subjects the school district to the risk of forfeiture of its claim to public money. When the failure to comply with the requirements of the law relating to the annual report is due to wilful neglect of the clerk, he becomes personally liable to the district for the loss suffered in consequence of his neglect. (See section 498.)

To entitle a district to share in the apportionment of the school fund income, it must be shown that at least eight months' school, of twenty days' each, taught by a legally qualified teacher, was maintained during the preceding year. Legal holidays are included. These are New Year's day, the twenty-second of February, the thirtieth of May, the Fourth of July, Labor day, Christmas day, and Thanksgiving day appointed by national or state authorities. Section 2577, W. S., provides that whenever a legal holiday falls upon Sunday, the succeeding Monday is a legal holiday. When a legal holiday occurs on Saturday or during vacation, it cannot be counted as a day taught. (See comment on section 459.)

Sec

Reports; town clerks to make to county superintendents. tion 463. Each town clerk shall, on or before the first day of August in each year, make and transmit to the county or district, superintendent of the county or district in which his town is situated two copies of a report, stating:

(1) The whole number of school districts separately set off within the town, and the number of parts of joint districts in which the schoolhouses belonging thereto are located in his town.

(2) The districts and parts of districts from which reports shall have been made within the time limited for that purpose.

(3) The length of time a school shall have been taught in each such district or parts of districts.

(4) The amount of public money received in each.

(5) The number of children taught in each and the number of children over the age of four and under the age of twenty years residing in each.

(6) The whole amount of money received in the town for school purposes since the date of the last preceding report setting forth separately the amount received from the state through the county treasurer, the amount levied by the county board, and the amount raised by the town at its annual meeting in towns where the township system of school government has been adopted.

(7) The amount of money raised by district tax for school purposes. (8) The manner in which said moneys have been expended and whether any and what part remains unexpended, with such other in. formation as the state superintendent may require and as may be reported to him by the district clerks. (1907 c. 185)

This chapter requires the town clerk to send two copies of his annual report to the county superintendent instead of one as heretofore. After the county superintendent has verified the statements as filed by the town clerk from the reports of the school district clerks sent to him, one copy of this report is to be forwarded to the state superintendent by the county superintendent.

The town clerk should, before sending the two copies of his report to the county superintendent, carefully add all columns of figures, not only up and down but crosswise in order to prove their correctness. The financial statements must "balance"-that is the sum of money remaining in the treasuries of the districts in the town at the close of the year must be the difference between the amount received from all sources and the total amount paid out. If this does not prove to be the case on the "trial balance," the error can be discovered by adding crosswise the amounts expended and received as given in each district report. The county superintendents are appreciative officers and they are warm in their expressions of praise for the town clerk who sends in a correct report showing the condition of the schools and the school fund in his town for the year.

In towns which have adopted the "township system of school government," the report required in the foregoing section will be made by the "secretary of the town board of school directors, as provided in section 537 of the Wisconsin statutes, upon the same blanks as are used by town clerks in other towns." The township system, however, is abolished by chapter 388, laws of 1911, and after June 30, 1912, only the district system will be in vogue.

Superintendent's report. Section 464. Each county superintendent shall, on or before the fifteenth day of August in each year, make and transmit to the state superintendent a report in writing, setting forth the whole number of towns in his district, distinguish

ing those from which the required reports have been made to him by the town clerks, and containing an abstract of their reports, and also embracing an abstract of the annual report of the secretary of each free high school in such district and of each secretary of town board of school directors of towns having the township system of school government, and of the clerk of each incorporated village and city under his supervision. Each county superintendent shall also, within the time above mentioned, make and deliver to the county clerk and to the county treasurer a written statement of the whole number of children in each town, village and city under his supervision over the age of four and under the age of twenty years returned from the districts which have maintained schools for six [eight] or more months during the past year as appears from the reports of town clerks.

Reports from cities and villages. Section 465. The clerk of each city and village or the clerk of the board of education of each city and village under the jurisdiction of the county superintendent shall, within the time prescribed, make and transmit to him the reports required by section 463; and in all cities having a superintendent of schools and which are not under the jurisdiction of a county superintendent, such superintendent of schools shall make the annual report required by said section directly to the state superintendent; and in such cities having no superintendent of schools such report shall be made by the clerk of the board of education thereof.

The clerks of cities (under county superintendents) and of villages use the same blanks as town clerks and compile the reports of the district clerk or clerks.

