Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/1061

 INSTRUCTION 1009

the Pontifical and Episcopal Courts, *c, 284 1. There were in 1911, 858 Evangelical pastors and ministers, and ?4 Jewish Rabbis.

The suppression of the religious corporations began for the old provinces in 1855, and was continued for the whole of the country by a law of July 7, 1866, and completed by the law of June 19, 1873, which extended the measure to the city and province of Rome. Of the monaatic edifices some were occupied by the State, others assigned to communes or provinces. The corporations of Lombardy were privileged by the treaty of Zurich, and their lands and houses were left to the disposal of their individual members. The administration of the revenue from the proceeds of land destined for charity or instruction now belongs to the communes ; that from monastic parish church property in Rome, to the parish churches ; that from property of foreign religious orders in Home (400,000 lire) to the Holy See ; while the remainder is administered by two institutes which pay the pensions and other dues, and provide (1) for beneficent work and for worship in Rome ; and (2) for worship in the rest of Italy.

Instruction.

The State regulates public instruction, and maintains, either entirely or in conjunction with the communes and provinces, public schools of every grade

Schools in Italy may be classified under four heads, according as they provide : (1) elementary instruction ; (2) secondary instruction — classical ; (3) secondary instruction — technical ; (4) higher education.

(I) Schools providing elementary instruction are of two grades. Religious instruction is given to those whose parents request it. Only the fouw-grade instruction is compulsory. Every commune must have at least one lower- grade school for boys and one for girls ; and no school with only one master should have more than seventy pupils. Higher-grade elementary schools are required in communes having normal and secondary schools, and in those with over 4, 000 inhabitants. In both grades the instruction is free. The age- limit of 6 to 9 exists for communes where there is no higher elementary school, but where there is such higher school, children are required to attend till they have completed the course of instruction, the compulsory age being thus raised to 12 years. This law provides that illiterate persons shall be under various disabilities.

(2)lSecondary instruction — classical — is provided in the ginnasi and licti, the latter leading to the universities.

(3) Secondary instruction — technical. This is supplied by the technical schools, technical institutes, and institutes for the mercantile marine.

(4) Higher education is supplied by the universities, by other higher institutes, and by special higher schools.

According to the census of 1911 the smallest percentage of illiterates above six years was in Piedmont, mate 91, female 12"8 (male and female 11*0) ; and the largest in Calabria, male 59"5, female 781 (male and female 59 '6). Since then there has been much improvement, and now there are -urcondari (arrondissements), e.g. Domodossola Pallanza, and Varallo in the province of No vara, and others in the provinces of Turin, Como, Cuneo, Jtc, where all young people twenty years of age can read and write.

1 In this toUl are not comprised the priests, monks, nuns, etc., engaged in e»Uc*tion (male*. 1,343, females, 3,f-60), or as nurses (males, 450, femaies, 3.147).