school district, or any school district officers, have been or shall be instructed by a resolution of the district, at a meeting called for that purpose, to defend any action brought against them, or to bring or defend an action or proceeding touching any district property or claim of the district, or involving its rights or interests, or to continue any such action or defense, all their costs and reasonable expenses, as well as all costs and damages adjudged against them, shall be a district charge and shall be levied by tax. If the amount claimed by them be disputed by a district meeting, it shall be adjusted by the county judge of any county in which the district or any part of it is situated.

§ 509. Payment of costs, charges and expenses by vote of district meeting. Whenever such trustees or any school district officer shall have brought or defended any such action or proceeding, without any such resolution of the district meeting, and after the final determination of such suit or proceeding, shall present to any regular meeting of the inhabitants of the district, an account, in writing, of all costs, charges and expenses paid by him or them, with the items thereof, and verified by his or their oath or affirmation, and a majority of the voters at such meeting shall so direct, it shall be the duty of the trustees to cause the same to be assessed upon and collected of the taxable property of said district, in the same manner as other taxes are by law assessed and collected; and, when so collected, the same shall be paid over, by an order upon the collector or treasurer to the officers entitled to receive the same; but this provision shali 1.ot extend to suits for penalties, nor to suits or proceedings to enforce the decisions of the commissioner of education.

§ 510. Appeal to county judge. Whenever an officer mentioned in the last preceding section shall have complied with the provisions of said section, and the inhabitants shall have refused to direct the trustees to levy a tax for the payment of the costs, charges and expenses therein mentioned, it shall be lawful for him, then and there, to give notice orally and publicly, that he will appeal to the county judge of the county; and in case of his disability to act in the matter by reason of being disqualified, or otherwise, then to the district attorney of the county in which the school-house of said district is located, from the refusal of said meeting to vote a tax for the payment of said claim, and the inhabitants may, then and there, or at any subsequent district meeting, appoint one or more of the inhabitants of the district to protect the rights and interests of the district upon said appeal. And the officer be

fore mentioned shall thereupon, within ten days, serve upon the clerk of said district, or if there be no such clerk, upon the town clerk of the town, a copy of the aforesaid account, so sworn to, together with a notice, in writing, that on a certain day therein specified he intends to present such account to the county judge or to the district attorney, as the case may be, for settlement. And the clerk shall record such notice, together with the copy of the account, and the same shall be subject to the inspection of the inhabitants of the district. And it shall be the duty of the person appointed by any district meeting for that purpose, to appear before the county judge or the district attorney, as the case may be, on the day mentioned in the notice aforesaid, and to protect the rights of the district upon such settlement; and the expenses incurred in the performance of this duty shall be a charge upon said district, and the trustees, upon presentation of the account of such expenses, with the proper voucher therefor, may levy a tax therefor, or add the same to any other tax to be levied by them; and their refusal to levy said tax for the payment of said expenses, shall be subject to an appeal to the commissioner of education.

§ 511. Hearing before county judge. Upon the appearance of the parties, or upon due proof of service of the notice and copy of the account, the county judge shall examine into the matter and hear the proofs and allegations presented by the parties, and decide by order whether or not the account, or any and what portion thereof, ought justly to be charged upon the district, with costs and disbursements to such officer, in his discretion, which costs and disbursements shall not exceed the sum of thirty dollars, and the decision of the county judge shall be final; but no portion of such account shall be so ordered to be. paid which shall appear to such judge to have arisen from the wilful neglect or misconduct of the claimant. The account with the oath of the party claiming the same shall be prima facie evidence of the correctness thereof. The county judge may adjourn the hearing from time to time, as justice shall seem to require.

§ 512. Duty of trustees to carry out order. It shall be the duty of the trustees of any school district, within thirty days after service of a copy of such order upon them, or upon the district clerk, and notice thereof to them, or any two of them, to cause the same to be entered at length in the book of record of said district, and to raise the amount thereby directed to be paid, by a tax upon the district, to be by them assessed and levied in the same manner as a tax voted by the district.

ARTICLE 20

Compulsory Education

Section 530. Required attendance upon instruction.

531. Duties of persons in parental relation to children. 532. Unlawful employment of children and penalty therefor.

533. Punishment for unlawful employment of children. 534. School record and furnishing the same on applica

tion.

535. Attendance officers.

536. Arrest of truants.

537. Truant schools.

538. Enforcement of law and withholding the state moneys by commissioner of education.

§ 530. What children required to attend school. (Repealed by L. 1909, ch. 409, in effect May 20, 1909.)

Section repealed read as follows:

§ 530. What children required to attend school. A child under sixteen years of age, required by the persons in parental relation to such a child to attend upon lawful instruction at a school or elsewhere, upon which such child is entitled to attend, is lawfully required to attend such school. A child between eight and sixteen years of age, who is required by law to attend upon instruction, and is required by the persons in parental relation to such child, to attend upon lawful instruction either at a public school or elsewhere, and if such child is not required by the persons in parental relation to attend upon any instruction elsewhere, such child is lawfully required to attend a public school.

