Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1873-01-08
EDUCATIONAL MATTERS.
Our City Free SchoOls-Their Present
Condition.


On Yesterday we made call OIL Mr..
Baird, the obliging Principal of the city
free schools, and found him as ever willing
to oblige us with all the facts we wished,
and volunteered to accompany us on. our
round. We found the attendance to
be very good, and the scholars are Begin
ming to get over their fright of smallpox,
&c. The last months average attendance
was small, caused to some extent by actual
sickness among the children, such as chick
enpox and mumps, but to a great extent
by such foolish reports of the smallpox and
other dangerous contagious diseases being
among the scholars. We visited each
school, or class according to their number,
and found them as follows:
20 No. miss Mary e. Norvell, teache I
There are So scholars enrolled in this
school, yet the average attendance of last
month was only about 80.
No. 2-Mrs. Bowden, teacher. The num-
Der enrolled in this school is 40, while the
average attendance of the last month was
only about 25.
No. 3-Miss Mollie Hayes, teacher.
Seventy-four scholars have been enrolled
in this school, and the average attendance
of last month has also been very good, be-
ing about 20 pupils.
No. miss Norma McClanahan, teach
or. In this school 80 is the number enroll
ed, while the average attendance during
the past month has been only about 30.
No. 5-Miss Maggie Woodward, teacher.
The number enrolled in this school is so,
while the average attendance of the past
month has only been about 20.
No. 6-Miss Ida Lee, teacher. Seventy
four scholars have been enrolled in this
school, while only so has been the average
attendance of the past month";
No. Miss Lydie Braine, teacher. The
number enrolled in this school has been
SO, while the attendance of last month
was only about 40.
No. S-The Girls High School, Miss
Grace Kimball, teacher, assisted by Miss
Bette Ramsey. Mrs. Wicks also gives
two music lessons in this school every
week. The number enrolled is 60, while
the average attendance has only been
about 80.
No. 9-Bcys High School, S. A. Craig,
school is 81 and the average attendance
of the past month has only been
about 80.
No. 10-Mr. J. J. O'Shea, teacher. We
found here AZ enrolled and the average
attendance of last month about 40.
No. 11-Mrs. McNichols; teacher. 81
scholars are enrolled in this school, and
the average attendance of the past month
was 40.
No. 12-Miss Emma Lee, teacher. This
school has 81 enrolled, while the average
attendance of the past month has only
been about So.
No. 13-Mrs. Blanche Brooks, teacher.
The number enrolled is 81 and the average
attendance of the past month has been
about IS.
No. 14-Mrs. Harris, teacher, assisted by
Miss Alice Mason. Here LOG are enrolled,
and the average attendance Of the past
month has been about so.
[Note-The two last named schools, Mes.
Ii and IA, are the colOred schools at Lo-
gan's Chapel, Marble Alley, and the aver
age attendance is very creditable to both
teachers and scholars, as they are forced t.
make their way through mud ankle deep
to reach their school.
No. 15-Miss frankie e. Harris, teacher,
assisted by Miss Laura Brooks. 147 are
enrolled in this school and 125 has been
the average attendance of the past month.
This makes total enrolment in all the
city free schools of 026, and the total av-
erage attendance of the last month ?31
scholars. At our last report, November
9th, the average attendance was 1907,
above the enrolment of the
present month. There has been q great
falling off in the attendance of the schol-
ars during the past month, much Of which
was caused, as before stated by sickness,
yet in many instances, parents undoubted
Iy are much to blame. The children be-
came rather demoralized during the holt
days, and not being held strictly to their
duty by their parents many of them have
taken two weeks, instead of one for enjoy
ment, having for an excuse the foolish
rumors of smallpox being in the families
of some of the children. We are glad to
see, however, that these unfOunded rumOrs
are about dispelled, and that the indica-
tons, Judging from the attendance yes
terday, are that during the present month
the schools will again rise to the average
of November, if they do not
make gain on those figures. We regret
that our space is too limited to admit of q
more extensive notice of each school, but
would here state that all the teachers seem
to feel deep interest in popular educa-
ton, and particularly in the cultiva-
ting the minds of the children
placed under their immediate charge. 1t
is to be hoped that this good work of pop
ular education will go bravely on, and that
all our citizens will take deeper interest
in this matter. There are, doubtless, now
numbers of children who are not going to
any school, and who could be easily
brought into the free schools by little
cause. We would like to be able, at our
next visit to the schools. to chronicle the
enrolment of at least | 800 instead of the
present number of little over 1000.
DAILY METEOEOLOGICALH REPORT.
SIGNAL SERVICE U. S. ARMY,