Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VI.djvu/436

 428 EDUCATION was 221,042, of whom 93,329 were males and 127,713 females. The total wealth of the coun- try v as $30,068,518,507; the total income of schools, which may also be taken as the total expenditure, was $95,402,726. Of this amount $3,663,785 was from endowment, $61,746,039 from taxation and public funds, and $29,992,- 902 from other sources, including tuition. In the United States more than 17 per cent, of the adult males and 23 per cent, of the adult females are illiterate. In a total population of 38,- 558,371, 4,528,084 persons 10 years of age and over could not read, and 5,658,144, 10 years of age and over were unable to write, including 777,873 of foreign birth and 2,789,689 colored. It will thus be seen that a large portion of the illiteracy is due to those who prior to the civil war were slaves, a fact which is further illus- trated by a map published by the census to show the distribution of illiteracy by states. The following statement of illiteracy has been compiled by the bureau of education from the census of 1870: Aggregate population Total population, 10 years old and over Illiterate population, 10 years old and over Male population, 10 years old and over Illiterate males, 10 years old and over Female population, 10 years old and over Illiterate females, 10 years old and over Percentage of total illiterates to total population of 38,553,871 28,238,945 5,658,144 14,258,866 Percentage of male illiterates to male population of same age Percentage of female illiterates to female popula- tion of same age Total population in 18TO, 10-21 years old Illiterate population, 10-21 years old Male population, 10-21 years old Illiterate males, 10-21 years old I'Vmale population, 10-21 years old Illiterate females, 10-21 years old Percentage of illiterates, 10-21 years old, to popula- tion of same age Percentage of male illiterates to male population, both 10-21 years old Percentage of female illiterates to female popula- tion, both 10-21 years old Total male adults, 18TO Male adult illiterates Total female adults Female adult illiterates Percentage of male illiterate adults to total adults. Percentage of female illiterate adults to total females 13,970,079 8,054,256 20-04 18-26 21-87 9,692,945 1,942,948 4,815,865 984,741 4,877,080 958,207 20-05 20-45 19-65 9,448,001 1,619,147 2,096.049 17-15 23-05 Professional Education. The system of pro- fessional education in the United States, so far as there is any system, is greatly inferior to that of continental Europe. There instruction in medicine, law, and theology is usually pro- vided by faculties of the university, and is con- sequently regulated by the government. The conditions of admission and graduation are such as to secure thorough training. In the United States professional schools sometimes form de- partments of colleges, but are frequently inde- pendent of other educational institutions, and usually of the government. The courses of study ;uv shorter and less thorough than in Europe, while the requirements for admission and graduation are far less. The requisites for admission to American medical schools where any exist, can generally be met by the prepara- tion received in a common school or academy The usual course of study is three years, in which are included at least two courses of lectures, when the student receives the degree of M. D. In Italy the applicant for admission to the medical school must have completed the studies of the lyceum Greek, Latin, and Italian literature, history and geography, philosophy, chemistry, mathematics, natural history, me- chanics, and gymnastics. The term of study is six years. In France the standard of ad- mission is even higher ; and to obtain the de- gree of doctor, which alone secures the priv- ilege of full practice in medicine and surgery anywhere in France, the student must have completed a four years' course in one of the great faculties, or the courses in an ecole pre- paratoire for three and a half years, and at least one annual course in a faculty of medi- cine; spent two years in a hospital near the faculty or preparatory school ; and undergone three annual examinations and five on the completion of his studies, besides preparing a satisfactory thesis. The schools for educating physicians and surgeons for the army and navy are under the direct management of the government. In Austria a certificate of the gymnasium is essential for admission to the medical schools ; and a four years' course of study, confined almost exclusively to strictly professional branches, is requisite for admission to the final examinations which all candidates for the doctorate must pass. The course of study in the medicinisch-chirurgische Facultdt of the royal university in Vienna, the greatest school of medicine in Austria, and in some respects the greatest in Europe, comprises 10 semi-annual courses, in each of which nearly 100 courses of lectures and practical exercises, comprising not less than 9,000 lessons of one hour each in every branch of medicine and nearly every disease within the range of med- ical practice, are given by 35 full professors, 19 assistant professors, and 39 Privatdocenten. The collections, museums, libraries, laborato- ries, botanical gardens, &c., constitute an array of material aids no less remarkable; while the general hospital, with its numerous di- visions for all the important classes of disease, its thousands of beds, and superior facilities for a dozen or more distinct clinics on a large scale, surpasses all others in the world. The Prussian system of medical education is sim- ilar to that of Austria. In Great Britain ad- mission to the medical schools is preceded by a thorough examination. The course of in- struction is four years, two of which must have been spent in attending the medical and surgical practice of a general hospital having not less than 80 patients. In the Italian uni- versities a student is required to study law for five years in order to obtain the degree of doctor, and as a condition of admission he must possess the certificate di licenza (equiva- lent to an American A. B.), and pass an oral and written examination in Italian and Latin literature, ancient and modern history, and