§ 530. Required attendance upon instruction. Every child between seven and sixteen years of age in proper physical and mental condition to attend school shall regularly attend upon instruction at a school in which at least the six common school branches of reading, spelling, writing, arithmetic, English language and geography are taught in English, or upon equivalent instruction by a competent teacher elsewhere than at a public school as follows:

1. Every such child between seven and fourteen years of age residing in a city or in a school district having a population of five thousand or more and employing a superintendent of schools shall so attend upon instruction the entire time during which the school attended is in session, which period shall not be less than one hundred and sixty days of actual school.

2. Every such child between fourteen and sixteen years of age, not regularly and lawfully engaged in any useful employment or

service as hereinafter provided, and residing in a city or in a school district having a population of five thousand or more and employing a superintendent of schools and to whom an employment certificate has not been duly issued under the provisions of the labor law shall so attend upon instruction the entire time. during which the school attended is in session.

3. Every such child between eight and fourteen years of age, residing elsewhere than in a city or school district having a popu lation of five thousand or more and employing a superintendent of schools shall so attend upon instruction as many days annually, during the period between the first days of October and the following June, as the public school of the district in which such child resides, shall be in session during the same period.

4. Every such child between fourteen and sixteen years of age, not regularly and lawfully engaged in any useful employment or service, as hereinafter provided, and residing elsewhere than in a city or a school district having a population of five thousand or more and employing a superintendent of schools, shall so attend upon instruction as many days annually during the period between the first days of October and the following June as the public school of the district in which such child resides shall be in session during the same period.

5. Every boy between fourteen and sixteen years of age, in a city of the first class or a city of the second class in possession of an employment certificate duly issued under the provisions of the labor law, who has not completed such course of study as is required for graduation from the elementary public schools of such city, and who does not hold either a certificate of graduation from the public elementary school or the preacademic certificate issued by the Regents of the University of the State of New York or the certificate of the completion of an elementary course issued by the education department, shall attend the public evening schools of such city, or other evening schools offering an equivalent course of instruction, for not less than six hours each week, for a period of not less than sixteen weeks or upon a trade school a period of eight hours per week for sixteen weeks in each school year or calendar year.

6. If any such child shall so attend upon instruction elsewhere than at a public school, such instruction shall be at least substantially equivalent to the instruction given to children of like age at the public school of the city or district in which such child resides; and such attendance shall be for at least as many hours of each day thereof as are required of children of like age at public schools; and no greater total amount of holidays and vacations shall be deducted from such attendance during the period such

attendance is required than is allowed in such public school to children of like age. Occasional absences from such attendance, not amounting to irregular attendance in the fair meaning of the term, shall be allowed upon such excuses only as would be allowed in like cases by the general rules and practice of such public school. (Thus amended and renumbered by L. 1909, ch. 409, in effect May 20, 1909.)

Amendment of 1909 renumbered and materially changed former section 531, which read as follows:

§ 531. Required attendance upon instruction. Every child between eight and sixteen years of age, in proper physical and mental condition to attend school, shall regularly attend upon instruction at a school in which at least six common school branches of reading, spelling, writing, arithmetic, English grammar and geography are taught, or upon equivalent instruction by a competent teacher elsewhere than at school, as follows: Every such child between fourteen and sixteen years of age, not regularly and lawfully engaged in any useful employment or service, and in cities of the first and second class such child to whom an employment certificate has not been duly issued under the provisions of the labor law, and every such child between eight and fourteen years of age, shall so attend upon instruction as many days annually, during the period between the first days of October and the following June, as the public school of the district or city in which such child resides shall be in session during the same period. Every boy between fourteen and sixteen years of age, in possession of the school record provided for in section five hundred and thirty-four of this chapter and who is engaged in any useful employment or service in a city of the first class or a city of the second class and who has not completed such course of study as is required for graduation from the elementary public schools of such city, and who does not hold either a certificate of graduation from the public elementary school or the preacademic certificate issued by the regents of the university of the state of New York or the certificate of the completion of an elementary school issued by the education department, shall attend the public evening schools of such city, or other evening schools offering an equivalent course of instruction, for not less than six hours each week for a period of not less than sixteen weeks in each school year or calendar year. If any such child shall so attend upon instruction elsewhere than at a public school, such instruction shall be at least substantially equivalent to the instruction given to children of like age at the public school of the city or district in which such child resides; and such attendance shall be for at least as many hours of each day thereof as are required of children of like age at public schools; and no greater total amount of holidays and vacations shall be deducted from such attendance during the period such attendance is required than is allowed in such public school to children of like age. Occasional absences from such attendance, not amounting to irregular attendance in the fair meaning of the term, shall be allowed upon such excuses only as would be allowed in like cases by the general rules and practice of such public school.

§ 531. Duties of persons in parental relation to children. 1. Every person in parental relation to a child between seven and sixteen years of age, in proper physical and mental condition to attend school, shall cause such child to so attend upon instruction in cities and school districts having a population of five thousand or above, as required by section five hundred and thirty of this act unless an employment certificate shall have been duly issued to such child under the provisions of the labor law and he is regularly employed thereunder.