Daily American organ. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1856, 1854-12-29
Lectures at the Smithsonian Institution.
IcoNrISUED.

ARCHITECTURE OF SCH00L-HOUSE
Professor HART, of the Philadelphia High School,
took the stand on this subject, and delivered long
but interesting lecture, explaining It bya number
Of drawings and diagrams Of large size.
He commenced by dwelling ON the necessity Of
proper buildings, of their being properly lighted,
ventilated heated and the conyeniences necessary
to carry on well-conducted school. The Faculty
of the High School had long felt this, and, when II
was decided to erect a new building, they deter
mined to use all knowledge they could obtain on
the subject. Last September the building was 6n-
ished, and is a model for schoolhouses.
Then he described II minutcly. II was first pro-
posed TO build on a small back street. as there they
would be less disturbed by drays, &c, but II was
found, by experiment, that noises Of other kinds
caused more annoyance than they would expert
ence on greater thoroughfare. They built on
Broad street, upon lot $50 feet wide, and, as the
building was not 50 wide 1t left clear space Of 20
or 80 feet on each side, which would remain open
and ensure them abundance of light and air, more
so as the house fronted ON Broad street, and they
had rear ground of 20 feet. The cost of the lot
was SIT 900, cost Of the building $56, ,000--total
t75,000. The building Is three stories high, with
an observatory.
Hero he showed, by diagrams, the position Of
the basement. It Is divided In the middle by a
hall I6 feet wide, and on each side Of the hall three
rooms.
Here Is an Improvement worthy Of notice. 1t
is called the hat room. The wall Of this apart
ment Is covered with a row Of boxes ten inches
high and eighteen deep, and there are racks run
across the room filed with like boxes OF these
there arc over six hundred, and are numbered
Tho scholars, ENTER through this room, and each
deposits bis hat in the box whose number cores
ponds with his register number. There are also
umbrella boxes two and half feet deep, Mt an
angle Of l5 deg, calculated to hold twenty um.
brellas each there are twenty-five Of these, and
are numbered like the hat bores-their sianting
position drains the water from them into trough
plpced at the bottom. An assistant Is stationed
here 10 prevent disorder, and at nine o'clock pre-.
cisely the doors of this room are locked, and no
one is allowed TO enter again til the cosc OF the
school, without written permit from the teachers
There Is also large water trough for washing
and drinking, thus saving much running in and
out of the building. Here also Is the chemical la
boratory so arranged, with an inclined plane OF
seats that all the pupils can see the experiments
with ease. The retort for the generation Of nox-
ous gases is not built Is the usually, with
but three glass sides, and the back fixed In the
wall; but in this rctort there are four sides Of
glass 1t Is moveable, and whom experiments are
in progress, Il Is placed in the middle of the room,
so that all can sec. The room can accommodate
fifty scholars.
The haIl is sixteen feet wide on each Moor. On
the first floor tho space on one side of the hall
Is thrown into one long room, called tho Lecture
Room. This accommodates some $50 persons, ex-
elusive Of visiters Here the pupils and professors
assemble twice day for prayer, &c, and, being ac
cessble by three DOORS can be cleared in one minute
and half
From the first to the second floors are two STAIR
cases, five feet wide, with heavy baasters OF oak,
and rail Of mahogany, so substantial as to resist
any pressure in case Of panic or fire. From the
econd to the third floors there Is one stairway, but
this is 30 wide that the building can be cleared In
two and half minutes.
The large front door is the entrance Of the pro
fessors and visters, and the door IL apart
ment fitted up for tho reception OF visiters. The
pupils enter through the hat room. On the second
and third floors there are three rooms each side Of
the hail. which are used for lectures and recitations,
and accommodate fifty scholars ss a maximum,
forty as an average. s#
On the third floor is tho drawing room. This Is
a novel but admirable feature. II Ia used by the
Professor Of Drawing and Writing; Il lighted by a
skylight, and by windows on thu north, with shut
ters, 80 as 10 give any light wanted The decks
are arranged In circular FORM two circles, and
two outside arcs and arc built In the most sub