Blanks and amendments to laws. Section 466. The state superintendent shall, on or before the first day of June in each year, furnish to each clerk, superintendent or other officer by whom a report should be made, blank forms upon which such officers shall make their annual reports; and whenever any amendments shall be made to the provisions of this chapter he shall furnish a copy of such amendments to every school district in the state.

DUTIES OF TOWN, VILLAGE AND CITY OFFICERS AS TO PUBLIC INSTRUCTION.

Clerk's duties. Section .467. It shall be the duty of the town

clerk:

1. To report to the county superintendent within ten days after his election or appointment his name and post office address, and likewise the name and post office address of each district clerk within ten days after the same are filed in his office.

See Form No. 28.

2. To see that the annual reports of the several district clerks are made correctly and in due form; to file and safely keep all reports whatsoever made to him and all orders and notices of the town board relative to any school district.

3. To record such description of school districts, and such orders concerning the organization, alteration or dissolution thereof as shall be made by the town board.

4. To make and keep in his office a map of the town, showing the exact boundaries of all the school districts therein as appear from the records on file, and when a new district is formed to make and furnish a map thereof to the district clerk.

5. To apportion the school money collected by the town and that received from the state for the several school districts of the town on the third Monday of March each year, or as soon as the same shall be collected or received by the town treasurer, to the several districts and parts of districts within the town as provided in these statutes. See Form No. 27.

Further duties of the town clerk in regard to the apportionment of school money will be found in sections 558 and 559.

Treasurer's duties.

town treasurer:

Section 468. It shall be the duty of the

1. To apply for and receive from the county treasurer all moneys apportioned for the use of common schools in his town and to pay the same together with all moneys collected in the town for the support of the schools, to the treasurers of the districts entitled to receive them upon the order or apportionment of the town clerk.

2. To pay to the district treasurer on demand all school district taxes raised in each district and collected by him, and the amount of all school district taxes returned to the county treasurer of his county as delinquent, whenever the same shall have been paid to him by said county treasurer or whenever he shall receive credit from the county treasurer for such delinquent tax or any part thereof on account of any demand or claim due from such town to such county.

3. On or before the second Monday of March in each year to certify to the town clerk the amount of school money in his hands to be apportioned by said clerk, and immediately upon the receipt of any money from the school fund income to certify the same to the said clerk for apportionment.

4. On the second Monday in June in each year to make and forward to the clerk of each school district in whole or in part in his own town a certified statement of the amount of money paid by the town treasurer during the year next preceding to such district treasurer, specifying the date and amount of and the account upon, which each such payment was made. (1901 c. 119)

5. If the county treasurer shall neglect or refuse to pay over the school money which by law should be paid to the town treasurer, he shall commence and prosecute an action on the official bond of such county treasurer for the recovery of such money.

The town treasurer shall hold, subject to the order of the several district treasurers of his town, all district taxes collected by him. Also all money raised by taxes levied upon the town by the county board of supervisors, and all money raised by the town in addition thereto, and pay the same over to the several district treasurers, according to the apportionment made by the town clerk under the law. He will also receive from the county treasurer the amount apportioned by the state superintendent to his town, out of the income of the school fund, and pay the same over to the district treasurers, according to the apportionment made by the town clerk. The town treasurer shall also receive all money paid on account of delinquent taxes, and pay the same over to the proper district treasurers. No school taxes except delinquent taxes will be returned, if the law is complied with.

It is the duty of the town treasurer to notify the town clerk of any money which he holds subject to apportionment by said town clerk, and to inform district treasurers promptly of any funds in the town treasury belonging to the respective districts.

District treasurers are not required to accept any taxes or school funds from the town treasurer in anything but cash.

The certificate required to be made on or before the second Monday in March, in each year, must state specifically the several amounts received from town and county tax, and the amount of income unapportioned which remains in the town treasury; it must also include any money apportioned the previous year, which has not been paid over to the district treasurers. Reference is here made to section 557.

The purpose of the certified statement to the district clerk of the amount of money paid by the town treasurer during the year next preceding, to the district treasurer, is to give the district clerk the data upon which settlement with the district treasurer can be made in time for report at the annual meeting. As the annual meetings are now held on the first Monday in July, the statement should be furnished earlier than the law now demands. The treasurer can not lawfully charge or retain any fee or percentage on any money which he pays out, or which comes into his hands from any state apportionment or from any donation or loan from any source, See sections 4549-4550,