ALBERT O. RITCHIE, GOVERNOR 1057

(2) ''Public school" shall mean any day school conducted
within the State under the authority and supervision of a
duly appointed County Board of Education, and any educa-
tional institution supported by and under the control of the
State, such as the School for the Blind, the School for Feeble-
Minded, and the School for the Deaf..

(3) "Year" as used in this Act referring to the term for
school service of a teacher shall mean the same as "school
year" as defined in the General Laws of the State at the time-
when the school service in question was rendered, provided,,
however, that the retirement board may in special cases
determine what school service shall constitute the equivalent
of a specified period of service under this Act.

(4) "Interest," unless herein otherwise provided, shall
mean compound interest at such rate as shall be determined by
the retirement boards.

(5) Wherever the word "he" appears it shall be taken
to apply to females as well as males.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That the Maryland
teachers' retirement system, hereinafter called the retire-
ment system, is hereby established, to become effective on
August first, nineteen hundred and twenty.

SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That an association to
be known as the Maryland teachers' retirement association,
hereinafter called the retirement association, may be organized
by and among the teachers in the public schools of the State.
Membership in said association may be acquired under the
following conditions:

All teachers who shall serve in the public schools on or after
August first, nineteen hundred and twenty, may become mem-
bers of the association, upon application to and approval by a
majority of the retirement board and under such rules and
regulations as it may prescribe.

SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That the teachers who
desire to become members of the retirement association shall,
as soon as may be after August 1, 1920, adopt such form of
organization for said association as shall be prescribed by the
State Superintendent of Schools, the State Treasurer, and the
Insurance Commissioner; and thereafter such organization
shall be maintained for the purposes herein contemplated,
with such modifications thereof as may be adopted from time