The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1873-07-10
Boston English High School.

On Ine tnlrd instant the argus published the
second editorial article ON the "Boston High
School, in which occurs this sentence: ''Some
time since, Mr., Woolson, one of the assistants
in this school, was suspended for furnishing a
boy and general inef5ciency." To us who have
had daughters under Mr.. Woolson's charge,
while Principal of the Portland Girls High
school, the last alleged cause of suspension
seems odd. 'Inefficiency'' is not among his
faults.
have read the Boston papers with some in
terest in this school matter, and find that Mr..
w. has not been suspended" at all, but has
had charge of bis school room and classes every
day since the investigation, the same as before
The following is copy of the vote of censure
passed by the school board on the sixth of June
as reported in the Boston Daily Advertiser of
the next day.
Order, That this board severely reprimand Moses
Woolson for cruel and unjustifable punishment of
boy under his care, in entire disregard of the rule
of this board that the said Woolson be, from this
date, placed upon probation, to continue in that po
stion until the committee the English High
School shall recommend the board otherwise to or
der.
The causes which led to this investigation
aud censure, are of long standing The death
of Mr.. Sherwin, the honored head master of
the school, occurred in 1868 OF g. The present
head master, Mr.. Cumston, was then an assist
ant in the school. He and several other sub
masters, among whom was Mr.. Woolson, were
put forward by their respective friends, for the
position. After avery warm canvass and a
heated discussion in the papers upon the mer-
its of the several candidates, Mr.. Cumston was
elected by one vote. Many friends of the
school and sevaraI nevsnaners urara Slow 70 no
quiesce in this selection of man to fill the
place of the lamented Sherwin. During this
canvass, Mr.. Woolson withdrew from the con-
test and left for the country before the elections
but many of his friends on the board, neyerthe-
less, voted for him. From that time there has
been an ill feeling and jealousy among the
teachers in the school. Another disturbing
cause was the promotion of Mr.. Woolson from
sub-master to master, about the same time,
over the heads of two or three senior sub-mas-
tiers, which was contrary to precedent. 1t was
therefore determined to GUST him from his place
for the first offence.
There is rule of the school that "all corpor
al punishment shall be administered with a
rattan in the presence of the head master" but
it was proved on the investigation that this rule
was disregarded by all the teachers Over
twenty cases of punishment being admitted by
the3different teachers of the school, who testi-
fed in the hearing.
1t seems that a son of Mr.. Skillings. a
wealthy lumber dealer, formerly of Maine. was
kept by Mr.. Woolson after school with Others
to make up their lessons. For an improper
answer, and what Mr.. W. had reason to sup
pose was false statement he seized the bow
by the collar and threw him on the floor. Ina
debate in the School Board Rev. Divine used
the sentence, "seized him by the throat"
probably this was from his habit of using scrin-
ture language.
The boy acknowledged his fault, and the
next day wrote note to Mr. W. asking to
be forgiven and and received into favor again.
which the teacher granted, and acknowledged
his own hasty action. This was in December
and not until February did the head master Get
hold OF it. The boys father knew nothing Of it
until the eStigatiOnwasordered in the meeting
of the school committee and reported in the nae
rcrrpo IIuvarcr,g 70 ~ rno pa
Guiding young Skilings, of their own motion
board to have Mr. W. retained in his nlaco
The father of the boy wrote request To tba
same effect. AT the meeting on the evening of
July LIST to reflect Mr.. Cumston, Dr. Lothron
said as reported in the Globe:
For two months, therefore, the hearing continued
further and other matters were soon introduced Gu
that, while nomnally, Mr.. Wooson was on trial ,h So
real issue was IN relation to the head-maser Things
went on In such manner that, If an outsider weSe
present at the hearings. he would be puzzled to
know what the point OF the Investigation was IS
tion to the head-master. '0-"-
And now an investigation is ordered on
charges preferred against Mr.. Cumston the
head master, after four Intellectual trials to re-
elect him to his place. A report. by sub
Hoo fhn o1,> e
are Mr.. Cumston's friends, has the following
admission of the truth of one of the cbaroes
against Mr. Cumston.
On one point only did he seem to shrink from an
examination, and that was in relation to sending
luence elections. Upon this point he refuses 70 an
swer questions.
At the same meeting Mr.. Munroe. another
member of the board, said:
The man ought not to hold the office single dav
will get his justification without an inyestoo
ton. There is one admission made in the renort |
which is sufficient to condemn him. Mr.. Cumston |
sent an assistant teacher in school hours to a SIM
posed politician to intrigue in the elections in pro
gess at the time. The speaker was willing to rest
the matter on just that one point.
In order to have thorough understanding of |
these school troubles it is necessary to recoiIect
that the members of the Boston school com.
mittee are not elected for their fitness by the |
city council like our committee but are elect |
ed at the annual municipal election ON the
same ballots with the other ward officers. and
in the wards where the foreign element pre-
walls, if not in others, they are taken from
among the bar-room politicians
The ArQus in the article first mentioned saws.
''all the papers having taken sides, one way or
the other, in the natter but it should have
said that the Post only defends Mr. Cumston.
probably from the facts that he is Democrat,
ana that one of the editors of that paper par
reg req relative of his. The AdUertiser Journal
oGs as, 1rogeIer, Transcript, Saturday EUening
G r. and Commonwealth, all have repeated
y pa9lisned editorial articles on the other side
1to,o,a rs an extract from an editorial in the
so great was the interest i'm the iss,,o i.,,oluod