Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1864-05-10
Ventilation In school Hou.e..

The terrible consequences of bad ventila-
ton in school housesis a subject on which
but very little is said, but upon which
very much might be said for the benefit of
the children who are crowded into narrow
contracted apartments. An experiment
was lately made in New York city show
ing how it is that children are often mur.
dered by the vicious system Of construct
ing school houses. A gallon OF air from
ward school was taken and subjected to
chemical analysis. The results sre made
known in the following from New York
paper:
A little vial on our desk, containing 8
couple Of table spoonsfuls Of water and
about twelfth Of an inch of white sedi
ment Rt the bottom, tells a curious story.
This white sediment shows how much
Of q deadly pOison - carbonic acid
gas-WsS lstelyfound contained in one gal
ion Of the air Of one of our ward school
rooms. This gallon Of air was taken into
a tight receptacle by Mr.. Oryin Abbott of
this city, and afterwards passed through
one pint Of lime water, when its carbonic
acid combining with the lime, was precip-
itsted in this white poWder-the carbonate
of lime. The story of this school room is
3 diluted version OF the famous story Of
the Black Hole Of Calcutta. The room is
just about sixteen feet square by ten feet
high, and has a door opening upon
an inner hall, two windows at one side,
and no ventilation except by these win
dows. In this little den are hsbitually
kept eighty-three children and q teacher
or two. This allows each soul thirty cubic
feet Of air, while from five to seven hun
dred feet is fair allowance. Ths conse
auence is an atmosphere foul even TO filth,
and absolutely poisonous. Mr.. Abbotts
experiment, roughly made, it is true, in
dicstes about three huDdreths Of esrbonie
acid gas as the hsbitual proportion in that
room, while TO good common air there is
no more than one part in 1000. 1t Is
we'll kneWn that while three or four per
cent. Of this gas constitutes the air an &C.
tual narcotic poison, q much less proper
ton produces very distinct depressing
and unheslthful effects. In another room
in this same school house, crowded with
L4Aee AuuuAeu anu elEhtJ-ANo pupAle HAo
their teachers little less than forty cubic
feet is the allowance. This is the same
as confning these unfortunate children
singly in tight boxes shout a yard each
way, for three hours st time. Now the
choice which the children have in this
case is little better than between slow sui
location and sudden death. For if the
windows Of such rooms are kept shut, the
the foul air slowly and steadily desdeDs
the vitality and shOrtens the lives Of the
victims and If the windows sre opened,
the cold air rushes in cascades upon the
unprotected little heads within, dIstribut-
ing colds and fevers with impartial fatal
ty. The windows are in fsct often kept
open, and the school room constantly ech
oes with the coughing chorus Of the chill.
dren. Such is one OF the reasons why hall
the children Of New York die bofore they
are five years cid, and why q child borr
and living in the city cannot, as the re-
corded average shows, expect to live be
yond its fifteenth year.