CONTENTS. Page. Letter of the Commissioner of Education to the Secretary of the Interior.. 5 9 Statistics of schools under the immediate control of educational department 13 15 16 Extract from the Report of the Commissioner of Education for 1872................ at Yedo.. 34 LETTER. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, BUREAU OF EDUCATION, Washington, D. C., April 20, 1875. SIR: I have the honor to submit the following reports of the movements now making throughout the Empire of Japan to introduce into that ancient country a system of public instruction corresponding to the systems in use in the western nations, and especially those of the United States. The appointment of Dr. Murray to the position of superintendent of schools and colleges in Japan lends an interest among American educators to his first official report; and the papers prepared by Mr. William E. Griffis, with the accompanying statistics from the Japan Mail, and by Dr. Stuart Eldridge, are interesting, as being the personal observations of American educators in Japan. I am indebted to the educational department of the Japanese government for the courtesy of an early copy of Dr. Murray's report and for permission to make use of it, and to the two gentlemen named for their kindness in placing the results of their experience at my disposal. The summary of the schoollaw, taken from the Annual Report of this Bureau for 1872, and the account of the condition of Japan immediately subsequent to the first establishment of schools under the law, taken from the excellent official, report of Mr. Watson, Her Britannic Majesty's secretary of legation in Japan, give, in connection with the previous papers, a comprehensive view of the condition of this remarkable educational movement. (See Appendix A.) I recommend the publication of these papers as a circular of information. Very respectfully, your obedient servant, Hon. C. DELANO, Secretary of the Interior. Approved, and publication ordered. JOHN EATON, Commissioner. C. DELANO, Secretary. |